News Analysis |
US envoy to the UN, Nikki Haley has warned North Korea of destruction if it does not stop its reckless behavior because such a behavior forces the US and its allies to take measures to defend themselves.
“We have pretty much exhausted all the things that we can do at the Security Council at this point,” Haley told CNN’s State of the Union. The statement comes a day after Kim Jong Un expressed his desire to achieve his nuclear aims, which revolved around attaining military parity with the US.
North Korea will not lose them but if it feels more insecure, it may use them. Increasing the rhetoric has not worked; it is high time to give constructive dialogue a chance if an armageddon has to be averted
Haley said that he had no qualms in handing over the matter to the Pentagon. “We’re trying every other possibility that we have, but there’s a whole lot of military options on the table,” she said, reiterating her remarks along similar lines last week.
Read more: Pyongyang does what it says: One more missile flies over Japan!
Her remarks supplemented President Trump’s tweet on Sunday. The topman who has time and again tweeted and spoken on using punitive military measures took to Twitter to take a dig at his Korean counterpart on Sunday. He tweeted: “I spoke with President Moon of South Korea last night. Asked him how Rocket Man is doing. Long gas lines forming in North Korea. Too bad!.”
The tensions saw an upsurge when Trump launched his Twitter attacks on Kim last month, to which the latter responded by threats to Guam, IRBM launch over Japan and the test of the Hydrogen Bomb.
Analyses on the issue point out to the fact that Kim has thrown the burden of escalation in the US. Kim responds when he feels vulnerable; threats are followed by tests and launches
Tensions have escalated even after the imposition of UNSC sanctions on North Korea, with the reclusive country not only threatening Japan and the US but also launching a missile over Japan last week.
Haley who had earlier said that DPRK is begging for war asserted: “If North Korea keeps on with this reckless behavior, if the United States has to defend itself or defend its allies in any way, North Korea will be destroyed, and we all know that, and none of us want that.”
Read more: Pyongyang slapped with sanctions: Will they work this time?
She also said that military options are being given serious thoughts because Kim is reckless and he poses threats to the US and its allies. “None of us want war. But we also have to look at the fact that you are dealing with someone who is being reckless, irresponsible, and is continuing to give threats not only to the United States but to all their allies, so something is going to have to be done,” she added.
Tensions have escalated even after the imposition of UNSC sanctions on North Korea, with the reclusive country not only threatening Japan and the US but also launching a missile over Japan last week
Analyses on the issue point out to the fact that Kim has thrown the burden of escalation in the US. Kim responds when he feels vulnerable; threats are followed by tests and launches; the more the fear the more he will act. Apparently, Kim is neither deterred nor compelled while effectively kickstarting the process of decoupling the US and its allies.
Haley was supported by Lt Gen McMaster, the NSA. After earlier saying that military options are on the table, he said: “Kim is going to have to give up his nuclear weapons because the president has said he’s not going to tolerate this regime threatening the United States and our citizens with a nuclear weapon”.
Read more: Pyongyang warns Washington of ‘pain and suffering’
What the three-star general didn’t realize is that there is no incentive for Kim to denuclearize; moreover, neither China nor Russia will go the extra mile to make that happen. Kim wants to augment his nuclear program at all cost. If anything, as a weaker nuclear state, North Korea will not lose them but if it feels more insecure, it may use them. Increasing the rhetoric has not worked; it is high time to give constructive dialogue a chance if an armageddon has to be averted.