South Korea has distanced itself from a UN initiative to impose punitive sanctions on its northern neighbour, increasing pressure to find a diplomatic solution to the missile row. After North Korea test-fired seven missiles last week, Japan formally introduced a UN resolution, co-sponsored by the United States, Britain and France, to impose sanctions against Pyongyang's missile programme. But in the face of strong opposition from Security Council members China and Russia, the senior US envoy for North Korea said on Sunday he backed Beijing's proposal for talks.For its part, South Korea questioned whether UN sanctions would help resolve the latest row or make the region any safer. "For the time being, we do not have clear grounds or reasoning that these sanctions will work for preventing any missile proliferation, or any factors that destabilise the regional stability," Song Min-soon, the presidential national security adviser, told Reuters.
| This is good news. Seriously. We learn, better and better, who are friends are (Japan, Australia) and aren't (S Korea); who's willing to use a cats' paw to diddle with us (China, Russia), and so on. Bring home all but a brigade of 2ID, move that brigade to Pusan, move the air to Okinawa, Darwin and Guam, and work like heck with the Japanese to perfect our ballistic missile defense system. South Korea just isn't worth it. Demonstrate that to the Chinese in a convincing way and they have no remaining reason to keep Kimmie around. |