...and we already elected somebody who we'd all like to have a beer with...and look at how that turned out....
At least his avatar is well chosen. A little wishful thinking, IQ-wise, but in the right direction. Hell, the right is even out there starting a drumbeat for Trump to win the Nobel Peace Prize. Trump. Talk about failing upward all your life.
He continued the Bush- and Obama-era policies of isolation and economic sanctions. They give us something to negotiate with.
Sure. And then he upped the pressure 10x harder than both of the previous administrations and the little guy folded. Its called taking control..
It's funny you think achieving your military goals (getting working nukes) and then using that to step towards your long-stated economic goal is "folding".
What, exactly, do you disagree with? You could have looked at this 5 or 10 years ago and predicted this part. The whole reason we didn't want him to get nukes was to prevent him from getting leverage. What exactly did you think was his reason for trying to get nukes? Do you think it's a coincidence he announced an end to testing when ... he no longer needed to do tests? What do you think NK has given up thus far due to Trump pressure? That's not to say Trump has done anything wrong here - NK has been on a steady pace to get nukes for 15-20 years and this just happens to be when it finally happened. Nothing Clinton, Bush, Obama, or Trump have tried has worked to stop it. The real test for the administration and the rest of the world will be in negotiating economic terms from here.
Good post Major. I believe the pro-Trump aspect in these negotiations are overplayed. Personally I find this akin to Obama capturing Osama Bin Ladne. The reality is the Bush administration was very instrumental in the capture of Bin Laden just as the Obama administration was very instrumental in bringing us to the pivotal point with the Korea conflict. At this point we can debate whether the high pressure from the Trump administration would differ from a Hillary administration and if we would be at the same point as we are currently at. I do believe the world is not sure how to handle Trump vs a very predictable Hillary. My belief is if Hillary won, we would not be at the same stage of the game as we are currently with NK. They would have dragged the shenanigans on for another four year to build leverage. The troop buildup and plans for occupation in NK were happening long before the 2016 elections, regardless of outcome of the election.
I think the biggest difference in what allowed this negotiation is the change in leadership in South Korea. The former now convicted South Korean President was against any daylight in having a peace treaty on the table.
Sorry if this is a dumb question, but by agreeing to peace with the south, doesn't NK lose some of the leverage they gained by acquiring nukes? Now that they have them, why not keep saber-rattling to bring a strong hand to the negotiation table?
You're kind of seeing it backwards. NK is a state sponsor of terrorism who regularly threatens war. All of a sudden a bunch of you think everything has changed and NK has seen the light. Or maybe a bunch of you, like with most things, don't know the history and how we got here. You also seem to preclude the idea that both sides are lying about vital aspects of this "peace". It would be far from the first time either government turned out to be a bunch of liars.
