Sam Dealey

North Korea Belongs on the State Department Terror List

January 21, 2009 RSS Feed Print

By Sam Dealey, Thomas Jefferson Street blog

As Team Obama sifts through the debris, one Bush policy worth immediate reversal was the decision to remove North Korea from the State Department's terror list. As the AP picks up today:

North Korea is willing to give up its nuclear weapons if President Barack Obama agrees to conditions imposed by the communist regime, including establishing formal diplomatic relations between the two countries, a pro-Pyongyang newspaper said.

"It is too early to predict whether the Obama administration will endorse the North's nuclear possession or try to realize denuclearization through normalization of relations," the paper said. "But what is sure is that the North side is ready to deal with any choice by the enemy nation."

No need to convene a Cabinet meeting on this one. Consult Merriam-Webster:

Terrorism n: the systematic use of terror esp. as a means of coercion.

Tags:
State Department,
North Korea,
Obama administration,
nuclear weapons,
terrorism,
national security terrorism and the military,
foreign policy

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Hmm you are right the UN must take action and do another military operation like a coalition against north koran dictatorship like in iraq and is the U.S. even aware of the threat of noth korean army and its danger to the international community or is it that the US finally met its match in terms of military power or are the US people even aware of how animalistic treatment is given to the citizens of Pyongyang and all north koreans ... Terror is one thing , the people affected is another

-L3 bataan montessori school

-Montessorian Voice

Leonardo Zabala the third 4:55AM January 22, 2009

North Korea belongs on the list of nations that support terrorism! No Doubt! The best policy would be to ignore them. That is the greatest insult. You can ignore then, but still be aware of all that the North is doing. They love to deal in brinkmanship but it only works if someone doesn't call their bluff. They, the North Koreans, know that any attempt to start another war will lead to the distruction of their government, and with nuclear weapons the strike against them will have to be massive and unrelenting. There is no dealing with them. They have no reason or desire to compromise. They only take what they can and prepare for the next situation to coerce and take more. They have not given up anything. The tours to Kaesang and Diamond mountain were money makers to the North Koreans. Sout Korea received nothing substantive from them. The Industrial center in Kaesang pours money into North Korea and cheap goods go to South Korea. For North Korea it is all about money, but they will cut off their nose to spite their face.

John T. Stephens 1:08AM January 22, 2009

Sam Dealey

Sam Dealey

Sam Dealey is a contributing editor at U.S. News & World Report and Reader's Digest. He has written for many publications, including Time, GQ, the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal.

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