News Response 21-7-2013

Title: North Korea gets world in a panic, even without trying
Date: 18th July,2013
Source: The Times

Feedback: This is about North Korea hauled 240 tons of weapons to Cuba which caused an international uproar. Cuba's foreign ministry has dismissed international concerns and said those 240 tons of weapons are defensive which require repair. However there are 10000 tons of brown sugar used to cover the illicit consignment of weapons, the saying of Cuba's foreign ministry is doubted. This is not the first time that North Korea put the world in a panic, North Korea has helped countries like Iran and Pakistan develop a nuclear capability and fired missiles over South Korea and Japan. Many experts believe that North Korea puts the world into chaos in an attempt to obtain benefits and strengthen her international status. Andrei Lankov who is a professor of Korean studies at Seoul's Kookmin University points out that the major concerns of North Korea are her own political and physical survival. As in 1994, there were re-start talks between US and North Korea when North Korea threatened to withdraw from nuclear non-proliferation agreement and engulf Seoul. During the talks, US promised offering the regime half a million tons of oil, two free proliferation-resistant nuclear reactors and large-scale shipments of food aid. Therefore he believes that North Korea will be weakened if she is crippled by sanctions and hindered by dysfunctional economy, and if she does not threaten the world, the world will have more peace.

  Mysterious, selfish, aggressive, obsolete, these are the adjectives I think of instantaneously when I heard of North Korea. North Korea still does not open her country and keeps on her totalitarian rule which is so mysterious and obsolete as her development is so slow that there is no tall and modern buildings, people wear simple and old-fashioned clothes, old cars etc. There are many times the world is jittery because of North Korea's testing of nuclear missiles and other incidents like this news mentioned, these show North Korea is so selfish and aggressive that she only considers herself. In my opinion, I think North Korea can not put the world in a panic again because other countries may not be able to bear her again and relative to the developments of other countries, North Korea has no possibility to win in the war if North Korea wants to declare a war to other countries. It is because North Korea has slow development and relies on the food aid and there is no quick economic development to support her nuclear weapons projects, all these are her weaknesses and will hinder her much when she comes to war. Actually I really do not understand why North Korea still keeps her totalitarian rule even she gets so many weaknesses. I think she should act like China in the 1980s, opening her market and modernize the country, maybe North Korea can be the second China. Of course North Korea needs to give up her totalitarian rule and thought of putting the world into chaos then she can develop her country by doing trade with other countries, strengthening her country and the world can have peace.