http://www.reuters.com/article/us-northkorea-usa-idUSKBN18113D
North Korea on Friday accused the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency and South Korea's intelligence service of a plot to attack its "supreme leadership" with a bio-chemical weapon and said such a "pipe-dream" could never succeed.
Tension on the Korean peninsula has been high for weeks, driven by concern that North Korea might conduct its sixth nuclear test or test-launch another ballistic missile in defiance of U.N. Security Council resolutions.
Reclusive North Korea warned this week that U.S. hostility had brought the region to the brink of nuclear war.
The North's Ministry of State Security released a statement saying "the last-ditch effort" of U.S. "imperialists" and the South had gone "beyond the limits".
"The Central Intelligence Agency of the U.S. and the Intelligence Service (IS) of south Korea, hotbed of evils in the world, hatched a vicious plot to hurt the supreme leadership of the DPRK and those acts have been put into the extremely serious phase of implementation after crossing the threshold of the DPRK," the North's KCNA news agency quoted the statement as saying, referring to the North by its official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
"A hideous terrorists' group, which the CIA and the IS infiltrated into the DPRK on the basis of covert and meticulous preparations to commit state-sponsored terrorism against the supreme leadership of the DPRK by use of bio-chemical substance, has been recently detected."
(Score: -1, Flamebait) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday May 06 2017, @04:47PM (1 child)
Just wait, Trump is on his way to grab Nork pussy.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday May 06 2017, @05:07PM
At least his hand will fit in there.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by kaszz on Saturday May 06 2017, @04:56PM (19 children)
If NK don't develop nukes they get invaded. If they do develop nukes the leadership might be killed. Tough choice.
And if the countries re-unit it will be complicated. The German unification was probably a lot easier.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday May 06 2017, @05:03PM (1 child)
Amish Country can't possibly exist within the US because the cultural difference is too great. Amish are LUDDITES and every American is an appy apper who apps APPS! Apps!
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday May 06 2017, @06:44PM
Almost. Amish Country exists just fine because everybody knows that Americans are LUDDITES at heart. Modern app appers know that ONLY apps can app apps!
Apps!
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday May 06 2017, @05:11PM (14 children)
If NK don't develop nukes they get invaded.
It might have looked like that after Iraq.
But that underestimates China's interest in keeping NK autonomous.
A reunified Korea means a high likelihood of US troops on China's border and that is a big deal to China.
So China has a strong interest in keeping NK as is. That means they are safe from invasion. But it also means China actively discourages peaceful reunification efforts.
(Score: 2) by kaszz on Saturday May 06 2017, @05:15PM (13 children)
Then they could quit the nuclear thing. And the question then becomes.. what is all the fuss about?
(Score: 2, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday May 06 2017, @05:30PM (7 children)
Internal DPRK politics.
They are super independent.
It is like their religion, its called Juche. [wikipedia.org]
That fanaticism warps their understanding of their place in the world.
Even if the young Kim isn't deluded about geopolitics he still has to play along because the power structure has Juche at the core. If he fucks with it, he jeopardizes his position (and his life).
That's why when China recently said, "We are halting all coal purchases until you chill out" [reuters.com] he said, "FUCK YOU FUCK YOU FUCK YOU FUCK YOU FUCK YOU!!!!!" [aljazeera.com]
(Score: 3, Insightful) by BK on Saturday May 06 2017, @07:10PM (6 children)
OTOH, the US is perfectly happy to leave the status quo intact so long as it's a local thing. But 'Un has a stated desire to be able to strike the USA directly so the pressure's on.
If the DPRK were repeatedly threatening to destroy Bejing or Shanghai, DPRK would already have the independence of Tibet.
...but you HAVE heard of me.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday May 06 2017, @07:48PM (5 children)
The DPRK is not at war with China.
They are at war with the US.
We never signed a peace treaty,just an armistice.
(Score: 2) by BK on Saturday May 06 2017, @08:29PM (3 children)
Interesting 'fact'. Another is that the USA never actually 'declared war' on DPRK. Not that such declarations mean much anyway... but if we're being technical... Maybe better to say that neither side declared peace?
Regardless of its philosophical underpinnings, DPRK's actions have increasingly made resolving this a matter of self defense for the USA. USA's involvement isn't driven by its usual reasons for intervention -- disruption of trade routes or, more recently, disruption of oil supply. It sure seems like so long as DPRK only threatened allies ROK and Japan, USA was content to let rest the status quo.
...but you HAVE heard of me.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday May 06 2017, @09:30PM
> It sure seems like so long as DPRK only threatened allies ROK and Japan, USA was content to let rest the status quo.
You make it seem like all threats are equal.
Nukes were not previously an option. Yes they tested them, but they had not miniaturized them sufficiently to put them on a missile.
They still have a few more years of development [reuters.com] before they will have a missile than can they can hit the US with.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by n1 on Saturday May 06 2017, @09:42PM (1 child)
From what i've seen, the rhetoric hasn't changed much with the new Kim in power, they've always been about 'merciless retaliation' should they be invaded or be attacked, and I don't think that's changed, except less emphasis on the retaliation element of the statements when they're covered in the western media. They are developing their capabilities... Much like every other nation with a large military. All the nuclear powers have the capability to destroy humanity, or just their adversaries should the mood strike. This has been the case for decades, but it doesn't stop continual investment and refinement into new, bigger and better ways to annihilate the enemy/everyone in different ways.
There is a bigger change in optics of what's happening in the US and interested parties may have seen this as an opportunity to rattle their sabers a little harder when we have a new set of figureheads in office, who seem easily lead. Taking on North Korea has a wealth of opportunities for arms manufacturers and foreign policy think tanks.
In my opinion, that is where the real change has come, and the renewed focus on North Korea, an opportunity in the shifting US political landscape to change this decades long stalemate. There is huge economic and military opportunity in unifying Korea by force and completely removing the tyrannical regime. And it's a relatively easy sell since the lack of human rights and internal repression in North Korea is well documented and essentially completely unchallenged, even by China, their strongest ally.
I've been following North Korea to some degree for the last 10 years and reading the actual quotes coming out of the country, nothing much has really changed in their rhetoric and saber rattling, it's just being reported on more and quoted selectively for dramatic effect.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday May 07 2017, @06:56AM
You can't honestly say you've been following north korea and have not noticed changes. Things have changed a lot, in some ways the country is a lot more open. With cell phones... but only the hands of the elites. Also the recent expansion of the non-party business elite class. Oh and the aggressive pursuit of ICBMs, being now well on track to develop the ability to strike the USA.
No everything is different I have heard almost no expert analysis that reads anything like you assessment.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday May 06 2017, @11:36PM
The DPRK is not at war with China.
They are at war with the US.
We have always been at war with Eastasia.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Saturday May 06 2017, @08:33PM (4 children)
Then they could quit the nuclear thing. And the question then becomes.. what is all the fuss about?
Well, there's China on North Korea's border. A nuclear deterrent would work pretty well against them.
(Score: 2) by kaszz on Saturday May 06 2017, @09:01PM (3 children)
I thought China wanted to keep NK around as a buffer and hinder Korea from uniting?
(Score: 1) by khallow on Saturday May 06 2017, @09:21PM (2 children)
(Score: 2) by kaszz on Saturday May 06 2017, @09:29PM (1 child)
If USA takes out the NK government and make Korea unite. Would China just yell and then yawn?
Russia?
(Score: 1) by khallow on Saturday May 06 2017, @10:22PM
If USA takes out the NK government and make Korea unite.
That would only occur after a military defeat of China. You can't just "take out" a government which is protected by another major military power.
(Score: 2) by el_oscuro on Saturday May 06 2017, @07:31PM (1 child)
Seems they went over 50 years without nukes, and never got invaded.
SoylentNews is Bacon! [nueskes.com]
(Score: 2) by kaszz on Saturday May 06 2017, @07:38PM
USA changed their minds?
Fucking Khan network that caused this mess.
(Score: 0, Flamebait) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday May 06 2017, @05:00PM (5 children)
When a US citizen wonders if NK of all fucking countries might have a point then it is time for the empire to take a long hard fucking look at itself. Leverage relations with China to get NK in line, yes it may require compromise and the US to admit it shouldn't act like the biggest prick in the world.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday May 06 2017, @05:06PM (2 children)
For good public relations, make China be the bad guy. It's brilliant.
(Score: 2) by aristarchus on Saturday May 06 2017, @07:47PM (1 child)
make China be the bad guy. It's brilliant.
Don't ya know, for the remake of the ammosexual masturbation aid, Red Dawn [imdb.com], the Chinese were slated to replace the Ruskies in the original movie. But China complained to the movie company, probably with some veiled threats which you can do when you have a billion movie-goers, and the script changed the bad guys to North Koreans! [wikipedia.org] Amazing! Of course, this had the side effect of making the movie absolutely implausible, rather than merely completely impossible. "Wolverines!!!!"
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday May 07 2017, @01:07AM
That's some awesome sauce right there. Brilliant indeed.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Saturday May 06 2017, @08:36PM (1 child)
When a US citizen wonders if NK of all fucking countries might have a point
And US citizens wonder about the Satan-Freemasons Moon hoax conspiracy. It's a very low bar.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday May 07 2017, @02:27AM
We don't need to hear your personal depths of insanity plzthxok.
(Score: 2) by fadrian on Saturday May 06 2017, @05:26PM
They could always attempt to return the favor.
That is all.
(Score: 2, Interesting) by purple_cobra on Saturday May 06 2017, @07:29PM (3 children)
The BBC's take on it [bbc.co.uk] contained a puzzling statement though:
..."Kim" had been told that the best method was the use of "biochemical substances including radioactive substance and nano poisonous substance" whose results would "appear after six or 12 months".
The 'Kim' referenced there is the alleged assassin. That "6-12 months" is an odd statement; my first thought was that Kim Jong-Un might have developed something terminal and this is his expected lifespan, allowing NK to weaponise - inasmuch as they use everything as propaganda - his death, blaming the US and their "puppets" for sneaking in a biological agent to kill their leader. It wouldn't mean a damn thing to the rest of the world; it seems even the Chinese response to a mention of North Korea is a collective eye-roll and muttering under their breath, something that the NK ruling class is probably not happy about. And that story linked in the comments by an AC about China's halt on buying coal from NK showed that they're batshit crazy enough to spout their usual rhetoric at a country that a) is their only ally, b) is vastly more wealthy than they are, c) is next door, and d) might just decide they've had enough of babysitting the Kim clan and do something about it. It's unlikely that China will send in some "advisers" given the whole can of worms that a unified Korea would open for them, but no-one can foretell the future with any degree of accuracy so it's a bit silly to try and second-guess things.
(Score: 2) by kaszz on Saturday May 06 2017, @07:41PM (2 children)
China could just annex NK and make a Hong Kong or Macau out of it?
One China four systems thing.
(Score: 1) by purple_cobra on Saturday May 06 2017, @08:10PM
I suppose China could keep NK as a slum and shovel people in there from areas they're redeveloping. It was a surprise to me to see them using those sabre-rattling statements against their only ally rather than just simply ignoring China's actions with regard to the coal embargo.
(Score: 2) by BK on Saturday May 06 2017, @08:36PM
China and Japan have both tried to rule Korea at different times with basically disastrous consequences. The Koreans have a strong cultural history of resistance to invaders. That doesn't mean it won't be tried again or couldn't be but it's not the most likely outcome.
...but you HAVE heard of me.
(Score: -1, Flamebait) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday May 06 2017, @08:11PM (8 children)
North Korea, Iran and Syria are the only 3 countries left in the world that do not have a "world bank" controlling their money. In other words, they are not debt slaves like the rest of us. Now "we" can't have that, can "we". Time to go fight yet another banker's war like us lowly peasants have done for the past several hundred years.
Oh, and the Syrian "refugees", yes they are predominately fit fighting-age men. That was a tactic to weaken the Assad. Also most of the men were usually middle-class, working government jobs, essentially the people the keep the infrastructure going, remove them to weaken the government and resistance to the "Allies" (again, "us", and the fundamentalist nutjobs "we" pretend to fight in other countries).
Ever wonder how "we" are always at war with other countries on the other side of the planet? Well now Russia, China and a few other countries are getting together to create their own currency and remove SWIFT from their banking system. Guess "we" will be going to war with them soon enough. Difference is this time Russia and China are not poor little "dirt countries", they both have nukes and China has a million man standing army.
Things are going to get way worse before they get better. Irony of that statement is "we" are the aggressors. Time to follow the french and break out the guillotines again.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday May 06 2017, @08:28PM
North Korea, Iran and Syria are the only 3 countries left in the world that do not have a "world bank" controlling their money.
Define "controlling their money."
https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/syria [worldbank.org]
https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/iran [worldbank.org]
(Score: 1) by khallow on Saturday May 06 2017, @08:42PM (2 children)
North Korea, Iran and Syria are the only 3 countries left in the world that do not have a "world bank" controlling their money.
North Korea is a shithole whose hard currency comes mostly through China. Iran is an partly integrated part of the world economy despite the economic sanctions. And Syria doesn't exist, but if it did, it'd be a Russian client state. And no world bank exists in the first place to control anyone's money..
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday May 07 2017, @02:30AM (1 child)
"And no world bank"
You out yourself as a shill with that last sentence.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Sunday May 07 2017, @05:42AM
Sure, you can call that system a bank, but it isn't.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday May 06 2017, @10:09PM (3 children)
Glad somebody else has been paying attention to BRICS. I'd guess they'll still move away from the US dollar in 2018, though it could be a little later in 2019. After this fall, stay away from major cities.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday May 07 2017, @12:57AM (2 children)
> After this fall, stay away from major cities.
People have been saying that for centuries,
If you keep saying it, maybe one year you'll get it right.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday May 07 2017, @02:27AM
If it hasn't happened to the US, it hasn't happened elsewhere, ever.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Sunday May 07 2017, @05:44AM
People have been saying that for centuries,
And before the 20th Century, they would have been right too. Cities have historically been population sinks, particularly when hit by disease, war, or famine.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by inertnet on Saturday May 06 2017, @08:41PM
Just a couple of months ago a half brother was poisoned in Malaysia.
(Score: 1) by a-zA-Z0-9$_.+!*'(),- on Sunday May 07 2017, @04:10AM
Hard to know. Sounds a lot like his own attack in Malaysia against his half-brother. Maybe he got the memo's mixed up.
https://newrepublic.com/article/114112/anonymouth-linguistic-tool-might-have-helped-jk-rowling