Via CNN: “It is increasingly likely that North Korea will have the same nuclear status one year from now that it has today.” So says the U.S. envoy on DPRK human rights, Jay Lefkowitz, and in contrast to the overly absurdly optimistic spin Christopher Hill puts on the situation.
Gizmodo has an excellent array of Kim Jong-il photos; In Which We Provoke Kim Jong Il in 77 Offensive and Hilarious Ways. Some are sure to become often used classics.
- #Missed it on the 30th as I was working late, but it's now been four years since DPRK Studies has been in blog format.
- #From the Japan Times: "Yasushi Chimura and his wife, Fukie, abducted by North Korea in 1978 but repatriated in 2002, expressed relief Friday that their children [now ages 27, 25, and 21] are adapting smoothly to Japanese life as they marked the fifth anniversary of their arrival in Japan."
- #Via the NYT: "Former President Roh Moo-hyun of South Korea, who had been under criminal investigation for corruption, died on Saturday from a fall while hiking on a hill near his retirement home... it was unclear whether the fall was accidental or whether Mr. Roh had committed suicide ... Roh left a will, indicating that the death might have been a suicide." While the man never should have been president, it's sad to see what likely was a suicide.
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January 18th, 2008 at 9:09 pm
John Bolton couldn’t have said it better. Nice to see that some don’t have the wool over their eyes.
January 19th, 2008 at 7:49 am
The Bush administration hasn’t officially made reality-based assessments like that for over a year now - only via Bolton and now Lefkowitz. I have to wonder if Hill believes the spin he’s putting out or just towing the official line. Maybe he’ll have a book out in a couple of years…
January 19th, 2008 at 11:12 am
The whole thing is a mess right now. I had a much longer winded rant, but I decided to leave it out because the video speaks for itself. Human rights should have been part of the agenda to begin with, and the coddling venue is not working, will never work, and they need to go back to the drawing board with some real consequences for non-action on Kim’s part.
January 20th, 2008 at 5:36 pm
Jack, I agree that things are a mess right now. The Bush admin was on track with sanction that were working and Human Rights should be central to all of this. The Bush admin also hasn’t accepted many NK defectors, though there are some valid security concerns there (i.e., NK intel officers posing as defectors to gain access to the U.S. for collection and/or sabotage, etc.).
January 20th, 2008 at 7:14 pm
To be fair, Roh did not help one bit.
January 20th, 2008 at 8:09 pm
The art of understatement!
January 21st, 2008 at 3:02 am
And Bush pretended Human Rights was at least a significant part, well, check that, he acted like HR was a central part of any North Korea policy when he met the author of Aquarims of Pyongyang and started Lefkowitz’ position, and that has been about the last thing he has done on it.
It certainly has been a completely absent factor in North Korea policy even when banking sanctions were on.
I am glad Lefkowitz is speaking out. Someone still in the administration. And I’m glad Bolten is being so outspoken.
But —– frankly —– US North Korea policy is a shitty, shitty mess.
It has been beyond pathetic - whether you are a hawk or dove.
Bush’s flipflop has made the hardliners and Bush’s former self look like jackasses.
And North Korea has done the same for those of Hill’s ilk.
P-A-T-H-E-T-I-C!!!