Stepping Back from the Brink on the Korean Peninsula
by Stephen Lendman (stephenlendman.org – Home – Stephen Lendman)
Initiatives for peace and stability over confrontation and catastrophic war deserve high praise.
There’s so little of it around because of Washington’s rage for endless aggression, seeking unchallenged global dominance, wanting all sovereign independent states transformed into pro-Western ones.
It’s why chances for the Trump administration turning a page for improved relations with North Korea are slim at best, likely not forthcoming in the wake of announced talks with Kim Jong-un.
Pre-and-post Winter Games inter-Korean thaw in relations deserves credit for bringing the two leaders together, not sanctions and other provocative pressures by Washington.
North and South Korea genuinely want conflict on the peninsula avoided, both countries harmed most if it erupts.
Leaders of both countries took the first step to avoid catastrophic war. Trump agreeing to meet Kim Jong-un eases tensions for now.
Whether it can be sustained is something else entirely. It’s never been achieved before other than short-term, including under less hawkish presidents than the current White House incumbent.
Sergey Lavrov called new developments “a step in the right direction,” welcoming an inter-Korean summit in April, followed by Trump agreeing to meet North Korea’s leader, adding:
“This all is what both the Russian Federation, the People’s Republic of China and many other countries have called for, taking a stand in favor of clearing the air around the nuclear problem of the Korean peninsula and using not threats, ultimatums, unilateral sanctions, but a dialogue based on mutual respect, through looking for such agreements that all sides will be satisfied with.”
On Friday, Trump and China’s Xi Jinping spoke by phone, Xi expressing hope that all parties will show goodwill in upcoming talks.
Beijing supports a denuclearized Korean peninsula. Above all, it wants war avoided. China’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang called on all parties to “show political courage” in upcoming talks, following through from “positive inter-Korean and US-North Korea interactions.”
China’s Global Times stressed much uncertainty lying ahead. Inter-Korean talks offer most hope.
America’s long history of deal-breaking and determination to dominate other nations is the greatest obstacle to peace and stability on the peninsula – and everywhere else.
Bilateral meetings matter most when both sides have good intentions – a rarity in US relations with sovereign independent countries it seeks dominance over as imperial trophies.
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