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Articles Flashpoints NORTH KOREA – YES PLEASE, LETS HAVE TALKS ABOUT TALKS, AND TALKS ABOUT TALKS ABOUT TALKS!
NORTH KOREA – YES PLEASE, LETS HAVE TALKS ABOUT TALKS, AND TALKS ABOUT TALKS ABOUT TALKS!
Thursday, 14 December 2017 11:39
John Hallam
14 DEC 2017
PEOPLE FOR NUCLEAR DISARMAMENT
HUMAN SURVIVAL PROJECT
NORTH KOREA – YES PLEASE, LETS HAVE TALKS ABOUT TALKS, AND TALKS ABOUT TALKS ABOUT TALKS!
Rex Tillerson is quite right to say that the US should engage in talks with the DPRK. PND/HSP has said consistently that:
--War with the DPRK, and so called 'military options' are not a rational alternative and risk leading to catastrophe;
--Talks, talks about talks, and talks about talks about talks are therefore the only possible way forward.
Such talks must be absolutely and completely condition – free and must be twitter-free.
The DPRK have consistently said that they would like to talk with the USA, provided that there are no attached preconditions. The DPRK is unlikely to halt its nuclear development programs in the short term no matter who talks with them or in what terms the talks are held, so what we are looking toward would be an improvement or transformation of DPRK/US relationships over a longer term, and not an immediate cessation of the DPRKs weapons program. Attempts to threaten, manipulate, or force the DPRK to do anything- let alone relinquish what it sees as its survival ticket – will result in it doing the opposite to what we want.
However a transformation in relationships IS possible, given a building or rebuilding of trust on both sides. And negotiations in the past have led to improvements in relations and at least to a slowdown in nuclear programs, until undermined by those who wanted to be 'tough' on the DPRK. 'Toughness' will fail.
The DPRK will it is certain, want security guarantees. The US will also want such guarantees. Perhaps in the medium term, a mutual non-aggression pact, maybe coupled with a peace treaty for the Korean war, now more than 50 years overdue, could be looked at. But we are getting ahead of ourselves.
In the shorter term, unambitious talks about talks, aimed simply at taking the temperature down and eliminating the language of mutual threat and counter threat, would be a good start.
On the US side, we need to avoid tweets about 'not talking to little rocket-man'.
On Australia's part, we need talk about the need for talk, and not statements about 'joined at the hip', or statements like recent ones from Joe Hockey.
This is an opportunity that we should not blow.
John Hallam
UN Nuclear Disarmament Campaigner
People for Nuclear Disarmament
Human Survival Project
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