January 11, 2021 13:55
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un mentioned nuclear weapons no fewer than 36 times in a speech at a Workers Party congress last week and boasted that he built the impoverished country into a "responsible nuclear-powered nation possessing an absolutely perfect nuclear shield." There was no mention of the denuclearization South Korea and the U.S. had been touting at the height of the thaw in 2018. Kim's unexpected mention of peace in that year's New Year's address and denuclearization talks that took place over the following years were a sham.
Kim described the U.S. as North Korea's "biggest enemy" and vowed to focus on suppressing and bringing it to its knees. He also pledged to "advance national reunification through strong military power," a blatant threat to South Korea. Kim's development of nuclear-powered submarines, hypersonic missiles, multi-warhead intercontinental ballistic missiles and submarine-launched ballistic missiles appear on the surface to be aimed at the U.S., but the final goal is to drive South Korea into submission. Kim vowed to develop more tactical nuclear weapons that are typically aimed at South Korea and Japan, as well as spy satellites and high-tech drones.
Over the last three years, the Moon Jae-in administration has claimed with demented insistence that North Korea is willing to give up its nuclear weapons. It invited Kim to the border truce village of Panmunjom and put on a laser show for him, while Moon traveled to Pyongyang where he gave a speech hailing and praising the North and shook hands with Kim atop Mt. Baekdu, which is sacred to North Koreans. Moon also played on U.S. President Donald Trump's vanity and persuaded him to sit face to face with the North Korean leader three times. But each time, Kim was only intent on gaining concessions in return for his lies.
Even as the farce was still playing out, Kim unveiled a massive intercontinental ballistic missile and a submarine-launched nuclear missile is getting ready for deployment. Now he is developing nuclear-powered submarines and hypersonic missiles that could render South Korea's defenses useless. At the congress, Kim boasted that he "steadfastly led the struggle to advance nuclear weapons and was able to secure a great new victory."
Kim will not and cannot scrap his nuclear weapons. Surely Moon knows that. So is the president deliberately deceiving South Koreans with this nonsense? His eagerness to cover up for Kim persisted even as the North blew up the inter-Korean liaison office and shot and incinerated a South Korean fisheries official. Prompted by nothing in particular, Moon then bent over backwards and banned the dispatch of propaganda leaflets to North Korea that could provide vital information for the oppressed people there, in the process risking condemnation from the international community for his fat friend up North. His reward is an arsenal of North Korean weapons aimed straight at his head.
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