Friday, August 8, 2003
U.S. ready to offer N. Korea guarantee - The Washington Times: World
Although such a pledge would not be a formal treaty subject to congressional ratification, it nevertheless could be endorsed by Congress in a resolution, Secretary of State Colin L. Powell told reporters at the Washington Foreign Press Center.
"There should be ways to capture assurances to the North Koreans — from not only the United States, but we believe from other parties in the region — that there is no hostile intent among the parties that might be participating in such a discussion," Mr. Powell said...
Impression: The hard-line on North Korea is slowly showing some softness. It's quite a sticky situation. How do you deal with a nation when the plain truth is that you do indeed want their regime dead and gone, know they're completely unreliable to deal with and can't be trusted in any way, shape or form and since you do hold yourself to a higher standard of truthfulness, you certainly aren't going to legitimate them by assuring them you're their pal.
All of this stuff is just delay and gamesmanship, but the fact is we're not going to invade, especially not when we're focussed on the Middle East at the moment. As Abraham Lincoln said, "One war at a time..."
Update: Richard Solomon also advocates a measured response in this piece, "How to Deal with North Korea."
