North Korea trying to play with the big boys again

[Superman]

From AP Yahoo News.

Obama issues warning as North Korea readies rocket

WASHINGTON – As North Korea fueled a multistage rocket Thursday for its threatened satellite launch, President Barack Obama promised a "stern" response and Japan vowed to press for an emergency session of the U.N. Security Council. Senior U.S. defense officials said that trailers and vehicles carrying rocket propellant were in place at North Korea's coastal launch site and that fueling had begun.

A U.S. counter-proliferation official said the fueling process could take "up to a few days." But a senior U.S. intelligence official told The Associated Press that Pyongyang was on track for a projected Saturday launch

The American officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence issues.

At the G-20 summit in London, Obama and South Korean President Lee Myung-bak issued a statement agreeing on "a stern, united response from the international community if North Korea launches a long-range rocket."

State Department spokesman Robert Wood would not address the U.S. intelligence reports. But he repeated earlier warnings for the North Koreans not to take any "provocative" actions.

Japan's ambassador to the U.N. said his nation will request an emergency session of the Security Council if North Korea proceeds with the launch. Yukio Takasu said he raised the possibility during closed-door council talks Thursday.

Takasu and other council diplomats say they anticipate a possible emergency session as early as this weekend.

North Korea heightened its militarist rhetoric toward the U.S., Japan and South Korea on Thursday, threatening retaliation for any attempt to shoot down the rocket. Quoting an unidentified North Korean general, the North Korean Central News Agency said Japan would be struck with a "thunderbolt of fire" if it attempts to intercept the multistage rocket.

The news service also issued a veiled threat against American warships moving in position to monitor the launch, saying: "The United States should immediately withdraw armed forces deployed if it does not want to receive damage."

Some U.S. lawmakers are urging Obama to shoot down the rocket if it endangers the United States or its allies. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said during a weekend TV interview that the U.S. had no plans to intercept the rocket — though it might consider the move if an "aberrant missile" were headed to Hawaii "or something like that."

U.S. officials have been keeping tabs on North Korea's launch preparations with satellite imagery and other surveillance. North Korea has complained that the U.S. is also using high-altitude U-2 spy planes and has warned the aircraft would be shot down.

North Korea's pre-launch movements are similar to the steps taken in advance of its 2006 firing of a Taepodong-2 missile, the U.S. intelligence official said.

The fueling starts an informal pre-launch phase that precedes the formal countdown.

"You need to launch within a few days because rocket fuel is typically quite corrosive," said Jeffrey Lewis, an arms control expert at the New America Foundation in Washington, D.C.

U.S. intelligence analysts continue to believe that North Korea aims to launch a communications satellite rather than conducting a missile test, which would violate a U.N. resolution. However, the rocket launch would yield data directly applicable to its long-range ballistic missile program.

The issue was top of the agenda Thursday when Obama met with his South Korean counterpart, Lee Myung-bak, on the sidelines of the G-20 summit in London. Obama pledged to push for "peace and stability," while Lee's office issued a statement saying the two leaders agreed to keep working on a verifiable dismantling of North Korea's worrisome nuclear programs.

Russia appeared to be edging closer to Washington's position in an apparent show of goodwill. But a strong united response likely would prove difficult given that China — the North's closest ally — has veto power in the Security Council. Beijing continued to urge all sides to show restraint.

North Korea is warning against any effort to intercept the rocket, take the issue to the Security Council or even monitor the launch. It says its armed forces are at a high level of combat-readiness.

Debris from the rocket could fall off Japan's northern coast, North Korea has said. Tokyo has deployed warships and missile interceptors there as a precaution, but says it has no intention of trying to shoot the missile down on its own.

Realistically speaking, if it came down to it, how much "damage" does North Korea actually think it can inflict upon the US? I know this kind of language isn't anything new from the Norks; but isn't this sort of like an angry midget walking up to a up to a professional linebacker and poking him really hard in the chest? He's a ballsy midget, but, in the end, he's still a midget.

[MKSheppard]

Obama won't do jack. The Japanese will ice the missile.

[Big Phil]

Obama won't do jack. The Japanese will ice the missile.

Why should Obama "do jack?" He's not Superman - he can't personally fly up and punch the missile toward the sun, after all, and security issues aside, there's really no valid reason to prevent the Norks from launching their "satellite."

[Sea Skimmer]

Why should Obama "do jack?" He's not Superman - he can't personally fly up and punch the missile toward the sun, after all, and security issues aside, there's really no valid reason to prevent the Norks from launching their "satellite."

Actually we have a binding UN Security Council resolution from 2006 banning such tests. But it wont be shot down unless it comes near Japan, because its just not worth the trouble.

[Col. Crackpot]

I just hope the damned thing doesn't fail, and come crashing down on one of the Japanese Islands... oh the shit storm that would stir up.

[MKSheppard]

Why should Obama "do jack?" He's not Superman - he can't personally fly up and punch the missile toward the sun

You moron. Obama is CINC; and guess what signals we've been receiving lately from the Obama Administration:

The United States has no plans to shoot down the North Korean rocket, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Wednesday in an interview with CNN’s Jill Dougherty, but will raise the issue with the U.N. Security Council if Pyongyang carries out a launch.

Appearing on "FOX News Sunday," Gates said North Korea "probably will" fire the missile, prompting host Chris Wallace to ask: "And there's nothing we can do about it?"

"No," Gates answered, adding, "I would say we're not prepared to do anything about it."

The orders have come down from a-top -- North Korea will fire it's ICBM, and nothing will happen from the US.

On the other hand, the Japanese aren't sitting down and waiting for HOPENCHANGE:

Japan ordered its military on Friday to destroy a North Korean missile or its debris, if the launch fails and falling pieces of the rocket seem to imperil Japanese territory.

Japan ordered two destroyers equipped with American-built Aegis anti-missile systems into the Sea of Japan, and said it would soon move Patriot land-to-air missiles to the country's northern coast, over which the North Korean rocket is likely to fly.

[TheKwas]

Unfair comparison, and certainly not valid issue to mock Obama on. I'm sure if the rocket was going to potentially imperil American territory that the Americans would take precautions to shoot it down as well.

[Tanasinn]

Japan ordered its military on Friday to destroy a North Korean missile or its debris, if the launch fails and falling pieces of the rocket seem to imperil Japanese territory.

Except, as near as I can tell, that says nothing particularly different from what the American stance is - "do nothing unless it 'threatens' us." It's more sternly worded. That's about it.

Considering U.S. belligerence over the past eight years, Japan is probably in a more politically favorable position to shoot the thing down.

That said, what could North Korea feasibly do if the thing was shot down regardless of what threat it posed? It's not like North Korea has any genuine hope of survival if they were to get suddenly violent over a missile shoot-down, and the leadership must realize that. No one's going to come up to bat for North Korea if they decide to bite instead of bark for a change.

[Alyeska]

North Korea can go back to the aggressive style of the 60s and 70s. That is something they can do easily.

[JointStrikeFighter]

I hear america isnt doing anything. Even though Japan will be shooting it down with US techology. And no doubt with US observers around. LOL HOW DARE THE ACT VIA A PROXY!

[Big Phil]

Why should Obama "do jack?" He's not Superman - he can't personally fly up and punch the missile toward the sun

You moron. Obama is CINC; and guess what signals we've been receiving lately from the Obama Administration:

Hey, go fuck yourself. Unless we're going to start shooting down rockets of anyone who could conceivably threaten us (that includes Iran, Pakistan, possibly India and China) just because they happen to launch them, I don't see what he should be doing. Just because you loved Bush's homo-erotic macho posturing doesn't mean it was particularly successful or helpful.

[Shroom Man 777]

Hey, it worked with South American death squads, so why should anyone complain?

What's wrong with the North Koreans firing a rocket with a satellite on it?

EDIT:

The first line is addressed at JSF.

[General Zod]

What's wrong with the North Koreans firing a rocket with a satellite on it?

Presumably it's a blatantly obvious clever smokescreen for testing ballistic missile capabilities on a dry run; especially given North Korea's allergic reaction to oversight of any kind.

[Ryan Thunder]

What's wrong with the North Koreans firing a rocket with a satellite on it?

1. The technology involved isn't that far removed from what they'd need to build an ICBM delivery system for their nuclear warheads.
2. We don't want them to.

[Pelranius]

The Japanese's most recent statement says that they will only shoot down the debris (I'll go look for the article).

[Shroom Man 777]

1. The technology involved isn't that far removed from what they'd need to build an ICBM delivery system for their nuclear warheads.

Everybody does it. The North Koreans just want to be popular.

India and Pakistan are both nuclear powers and arguably their relations are just as bad as the Koreas. No one really did anything when both nations got nukes.

But maybe the fact that both of them still have electricity and running water may have something to do with it.

[Ryan Thunder]

1. The technology involved isn't that far removed from what they'd need to build an ICBM delivery system for their nuclear warheads.

Everybody does it. The North Koreans just want to be popular.

India and Pakistan are both nuclear powers and arguably their relations are just as bad as the Koreas. No one really did anything when both nations got nukes.

But maybe the fact that both of them still have electricity and running water may have something to do with it.

That, and think about it; do we really need another shithole with nukes and ICBMs? Proliferation isn't a good thing.

[Shroom Man 777]

If a country really wanted nukes so bad, what can you do? Go to the UN with an angry letter? Impose sanctions that do nothing for the "bad nation"'s leadership but causes all sorts of hardship for their common man, causing them to further gravitate towards their leaders' extremist ramblings of "great satans" and "foreign devils" and "dishonorable mortal human gaijin"? Are you going to invade them? Are you gonna be big damn America fuck yeah heroes and go "Operation Korean Peninsular Freedom" or "Operation Middle Eastern Freedom" or "Operation Southern Hemisphere Freedom"?

[The Grim Squeaker]

If a country really wanted nukes so bad, what can you do? Go to the UN with an angry letter? Impose sanctions that do nothing for the "bad nation"'s leadership but causes all sorts of hardship for their common man, causing them to further gravitate towards their leaders' extremist ramblings of "great satans" and "foreign devils" and "dishonorable mortal human gaijin"? Are you going to invade them? Are you gonna be big damn America fuck yeah heroes and go "Operation Korean Peninsular Freedom" or "Operation Middle Eastern Freedom" or "Operation Southern Hemisphere Freedom"?

If you can, then, in my opinion you should.
Proliferation is bad. Unstable regimes having tons of nukes and the ability to kill millions or tens of millions and to touch off wars that could kill billions is a bad thing.

[Shroom Man 777]

Well, they can't.

Besides, other nuclear powers have been in less-stable conditions, in more recent conflicts, sometimes with other nuclear powers. Pakistanis and the Hindus, for example. The Russkies. And the Hebrews. All of them have had conflicts far more recent than either of the Koreanoids.

[General Zod]

If a country really wanted nukes so bad, what can you do? Go to the UN with an angry letter? Impose sanctions that do nothing for the "bad nation"'s leadership but causes all sorts of hardship for their common man, causing them to further gravitate towards their leaders' extremist ramblings of "great satans" and "foreign devils" and "dishonorable mortal human gaijin"? Are you going to invade them? Are you gonna be big damn America fuck yeah heroes and go "Operation Korean Peninsular Freedom" or "Operation Middle Eastern Freedom" or "Operation Southern Hemisphere Freedom"?

If you can, then, in my opinion you should.
Proliferation is bad. Unstable regimes having tons of nukes and the ability to kill millions or tens of millions and to touch off wars that could kill billions is a bad thing.

So you're suggesting we should invade North Korea (again?) under the pretense of disarming their nuclear program and inevitably piss off China? Who happens to own a sizable amount of American assets?

[Shroom Man 777]

It'd be more possible to disarm Israel, because all they have are lobbyists anyway. Or Pakistan, because they've got nothing on the 'States. And both of them are, presumably, more susceptible to diplomatic means of disarmament.

[MKSheppard]

And the norks have gone and done it.......Breaking......

[Jaepheth]

CNN Reports

SEOUL, South Korea (CNN) -- North Korea launched a long-range rocket Sunday in what U.S. and South Korean officials deemed a provocative act.

While the United States and South Korea confirmed the rocket launch, the payload of the rocket remained unclear. North Korea has said the rocket was to carry a satellite into space, but the United States, South Korea and other nations fear it could be a missile with a warhead attached.

"With this provocative act, North Korea has ignored its international obligations, rejected unequivocal calls for restraint, and further isolated itself from the community of nations," U.S. President Barack Obama said in a statement.

"We will immediately consult with our allies in the region, including Japan and (South Korea), and members of the U.N. Security Council to bring this matter before the Council," Obama added. "I urge North Korea to abide fully by the resolutions of the U.N. Security Council and to refrain from further provocative actions."

A senior Obama administration official in Washington confirmed that the rocket did clear Japan.

Japan's chief Cabinet secretary told reporters after the launch that the country's military was not forced to intercept any missiles, which it had pledged to do if necessary.

Preliminary data show that two objects, likely boosters from the rocket, apparently fell around Japan, one in the Sea of Japan and one in the Pacific Ocean.
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The rocket -- launched at about 11:30 a.m. local time on Sunday (2:30 a.m. GMT) -- was a "provocative act in violation" of U.N. Security Council resolution on North Korea's weapons program, Fred Lash, a State Department spokesman, told reporters.

An October 2006 resolution condemned North Korea for missile launches in the summer and a nuclear test that same month. Video Watch the debate about what North Korea is allowed to do »

The office of the South Korean president condemned the launch, calling it a "serious threat" to world peace, the state-run Yonhap news agency reported.

"We cannot withhold our regrets and disappointment that North Korea has caused such a serious threat to peace on the Korean Peninsula and in the world by firing a long-range rocket when the entire world is joining efforts to overcome the global economic crisis," Lee Dong-kwan, a presidential spokesman said, according to Yonhap.

On Friday, Obama reiterated that the United States strongly opposes any such launch.

"We have made it very clear to the North Koreans that their missile launch is provocative, it puts enormous strains on the six-party talks and that they should stop the launch," Obama said while on a stop in France.

Obama warned that the United States will join with its allies to take "appropriate steps" to let North Korea know it can't violate United Nations rules and get away with it.

Earlier Sunday, before the launch, South Korea's national security council called an emergency meeting amid concerns that a North Korean rocket launch was imminent, a presidential spokesperson said.

Also, Japan's representative to the United Nations, Yukio Takasu, sent a letter requesting an urgent Security Council meeting in response to the launch. The letter to Claude Heller, Mexico's representative and the current security council president, was sent minutes after news of the launch broke.

Western nations fear that North Korea plans a ballistic missile test rather than a satellite launch, but the Obama administration's special envoy to the six-party talks, Stephen Bosworth, said last week that it didn't matter if the North Koreans were trying to put a satellite in space or testing a ballistic missile that could threaten Japan or the United States.

"Whether it is a satellite launch or a missile launch, in our judgment makes no difference. It is a provocative act," Bosworth said.

Bosworth said the U.S. stands ready -- after a launch -- to participate in United Nations deliberations on new sanctions against North Korea.
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U.S. Rep. Howard Berman, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, issued a statement late Saturday.

"It is alarming that North Korea carried out this missile launch in direct defiance of the international community," Berman said. "The test is an unnecessary provocation that raises tensions in the region, and I urge the North Koreans to stop using their missile and WMD programs to threaten their neighbors and the rest of the world."

So it looks like no one shot it down.

[MKSheppard]

Following is the text of President Obama’s statement Sunday on North Korea’s rocket launching, as released by the White House:

North Korea’s development and proliferation of ballistic missile technology pose a threat to the northeast Asian region and to international peace and security. The launch today of a Taepo-dong 2 missile was a clear violation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1718, which expressly prohibits North Korea from conducting ballistic missile-related activities of any kind. With this provocative act, North Korea has ignored its international obligations, rejected unequivocal calls for restraint, and further isolated itself from the community of nations.

We will immediately consult with our allies in the region, including Japan and the Republic of Korea, and members of the U.N. Security Council to bring this matter before the Council. I urge North Korea to abide fully by the resolutions of the U.N. Security Council and to refrain from further provocative actions.

Preventing the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and their means of delivery is a high priority for my administration. The United States is fully committed to maintaining security and stability in northeast Asia and we will continue working for the verifiable denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula through the Six-Party Talks. The Six-Party Talks provide the forum for achieving denuclearization, reducing tensions, and for resolving other issues of concern between North Korea, its four neighbors, and the United States. North Korea has a pathway to acceptance in the international community, but it will not find that acceptance unless it abandons its pursuit of weapons of mass destruction and abides by its international obligations and commitments.