There are now three, count them three, Asian countries in close proximity to each other poised with their fingers on hair triggers of missiles aimed at each other. Somebody should lay the smack-down on Kim Jong Il before it gets out of hand. China should do it but they are enjoying watching the dog-eating dictator tweak the nose of the world's lone super-power. For some reason, though I cannot figure it out, Taiwan is flexing it's muscles toward China during this whole NoKo temper-tantrum by Jong Il. China and Taiwan have been at odds for years so what's all this about now?
Taiwan plans to test-fire a missile capable of hitting China, alarming the island's main ally, the United States, a cable news network said on Thursday.
The Hsiung Feng III, developed by Taiwan's Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology, has a range of 360 miles and is accurate to within about one and a half feet, the online edition of cable news network ETTV said, quoting unnamed military sources.
China, which has claimed sovereignty over Taiwan since their split in 1949 at the end of the Chinese civil war, has deployed nearly 800 short-range ballistic missiles aimed at the self-ruled island in case it formally declares independence.
The United States, which recognises Beijing's "one China" policy but is Taiwan's major supplier of arms, had expressed its concern to the Taiwan government, the Web site said.
I guess the U.S. has got to play both ends against the middle with China and Taiwan but something bad is going to happen sooner or later if China decides to act on it's claim that Taiwan is still part of China. Hopefully these tensions will continue, unacted upon, far into the future: far enough that China will have succommed to free-market capitalism and it's old-world communist leaders will have died before they decide to reclaim Taiwan.
Like we need another world hot-spot to deal with in addition to Israel, Iraq, Iran, and NoKo.
2 comments:
That might be what it comes to if China doesn't step up and take control of that man-child freak in NoKo.
Now, Japan is seriously threatening a preemptive strike if Kim Jong Il keeps posturing.
I didn't know Japan had the capability to strike like that. If they feel threatened...I say go for it. They are a sovereign nation and evidently don't need our help defending themselves.
Unfortunately, North Korea shares a 600 mile border with it's communist neighbor China, to the northwest. I believe that while the U.S. and Japanese naval forces would be able to effectively landlock N.Korea, they would be supplied by the Chinese who are enjoying P'yonghang tweaking our nose.
That being said, it will be necessary to engage China to yank Jong Il's chain...but how? How do we pursuade China to step up to the plate in the interest is international peace? It may not be as arduous as we think. The U.S. buys an awful lot of rubber dog crap from China and even a minor curtailment of our trade would, I think, focus the minds of the Chinese toward economic rather than political concerns. It would be in their own best interests to rein Jong Il in. The question is does Bush have the guts, in the face of liberal handwringing about his machismo, to play hardball with the Chicoms?
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