# North Korea suspending missile testing and closing nuclear site; Trump the statesman? **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [April 20, 2018, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829 "2018-04-20T23:09:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 41
**Author:** ![galen\_ubal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/galen_ubal/32/4440_2.png) [@galen\_ubal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/galen_ubal)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2019, 5:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/801 "2019-03-15T05:58:14Z")
[North Korea threatens to suspend denuclearization talks with the United States, reports say](https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/north-korea-threatens-to-suspend-denuclearization-talks-with-the-united-states-reports-say/2019/03/15/2f5686b2-46d8-11e9-9726-50f151ab44b9_story.html?utm_term=.743d5de9be20) > [@Washington Post](#): > > TOKYO — North Korea is considering suspending denuclearization talks with the United States unless Washington changes its stance after the breakdown of a summit meeting in Hanoi between President Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, a senior official said Friday. > > Kim Jong Un is set to make an official announcement soon on whether to continue diplomatic talks and maintain the country’s moratorium on missile launches and nuclear tests, Vice Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui told foreign diplomats and journalists in Pyongyang, the Associated Press reported. ---
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2019, 6:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/802 "2019-03-15T06:51:47Z")
“North Korea suspending missile testing and closing nuclear site; Trump the statesman?” I didn’t read the thread. Did OP ever get an answer to his question? ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2019, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/803 "2019-03-15T13:57:29Z")
> [@septimus](#): > > “North Korea suspending missile testing and closing nuclear site; Trump the statesman?” > > I didn’t read the thread. Did OP ever get an answer to his question? I’d say the answer was that NK did suspend their missile testing (they, unsurprisingly, seem to be making noises about un-suspending it sometime in the near future) and closed at least one of their nuclear test sites (due to issues with it collapsing from what I recall), so I guess to both of those the answer was ‘yes’. The ‘Trump the statesman’ bit is definitely debatable…I’d go with ‘no’ on that one, but that reflects my own bias and animus against the guy more than anything on this particular issue. ---
**Author:** ![Horatius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horatius/32/3572_2.png) [@Horatius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatius)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2019, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/804 "2019-03-28T01:57:19Z")
> [@XT](#): > > I don’t want to give Trump credit for anything, but I think in this one narrow case that folks aren’t being rational here. And, frankly, we don’t know where this is all going…Trump could still be the complete fuck-up that we all know he is, and this could backfire big time. But right now, today, I think it’s sour grapes to say what he’s done has had no effect and is totally worthless. From what I’m looking at Trump is in fact balancing this all between North Korea and China, and playing one off against the other, such that neither knows what to do or how to play this…and neither wants to potentially piss Trump and the US off further and bring more sanctions or renewed trade war tariffs. Whether this will do anything in the long term has yet to be seen, but I can kind of see where I think this is going. I still think it’s like a monkey at the controls of an air craft hitting the right button by accident, and who knows what button he will hit next, but for now, I think we are flying fairly well… > > YMMV, obviously. But what you’re ignoring is the effect this is having on South Korea’s efforts to engage with North Korea. SK has been making inroads with NK completely aside from the US process, and Trump’s antics have basically [screwed that all up](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-03-22/north-korea-withdraws-from-inter-korean-liaison-office). > [@](#): > > North Korea withdrew from an office it set up with South Korea about six months ago that allowed the rivals to communicate around the clock, dealing a blow to President Moon Jae-in’s rapprochement efforts. > > North Korea informed South Korea on Friday that it would stop participating in the liaison office north of the border in Gaeseong city, Vice Unification Minister Chun Hae-sung told reporters. The North Koreans said they were “pulling out with instructions from the superior authority,” Chun said. > > North Korea has in recent days expressed irritation toward Seoul after leader Kim Jong Un’s nuclear summit with President Donald Trump broke down last month over U.S.-backed sanctions squeezing the country’s economy. The two Koreas agreed to open the office during a historic April summit between Moon and Kim, a signature achievement in the South Korean leader’s efforts to secure peace with Pyongyang. And that’s the biggest problem with Trump. He’s a monkey with a machine gun, to quote “Better Call Saul!” SK has been trying to engage NK in a mature, measured way, and Trump’s moronic fumbling has ruined almost everything that SK has accomplished in this regard. We really do need to deal with NK as a nuclear power, as much as we might not like that, and I’d be glad if anyone else was making that effort, but Trump has proven he simply doesn’t have the mature attitude needed to negotiate this very delicate situation. He wants the Big Win with the Adulation of the Crowd, and that’s just never going to happen. What we need is a reasonable, measured, gradual normalization of relations, and Trump is simply incapable of doing such things. ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2019, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/805 "2019-04-13T02:01:06Z")
> [@asahi](#): > > It’ll be interesting to see how the rest of this year unfolds. North Korea is apparently facing a major food shortage, so if there’s a time when sanctions might actually be effective, it could be now. Another problem that Kim has is that Trump’s walking away might have been an embarrassment, which could be both good and bad. It could be good in the sense that it might lead some weakening of his position. **But I suspect he will deal with that through purges,** and there will probably be heightened sensitivity on his part going forward. > **[Kim Tightens Leadership Over North Korea In Major Government Reshuffle](https://www.npr.org/2019/04/12/712628100/kim-tightens-leadership-over-north-korea-in-major-government-reshuffle)** > > The North Korean leader shunted aside a pair of long-serving senior officials and seated a newly elected parliament. The move is thought to be aimed at helping Kim ride out U.S. sanctions. As I suspected, the purges are on: at least it’s not an automatic trip to the slaughterhouse, apparently. It’ll still be interesting to see how North Korea’s food situation holds up. ---
**Author:** ![Horatius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horatius/32/3572_2.png) [@Horatius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatius)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2019, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/806 "2019-04-13T13:40:04Z")
> [@Horatius](#): > > We really do need to deal with NK as a nuclear power, as much as we might not like that, and I’d be glad if anyone else was making that effort, but Trump has proven he simply doesn’t have the mature attitude needed to negotiate this very delicate situation. **He wants the Big Win with the Adulation of the Crowd, and that’s just never going to happen.** What we need is a reasonable, measured, gradual normalization of relations, and Trump is simply incapable of doing such things. > [@asahi](#): > > [Kim Tightens Leadership Over North Korea In Major Government Reshuffle : NPR](https://www.npr.org/2019/04/12/712628100/kim-tightens-leadership-over-north-korea-in-major-government-reshuffle) > > As I suspected, the purges are on: at least it’s not an automatic trip to the slaughterhouse, apparently. It’ll still be interesting to see how North Korea’s food situation holds up. And looks like I called it as well. > [@](#): > > Kim’s expectations of tough times ahead seemed to anticipate President Trump’s comments to visiting South Korean President Moon Jae-in on Thursday that he was unwilling to ease sanctions on the North, or make big concessions in nuclear negotiations. > > Moon’s trip to Washington was seen in Seoul as a crucial test of his role as mediator between North Korea and the U.S. South Korea’s government had voiced hopes for a “good-enough deal,” and an “early harvest.” In other words, a smaller, interim deal to get the denuclearization ball rolling. > > **But Trump mostly rebuffed Moon, saying “at this moment, we’re talking about the big deal. The big deal is we have to get rid of the nuclear weapons.”** > > Trump did leave some wiggle room for incremental progress. “I’d have to see what the deal is,” he told reporters. “There are various smaller deals that maybe could happen.” Anyone here want to bet on Trump actually signing off on a “smaller deal” negotiated by someone who name doesn’t rhyme with “Stump”? ETA: The final paragraph is telling: > [@](#): > > “Probably, North Korea would assess that South Korea does not have much leverage to change U.S. attitudes,” he says, as evidenced by Moon’s meeting Thursday with Trump, and therefore Moon’s usefulness as a broker is questionable. Trump, in his eagerness to embrace Kim, and look good for the home audience by acting “tough” has thrown yet another long-standing ally under the bus. Screw you, South Korea! Trump’s legacy is more important than trying to eliminate a threat that’s been hanging over you for 70years. ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2019, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/807 "2019-04-13T14:47:28Z")
Trump is becoming more Statesman-ier every day! ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2019, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/808 "2019-04-18T01:25:02Z")
[North Korea says it test-fired new tactical guided weapon](https://apnews.com/2ff1e53cfc9d42a7821c7f4e6a740642) > [@](#): > > North Korea said Thursday that it had test-fired a new type of “tactical guided weapon,” in what may be an attempt to register displeasure with a deadlock in nuclear talks with the United States without causing those coveted negotiations to collapse. > > Leader Kim Jong Un observed the unspecified weapon being fired Wednesday by the Academy of Defense Science, the North’s state-run Korean Central News Agency said. Kim was reported to have said “the development of the weapon system serves as an event of very weighty significance in increasing the combat power of the People’s Army.” > [@](#): > > The Associated Press could not independently verify North Korea’s claim, and it wasn’t immediately clear what had been tested. > > It is likely not, however, a banned ballistic missile test, which would jeopardize the diplomatic talks meant to provide the North with concessions in return for disarmament. A South Korean analyst said that details in the North’s media report indicate it could have been a new type of cruise missile. Another possible clue: one of the lower level officials mentioned in the North’s report on the test — Pak Jong Chon — is known as an artillery official. ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2019, 1:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/809 "2019-04-18T01:28:42Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > [https://apnews.com/2ff1e53cfc9d42a7821c7f4e6a740642](https://apnews.com/2ff1e53cfc9d42a7821c7f4e6a740642) As just getting ready to post [this](https://www.cnn.com/2019/04/17/asia/north-korea-suspected-weapon-test-intl/index.html) from CNN on it as well. > [@](#): > > Seoul, South Korea (CNN)North Korean leader Kim Jong Un inspected and directed a “new tactical guided weapons firing test” Wednesday, according to a report from the country’s state media. > > The report, published Thursday morning local time (Wednesday evening ET) by news agency KCNA, did not state exactly what kind of weapon was tested, nor its potential range. > > However, the description provided by KCNA suggests that it does not represent a return to missile testing for the regime – a tactical weapon is designed to be used on the battlefield, and is typically not a long-range armament. > > No missile launch was detected by US Northern Command and Strategic Command, according to US Department of Defense officials. > [@](#): > > Vipin Narang, an associate professor of political science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology who studies nuclear proliferation, said the weapon likely differs from the long-range missiles the North Korean regime has tested in the past few years. > > "We don’t know what it is but if it’s another ‘tactical system’ like an MRLS (Multiple Launch Rocket System) or a coastal defense system, or air defense, it would seem to be consistent with Kim potentially reminding both the US and (South Korea) – in a calibrated way – where things could go, if the US especially doesn’t moderate its negotiating position. > > “With rebuilding Sohae, continued activity at ballistic missile facilities and Yongbyon, and this, Kim seems to be suggesting ‘I’ve loaded my gun, but I am not going to fire … just yet,’” he said, referring to key testing facilities in North Korea. So, assuming this is correct, they tested something like our own MLRS. Not exactly earth shattering. I agree it probably is some kind of pointed reminder. But…they still haven’t pulled the trigger on anything major wrt renewed testing. I think that I’m still cautiously optimistic about how things have turned out. So far. ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2019, 10:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/810 "2019-04-18T10:26:57Z")
The tests come at a time when North Korea is dealing with potentially is worst food shortage crisis in more than a decade - possibly as bad as the one in the late 1990s. I suspect that this is a warning that unless sanctions ease up and they get some food fast, the rest of us can expect an escalation. ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2019, 10:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/811 "2019-04-18T10:49:26Z")
> [@asahi](#): > > Going back to this post, I’d just like to point out that it’s the most significant progress toward denuclearization – after they have actually finished the process of demonstrating substantial nuclear capabilities. > > I suspect that what Kim is saying is: > > _"Look, the fact is, we’ve got missiles, and we’ve got nuclear weapons. I know that, and more importantly, you know that. We could make more and more if we want and you would pay one hell of a price for trying to stop us. But the truth is, we’re not really interested in going that route. This being enemies of the world shit is getting kinda old. Instead, we’d rather you just stop putting sanctions on us, as they threaten my ability to govern over the long term. We want you to stop threatening our regime’s future through sanctions and political isolation; you guys want us to stop building nukes and shooting missiles over Japan. So we’ll cut you a deal. You end sanctions and maybe even move your military threat further away from us, and we’ll end nuclear and missile testing, and we might even be somewhat normal. I’ll look like a hero for normalizing my country and perhaps even possibly improving the economy and welfare of my people, and you’ll actually look like a legitimate global deal maker and possibly get reelected. So whaddya say, Orange Yankee, deal or no deal?_ > > Trump might actually be tempted to take it. **I’m not sure John Bolton would** , though. This is where it would get interesting because Bolton represents a significant faction within the old “deep state,” which is that the United States doesn’t compromise power in exchange for peace. FWIW, I think Hillary Clinton somewhat had a worldview that was not too dissimilar. She’s probably more open to traditional diplomacy than the Walrus (Bolton), but that traditional diplomacy would mean North Korea making concessions first before actually holding up our end of the bargain. Kim’s not interested in that. His grandfather/father tried that with Bill Clinton and he got nowhere when Republicans pulled funding for the nuclear deal in the 1990s. This is what I said at the start of the thread, and I think it’s mostly still applicable today. I put John Bolton’s name in bold because I think he (and maybe Pompeo as well) is the dangerous variable in this equation. I think Donald Trump wants to be a hero and wants a deal, but he also doesn’t want to be embarrassed either. Bolton, OTOH, is an ideological soldier, and I think he in particular is a dangerous factor inside the WH. He was never a fan of this detente, and you can count on Bolton to do all he can to shape how Trump interprets Kim’s actions. Bolton’s solution for everything is aggression, pressure, and dominance. He is an imaginary warrior ten times as arrogant and deulusional than Donald Rumsfeld. The risk of deliberate first strike from either side is probably still quite low; as always, the real risk is playing a game of chicken and having one side or both misread and miscalculate the other. I can’t argue against the fact that the deescalation over the past year has been a largely positive development. However, I don’t think the overall situation has fundamentally changed that much. The dynamics involve friction between the Kim regime’s need to have sanctions eased and to ease pressure on the regime on one hand, and the US’s foreign policy based on economic warfare on the other. The Kim regime probably doesn’t feel that it’s in a position to negotiate all that much, though there could be some concessions it could end up making. Generally speaking, if there’s a way out, it’s most likely going to have to be some concessions on the US side. Those concessions mean a gradual easing of economic sanctions in exchange for some meaningful benefit in return. The problem is, I don’t see concessions as Bolton’s style. ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Feldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lord_feldon/32/341_2.png) [@Lord\_Feldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Feldon)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2019, 11:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/812 "2019-04-18T11:00:20Z")
North Korea is [tired of Mike Pompeo](https://kcnawatch.org/newstream/1555578324-949628843/u-s-secretary-of-state-slammed/) but still fine with Trump: “While Pompeo is fabricating stories after his own taste and trying to raise his publicity stunt at the sacrifice of the DPRK-U.S. relations as a whole, it is fortunate that the personal relationship between our Chairman of the State Affairs Commission and President Trump is on good terms as usual and our Chairman is pleased to get on well with President Trump.” ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2019, 11:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/813 "2019-04-18T11:20:04Z")
Ha-ha! Dear Donald, the one of you two guys that is a little smarter than the other one, we don’t particularly are for. You, we think you’re great! Have we complimented you on your penis It is very big, you must be proud. ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2019, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/814 "2019-05-05T22:28:05Z")
[https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=21596720&postcount=816](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=21596720&postcount=816) > [@asahi](#): > > The tests come at a time when North Korea is dealing with potentially is worst food shortage crisis in more than a decade - possibly as bad as the one in the late 1990s. I suspect that this is a warning that unless sanctions ease up and they get some food fast, the rest of us can expect an escalation. And that’s pretty much what has happened, it would seem. ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2019, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/815 "2019-05-06T01:49:20Z")
> [@asahi](#): > > [https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=21596720&postcount=816](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=21596720&postcount=816) > > And that’s pretty much what has happened, it would seem. Well, not sure that your prediction has been borne out, to be honest. I’m not seeing much of an escalation … in fact, we haven’t even gotten back to the levels things were at before, as yet. No new large scale missile tests, no nuclear tests. Yet. If they get back to where they were wrt nuclear weapons tests and missile tests, then go beyond that, well, then we’d be at an escalation. What prompted your post here? I haven’t seen anything substantial that’s changed recently except the testing of a short ranged missile which seems pretty meh. It’s like the MLRS test that revived this thread last time. It’s nothing like the long range tests over, say, Japanese air space we were getting. ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2019, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/816 "2019-05-06T01:55:49Z")
> [@XT](#): > > Well, not sure that your prediction has been borne out, to be honest. I’m not seeing much of an escalation … in fact, we haven’t even gotten back to the levels things were at before, as yet. No new large scale missile tests, no nuclear tests. Yet. If they get back to where they were wrt nuclear weapons tests and missile tests, then go beyond that, well, then we’d be at an escalation. > What prompted your post here? I haven’t seen anything substantial that’s changed recently except the testing of a short ranged missile which seems pretty meh. It’s like the MLRS test that revived this thread last time. It’s nothing like the long range tests over, say, Japanese air space we were getting. You will see. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2019, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/817 "2019-05-08T15:49:48Z")
[Oh! What a statesman Trump is!](https://apnews.com/2ff776922ed946bf85eaef862fa3303e) > [@](#): > > In a statement on Wednesday, the Pentagon’s Defense POW-MIA Accounting Agency said it has had no communication with North Korean authorities since the Hanoi summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in January. That meeting was about the North’s nuclear weapons. > > The Pentagon agency said that as a result, it is suspending efforts to negotiate terms of remains recovery operations during the budget year ending Sept. 30. ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2019, 11:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/818 "2019-05-09T11:43:57Z")
> **[North Korea fires two short-range missiles, South says](https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-48212045)** > > US President Donald Trump said "nobody was happy" about the North's decision to fire two missiles. And they fire two more. Again, this is going to continue because Kim Jung Un wants some relief on sanctions and Bolton and Pompeo refuse to budge. As I pointed out a long time ago, the problem we have is that Bolton and Pompeo are potentially - I think inevitably - painting the two sides into their own corners. They were never in favor of direct talks with Kim - that was Trump’s idea. But they knew that talks would fail because of sanctions, so now they’re in a position where they can go to the president and say “Mr. President, I’m sorry, but this isn’t working - he’s making you look like a fool, like a weakling. What are you gonna do about it?” This is particularly dangerous at a time when Trump is fighting for his political survival, and the survival of his family enterprise. On the reverse side, the sanctions are crippling and they also come at a time when the harvest was apparently quite bad this year. The fear that Kim and the top North Korean officials have is unrest within the lower levels of government (the military). North Korea can get away with its creation story myths and its lies for a long time, but the ability to distort reality and human patience aren’t inexhaustible. There’s always a potential breaking point and nobody at the top wants to know what that is. We’re moving into a situation where both sides feel like they may have to stand their ground. This is going to escalate. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2019, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/819 "2019-05-09T18:43:49Z")
U.S. responded by firing…a Minuteman III ICBM. [https://www.funker530.com/north-korea-ballistic-missiles/?fbclid=IwAR3Y5aOH4eBn6Q3O4bk65SrKcxIa2HKM4CQ3QbiXv-fQnqxgFxMAVvsN0qk](https://www.funker530.com/north-korea-ballistic-missiles/?fbclid=IwAR3Y5aOH4eBn6Q3O4bk65SrKcxIa2HKM4CQ3QbiXv-fQnqxgFxMAVvsN0qk) ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2019, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/820 "2019-05-09T18:56:33Z")
We’re also [seizing ships](https://www.yahoo.com/news/us-seizes-large-north-korean-ship-used-transport-163548772--politics.html). However, this shouldn’t be considered “escalating”… more like “quickening”. 😉 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829.md?page=40) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829.md?page=42)