International Relations?

North Korea is an anomaly in foreign relations. It is clearly thinking and acting as a child distrustful of everyone – friends and foes alike. Trouble is this sort of thinking makes foes of everyone in time. It also turns unease to schizophrenia. I think North Korea has exhibited schizophrenia for many years now. That is what makes them so difficult to deal with. And dangerous.

So the job of working out the problem with North Korea is not one country’s alone. The solution does not belong with the USA. Nor South Korea, or Japan, Russia or China.

China is the largest supporter of North Korea’s morale. Its border abuts North Korea’s. It trades goods and necessities with North Korea to sustain a very low quality of life among the people of North Korea. This is a humanitarian role China has taken on itself. And we applaud this deeply.

America has taken on the role of protector of many regional nations that could be harmed by North Korea. That has kept the region stable for several decades. But the reality of North Korea’s schizophrenia has risen to a height that cannot be ignored any longer. Something must be done to re-establish a better stasis of well-being.

A desired outcome to me would include a North Korea that is no longer schizophrenic about its security in the world. I want them to place their financial strengths in their people’s health and well-being rather than military defense and offense systems.

Another desired outcome for me is to know that the Korean Peninsula is at peace for the long term future. Hopefully the two Koreas can learn to live in peace together and share their cultures and their peoples in joy and shared enterprise.

Another hoped for outcome is a major lessening of military investment in the region so that all of the nations in the region can live in harmony and peace for many decades to come. Let this growing peace and prosperity be the keeper of peace that discourages trouble makers in the region or those who would seek to enter the region to start trouble.

Peace is much cheaper than war. Peace keeps its own peace over time if we let it do so.

What we have now is unconscionable distrust among many peoples and nations in a pin-point territory. Very unsafe. Very worrisome. Action is needed. Not ransom paid to North Korea, nor punishment of that woebegone nation.

Rattling of swords by South Korea, president trump, Russia or China accomplishes nothing. The opposite is the desired effort. So let’s invest attention and energy in such enterprise.

We have much larger issues to work on than North Korea. Climate change is one of them. Growing prosperity to nations living below poverty standards is another. Sharing critically needed medical supplies and methods is another.

The good in life is the natural objective. Why must we be distracted by the opposite?

May 5, 2017