Pyongyang poker: N. Korea ups the ante with the U.S., Japan, S. Korea and China

Pyongyang poker: N. Korea ups the ante with the U.S., Japan, S. Korea and China

John J. Metzler UNITED NATIONS — Shortly after the Security Council unanimously condemned the recent North Korean missile launch and demanded that the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea abandon nuclear testing, Pyongyang’s rulers decided to up the political ante. They announced that they are on the verge of a third nuclear test and for good […]

Obama’s windy words, dovish appointments and lack of resolve

Obama’s windy words, dovish appointments and lack of resolve

Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk, East-Asia-Intel.com WASHINGTON — A mood of collective celebration swept over the American capital as President Barack Obama entered his second term under clear skies in freezing temperatures. It was as though the country were taking a break from fears about the economy, the next “fiscal cliff” and debate on […]

Memo to UN Security Council: The human rights emergency in N. Korea can no longer be ignored

Memo to UN Security Council: The human rights emergency in N. Korea can no longer be ignored

Special to WorldTribune.com By Robert Pak The author is a Korean-American minister and human rights activist who entered North Korea on Christmas day of 2009 to protest against genocide and crimes against humanity taking place within the country. He is a founding member of the nonpartisan Worldwide Coalition to Stop Genocide in North Korea. On […]

With policies in flux among world powers, N. Korea again threatens to go ballistic

With policies in flux among world powers, N. Korea again threatens to go ballistic

John J. Metzler UNITED NATIONS — The impending launch of a North Korean ballistic missile has as much to do with the propaganda goal of putting a satellite into orbit as to serve as a less than subtle bullying to neighboring states all undergoing a period of political transition. Though Pyongyang has forewarned regional governments […]

Missile fizzle: Fitting symbol of a bizarre failure in top-down government

Missile fizzle: Fitting symbol of a bizarre failure in top-down government

John J. Metzler UNITED NATIONS — In the bizarre ritual of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, a recent rocket launch was intended to put the icing on the dynastic cake of the centennial birthday celebrations of the late dictator Kim Il-Sung. The world press had been invited to the reclusive neo-Stalinist state, and the […]

West answers N. Korea launch preparations with a barrage of hot air

West answers N. Korea launch preparations with a barrage of hot air

Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk, East-Asia-Intel.com SEOUL — North Korea’s determination to fire a long-range missile sometime between Wednesday and next Monday is leaving the United States and its allies in the humiliating position of issuing rhetorical threats with no real chance of carrying them out. The helplessness of the U.S. position was clear […]

New Burma Road: Watch for the geopolitical landmines

New Burma Road: Watch for the geopolitical landmines

John J. Metzler UNITED NATIONS — With the historic visit of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to Burma, the highest profile American diplomatic contact in fifty years, the United States has entered a high stakes geopolitical chess game in Southeast Asia. Burma, a political pariah state has long been courted by China, coveted by India, […]