Peace through hot air: Talking in circles at the ‘Jeju Forum for Peace and Prosperity’

By on    Columnists, Exclusives, Japan, NE Asia, North Korea, South Korea, Top Stories, U.S. Intelligence, U.S. Military, Washington  

Peace through hot air: Talking in circles at the ‘Jeju Forum for Peace and Prosperity’

Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk JEJU ― Gary Samore of the Belfer Center at Harvard, formerly with the Obama administration, suggested at the annual Jeju Forum for Peace and Prosperity that resolution of North Korea’s nukes-and-missiles program may be insoluble. That sense weighs heavily on policy-makers in Seoul and Washington. How can Koreans and […]

Having sworn to ‘forever renounce war’, Japan still alone in a tough neighborhood

By on    China, Columnists, Donald Kirk, Japan, North Korea, Russia, South Korea, Top Stories, U.S. Military  

Having sworn to ‘forever renounce war’, Japan still alone in a tough neighborhood

Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk TOKYO ― The shadows of war lengthen over Japanese society in thrall to Article 9 of a “peace constitution” foisted under the “occupation” led by the victorious World War II Pacific commander, Gen. Douglas MacArthur. Much as the “rightist” Prime Minister Shinzo Abe might want to do away with […]

Talking North Korea peace has paid off for the talkers, but not for peace

By on    Columnists, Donald Kirk, Exclusives, NE Asia, North Korea, South Korea, Top Stories  

Talking North Korea peace has paid off for the talkers, but not for peace

Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk An interviewer for a radio station in Boston, winding up one of those Q&A’s to which journalists are subjected, asked, What would you do to resolve the North Korean “problem?” I answered, “I have no solution, no idea, no clue.” While that response might seem like an abject display […]

Amid the Korean nuclear showdown, don’t forget the trade gap that threatens the western alliance

By on    China, Exclusives, Japan, NE Asia, North Korea, South Korea, Top Stories, U.S. Economy, U.S. Military, Washington  

Amid the Korean nuclear showdown, don’t forget the trade gap that threatens the western alliance

Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk All the talk over what to do with North Korea overlooks one problem to which people are not paying that much attention. That’s the yawning gap in trade between the U.S. and all its leading trade partners. It’s a lot easier to grasp the significance of a North Korean […]

Where does bankrupt North Korea get the cash for those skyscrapers and missiles?

By on    BB Columnists, BB NE Asia, China, Columnists, Donald Kirk, Exclusives, NE Asia, North Korea, South Korea, Top Stories  

Where does bankrupt North Korea get the cash for those skyscrapers and missiles?

Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk U.S.-China relations are at their worst in years, and North and South Korean are not getting along either. In fact, relations between those two are at such a low ebb that two-way trade, once about several hundred million dollars a year, has almost ceased. Curiously, however, North Korean coal […]

Does China have more influence over South Korea than North Korea?

By on    BB Columnists, BB NE Asia, Columnists, Donald Kirk, Exclusives, NE Asia, Rest of The Best, South Korea, Top Stories  

Does China have more influence over South Korea than North Korea?

Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk, EastAsiaIntel.com We keep hearing about all the influence the Chinese have over North Korea. If only they’d exert their power, maybe cut off or slow down the flow of oil that’s the lifeblood of the country, then the North Koreans would start talking seriously about giving up their nukes. […]

Do North Korean propaganda writers really want to channel Abraham Lincoln

By on    BB Columnists, BB NE Asia, Columnists, Donald Kirk, Exclusives, NE Asia, North Korea, Stateside, Top Stories, Washington  

Do North Korean propaganda writers really want to channel Abraham Lincoln

Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk, EastAsiaIntel.com WASHINGTON – Credit someone in North Korea with a sense of historical irony. Who would have thought anyone up there would have dreamed of writing an imaginary letter from Abraham Lincoln to President Obama berating him for endorsing harsh UN sanctions and failing to halt the U.S. nuclear […]

How the U.S. handles the baddest of bad actors: ISIL, Cuba and North Korea

By on    Americas, BB Columnists, BB NE Asia, Belgium, Columnists, Cuba, Donald Kirk, Exclusives, Mideast, NE Asia, North Korea, Stateside, Syria, Terrorism, Top Stories, U.S. Military, U.S. Politics, Washington  

How the U.S. handles the baddest of bad actors: ISIL, Cuba and North Korea

Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk, EastAsiaIntel.com WASHINGTON – The hype surrounding President Obama’s visit to Cuba quickly gave way to fear and loathing as the world absorbed the news of the slaughter perpetrated in Brussels, for which ISIL, the Islamic State of Iraq and Levant, immediately claimed “credit.” No sooner were we treated to […]

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