Kim Jong-un: After three years burnishing his resume as a
genocidal
despot, the dictator is
ready to travel abroad. His scheduled appearance
in Moscow for
Victory Day present a realm of interesting possibilities.
U.S. Pressure
Overshadows Kim Jong-un's International Debut (The
Korea Times, South Korea)
"The
current regional atmosphere could hardly be more disadvantageous for him. …
Unrelenting pressure from its archenemy the United States is likely to be most
unbearable for the communist regime and its inexperienced dictator. … For Kim
and his coterie, what is clear is the need to improve relations with its two
nearest neighbors, South Korea and China, to ease the U.S. pressure and
effectively play the Russian diplomatic card."
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un
will visit Moscow in May, the Voice of
America reported Saturday quoting a Russian presidential spokesman.
This means, barring some emergency or last-minute change of
mind, the 70th anniversary of Victory Day in Russia will provide a stage for
the young ruler's international debut since taking power in 2011.
Whether Kim gets the diplomatic spotlight or is treated as
an outcast by other national leaders who attend is up to him - and how his
regime performs in the run-up to his first trip abroad.
The current regional atmosphere could hardly be more
disadvantageous for him.
Since taking the helm of the impoverished country more than
three years ago, Kim is thought to have successfully solidified his grip on
power and even slightly improved its dire economic situation. Overseas,
however, Pyongyang's pariah status has become further aggravated by its
tug-of-war with the United States over the film release of the The Interview and allegations of hacking
against its maker, Sony Entertainment.
Unrelenting pressure from its archenemy the United States is
likely to be most unbearable for the communist regime and its inexperienced
dictator. In a YouTube interview last Thursday [watch above], U.S. President
Barack Obama hinted that through the Internet and other means of delivering
information, his administration would resort to "cyber war" rather
than the military option in forcing the isolated regime to collapse under the
power of an awakened population.
One cannot know at the moment what a U.S. shift from a
military to a softer, but perhaps more effective form of attack, will mean for
Pyongyang. For Kim and his coterie, what is clear is the need to improve
relations with its two nearest neighbors, South Korea and China, to ease the
U.S. pressure and effectively play the Russian diplomatic card.
For the North Korean leader, nothing could be more awkward
that to meet Presidents Park Geun-hye and Xi Jinping for the first time on Russian soil, assuming they
accept Russia's invitation, as Pyongyang's relationship with Seoul and Beijing
are at a low ebb. Particularly, North Korea will need
to strive harder to improve ties with the South by reopening channels for
dialogue without attaching cumbersome strings. Seoul has more than a few times
made it clear that any issue can be discussed if talks resume.
Reports are that Cheong WaDae [the Blue House] has
yet to decide whether to accept Russia's invitation. President Park should make
the trip to conduct what she used to describe as "unification
diplomacy," even if many Western leaders, including Obama, are unlikely to
attend because of Russia's intervention in the Ukrainian conflict.
Posted By Worldmeets.US
Rodman Invites
Rogan to North Korea (Sputnik, Russia)
Park needs to practice what she preached during her New Year
address when she said that despite friction between Washington and Pyongyang,
Seoul would push ahead with inter-Korean rapprochement. There are caveats,
however. The Foreign Ministry must make better preparations to prevent the
South Korean leader from being a stalking horse for a
display by Moscow and Pyongyang of a socialist alliance.
