Case # 1:
Say what you will about Ariel Sharon, it was his decision to vacate Gaza and turn it over to the Palestinian Authority. The PA has clearly done a wonderful job with the government there, and Israel is resultingly much safer having done so.
To the point where Israel has its military lined up ready to, essentially “retake” Gaza — and they are entering northern Gaza at this moment.
Case #2:
President William Jefferson Clinton decided it would be wise to provide North Korea with American cash in exchange for its dropping interest in a nuclear program. Yesterday, North Korea demonstrated in an equally efficient and proficient fashion its ability to saber-rattle by shooting off its own equivalent of fireworks on July 4th.
We threw money at North Korea to abandon its nuclear program and delivery systems, then, huh, find ourselves once again being “blackmailed” for cash for same.
Except this time the NKM (North Korean Midget) has become a laughingstock in the international missile community on one hand, and on the other has managed to actually raise the ire of UN members — Japan predominantly amongst them due to its proximity to the NKM’s property.
But let’s go back a bit: North Korea refused to carry out its obligations under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and other nuclear accords it had signed by building nuclear reactors and a plutonium reprocessing plant at a site called Yongbyon. Nations believed North Korea had enough weapons-grade plutonium for the manufacture of at least one nuclear weapon.
Clinton tried negotiations, but North Korea’s violations of its obligations under the NPT killed the talks until August of 1994. However, the US and North Korea signed an agreement on October 21, 1994, that offered North Korea a package of benefits in return for a freeze of North Korea’s nuclear program.
Benefits to North Korea included: light water nuclear reactors totaling 2,000 electric megawatts by the year 2003; shipments of “heavy oil” to North Korea (50,000 tons in 1995 and 500,000 tons annually beginning in 1996 until the first light water reactor is built); U.S. agreement to establish liaison offices as an initial step toward diplomatic relations; and a relaxation of the American economic embargo against North Korea.
In December 1995, the United States and North Korea signed a supply contract for the light water reactors.
So, by way of appeasement wherein the US provided NK with lots of cash and nuclear technology, NK kept up its end of the bargain by continuing its nuclear program on the sly and then in the clear and further, on July 4th this week, by firing off its first official generation of a nuclear weapons delivery system.
Let’s cut to the chase:
Appeasement by US and other regimes does not work; invariably it comes right around to haunt the offerer. And the NKM wants what he wants when he wants it but, first, he simply wants the CASH — though he has indicated more missile tests are coming.
But wait, there’s more:
Taiwan, China’s non-conformist little brother, says it will “test-fire a missile capable of hitting China, alarming the island’s main ally, the United States, a cable news network said on Thursday.”
The Hsiung Feng III, developed by Taiwan’s Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology, has a range of 600 km (360 miles) and is accurate to within half a meter, the online edition of cable news network ETTV (http://www.ettoday.com) said, quoting unnamed military sources.
That range would put areas along China’s coast from Fuzhou in Fujian Province to Nan’ao in Guangdong within striking distance of the missile, the Web site said.
The plot thickens — is China getting some of its own medicine when, at the same time, it and Russia refuse to condemn the NKM’s recent missile tests?
Okay, I admit, I’m not saying the NKM’s delivery systems are particularly fabulous — YET.
BZ
Meanwhile, the fun folks in NoKo land are stealing Chinese relief trains. As in locomotives and boxcars. Sending the crews back and keeping the trains… claim they are ‘part of the relief supplies’. China, none too happy, has ceased shipping supplies and demands the trains back.
*Now* maybe we can suggest to China that they clean up their friendly little neighbor they cared so much about in the 1950’s…. or quietly let them know that the US will encourage or at least turn a blind eye towards nuclear development by Japan, South Korea and Taiwan.
China wanted such a good neighbor and now they can damn well deal with it like a big boy. They are in the *real world* now….
Of course this would take an Administration with a *real* foreign policy, not just a grab-bag of things to do or not do. They should really ask Condi to give them one… but so far, no luck.
Huh. Sounds like tit-for-tat with American aircraft from a few years ago. Condi unleashed. . .what a concept.
BZ
Mr. Z – If Ms. Rice had just a bit more gumption and vinegar, the President’s ears would be red most days. She is a nice and gracious woman and asserts herself through that, so that one does not know the dagger has been lodged deeply until one realizes their lifeblood is upon the floor. It is a wonderful approach and I try to use it myself, but to far less success. I fear, however, that the President’s shoes are so far off the ground that even yelling to him will not give him the realization that there is no contact between himself and the planet… although passing artificial satellites might give him pause…
As it is the President sets policy and he has firmly decided on mush. And no flavoring, save a swift dose of the Dr. Watson medicine will bring him back. Unfortunately he abstains from that, and so mush it is and even Ms. Rice cannot make something of it.
So it is. Heavy sigh.
BZ
Yo fellas dont you think (right or wrongly), the american invasion of Iraq, the taking down of democratically elected goverments has something to do with N Korea’s provocative actions. It is obvious that the regime in power now has a different view of the world than most other regimes. Do you not also concede that the Administrations arrogance and not listening to other countries has served to isolate us when it comes to negotiating international treaties and other world politics. mark
As for the Irael situation. That is a land dispute. The palestinians claim that Irael has stolen thier lands. But at the same time I cannot see any posible justification in blowing up yourself, as well as innocent women and children. But until you deal with the land claims of palestenians you will have these problems. mark
Blo,
It is hilarious how the libs are all over t.v. bragging about the 1194-95 treaty with NK.
All you have to do is look at what NK is doing now and just laugh at the idiots on t.v.
They are making it obvious that they just ‘appeased’, as you said, NK for political expediency, and that is all.. ‘Do nothing Clinton’ is what he should be called. He did nothing about the U.S.S. Cole, and did nothing to permanently FIX the problem in NK. It was a temporary fix set up as a smoke screen while NK had all that time to use the stuff we gave them to build nukes.. That is what the liberals are all about.. Power and ‘looking good’.. THEY ARE NOT ABOUT SERVING THE COUNTRY AND PUTTING THEIR BUTTS AND REPUTATIONS ON THE LINE TO DO SO. That is the MAIN THING I love about Bush.. Like him or not, he is a man of courage and put his butt on the line with Iraq.
Ann coulter was on Hannity and Colmes last night and she said that NK is the example of WHY WE NEEDED TO GET SADAAM.. WHy we need to get these guys BEFORE they build the nukes.. SHEESH!
So the US gets a Coalition of 30 some Nations to deal with Iraq and is *going it alone*. Then gets Japan, South Korea, China and Russia to help talk to the NoKo’s and is *going it alone*. In the first case no one put a gun to the heads of anyone in those Nations to step forward and help the US. In the second the US had to drag China and Russia in to try and get someone that actually could *do something* about North Korea.
What part of this is *going it alone*? I am obviously missing some obscure meaning of *alone* that includes many others to help.
Now, which democratically elected governments has the US *taken down*? Iraq? If you did not vote for the Ba’athist party, and you had no choice on the ballot, you tended to get harassed unless you got *disappeared* or just plain *shot*. Afghanistan? The Taliban kept half of the population from voting and threatened the entire population with use of lethal force if it did not comply to its orders. Now lets start digging a bit to get to a democratically elected government overthrown by the US… Panama? Military dictatorship. Grenada? Military dictatorship. Nicaragua? Sandanista’s got voted out and not back in since then. Cambodia? Faltered by US operations under Nixon, but taken out via revolution once South Viet Nam fell. Laos? Faltered under attacks from North Viet Nam and fell after the fall of South Viet Nam. South Viet Nam? Yes, under JFK, and a ruler more to Kennedy’s liking installed. Iran? That nation had been split between Pro/Anti-Monarchists since the late 19th Century and both the US and UK were responsible for the problems there. Mind you, the Shah was taken out of power as being pro-Axis in WWII by the US and UK. Hard to really call that a democracy between the mid-40’s and 1953. Problems a hang-over from WWII and Truman Administration with Eisenhower holding half the bag and the UK the other half.
Need a firm list for this to be established. And not just ‘oh we influenced their elections’, we have that problem with China doing that to OUR elections. Must be a regime that is verifiably *taken out* lethally and with malice aforethought AND that has been part of a democratic process for, say, 10 years. Should be easy enough to do… line them up!
In 1948 the Jews and the Palestinians had the choice of what to do. The Jews formed a Nation, put up a flag, acted like a Nation State, adhered to the nicities of same and have been attacked multiple times in that doing. The Palestinians… complained. And have been doing so since 1948. They did not form up a Nation, adhere to diplomacy and, instead, went to coercion, force and terrorism to gain those things they could have gotten by *agreement* in 1948. By not doing those things, they gain none of my sympathies now and have not for quite some time. They have thrown every chance at peace away in hopes to get something *just a little better*. Offered a half-loaf, they want a few slices from the other half, too. And then will employ terrorist tactics if they do not get what they want. Now they barely have a Nation and it is led by a terrorist organization that has no idea what to do with a Nation, except exploit it and use it to kill. The Palestinians believe that if they make this a stark ‘either/or’ confrontation, that they will win. In doing so they have gained death, poverty, corruption and a dismal record on actually keeping to their word. If they continue to *ask* for a final solution, they may get it… just NOT the one they WANT.
Mark, that’s a nice try, but I do not believe that the “taking down of Iraq’s democratically-elected government” has one whit of a bearing on the NKM. First, he couldn’t care less. Second, he extorted cash from the Clinton Admin and eyeballs doing the same now. What was that TV phrase? — “I’ll take the CASH.”
And about Iraq: let’s see, AJ summed it up nicely when he wrote:
So to sum things up: Iran has given the United States definitively 3 Casus Belli, and Syria a possible 2.
As to the title of this post, there is *NO* statute of limitations on a Casus Belli under International Law.
The United States may respond as it sees fit whenever and wherever it prefers and under any lawful means of war.
Finally Mark, about the Palestinians: they will never be satisfied, and neither will Iran (as they have all cleared stated and written), until that one small, nasty, little festering cyst called Israel is lanced and its contents smeared across the landscape in a moribund fashion.
That all quite appears clear and concise to me, indeed.
Rebecca: in an overarching fashion you are correct. I do not believe Clinton set out to acquire these ends, but he did not have the capability to grasp the Middle Eastern mindset with regard to the respect only for power. When our nation did not respond to the ever-growing and powerful slaps to our face, there was only one direction to proceed: more and harder. Simply because they could.
AJ: 1948 WAS a pivotal time and Israel PLANNED its course of action. The “Palestinians” consisted of a loose group of individuals with no agreement, no plans, no goals and, as you point out, nothing more than a future of complaints.
BZ
Mr. Z- Yes, the folks in Transjordan just did *not* know what to do after their last caretakers left them. Transfer from the Ottoman Empire to the British Empire was satisfactory, giving them someone to vituperate against… but once *they* left… well… who was going to tell them what to do? Israel was formed with a clear and coherent purpose in mind and kept to that and won their place the old fashioned way: they outfought their rivals. Multiple times. Repeatedly.
Iran’s Casus Belli now *include* definitively identified bombs used against US Forces in Iraq and some actual direct combat, if I remember correctly from the past couple of months. So they are now at 5 and climbing… and the Iraqi’s are none too thrilled about Iranian fighters coming over their border, of which they have captured 8 or so a few days ago, and the Intel outposts that they and other sectarians have in and around Basra.
Yes, Iran is making the new kid on the block feel a bit on the oppressed side. Luckily the Iranian Revolutionary Guard/Special Guard/hired armed thugs are busy having to quell riots, torture prisoners and, generally, do everything the US Armed Forces are accused of doing, but on a scale involving thousands. Caught on videotape and cameraphone pictures. When will the Left ever start complaining about the lack of women’s rights there and the truly inhuman conditions of their prisons and the fact they execute journalists?
Thank you to Azeri television and the blogosphere for getting word out that no one… and I mean no one… in the MSM wants to report. Where would we be withou Gateway Pundit and the Milblogs?