John Bolton, the National Security Advisor to the President of the United States, Donald Trump

Some days ago, we reported that the summit between the President of the People’s Democratic Republic of Korea, Kim Jong-un, and the President of the Korean Republic, Moon Jae-in was a monumental historical success for the Korean Peninsular. Denuclearization, disarmament, peace agreement, reunification were some of the key issues on the table [1].

The Kim-Moon Summit of 27 April was supposed to continue on 15 May but President Kim cancelled it, protesting that the United States and South Korea had got together to carry out military manoeuvres and given the slap in his face by impertinent and provocative declarations made by John Bolton, Donald Trump’s national security adviser. The latter’s position is that North Korea’s denuclearization should follow the scheme applied in Libya in 2011.

As we all know, Libya was stripped of her nuclear weapons… and ended up being invaded and destroyed by the United States and NATO. Furthermore, the Libyan Leader, Myanmar Gaddafi, was atrociously assassinated. For North Korea, which had agreed to a military alliance with Libya, it became impossible to intervene. This is why this tragedy is right at the fore of Kim Yong-un’s mind. Another matter that feeds his unease is the unusual although not unexpected withdrawal of the United States from the so-called 5 + 1 Agreement (JCPOA) on Iran’s nuclear program.

The response of President Kim to Bolton’s declarations was unexpected: the People’s Democratic Republic of Korea will not denuclearize unilaterally without concessions from the other side. This is primarily because North Korea is the one that has taken many steps and has displayed a number of good will gestures, including the release of three US citizens, whilst Washington has not given the slightest concrete expression of good will towards Pyongyang.

It appears that Bolton reduces the Kim-Trump Summit to North Korea capitulating before the United States and nothing more. It appears that for him, Pyongyang has lost a war. It does not enter Bolton’s mind that this Summit is a civilized form of exploring possibilities for agreement between the parties.

Bolton’s arrogant and ill-informed attitude demonstrates the dangerous phase that the United States is crossing of wanting to subdue by force anything that does cooperate with the Empire.

Donald Trump has declared that, if North Korea does not de-nuke in the manner prescribed by Bolton; if Kim does not accept his virtual ultimatum, then the United States “will exercise the maximum pressure to force it to negotiate”. “We will have to see if the summit will still take place.” declared the US President.

Thus it appears as if President Trump were oblivious to the fact that no power, no state, can lay down an ultimatum or force another state to negotiate, except in the case of a state that has been conquered or has been previously destroyed in a war.

The Vice Minister of Foreign Relations of the People’s Democratic Republic of Korea, Kim Kye-gwan, cleared up any misunderstanding:

“If the United States corners us and asks us to unilaterally withdraw from our nuclear program, we will stop having an interest in the conversations and we will be forced to reconsider if we accept the forthcoming US-North Korean summit.”

This statement cannot be interpreted as a threat to walk away from the announced Kim-Trump Summit of 12 June in Singapore but simply as a warning.

The President of Korea, Moon Jae-in, was a champion of human rights and continued threading into his policy, the peaceful reunification of Korea, promoted by former presidents Kim Dae-jung and Roh Moo-hyun. President Moon, also President Roh’s former Presidential Advisor on foreign policy, will have to agree on his own summit with Trump to decide what will happen to the 28 500 US soldiers that today are stationed in the south of the Korean Peninsula.

This objective had to be a pre-requisite at least checked with the US occupant by President Moon before his meeting on 27 April with President Kim. This is because, without this condition, any rapprochement between the two Korean parties that does not obtain the consent of the US may be impossible.

Bolton’s imperialist position, which sets the contours to the Secretary of State’s (Mike Pompeo) policy, constitutes an unequivocal rejection of diplomacy and international law and leads to the mightiest laying down the law [2].

Bolton’s response to the possible denuclearization of Korea reveals the United States’ end-game: the unconditional surrender of the People’s Democratic Republic of Korea and not a conciliation of interests supporting peace and security between nations.

Conciliation would open the path for the peace reunification of Korea. This in turn would reduce military costs for both South Korea and North Korea, not to mention military costs for the United States; contribute to eliminating the military bases in Guam, Okinawa and Diego García, around China, and would strengthen international cooperation. Therefore, despite Bolton’s position, it remains for President Moon Jae-in alone to look squarely at President Trump and to ask him, asserting the sovereignty of the Republic of Korea, for Washington withdraws its forces from the south of the peninsula.

If Moon does not do so, the arrogant rhetoric, the threats and the insults will continue. However, now one will not be able to point the finger at the People’s Democratic Republic of Korea, rather the United States and John Bolton “de patear la mesa”!

Translation
Anoosha Boralessa

[1Perspectives of the Kim-Trump Summit”, by Julio Yao Villalaz, Translation Anoosha Boralessa, Voltaire Network, 13 May 2018.

[2«Estados Unidos, Pompeo, Bolton y el Desorden Internacional», por Julio Yao, Resumen Latinoamericano, 10 de abril de 2018.