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UN Envoy
Warns North Korea |
| By
Stephen Lendman |
| UN envoy Jeffrey Feltman met with met North Korea’s Foreign Minister Ri
Yong-ho and Vice-Foreign Minister Pak Myong-kuk in Pyongyang during his
four-day visit to the country. Formerly US assistant secretary of state for near eastern affairs, along with other State Department positions, he was installed by Washington in 2012 as UN under-secretary general for political affairs. His job isn’t about diplomacy and peacemaking. It’s serving US imperial interests at the world body, the way he operated at the State Department for nearly 30 years. According to a UN statement, he and North Korean officials “agreed that the current situation (on the peninsula is) the most tense and dangerous peace and security issue in the world today,” adding: “…the international community, alarmed by escalating tensions, is committed to the achievement of a peaceful solution to the situation on the Korean Peninsula.” The danger isn’t a possible DPRK miscalculation. It’s Washington’s rage for war and regime change, wanting all sovereign independent nations replaced by pro-Western ones. The “international community” has no control over US actions, opposing peace and stability “on the Korean peninsula,” refusing to formally end Harry Truman’s 1950s aggression, or engage diplomatically with Pyongyang to resolve contentious issues. Nor does it recognize the DPRK’s sovereignty, instead making “fire and fury” threats along with others about destroying the country. Imperialist Feltman was the wrong UN envoy to North Korea. Except on the Security Council where Russia and China have veto power, the world body largely operates as a US subsidiary, serving its interests, polar opposite its Charter mandate: — “to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war, which twice in our lifetime has brought untold sorrow to mankind, — to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person, in the equal rights of men and women and of nations large and small, — to establish conditions under which justice and respect for the obligations arising from treaties and other sources of international law can be maintained, and — to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom.” Feltman’s rhetoric rang hollow, saying “there can only be a diplomatic solution to the situation, achieved through a process of sincere dialogue. Time is of the essence.” For decades, Pyongyang sought rapprochement with America and other Western countries, its overtures either spurned or when engagement with Washington occurred, it was betrayed. Time and again, the US proves it can’t be believed or trusted - Trump’s betrayal of the Palestinians the latest example by recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, flagrantly violating international law, revealing it’s no honest broker on any issues with any other parties - friends or foes. North Korea wants confrontation with no other nations. It wants peace and stability on the peninsula, normalized relations with other countries, hostile sanctions lifted. Given the threat America poses, it won’t abandon its nuclear and ballistic programs, essential deterrents against a hostile aggressor. VISIT MY NEW WEB SITE: stephenlendman.org (Home - Stephen Lendman). Contact at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net. My newest book as editor and contributor is titled "Flashpoint in Ukraine: How the US Drive for Hegemony Risks WW III." http://www.claritypress.com/LendmanIII.html |