Kim Jong Un and
his sister conclude their visit to China continuing a relationship once
described by Chairman Mao as closer than 'lips and teeth'. Whatever
conclusions political gurus might draw, one thing is certain: President
Xi made public his support of China's long-term ally.
Trump
seeing the odds of success at the meeting with Kim lengthen is twisting
the South Korean President's arm. Mr. Moon is now told Trump may delay
implementation of the South Korea trade deal which, among other things,
grants exemptions against aluminum and steel tariffs. So President
Moon better get cracking on Trump's North Korea deal. A tall order, for
how can anyone seriously believe Kim is going to give up his country's
exclusive new status as ICBM fortified and nuclear armed. Meanwhile,
Russia's latest Sarmet RS-28 (or Satan 2) underwent a second launch test
on Thursday. With hypersonic MIRVs up to 16 (depending on size)
warheads, it is reputed to be invincible. Such is the world we live in
when there was a time during Reagan-Gorbachev when there was hope we
would no longer live under this cloud. Not to be, the U.S. started
enlarging NATO and chipping away at the border countries, some even part
of the USSR.
If ever matters can get worse, one can trust Trump to make them. Following the removal of General H.R. McMaster as National Security
Adviser, the grown-ups are almost gone. Replacing him is the Malvolio
of the foreign policy establishment. Hated for good reason by
Democrats and Republicans -- the latter refused to confirm John Bolton
as George Bush's ambassador to the UN -- he is a confirmed liar and
warmonger. For example, he claimed Fidel Castro was developing chemical
and biological weapons.
On
the PBS Newshour, former President Carter called him 'the worst
mistake' made by Donald Trump. He is against the Iran nuclear deal and
has called for a preemptive strike against North Korea. A certain lack
of imagination is self-evident for Seoul is within its artillery range,
not to mention the 35,000 American troops at the border. He still
defends the disastrous Iraq war despite the horrendous aftermath, and
which Trump himself considers a monumental error.
He
is also associated with Pamela Geller, the notorious Islamophobe, and
the virulent Muslim-hating Robert Spencer. Bolton obliged them by
writing a forward to their book in 2010. The two were quoted 174 times
by Anders Brevik in his racist manifesto targeting Muslims. When he
killed 77 people in Norway's worst terrorist attack, he declared they
were aiding the Islamization of Europe. They were young adults at a
Labor Party youth camp.
John Bolton
is also chairman of the Gatestone Institute, which often purveys
anti-Muslim fearmongering. The latest is 'Why Christians Need Self-Rule
in Iraq'. Citing killings of Christians, it conveniently omits the
killings of Muslims by IS.
Trump has
long expressed dissatisfaction with the Iran nuclear deal. With allies
in Bolton and the new Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, he may decide to
pull out of the deal despite the opposition of the other five signatory
countries. If not all-out war, it surely sets the stage for turmoil in
the region.
The country has become a
ship being steered on to shoals, relying on some merciful deity to see
it through; perhaps one which through the ages has calmly observed the
demise of Pharaohs, Caesars and Mughal Emperors. What then are the odds
on a middling tycoon?
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