[Skybird]

All they want is direct talks between the US an NK. I wonder why it is such a festish for the US not to do that. It appears to me as if it would be the most reasonable thing to do. Hell, enemy sides talk to each other even during wars.

Who is winning and loosing what:

the US: during the nineties, especially the S-Korean young ones had growing antipathy against the ongoing presence of US troops in S-Korea. the total rejection of negotiations has led the N-Koreans to loose their mind - a threat that know produces a shift in S-Korean opinion that it now is far more favourable again towards US troops in the country. Good for the US.

China: they have lost a lot of influence on the N-Koreans, still deliver them the food supplies so that people still live a miserable life, but currnetly do longer die during the winters. Chinese policy has lost it's face, and a good ammount of options to act. strategical gains for the US at the cost of the Chinese.

Japan: will be tempted more and more to develope it's own nukes. In the region it is often said that they already are a nuclear power, in the meaning of that an extreme hightech nation like them (as well as other high-developed Western nations) would only need 2-3 months to field their self-developed nuclear weapons. Strategical gains for Japan, the US, losses for China and Russia. I think it is possible that they already have deployed operational nuclear weapons.

We all: feeling and essentialy being strnagled, n-Korea has no other choice than to sell nuclear weapon tech to make some money. forget non-proliferation. Nukes will spread, forst in that region, than beyond. Evern Europe will get it's own nuclear weapons within a forseeable time-frame (not only the French and British ones). No winners, only loosers.