South Korean ship fires on a ship

[Zachstar]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/world/asi...c/10144059.stm

Full stop of trade or access to SKs sea lanes. NKs huge dependence on food from the south means that many a mouth will go hungry soon enough. Also its noted that any further attack by North Korea would be met by a military response.

not looking good for peace...

[Castout]

International sanction is not yet discussed and implemented.

It hasn't been brought to the UN.

Now I doubt SK will try to push for international sanction very hard and instead will settle for unilateral South Korea imposed sanction.

SK bark loud now too loud indeed that made me to doubt whether they're serious in trying to get Intl sanction.

[Zachstar]

Again thats assuming NK is sane.. Its not they said flat out they will fire if the loudspeakers are deployed. War over loudspeakers...

If it were the middle east I would say yes the back and forth than suddenly everyone moves on. But too much points to NK wanting war by a desperate ruling elete that fears the pro SK and china elements that could take over and would rather die in a blaze of hatred first.

[Jimbuna]

I applaud the action taken by SK, obviously I wouln't want to see the situation deteriorate to a state of armed conflict/war but something had to be done by somebody to this NK regime.

The only way to counter a bully is to meet it with a strong and determined set of counter measures.

I still maintain much depends on the US reaching a clear level of understanding with China over this issue.

[SteamWake]

While the UN stutters hems and haws...

US military told to get ready

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/37309788...s-asiapacific/

[Skybird]

That UN thing will bring nothing.

Currently, the sharpest weapon short of a military reaction or war (additionally to a total trading stop, and pointing all unlocked guns at them) would be - to remove all cameras and journalists from Korea, and not giving NK a single minute of TV broadcasting. Not one single headline in any newspaper. No article, no essay, no commenting. Not even a single three-liner on the last page of any regional paper nobody ever has heared of. No official reaction. No nothing. No strong speeches from the south, no official comment, no secret negotiations going on behind the diplomatic stage. NOTHING. Strangling their propaganda completely that way, making it simply disappearing from everybody's radar screen outside NK's borders. Let people do not realise that NK even does exist. Let it's hatefilled verbal sermons just puff out in a completly silent empty void. So that people not only ignore NK - but even do not know anymore that it is there. Do not even pay any attention at all to relief funds and NGOs and aid organsiations wanting to bring NK back to the mind of the world - silence these as well, so that nothing, nothing relates, reminds, points, refers to NK at all.

And blow everything up that moves beyond the border, of course. And in case of such incidents - not giving them any attention in public and media as well.

BTW, that would be my best advise for dealing with the Israeli-Palestine conflict as well: withdraw all, really all foreign NGOs and foreign relief organisations and all reporters and media as well (both the pro-Israeli and the pro-palestinian media), completely, totally ignore the place and issue alltogether, refusing to pay even one second of attention to it all (and I aim this at both sides).

We all get manipulated on several levels when paying attention to these things in the media. But neither must we like it, nor must we cooperate with the intention behind the manipulation. We can reject it. By right our attention-paying - we actively help to keep many of such conflicts alive, and assist many rogues to stay in power.

[Oberon]

The drumbeat is getting faster alright. I agree that nothing will come of the UN, but it will be interesting to see how each Security Council member votes on this, Russia and China particularly.
Beijing is torn between a rock and a hard place at the moment, on one hand they want to maintain their international image and be seen as 'good guys' but on the other they are the DPRKs only real allies and are basically the hand on the end of the leash of the out of control dog.
I think the question on everyones lips at the moment is:

"Will the DPRK follow through with its threats?"

And that, is something that only time will tell. In the meantime though, all that can be done is to prepare for the worst.
I'm going to have a read through of that 'North Korean Bluffers guide' again I think.

[TLAM Strike]

Planeman has posted some images of the salvaged torpedo on his blog...

http://planeman-bluffersguide.blogsp...ils-start.html

[tater]

Presumably this was done by a sub.

Deprive NK of her subs. Follow them out of port, then quietly sink them, saying nothing at all. NK sub leaves port, NK sub disappears. It's not like they'll even know where to look for the wreckage.

[Aramike]

Originally Posted by tater

Presumably this was done by a sub.

Deprive NK of her subs. Follow them out of port, then quietly sink them, saying nothing at all. NK sub leaves port, NK sub disappears. It's not like they'll even know where to look for the wreckage.

Well said.

[TLAM Strike]

Originally Posted by tater

Presumably this was done by a sub.

Deprive NK of her subs. Follow them out of port, then quietly sink them, saying nothing at all. NK sub leaves port, NK sub disappears. It's not like they'll even know where to look for the wreckage.

It should be assumed that the DPRK has either distress pingers or buoys on their subs should they go down.

The Yellow Sea is very shallow so recovery is possible, and the DPRK does have a Kowan class sub rescue ship (ASR).

[Aramike]

Originally Posted by TLAM Strike

It should be assumed that the DPRK has either distress pingers or buoys on their subs should they go down.

The Yellow Sea is very shallow so recovery is possible, and the DPRK does have a Kowan class sub rescue ship (ASR).

In any case, I still think we should elinate their sub force.

[gandalf71]

That sub shown in the article above looks amazingly similar to a Type XXIII

[Raptor1]

Originally Posted by gandalf71

That sub shown in the article above looks amazingly similar to a Type XXIII

Many modern submarines look like that, it's a design adapted in a lot of post-WWII vessels.

[Zachstar]

You cant give NK an excuse to attack. You cant quietly sink a sub. A 100 dollar hack job could make you a distress bouy that pops up also if they gather evidence they would claim SK is warmongering and invade on the spot.

Also china.. China will never go to war for NK but they have to go to war against NK if we have any hope that casualties would be minimized. There are internal pro china elements that could take over if china crosses the border but they are powerless beforehand.