North Korean Leader Says He Will Suspend Arms Tests, Shut Nuclear Test Site (cnn.com)

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un announced early Saturday morning that the regime no longer needs nuclear tests or intercontinental ballistic missile tests. Kim said Saturday that "under the proven condition of complete nuclear weapons, we no longer need any nuclear tests, mid-range and intercontinental ballistic rocket tests, and that the nuclear test site in northern area has also completed its mission," state-run KCNA reported Saturday. CNN reports: A North Korea source told CNN that Kim has finally decided to open up a new chapter for his nation. Kim has committed himself to the path of denuclearization and will now focus solely on economic growth and improving the national economy, the source said. The North Korean leader has realized the best path forward is to normalize relations with other countries, the source added. He is finally being recognized by the international community, and this is a historic, timely opportunity, the source said. The decision to halt nuclear and missile testing comes just one week before the leaders of South and North Korea are due to meet at the demilitarized zone between the two countries. U.S. President Donald Trump welcomed the news, tweeting: "North Korea has agreed to suspend all Nuclear Tests and close up a major test site. This is very good news for North Korea and the World - big progress! Look forward to our Summit."

Comments

Great news!

[Aighearach]

After seeing the picture of Kim Jong-Un blushing while posing with Red Velvet I figured, OK, this might be for real, he might really be ready to focus on trade.

Plus, China told him he had to do it; he went to China and they went on the news together, and North Korea had agreed to give up their nuclear program, and China had agreed to remain their ally. Sounds like a good deal to me, right?! Good deal for everybody, actually.

So how do you soften the hearts of the Generals? With kpop. Duh.

Works for me! I'm more of an AoA fan, but I can totally see Red Velvet being better for this mission.

Re:Great news!

[hcs_$reboot]

While you read /. from the comfort of your office chair, things might have happened over there. Pressure from China (a meeting at the highest level took place weeks ago + maybe new economic measures), and probably from the US (there are ways to show the guy, KJU, he's not as strong as he thinks he is, a drone throwing an harmless object on his head would induce some stress...). Besides, let's not forget KJU studied in Switzerland and is impregnated with Western culture, he is not as crazy as many think. The whole nuclear mess, killings and other insults might just have been preliminaries for installing a stable situation in NK.

Re:You can all thank Trump

[psycho12345]

Actually, I'll thank Xi, since he alone is the one who controls North Korea's entire existance. Funny how all of this happens AFTER Kim visits China. Also interesting after China consolidates into a dictatorship.

And for the record, no, this will not make Trump the greatest. There was another president who pulled off an amazing foreign policy coup, one people thought was equally impossible at the time, his name was Nixon. We all know how that ended. If anything, I would credit Nixon for today, he set China on the path to where they are now, and in the position and mindset to kick North Korea to the curb.

Re:Crazy

[unixisc]

Before the creation of Israel, the term 'Palestinian' was used to refer to local Jews, while the Arabs were simply called Arabs. The term 'Palestinian' didn't exist before 1967, when Arafat decided to rebrand his people that to change world opinion. Until then, everybody saw it as a few million Jews in Israel vs all the Arabs in countries from Morocco to Iraq, and Syria to Sudan. By rebranding them as 'Palestinian', he changed the perception of Israel from a David to a Goliath.

Also historically, under various Muslim rulers, there was never any entity named 'Palestine': throughout history, it was a part of either Egypt or Syria, depending on who was the ruler. If they want to revert to history, maybe a good idea would be to hand over control of them to either President Sisi or President Assad.

Re:Crazy

[Zontar The Mindless]

Before the creation of Israel, the term 'Palestinian' was used to refer to local Jews, while the Arabs were simply called Arabs. The term 'Palestinian' didn't exist before 1967, when Arafat decided to rebrand his people that to change world opinion.

You don't help your case when your first two sentences, as written, flatly contradict one another.

Re:You mean Xi

[Zontar The Mindless]

Actually, especially given that it came out of the AEI (to be fair, she's a fairly reputable professor at Georgetown), it was pretty light on that, I thought.

It seemed to me to be more about Xi clarifying a few things for Kim. Rephrased in the vernacular, I'm guessing it sounded a lot like, "If you want us to back you up, you're gonna lighten the fuck up, get off your high horse, show us some respect, and play by the rules, which we are listing here for your convenience...". The author posits [emphasis added],

Kim realized that US military options are more likely now than in the past, and that the Chinese were preparing for contingencies that did not involve supporting the North Korean regime.

If the US were to attack North Korea, China would intervene — not in support of North Korea, but rather in support of its own interests and would possibly even collaborate with the Americans.

Makes sense, and the collaboration bit might not be as far-fetched as it sounds. Left unsaid here--but possibly not in Beijing the other week--is that the Chinese do not actually have to wait for the Americans--they can act pre-emptively if they so choose. But that's potentially very disorderly, and China is nearly certain to prefer options that offer continued stability in the region over those that don't.