O J's Corner : Reflections

Testing US’ patience

Years ago, during the Cold War, the world’s newspapers used to run pages-long advertisements of the achievements of “the great leader Kim Il  Sung of North Korea”. The Cold War is over, Kim Il Sung is no more, but his son and present North Korean leader Kim Jong II is giving the jitters to the world’s only superpower, the United States of America.

Despite the commando-like appearance and affirmations of President George Bush, North Korea and Iran, which he described as part of the “axis of evil”, are taking him for granted.

President Bush had warned North Korea against testing long-range missiles which can carry nuclear war-heads. Leader Kim Jong II did not care two hoots about the warnings of President Bush.

He test-fired not one, but seven missiles, one of them long-range which can strike Alaska in the US. But that one miscarried and did not reach  striking distance. Leader Kim Jong II did it on a day which he thought was auspicious for him. The D-day was July 4, the Independence Day of the United States of America. This was definitely intended as the height of provocation for the Americans.

Another leader who is giving terrible jitters is President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran, the fire-brand Islamic fundamentalist who does not mince words in condemning the US. He is hell-bent on enriching uranium,which he euphemistically refers to as for the purpose of power generation. Everyone the world over knows that his intention is to enrich weapons-grade uranium.

Reacting to the pressure put on him for abandoning the move, initially he gave a terse reply saying nothing of the sort would work out. Later, he appeared to come round to a package offered to him by the European Union. Lately, he appears to be listening to no one, even to International Atomic Energy supremo Elbaradei.

In June, President Bush had said North Korea would face even greater international isolation (than Iran) if it carries out its threat to test-fire its long-range missile. “It should make people nervous when non-transparent regimes, who have announced that they have nuclear warheads, fire missiles. This is not the way you conduct business in the world”, Bush had retorted.

He had warned Iran and North Korea not to test his patience. About Iran President Bush had said in June that it should act within weeks, when President Ahmadinejad expressed his willingness to consider the package in August.

“Diplomacy takes time, while acting alone, you can move quickly”, President Bush has quipped. He is giving time for diplomacy to act on the intransigent regimes.

Both the regimes speak like Muthavakil in Afghanistan and Tariq Ahmed in Iraq before these two countries were conquered by American-led forces. They were speaking daggers and using none. Ultimately, both the regimes fell like ninepins.

Now it seems President Bush is speaking daggers and using none about Iran and North Korea, both of which are having a field day, thinking that US will not strike the countries during the final term of Bush. They think they are safe till 2008 when another President would rule the US. An enraged America would be dangerous to both of them.