Spring Break
North Korea getting out of hand
The UN needs to step up and back its words.
By: Travis Holland
Issue date: 4/2/09 Section: Opinion
North Korea is setting a dangerous precedent, and the world is allowing it. The rogue nuclear nation has been warned, sanctioned and threatened, all to no avail. The North Koreans still pursue efforts that will allow it to threaten the safety of the U.S. and other free nations.
This week, North Korea plans to launch a rocket into space even though other nations have warned of retaliation. This is an especially interesting situation, with other countries like Iran watching from the sidelines. At a time when keeping influence over nuclear nations has never been more important, the UN has failed miserably.
With scary parallels to the oft maligned League of Nations, the UN seems like a paper tiger now more than ever. With its inability to prevent North Korea's actions or prevent Iran's nuclear arming, the multinational organization seems powerless and ineffective on the world stage.
Like its predecessor, the League of Nations, the UN is showing that it has little ability to keep the peace it was designed to create. North Korea's recent actions have only been the latest in a string of defeats dealt to the organization.
The precedent currently being set by North Korea is that once a nation has nuclear weapons, the UN can't do anything to stop it. Korea has consistently disobeyed UN direction despite constant sanctions and warnings. If the UN wishes to become a respectable peace keeping entity, the North Korea debacle is a perfect opportunity to take military action and show its bite matches its bark.
Member nations have already warned North Korea that its pending launch would violate a 2006 U.N. Security Council Resolution. However, the only teeth behind this warning are sanctions. For those who haven't realized it yet, sanctions don't work well with fanatic, nuclear armed dictators.
If the U.N. wants to be taken seriously, it has to deal with this potential rocket launch in another way. The situation may require military action, or at least a show of force, and the U.N. is on the spot to provide that force. If it fails, and North Korea successfully launches in the near future, the U.N.'s credibility will be beyond repair.
There has never been a more critical time for the U.N. to step up. Iran isn't the only nation looking to arm itself with nuclear weapons, and a new message needs to be sent. As long as nuclear weapons are a ticket to freedom, nations looking to circumvent regulation will want them. It's time for the nations of the U.N. to come together and resolve to make the organization as effective as it was meant to be at its creation.
This week, North Korea plans to launch a rocket into space even though other nations have warned of retaliation. This is an especially interesting situation, with other countries like Iran watching from the sidelines. At a time when keeping influence over nuclear nations has never been more important, the UN has failed miserably.
With scary parallels to the oft maligned League of Nations, the UN seems like a paper tiger now more than ever. With its inability to prevent North Korea's actions or prevent Iran's nuclear arming, the multinational organization seems powerless and ineffective on the world stage.
Like its predecessor, the League of Nations, the UN is showing that it has little ability to keep the peace it was designed to create. North Korea's recent actions have only been the latest in a string of defeats dealt to the organization.
The precedent currently being set by North Korea is that once a nation has nuclear weapons, the UN can't do anything to stop it. Korea has consistently disobeyed UN direction despite constant sanctions and warnings. If the UN wishes to become a respectable peace keeping entity, the North Korea debacle is a perfect opportunity to take military action and show its bite matches its bark.
Member nations have already warned North Korea that its pending launch would violate a 2006 U.N. Security Council Resolution. However, the only teeth behind this warning are sanctions. For those who haven't realized it yet, sanctions don't work well with fanatic, nuclear armed dictators.
If the U.N. wants to be taken seriously, it has to deal with this potential rocket launch in another way. The situation may require military action, or at least a show of force, and the U.N. is on the spot to provide that force. If it fails, and North Korea successfully launches in the near future, the U.N.'s credibility will be beyond repair.
There has never been a more critical time for the U.N. to step up. Iran isn't the only nation looking to arm itself with nuclear weapons, and a new message needs to be sent. As long as nuclear weapons are a ticket to freedom, nations looking to circumvent regulation will want them. It's time for the nations of the U.N. to come together and resolve to make the organization as effective as it was meant to be at its creation.
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