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Pete's Perspective on North Korea Missile Launch
Washington,
Apr 6 -
On Sunday, April 5, 2009 North Korea provocatively launched a long-range missile over Japan under the guise of attempting to launch a satellite into space. Thankfully the launch was unsuccessful as the Pentagon believes the North Koreans were unable to launch their satellite into orbit as its payload fell into the Pacific Ocean.
North Korea is a nation that may already have nuclear capability, and the fact that it still does not have an intercontinental ballistic missile capability means it cannot yet hit the United States. However, we should take this as a warning shot to try and do everything we can to keep North Korea in its box and ensure that it does not develop the capability.
North Korea’s recent actions are another attempt by its erratic leader, Kim Jong Il, to intimidate the West into negotiating directly with his regime. His actions will instead further isolate the country from the international community, and we need to continue to work to ensure stability in the region.
The missile launch serves as a needless and reckless reminder that the world remains a dangerous place. The world community must pursue all diplomatic and economic options as it considers its response to the provocation.
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