You know, a lot of people were halfheartedly predicting some kind of an apocalypse when Trump won the presidency. here was a volatile, unpredictable man with an ego only rivaled by his desire for revenge on anyone and everyone who seemed to show even the slightest level of disrespect.
Yeah, I know. What can go wrong? Right?
Well, a lot of that seemed a little overblown, and for the first two months and change of his presidency, the only major, headline grabbing hostilities that Trump seemed to show in terms of foreign affairs was towards America's allies, such as Australia and Germany.
Now, however, Trump has taken a few steps towards active hostility towards another nation, and he did it in typical Trump style, with a lot of bravado, a flair for the dramatic.
Of course, the question then is how serious he is, and how wise it is to poke a stick in this particular fire.
The country in question, perhaps not surprisingly, is North Korea. This might not be a total surprise to many people, because North Korea is a country notorious for leaders who tend to speak loudly, and threaten the United States. The difference this time, however, is in the absence of any kind of measured response by the White House. Even George W. Bush, who was not known for his moderation while president, seemed to take these threats by North Korea with a grain of salt.
Trump has changed all of that, and pressed China to take care of the problem in North Korea, but he did not do it in particularly reasonable terms. Here, specifically, is what he said during an interview with the Financial Times:
“Well, if China is not going to solve North Korea, we will. That is all I am telling you.”
The president continued:
“And China has great influence over North Korea. And China will either decide to help us with North Korea, or they won’t. And if they do that will be very good for China, and if they don’t it won’t be good for anyone.”
So, that's pretty much the inexperienced and unpredictable side of Trump that most of us were fearing. At least, most of us who saw how unqualified he was for the office he now holds.
Frankly, it seems like Trump is poking a stick in the fire, because North Korea is, for all intents and purposes, the same as it always has been. They have been making these kinds of exaggerated threats for many years now - even decades, really.
Of course, Trump himself bears fairly close resemblance to the kind of leaders North Korea has seen in recent decades, with prominent shows of bravado and a lot of trash talk for a supposed world leader. Unfortunately, the stakes have now been raised, and one cannot help but wonder if this is the right approach to take with a notoriously unstable regime - I am talking about the North Korean leader, although it applies to the American one these days, as well.
Here is the link to the article about Trump pressing China on North Korea, and making a not so subtle threat:
Trump has changed all of that, and pressed China to take care of the problem in North Korea, but he did not do it in particularly reasonable terms. Here, specifically, is what he said during an interview with the Financial Times:
“Well, if China is not going to solve North Korea, we will. That is all I am telling you.”
The president continued:
“And China has great influence over North Korea. And China will either decide to help us with North Korea, or they won’t. And if they do that will be very good for China, and if they don’t it won’t be good for anyone.”
So, that's pretty much the inexperienced and unpredictable side of Trump that most of us were fearing. At least, most of us who saw how unqualified he was for the office he now holds.
Frankly, it seems like Trump is poking a stick in the fire, because North Korea is, for all intents and purposes, the same as it always has been. They have been making these kinds of exaggerated threats for many years now - even decades, really.
Of course, Trump himself bears fairly close resemblance to the kind of leaders North Korea has seen in recent decades, with prominent shows of bravado and a lot of trash talk for a supposed world leader. Unfortunately, the stakes have now been raised, and one cannot help but wonder if this is the right approach to take with a notoriously unstable regime - I am talking about the North Korean leader, although it applies to the American one these days, as well.
Here is the link to the article about Trump pressing China on North Korea, and making a not so subtle threat:
Quote taken from the following article:
Trump to press China for tougher approach to North Korea BY JORDAN FABIAN - 04/04/17
No comments:
Post a Comment