Obama tells North Korea: have the courage to pursue peace

US president warns Pyongyang to change its ways in order to avoid 'more broken dreams' and further isolation

guardian.co.uk, Associated Press in Seoul, Monday 26 March 2012 

Barack Obama speaks in Seoul ahead of an international summit on nuclear security

Barack Obama has urged North Korean leaders to "have the courage to pursue peace" and said failure to do so would mean a future without dignity, respect or hope for the country's people.

Obama stood by his call for a world without nuclear weapons, saying the US had more than it needed and could cut its arsenal without weakening its security or that of its allies.

That assessment put him on a collision course with congressional Republicans, who say any significant cuts would undermine America's ability to deter aggression.

Speaking at Hankuk University, Obama said North Korea needed to change its ways because continuing down the same path would lead to "more broken dreams" and isolation.

His remarks came a day after he visited the demilitarised zone between North and South Korea and described the experience as witnessing a "timewarp" of despair.

He told North Korean leaders: "By now it should be clear. Your provocations and pursuit of nuclear weapons have not achieved the security you seek – they have undermined it. Instead of the dignity you desire, you are more isolated."

As Obama spoke at the international nuclear summit, tensions rose on the Korean peninsula. Seoul warned that it might shoot down a North Korean rocket carrying a satellite if it violates South Korean territory. The US says the launch amounts to a test of North Korea's rocket weaponry.

Obama said he was speaking of a wish for further nuclear reductions as the president of the only nation ever to use nuclear weapons and as a protective father eager to erase the threat of nuclear annihilation.

On the sidelines of the summit, he met the Russian president, Dmitry Medvedev. Both leaders acknowledged continued tensions between their countries on key issues, including Syria and missile defence.

Later on Monday, Obama met President Nursultan Nazarbayev of Kazakhstan, and was due to talk to the Chinese president, Hu Jintao, whom he was expected to ask for help in dealing with North Korea.

Obama said the international community had made progress in reducing the nuclear threat, but added that "we're under no illusions".

"Even as we have more work to do, we can already say with confidence that we have more nuclear weapons than we need," he said. "I firmly believe that we can ensure the security of the United States and our allies, maintain a strong deterrent against any threat, and still pursue further reductions in our nuclear arsenal."

Obama reiterated his warning to Iran, which the US and its allies say is defying its international obligations by pursuing an illicit nuclear programme.

"Iran's leaders must understand that there is no escaping the choice before it. Iran must act with the seriousness and sense of urgency that this moment demands," he said. "Iran must meet its obligations."

He said a "new international norm" was emerging to deal with the intransigence of Iran and North Korea. "Treaties are binding. Rules will be enforced. And violations will have consequences," he said. "Because we refuse to consign ourselves to a future where more and more regimes possess the world's most deadly weapons."

Obama said the US was moving, with Russia, to eliminate enough plutonium for about 17,000 nuclear weapons and turn it into electricity. He said an earlier agreement with Russia to reduce nuclear arsenals under the New Start treaty was "the most comprehensive arms control agreement in nearly two decades".

"When we're done, we'll have cut American- and Russian-deployed nuclear warheads to their lowest levels since the 1950s," he said.

But he said the two countries had more work to do to bridge their differences, including their approach to violence in Syria. The US has sharply criticised Russia for opposing UN security council action calling on Syria's president, Bashar al-Assad, to leave power.

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"A Summary" – Apr 2, 2011 (Kryon channelled by Lee Caroll) (Subjects: Religion, Shift of Human Consciousness, 2012, Intelligent/Benevolent Design, EU, South America, 5 Currencies, Water Cycle (Heat up, Mini Ice Ace, Oceans, Fish, Earthquakes ..), Middle East, Internet, Israel, Dictators, Palestine, US, Japan (Quake/Tsunami Disasters , People, Society ...), Nuclear Power Revealed, Hydro Power, Geothermal Power, Moon, Financial Institutes (Recession, Realign integrity values ..) , China, North Korea, Global Unity,..... etc.) - (Text version)

“…..   Here is the prediction: China will turn North Korea loose soon. The alliance will dissolve, or become stale. There will be political upheaval in China. Not a coup and not a revolution. Within the inner circles of that which you call Chinese politics, there will be a re-evaluation of goals and monetary policy. Eventually, you will see a break with North Korea, allowing still another dictator to fall and unification to occur with the south. ….”