Pilot - Wisconsin Lutheran High School

World News
4 The WLHS Pilot
May 2013
North Korea
North Korea is a country with a troubled history
that now poses a serious threat to the U.S.
By Zac Lukasik
Lately in the news, newspapers,
and even in hallway conversations, the
topic of North Korea has been talked
about. Recently, North Korea has been
in the news for threats against the United
States and South Korea. North Korea said
it would carry out pre-emptive nuclear
strikes against the United States. Analysts
are doubtful that they could hit the
U.S. mainland with a missile, but the missiles
could hit South Korea or Japan, and
American forces are there. Since many
students do not know much about North
Korea, here is a brief history of the nation,
which helps to explain why our nations do
not get along.
North Korea and South Korea
occupy a peninsula in southwestern Asia.
For more than 2,000 years the Korean
peninsula was occupied by powerful dynasties,
the last being the Joseon dynasty.
In 1905, Japan invaded Korea, and in 1910
they annexed them. At the end of WWII,
the Japanese that occupied Korea surrendered
and lost control of Korea to the Allied
forces. Korea was divided at the 38th
parallel, with the Soviet Union administering
the northern portion, and the U.S.
administering the southern portion of Korea
(similar to the way that Germany was
split after the war).
This foreign administration of
Korea was intended to be temporary, and
plans were made for free elections in both
districts. However, in 1948 Kim II-Sung, a
communist aligned leader of the Korean
People’s army (KPA), convinced Soviet
leaders not to allow the United Nation authorities
north of the dividing line, so the
election never took place in North Korea.
By the end of 1948, two new nations had
been established--the Republic of Korea
(South Korea) and the Democratic People’s
Republic of Korea which was supported by
the Soviet Union (North Korea). Most U.S.
forces left South Korea by the summer of
1949, leaving behind a weak government
and inexperienced army. North Korea had
the backing of USSR and China, and they
had developed a strong army.
From the moment they were
founded, North Korea and South Korea
have not gotten along. North Korea is generally
more militaristic in its attempts to
gain control. In 1950 North Korea invaded
South Korea starting the three-year Korean
War. In 1953 the Korean Armistice
Agreement was signed. Originally this was
to be a temporary treaty to set up a demilitarized
zone along the 38th parallel, but
a permanent peace agreement was never
signed. Tensions between the two countries
have existed ever since. After the Korean
War ended and the Cold War drew to
a close, North Korea lost support from the
Soviet Union. The loss of support allowed
the United States to use satellite pictures to
spot the Yongbyong nuclear complex.
The Yongbyong nuclear complex
was perceived as a threat to all of its surrounding
countries, so the U.N. forced
them to allow an inspection which turned
up empty. For years the nuclear complex
was unproductive, and as North Korea
strived for nuclear uranium, most countries
forgot about North Korea, that is until
a few months ago.
Kim Jon-il, the late ruler of North
Korea allowed North Korea to lie low and
bolster its economy and infrastructure.
More importantly, it gave them time to
advance their launch rockets and make
leaps towards creating a nuclear warhead
capable of striking the U.S. His son, Kim
Jong-un, succeeded him as the country’s
leader and brought North Korea into the
world spotlight as a threat to South Korea
and one of its allies, the United States. In
December of 2012 North Korea launched
a satellite into space. This successful
launch was the fifth and only successful
attempt to put a rocket into orbit. All
other attempts failed. The North Korean
rocket was carrying a 220-pound, satellite,
perhaps one-tenth the weight of a typical
nuclear warhead.
North Korea has a long way to
go before it can threaten the West Coast
of the United States with a nuclear-armed
missile. It has yet to develop a nuclear warhead
small enough to fit atop its missile,
and experts say that it has not tested a reentry
vehicle that can withstand the heat
of the atmosphere. Additionally, it is not
clear that the country knows how to aim
a missile with much accuracy. “What’s important
here is the symbolism, especially
if the test seems reasonably successful,”
said Victor D. Cha, a scholar at the Center
for Strategic and International Studies in
Washington. “It’s not as if the U.S. can describe
them anymore as a bunch of crazies
who could never get anywhere with their
technology. And it ends the argument that
Kim Jong-un might be a young, progressive
reformer who is determined to take
the country in a new direction.”
According to the New York Times,
North Korea is threatening the United
States, because the U.S. led the “push for
sanctions at the United Nations to punish
North Korea for its nuclear test in February,
its third.” Also, the North often makes
these types of threats when the U.S. and
South Korea hold their joint military exercises,
which they believe is a threat. Additionally,
North Korea often highlights possible
threats from abroad as a ploy to keep
the people focused on this, rather than the
famine and hunger that is sweeping the
nation.
North Korea has had a direct impact
on our lives; it is important to know
the history of this country. Fortunately,
we can count on the United States to keep
an eye on North Korea.