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Analysis: How Super Is The Superpower?
Chief International Correspondent Washington (UPI) Feb 10, 2005 In 2000, Bush famously identified North Korean, Iraq, and Iran as "the axis of evil." Iraq got its comeuppance with the invasion and the removal of Saddam Hussein. But the ayatollahs in Tehran and Kim Jong-Il, North Korea's autocratic leader, were not deterred. Over strong U.S. objections, North Korea developed nuclear weapons capability. Iran has resisted international pressure to halt its own nuclear program. What part of world superpower do these countries not understand? The truth is that even the most powerful nation on earth has its limitations. Tangled in the aftermath of the Iraq war, Washington has had to tone down its tough talk against Pyongyang. In his Jan. 20 inaugural speech, President Bush said he hoped that the current six-nation disarmament talks could induce North Korea to stop producing nuclear weapons and di sarm. On Wednesday, Pyongyang publicly acknowledged for the first time that it actually has nuclear weapons - two of them so far - and said it would not take part in further talks until "there are ample conditions and an atmosphere to expect positive results." The talks brought together North and South Korea, the United States, China, Russia, and Japan. North Korea blamed the Bush administration's aggressiveness for forcing it to produce nuclear weapons. "We have manufactured nukes for self-defense to cope with the Bush administration's ever more undisguised policy to isolate and stifle (North Korea)," said Pyongyang's statement. Washington's response was positively conciliatory. U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said there was "no reason to suppose that anyone wants to attack North Korea." Rice was tougher on Iran on her tour of European capitals and the Middle East earlier this week, but her tough words served only to reveal the superpower's limitations. The purpose of Rice's trip was to offer diplomatic olive branches to estranged U.S. allies in Europe, but she stressed that reconciliation did not extend to buying the EU's carrot approach to the ayatollahs. The European action is based on the promise of aid in exchange for abandoning their nuclear ambitions. The Iranians, incidentally, deny that they are developing nuclear weapons and were enriching uranium for use in civilian reactors. They have temporarily suspended their nuclear fuel cycle program, and have also agreed to open all nuclear-related facilities to U.N. inspectors. At the same time, they have refused to give up what they call their legal right to develop an industrial nuclear program. In an ironic replay of the pre-war debate on Iraq, the Bush administration wants to take the issue to the U.N. Security Council and impose sanctions against Iran if the temporary suspensi on is not made permanent. Rice's vague talk of consequences if sanctions failed has left Europeans worried that Washington could be contemplating a U.S. military option - despite the fact that most analysts believe that U.S. or coalition military action against Iran is not feasible and carries risks of retaliation in the region. The Security Council will not take up the issue unless and until the International Atomic Energy Agency certifies that Iran is manufacturing weapons of mass destruction. Even then, observers argue, Russia and China are almost certain to block any U.N. sanctions against Iran. But it's what happens in the ensuing stalemate that is most worrisome. All rights reserved. � 2004 United Press International. Sections of the information displayed on this page (dispatches, photographs, logos) are protected by intellectual property rights owned by United Press International. As a consequence, you may not copy, reproduce, modify, transmit, publish, display or in any way commercially exploit any of the content of this section without the prior written consent of United Press International. Related Links SpaceWar Search SpaceWar Subscribe To SpaceWar Express 
US Scientists Designing New Generation Of Nuclear Arms: Report
New York (AFP) Feb 07, 2005US scientists are quietly starting work on a new generation of nuclear arms meant to be more rugged and reliable than warheads in the existing arsenal, The New York Times reported Monday.
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