North Korea

[Jason The Argonaut]

North Korea is one of the few nations that can engage in a total war with the United States. The US war planners recognize this fact. For example, on March 7, 2000, Gen. Thomas A Schwartz, the US commander in Korea at the time, testified at a US congressional hearing that "North Korea is the country most likely to involve the United States in a large-scale war."

I come across this article the other day (link at bottom of page), and once I had read it was shocked . I know it was written by some in the Korean Affairs office but reading it really gave a me a shock. To think the North Korean's where this organized and that well armed, that's if this is not just lies, but it makes very interesting reading.

And if it is true, well good luck George Bush, because it looks like North Korea has been waiting for this day for some time now. And sounds like your military is going to a job beating these boys. I hear that the US is already calling up the National Guard because they have to many troops already abroad. I think they have 150,000 in Iraqi alone and god know's how many more are over sea's. But if it comes to all out war do you think the US has the troops to take on North Korea. So it's more than likely if the shit does hit the fan, that other nations will be involved in North Korea i.e. Britain.

North Korea's militias consist of 1.6 million self-defense units, 100,000 people's guards, 3.9 million workers militia, 900,000 youth guard units.  These militias are tasked to defend the homeland.  The militias are fully armed and undergo military trainings regularly.

Nuclear weapons are offensive weapons and there is no defense against nuclear attacks except retaliatory nuclear attacks. For this reason, North Korea's war plan is offensive in nature: North Korea's war plan goes beyond repulsing US attackers and calls for destruction of the United States.

http://www.kimsoft.com/2003/nk-war-han.htm :turn-l:

[Twenty One]

The North Koreans most probably will do what they did back in the fifties go to war with the backing of the Chinese although they did not admit it,most of the MiG 15's were flown by Chinese or Russian pilots.Did you know that the MiG 15 had a Rolls Royce engine in them,The crafty Brits sold the engines to Russia,then realised that the MiG could out pace the the Sabre. Because of the Chinese involvement it nearly started a Nuclear War.

[GINGE]

Who needs weapons of mass destruction when your army is 6.8 million in number, Well done all the staff at CTC Peking ( Chinese Training Centre )

[harry hackedoff]

I`ve been watching the N Korean situation with some concern for a while now. Oz and Elmer are about to agree on a programme of stopping and searching NK vessels for fissionable materials. Oz hasn`t agreed, yet, but they are taking part in joint exercises to practise, er, the searching of vessels belonging to, um, N Korea.
Elvis impersonator, fashion victim and serial Grecian 2000 abuser, Kim Il Jung says this would be piracy and has threatened retaliation.
The Japanse govt are so concerned about this because they are within range of NK`s existing missiles(at the moment, OZ is not)
Latest developement has Chinese diplomatic mission telling Kim to wind his neck in.
There is no connection between Kim`s public appearances and Rob Parry`s frequent absences from these forums.
Watch this space
Aye,

[El Prez]

There is no connection between Kim`s public appearances and Rob Parry`s frequent absences from these forums

Yoo berrer bereve it sunny Jim!
"Arrrooo ronsum tonite,
aryor jeans far too tight,
aryoo solly we dlifted aplart?
Duz yor memolly fade on a blight summer day
when you klissed me and called me a tart."

All available on my new mono cd disky thing.

[Sisyphus]

The US will 'solve' the N Korea problem through diplomacy. Take on someone who might fight back? No chance!

[Tab]

The North Koreans have Large Army back like in the 1950's do not have
the Industrial Muscule to sustain it. In the 1950's Russia and China threw
there industrial muscule into the conflict in Korea, China also threw into
the pot, several million soldiers. Before any conflict takes place there has to some form of agreement between The States, China and Russia just what is going happen there and who is going to be in charge at the end of the battle. China will not accept the States sitting that close to it's borders
and at the same time swallowing another country. They might just accept
a Neutral but disarmed Unified Korea, but I have my doubts.

[jonboy]

I'am no expert but although there are high numbers in NK army which is worrying....its not all about numbers though is it?...when, where and how you strike is important.
lets just hope nothing comes of it.

[Andy O'Pray]

Tab,

You also have to throw Taiwan into the mix when you are dealing with China.

Aye - Andy.

[Tab]

Johnboy the North Koreans had those large numbers in the last conflict, but got hammered mainly due to their failure in industrial output and logistics.

[Cobalt]

North Korea is already struggling to feed its armed forces in semi-peace time (semi whilst the DMZ is still there) never mind in war.

North Korea's forces stand at just over a million in strength compared to the Souths 727 000 (including 32 000 U.S.). But the budgets are the opposite and favour the South.

N. Korea military spending: $5.1 billion
S. Korea military spending: $12.1 billion

With that said I don't doubt the DPRK would put up a great fight but in all honesty I think a large proportion of the forces would use a standoff as an opportunity to escape to the South.

[Ex-URNU-Student]

NK has tens of thousand of artillery pieces ranged in on Seoul. i read somewhere they could kill 1m people in just a few hours if they opened up

[BenChug]

Its just like China eh there military budget comes in at $20 billion US dollars, which comes in at about 2 and a half times Canada's military budget. But Canada has about 60,000 regular force soldiers compared to China's what? 3 million combat soldiers and 4,000 combat aircraft.

Despite its claim to be the largest standing army in the world with 3 million
soldiers and 4,000 combat aircraft, the Chinese military is still equipped
like a fighting force from the 1950s, with a shrinking, outdated navy. If
anything, Beijing's military stature derives from its small nuclear force --
about the size of France's -- whose missiles could reach Moscow or Los
Angeles.

China like N. Korea is an impressive shell with a hollow core.
N. Korea has 75% of its population suffering from malnutrition, and this is with alot of Economic aid and food from the USA, the country would starve to death in a month during any conflict.[/quote]

[Twenty One]

Typical communist way of thinking,large defence budgets, but the poor sods are starving to death.Those at the top live their lives in sheer luxury at the expense of the ordinary folk who are starving and need housing,plus medicines to stay alive.A bit like Britain really, under Phoney Tony!!!!!!

[voodoo sprout]

The situation with North Korea is unlikely to spark off soon, as North Korea cannot win. While it would undoubtedly cause immense damage to the South even without nuclear weapons (enough men will role over most defences when combined with the artillery and armoured support the North now has), it would be economically unsustainable. Even if the North completely dominated the South, the economies of both countries would be in tatters, they would find themselves with many more mouths to feed, and worst of all they would have no international support and would not be able to repulse a counter attack by combined US and allied forces.

I doubt China would seriosuly support the North Koreans, not only because victory would be unlikely but because it is slowly breaking into the capitalist world, and with its industrial muscle is well placed to expand it's economy through global trade; siding with North Korea would most likely kill off this potential wealth and leave China much worse off.

The danger is that North Korea may go too far with its threats and initiate an attack, which would be met by superior force, which would in turn be countered leading eventually to an all out assault which would be difficult diplomatically to halt. This week already we've seen a small border clash, and as effective as threats of total war are, they are making the situation rather unstable. And that is of course before we start throwing nuclear weapons into the fray .