The cardinal affliction for N. Korea to shut down its key nuclear reactor- the mammoth amount of $25 million frozen in the Macau bank will be released today. This will solve the standoff between N. Korea and IAEA and will end the threat (hopefully) that has haunted international community since February 2007.
N. Korea has repeatedly put the release of the money as an essential pre-requisite to start the negotiations - which bank officials say are held for technical rather than political reasons. Nevertheless, I think, N. Korea utilized the loopholes only to justify the delay in agreed timeframe to shed its nuclear program.
If N. Korea agrees to dismantle its nuclear reactors (which seems a far cry) even then it has led to the unprecedented arms race among its neighbors viz. Japan, South Korea and Taiwan who are forced to contemplate, whether to go nuclear.
Now, its time for the world to witness North’s sincerity to keep its words. Whether it will continue using its nuclear card to get attention, money, food and fuel from the outside world or will accept its obligations of February accord.
The present time political arena of the world is governed by the nuclear threat and some of the prevalent crises are due to the strife of either the rouge states (so called) that are covertly designing to achieve the nuclear deterrent.
Therefore, the need of the hour is to kick-start the Feb 13 accord wherein all the nuclear reactors will be put under the IAEA surveillance and it will reduce the apprehensions of proliferation of nuclear expertise to other nations like Iran whom North has buoyant propinquity with.
Encapsulating the nuclear program and its proliferation will be a corner stone in solving the standoff between US and Russia who are differing on the Missile Defense Initiation that former wants to install in Europe - as a shield to encounter the threats form Iran and latter defying it due to its security concerns.
Image Credit: BBC
Source: Telegraph
