By Harry Kazianis
Will 2014 be the year that China finally reins in its dangerous neighbor in Pyongyang?
The Asia-Pacific is rife with security challenges—and almost all of them in some way involve the People’s Republic of China. In the East and South China Seas, control of islands and reefs create near daily challenges that show no sign of abating with Beijing asserting itself on the high seas and now in the air, bringing it into possible direct conflict with Washington. Border issues between China and India last year once again showed that the PRC has at least one land-based challenger left to concern herself with. Despite all this, there is one flashpoint that China does have at least some ability to influence directly to the betterment of not only its own raw national interest but all of Asia: the hermit kingdom itself, North Korea.
On the surface, 2014 looks like it could be a doozy with North Korea once again creating even more tensions with the same inflammatory outbursts we have heard in previous years. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un remarked in his New Year’s Day speech that if “another war breaks out on this land, it will result in a deadly nuclear catastrophe and the United States will never be safe.” Just wonderful.
One would assume Kim is referring to his country’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs. Pyongyang seems to be pursuing the capability to hit the U.S. homeland with a nuclear weapon. While experts disagree on how far along the program currently is, one thing is certain: such a capability would add another dimension of complexity and danger to an already tense situation. Factor in what could be a dangerous year internally as Kim seemingly attempts to solidify his hold on the country, one never knows what instability could come out of Pyongyang to shake up the region.
Read the full story at The Diplomat