Zakaria: North Korea Summit Was Big Win for China
gvw_randy_reed
By Randy Reed, Operations Manager
Published 7 years ago on
June 20, 2018

Share

The cancellation of U.S. military exercises with South Korea is one of several troubling outcomes of President Trump’s summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, writes Washington Post columnist Fareed Zakaria.

“South Korea’s ‘war games’ with the United States are necessary defensive exercises undertaken in the shadow of an aggressive adversary.”
The headline from the summit in Singapore earlier this month, in which Trump described the exercises as “provocative,” should have been “U.S. weakens its 70-year alliance with South Korea,” Zakaria says.

North Korean Threat

“In fact, it is North Korea that provokes and threatens South Korea, as it has done since it first invaded the South in 1950,” he argues. “South Korea’s ‘war games’ with the United States are necessary defensive exercises undertaken in the shadow of an aggressive adversary.”
Zakaria points out that the North is believed to have about 1 million active-duty troops, which is twice the number of South Korean forces. In addition, Kim has an arsenal of up to 60 nuclear bombs and, now, missiles capable of carrying them.
“Even worse, Trump signaled that he would like to end the U.S. troop presence in South Korea,” Zakaria notes. Though the President argues the move would reduce costs, Zakaria disagrees.

Readiness Costs

“Since South Korea covers almost half the costs of U.S. troops stationed there, moving them to, say, Georgia would not be cheaper,” Zakaria notes. The larger cost would be on U.S. readiness should tensions rise, he says.
“Through bitter experience, the United States has found that it is much better to have troops ready, battle-trained and with knowledge of the local geography rather than keeping them all in the United States, only to be sent abroad when trouble breaks out.”

The Long Game

Beyond its advantages to North Korea, the ultimate beneficiary of an American pullback from the Korean peninsula will be the region’s economic and military powerhouse that was not in attendance at the summit, Zakaria says.
“The long game for the United States over the next few decades is how to handle the rise of China. And right now, we are quitting the field.”
You can read Fareed Zakaria’s entire article, This should have been the real headline of the Trump-Kim summit, at The Washington Post.

DON'T MISS

23 for ’23: A Year in Photos

DON'T MISS

See How this Fresno roastery sends aid to Northern Thailand.

DON'T MISS

District Says Fresno Teachers Contract Proposal Would Bankrupt Budget Reserves by Year 3

DON'T MISS

Trump Vows to Ban Gaza Refugees, Expand Muslim Travel Ban If He Wins

DON'T MISS

The Supreme Court Orders Makers of Gun Parts to Comply with Rules on Ghost Guns

DON'T MISS

George W. Bush for Speaker? A Democratic Lawmaker Thinks It’s Possible

DON'T MISS

Former Navy IT Manager Gets Five Years for Hacking, ID Theft

DON'T MISS

Gunman Kills Two Swedes in Brussels, Prompting Terror Alert and Halt of Belgium-Sweden Soccer Match

DON'T MISS

Zakaria: The Best Response to Hamas Would Be to Keep the Saudi Deal Alive

DON'T MISS

Groundbreaking Human Brain Atlas Offers New Hope for Treating Neurological Disorders

UP NEXT

District to Fresno Teachers: Read Our Proposal Before Taking Strike Vote

UP NEXT

State Department Memo Warns US Diplomats: No Gaza ‘De-Escalation’ Talk

UP NEXT

George W. Bush for Speaker? A Democratic Lawmaker Thinks It’s Possible

UP NEXT

Jim Jordan’s Rapid Rise Cheered by Trump and Far Right. Could It Make Him Speaker?

UP NEXT

What Does Destroying Gaza Solve?

UP NEXT

How Liberal California Compares to Florida, Texas on Social Media Regulation

UP NEXT

City of Fresno’s Israeli Flag Raising Draws Supporters and Protesters

UP NEXT

Former Fresno CC Coach Ed Madec Arrested for Allegedly Threatening to Kill Chancellor

UP NEXT

Trump Vows to Ban Gaza Refugees, Expand Muslim Travel Ban If He Wins

UP NEXT

The Supreme Court Orders Makers of Gun Parts to Comply with Rules on Ghost Guns

You May like

Trump Vows to Ban Gaza Refugees, Expand Muslim Travel Ban If He Wins

1 year ago

The Supreme Court Orders Makers of Gun Parts to Comply with Rules on Ghost Guns

1 year ago

George W. Bush for Speaker? A Democratic Lawmaker Thinks It’s Possible

1 year ago

Former Navy IT Manager Gets Five Years for Hacking, ID Theft

1 year ago

Gunman Kills Two Swedes in Brussels, Prompting Terror Alert and Halt of Belgium-Sweden Soccer Match

1 year ago

Zakaria: The Best Response to Hamas Would Be to Keep the Saudi Deal Alive

1 year ago

Groundbreaking Human Brain Atlas Offers New Hope for Treating Neurological Disorders

1 year ago

Newsom Signs Law to Slowly Raise Healthcare Minimum Wage to $25

1 year ago

Former Fresno CC Coach Ed Madec Arrested for Allegedly Threatening to Kill Chancellor

1 year ago

Jim Jordan’s Rapid Rise Cheered by Trump and Far Right. Could It Make Him Speaker?

1 year ago

HOT OFF THE PRESS

23 for ’23: A Year in Photos

1 year ago

1 year ago

Trump Vows to Ban Gaza Refugees, Expand Muslim Travel Ban If He Wins

1 year ago

The Supreme Court Orders Makers of Gun Parts to Comply with Rules on Ghost Guns

Photo of a hacker typing on a laptop

1 year ago

Former Navy IT Manager Gets Five Years for Hacking, ID Theft

1 year ago

Gunman Kills Two Swedes in Brussels, Prompting Terror Alert and Halt of Belgium-Sweden Soccer Match