It is dangerous to underestimate an enemy, and I fear this may be what is happening as Trump fumbles with North Korea.
According to Miranda Green for CNN, Trump calls Kim Jong-un, the dictator of a nuclear capable country, a madman or “Rocket Man” in tweets.
Arguably the scariest part of Kim is he is perfectly sane. Sure, he may have a cult of personality based authoritarian regime, and sure, he may order hacks on the U.S. when James Franco and Seth Rogen make a dumb movie about killing him. However, he is most certainly aware of his situation with the U.S..
Kim has always been smart when it comes to maintaining control. Coming to power when his father and predecessor died, many thought he would simply be a puppet for his uncle, a supervisor to Kim’s father. They were wrong.
According to Justin McCurry for The Guardian, Kim commenced a government-wide purge of anyone he deemed disloyal to the new regime, including his own uncle. More recently, Kim even killed his half-brother, Kim Jong-nam, as a show of power in 2017.
Kim remains uninterested in being viewed as a puppet of his military, his family or anyone else.
With recent nuclear threats, we as Americans discuss North Korea more than ever before. After claiming to now have the capability to hit American soil, tensions between the U.S. and North Korea have escalated at an alarming rate, and rhetoric between the two heads of state is not helping.
This is the closest America has gotten to a Cold War scenario since the fall of the USSR in 1992, and the Trump administration is not happy about it. They are so unhappy, in fact, Trump tweets insults about Kim’s sanity almost daily.
Is it truly insane for Kim to escalate his nuclear capability, despite U.S. warnings? I would say dangerous, but not illogical.
Saddam Hussein and Muammar Gaddafi both de-escalated their nuclear programs when asked by the U.S., and both of those men are now dead by U.S. intervention.
The Kim regime sees this, and rightfully questions whether it will survive if they comply with U.S. demands. China continued to develop their nuclear capabilities in the ’80s, to the dismay of the U.S. Now, China is the second most powerful country in the world, respected in the global community.
North Korea needs this respect. If they can achieve what China was able to, they might be able to lower sanctions, increase trade and finally be viewed as a true player on the global stage.
This is a thought, at least. Nuclear proliferation is something the global community has tried to avoid for years now, and if North Korea is allowed nuclear weapons, Japan and South Korea will be quick in line.
Not to mention, the U.S. is not prone to let nations who openly threaten it survive. Behind the rhetoric, Kim is probably just as worried about his own survival.
Open war ends with his nation and his regime burning to the ground, and deescalating most likely ends with his clandestine elimination. Ultimately, his best policy may be to keep the status quo. One thing is certain: Kim is not crazy, and that may be more terrifying than if he were.