By Parker Miller
North Korea just radically revised its constitutional policy toward South Korea, and Americans should take it as a sign that the potential for a second Korean War is increasingly likely if we do not strongly assert ourselves on the global stage.
In previous years, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un had remained largely consistent with the policy of his predecessors to aim for a reunification of the northern and southern halves of the Korean Peninsula under the assertion that South Koreans were being wrongly indoctrinated by the evil influences of capitalism and had to be liberated.
On Monday, Kim demanded that his government dismantle every policy and agency committed to the reunification plan and replace them with an explicit constitutional commitment to “completely occupying, subjugating, and reclaiming the [Republic of Korea] and annexing it as a part of the territory of our republic in case a war breaks out on the Korean Peninsula.”
This follows an alarming encroachment of South Korean borders by an estimated 200 North Korean missiles less than two weeks ago that landed off the coast of two inhabited South Korean islands. Seoul feared an incoming amphibious invasion due to the startling proximity of the missiles to the residential areas of the islands, which it chose to evacuate. Fortunately, hostilities increased no further.
Considering the wavering commitments and weak image of the United States abroad, it should come as no surprise that our enemies across the globe are all becoming increasingly emboldened to take action against their neighboring opponents for their own interests. North Korea’s new annexation goal follows a string of hostile attempts by other undemocratic nations to assert dominance over our friends, such as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Iran’s use of proxy terrorist groups to attack Israel, and China’s looming pressure on Taiwan.
This recent development in North Korea has great potential to mirror the Korean War that began in 1950 under similar circumstances. The Cold War saw the U.S. get militarily involved with several pro-democratic proxy factions across Asia, such as the southern regions of the Korean Peninsula. In that conflict, the Communist Koreans in the northern regions were similarly aided by dictator Mao Zedong’s China.
It is easy to see the comparison between the Korean War and the growing tensions in those same regions today. The U.S. and the People’s Republic of China are competing for control over East Asia. South Korea is seeking more military cooperation with Japan and the U.S. North Korea is strengthening its ties with China and Russia.
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North Korea shares many similarities with China that concern the U.S. greatly. Both current governments have their foundations rooted in communism and authoritarianism. As of Kim’s radical policy shift, both now use historical precedent to justify a constitutional policy to annex their neighbors forcefully. It is reasonable to suspect that an allied effort to do so is underway.
Americans should keep an eye out for the rising threats from an emboldened North Korea. We need to firmly deter our enemies and assure our allies that the U.S. is still in control. Until we can do that, our global influence will continue to decline, and it can only be stretched so thin before we may have to intervene.