Stephen Noerper pens a report on Wilton Park Conference W806, dealing with security in Northeast Asia. Here’s the executive summary:
North East Asia faces myriad nuclear and conventional challenges that include potential crises such as the divide on the Korean Peninsula, cross Strait relations, the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea (DPRK) as a failing state, Japan’s quest for identity and China’s complicated and growing internal troubles. The disparities involving China’s rural areas received attention at the 2006 National People’s Congress, with a shift from suppression to a healthier quest to understand the roots of dissent. In addressing the Northeast Asian region as a whole, observers need to consider the unconventional proliferation threat posed by North Korea, increasing Sino-Japanese rivalry, potential economic upheavals and the absence of a regional security framework. There are also energy, the environment, terrorism and epidemiological risks – which have little respect for state or regional boundaries.
Most North East Asia nations are positive or neutral toward multilateral initiatives. Difficulties arise through orientation toward the status quo, unresolved issues like territory and history, a lack of enforcement authority and mechanisms. Arrangements are not action-oriented, and therefore initiatives demand patience and consistency.
Read the rest on your own. Oh, and the Nautilus Institute has more North Korean missile analysis than you can shake a Taepodong at.
(HT to reader)
