North Korea is obviously a pariah state with a completely different set of values and goals than the United States and other Western powers. The government of North Korea is hardly interested in putting down it's combative attitude to sing kumbaya with Europe and North America. The government wants to be treated as an equal, and not as the irresponsible, immature, and combative govenment that it is. That they have not deserved to be treated as responsible country is the most salient of opinions we hold about them.

So here we are.

Approaching North Korea is going to have to be dealt with delicately, and sometimes that has to mean taking a hands off approach for a while, so we are not seen as trying to order Kim around. It sounds fruitless to many, I'm sure, but we aren't dealing with rational people here. North Koreans are subdued into a fantastical personality cult around the leader, Kim Jong-il, and he is just soaking it up. Kim is never going to change because he knows he can do almost anything he wants without consequence, while his people are behind him all the way whether they like it or not. Isolation has not worked. Part of the problem is North Korea has found a way out of international isolation by ties with the Eastern powers Russia and China, both of which essentially coddle the ignominious little government of North Korea.

There won't be a solution until either a dramatic change in political climate happens in North Korea, or the largest Eastern powers, Russia and China pressure them into change.

North Korea will only sign the treaty when it suits them and they believe makes them look good in front of the world. Nothing else matters to the people and to government.

North Korea - Let's sign the peace treaty
 

the US - NO!

S. Korea and U.S. Dismiss N. Korea’s Peace Talks Proposal - NYTimes.com

Some expressed doubts about the current administration's ability/desire to stand up to North Korea. It looks like those doubts were misguided. The US clearly told NK that they are going to have to make some real progress towards eliminating their nuclear capacity before talks will resume.

Overall, I'd say that this is a good thing. NK has gotten away with too much for too long.

NK is not interested in peace so much as it is in survival of the regime. When times were better for them, their goal was to take South Korea by force, not a peace treaty.

Nuclear test in 10, 9, 8, 7....

I agree...

Since NK cannot even count on China anymore ( that has no desire for instability in the region and certainly not on the corean peninsula) that moment is not likely to come...............

corean peninsula

Where is that?

I am not sure how much I should believe this.

After all, this war has been running for 60 years now, and North Korea has had a pretty poor record of honoring it's agreements.

I agree with you and Richrichy. NK is trying to drag everybody into its stone- age and its high time that there was some real live pressure brought to bear on that idiot government of theirs. They're not going to war with anybody. It's time to just run them over.

Run them over?

I don't know about running them over, but I do think that, especially given China's reluctance to support them, their real threat is in their supplying weapons to other rogue nations. It seems like it's time to really shut them down. Seach every ship leaving their ports as soon as it hits international waters, using a joint task force. Anything that is a weapon or that could be used to build one is confiscated. If they're stupid enough to try to use one of their defective nuclear weapons, they get nailed from every side, and damn quick.

Oh yeah, "run them over". Now is the time for the allied nations, up to and including Russia, to band together and just sanction the shit out of them, call them on their bluffs: remember they were going to shoot a missle toward the US - that never happened, and drive as teak right through their heart by making it so tough form them to do business that they collaps under their own weight. The NK government is made up of gangsters and it's about time we all treated them like they were. I'm sure those people living in that nightmare have had enough as well.

You're exactly right. I think however that just running them over is not only possible but absolutely necessary in these times and searching every ship etc as you say is exactly what I mean: NK is not some rag tag bunch of thugs: they're contained and very accessable we don't need their crap anymore, and as I read the last line of your own thoughts, I see you that you agree.

Ok. I thought you meant militarily. I don't know that sanctions would do much against the government.

That is a reasonable fear. The NK government has demonstrated its willingness to allow its population to starve. But, short of another direct military confrontation, I'm not sure that we have any other options.

You will show the Glorious Leader the proper respect or else!

http://jakerake.files.wordpress.com/..._jong_il_1.jpg

Well, we had better act quickly..

Kim Jong Il Announces Plan To Bring Moon To North Korea | The Onion - America's Finest News Source

Real heavy duty sanctions will have the effect of laying siege to that country. China's non-support would cover the north wall as well. NK is too weak to engage anyone. So, I think that soime real pressure will do the trick.

That could, and would, be construed as an act of war...