An offer worth trying 

As a pleasant relief to the international community, the North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said that his country will not use nuclear weapons unless its sovereignty is infringed by others with nuclear arms.

The world vexed with repeated hawkish statements emanating from Pyongyang in the recent past can take the latest offer from the country‘s leadership to negotiate a lasting peace and stability in the trouble torn Korean peninsula.

The Korean imbroglio is the legacy of the cold war that refuses to die. Crippled by economic crisis, the North Korean leadership perhaps has to come out with this statement to heed a sigh of relief from the torpefying sanctions.

But, the skeptics especially its southern neighbour and its Western mentors led by the hegemonic power United States that has military presence in the region may not take the Korean offer so seriously.

But, this is not the time to judge on the purity and probity of the offer. The international community led by United Nations can certainly consider the statement merging out of the Korean power centre to begin talks with the beleaguered nation.

Several international observers interpret the North Korean nuclear hawkishness till now as a reaction to its perceived threat to its sovereignty. The conditional offer from Pyongyang validates this viewpoint.

The Western powers are known for nuclear bullying and perpetuating a discriminatory nuclear world order. The United States devastating war in Iraq on the pretext of Saddam Hussein regime holding Weapons of Mass Destruction and the subsequent handling of Iranian crisis is a clear indication of a nuclear hoax unleashed by the Western powers led by the NATO.

The United States aided and abetted the clandestine nuclear programme of Pakistan even by relaxing its own laws. But, it imposed heinous sanctions on India whose nuclear policy clearly entailed no first use and a voluntary adherence to non proliferation while rejecting discriminatory treaties.

The North Korean fears over the threat to its sovereignty cannot be summarily dismissed given the US policy of regime change. The US led NATO forces unilaterally effected regime change in Iraq, Libya and attempted to repeat the same in Syria and Iran by labeling these nations as rogue states. North Korea also figures in the United States arbitrary list of rogue states giving credence to Pyongyang’s fears.

The overwhelming military presence of United States in Japan and South Korea was always a point of concern for North Korea and even China.
Kim in a report to the ruling Workers Party (WPK) congress said that the North Korea would faithfully fulfill its obligations for the non proliferation and strive for global denuclearisation.

This open assurance whatever may be the caveats should be viewed as a welcome sign given the backdrop of reports indicating North Korea’s heightened activity on its nuclear front.

The relations between the hostile neighbours in the Korean peninsula are at its lowest ebb. The world has nothing to gain by squandering away an opportunity owing to dubiety and incredulity. Thus even the weakest string of peace should not go unattempted.