North Korea What to do?

[Dill]

(06-29-2017, 05:51 PM)TheLeonardLeap Wrote: Which would S Korea and Japan prefer? A reckless and aggressive nuclear powered N Korea, and China militarizing the south sea... or a stronger China and a free south sea?

Pretty easy choice there. 

The difference between a N Korea and Iraq occupation is China already controls N Korea's ability to get anything, including *food*. The US could never shut down Iraq's border. China could. Plus there wouldn't be a religion angle bringing foreign fighters and foreign government support. China throws 1m troops in N Korea, kills off the government and high ranking military, and takes over. Not an occupation, a destruction and absorbtion.

A "free south sea" will not be in any bargain that enhances Chinese power in the region.  (See post #18 above.)

I am pretty sure neither South Korea nor Japan would like to see "a stronger China" on South Korea's border. South Koreans, who still have relatives in the North, would not all be thankful to have millions of refugees flooding their land, nor to see the massive death toll of people they still consider their countrymen.  Unless the plan is to kill all North Koreans, China will be in for a costly occupation of a hostile territory--massive instability and human rights violations in the massive prison system required to house dissidents.

If China really thinks the problem is large enough to warrant a costly (and certainly politically unpopular) invasion, then it is surely large enough to motivate policies and diplomacy which undermine the NK regime--e.g., by starving it--before moving to the far more costly and destabilizing measure of war.