Is N. Korea going to nuke the US?

arbilad · Head Chef

Is N. Korea going to nuke the US?

Jeffery_LQ1W · Senior Member

Korea has missiles that can reach the continental US (I believe the Taepa Duong II or some such thing). In theory they also have nuclear weapons. But it is different from saying they have nuclear weapons that they can place on missiles that will hit the continental US. I do not believe that, if they have nuclear weapons, that they are small enough to place on a missile platform.

I am still not fully convinced they have nuclear weapons.

arbilad · Head Chef

Jeffery_LQ1W wrote:

Korea has missiles that can reach the continental US (I believe the Taepa Duong II or some such thing). In theory they also have nuclear weapons. But it is different from saying they have nuclear weapons that they can place on missiles that will hit the continental US. I do not believe that, if they have nuclear weapons, that they are small enough to place on a missile platform.

I am still not fully convinced they have nuclear weapons.

You are very possibly right. But I also believe that North Korea is unstable enough to launch a conventional war, even if they can't launch a nuclear one. Besides, what do you think the reaction of the US would be if they saw some inbound missiles headed at the US. They're going to proceed on the assumption that they're nuclear, even if previously they had believed it to be extremely unlikely that they posessed such weapons.
Plus, Kim Jong Il is unstable enough that he might fire non-nuclear missiles just to provoke the US.

bokbadok · Senior Bucketkeeper

Plus, Kim Jong Il is unstable enough that he might fire non-nuclear missiles just to provoke the US.

The nonthinking, evil side of me kinda hopes that he does. It would give us and Japan and South Korea a good excuse to wipe him off the map.

Am I crazy to think this?

rayb · Hot Air Balloon

They may not have nuclear weapons but what they do have is time.

South Korea will not let the US strike North Korea.

Because if they do, Seoul will be leveled, not by nukes but by conventional artillery that N. Korea already has in place. Minimum, 200,000 innocent freedom loving South Korean people will die as soon as the war starts. The US and S. Korea are not eager to sign up for that, and so we're all caught between a rock and a hardplace.

--Ray

fear of shiz · Profuse Pontificator

Ray is absolutely correct. That is the real danger--NK has the conventional ability to make a mess of South Korea now, without any nuclear component. This is a big deterrent for any action against them.

Of course, there are lots of reports that the explosion the other day was non-nuclear. The Norks may not yet have nuclear capability, and it is unlikely they can mount one on a missile or get a missile anywhere near North America. Japan, maybe.

The bigger concern for me is that they might hand a nuke off to somebody else--Al Qaeda, Iran, Liechtenstein, the AARP, or some other dangerous entity...

-- Edited by fear of shiz at 14:26, 2006-10-11

arbilad · Head Chef

North Korean Military readiness

Apparently the North Koreans are much worse off militarily than is generally believed.

salesortonscom · Wise and Revered Master

rayb wrote:

They may not have nuclear weapons but what they do have is time.

South Korea will not let the US strike North Korea.

Because if they do, Seoul will be leveled, not by nukes but by conventional artillery that N. Korea already has in place. Minimum, 200,000 innocent freedom loving South Korean people will die as soon as the war starts. The US and S. Korea are not eager to sign up for that, and so we're all caught between a rock and a hardplace.

--Ray

You guys are not creative enough. First of all, we can hit their conventional weapons via massive air strikes using Stealth and Tomahawk cruise missles before they even know what has happened. You use these to take out command and control functions, early warning systems, radar, etc. Thus making the enemy deaf, dumb, and blind. You can bet that Kim Jong Crazy has very tight control over the military in his country and they wouldn't dare make one move without his express orders. Now that they are deaf, dumb, and blind you have carrier based naval fighter attack planes hit weapons such as air power, artillery, and any remaining missle sites. This along with Air Force long range conventional bombers from the U.S. and Japan pound air fields and other military assets with hundreds of thousands of pounds of bombs. Strategic attacks on the countries ports and naval assets need to also occur. The DMZ is a heavilly fortified, heavilly mined wasteland. Any troops from North Korea that are sent across it will die almost instantly. Without naval power or a way to easilly get through the DMZ the North Korean troops would have little affective means of attacking the south. Any troop build ups could be handled by helicopter gunships, AC130s, and A-10 Warthogs. The key to victory in future conflicts rests in this sort of attack. We cannot very easilly win against fanatical gorilla fighters but we can bomb them into the stone age, contain the enemy in a geographic area with little means to fight, and hope the people turn on their leaders. At this point, without the command and control communications, some upstart General with a few divisions of North Korean troops could sieze control and enter negotiations on behalf of the North Korean people. We should have done this in Iraq but with so much media there it would have seemed cruel to the outside world. In North Korea we have no such problem because it is such a closed society very few if any actual media personell could report from the ground.

According to intelligent sources, his missles cannot carry his nukes yet because of their size. So unless he can somehow get his nukes close to the DMZ which would be difficult after my week of relentless bombing, then he is out of luck.

If the President wants, I will give the order and take full responsibility politically for the fallout. So problem solved, anything else I can do for the world today!

fear of shiz · Profuse Pontificator

Jason,

I just want to know how you are going to pay for the damage to the world economy that would result. I respect our armed forces, but they can't insure that all of NK's ability to strike back would be taken out in a first strike. Lil' Kim would have every reason to use his WMDs on Japan and South Korea.

Better to wait it out--blockade the country at sea, so they can't smuggle nukes out, and wait for the Dear Leader to die or be overthrown. NK is headed for a collapse. The real challenge will be to manage the humanitarian crisis and the chaos when it happens.

salesortonscom · Wise and Revered Master

fear of shiz wrote:

Jason,

I just want to know how you are going to pay for the damage to the world economy that would result.

It's always about the money with you isn't it? Where are your priorities? You're worse than my wife?

As for collateral damage to Japan, we don't have any guarantees he won't just haul off and do it anyway. If we hit with a devastating first strike taking out his air power then we might avoid it. I think either he or Iran are going to attack first anyway in which case the other will go crazy also. I would rather he not have a viable nuke with delivery system (which neither has at this time) and make the first move. Once they get the nuke and the delivery system we won't be able to do anything. A serious, crippling strike now would have about as much effect on the world economy as the Israeli attack on Lebenon.

Homestar Runner · Senior Member

A few things to keep in mind:

* There is a big difference between activating a nuclear reaction, and having a weaponized nuclear bomb, with ruggedized components that is transportable to a target in some way.

* Words will no longer make a difference. Sanctions, threats, talks (bilateral/unilateral/multiparty or whatever) - it's not going to change NK's road to becoming a nuclear power. There is only one thing that will, and we're thinking the NK has made the price too high.

* North Korea has 100 hardened artillery sites pointed at the capital of South Korea, giving a very risky and damaging aspect to any military response by the US or allies.

* A worry nobody has menioned yet - even if North Korea never attacks anyone, they could sell technology or weapons to someone who will. Like terrorist organizations with no infrastructure to bomb, who share similar goals to the NK's.

HSR

salesortonscom · Wise and Revered Master

Homestar Runner wrote:

A few things to keep in mind:

* There is a big difference between activating a nuclear reaction, and having a weaponized nuclear bomb, with ruggedized components that is transportable to a target in some way.

Very true.

* Words will no longer make a difference. Sanctions, threats, talks (bilateral/unilateral/multiparty or whatever) - it's not going to change NK's road to becoming a nuclear power. There is only one thing that will, and we're thinking the NK has made the price too high.

Even more obvious now that it looks like Russian and China have no interest in puting any teeth into any UN resolution. When does the price become too high? I would rather pay now than really pay later.

* North Korea has 100 hardened artillery sites pointed at the capital of South Korea, giving a very risky and damaging aspect to any military response by the US or allies.

Three words: Bunker Buster Bombs

* A worry nobody has menioned yet - even if North Korea never attacks anyone, they could sell technology or weapons to someone who will. Like terrorist organizations with no infrastructure to bomb, who share similar goals to the NK's.

Exactly, and neither they nor Iran care what the Jihadists do with it.

Listening to some folks on the tele and you would think that we are trying to avoid war. It is my contention that we already are at war and have been with the enemies of this country for years.

-- Edited by salesortonscom at 14:42, 2006-10-12