Regional Security Concerns and North Korea's Short and Intermediate-range Systems Weigh-in Heavily as President Trump Prepares for Historic Summit



Clear from President Trump's press conference yesterday is that his approach to his summit with North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un is holistic and sensitive to the distinct concerns of American allies on and beyond the theater of the Korean Peninsula.  While the United States is vulnerable to North Korea's intercontinental ballistic missiles, allies like South Korea and Japan are vulnerable to the regime's increasingly mobile and precise short and intermediate-range rockets.  A curious addition to the North Korean arsenal was spotted on February 8th of this year at the Pre-Olympics Military Parade in Pyongyang.  Carried on hinged Transporter-Erector-Launchers (TELs - pictured below) was what appeared to be a variant of the Russian Iskander missile, perhaps now solid-fuelled for a faster, longer range and more agile version.  Any enhanced "shoot and scoot" capability for the North Koreans is particularly troubling to South Korea and worrisome for Japan.

Photo Credit: The Diplomat



It's been more than two months since the photo-op for for this new missile - dubbed the "Juche-Iskander" for it's distinctly North Korean innovations or renovations of the Russian prototype.  But we still don't know if this rocket is short or intermediate-range as it has not been flight-tested.  I wondered if this was part of Kim Jong Un's conciliatory pause in missile testing in advance of the Trump-Kim Summit or if there was something else in play.  I asked as much of Gordon G. Chang, author of Nuclear Showdown: North Korea Takes on the World, in my interview with him on April 14, 2018.  He replied:

I then pressed him to address the concerns in the context of the Trump-Kim Summit about this smaller and possibly non-nuclear missile that has military strategists concerned - beyond the worry of the damage it could do when priced-right and sold by North Korea in the global marketplace.  He responded:





More from my interview with Gordon Chang will be posted in advance of the Trump-Kim Summit.  In the interim, I urge you to follow him @GordonGChang and read his articles at www.TheDailyBeast.com.  See him live if you can or hear him on radio on The John Batchelor Show on 770 AM in the greater New York City area.  His talks, commentary and analyses are timely and cutting edge.

 

 

 Photo Credit: Lydia Chang

 

Lisa Bernard is the President of SecuritySpeak, LLC, a consulting firm and speakers bureau devoted to matters of national, cyber and international security.  Experts in these areas offer reports, briefings, talks and distinguished lectures to audiences of all types working to bring understanding of security matters to people in all walks of life.  To host a speaker or arrange for a consultation call (203) 293-4741 or email LisaBernard@SecuritySpeak.net.  See more of their work at  www.SecuritySpeak.net and at  www.Facebook.com/PodiumTime.   

 

Chemical Weapons in Syria: The North Korean Connection

 



This morning I was on my way to interview Gordon G. Chang on the upcoming Trump-Kim Summit when I heard the Pentagon briefing and commentaries on the strikes on Syrian chemical weapons arsenals.  Chief Spokeswoman Dana White emphasized that this operation was different from the 2017 strike on Syria's Shayrat Air Base in that it targeted Bashar al-Assad's production capability rather than his delivery vehicles.  General McKenzie detailed the contributions of British and French forces and noted that Russian air defenses were not deployed.  The European Union called on Russia and Iran to help stop future chemical weapons attacks by the Syrian government.  What I did not hear or read in any of the reports or analyses is the role of North Korea in the Syrian chemical weapons program.  Gordon Chang is the author of Nuclear Showdown: North Korea Takes on the World and a leading authority on North Korean, Chinese and regional military and security affairs.  On the eve of the 2016 Presidential election I heard him deliver a briefing entitled, The New Nuclear Nexus: China, Iran and North Korea. In it, he revealed the eye-opening extent of North Korea's strategic relationships with other autocratic regimes.  I jumped at the chance to ask him about the relationship between North Korea and Syria with respect to chemical weapons.  His response:



My full interview with Gordon Chang will be posted in advance of the Trump-Kim Summit.  In the interim, I urge you to follow him @GordonGChang and read his articles at www.TheDailyBeast.com.  See him live if you can or hear him on radio on The John Batchelor Show on 770 AM in the NY area.  His talks, commentary and analyses are always timely and cutting edge. 

 

 

 

Lisa Bernard is the President of SecuritySpeak, LLC, a consulting firm and speakers bureau devoted to matters of national, cyber and international security.  Experts in these areas offer reports, briefings, talks and distinguished lectures to audiences of all types working to bring understanding of security matters to people in all walks of life.  To host a speaker or arrange for a consultation call (203) 293-4741 or email LisaBernard@SecuritySpeak.net.  See more of their work at  www.SecuritySpeak.net and at  www.Facebook.com/PodiumTime.  Very special thanks go to Lydia and Gordon Chang for their ever-gracious efforts to keep the level of discourse on these critical issues at a high and dignified plane and to the Charles Dillon Public Library for providing the venue for Lisa Bernard's interview of Gordon Chang.