US planning to destroy North Korea like Libya: Writer

American writer and academic James Petras says the United States is planning to destroy North Korea like Libya, and to avoid such a fate Pyongyang should not submit to Washington’s dictates and strengthen its ties with China, Russia and Iran.

On Wednesday, North Korean General Kim Yong-chol arrived in New York to hold talks with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. The former spy chief is a trusted adviser to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, playing a pivotal role in preparations for a historic summit between Kim and US President Donald Trump.

Trump’s policy on North Korea, like so much of his presidency, has been shrouded in secrecy and confusion.

On May 24, Trump announced that he was calling off the summit with the North Korean leader that was scheduled to take place on June 12 in Singapore.

Next day, however, he indicated the summit could go ahead as planned after welcoming a conciliatory statement from Pyongyang, which said it remained open to talks. And few hours later, he said his administration was having “productive talks” with Pyongyang about reinstating the summit.

On Sunday, Trump praised North Korea’s “brilliant potential” and said his team arrived in North Korea to arrange for his possible meeting with Kim.

PressTV-Video: North Korean envoy arrives in New York for talks

North Korean General Kim Yong Chol, arrived in New York on Wednesday, ahead of talks with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.

“The most important point that needs to be emphasized is that this meeting really results from the discussions between the two Koreas,” Professor Petras told Press TV on Wednesday.

“Trump has no intentions of recognizing North Korea’s sovereignty, their right to self-determination, and their ability to defend sovereignty through maintaining its arms and its troops mobilized,” he added.

“We have seen that even Trump’s administration has admitted that their goal is to turn North Korea into another Libya, which as you know signed a disarmament agreement with the US and subsequently was invaded and bombed and the country was destroyed and the president was assassinated,” the analyst stated.  

“There is no question that the rhetoric of the Trump administration is directed toward following the example of Libya. And I think the question that one has to ask is what will the Chinese, Russians, and other countries do when the United States decides to betray its agreement with North Korea?” he asked.

“I think it’s very clear that if North Korea has the support of China, Russia, it will be able to evade American pressures and policies that undermine its security. I think the first issue is not to trust Trump’s promises, and that’s very important. There should be no trust and accommodation with Trump that put the security of North Korea in the hand of Washington,” the academic noted.   

“I think the pattern that needs to be followed and North Korea is to recognize that there are allies out there. There are allies in Iran, there are potential allies in Russia, and there are potential allies in China. They cannot take a position which submits to the United States’ dictates otherwise the country will be destroyed and that will lose its capacity to defend itself and to put its economy in order,” he concluded.

PressTV-US wants North Korea to ship out all nukes

US officials say Trump has asked North Korea to ship out its nukes and missiles before he meets with Kim Jong-un in Singapore next month.

The Kim-Trump summit announcement came after several months of unprecedented cordial diplomacy between South and North Koreas, which had been adversaries for decades. Moon has been acting as a go-between in diplomatic efforts for the potential holding of the summit between the US and North Korea — also long-time foes.

Trump has threatened the North Korean leader with the same fate as Libya's Muammar Gaddafi if Pyongyang does not abandon its nuclear weapons program.

Trump issued the threat this month when asked about the suggestion by US National Security Adviser John Bolton that the “Libyan model” be a template for dealing with North Korea at a summit between Trump and Kim planned for June 12 in Singapore.

The model Bolton was referring to was Gaddafi’s agreement in December 2003 to surrender Libya’s nuclear weapons program, which included allowing uranium centrifuges to be shipped out to the US.

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