South Korea May Ask North Korea to Become Involved in the Dokto Crisis

The fate of the entire world continues to hang in the balance due to the latest Dokto crisis between South Korea and Japan. Don’t worry though because the South Korean government in their infinite wisdom on this issue may ask Kim Jong Il for help defending the island from those dastardly Japanese oceanic research scientists:

The two Koreas may discuss the threatened incursion of a Japanese research vessel into Korea?s exclusive economic zone during the inter-Korean ministerial talks starting in Pyongyang this Friday. Foreign Minister Ban Ki-moon said Tuesday he would ?talk to the unification minister? about the matter.

Ban was answering a question from Uri Party lawmaker Choi Sung in the National Assembly. Asked if Korea will seize the Japanese research vessel if it violates the EEZ in the course of what Japan claims is a hydrographic survey near Dokdo, Ban said, ?Concrete steps will be determined depending on how the situation progresses.? The chief diplomat agreed with commentators that it is ?highly likely that Japan is attempting to turn the sensitive Dokdo area into an area of territorial dispute by violating our sovereignty over the islets.?

First of all, what does North Korea have to do with the Dokto controversy between South Korea and Japan. Secondly what could North Korea even do if they do get involved in it? Nuke the research vessel with a No Dong Nuclear tipped warhead? Probably more threatening would be to shut down some pachinko parlors in Osaka? That will really show those wicked Japanese who is boss.

Bringing in the North Koreans into this mess would only play into the Japanese government’s hands because it would further demonstrate the ROK government as behaving irrationally over this issue. The more irrational the ROK government is, the more foreign governments will tend to side with the Japanese government on this issue.

Plus the absurdity of asking North Korea for assistance on this issue just cannot escape me. Remember the North Koreans are the same people who deliberately planned, ambushed, and cold bloodedly killed six South Korean sailors in the Yellow Sea in June of 2002 in order to draw attention away from the South Koreans hosting of that year’s World Cup competition. No apologies, compensation, absolutely nothing from the North Koreans after that incident. In fact the South Korean government went to great lengths to cover up the attack and keep the grieving families quiet.

So now to go ask the murders of South Korean military personnel to come and help them over a small island territorial dispute with Japan just seems ridiculous to me.