EDITORIAL - Brinkmanship

Myanmar seems to be headed inexorably toward reforms, gradually shedding its status as an international pariah. The other isolated Asian state, North Korea, appears headed in the opposite direction. As of yesterday, Pyongyang had given no indication that it would abort its launch of a rocket, expected sometime between April 12 and 16.

With millions of its citizens going hungry, the so-called Hermit Kingdom has spent heavily on weaponry. Pyongyang, now under the third generation of the authoritarian Kim dynasty, claims it is launching a satellite for space research, to coincide with the 100th birth anniversary of its founding leader Kim Il-sung. Other governments believe it is testing a long-range missile, in contravention of a United Nations Security Council ban on North Korea’s ballistic missile program.

Pyongyang said the second stage of the rocket launch is expected to splash down 190 kilometers east of Northern Luzon, prompting a diplomatic protest from the Philippines. The first stage will fall in international waters between China and South Korea. Japan has announced it would shoot down any rocket that enters its airspace, further raising tension in the region.

The planned rocket launch dashes the tentative hopes raised when North Korea’s supreme leader Kim Jong-un took over the nation’s reins last December following the death of his father Kim Jong-il. The 29-year-old new leader attended school for two years in Switzerland and, it was hoped, had imbibed a bit of appreciation for open societies. Despite recent reports that he flunked science and excelled in music and technical studies in Berne, Kim and his government initially made the right noises about prospects for dialogue on the Korean peninsula.

There is still time for Pyongyang to reassure the world that it has no aggressive intentions. After decades of despotic rule during which North Korea has turned to international blackmail to feed its starving citizens, it is time for Pyongyang to reassess its priorities and seek a place in the community of nations.