United Nations Useless In Preventing Nuclear Proliferation

As reports grow that North Korea intends to test fire a three-stage missile that could hit the United States, the U.S., Japan, Australia and New Zealand have all warned the regime of Kim Jong Il that there would be harsh but otherwise unspecified adverse consequences if it was to go ahead.

But if by that, the U.S. and its allies mean taking the matter to the U.N. Security Council and seeking sanctions, then nothing of substance would be accomplished.

The fact is, when it comes to stopping North Korea or Iran from developing nuclear weapons and long range missiles, or when it comes to stopping genocide in Darfur and other places, the United Nations is utterly useless.

Russia and China can block any meaningful action with their veto power in the Security Council, and the General Assembly is dominated by countries that are as fundamentally unfriendly to the U.S. and its allies as they are to Israel. The Israelis have learned they can expect no protection from the U.N., or even a lack of bias. A U.N. "peacekeeping" force in Lebanon has done nothing to prevent missiles from being fired into Israel.

The U.S. Japan, Australia and New Zealand are powerful countries. Were they to undertake a naval blockade of North Korea, it would have an effect. Lesser sanctions would only exacerbate the situation without bringing any solid result.

Just as before World War II, when Germany left the League of Nations and Italy defied it, no world body that requires a consensus before it can act is any use at all in preventing a build up of tensions that, in today's world, can lead to a nuclear war.

We have to assume that the U.S. could ultimately become the target of nuclear attack by North Korea and perhaps Iran. Using the U.N. to try to prevent this would be in the end hopeless. Already, it should be noted, however, the U.S. has not waited for the U.N. to act, before undertaking continuing surveillance of North Korea. This surveillance allowed us to detect North Korean preparations for a missile launching and it is so pervasive that we learned this morning that the North Koreans have fueled the missile, allowing a launch at any time.

Also in the news this morning is a lengthy L.A. Times report that the U.S. is battling to try and keep Venezuela, whose dictator, Hugo Chavez, has been developing ties with both North Korea and Iran, from obtaining a seat on the Security Council, where it could become even more obstructive to American interests than it already is.
The battle is a close one within the Latin American countries that must make the primary decision. If they are deadlocked, then the matter goes to the General Assembly where it is clear the U.S. does not command a majority.

My own view is that the U.S. should drastically cut its contributions to the U.N., with the exception of such sub-groups as the World Health Organization, and prepare to make alliances with like minded nations a primary focus of our foreign policy. NATO, despite its divisions, is a far better organization for us.

We cannot leave to the U.N. any capacity to determine U.S. foreign policy. If we do, we might as well invite North Korean ships, uninspected, into U.S. ports.

The bottom line is we cannot rely on a body dominated by Third World countries in the General Assembly to stop anyone from an atomic attack on Los Angeles. We have to be masters of our own situation.

(A short time after this was posted, someone in effect put an ad on the bottom in "comments" for a TV program. Either they should not have done it, or they should pay me for advertising. Please ignore this particular comment. The implication is that I may endorse this program. I have never heard of this channel, and I certainly do not).