The hermit kingdom of North Korea has once again behaved in a manner so uncivilized that the world is aghast. After the unprovoked attack on and sinking of a South Korean military vessel in March, killing 46 sailors, North Korea took it upon itself to launch another unprovoked attack, this time on a densely populated South Korean island, killing four and injuring dozens of civilians. The attack was not only unprovoked. There has been no explanation from the North Koreans as to why they launched it. The Korean peninsula has been a powder keg for years, ever since the Korean War ended in the 1950s with China as the North's patron and the US as the South's. The behavior of the North, however, has always been erratic and far beyond what is acceptable in the modern world. It has launched unprovoked attacks, built a nuclear arsenal of some 10-12 missiles, kidnapped Japanese nationals to train North Korean spies and this year killing, at least, 50 people in vicious military attacks. The explanations for the current wave of aggression are mind-boggling. There is speculation that it has something to do with the byzantine secession process that is about to bring one of the sons of the current ruler, Kim Jong-il. But there is also speculation – and this is based, reportedly, on information flowing from the North Koreans to the US – that North Korea is attempting to attract the attention of the Americans so as to return to the negotiating table to deal with complaints about the nuclear program and North Korea's desire for more foreign aid from the West. The North believes that belligerence is its only means of capturing the full attention of the US. War would be devastating for both North and South Korea, so it seems unlikely that no matter how close to war they may seem, the chances of a full-blown confrontation are slim. Nevertheless, the US is conducting naval exercises with the South in a show of a strong alliance and as a means of conveying to China, North Korea's sole benefactor and backer, that it is not going to sit around as the North Korean military commits murder. There are, no doubt, ongoing contacts between the Americans and the Chinese over how to resolve the current situation. The bottom line is that China should rein in North Korea's rulers and prevail on the antiquated state to behave in a civilized manner. Missile attacks hardly constitute diplomatic strategy. The fact that China has called for a return to the six-party talks regarding the peninsula is a clear sign that it has come to the same conclusion. __
