Fox News reported today SECSTATE Rex Tillerson’s stated U.S. policy that the U.S. “Will never accept a nuclear armed N. Korea:”  (http://video.foxnews.com/v/5492697869001/?#sp=show-clips).

Folks, the solution is to throw every economic and military deterrence lever we have to counter challenges to the American led global order and system of laws.  Or, begin the process of transferring global power to a corrupt China.

Make no mistake, the center of gravity for N. Korea’s very existence is China.  China pull’s the strings in N. Korea and China uses Korea as a lever to advance their foreign policy objectives.  In essence, when you “think” N. Korea, “think” China.  It is China testing nucs on the Korean peninsula.  It is China proliferating WMD.  It is China that is provolking the U.S. and its resolve to either have the U.S. bow to their agenda, or do something about it – something measured, intelligent, and aggressive I assert.  So, the question is, what can the U.S. do to motivate China to take action on demilitarizing N. Korea’s WMD aspirations short of war?

China, supported by Russia, wants the U.S. to withdraw its support for S. Korea.  In fact, China intends to be the Asian regional hegemon that controls all policy in Asia.  And, given that Russia is also an Asian country geographically (Russia shares its border with China), together with Russia’s relative economic weakness compared to China, Russia’s interests with China are linked.  China, of course, knows this. 

Both China and Russia can already deliver nuclear missiles anyplace in the U.S.  Therefore, U.S. fear of N. Korea is misplaced since the real threat is China (and Russia).  So, since it is China (with the support of Russia), that’s the root cause of N. Korean nuclear capabilities, then it is China and China’s corrupt policies, we must confront if we want to stay committed to Korea - assumption being that staying committed to S. Korea is in the U.S. and Western nation’s best interests.

President Trump's aggressive nature in some respects have merit with regard to U.S. security.  But, unintelligently harnessed aggression will invite disaster – just as SECDEF Rumsfeld disastrously prosecuted the Iraq war.  Intelligent assertion of power is key.  I have always been a fan of President Roosevelt’s “Walk softly and carry a big stick” philosophy.  But, when Roosevelt was POTUS, the U.S. was a growing economic powerhouse.  Today, China is the emerging powerhouse.

The game is not nearly over.  There is still time to maintain what I believe is the correct global order – the order advanced by the United States and its allies (as articulated by the overarching interests listed in our latest National Security Strategy: https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/sites/default/files/docs/2015_national_security_strategy.pdf)

That said, it is time to leverage our allies and lead by intelligently countering China’s aggressive policies that undermine western interests. 

The focus now needs to be on countering China economically, politically, and militarily through calculated and intelligent foreign policy.  The U.S. cannot pay the cost to maintain Western led leadership alone.  Aggressively leveraging regional Asian allies and western leaning powers to counter Chinese economic, political, and military influence that contests U.S. and Wetern leaning democracy's interests is key.  This means making the cost of China’s current foreign policy too great and therefore necessitating a change – changes that are in-line with U.S. and Western interests. 

We must contest every Chinese political and military action that undermines like-minded Western leaning interests – intelligently.  My success as a commander and senior military officer has always rested on a game plan that wins the game before the first bullet is metaphorically fired.

I hope the SECSTATE’s statement today in not rhetoric.  I hope it is a precursor to needed action to maintain the Western led system of law and order “intelligently.”  If you want N. Korea fixed, it needs to become in China’s bests interests to do so…

“Walk softly and carry a big stick.”

Utah Bull Moose Party – 2018   “Yea Baby”