Washington, May 26 (Inditop): US President Barack Obama’s goal of eliminating nuclear weapons has received a setback of sorts with North Korea’s second nuclear test on Monday, and experts feel that he would now have to come up with a fresh approach to deal with the security threat posed by the isolated Pyongyang regime.
“The United States and the international community must take action in response. North Korea is not only deepening its own isolation, it’s inviting stronger international pressure,” Obama told reporters in a Rose Garden statement before heading to Memorial Day ceremonies.
But, according to Politico, the sanctions already in place against North Korea are so sweeping that many analysts say the U.N. lacks new ways of pressuring the regime to return to multilateral talks, other than to pass a new strongly worded resolution condemning the test.
While Obama said he hoped to negotiate a new treaty to end the production of fissile materials for nuclear weapons, the president acknowledged that eliminating all nuclear weapons might not happen in his lifetime.
But since his April 5 speech, both North Korea and Iran have illustrated how difficult it will be to achieve credible progress even on the short-term goals Obama described.
Iran has shown little sign so far of accepting Obama’s offer of better ties in return for halting its nuclear program, which Tehran says is for peaceful purposes.
On Monday, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad ruled out nuclear talks with other countries and pronounced the debate about the future of its nuclear program “over.”
North Korea, too, has seemed intent on solidifying its claim as a nuclear weapons state.
But Mike Green, a former National Security Council aide during the Bush administration, said a firm U.N. response to the North Korean test would get Iran’s attention, because Tehran has more to fear than Pyongyang from tough international sanctions.
