Crossfire War – MOSCOW WATCH – Eurasia Theatre: Moscow – Beijing – Seoul – Tokyo – Washington/Pyongyang – Tehran; Russia DM Receives Special Envoy from China – Indications of Beijing Removing Itself from Supporting Pyongyang Weapons Exports
Night Watch: MOSCOW – There are serious indications that the Iran-China Axis will no longer be cooperating as a result of Russia and the Allies serious response to continued advanced weapons exports to Iran from China’s province of North Korea. I suspect the private, behind the scenes response, has been much more critical than the public, official discussion through the United Nations Security Council. [RIA]
Saturday, the day sanctions were imposed, RIA reported, Russia Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov received Tang Jiaxuan, Special Envoy, from China President Hu Jintao. The minister said that the issue of proliferation of weapons of mass destruction would dominate the talks. Ivanov stated, “The relations between China and Russia went beyond the framework of bilateral relations a long time ago. This is not accidental and since our relations have a great influence on the international security. They are not aimed against any third countries, that they help to combat modern threats and challenges. It is obvious that one of the main threats is the expansion of weapons of mass destruction and missile technologies.”
This is a direct follow up to the phone conversation crossfirewar.com reported between U. S. President George W. Bush and Russia President Vladimir Putin when the two discussed coordinated action against North Korea – China as a result of the nuclear bomb test last week.
After the meeting with China Special Envoy Ivanov praised Russia-China relations, so I suspect he received the envoy’s – Hu Jintao’s assurances that Beijing will not support Pyongyang militarily when attacks are launched against North Korea’s test sites and military bases. Moscow may also have assured Beijing that China would receive any help it required in case they are faced with a flood of North Korean refugees. This of course is not the news Tehran wants to hear but they may have to and realize their continued access to nuclear and ballistic missile technology from northeast Asia has now been cut off.
As crossfirewar.com reported recently, according to a high level North Korean defector, who was interviewed in the Wall Street Journal in early 2003, North Korea’s military has not been well maintained and that a lot of its troops are demoralized. Perhaps Pyongyang could last a month. Also in the Allies favor are indications Kim Jong-il actually wants North Korea to have an open economy like the South. I believe it was in early 2004 Kim Jong-il was returning from one of his trips to Beijing by train. As soon as his train entered North Korea an explosion just missed it. During that trip he insisted he be taken to one of China’s stock exchanges. Kim Jong-il has no problem with luxury and he knows that if North Korea’s economy is opened up it would dramatically raise the standard of living of his people. But Beijing still wanted Pyongyang to continue to export advanced weaponry to Tehran to enable Iran’s offensive foreign policy to damage at least three of China’s historical enemies, the West-India-Russia while at the same time deny Japan access to oil fields in the Persian Gulf.
Ivanov may have told the envoy the Allies have no choice but to begin to respond to the “threats and challenges” with military action. Economic lifelines are at extreme risk for the entire industrialized world.
www.crossfirewar.com
