The Overlooked Issue With the Korean Peace Talks
Kevin Felts 06.15.18
President Trump has done something no other president has been able to do, and that is to get North Korea to the peace table. With North Korea agreeing to start working towards denuclearization and “perhaps” reunification, this puts China is an odd position.
Communist nations like to have a buffer zone around their borders. This buffer zone is made up of smaller nations, who are also communist. For example, during the Cold War, Russia had a buffer zone of smaller communist nations between itself and European nations.
If war were to break out with NATO, troops would have to fight their way through those smaller nations before they would be able to reach Russia. This was a lesson learned in World War II when Germany invaded Russia during Operation Barbarossa. Germany was able to invade and penetrate deep into Russian territory before Russia was able to mount a defense.
To help prevent situations like those which happened with Operation Barbarossa, communist nations, especially Russia and China, promoted communism in boarding nations.
With the possibility of the Korean peninsula reunifying, China will lose the buffer zone it had with North Korea. This could be seen as a threat to China’s national security. Historically, China has reacted with military force when foreign troops get too close to the Chinese border.
During the Korean conflict, November 1950 to be exact, China sent 300,000 troops across the Korean border. The Chinese troops attacked United States servicemen and United Nations troops In a surprise attack.
The United States is accused of having too many bases around Russia and China. It is estimated the United States has 400 bases around China.
What happened when Russia tried to send missiles to Cuba? There was a stand off and the world was on the edge of nuclear war. Thankfully, calmer heads prevailed and the ships taking missiles to Cuba turned around.Unified Korea means China loses a communist buffer nation.
- Buffer nations have been part of communist military planning since World War II.
- Historically, China has protected its borders with military action.
- United States military bases in Korea, without the buffer zone, could be seen as a military threat.
While the possibility of a reunified Korea sounds wonderful, it is unclear how China will react.
With China expanding its military influence to the South China Sea with artificial islands, will China be willing to give up the North Korean buffer zone?
