Korean Peninsula

I read the recent news about the Korean Peninsula. The Cabinet ministers and influential lawmakers of Japan's Liberal Democratic Party have made comments calling for debate on whether Japan should possess nuclear weapons, which is said to be triggered by the recent nuclear test by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. Another comment is that Washington is deploying a squadron of stealth fighters to South Korea.

The politicians of Tokyo and Washington may argue that they take these moves to safeguard the stability of the region by deterring the potential threat from Pyongyang. However, from my point of view, such tit-to-tat moves could only contribute to the acceleration of tension caused by the nuclear crisis on the Korean Peninsula.

Pyongyang, Tokyo and Washington may want to have more cards to play in the Six-Party Talks. But any misjudgement could result in a war that would hurt the peace and prosperity of the region.