"I understand the North Koreans"

The announcement by North Korea that it will put a satellite into orbit has warned the whole region. No need to be very smart to know that to do so you need technology similar to that of long-range ballistic missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads. This fact calls into question the sincerity of Pyongyang when it recently reached an agreement with the United States to get help in exchange for rethinking its nuclear weapons program.

It is anticipated that one of the rockets will fly over part of Japan and might even fall on it. So the Japanese government has already announced that it prepares the Self-Defense Forces anti missile batteries  in case they have to intercept and destroy the North Korean gadget.

This new episode of the conflict between North Korea and its neighbors has reminded me what a South-Korean friend recently told me: "I fully understand what North Korea does."  He told explained that seeing what is happening in other parts of the world, makes Pyongyang think that atomic bombs are one of the few things that can deter it’s enemies of trying to destabilize the regime.