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China-Japan-Koreas
Gates: US prevented ROK strike against North in 2010
2014-01-19
South Korea declined to comment Wednesday on revelations that the United States talked it down from launching a retaliatory airstrike on North Korea in 2010.
Geez, this American administration doesn't let anyone have any fun! Or from another perspective, they keep the locals from doing what needs desperately to be done.
The claims were made in the newly published memoir of former US Defense Secretary Robert Gates, in which he also describes former South Korean president Roh Moo-Hyun as "probably a little bit crazy."

The 2010 incident followed the North's surprise shelling of a South Korean border island in November of that year. The attack triggered what Gates labeled a "very dangerous crisis," with the South Korean government of then-President Lee Myung-Bak initially insisting on a robust military response.

"South Korea's original plans for retaliation were, we thought, disproportionately aggressive, involving both aircraft and artillery," Gates wrote in his memoir.

"We were worried the exchanges could escalate dangerously," he added.

Over the next few days, Gates said he, US President Barack Obama and then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had numerous telephone calls with their South Korean counterparts in an effort to calm things down.

"Ultimately, South Korea simply returned artillery fire on the location of the North Koreans' batteries that had started the whole affair," he said.

The South Korean government declined to confirm Gates's version of events.
Posted by:Besoeker

#3  Got to wait for the right moment. Timing is everything. Like when the Chinese do something very nationalistic and stupid elsewhere drawing attention, theirs and everyone else, to that part of the region. Then strike the Norks. Being able to improvise on the fly is not a demonstrated great trait in the East.
Posted by: Procopius2k   2014-01-19 09:44  

#2  You'd think Hilldabeast would brag about talking SKor out of defending themselves the way everyone does to Israel. Sometimes I think we ought to just finish that war up, since it's not over.
Posted by: Silentbrick   2014-01-19 01:09  

#1  "The South Korean government declined to confirm Gates's version of events."

...sounds like a confirmation to me...
Posted by: Uncle Phester   2014-01-19 00:44  

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