The new old war in Korea

[Jester]

But would the US (NATO) nuke NK in retailliation? Doubtful, especially if China forbids it (and it will because the fallout will likely spill over China), because full-scale nuclear war between USA vs. China = end of the world scenario

If North Korea drops a *nuclear weapon* on one of the world's largest cities, then all bets are off. Not even China has the diplomatic clout to deal with the results of that - a holocaust of 10 million people, just blown away.

Besides, the response makes no sense. If the US launched a few of their own in retaliation at North Korea what incentive could China possibly have to turn a moderately bad situation into a global armageddon? Spite? To preserve their reputation? We're talking about total destruction.

Not only that, but China owns the USA financially with it's massive debts and can bankrupt it at will.

Not even close. The US owes China about one trillion dollars (about 3/4 of a trillion officially) and that's denominated in US dollars, which the US government can legally print. If the US was faced with a major *strategic* choice like nuclear war, the money would not stand in their way, nor would China have enough leverage to "bankrupt" the US. A single year of big spending, or the DoD budget for two years, would be enough to wipe the books clean. A strategic inflation would also help vaporize that debt, although at a price.

Discuss.

I think you vastly overstate Chinese diplomatic clout. They are powerful, but they are not the emperors of the universe. If North Korea unilaterally starts a nuclear war, China's UN veto isn't going to stop the retaliation. Think of 3000 September 11ths, all at once. That's the kind of disaster the international community would be faced with.

China would cut NK loose.

-Jester