Nuclear Reasoning with North Korea

An excerpt of a Commentary byMikhail Gorbachev, as published in the International Herald Tribune

There has been unusual interest throughout the world in the U.S. presidential race. … Over past eight years the rapid rise in military spending has been the main factor in increasing the federal budget deficit. Yet no candidate has made that clear.

The present administration, particularly during ... Bush's first presidential term, was bent on trying to solve many foreign policy issues primarily by military means, through threats and pressure. .. The fact is that the military option has again and again led to a dead end.

One doesn't have to go very far to find an alternative. Take North Korea. After several years of saber-rattling, the United States finally got around to serious talks with the North Koreans, involving South Korea and other neighboring countries. And though it took time..., the dismantling of the North Korean nuclear program has now begun.

The candidates, and the next president, will have to decide and state clearly whether America wants to be an empire or a democracy, whether it seeks global dominance or international cooperation. They will have to choose, because this is an either-or proposition: The two things don't mix, like oil and water.