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Article: The big guns come out; Kim Jong-Il's latest nuclear test has left the world puzzled. The opaqueness of the North Korean state makes it difficult for outsiders to pull together a clear picture of the regime's motives, writes John M Glionna.(News)
- Article from:
- Daily News (South Africa)
- Article date:
- May 27, 2009
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North Korea's previous nuclear test and missile launches had a ring of foot-stamping about them, certainly a modest security threat but one that smacked heavily of a demand that the United States pay it some attention.
This time, North Korea's motives seem more complex, the international bravado blended with the mysteries of the secretive regime's internal politics.
Instead of tweaking the US, the testing of a second nuclear device might have been aimed more at shoring up an ailing Kim Jong-Il's support from the country's military establishment, many analysts said, perhaps to ensure that power remains within the Kim family in any succession.
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