Rogue Nation

In this week's edition we will explore the history of an anonymous foreign country. We must be unbiased to properly judge them, and what it means to be a "rogue nation". This country might be in Africa, or Asia. Or it might not. Let us call this country Koreastan.

Early on in its history Koreastan invaded and stole a great deal of territory from its neighbor. It instigated several incidents and marched regular and paramilitary armies into nearby territories, claiming them for its own. This would not be the last time Koreastan invaded nearby countries. It's military became dominant in the region, and it used threats of violence, and often actual invasions, to gain control of economically valuable resources in the region. Koreastan is ruled by an ethnic minority who continue to control a vast majority of the country's economic resources. They have regular elections which usually meet basic international standards -- however, it is only very recently that anyone outside the narrow ethnic and ideological minority has been allowed to hold high office. The dominant minority have often used the state apparatus to repress ideological opponents and ethnic minorities demanding greater rights. There have been several times in their history where the army has been used for this purpose, including one sustained campaign against one minority group which lasted several decades and nearly wiped out all members of that ethnicity. Although they have experiences relatively high economic growth rates at times, severe poverty remains a serious problem, with many families unable to meet their basic health and shelter needs. Despite growing populist rhetoric from its leaders, Koreastan remains a nation where the economic resources largely benefit a small privileged minority. And despite a lack of serious external threats, Koreastan continues to use force, or the threat of force, to solve disputes with neighboring countries.

What should the international community do with Koreastan? Do we introduce economic sanctions to encourage better behavior? Do we limit the military equipment they are allowed to acquire? Do we send in mediators to arrange power sharing deals between the ruling minority and oppressed ethnic groups?

Oh, and a side note to the short history of 'Koreastan': they were the first and only country to use nuclear weapons against another country.

Feel free to re-read this post. A little snack for thought.