Mr. Obama told the President-elect that his most pressing foreign policy problem would be North Korea.
Unfortunately for President Trump, if that is true, it’s true because U.S. Presidents have been kicking this can down the road for decades. Every President in recent years has chosen to simply contain the North Korean regime and placate it by sending humanitarian assistance in return for empty promises to make nice.
In the meantime, we’ve allowed North Korea (NK) to develop an extensive nuclear weapons program. We’ve also allowed it to become a supplier of nuclear weapons technology and advance missile technology.
It hasn’t helped the situation that China has provided North Korea cover at the United Nations during that time. China has done that for selfish reasons.
The Chinese can get away with a lot more mischief if the world’s attention is focused on their fellow communist regime. China uses NK to provide some strategic depth and a first line of defense from the Sea of Japan. China gets coal from NK and sells a lot of oil to it. In a pinch, North Korea would even be a potent ally in war — and China doesn’t have very many of those.
Lastly, China does not want millions of North Korean refugees fleeing into China if there is conflict. Neither does Russia, which lies to the northeast.
In the light of Bible prophecy, I believe North Korea figures in prominently.
First, it might one day be one of the mysterious “kings of the east” mentioned in Revelation 16:12.
But I think North Korea has a more immediate connection to Israel: Iran.
North Korea has long been Iran’s primary supplier of weapons technology. And Iran has publicly and repeatedly informed the world that its primary goal is the destruction of Israel — at its earliest opportunity.
Most Iranian missiles are based on North Korean models. And since most of the West considers Iran to be the foremost state sponsor of terrorism, much of that missile technology (and maybe even the weapons themselves) gets passed on to Iran’s proxies, most notably Hezbollah, and now Syria.
In fact, it is estimated that more than 130,000 of Hezbollah’s missiles are aimed at Israel at any given moment. That makes its “offensive arsenal bigger than all of Western Europe combined.” (The Weekly Standard)
But it gets even more immediate. China seems to have recently made an about-face in its attitude toward North Korea. After pressure from President Trump, China has stopped accepting North Korea’s shipments of coal. It has also stopped sending oil supplies to NK. Some analysts believe NK receives up to 90% of its vital oil supplies from China.
The Chinese government has also moved an estimated 150,000 troops to its border with NK. Russia has moved troops to its border, as well.
If China permanently stops the flow of oil to North Korea, what would Kim Jong-un do? Probably turn to Iran, which is flush with oil and desperately in need of cash.
North Korea needs Iran’s fuel and trade. Iran needs North Korea’s nuclear and missile technology.
It’s a marriage made in hell.
Iran’s most elite military unit is the “Quds Force.” That translates to: “Jerusalem Force.”
That alone should tell the world that Iran intends to one day take Jerusalem in battle. Ezekiel 38 tells us that in the future Iran will attempt just that. The Bible also says that Russia will join Iran and other Islamic nations in that invasion.
As Russia ratchets up its belligerence, it is becoming more isolated from the world. Its number of friends is dwindling, dramatically increasing the importance of its few alliances.
The same thing is happening with Iran and with Turkey (accelerated by its president’s recent dramatic seizure of dictatorial powers).
These nations fought one another for millennia, but their recent, uneasy alliance is growing stronger every day. Just as the Bible predicted.
As I always say, Israel is God’s timepiece. Make no mistake, the countdown has begun.
transmitted by Hal Lindsey – 4/28/2017
