Is New Leader in North Korea Going to Work With the U.S.?

     I found this story on cbsnews.com yesterday and there are definitely different points of view surrounding this matter.  What has happened is North Korea has agreed to stop performing missile launching tests, suspend nuclear testing, hold off on uranium enrichment, and even allow the International Atomic Energy Agency to resume inspections of the country's nuclear programs.  In exchange for these actions, the U.S. has agreed to provide 240,000 metric tons of food to help feed the famine and poverty stricken nation.  These negotiations are the first between the U.S. and North Korea regarding nuclear disarmament since North Korea pulled out of the Six-Party Agreement in 2009.  Since then, long time ruler of North Korea, Kim Jong-il has passed away and his 28 year old son, Kim Jong-un has taken over the leadership role of the country.  Many have speculated on how the new, young leader will address global powers such as the U.S. and it seems as though we are beginning to find out.  Although this would seem to be an intelligent move to help the people of his country while earning the respect of very powerful nations, many believe that this is history repeating itself.  According to this article on cnn.com, the decision to provide North Korea with aid is complete "insanity".  The article goes on to mention how many times the North has taken aid from the U.S. and has not followed through with its end of the bargain.  The article continues by claiming that the Koreans are planning to take the aid, allow the inspectors from the IAEA to visit predetermined and staged sites, and continue to secretly develop weapons of mass destruction.  The article also proclaims that in doing this, they will gain more support from China to back them in developing what will appear to be a nuclear program to generate energy, not weapons.  Although there is some truth to what CNN is saying regarding learning from your mistakes, the real truth is that this is a completely different situation, with a new leader, who has a new agenda, who must find a way to maintain power in an already struggling country.  The remarks that I found in this article on reuters.com seemed to make a little bit more sense.  Of course we cannot expect North Korea to just give up their nuclear program, but that doesn't mean that we can't try to befriend this new leader and begin working together to find middle ground.  We have been on edge with North Korea for decades, but now is our chance to change all of that and progress as nations.  "I believe it is very unlikely that North Korea will give up its nuclear weapons," said Jeffrey Lewis, a director of the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies in California.  "But we have no choice but to try."  Hillary Clinton makes the comment, "this is a modest first step, but it is also a reminder that the world is transforming around us.  I understand that our relationship with North Korea has been rigid and tense for so long, but that doesn't mean that we should give up hope that we will never be allies.  What's it going to hurt to deliver some much needed food and supplies to this country in an attempt to befriend their new leader?  If they do not follow through with the agreement they have made, then things will be no different than they were before.  I think that at this moment, this appears to be a step in the right direction to mending the differences between the United States and North Korea and if it proves successful, it could also be a step in building even stronger relationships with other nations such as China.  If it fails, then everything will be the same as it was before Kim Jong-il perished.