War in Iraq and Nuclear Test in North Korea

(In Feb., 2009, U.S. President Obama said that most U.S. forces would be withdrawn from Iraq by Aug., 2010.) The agreements were seen as strengthening Prime Minister Maliki and further undermining Moktada al-Sadr, and in the Jan., 2009, provincial elections, Maliki's coalition emerged as the strongest political grouping. In June, Iraqi forces assumed responsibility for security in urban areas; the process had begun in January.("Iraq")

Work Cited
"Iraq." The Columbia Encyclopedia. 6th ed. 2009.

Obama said that, in response to the nuclear test, the United States and its four partners in the regional talks - China, Japan, Russia, and South Korea - "have all come to the same conclusion: North Korea will not find security and respect through threats and illegal weapons."


Moscow and Beijing issued their own condemnatory statements immediately after the test. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu said May 26 that China "resolutely opposed" the test and that, in carrying it out, North Korea had "ignored [the] universal opposition of the international community."(Crail)

WorkCited
Crail, Peter. "N. Korean Nuclear Test Prompts Global Rebuke." Arms Control Today June 2009: 27+.