RONALD REAGAN was the quintessential American president. Eloquent and well-spoken, he exuded the good old American values of patriotism and chivalry, something perhaps not so easily found in most contemporary American leaders these days.
In 1987, he delivered his famous speech in what was then West Germany, where he challenged the former leader of the Soviet Union, Mikhail Gorbachev, to “tear down that wall.” This is, of course, in reference to the infamous Berlin Wall that split the country of Germany, and indeed Western and Eastern Europe, from the time the Second World War ended, up until he stood on that stage across the divide in 1987.
It may have sounded little more than wishful thinking at the time he pronounced it, but that cry for freedom set in motion a chain of events that would eventually lead to the dissolution of the Iron Curtain, and usher in an era of democracy all across the continent of Europe. To his credit, he had done what no other American leader had done before him – to convince an adversary to stand down, and make peace across the divide.
Long gone the Berlin Wall may have been, but today, one of the longest-standing political walls of all time still exists – that of the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) that divides the Korean peninsula, between the Communist North, and the democratic nation in the South. This is a divide that has not only split a nation in half, but also torn a society – and along with it families and communities – apart.
Just last week, we saw a rapprochement few had ever imagined would happen in our lifetime. Moon Jae-in and Kim Jong Un, leaders of the divided country, stood arm-in-arm—the first time that the leaders of both countries were ever seen together in such a gesture. Against all odds, and in defiance of even what the most ardent of Reagan supporters would have predicted, the North Korean leader seemed to soften his hardline rhetoric, and reached out to the South with peace overtures.
Nobel Peace Prize winning moment, this all is. But who’s to win? In 1988, both Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev were jointly nominated for the award, for their role in thawing the Cold War. Only Gorbachev ultimately ended up winning the Nobel in 1990. Reagan did not, though he is widely credited for his leading role in the process.
And guess who’s being touted to win it this time around? President Moon, perhaps, for being so patient with the North? Or even President Kim, for at last consenting to meet with the South around the peace table? The answer? Perhaps, none of the above.
Ever the usurper for undeserved glory, stranger-than-fiction American president Donald Trump now claims that it is he who deserves the credit for all the peace that now seems to be dawning over the peninsula. He asserts that if anyone is to win the coveted accolade, it is he, and not any of the two Korean leaders. And in an even stranger twist to the tale, President Moon is endorsing Trump for the award.
Of all modern-day leaders that perhaps the world has ever seen, few could compare to how divisive and polarizing Trump has been. He has managed to split a nation, even his own party, and many American families by his outlandish claims, unconventional leadership style, and just overall bad behavior.
And yet, does anyone care, really? When the Berlin Wall fell, the resulting peace across Europe was so much of a blessing to a nervous world, anyone could have won the Nobel and no one would have cared. Peace itself was the greater reward. And so it goes with Trump’s claim.
As long as the world ends up a safer place, Trump could have whatever award he likes. None of the Koreans, and perhaps very few in the world, would even bat an eyelash.
(http://asbbforeignexchange.blogspot.com & http://twitter.com/asbbatuhan)