While dealing with the Syria crisis, the Barack Obama administration once underscored the need to set a precedent for North Korea, Iran and terrorist groups jeopardizing the interests of the U.S. and its regional partners.
But concerns are growing that Washington's tactic on Syria may be sending the wrong signal, especially to Pyongyang.
"The (North Korean) regime is probably heartened by signs of a declining American willingness to intervene overseas even when confronted by evidence of the use of weapons of mass destruction (WMD)," Bruce Klingner, senior researcher at the Heritage Foundation, said in a op-ed piece for 38 North, a website specializing in the communist nation.
"Pyongyang will conclude that President Obama's bold rhetoric, including that directed against North Korea, was unlikely to be backed with significant military action," he added. "The regime will incorporate this perceived American passivity into its decision-making in future confrontations with Washington and Seoul."
The Obama government pushed for "limited" military strikes on Syria, accusing its Assad regime of using chemical weapons against its civilians.
U.S. officials often stressed North Korea, Iran and Hezbollah are watching how Washington reacts to the grave violation of international norms.
Seeking congressional support for its military action plan, the Obama administration faced strong opposition. Opinion polls have repeatedly showed that the war-weary public is against another military action abroad.
Russia's proposal to place Syria's chemical weapons under international control has apparently provided U.S. officials with a cause for stepping back at least provisionally.
In Geneva Saturday, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov reached a framework agreement to rid Syria of its chemical weapons arsenal, effectively averting immediate military strikes on Syria.
The Syrian dictatorship hailed it as a victory.
"These agreements ... are a victory for Syria, achieved thanks to our Russian friends," Syrian minister Ali Haidar was quoted as telling Moscow's RIA news agency.
The U.S. said its was firmly behind such a diplomatic breakthrough.
"We haven't made any changes to our force posture to this point. The credible threat of military force has been key to driving diplomatic progress, and it's important that the Assad regime lives up to its obligations under the framework agreement,"
Pentagon Press Secretary George Little said in a statement.
Still, Pyongyang could have been encouraged by how the U.S. has handled the Syria issue, according to Klingner.
"When North Korea next decides to abandon its current charm offensive to return to a typically more confrontational policy, it may feel emboldened by the U.S. debate on Syria to push the envelope still further," he said.
Furthermore, the U.S. is struggling with defense budget problems, he pointed out.
"Sequestration-mandated defense cuts of US$500-600 billion, coming atop previous $480 billion in defense cuts imposed by Obama, will hinder U.S. ability to respond to a crisis on the Korean Peninsula," he said.
Klingner said North Korea will likely discern the mismatch between the Obama administration's claims of a "pivot to Asia" with the fact that there has been no planned increase in U.S. forces levels in the Pacific.
"Pyongyang might even perceive a pivot away from Asia," he claimed. (Yonhap News)
