China should rein in Kim for the sake of peace

AS a schoolboy in Southern Rhodesia, I read about the Korean War. Of course, it was the dastardly communists, spurred on by China, against the heroes of the West, striving to save humanity as we knew it. I might have been reading some comic magazines at the same time.

Just in case you are bemused, Southern Rhodesia is now Zimbabwe and has a despot for a ruler (Robert Mugabe), who has ruined his country. It has slumped from being the "breadbasket of Africa" to pleading for humanitarian assistance.

The "West" has continually failed to assist the people of Zimbabwe, but that is not surprising given its history of washing its hands. Think Egypt, Sudan, Libya and Syria in more recent times. Mr Mugabe pales into insignificance against the despot of North Korea - Kim Jong-un, the latest of his family line, not averse to culling his own family.