US calls for UNSC action against N. Korean satellite launch, says China, Russia's opposition is 'troubling' Linda Thomas-Greenfield, United States ambassador to the United Nations, and the sitting president of the United Nations Security Council, gavels in a meeting of the council to discuss the war in Ukraine, Aug. 24, at United Nations headquarters. AP-YonhapThe United States' envoy to the United Nations called on the U.N. Security Council, Friday, to condemn North Korea's recent failed satellite launch, while insisting that China and Russia's refusal to hold the North accountable for its actions is encouraging the recalcitrant country to continue its provocations.The U.S. envoy. Thomas Linda-Greenfield, said China and Russia's refusal to condemn North Korean provocations was "troubling.""I urge every council member every single member of this council to condemn this launch and discourage the DPRK from conducting another test," the U.S. diplomat told a UNSC meeting in New York.The emergency meeting comes after Pyongyang made a second failed attempt to launch what it claims would have been its first military reconnaissance satellite, Thursday (KST)."This should be an issue that unifies usAug 26, 2023
N. Korean plane arrives in Vladivostok for 1st time in over 3 years: report A flight operated by Air Koryo, North Korea's national carrier, is seen at Vladivostok International Airport, Aug. 25. YonhapA flight operated by Air Koryo, North Korea's national carrier, arrived in Russia's far eastern city of Vladivostok on Friday, a Russian news agency reported, marking the resumption of a commercial flight connecting the two countries after more than three years of COVID-19 restrictions.The flight, which departed from Pyongyang, arrived at Vladivostok International Airport at 11:14 a.m., Russian news agency RIA Novosti said.According to sources, the plane did not carry any passengers onboard. Russian media outlets had previously reported that Koryo flights were scheduled Friday and next Monday, but flight schedules remained unannounced.Friday afternoon, the electric bulletin board at the airport showed Air Koryo's JS-272 flight, originally set to head to Pyongyang at 1:15 p.m., was delayed until 1:45 p.m. It did not have information on the counter number.RIA Novosti reported passengers were seen preparing to get onboard by the time the Koryo plane arrived in VlaAug 25, 2023
Seoul calls for abolition of 'K-pop ban' in North Korea K-pop girl group BLACKPINK members stand on stage at the MTV VMAs at Prudential Center in Newark, N.J., in this Aug. 28, 2022 photo. Unification Minister Kim Yung-ho urged Pyongyang to abolish its “anti-reactionary thought law,” also known as the "K-pop ban," which was adopted in late 2020 to specifically target South Korean cultural content. AFP-Yonhap'Anti-reactionary thought law' is sign of growing influence of South Korean culture: scholarBy Jung Min-hoSince its founding in 1948, the dictatorial regime in North Korea has strictly blocked the entry of any information from the outside that could threaten its stability and legitimacy. Those who spread messages deemed to deviate from its totalitarian principles have always been at risk of punishment under its publication law and administrative guidelines. This is why North Korea's decision in 2020 to adopt an “anti-reactionary thought law,” a move specifically targeting South Korea's cultural content, drew little attention here at the time.Nearly three years after the law came into force in North Korea to cracAug 25, 2023By Jung Min-ho
N. Korea's premier sends congratulatory message to new Thai leader North Korean Premier Kim Tok-hun, second from left, inspects a farm in Hwangju, North Hwanghae Province, in this undated photo released by the North's official Korean Central News Agency, Aug. 8. YonhapNorth Korean Premier Kim Tok-hun has sent a congratulatory message to Thailand's new prime minister, Srettha Thavisin, state media reported Friday, marking his first public activity since the North's leader Kim Jong-un scolded him over recent flood damage.Earlier this week, the North's leader berated the premier for his "irresponsible" attitude in failing to prevent damage to farmland from the recent typhoon. With the North's leader singling out the premier for his bungled handling of flooding, it spawned speculation that the premier, who was appointed to the post in 2020, may be replaced. According to the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), the premier also "expressed confidence that the friendly relations between (North Korea and Thailand) will continue to advance in the future" in the letter sent to Srettha on Thursday. (Yonhap)Aug 25, 2023
N. Korea's failed satellite launch is provocative, destabilizing: Pentagon Pentagon spokesman Air Force Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder takes a question from a reporter during a briefing at the Pentagon in Washington, Aug. 24. AP-YonhapNorth Korea's failed attempt to launch a military satellite is a provocative action that destabilizes the region, a Pentagon spokesperson reiterated Thursday, after the White House condemned the launch as a direct violation of United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolutions.The Pentagon spokesperson, Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder, said the United States will continue working closely with its South Korean and Japanese allies to ensure stability in the region."What we see here is another failed space launch," Ryder said of the North Korean launch in a daily press briefing."They are provocative. They are destabilizing, and so again, we'll continue to work closely with our Republic of Korea allies, our Japanese allies to ensure that we share common understanding of the situation and work together to ensure stability and security in the region," he added, referring to South Korea by its official name.North Korea launched its second space launch veAug 25, 2023
North Korea slams South Korea-US-Japan summit as 'Asian version of NATO' A TV screen shows a report of North Korea's rocket launch with file image of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during a news program at the Seoul Railway Station in Seoul, Thursday. AP-YonhapNorth Korea on Thursday denounced the trilateral agreement among South Korea, the United States, and Japan as "the Asian version of NATO," and the U.S. scheme to encircle Russia and China.Pyongyang's defense minister, Kang Sun-nam, issued a statement after the leaders of Seoul, Washington and Tokyo held a trilateral summit at Camp David last week, and agreed to beef up cooperation to deal with North Korea's nuclear and missile threats."The recent confab brought to light the U.S. sinister intention to lay big siege to China and Russia by tightly binding the hands and feet of Japan and the ROK (Republic of Korea), the primary bullet shield for realizing its greedy ambition for world domination, to the Asian version of NATO," read the English statement carried by the Korean Central News Agency, referring to South Korea's official name, the Republic of Korea.It was the first statement by a high-rankingAug 24, 2023
North Korea says Japan should immediately retract discharge of treated radioactive water A photo released by the North Korean Central News Agency on July 29 shows North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during a meeting with a Chinese delegation led by Li Hongzhong, member of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, in Pyongyang, July 28. EPA-YonhapNorth Korea said Thursday that Japan should immediately halt the release of treated radioactive water from its crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant into the sea.In a statement carried by the North's official Korea Central News Agency, a spokesperson for its foreign ministry said the act devastates the earth's environment, and seriously threatens the security and survival of mankind.Earlier in the day, Japan began to discharge its first batch of treated radioactive water into the sea, despite concerns raised by neighboring countries and fishing groups in the region.The controversial discharge came after the International Atomic Energy Agency gave final approval to the discharge last month, saying Japan's release plan met international standards.The Fukushima plant has stored more than 1.3 millionAug 24, 2023
ANALYSIS North Korea fails again to launch satellite but appears to have solved cause of 1st failure A file image of a North Korean rocket launch is seen on a TV screen during a news program at Seoul Railway Station in Seoul, Thursday. North Korea said on Thursday that its second attempt to launch a spy satellite failed. AP-YonhapPyongyang vows third attempt in two months after improving flight termination systemBy Jung Min-hoNorth Korea said, Thursday, that its second attempt to put a reconnaissance satellite into space failed, but the country immediately vowed to try again in two months, demonstrating its determination to push ahead with the project its leader Kim Jong-un labeled as a “top priority.”Citing the National Aerospace Development Administration, the North's official Korean Central News Agency reported that the first and second stages of the launch were successful, but an error in the “emergency blasting system” during the third-stage flight led to another failure.The space agency said the problem was “not a big issue in terms of the reliability of cascade engines and the system.”That means North Korea has solved the key technical causAug 24, 2023By Jung Min-ho
N. Korea probably sees technical advance in spy satellite launch despite botched 2nd attempt North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, center, visits a navy unit and overseeing a test launch of cruise missiles in this Aug. 21 photo carried by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency. YonhapNorth Korea's second failure to launch a spy satellite likely serves as a humiliating setback for its leader Kim Jong-un, but the country appears to have solved engine problems over a space rocket, given its vow to make a third attempt in October, experts said.North Korea launched what it called a military spy satellite, the Malligyong-1, mounted on the Chollima-1 rocket at around 3:50 a.m. from the Tongchang-ri area on the country's west coast.But about two hours after the launch, the North's state media said the country's second attempt to launch a "military reconnaissance satellite" ended in failure, citing an "error in the emergency blasting system during the third-stage flight."The North's space development agency said "the cause of the relevant accident is not a big issue in aspect of the reliability of cascade engines and the system," adding that it would conduct the third launch inAug 24, 2023
US sanctions co-founder of Tornado Cash for laundering stolen cryptocurrency for N. Korea The U.S. Treasury Department building at dusk in Washington, U.S., is seen in this June 6, 2019 photo. AP-YonhapThe U.S. Department of Treasury on Wednesday imposed sanctions on a co-founder of virtual currency mixer Tornado Cash for assisting a North Korean hacking group that has stolen hundreds of millions of dollars in cryptocurrency.Roman Semenov is one of three co-founders of Tornado Cash, which was designated by the treasury department in 2022."Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned Roman Semenov, one of three co-founders of the sanctioned virtual currency mixer Tornado Cash, for his role in providing material support to Tornado Cash and to the Lazarus Group, a state-sponsored hacking group that is an instrumentality of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK)," the department said in a press release, referring to North Korea by its official name."Tornado Cash has been used to launder funds for criminal actors since its creation in 2019, including to obfuscate hundreds of millions of dollars in virtual currency stAug 24, 2023
