US calls for UNSC action against N. Korean ICBM test, but China, Russia veto U.S. Ambassador Jeffrey DeLaurentis addresses a Security Council meeting on the situation Non-proliferation/North Korea, July 13, 2023, at United Nations headquarters. AP-YonhapThe United States and 12 other members of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) unsuccessfully sought to hold North Korea accountable for its recent long-range missile test Thursday due to opposition from China and Russia.North Korea, making its first appearance at a UNSC meeting since 2017, also rejected international condemnation of its missile launch, insisting that it was a legitimate test that had no effect on the security of any neighboring nation.Thursday's UNSC meeting came after North Korea fired a solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) on Wednesday (Korea time), its fourth ICBM test and second solid fuel ICBM launch this year."The United States condemns, in the strongest possible terms, the DPRK's July 12 intercontinental ballistic missile launch," a U.S. envoy to the United Nations told a UNSC meeting held in New York, referring to North Korea by its official name, the Democratic Jul 14, 2023
INTERVIEW North Korean leader's sister poses dilemma for power transition Hyun In-ae, a non-resident research fellow at Ewha Womans University Institute of Unification Studies, smiles during an interview with The Korea Times at the daily's newsroom in Seoul, Tuesday. Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul This is the sixth in a series of interviews with North Korean defectors and their assimilation into South Korea―ED.Kim Yo-jong's role necessary for smooth fourth-generation leadership succession, but things will get complicated when her niece comes of age, says Hyun In-aeBy Kang Hyun-kyung Hyun In-ae, a non-resident research fellow at the Institute of Unification Studies at Ewha Womans University in Seoul, initially dismissed media speculation that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is trying to train his daughter, Ju-ae, to be his successor. But later she changed her position as she thought Ju-ae's frequent media exposure with her father, since her first public appearaJul 14, 2023By Kang Hyun-kyung
UN Security Council to hold meeting on NK missile launch A photo released by the official North Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) shows North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, left, attendig the test-firing of a Hwasong-18 solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), at an undisclosed location in North Korea, July 12. YonhapThe announcement came after the North test-fired a Hwasong-18 solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) toward the East Sea on Wednesday. It marked the North's second solid-propellant ICBM launch following its first test-firing on April 13.The missile launch came amid rising tensions after Pyongyang accused U.S. spy planes of "intruding" into the airspace over its exclusive economic zone and had warned it would take counteractions.Officials in Seoul said South Korea will attend as an interested party for the UNSC meeting, as it is closely coordinating with countries like the United States and Japan over the matter."We call for a firm and united response from the UNSC to North Korea's repeated violations of UNSC resolutions," the official said.North Korea is banned from any launch using ballistic missile tecJul 13, 2023
ANALYSIS Is North Korea perfecting solid-fuel ICBM technology? This photo released Thursday shows North Korea's new Hwasong-18 intercontinental ballistic missile being test-launched the previous day. YonhapPyongyang takes one more step toward acquiring harder-to-detect missiles: expertsBy Jung Min-hoNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un vowed to develop more efficient and reliable weapons as he supervised the second “successful” test of his regime's solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) designed to strike the U.S., according to state media on Thursday.The Hwasong-18, fired on a lofted trajectory the previous day, flew 1,001.2 kilometers at a maximum altitude of 6,648 kilometers for 74 minutes before falling into a “targeted area” in waters off its east coast, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported. The flight time was the longest ever for any North Korean missile. If launched on a standard angle, it could fly more than 15,000 kilometers ― enough to reach the U.S. homeland.Analysts told The Korea Times that Pyongyang appears to be making progress in developing missiles with built-in solid fuels, which woulJul 13, 2023By Jung Min-ho
N. Korea's Kim vows 'stronger' offensive with successful launch of solid-fuel ICBM This photo, carried by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency on July 13, shows the North firing of a Hwasong-18 solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile the previous day. YonhapNorth Korea said Thursday it test-fired a Hwasong-18 solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) the previous day, with its leader Kim Jong-un threatening to take "stronger" military offensive to deter the United States and South Korea.Guided by the North's leader, the country launched a new Hwasong-18 ICBM in a test designed to confirm the technical credibility and operational reliability of the "core weapon system," according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).It marked North Korea's second solid-propellant ICBM launch following its first test-firing on April 13."The test-fire is an essential process aimed at further developing the strategic nuclear force of the Republic and, at the same time, serves as a strong practical warning to clearly show the adversaries of the DPRK," the KCNA said, using the acronym of the North's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.The latJul 13, 2023
N. Korean accusation of airspace violation unfounded: State Dept. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller is seen speaking during a daily press briefing at the department in Washington, July 11, in this captured image. YonhapNorth Korea's claim that U.S. aircraft violated its airspace is unfounded, a state department spokesperson said Tuesday, calling on Pyongyang to stop its escalatory actions.Matthew Miller made the remark after North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's powerful sister, Kim Yo-jong, accused U.S. spy aircraft of intruding into North Korea's exclusive economic zone on multiple occasions, while threatening to shoot down U.S. aircraft in the future."As a matter of international law, the DPRK's recent statements that U.S. flights above its claimed exclusive economic zone are unlawful are unfounded as high seas freedoms of navigation and overflight apply in such areas," he said when asked about North Korea's accusation, referring to North Korea by its official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.Kim's statement, issued early Tuesday (Korea time), was a repeat of her accusation made the previous day.Sabrina Singh, deputy spokesJul 12, 2023
NK fires ICBM, raises tensions after U.S. spy plane accusations North Korea conducts an "important final-stage test" at Sohae Satellite Launching Ground in Cholsan, North Pyongan Province, for the development of a reconnaissance satellite, in this Dec. 19, 2022, file photo carried by the North's official Korean Central News Agency. Yonhap North Korea fired an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) into the East Sea on Wednesday, the South Korean military said, after the recalcitrant regime warned of military action over U.S. spy aircraft operations earlier this week.The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said it detected the launch from an area in or around Pyongyang at about 10 a.m., and the missile, fired at a lofted angle, flew around 1,000 kilometers before splashing into the water.The North's first ICBM launch in about three months came amid tensions heightened by Pyongyang's tough rhetoric against the United States, a move seen as aimed at firming up internal unity and building a rationale for provocations."The intelligence auJul 12, 2023
NK, China vow stronger ties on treaty-signing anniversary Chinese President Xi Jinping, right, shakes hands with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during their summit in Beijing, March 28, 2018. YonhapNorth Korea and China have vowed to strengthen their relationship on the occasion of the 62nd anniversary of the two nations signing a friendship treaty, Pyongyang's state media said Wednesday.China's embassy in the North held a feast to mark the anniversary Tuesday, attended by ranking officials from both sides, including China's top envoy in Pyongyang, Wang Yajun, according to the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).The two countries signed the treaty on July 11, 1961, under which they are obliged to provide military and other assistance to each other, a deal seen as the bedrock of their strong alliance for decades.Kang Yun-sok, vice chairman of the North's standing committee of the Supreme People's Assembly, highlighted the "invincibility" of their bilateral relations, citing five summits between the North's leader Kim Jong-un and Chinese President Xi Jinping."It is our steadfast stance to further develop the friendly ties between the Jul 12, 2023
North Korea says US plan to send cluster munitions to Ukraine is 'criminal' The North Korean flag flutters at the North Korea consular office in Dandong, Liaoning province, China, April 20, 2021. Reuters-YonhapNorth Korea on Tuesday condemned U.S. President Joe Biden's decision to send cluster munitions to Ukraine as a "criminal act" and demanded an immediate withdrawal of the plan.The fact that Biden had admitted it was a difficult decision showed he was aware of the disastrous consequences the use of cluster munitions, North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui said in a statement carried by the official KCNA news agency."I strongly condemn the U.S. decision to provide weapons of mass destruction to Ukraine as a dangerous criminal act as it tries to push the world into new calamity, and strongly demand that it be withdrawn immediately," she said.Reclusive North Korea has forged closer ties with the Kremlin and backed Moscow after it invaded Ukraine in February last year.The United States announced last week it will send Ukraine the controversial weapons - prohibited by more than 100 countries - as part of an $800 million security package.Ukraine said the UJul 11, 2023
China urged not to repatriate North Korean refugees Lee Jung-hoon, the new chief of the Unification Future Planning Committee, an advisory body to the unification minister, speaks during a roundtable discussion, titled “2023 Report on North Korean Human Rights,” at the Press Center in Seoul, Tuesday. NewsisRights experts urge Seoul to work with like-minded states to pressure BeijingBy Jung Min-hoThe 2019 decision by the previous administration to repatriate two fishermen back to North Korea against their will ― in a clear violation of U.N. treaties ― shocked human rights experts around the world. Yet no one raised the issue, at least not openly, in China, a nation that has been doing the exact same thing for decades.According to human rights organizations, more than 2,000 North Korean defectors will likely suffer the same fate once the remaining border restrictions that had been set up between the two countries during the COVID-19 pandemic are removed. What awaits them in North Korea is no secret ― years of incarceration in political prison camps, torture or worse.This must be stopped, said Lee Jung-hoon, the new chief of Jul 11, 2023By Jung Min-ho
