Stronger ROK-US alliance to provide more options in handling NK: minister nominee Unification minister nominee Kwon Young-se, right, shakes hands with U.S. special envoy for North Korea Sung Kim during the latter's visit to Kwon's office in Jongno District, Seoul, Thursday. Courtesy of Ministry of UnificationUnification minister nominee reacts negatively about resumption of Mount Geumgang tourism By Nam Hyun-wooUnification minister nominee Kwon Young-se and U.S. special envoy for North Korea Sung Kim shared the common view that stronger Seoul-Washington relations will provide “room” for South Korea to resolve aggravating relations with the North. According to the ministry, Kwon and Kim had a meeting on Thursday and shared their opinions on the Yoon Suk-yeol administration's North Korea policies.“There has been a common understanding between me and Kim that South Korea can secure greater room in addressing North Korea's denuclearization or other issues when the relations between Seoul and Washington become stronger,” Kwon told reporters after the meeting. “We also shared common views that the unification ministry can cooperate with othApr 21, 2022By Nam Hyun-woo
US envoy for North Korea meets with key Yoon officials Foreign Minister nominee Park Jin, left, talks with U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Sung Kim during their meeting at Park's temporary office in Seoul, April 20. Yonhap U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Sung Kim met with key members of President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol's foreign policy team Thursday to coordinate on North Korea policy, officials said.Kim, who is on a five-day visit to the country, had a breakfast meeting with Kim Sung-han, chief of the Yoon transition team's foreign policy subcommittee, followed by a separate meeting with unification minister nominee Kwon Young-se.During the meetings, the two sides are likely to have discussed the allies' response to North Korean threats amid concern the communist regime could stage major provocations, such as a nuclear weapons or intercontinental ballistic missile test, ahead of Yoon's inauguration next month.Won Il-hee, a transition team spokesperson, confirmed the meetings took place but declinedApr 21, 2022
North Korea urges effort to attain economic goals 'at all costs' during Cabinet meeting North Korea holds an expanded plenary meeting of its Cabinet via video link, April 20. Yonhap North Korea held a Cabinet meeting to assess its economic performance for the first three months of the year and urged officials to make utmost efforts to achieve their goals "at all costs," state media reported Thursday.At the expanded plenary meeting of the Cabinet held via video link the previous day, Vice Premier Pak Jong-gun made a report analyzing the country's economic weaknesses and flaws that dragged down the country's performance for the first quarter, according to the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).During the session, Pak called on officials to "wage a stronger battle against undesirable phenomena, including formalism and self-protectionism, in the process of implementing economic policies." "The meeting stressed that all officials should wage a bold battle to implement the national economic plan in the first half of the year at all costs, keeping in Apr 21, 2022
North Korean propaganda organs slam ongoing South Korea-US military drills A military helicopter flies over U.S. Army Garrison Humphreys in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, April 18, during joint exercises with South Korea. Yonhap North Korean propaganda organs slammed the annual combined military exercises between South Korea and the United States, Thursday, labeling them as preparation for war, while the Kim Jong-un regime has made no formal response yet.Earlier this week, South Korea and the United States kicked off their combined springtime military training that does not include any troop maneuvers. It is to run through next Thursday."This is a reckless, dangerous play with fires of war and a clear exercise for the invasion of the North, driving the Korean Peninsula's political situation that is already unstable to an extreme," Uriminzokkiri, a North Korean propaganda outlet, said in a commentary posted on its website.It added that inter-Korean relations and the political situation on the peninsula have been thrown into "the worst stateApr 21, 2022
Satellite image suggests massive military parade in North Korea imminent North Korea appears to be making final-stage preparations for a military parade involving a large number of troops on a plaza at Mirim Airfield in Pyongyang, April 19, in this satellite image. AFP-Yonhap North Korea appears to be making final-stage preparations for a military parade involving a large number of troops ahead of another key anniversary next week, according to satellite imagery reported by U.S. news outlets Wednesday.More than 12,000 troops were seen gathering on a plaza at Mirim Airfield in Pyongyang earlier this week, Radio Free Asia (RFA) said. It cited commercial satellite imagery provided by Planet Labs.The area is known as the secretive North's traditional parade training venue with a replica of Kim Il Sung Square, where such an event highlighted by goose-stepping soldiers and a show of major weapon systems is actually staged. The satellite imagery was taken Sunday, a week before the North celebrates the 90th founding anniversary of the North KoreApr 20, 2022
North Korea likely to resume show of force to commemorate multiple anniversaries This photo, released Sunday, by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency, shows the test-firing of what it claims to have been a new tactical guided weapon. EPA-YonhapBy Kang Seung-wooThere was no massive military parade nor a nuclear test when North Korea celebrated its late founder's birth anniversary, Saturday. However, Pyongyang's military show of force remains a possibility as the country is set to mark 2022 as a “revolutionary year of celebrations,” with its first step likely to be a demonstration of its military hardware later this month, according to diplomatic observers, Tuesday. North Korea is set to celebrate multiple anniversaries this year. This year is the 10th anniversary of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's reign in power, while the reclusive nation will also be commemorating the 110th and 80th birthday anniversaries of Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il, the current dictator's grandfather and father, respectively. In addition, the country is scheduled to mark the 90th anniversary of the founding of the Korean People's Revolutionary Army, the predecessorApr 19, 2022By Kang Seung-woo
US envoy for North Korea to meet with incoming gov't officials U.S. Special Representative for North Korea, Sung Kim, left, speaks as South Korea's Special Representative for Korean Peninsula Peace and Security Affairs Noh Kyu-duk looks on during a briefing at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' office in Seoul, April 18. AP-Yonhap U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Sung Kim is expected to hold a series of meetings with members of the incoming Yoon Suk-yeol government in Seoul this week, officials said Tuesday.Kim has been in the country since Monday to coordinate the allies' North Korea policy amid concern Pyongyang could stage major provocations, such as a nuclear weapon or intercontinental ballistic missile test, ahead of Yoon's inauguration next month.On Wednesday, Kim will meet with foreign minister nominee Park Jin, while he is expected to meet with unification minister nominee Kwon Young-se, Thursday, according to the officials.During his five-day stay, Kim is also likely to meet with Kim Sung-han, a member of YoonApr 19, 2022
North Korea urges tighter antivirus efforts against prolonged COVID-19 pandemic People wearing face masks watch a dancing party of young people and students in celebration of the 110th anniversary of the birth of North Korea's late founder Kim Il-sung at Kim Il-sung Square in Pyongyang, April 15. AP-Yonhap North Korea reiterated a call to its people, Monday, to step up efforts to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in a message carried by a state-controlled main newspaper, stressing the need for officials to not let their guard down.This came on the day when South Korea removed all social distancing measures with the exception of a mask mandate, in a major move to return to pre-pandemic normalcy.The Rodong Sinmun, an organ of the Workers' Party of Korea, urged officials and party members to stay wary of the pandemic that is "getting worse day by day" and to follow antivirus measures more thoroughly."Officials should always ask their respective region or groups whether or not they feel even the slightest sense of laxity, or if there is any room for nApr 18, 2022
US nuclear envoy arrives in Seoul for talks on North Korea Sung Kim, the U.S. special representative for North Korea / YonhapThe U.S. special representative for North Korea arrived in Seoul, Monday, for talks with his South Korean counterpart and other officials on the Kim Jong-un regime's recent missile launches and the possibility of additional provocations.Ambassador Sung Kim began a five-day trip here amid heightened tensions following the North's test of a purported tactical guided weapon over the weekend and of an intercontinental ballistic missile launch (ICBM) last month."It's great to be back in Seoul to continue our close coordination on DPRK developments," Kim told reporters upon arrival. DPRK stands for the North's official name, Democratic People's Republic of Korea.Later in the day, Kim is set to meet with Seoul's chief nuclear envoy, Noh Kyu-duk, at the foreign ministry.The two sides will probably exchange their views on the North's weapons test Saturday and the overall security condition on the Korean Peninsula.Kim is also expected to meet officials from President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol's transition team to coordinate North KoreApr 18, 2022
Cheong Wa Dae to hold NSC meeting after North Korea's latest missile test Director of national security at the presidential office Suh Hoon / Yonhap Cheong Wa Dae was set to convene a session of the presidential National Security Council (NSC), Sunday to discuss North Korea's weekend launch of two missiles.Suh Hoon, director of national security at the presidential office, plans to preside over the NSC session after the North's state media reported the country had test-fired a new tactical guided weapon to improve the efficiency of tactical nuclear operations.South Korea's military said that it had detected the North's launch of two missiles into the East Sea at 6 p.m. Saturday. They flew 110 kilometers at an apogee of around 25 km and a top speed of Mach 4, it added.Following a briefing on the launch, President Moon Jae-in directed the military to exhaustively check North Korean military movements and thoroughly manage the security situation, his aides said.The previous day, Suh Choo-suk, first deputy director of Cheong Wa Dae's NationalApr 17, 2022
