Moon gov't losing ground in NK-US nuke talks By Kang Seung-wooPresident Moon Jae-in is seeing his role as a facilitator in the denuclearization talks between the United States and North Korea diminishing as Pyongyang has made it clear that there is no room for his government to meddle.Kim Kye-gwanThis may deal a hard blow to the South Korean leader, given that the cold shoulder came just days after he proposed various inter-Korean projects to use as a stepping stone to revive the stalled dialogue, and Cheong Wa Dae touted its delivery of the U.S. president's birthday message to the North Korean leader, Friday.“South Korea, not a member of the U.S. clan, went so frivolous as to convey the greetings from the U.S. president. It seems it still has lingering hope for playing the role of mediator in the DPRK-U.S. relations,” Kim Kye-gwan, a former North Korean chief nuclear envoy and currently a foreign ministry adviser, said in a statement released by the (North) Korean Central News Agency, Saturday. The DPRK is the official name of the North, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.“It is somehow presumptuous foJan 12, 2020By Kang Seung-woo
UN sanctions panel approves humanitarian aid activities for two agencies This picture taken on July 29, 2019 shows life jackets stored on the deck of the Ocean Viking, which conducts search and rescue activities in the central Mediterranean for French NGO SOS-Mediterranean and Doctors Without Borders, as it docks in Marseille. AFP-YonhapThe U.N. Security Council committee on sanctions against North Korea has approved applications by two aid agencies to commence humanitarian activities in the reclusive state, its website showed Saturday, in the first such approval this yearOn Tuesday, the committee gave the green light to Doctors Without Borders and the Swiss Humanitarian Aid Unit that have applied to take items to the North that are required for emergency medical support and repairs to a drinking water supply system, respectively.Under the sanctions exemptions that will remain valid for six months, Doctors Without Borders can take 65 items, including medical microscopes, ambulances and tuberculosis diagnosis kits, to the North.Detailed items the Swiss Humanitarian Aid Unit are allowed to bring were not made public. (Yonhap)Jan 11, 2020
US downplays link between North Korean provocation and Iran North Korea's Korean Central News Agency released this photo of a submarine-launched ballistic missile, the Pukkuksong-3, Oct. 3, 2019. YonhapU.S. Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy said Friday that he recognized there was a risk of North Korea taking provocative action in light of tensions between the United States and Iran, but denied there was a direct correlation. At an event at the Brookings Institution, McCarthy was asked about the possibility of North Korea launching a provocation as the U.S. military focuses its operations on threats from Iran."There's always a risk with that. I don't see a direct correlation right now," he said without elaborating.Since late last year, North Korea has suggested it could test an intercontinental ballistic missile to protest stalled denuclearization negotiations with the U.S.In a New Year's message, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un threatened to take "shocking actual action" and soon reveal a "new strategic weapon."Asked about the readiness of American troops stationed in South Korea following the scaling back of several allied exercises in support oJan 11, 2020
PHOTOS N. Korea's Yangdok spa resort begins operations An aerial view of Yangdok spa report in North Korea's Pyongan Province. Captured from Korea Central TVNorth Korea began operations of a new spa resort in the country's central region Friday, according to state media, as Pyongyang pushes to attract more foreign tourists in the face of global sanctions crippling its economy.The construction of the Yangdok spa resort in the North's South Pyongan Province was completed last month, which the North's leader Kim Jong-un described as a demonstration of "steady development and prosperity" achieved by the country despite "the worst adversity." "Visitors will receive various services that combine both treatment and relaxation ... at the Yangdok Hot Spring Cultural Recreation Center," the North's state radio said the previous day. Captured from Korea Central TVCaptured from Korea Central TVKim visited the spa resort multiple times last year, highlighting his strong determination to build a competitive tourism industry. The radio station also said Masikryong Ski Resort, located on the outskirts of the eastern city of Wonsan, began receiving touriJan 10, 2020
Fewer North Koreans defect to South By Lee Suh-yoonThe number of North Korean defections to South Korea continues to decrease due to rising broker fees and higher risk at the North Korea-China border, according to data from the Ministry of Unification Thursday.According to the data, 771 North Korean defectors entered the country between January and September last year, compared to 881 in the same period in 2017. Though the figures for the fourth quarter are not out yet, it is likely the number of defections will not surpass 1,000 in 2019, recording the lowest figure since the ministry started collecting quarterly data in 2008. The turning point was 2012, after incumbent North Korean leader Kim Jong-un came to power following his father's death. Between 2006 and 2011, 2000 to 2900 North Korean defectors were entering the country every year. That figure dropped to 1,502 in 2012. It has been slowly declining since. Reports attribute the drop to stronger security at North Korean borders with China, the most common escape route.According to Principal Lee Hung-Hoon of Yeomyung School, those who have just defected from North Jan 9, 2020
Cambodia shuts down North Korean businesses to comply with UN sanctions A North Korean restaurant at Siem Reap in Cambodia in December 2018. Cambodia's government said it has shut down all businesses run by North Koreans in the country. Korea Times fileBy Jung Min-hoThe Cambodian government has shut down all businesses operated by North Koreans in the country to comply with United Nations sanctions.The Khmer Times, a newspaper based in Phnom Penh, reported Wednesday that authorities closed four restaurants in the capital and two in Siem Reap.The government also closed Angkor Panorama Museum near the Angkor Wat temple in Siem Reap. The museum, built and paid for by North Korea as a sign of friendship between the two states, was run by North Koreans since opening in 2015.On Dec. 22, 2017, the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) issued sanctions that require member states to repatriate North Korean nationals earning income abroad within 24 months over Pyongyang's nuclear and missile programs.To comply with the sanctions, Cambodia's Tourism Ministry spokesman Top Sopheak said all North Korean restaurants were closed by Dec. 22, 2019.“The ministry haJan 9, 2020By Jung Min-ho
US flies surveillance aircraft to monitor N. Korea amid tensions The United States flew surveillance aircraft over the Korean Peninsula, an aviation tracker said, Monday, amid simmering tensions over possible provocative acts by North Korea after it warned of a "new strategic weapon."An RC-135W Rivet Joint of the U.S. Air Force carried out operations over South Korea at 31,000 feet, Aircraft Spots tweeted. This type of aircraft was last spotted over the peninsula last Wednesday, according to the aviation tracker. Several other surveillance aircraft, such as the EP-3E and the RC-135S, have conducted operations here often in recent weeks. The latest flight comes amid growing concerns over provocative acts by the North ahead of the birthday of its leader Kim Jong-un that falls on Wednesday. Wrapping up a rare four-day party plenum last week, Pyongyang said it no longer feels bound by the self-imposed moratorium on nuclear and long-range missile tests, and warned that the world would witness a new strategic weapon "in the near future" amid stalled denuclearization talks with the U.S. Experts say the North's "strategic weapon" may mean an interconJan 6, 2020
North Korean provocation looming after Soleimani killing North Koreans march at Kim Il-sung Square in Pyongyang, Sunday, in this photo released by North Korea's state-run Korean Central News Agency. / YonhapBy Kang Seung-wooIn the wake of the drone-led killing of Iranian military commander Qassem Soleimani, it remains to be seen how the airstrike will affect North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's actions.Some believe Pyongyang will use the assassination to justify its nuclear program as a necessary form of defense and take its own path toward a nuclear power. But there is also speculation that the North Korean leader may disappear from the public eye ― like his predecessors ― out of fear of a possible U.S. attempt to assassinate him. On Monday, three days after the death of the Iranian general in Iraq, the North's official media outlets carried their first reports on the incident, hinting that the country may chart a new course. “There is nothing to hesitate about in the face of growing hostile acts, nuclear threats and blackmail,” the Rodong Sinmun, the mouthpiece newspaper of the ruling Workers' Party, said in an article. “WJan 6, 2020By Kang Seung-woo
NK newspaper calls for 'impregnable' military power against threats North Korea's official newspaper called Monday for building up "impregnable" military power, saying the country should expect nothing from the United States and therefore go its own way without hesitation.North Korea's media outlets have called for "self-reliance" and "self-defense" almost daily since leader Kim Jong-un threatened to showcase a "new strategic weapon" at a recent key ruling party meeting."There is nothing to expect and hesitate about in the face of growing hostile acts, nuclear threats and blackmail," the Rodong Sinmun, the official newspaper of the North's ruling party, said in an article. "(We) should continue to strengthen our impregnable military power quantitatively so as to make no one ever think about using armed forces against us until the U.S. withdraws its hostile policy," the paper added. The paper said that North Korea's sovereignty and security could be infringed upon if Pyongyang does not continue to strengthen its self-defense capabilities while just waiting for the lifting of sanctions imposed against it.North Korea has hoped that progress in denuclearJan 6, 2020
N. Korea says Middle East could become 'graveyard' for US North Korean leader Kim Jong Un gestures during a meeting of the Central Committee of the Worker's Party in Pyongyang, in this photo released on April 10, 2019, by the Korean Central News Agency. ReutersNorth Korea's official news agency carried its first report Monday on the recent killing of a top Iranian general by the United States, while a propaganda media outlet said a day earlier that the Middle East could become a "graveyard" for the U.S.The Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported that the Iranian general, Qassim Suleimani, was killed in a U.S. missile attack at an airfield in Bagdad early Friday morning and that China and Russia condemned the attack as a violation of the U.N. Charter."China and Russia emphasized that they not only object to abuse of military power in international relations but also cannot tolerate adventurous military acts," KCNA said, referring to a telephone conversation between Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov on Saturday."They expressed concerns over regional situations being worsened by the U.S.'s illegal acJan 6, 2020
