Moon, Trump agree on need to maintain dialogue momentum over North Korea President Moon Jae-in speaks on a phone call with U.S. President Donald Trump from Cheong Wa Dae, Saturday. Courtesy of Cheong Wa DaePresident Moon Jae-in and President Donald Trump agreed Saturday that it was necessary to maintain dialogue momentum between Washington and Pyongyang, according to Cheong Wa Dae, amid growing worries about the future of Moon's Korea Peace Process. During a half-hour phone conversation, they also agreed that the current situation on the Korean Peninsula is "severe" and "dialogue momentum should be maintained to achieve prompt results from denuclearization negotiations," presidential spokeswoman Ko Min-jung said.Moon and Trump had "in-depth consultations" on ways to move forward the peace process and agreed to call each other whenever it was needed, Ko added. Earlier this week, North Korea resumed its verbal attacks against Trump in response to his apparent warning message made during his trip to Britain for a NATO summit.Trump did not rule out the possibility of using military force against the regime, again calling its leader Kim Jong-un "Rocket Man."TDec 7, 2019
US has not yet decided whether to hold UN meeting on North Korea rights abuses U.S. President Donald Trump speaks with U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Kelly Craft during a luncheon with the permanent representatives of the United Nations Security Council in the Cabinet Room of the White House in Washington, DC, Dec. 5. EPAThe United States is still undecided on whether to agree to the holding of a United Nations Security Council meeting, Tuesday, to discuss human rights abuses in North Korea. This message was delivered by U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Kelly Craft, even as the prospect of such a meeting has angered Pyongyang. At least eight members of the 15-member council support the request for the meeting and the final decision rests with the United States, diplomats said. A minimum of nine countries need to support the move in order to defeat any bid to block it. Between 2014 and 2017, China failed to stop the annual discussionSuch a meeting would come at a time of increasing tension between Washington and Pyongyang as the end of the year approaches which North Korea's leader Kim Jong-un set as a deadline for the U.S. to show more flexibility in talks Washington hDec 7, 2019
North Korea threatens to resume calling Trump 'dotard' In this June 30, 2019, file photo, U.S. President Donald Trump, left, meets with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un at the North Korean side of the border at the village of Panmunjom in Demilitarized Zone. North Korea threatened Thursday to resume insults of Trump and consider him a "dotard" if he keeps using provocative language. APNorth Korea threatened Thursday to resume insults of U.S. President Donald Trump and consider him a ``dotard'' if he keeps using provocative language, such as referring to its leader as ``rocket man.''Choe Son Hui, the first vice foreign minister, issued the warning via state media days after Trump spoke of possible military action toward the North and revived his ``rocket man'' nickname for North Korean ruler Kim Jong Un.The comments came as prospects dim for a resumption of nuclear diplomacy between the two countries. In recent months, North Korea has hinted at lifting its moratorium on nuclear and long-range missile tests if the Trump administration fails to make substantial concessions in nuclear diplomacy before the end of the year.Choe said Trump's remDec 6, 2019
Destination Pyongyang: 50-year search for father after North Korean hijack In a photo taken on Nov. 10, Hwang In-cheol shows a photo of his father, in Seoul. AFPIn a photo taken on Nov. 10, Hwang In-cheol sits by a street in Seoul. AFPHalf a century ago a North Korean agent hijacked the flight carrying Hwang In-cheol's father. Pyongyang never returned him, and the search has defined his son's life.Hwang was just two when he last saw his father and knows him only through photographs, but he has spent much of his adult life campaigning for him.A producer for South Korean broadcaster MBC, Hwang Won was starting a business trip on a domestic Korean Air flight from Gangneung to Seoul's Gimpo airport on December 11, 1969. Minutes after takeoff North Korean agent Cho Chang Hee slipped into the cockpit and diverted the plane to Pyongyang at gunpoint.Survivors say three North Korean fighter jets escorted it in to land, and that Cho was met by army officers and driven away. The 50 passengers and crew were blindfolded with handkerchiefs before they were taken off the plane.The incident sparked international outcry, prompting a UN resolution denouncing the hijacking, aDec 5, 2019
North Korea warns US against meeting on its human rights In a photo taken on September 9, 2019, a child drives a miniature electric toy car across Kim Il Sung square in Pyongyang. AFPNorth Korea warned Wednesday that tensions on the Korean peninsula will increase and the situation ``take a turn for the worse again'' if the United States goes ahead with a U.N. Security Council meeting on the country's human rights situation.North Korea's U.N. ambassador, Kim Song, said in a letter to the 14 other council members obtained by The Associated Press that Pyongyang considers any council meeting on its human rights ``another serious provocation'' resulting from the United States' ``hostile policy'' and ``will respond strongly to the last.''``The United States and those countries on board shall bear full responsibility,'' he warned.The United States holds the Security Council presidency this month and diplomats said the Trump administration is planning a meeting on North Korea's human rights situation, probably on Dec. 10. The U.S. Mission did not respond to an email asking about the meeting.The council discussed the rights situation in North KoreaDec 5, 2019
Kim Jong-un says 'Christmas gift' is up to US North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, center, cuts the tape during his attendance for the opening event marking the completion of the second-phase of a village modernization project in Samjiyon County, the city near Mount Peaktu, Dec.2, in this photo released by the country's state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) the following day. KCNA-YonhapNorth Korean state media says 'Christmas gift' is up to US By Jung Da-min North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's appearance in footage released recently by his country's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) have left watchers wondering about his latest wardrobe change. Some North Korea watchers said Kim seems to be building up his image as a young and new leader. Thoughts were that Kim wants to be recognized as the leader of a normal country.In one of his recent appearances he observed the test-firing of a super-large multiple-launch rocket system, Nov. 28, around Yonpo, South Hamgyong Province, where he wore a black leather trench coat, double-breasted with a belt around the waist. He wore the same coat during his attendance for the opening eventDec 3, 2019
Seoul would maintain dovish stance toward NK Unification Minister Kim Yeon-chul speaks during an open forum event with reporters at the Press Center in central Seoul, Monday. / Yonhap By Jhoo Dong-chan, Kim Yoo-chulIn response to North Korea's repeated threats to demolish South Korea-built structures and facilities at its Mount Geumgang resort, Seoul offered to “repair” some of the older facilities a unification ministry official said Tuesday. However, the North apparently rejected the proposal.“The government suggested a plan to repair some of the facilities and structures on Mount Geumgang; but North Korea is still demanding the complete removal of all South Korean-invested assets at the resort,” the official told reporters in a briefing. He added that there have been no developments regarding a separate proposal for face-to-face talks about the issue. “North Korea is insisting to move forward on the matter through relevant procedures via the exchange of documents. Inter-Korean relations are not in a good sDec 2, 2019By Jhoo Dong-chan
North Korea's missile capability: how far it has come and its implications in denuclearization talks By Jung Da-min North Korea's recent test of its super-large multiple rocket launcher has not only proved the weapon system's improved “volley-firing” capabilities but also showed that North Korea's weapons development programs have proceeded steadily for the past two years, experts said Monday. On Nov. 28, North Korea conducted the test-firing of the super-large multiple launch rocket system for the fourth time this year following Aug. 24, Sept. 10 and Oct. 31 launches. All four tests involved two rockets fired from the weapon system, with the North succeeding to narrow down the firing interval from 17 minutes on Aug. 24 and 3 minutes on Oct. 31 to 30 seconds on Nov. 28. The Sept. 10 test was a failure due to being conducted in an open field around Kaechon, South Pyongan Province, while the other three tests took place on concrete surfaces at military airfields. The latest Nov. 28 weapon test was conducted from around the Yonpo Airfield in South Hamgyong Province. Overall, the weapon system proved its improved volley firing capabilities but still can't work properly if deDec 2, 2019
Gov't under fire for standing idle over deportation of NK defectors in Vietnam getty imagesbankBy Jhoo Dong-chanThe government is facing mounting criticism for doing nothing about 10 North Korean defectors who were apprehended in Vietnam and immediately deported to China. A human rights group said it had asked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, through the local Korean embassy, for help but had received no assistance.Peter Jung, a Christian pastor who is active in helping North Koreans escape from the North to begin a new life in South Korea, said during a telephone interview with the Voice of America that the 10, including one teenager and two men in their 20s, were stopped in the border area of Vietnam last month.He said the defectors are now missing, after Vietnamese border guards handed them over to their Chinese counterparts.Jung claimed he asked the Korean embassy for help, but officials there did nothing.“One of these defectors who had a cell phone called the Korean embassy in Vietnam,” he said.“The Korean officials there said they should wait. They never visited or returned the phone call. For six days, the Korean authorities did nothingDec 1, 2019By Jhoo Dong-chan
North Korean envoy to Czech returns home: spy agency Kim Pyong-il, right, with his children in Narew, Poland, in May 2007 where he was the North Korean Ambassador to the country. YonhapKim Pyong-il, North Korea's top envoy to the Czech Republic, has returned to Pyongyang, intelligence sources said Saturday. Kim, a younger half-brother of late North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, recently traveled back to North Korea, National Intelligence Service Director Suh Hoon was quoted as saying by lawmakers on the parliamentary intelligence committee.The NIS said earlier this month that Kim had been replaced and was expected to return to Pyongyang soon. Born in 1954, Kim Pyong-il graduated from Kim Il-sung University, the North's top university, before being appointed as the North's top envoy to Hungary in 1988. He served as Pyongyang's top envoy to Poland for 17 years until 2014 and assumed the position in Prague in January 2015. (Yonhap)Nov 30, 2019
