US says it will continue talks with Russia on North Korea Russian President Vladimir Putin among fellow Russians carrying portraits of their relatives, participants in World War II, during an Immortal Regiment memorial commemoration in Moscow, May 9, when Russia marked the 74th anniversary of victory over Nazi Germany in World War II. EPA-YonhapThe United States will continue to hold conversations with Russia on ways to move forward with North Korea's denuclearization, a senior U.S. official said Friday. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is due to travel to Russia next week for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on various issues including North Korea, the State Department official told reporters.The meetings follow North Korea's recent launch of short-range missiles, an apparent sign of Pyongyang's frustration with Washington over the stalled nuclear disarmament talks.The trip will also be an opportunity for Pompeo to hear about Putin's first summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Vladivostok last month.Secretary of State Mike Pompeo arrives to meet Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary YoshihideMay 11, 2019
North Korea boosts construction, tourism projects Foreign tourists dine in the dining section of a train in North Korea in this photo revealed by North Korea's tourism website DPRKorea Tour, run by the North's National Tourism Administration. DPRKorea Tour-YonhapBy Jung Da-minWhile North Korea has staged military tests involving missiles and rockets, the country's leadership seems to be focusing on bolstering its economy, especially boosting construction projects for tourism.The Minju Choson, an organ for North Korea's Cabinit and the Supreme People's Assembly (SPA) Presidium, has been publishing articles on tourist attractions and construction projects in different regions in recent days.The most frequently highlighted project is in Samjiyon County, the site of the large-scale construction of what the North's leader Kim Jong-un has described as a “socialist utopia” with new apartments, hotels, a ski resort and commercial, cultural and medical facilities, set for completion in October 2020.Encouraging the construction workers at the site, the Minju Choson published an article Thursday in which it said a “shock brigMay 10, 2019
Seoul-Washington analyzing if Pyongyang fired 'ballistic' missiles: JCS A suspected short-range missile is launched from Kusong, North Pyongan Province, in northwestern North Korea, Thursday, in this photo from the North's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). North Korea fired what were presumed to be two short-range missiles into the sea off its east coast, with leader Kim Jong-un observing the launches. KCNA-YonhapBy Jung Da-minThe two projectiles North Korea launched Thursday were short-range missiles, the Republic of Korea Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said Friday, but added it is still analyzing if they were ballistic missiles. Quoting a statement by Pentagon spokesman Lt. Col. Dave Eastburn, foreign media have reported they were ballistic missiles. But the South Korean military said the U.S. government's official stance was the same as the South Korean government's that it has yet to confirm if they were ballistic missiles, noting the alliance is still on track for thorough analysis on the specifics about the launches. North Korea's state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) Friday revealed photos of the missile launches and testing of other self-propMay 10, 2019
US envoy discusses ways for 4th inter-Korean summit U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Stephen Biegun, left, talks with South Korea's Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha during their meeting at the foreign ministry in Seoul Friday, May 10. AP-YonhapBy Kim Yoo-chulVisiting U.S. special representative for North Korea Stephen Biegun held talks with presidential National Security Office (NSO) deputy chief Kim Hyun-chong at Cheong Wa Dae, Friday, on how to resume denuclearization negotiations between Washington and Pyongyang through improving inter-Korean ties.Before his arrival at the presidential office, Biegun met with Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha at the minister's office for 25 minutes. Afterward he held a working-group meeting with foreign ministry official Lee Do-hoon to discuss details of Seoul's provision of food aid to the North, according to ministry officials.Biegun didn't respond to reporters asking questions about North Korea's launch of two “projectiles” Thursday suspected of being short-range missiles. This came five days after similar launches of multiple missiles. A scheduled joint press conference afteMay 10, 2019By Kim Yoo-chul
NK missile appears to be version of Russia's Iskander: experts The short-range missiles that North Korea fired this week are believed to be a version of Russia's Iskander ballistic missile, and their flight across the territory appears to show the reliability of the weapon, experts said. YonhapThe short-range missiles that North Korea fired this week are believed to be a version of Russia's Iskander ballistic missile, and their flight across the territory appears to show the reliability of the weapon, experts said Friday.On Thursday, North Korea fired two short-range missiles eastward from its northwestern region of Kusong, according to Seoul's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS). After flying 420 kilometers and 270 km, respectively, all the way across the North Korean territory, they splashed into the East Sea, the JCS added.While the military did not disclose the exact type of the missiles, photographs released by the North's Korean Central News Agency about its "strike drill of various long-range strike means" revealed projectiles that bear outward similarities to the ground-to-ground short-range ballistic missiles known as Russia's Iskander. They alMay 10, 2019
Biegun says door remains open for NK's return to nuclear talks U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Stephen Biegun arrives at Gimpo International Airport in Seoul, South Korea, May 8. APU.S. special envoy for North Korea Stephen Biegun was quoted as saying Friday that the door remains open for North Korea to return to nuclear negotiations, despite Pyongyang's firing of two missiles the previous day.Biegun made the remarks during his courtesy call on South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha amid fears that the North's escalatory moves could derail the allies' ongoing efforts to bring a lasting peace to the divided peninsula.Just five days after firing off multiple projectiles, the North launched the short-range missiles on Thursday, putting a damper on Seoul's moves to provide food aid to Pyongyang as a potential catalyst for the resumption of nuclear negotiations between the United States and the North."While assessing (the current point) as a very crucial juncture to continue communication and cooperation between the South and the United States, Representative Biegun said that the door for North Korea's return to negotiations remainsMay 10, 2019
North Korea says it conducted long-range strike drills under Kim's oversight North Korea's state media reported Friday that North Korea conducted long-range strike drills, a day after the state launched what were presumed to be two short-range missiles into the East Sea. YonhapNorth Korea has conducted long-range strike drills, state media reported Friday, a day after the communist state launched what were presumed to be two short-range missiles into the East Sea."At the command post, Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un learned about a plan of the strike drill of various long-range strike means and gave an order of start of the drill," the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said in English."The successful drill of deployment and strike designed to inspect the ability of rapid reaction of the defense units... showed the might of the units which were fully prepared to proficiently carry out any operation and combat," it added.He also set forth "important tasks for further increasing the strike ability of the defense units," the KCNA said. It said the drills were conducted at "defence units of the Korean People's Army (KPA) in the forefront area and on the western front."May 10, 2019
US seizes North Korean ship amid tense moment in relations An undated image provided in a U.S. Department of Justice complaint for forfeiture released May 9 shows the North Korean vessel Wise Honest. ReutersThe U.S. said Thursday that it has seized a North Korean cargo ship that was used to violate international sanctions, a first-of-its kind enforcement action that comes amid a tense moment in relations between the two countries. The ``Wise Honest,'' North Korea's second largest cargo ship, was detained in April 2018 as it traveled toward Indonesia. It's now in the process of being moved to American Samoa, Justice Department officials said. Officials made the announcement hours after North Korea fired two suspected short-range missiles toward the sea, the second weapons launch in five days and a possible signal that stalled talks over its nuclear weapons program are in trouble. The public disclosure that the vessel is now in U.S. custody may further inflame tensions, though U.S. officials said the timing of their complaint was not a response to the missile launch. Justice Department lawyers laid out the case for confiscating the ship in a cMay 10, 2019
North Korea fires two projectiles speculated to be missiles: ROK JCS This May 4 file photo from North Korea's state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) shows a rocket fired from a large-caliber long-range multiple rocket launcher. KCNA-YonhapBy Jung Da-minNorth Korea launched two suspected missiles Thursday, five days after firing off multiple “projectiles” including its new tactical guided weapon, widely agreed by experts to be a short range ballistic missile (SRBM). The launches took place at 4:29 p.m. and 4: 49 p.m., respectively, from around Kusong in North Pyongan Province and landed in the seas off its east coast, according to the Republic of Korea Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS). The JCS said one flew about 270 kilometers and the other, 420 kilometers, both at an altitude of around 50 kilometers. Cheong Wa Dae expressed concern over the launches, saying they did not help ease military tension on the peninsula.President Moon Jae-in said they would be a violation of United Nations sanctions if the projectiles were identified as ballistic missiles ― even short-range ones ― in a special interview with public broadcaster KBS celebrating thMay 9, 2019
Tested North Korean projectiles may have included ballistic missile This May 4 file photo from North Korea's state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) shows a test of its military's "new tactical guided weapon." Experts say it appears to be a modified version of a Russian Iskander short-range ballistic missile (SRBM). KCNA-YonhapBy Jung Da-minWhile the government has remained cautious to confirm whether a missile was fired in North Korea's launch of multiple projectiles last week, experts have widely agreed that it was the North's first missile launch since November 2017.Multiple analyses based on the photos of projectiles released by the North's state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) show North Korea launched what appears to be a “new missile” that bears outward similarities to a Russian Iskander short range ballistic missile (SRBM) which has a range of about 280 kilometers when carrying a 450-500 kilogram warhead.“Photographs of the missile look remarkably like those of a Russian-produced Iskander, suggesting that North Korea imported the missile either directly from Moscow, or through a third party,” said a report reMay 9, 2019
