South Korea, US nuclear envoys meet ahead of inter-Korean summit A U.S. top nuclear envoy met with his South Korean counterpart Saturday to discuss a war-ending declaration and North Korea's denuclearization ahead of next week's inter-Korean summit.Stephen Biegun arrived in Seoul earlier in the day, following trips to Beijing and Tokyo, where he met with his counterparts. He is to meet key officials in South Korea during his two-day stay here.It was his second trip to Seoul in less than a week.Biegun held a meeting with Lee Do-hoon, South Korea's top nuclear envoy, during which the U.S. negotiator briefed Lee on the outcome of his trip to China and Japan, according to diplomatic sources.They are also known to have consulted on practical ways to realize denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, a key agenda item for the inter-Korean summit that will be held in Pyongyang from Tuesday to Thursday.The two officials are said to have focused on discussing denuclearization steps that the North should take and the declaration of an end to the 1950-53 Korean War.Denuclearization talks between the U.S. and North Korea have been stalled since their leaders' Sep 16, 2018
S. Korea checks preparations for next week's inter-Korean summit The presidential office Cheong Wa Dae held a meeting Saturday to assess the preparations for next week's inter-Korean summit, with an advance team expected to head to Pyongyang the following day.President Moon Jae-in will visit Pyongyang from Tuesday to Thursday for his third summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un to discuss the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and ways to improve inter-Korean relations. They held summits in April and May.Moon's chief of staff Im Jong-seok presided over the meeting, which focused on the outcome of working-level inter-Korean talks that were held at the border village of Panmunjom Friday to fine-tune details of security, protocol and press coverage.Moon will fly to North Korea on a direct western flight route. Major summit events, including the two leaders' first meeting, will be broadcast live. The total number of South Koreans visiting Pyongyang is likely to slightly top 200.An advance team to be led by Suh Ho, a presidential secretary on unification, will leave for Pyongyang early Sunday via a western land route.Around 100 members, inclSep 16, 2018
U.S. nuke envoy visits Seoul ahead of inter-Korean summit Stephen Biegun, U.S. Special Representative for North Korea, arrives at Incheon International Airport on Monday. Korea Times fileA U.S. top nuclear envoy visited South Korea on Saturday, days before the leaders of the two Koreas are set to hold a summit next week.Stephen Biegun arrived in Seoul, following his trips to Beijing and Tokyo where he met with his counterparts. He is to meet key officials in South Korea during his two-day stay here. This marks his second trip to Seoul in less than a week.The former Ford Motor Co. executive made his first trip to Seoul early this week since his appointment during which he paid a courtesy call on President Moon Jae-in and held meetings with officials, including Unification Minster Cho Myoung-gyon and Seoul's top nuclear envoy Lee Do-hoon.He came to Seoul again days before Moon and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un are to meet in Pyongyang for their third summit, which is expected to focus mostly on denuclearization and inter-Korean relations.Biegun earlier said that a "tremendous opportunity" has been created by the summits among the leaders ofSep 15, 2018
US calls UN meeting on undermining North Korea sanctions U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley speaks to members of the media after chairing a meeting of the U.N. Security Council on maintenance of international peace and security at U.N. headquarters in New York, Monday. REUTERS-Yonhap.The United States has called an urgent meeting of the U.N. Security Council for Monday in response to what it says are efforts by some countries ``to undermine and obstruct'' sanctions against North Korea.The U.S. Mission announced Friday evening that the meeting will ``discuss the implementation and enforcement of U.N. sanctions on North Korea.''The mission didn't name any countries, but U.S. Ambassador Nikki Haley accused Russia on Thursday of pressuring an independent panel of U.N. experts to alter a report on North Korea sanctions that included alleged violations ``implicating Russian actors.''Haley said the panel should release the original report, which cited ``a massive increase in illicit ship-to-ship transfers of petroleum products'' for North Korea in violation of U.N. sanctions. It said some products allegedly were off-loaded from RusSep 15, 2018
N. Korea resumes flights to China's Dalian amid improving bilateral ties North Korean airplane lands at Dalian Airport this past May in this file photo. Kyodo-YonhapNorth Korea has resumed flights between Pyongyang and the Chinese city of Dalian after many years of being suspended, amid signs of improving ties between the allies.According to local tourism agencies, an Air Koryo passenger plane, the North's flag carrier, landed at the airport in Dalian on Thursday and returned to Pyongyang with nearly 70 people on board.This marked the first North Korean airplane that had flown between the two cities since November 2006. There will be such flights every Thursday and Sunday.The resumption of the Pyongyang-Dalian flights may reflect improving bilateral ties between North Korea and China after chilled relations over the North's nuclear and missile provocations.Chinese President Xi Jinping recently sent Li Zhanshu, Beijing's third-ranking official, as his special envoy to Pyongyang on the occasion of the North's 70th founding anniversary.Li was seated next to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during the military parade staged this past Sunday. The North also hosSep 15, 2018
Pompeo: U.S. as committed as ever to U.N. sanctions on N. Korea U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo speaks during a press conference at the White House this past June in this file photo. Reuters-YonhapThe United States remains committed to enforcing United Nations sanctions on North Korea to achieve the full dismantlement of Pyongyang's nuclear weapons program, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Friday.North Korea is under a wide array of U.N. and U.S. sanctions for its nuclear and ballistic missile programs, and Pyongyang has sought to win sanctions relief as part of a denuclearization deal with Washington.Pompeo reiterated the U.S. stand that it will not back down from sanctions before North Korea takes credible steps toward denuclearization."The United States is as committed as ever to continuing to enforce those U.N. Security Council resolutions," he said during a press conference at the State Department. "We believe they are central to President Trump's efforts to convince Chairman Kim that full, final denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula is necessary."North Korean leader Kim Jong-un committed to work toward the "complete denuclearSep 15, 2018
UNC OKs S. Koreans' border crossing for infra connection Gen. Vincent K. Brooks, commander of United Nations Command and the U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) at an event in Seoul on Wednesday / YonhapBy Park Ji-wonThe U.S.-led United Nations Command (UNC) authorized South Korea vehicles and personnel to cross the Military Demarcation Line (MDL) to support construction of communication infrastructure that will be used in inter-Korean business projects. “Gen. Vincent K. Brooks, Commander of United Nations Command, authorized vehicles and personnel from the Republic of Korea to cross the Military Demarcation Line today in the eastern transportation corridor to support construction of communication infrastructure to be used between the Republic of Korea and North Korea,” said the UNC press release, Thursday.“The approval allows more material than what is needed to repair communication lines, and will result in the construction of a communication building.”The decisions came amid a reconciliatory mood ahead of the third inter-Korean talks on Sept. 18-20 where the leaders of the two Koreas will discuss specifics of the North's deSep 14, 2018By Park Ji-won
North Korea's new UN envoy to take office next week By Jung Da-minKim Song. Cropped from Yonhap file photo.North Korea's new ambassador to the United Nations in New York will take office next week, the country's state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported on Thursday.It would mark the end of nearly a two-month vacancy following the end of the previous ambassador's term.Pyongyang reportedly named Kim Song as its U.N. representative in May, but his inauguration was delayed because Washington as reluctant to issue a visa. So the clearance of the issue is widely seen as U.S. commitment to speed the deadlocked denuclearization talks with North Korean.Kim was a counselor at the North's mission in New York in 2013-2014. His term is four years.Kim is a son of Kim Yong-sun who served as a secretary of North Korea's ruling Workers' Party's central committee overseeing South Korean affairs.He joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs after graduating from Pyongyang University of International Affairs.Sep 14, 2018
PHOTOS New North Korean posters show Kim Jong-un's priorities North Korea's state media Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) released a new collection of propaganda posters of the Workers' Party of Korea, Thursday. KCNA-YonhapBy Jung Da-minNorth Korea's state media Korean Central News Agency on Thursday released a new collection of propaganda posters, one of which shows a factory worker celebrating the reaching of a production target, with a range of manufactured products from North Korea's so-called exemplary factories.In four posters published by the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK), North Korea emphasizes four economic focuses, which the country has been emphasizing since the April 21 party plenary meeting, at which party leader Kim Jong-un declared an end of the dual military-economic Byeongjin policy and a change to new economic strategies.In a poster that reads, “For the best achievement and the highest honor in the mass production campaign,” backpacks branded “Sonamu (pine tree)” from a Pyongyang bag factory, a cosmetic set of “Bomhyanggi (spring scent)” from a Sinuiju cosmetic factory and kimchi packs from Sep 14, 2018
Accident or incident? English version of Panmunjeom Declaration submitted to UN different from original By Park Si-sooThe English version of the Panmunjeom Declaration circulated to United Nations member countries is causing a controversy because its critical phrase is different from the original text. The original text released by Cheong Wa Dae shortly after the first summit between South Korean Moon Jae-in and his North Korean counterpart Kim Jong-un on April 27 states that the two Koreas “agreed to actively pursue” the end of the Korean War “during this year” through trilateral meetings involving the two Koreas and the United States, or quadrilateral meetings involving the two Koreas, the U.S. and China. But the version submitted to the U.N. firmly states that the two Koreas “agreed to declare the end of war this year.” The two Koreas jointly submitted the controversial version of the declaration to the U.N. on Thursday. Experts here are concerned that the modified phrase -- by intention or not -- could have a negative impact on diplomatic cooperation between South Korean and the U.S., especially when Washington sticks to the principle not to declSep 14, 2018
