Moon, Kim to hold 3rd summit in Pyongyang in September South Korean President Moon Jae-in, right, shakes hands with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during their first meeting at the border village of Panmunjom on April 27. / Korea Times file By Park Si-sooSouth and North Korea will hold a third summit between their leaders in Pyongyang “before the end of September,” the South's Unification Ministry said on Monday.The two sides however failed to fix the date."We agreed to hold an inter-Korean summit within September in Pyongyang" the two Koreas said in a joint press statement issued after the meeting."We also reviewed the implementation situations of the Panmunjom Declaration and held consultations in a sincere manner on matters related to its more active enforcement," they added, referring to the agreement reached at the historic April summit.The agreement was reached during high-level talks between the two sides at the Panmunjom border village on Monday.South Korean leader Moon Jae-in and his North Korean counterpart Kim Jong-un had their first summit at Panmunjom on April 27 and a second summit at the same venue oAug 13, 2018
Two Koreas start talks meant to set up 3rd Moon-Kim summit Senior officials from the rival Koreas met Monday to set a date and venue for a third summit between South Korean President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, part of an effort to breathe new life into resolving the nuclear standoff between Washington and Pyongyang.The two leaders, who first met in April in a highly publicized summit and then again in May for more informal talks, previously agreed to meet again sometime in the fall in Pyongyang but released no concrete details.The meeting Monday at a North Korea-controlled building in the border village of Panmunjom comes amid growing worries about whether North Korea will begin abandoning its nuclear weapons, something officials suggested would happen after Kim's summit with President Donald Trump in June in Singapore.North Korea is thought to have a growing arsenal of nuclear bombs and long-range missiles and to be closing in on the ability to reliably target anywhere on the U.S. mainland. A string of weapons tests last year, during which Pyongyang claimed to have completed its nuclear arsenal, had many in Asia worrieAug 13, 2018
South's young football players arrive in Pyongyang to play with NK A South Korean youth football delegation enters the immigration office in Paju, north of Seoul, Friday, to cross the inter-Korean border by using a land route on the western part of the peninsula to attend an international youth football event set for Aug. 13 to 18 in Pyongyang. YonhapBy Park Ji-wonYoung South Korean football players arrived in North Korea to take part in an international youth football event starting Wednesday, according to South Korean media going with them, Sunday. Some 150 people, including athletes, journalists and other culture exchange members, arrived at Yanggakdo International Hotel Pyongyang on Friday night after crossing into North Korea on a land route by bus.Using the land route comes seven years after a South Korean delegation last visited the North to express condolences to the late North Korean leader Kim Jong-il in 2011. Also, it is the first time for such a large number of civilians to visit North Korea by using the land route since President Moon Jae-in took office last year.Over 240 young players from six countries ― the two Koreas, China, Russia,Aug 12, 2018
N. Koreans reject Chinese medicines over safety concerns By Yi Whan-wooNorth Koreans have been refusing to buy Chinese medicines in the wake of a vaccine scandal and safety concerns in China, according to sources familiar with the matter.China experienced one of its worst public health crises in July when vaccine maker Changsheng Biotechnology was found to have fabricated production and inspection records of its freeze-dried human rabies vaccines.“Many North Korean patients and their families who used to buy Chinese medicine now seriously question whether they should keep using it or not,” a source told Radio Free Asia.“Those who have heard that China often has trouble with fake medicines now distrust the Chinese medicines available in local markets.”Sources in Dandong, China, said the vaccine scandal was causing increased demand for South Korean medicine among North Koreans there.“North Koreans are surprised at how effective the South Korean medicines are, and they just sweep them up from the shelves as soon as they are stocked,” the source said. “North Korea can’t produce good-quality medicAug 12, 2018
N. Korean officials mobilized to support rural projects By Yi Whan-wooNorth Korea’s central government and party authorities are being sent to rural areas to support projects that leader Kim Jong-un recently assessed as progressing too slowly, according to sources familiar with Pyongyang.“The measure comes after Kim accused provincial government officials of being negligent in carrying out economic projects, such as building power stations, when he visited provincial areas,” a source said.The officials from the central government have been sent to a farm and a construction site in North Hamgyong Province.The move came 10 days after Kim said he was unhappy with the progress of the projects and the mindsets of provincial government officials who handled the projects.“The officials have been deployed in teams of two and are officially tasked with working with farmers,” a source said.“The officials are asked to understand the farmers’ working conditions while finding solutions to speed up the project.“The officials were unsure what to do because the crops dried up during the intense Aug 12, 2018
Tighter control raises speculation over Xi's N. Korea trip By Yi Whan-wooChina is beefing up its patrols on its border with North Korea, fueling speculation that Chinese President Xi Jinping may visit Pyongyang for North Korea's founding anniversary on Sept. 9."Such tighter patrols usually come when top Chinese or North Korean officials visit each other's country," a source familiar with Pyongyang said last week. "Kim already visited China this year and it may be Xi who will be crossing the border for the celebration of North Korea's anniversary." A China-based tourism agency, INDPRK, also said it would stop all group travel packages to North Korea from this week until Sept. 5.The agency said this was because all hotels in Pyongyang had been undergoing renovation since Aug. 11 and therefore a shortage of rooms.But sources said stopping group travel packages suddenly may be linked to Xi's potential visit to Pyongyang.North Korea cited different reasons in the past when it prepared for significant events and restricted entry of foreigners."It is believed that North Korea is preparing for an important event, or high-ranking officials are planniAug 12, 2018
A peek into N. Korean leader's summer retreat North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, accompanied by his wife Ri Sol-ju, leans back in a chair and talks to officials during a visit to a fish-processing factory in South Hwanghae Province. Analysts say he schedules his summer vacation around the industrial sites to inspect them while having a rest at the same time. YonhapKim Jong-un likes to rest at a holiday cottage near economic project sitesBy Yi Whan-wooWorld leaders enjoy a holiday at this time of the year and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is no exception.However, Kim wants to be more effective in ruling the country, so he moves around holiday camps so he can give so-called “field guidance,” according to analysts.“Field guidance” refers to the North Korean leader’s visits and inspections of rural sites related to military, industry, tourism and other areas, at which he gives directives.The sites for Kim’s latest “field guidance” from late June included Sinuiju in North Pyongan Province, Samjiyon in Ryanggang Province, Chongjin and Orangchon in North Hamgyong Province and Wonsan in KaAug 12, 2018
North Korean media blames Seoul for slow progress on Panmunjom Declaration North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, left, and South Korean President Moon Jae-in proclaim the “Panmumjom Declaration” at the inter-Korean border village of Panmumjom in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, on Apr. 27, 2018. Korea Times fileSite logo of Uriminzokkiri, North Korea's state-controlled site that provides news from Central News Agency.North Korean media on Sunday pointed a finger at Seoul for what Pyongyang claims is lack of progress on realizing the Panmunjom Declaration reached by leaders of the two nations in April. The declaration was adopted on April 27 during a historic summit between South Korean President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. The two sides agreed to work toward lasting peace and economic cooperation.Uriminzokkiri, a North Korean external propaganda website, argued that South Korea should work harder to improve inter-Korean relations in light of the spirit of the Panmunjom Declaration, arguing that Seoul's "blind obedience" to the U.S.-led sanctions was a big hurdle to fulfilling the declaration."It's been more than 100 days since the April Aug 12, 2018
VIDEO Seoul hosts football games between two Koreas (Video transcript from Reuters)By Jung Da-minWorkers from the two Koreas played rare football matches at Sangam World Cup Stadium, Seoul, on Saturday. About 20,000 citizens gathered to cheer them.Two matches were played, first between South Korean members of the Federation of Korean Trade Unions (FKTU) and North Korean construction workers from the General Federation of Trade Unions of Korea (GFTUK).This was followed by a match between South Korean members of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) and North Korean light industry workers from GFTUK.The crowd enjoyed the games regardless of who won or lost. Instead of shouting “Dae-han Minguk,” which means Republic of Korea in English, they shouted “Tong-il Joguk,” which means unified homeland. North Korean teams won both games 3-1 and 2-0.The last such games were played in October 2015.Saturday's games marked the first civilian exchange in the implementation of the Panmunjom Declaration at the inter-Korean summit on April 27.At Saturday's games, a large flag with a map of the Korean peninsula covered tAug 12, 2018
Venezuelan president Maduro writes letter to Kim Jong-un Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro speaks during a nationally televised address from the Miraflores Palace in Caracas, capital of Venezuela, Aug. 4, 2018. Nicolas Maduro escaped unharmed from an attempted attack of explosive drones on Saturday. Xinhua-YonhapNorth Korea unveiled Saturday that the Venezuelan president has sent a letter to the country's leader Kim Jong-un to reaffirm his commitment to cement ties with the North."(Leader) Kim Jong Un ... received a message of greeting from Nicolas Maduro Moros, president of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, on July 27," the North's state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported in English, 15 days after the correspondence took place.North Korea celebrates July 27 as a war victory day, depicting the signing of the Korean War Armistice Agreement on July 27, 1953, with the United States as its triumph.North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and his wife Ri Sol-ju, right, visit a catfish farm factory in Samchon County in South Hwanghae Province, according to North Korean daily Rodong Shimmun on Aug. 6. Yonhap"The popular day of celebratiAug 12, 2018
