Pompeo to leave for North Korea Thursday U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo / APU.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will leave for North Korea on Thursday for talks on denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, the White House said on Monday.It will be Pompeo's first visit to North Korea since an unprecedented June 12 summit between President Donald Trump and Kim in which the North Korean leader agreed to "work toward denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula."The joint summit statement, however, gave no details on how or when Pyongyang might give up nuclear and missile programs that threaten the United States. U.S. officials have since been working to flesh out the details."To continue the ongoing and important work of denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula, Secretary Pompeo will be leaving for North Korea on July 5th to meet with the North Korean leader and his team," White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders told a news briefing.Sanders said the United States was "continuing to make progress" in talks with North Korea."We had good meetings yesterday and ... the secretary of state will beJul 3, 2018
'Forex act' may boost inter-Korean projects By Kim Jae-kyoungExploiting Korea's Foreign Exchange Transaction Act could pave the way for the two Koreas to bolster economic cooperation, said Tony Michell, a Seoul-based specialist on the Korean Peninsula.“In general this (foreign exchange act) retards the Korean economy and handcuffs the Korean financial industry, but in the case of North Korea it will help,” Michell, a visiting professor at KDI School of Public Policy and Management, said in a recent interview. Tony MichellMichell explained the act will enable the South to make payments in won to the North without violating various sanctions on Pyongyang.Since the act prohibits the offshore use of Korean won without permission from the Ministry of Strategy and Finance and the Bank of Korea, the won is difficult to use outside of South Korea. From his perspective, the fact that South Korean won cannot be converted in normal offshore transactions protects the money from being used for military uses and may assist in allowing the U.N. to grant a waiver to reopen the Gaeseong Industrial Complex.“Coincidentally undeJul 2, 2018
US, North Korea bolster trust-building after Singapore summit The anti-U.S. propaganda banner in Pyongyang, June 21, reads, “If the U.S. imperialists try to invade our country, let's sweep them off the face of the Earth.” North Korea appears to have tried to erase the word, “U.S. imperialists” amid the reconciliatory mood between the countries. / AP-YonhapBy Yi Whan-wooNorth Korea and the United States are refraining from blaming each other as part of efforts to build trust and speed up reconciliation in the wake of the summit between their leaders in Singapore on June 12.The scene is different from last year when U.S. Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un exchanged a war of words and threatened to attack each other's country.South Korea also has been remaining low key in marking the anniversaries of the outbreak of the Korean War on June 25, 1953, and the Second Battle of Yeonpyeong on June 29, 2002. Six South Korean sailors died and 19 were wounded during a battle on the disputed maritime border in the West Sea, following the previous battle in 1999.On June 25, no North Korean media outlet carried any statemJul 2, 2018
US, North Korea begin follow-up talks over denuclearization By Kim RahnSung Kim, left, U.S. ambassador to the Philippines, leaves a hotel in Seoul, Monday, a day after working-level talks with North Korean officials at Panmunjeom over follow-up measures for the North's denuclearization. / YonhapWashington and Pyongyang have started follow-up talks to discuss the detailed process of North Korea's denuclearization, after a dialogue hiatus of more than two weeks since the historic summit between their leaders. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who visited North Korea and led negotiations with Korean leader Kim Jong-un for the June 12 summit, is expected to visit the country again later this week. The outcome of talks this time is likely to determine the timeline of denuclearization and the compensation Pyongyang can get in returnAmerican delegates led by Ambassador to the Philippines Sung Kim met North Korean officials at the northern side of the truce village of Panmunjeom, Sunday, according to government sources and some U.S. media. This was the first face-to-face dialogue between U.S. and North Korean officials after the summit between U.SJul 2, 2018
Two Koreas to push in earnest for peace, prosperity in autumn summit South and North Korea will focus on fostering peace and prosperity on the Korean Peninsula and preparing a framework for sustainable development in their bilateral ties when their leaders meet in the autumn summit, Seoul's unification minister said Monday.Unification Minister Cho Myoung-gyon said that the South Korean government will make continued efforts to significantly upgrade the inter-Korean relations by accelerating the implementation of the agreement reached by President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in their historic summit in April."Our broad direction in the autumn summit will focus on allowing peace and prosperity on the Korean Peninsula to be pursued in earnest and among other things institutionalizing sustainable relations between the two Koreas," Cho told reporters during a press meeting held to mark the first year of his inauguration.In the summit held April 27 in the truce village of Panmunjom, Moon and Kim reaffirmed their goal of complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, while agreeing to halt all hostile acts against each other and expanJul 2, 2018
Bolton: US has plan to dismantle NK nuclear program in year U.S. National security adviser John Bolton / APThe United States has a plan that would lead to the dismantling of North Korea's nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs in a year, President Donald Trump's national security adviser said Sunday, although U.S. intelligence reported signs that Pyongyang doesn't intend to fully give up its arsenal.John Bolton said top U.S. diplomat Mike Pompeo will be discussing that plan with North Korea in the near future. Bolton added that it would be to the North's advantage to cooperate to see sanctions lifted quickly and aid from South Korea and Japan start to flow.Bolton's remarks on CBS' ``Face the Nation'' appeared to be the first time the Trump administration had publicly suggested a timeline for North Korea to fulfill the commitment leader Kim Jong-un made at a summit with President Donald Trump last month for the ``complete denuclearization'' of the Korean Peninsula.Despite Trump's rosy post-summit declaration that the North no longer poses a nuclear threat, Washington and Pyongyang have yet to negotiate the terms under which it would reJul 2, 2018
S. Korea stops building military facilities near DMZ By Park Ji-wonSouth and North Korea are carrying out efforts to reduce military tensions as agreed in a historic joint declaration.According to military sources, Sunday, South Korea suspended plans to build new military facilities at army bases near the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), in apparent preparation for the case the facilities might never be used following phased disarmament.“We have put on hold new construction plans for this year and next for 90 to 100 frontline army units classified as Alpha in the Forward Edge of the Battle Area (FEBA),” a senior military official said. The plans were to build barracks and improve facilities for artillery camps. Construction projects that have already started will be carried out as planned.FEBA includes four categories: Alpha, Bravo, Charlie and Delta. Alpha is the area located 5 kilometers to 10 kilometers from the DMZ inside the Civilian Control Line where search and artillery battalions and intelligence units are stationed.The South Korean government's move is to reduce unnecessary military tension with North Korea and prevent pJul 1, 2018
North Korea seeks sanctions relief using China leverage By Kim Bo-eunNorth Korea appears to be seeking a lifting of international sanctions imposed on the country by using its longtime ally, China, as leverage. North Korea is shifting its focus toward economic development, and for that goal, sanctions relief and economic cooperation with other countries will be essential. While it is creating the atmosphere by offering peace through the inter-Korean and the Washington-Pyongyang summits, it seems the North believes China can speed up the process.Last week, the Japanese media reported China and Russia submitted a statement to the U.N. Security Council seeking the lifting of sanctions on North Korea.It was reportedly dismissed due to U.S. opposition, which stated North Korea's denuclearization would have to make progress first.“China does not regard lifting the sanctions as an end in itself ― the Security Council should support and cooperate in the current mood of dialogue and efforts toward denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula,” Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Lu Kang said in a press briefing, Friday.When North Korean Jul 1, 2018
Dismissed former North Korean general confirmed reinstated Hwang Pyong-so, left, the then-leader of the North Korean army's political bureau, heads to a restaurant in Incheon in October 2014 where he met South Korea's unification minister and National Security Office Head. He attended the closing ceremony of the Incheon Asian Games held the same day. Korea Times fileHwang Pyong-so, a former North Korean general who was dismissed last year, has been reinstated, as evidenced by North Korean state media reports that he accompanied North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on recent on-site inspections. Hwang led the North Korean army's political bureau and sat on the Workers' Party's Central Committee before being expelled. Although his current position and role remain unclear, he was among the entourage of the North's leader when he visited Sindo County near the border with China, as reported by the Korean Central News Agency on Saturday. It was the state media's first direct mention of Hwang's activities since Oct. 12, 2017, when he attended an event to mark the 70th anniversary of the foundation of Mangyongdae Revolution Academy and Kangbansok RevolutJul 1, 2018
Two Koreas to field joint teams at Asian Games Two Koreas to field joint teams at Asian Games: An official from the Indonesian Asian Games Organizing Committee carries North and South Korean flags prior to a meeting with Olympic Council of Asia at its headquarter in Jakarta, June 28. North and South Korea will field joint teams in three sports _ canoeing, rowing and women's basketball _ at the Asian Games in the latest sign of thawing tensions. / AFP-YonhapJul 1, 2018
