South Korean military holds boosting frontline military bases South Korean soldiers from the 28th Infantry Division at general out post (GOP) close to the frontline of the inter-Korean border in Yeoncheon, Gyeonggi Province. Korea Times fileThe South Korean military has put on hold reconstruction plans for army bases located in frontline areas within 5-10 kilometers of the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), government officials said Sunday. "We have put off new building plans for some 90-100 army units categorized as Alpha in the Forward Edge of Battle Area (FEBA)," a government official familiar with the matter said. The FEBA has four categories ― Alpha, Bravo, Charlie and Delta ― and Alpha is the nearest to the DMZ and within the Civilian Control Line, where reconnaissance, artillery and information battalions are stationed. The decision is believed to be Seoul's effort to uphold part of the April 27 Panmunjom Declaration in which the two Koreas agreed to carry out disarmament in a phased manner and to be ready to move frontline bases further from the border if necessary. The planned construction includes building new barracks and improving artillery Jul 1, 2018
N. Korea urges Japan to work past wrongdoings By Yi Whan-wooNorth Korea's state media called on Japan to settle its past wrongdoings, Friday, as a pre-condition to opening dialogue with Pyongyang.The Rodong Sinmun, the official newspaper of the North's ruling Workers' Party, also urged Tokyo to shift away from its hostile policy toward Pyongyang, or “nothing can be expected” in their relations.The Rodong Simun reiterated the regime's demand for Japan to sincerely apologize for its 1910-45 colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula.This time, however, North Korea appears to be trying to gain diplomatic leverage with Japan, which has been fretting about being isolated amid Pyongyang's reconciliation with other stakeholders in the peninsula.Diplomatic sources speculate Pyongyang may ask for economic assistance in its possible dialogue with Tokyo, in the form of compensation for colonization.“Japan must face history in an earnest and responsible manner and also bid farewell to its anachronistic, hostile policy toward the North, if it wants to be at Pyongyang's doorstep,” the Rodong Simun said in an editorial, titlJun 29, 2018
US, NK set to move onto next stage for denuclearization By Yi Whan-wooThe United States and North Korea are geared toward resuming dialogue as a follow-up to the summit between their leaders in Singapore, June 12, on Pyongyang's denuclearization.The Financial Times reported Thursday that U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will visit North Korea next week.The possible visit will come amid criticism that a joint declaration issued by U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in the Singapore summit lacks concrete details and therefore supplementary steps are necessary for complete denuclearization.Pompeo will be the highest U.S. official to make contact with the North after the summit. The U.S. Department of State did not confirm his possible Pyongyang trip.“My guess is, working-level officials of the two countries already have discussed and reached a consensus on visible steps to build mutual trust following the summit,” Kim Hyun-wook, a professor at Korea National Diplomatic Academy, said Friday. “Pompeo would not have planned to visit Pyongyang otherwise.”A possible measure for the sake of tJun 29, 2018
North Korea didn't rip off reporters on Punggye-ri nuke test demolition coverage Smoke and debris rise as barracks for workers at North Korea's nuclear test site at Punggye-ri are blown up on May 24. AP-YonhapBy Oh Young-jin North Korea didn't rip off reporters from outside the country invited to cover the destruction of its nuclear test site at Punggye-ri last month after all.According to four South Korean reporters, each was charged 1.28 million won, or $1,146, for their four-day trip to cover the event the North prepared to press for its leader Kim Jong-un's meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump on June 12. A South Korean cable channel reported that the North charged reporters from the South, U.S., China, Russia and Britain about $30,000, including $10,000 in visa fees.This painted the North in a negative light for making a profit out of a political event. The individual bill included $185 a night for two nights at a Wonsan hotel; $397 for a one-way flight from Pyongyang to Beijing (the southerners used their own plane to Wonsan); $75 for a train ticket to and from Wonsan; $64.50 for internet use and $100 for phone use. Added to this was $36 for registratioJun 29, 2018
How to invigorate Trump's North Korea initiative U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo speaks before the Senate Wednesday. Pompeo, President Donald Trump’s point man on North Korea, said Pyongyang knows well the U.S. stance on the complete, verifiable and irreversible dismantling of the North’s nuclear weapons program. AP Joseph Yoon, left, former U.S. point man on North Korea, speaks during a forum hosted by the Kwanhun Club, the fraternity of senior journalists, at the Korea Press Center, Friday. At right is Park Seung-hee, Kwanhun president. YonhapBy Oh Young-jinJoseph Yoon, U.S. point man on North Korea until early this year, has publicly explained why President Donald Trump's effort to denuclearize Pyongyang will likely fail. But the chance is that the career diplomat, or most of the audience, didn't even know he said it. “The North has not shown a concrete sign or evidence to denuclearize,” he told a forum hosted by the Kwanhun Club, the fraternity of journalists, Friday. “If the North is serious, it should make a declaration of its nuclear weapons, sites and materials as the first step.Jun 29, 2018
North Korea named worst human trafficking nation for 16th year ReutersThe United States on Thursday designated North Korea as one of the worst human trafficking nations for the 16th consecutive year, citing its use of forced labor.The State Department's annual "2018 Trafficking in Persons Report" put North Korea in the lowest Tier 3 of its classification of countries, together with China, Russia and Iran."The Government of (North Korea) does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making significant efforts to do so," the report said.The North Korean government continued to use forced labor in prison camps and labor training centers, facilitated forced labor of students and exported forced labor to foreign companies, it said."It used proceeds from state-sponsored forced labor to fund government functions as well as other illicit activity," the report added. "It did not screen for or protect potential trafficking victims when they were forcibly repatriated from China or other countries."U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo raised the issue as he introduced the report."We see the tragic examples of forced Jun 29, 2018
China has reasons to worry about nuclear-armed North Korea Today's friend could be tomorrow's nuclear-armed enemy. ReutersBy Jung Min-hoSandip Kumar MishraAaron M. HoffmanDavid GraffVishnu PrakashAfter the historic summit between the United States and North Korea earlier this month, U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters that China wouldn't be “happy with someone having nuclear weapons so close.”Many experts agree. They reckon, with a nuclear arsenal in hand, North Korea is now a bigger diplomatic concern and potential threat to China, which did not want the regime to develop the weapons in the first place.China, which exerted great influence over North Korea with its economic power and nuclear umbrella, wants to maintain its clout. But a nuclear-armed North Korea will not be the same, according to Sandip Kumar Mishra, a professor of international relations at Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi.“Nuclear capability has given North Korea more power over not just the U.S. but also China,” Mishra told The Korea Times. “China would like North Korea to surrender its nuclear arsenal and be dependent on China'Jun 29, 2018
Koreas to conduct joint study on linking motorways South Korean delegates, led by Vice Transport Minister Kim Jeong-ryeol, center, are greeted by North Korean officials as they cross the border line at Panmunjeom for talks on reconnecting roads, Thursday. / Courtesy of Unification MinistryBy Park Ji-won, Joint Press CorpsThe two Koreas agreed Thursday to form a joint research team to study reconnecting roads across their border and modernizing the highways in the North.In working-level talks at Tongilgak, the northern side of Panmunjeom, delegates from the two Koreas agreed to check on the conditions of the North's highway between Gaeseong and Pyongyang on the western side of the Korean Peninsula in early August, and the roads between Goseong and Wonsan on the east coast afterward.Goseong is a North Korean city north of the border, with South Korea having a city with the same name south of the border.Connecting and modernizing roads was part of the Panmunjeom Declaration reached at the April 27 inter-Korean summit,.The two agreed to jointly conduct the design and repair work for the roads and hold a groundbreaking ceremony as soon asJun 28, 2018
South Korea seeks environmental cooperation with North Korea Environmental cooperation should precede economic cooperation By Lee Suh-yoonEnvironmental cooperation can come first in expanding ties with North Korea, government officials and experts said Wednesday.“Environmental cooperation is less constrained than political or economic cooperation. It also brings a more a bottom-up approach to building inter-Korean ties,” Cho Myung-rae, president of the state-funded Korea Environment Institute (KEI) said at a forum at the National Assembly. “Also, due to U.N. sanctions, environmental cooperation is a more practical measure at this point than economic cooperation.”Vice Minister of Unification Chun Hae-Sung also called for inter-Korean environmental cooperation.“There are no boundaries set for inter-Korean environmental cooperation, it's a common problem of the Korean people,” Chun said. “North Korea, too, has shown active interest in environmental issues recently, joining international treaties on migratory birds and wetlands.“Panelists said North Korea should implement strict environmental standarJun 27, 2018
Koreas prep for family reunions Kim Byung-dae, the ministry's humanitarian cooperation bureau director, and other officials head to the North from the Inter-Korean Transit Office, Wednesday. Through Friday they will inspect facilities at Mount Geumgang, where separated family reunions will take place in August. / YonhapBy Kim Bo-eunSouth Korean officials arrived at Mount Geumgang in the North Wednesday, to check facilities there for upcoming reunions of separated family members.A total of 20 officials of the unification ministry, Red Cross as well as Hyundai Asan and its subcontractor will stay there through Friday, to check the conditions of the hall for reunions as well as accommodations at hotels and tourist and power generating facilities.“We will carefully inspect the facilities so that the reunion of separated family members can take place successfully,” Kim Byung-dae, the ministry's humanitarian cooperation bureau director, said at the Inter-Korean Transit Office before heading to the North.After the officials return, South Korea will start sending workers to begin repairing the facilities in theJun 27, 2018
