Informal Institute for National Security Thinkers and Practitioners

Quotes of the Day:

"We had said goodbye to life, we didn't think anyone knew we were there."
- Exhausted evacuees from Mariupol steel plant reach safety

"The question of winning the war is far too complicated and far too delicate to be answered by a study of only the powers and resources of the nations in arms." 
- US Army General Staff, Military Intelligence Division, 1918


Reject your sense of injury and the injury itself disappears.
- Marcus Aurelius


1. N. Korea's media mute about latest missile test
2. U.S. condemns N. Korea's missile launch, urges Pyongyang to engage in dialogue
3. President Biden Announces Presidential Delegation to the Republic of Korea to Attend the Inauguration of His Excellency Yoon Suk Yeol
4. S. Korea mulling expanding support to Ukraine: trade chief
5. U.S. may discuss deployment of additional THAAD system to S. Korea: State Dept.
6. North Korea fires ballistic missile amid rising animosities
7. North Korea cracks down on 'capitalist' pop culture
8. Pope Francis, Japan’s Kishida discuss hopes for nuclear-free world after North Korea test launch, Ukraine war
9. What do young North Koreans think about the country's recent military parade?
10. Yoon names 19 presidential secretaries
11. China says it is set for stronger cooperation with new S. Korean gov't
12. N. Korea slams South’s new president Yoon as ‘pro-US’ and ‘confrontational’
13. Has Moon Jae-in’s North Korea Peace Process Failed?
14. Phillip Goldberg on his way to being U.S. envoy to Seoul
15.



1. N. Korea's media mute about latest missile test
I guess the Propaganda and Agitation department has not had its messages approved yet.

N. Korea's media mute about latest missile test | Yonhap News Agency
en.yna.co.kr · by 이치동 · May 5, 2022
SEOUL, May 5 (Yonhap) -- North Korea's state-controlled news outlets were unusually silent Thursday morning about the country's latest ballistic missile test the previous day.
There were no related reports by the secretive nation's media, including the Korean Central News Agency and the Rodong Sinmun, as of 9:30 a.m., unlike Pyongyang's usual practice of quickly boasting publicly about its major weapons tests.
On Wednesday, the North launched a ballistic missile, which flew 470 kilometers at a maximum altitude of 780 km before falling into the East Sea, according to South Korea's military. Some informed sources said it seems to be an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) fired at a lofted angle.
The North's media has usually carried reports, coupled with a number of photos, of such major missile tests the next morning, except for failed launches like the one in mid-March.
Observers here raised the possibility that the North failed to achieve its goal in the latest missile firing, the 14th of this year.
South Korea's national security officials and media are continuing to monitor the North's media for relevant reports that may be issued later Thursday or Friday morning.
(END)
en.yna.co.kr · by 이치동 · May 5, 2022


2. U.S. condemns N. Korea's missile launch, urges Pyongyang to engage in dialogue


Pro forma.
(LEAD) U.S. condemns N. Korea's missile launch, urges Pyongyang to engage in dialogue | Yonhap News Agency
en.yna.co.kr · by 변덕근 · May 5, 2022
(ATTN: UPDATES with remarks from state department spokesperson Price in paras 2-7; CHANGES headline, lead; ADDS photo)
By Byun Duk-kun
WASHINGTON, May 4 (Yonhap) -- The United States condemns North Korea's latest missile launch, a state department spokesperson said Wednesday, urging Pyongyang to engage in dialogue to peacefully denuclearize the Korean Peninsula.
Ned Price made the remarks after North Korea fired a ballistic missile into the East Sea on Wednesday (Seoul time).
"This launch is a clear violation of multiple United Nations Security Council resolutions," the spokesperson said in a daily press briefing.
"It demonstrates the fact that North Korea's ballistic missile program, its nuclear weapons program pose a threat to the DPRK's neighbors. They pose a threat to the region. They pose a threat to peace and stability throughout the Indo Pacific," he added.
DPRK stands for the North's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

The latest missile launch marked the 14th known missile test by the impoverished country this year, with Pyongyang also firing its first intercontinental ballistic missile in more than four years in March.
"Our commitment to the defense of our treaty allies -- the Republic of Korea and Japan -- that commitment is ironclad," said Price, referring to South Korea by its official name.
Another state department spokesperson earlier said the U.S. strongly condemns the North's missile launch.
"The United States condemns the DPRK's ballistic missile launch," the spokesperson told Yonhap News Agency in an email.
"We stand with the international community to call on the DPRK to refrain from further provocations and engage in sustained and substantive dialogue," the department spokesperson added, asking not to be identified.

U.S. Indo-Pacific Command earlier said the latest missile launch by the North did not pose an immediate threat to the U.S. or its allies.
"While we have assessed that this event does not pose an immediate threat to U.S. personnel, territory, or that of our allies, we will continue to monitor the situation. The U.S. commitment to the defense of the ROK and Japan, remains ironclad," the Indo-Pacific command said in a released statement.
(END)
en.yna.co.kr · by 변덕근 · May 5, 2022


3. President Biden Announces Presidential Delegation to the Republic of Korea to Attend the Inauguration of His Excellency Yoon Suk Yeol


President Biden Announces Presidential Delegation to the Republic of Korea to Attend the Inauguration of His Excellency Yoon Suk Yeol | The White House
whitehouse.gov · May 5, 2022
President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. today announced the designation of a Presidential Delegation to attend the Inauguration of His Excellency Yoon Suk Yeol on May 10, 2022, in Seoul, Republic of Korea.
Mr. Douglas Emhoff, Second Gentleman of the United States, will lead the delegation.
Members of the Presidential Delegation:
Mr. Christopher Del Corso, Chargé d’Affaires ad interim, U.S. Embassy Seoul
The Honorable Martin J. Walsh, Secretary of Labor of the United States
The Honorable Ami Bera, United States Representative (D), California
The Honorable Marilyn Strickland, United States Representative (D), Washington
The Honorable Todd Sunhwae Kim, Assistant Attorney General, Environment and Natural Resources Division, Department of Justice
The Honorable Linda Hee Jung Shim, Special Assistant to the President for Economic Agency Personnel
Ms. Min Jin Lee, Author and Writer-in-Residence at Amherst College
whitehouse.gov · May 5, 2022


4.  S. Korea mulling expanding support to Ukraine: trade chief

I hope the incoming Yoon administration will make a decision to quickly send lethal aid. South JKorea has many very useful weappons systems the Urkainians could benefit frmo employing.

Exerpts:
South Korea has banned exports of strategic materials to Russia and joined the multinational move to exclude Russia from the SWIFT global payment network.
South Korea has also suspended financial transactions with seven major Russian banks and their affiliates and "strongly" recommended local public and financial institutions halt their investment in new Russian government bonds.



S. Korea mulling expanding support to Ukraine: trade chief | Yonhap News Agency
en.yna.co.kr · by 오석민 · May 4, 2022
SEOUL, May 4 (Yonhap) -- South Korea is considering boosting assistance to Ukraine, Seoul's top trade official said Wednesday, as Western countries provided weapons and other support to help Ukraine defend against the Russian invasion.
South Korea has provided US$40 million in humanitarian assistance to Ukraine, 65 non-lethal military items and various support for Ukraine refugees.
"We are considering continuing to expand assistance to Ukraine," Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo said during a virtual meeting with trade chiefs from around 17 nations, including Ukraine, Germany, France, Australia and Japan.
He said South Korea will join hands with the international community and maintain close coordination for a quick resolution of the crisis.
The videoconference, proposed by Britain, was meant to discuss ways to support Ukrainians and their country's economy.
South Korea has banned exports of strategic materials to Russia and joined the multinational move to exclude Russia from the SWIFT global payment network.
South Korea has also suspended financial transactions with seven major Russian banks and their affiliates and "strongly" recommended local public and financial institutions halt their investment in new Russian government bonds.

(END)
en.yna.co.kr · by 오석민 · May 4, 2022


5. U.S. may discuss deployment of additional THAAD system to S. Korea: State Dept.

Excertps:

"Every country has the inherent right to self-defense," Ned Price said when asked if the U.S. might consider deploying additional THAAD units to South Korea if requested by Seoul's new Yoon Suk-yeol administration.
"As I said before, our commitment to the defense of our treaty allies, the ROK in this case, is ironclad. These will be discussions that we will have as allies regarding how best we can see to it that our commitment to the defense of the ROK remains ironclad," the spokesperson added, referring to South Korea by its official name, the Republic of Korea.

U.S. may discuss deployment of additional THAAD system to S. Korea: State Dept. | Yonhap News Agency
en.yna.co.kr · by 변덕근 · May 5, 2022
By Byun Duk-kun
WASHINGTON, May 4 (Yonhap) -- The United States may discuss deploying additional missile defense units to South Korea if requested by Seoul's incoming administration, a state department spokesperson said Wednesday.
The remarks come after North Korea launched a ballistic missile on Wednesday (Seoul time), marking its 14th known show of force this year.
"Every country has the inherent right to self-defense," Ned Price said when asked if the U.S. might consider deploying additional THAAD units to South Korea if requested by Seoul's new Yoon Suk-yeol administration.
"As I said before, our commitment to the defense of our treaty allies, the ROK in this case, is ironclad. These will be discussions that we will have as allies regarding how best we can see to it that our commitment to the defense of the ROK remains ironclad," the spokesperson added, referring to South Korea by its official name, the Republic of Korea.

Yoon earlier suggested deploying additional THAAD antimissile system units to deter North Korea's missile provocations, but his nominee for foreign minister, Park Jin, recently stressed the need for "in-depth discussions" following a careful review by the incoming administration on the necessity for additional THAAD units.
Seoul currently hosts a U.S. THAAD unit, but the 2016 decision to host the unit received severe economic repercussions from China.
Yoon is set to take office on Tuesday.
The state department spokesperson argued China too has recognized the danger of North Korea's missile launches, adding, "each of these provocations has been a violation of multiple U.N. Security Council resolutions."
"The PRC, of course, is a permanent member of the U.N. Security Council," he said, referring to China by its official name, the People's Republic of China.
"The fact that there are multiple U.N. Security Council resolutions, the fact that there are multiple statements that have emanated from the U.N. Security Council chamber itself is a testament to the fact that countries around the world, including the PRC, recognize that the DPRK's ballistic missile program is a source of instability," he added.
DPRK stands for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, the North's official name.
(END)
en.yna.co.kr · by 변덕근 · May 5, 2022


6. North Korea fires ballistic missile amid rising animosities

Animosities? Is that what it is?

North Korea fires ballistic missile amid rising animosities
Los Angeles Times · May 5, 2022
SEOUL —
North Korea launched a ballistic missile toward its eastern waters on Wednesday, South Korean and Japanese officials said, days after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un vowed to speed up the development of his nuclear weapons “at the fastest possible pace” and threatened to use them against rivals.
The launch, the North’s 14th round of weapons firing this year, also came six days before a new conservative South Korean president takes office for a single five-year term.
South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement that the missile was fired from the North’s capital region and flew to the waters off its eastern coast. It called North Korea’s repeated ballistic missile launches “a grave threat” that would undermine international peace and security and a violation of United Nations Security Council resolutions banning any ballistic launch by the North.
The statement said that Won In-choul, the South Korean Joint Chiefs head, held a videoconference about the launch with Gen. Paul LaCamera, an American general who heads the South Korea-U.S. combined forces command in Seoul, and they agreed to maintain a solid joint defense posture.
Japan also detected the North Korean launch and quickly condemned it.
“North Korea’s series of actions that threatens the peace, safety and stability of the international community are impermissible,” Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told reporters during his visit to Rome.
Kishida said he planned discuss the launch at his meeting with Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi later Wednesday. “Naturally, we will exchange views on the regional situation in the Indo-Pacific and East Asia, and I will thoroughly explain the reality of the region including the North Korean missile launch today, to gain understanding about the pressing situation in the East Asia,” he said.
Japanese Vice Defense Minister Makoto Oniki said that the missile was believed to have landed in waters outside the Japanese Exclusive Economic Zone. There has been no reports of damage or injury from vessels and aircraft in the area.
It wasn’t immediately known what missile was launched by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, or DPRK, the North’s official name. South Korea’s military said the missile flew about 290 miles at the apogee of 485 miles, while Oniki of Japan said it traveled about 310 miles at the maximum altitude of 500 miles.
U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said the latest launch and other North Korean activities using ballistic missile technology “only contributes to increasing regional and international tensions.”
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres “again urges the DPRK to fully comply with its international obligations under relevant Security Council resolutions,” he said. “Diplomatic engagement remains the only pathway to sustainable peace and complete and verifiable denuclearization of the Korean peninsula.”
The United States has circulated a draft resolution to the U.N. Security Council seeking additional sanctions against North Korea for its spate of tests this year. U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield told reporters Tuesday that “it is our plan to move forward with that resolution during this month” when the United States holds the rotating council presidency.
“We’re very concerned about the situation there, the numerous violations of Security Council resolutions that the DPRK has engaged in, and it is our hope that we can keep the council unified in condemning those actions by the DPRK,” she said.
But diplomats, speaking on condition of anonymity because discussions have been private, said the resolution faces an uphill struggle because Russia and China, which have veto power in the Security Council, want to see sanctions against North Korea eased — not increased.
Observers say North Korea’s unusually fast pace in weapons testing this year underscores its dual goal of advancing its missile programs and applying pressure on Washington over a deepening freeze in nuclear negotiations. They say Kim eventually aims to use his expanded arsenal to win international recognition of North Korea as a nuclear state and that he believes it would help force the United States to relax international economic sanctions on the North.
One of the North Korean missiles tested recently was an intercontinental ballistic missile potentially capable of reaching the American homeland. That missile’s launch broke Kim’s self-imposed 2018 moratorium on big weapons tests.
There are signs that the North is also preparing for a nuclear test at its remote northeastern testing facility. If carried out, the nuclear bomb test explosion by North Korea would be the seventh of its kind and the first since 2017.
Last week, Kim showcased his most powerful nuclear-capable missiles targeting both the United States and its allies during a massive military parade in the capital, Pyongyang. During a speech at the parade, Kim said he would develop his arsenal at the “fastest possible pace” and warned that the North would preemptively use its nuclear weapons if its national interests are threatened.
North Korea has previously unleased harsh rhetoric threatening to attack its rivals with its nuclear weapons. But the fact that Kim made the threat himself and in a detailed manner have caused security jitters among some South Koreans. Taken together with North Korea’s recent tests of short-range nuclear-capable missiles, some experts speculate North Korea’s possibly escalatory nuclear doctrine would allow it to launch preemptive nuclear strikes on South Korea in some cases.
Wednesday’s launch came before the May 10 inauguration of South Korean President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol, who has vowed to boost Seoul’s missile capability and solidify its military alliance with Washington to better cope with increasing North Korean nuclear threats.
North Korea has a history of raising animosities with weapons tests when Seoul and Washington inaugurate new governments, in an apparent bid by Pyongyang to boost its leverage in future negotiations.
Yoon’s power transition office called the latest North Korean launch “a grave provocation” and urged Pyongyang to stop acts that raise tensions and threaten international peace. It said in a statement that the Yoon government will strongly respond to North Korean provocations in close cooperation with the international community.
Some experts say the Biden administration’s passive handling of North Korea as it focuses on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and an intensifying rivalry with China is allowing more room for the North to expand its military capabilities.
The Biden administration’s actions on North Korea have so far been limited to largely symbolic sanctions and offers of open-ended talks. North Korea has rejected the administration’s offer for talks, saying it must first abandon its “hostile policy,” in an apparent reference to U.S.-led international sanctions and U.S.-South Korean joint military exercises.
Los Angeles Times · May 5, 2022


7.  North Korea cracks down on 'capitalist' pop culture

Again, who is Kim more afraid of? - The US military or the Korean people living in the north?

North Korea cracks down on 'capitalist' pop culture | DW | 04.05.2022
DW · by Deutsche Welle (www.dw.com)
North Korea is stepping up its campaign against people who wear "capitalist" style clothing or mimic foreign hairstyles, as part of a of a broader crackdown on foreign pop culture, according to Seoul-based news outlet Daily NK.
The North Korean regime has long railed against outside influences affecting its socialist way of life, with men and women limited to a list of "approved" hairstyles and clothing.
Citing sources in the North, Daily NK said officials of the Socialist Patriotic Youth League stated that sporting clothing and hair in the "North Korean style" is a vital element of a socialist lifestyle.
North Koreans who contravene fashion rules can be detained, questioned, beaten and, in some cases, sentenced to prison terms.
The Daily NK reported authorities are filming women stopped in the street for failing to follow government fashion regulations and using the footage in lectures about anti-state behavior.
One video shows several women, apparently in their 20s and 30s, who were detained for wearing tight leggings or dying their hair, according to the Daily NK.
The footage commentary describes the women as "capitalist delinquents" with "indecent clothes" and an "impure ideology."
'Not able to control my own body'
North Korean defector Eunhee Park told DW that Pyongyang seeks to stamp out individualism, as free choice contributes to opposition to the regime.
Park defected from North Korea in 2012 and is a keynote speaker with the South Korea-based advocacy group Freedom Speakers International.
"I was 16 when I first saw a foreign television show, but I immediately loved what I saw, the lives of those people were so different to what I saw around me in North Korea," the 31-year-old told DW.

"We were told that the Kim dictators were our fathers and we had to do what they said, but suddenly I saw people enjoying freedom."
Park said there were "lots of restrictions" on clothing choice and that "people just followed the orders."
"But I believed that fashion was an expression of a person's character and I wanted to be who I was, but I was not even able to control my own body."
Jeans, dyed hair and cosmetics are all taboo in the North, with those who follow the regulations categorized as loyal "red" members of society. Park, however, bent the rules and was labeled as "grey," or a traitor.
Testing boundaries
Slowly, Park began to test the boundaries of what was acceptable. During the holidays, when there were fewer police on the streets, she would carefully wear makeup and cheap, plastic earrings from China.
"On more than one occasion, the police saw me and I was beaten for what I was wearing," she said. For three days, she was detained in a police station and forced to repeatedly write confessions to her crimes.
She was also made to stand still without food until past midnight. She said a police officer had also once threatened to cut off her hair in public. But each time she was able to pay a small bribe to secure her freedom.
One of her friends was not so lucky and could not pay a bribe after being caught wearing unapproved clothing, Park said. She was sentenced to hard labor for a month and forced to help in the construction of a mountain road.
Kim's ideology 'centered on conformity'
Greg Scarlatoiu, executive director of the Committee for Human Rights in North Korea, says conformity is essential to preserving the regime's doctrine.
"Hairstyles and clothing that do not conform to regime specifications reflect personal taste and choice," he said. "The ideology of the Kim family regime is centered on conformity and not on individualism, or individual expression," he added.
A law was enacted in Pyongyang designed to eradicate "reactionary thought and culture" in late 2020, followed in July last year by a law on youth education that sought to dissuade young people from accessing "capitalist culture."
"The Kim Jong-un regime attempts to ban foreign TV programs and movies from being smuggled into the country because they challenge its information monopoly, critical to keeping the North Korean people indoctrinated and subdued, thus preserving its grip on power," Scarlatoiu explained.
An increase in the scale of prison and labor camps in the North suggests more people are falling foul of the regime's rules on deviation from the socialist norm, Scarlatoiu said.
Watch video 02:32
North Korean TV spreads optimism amid food shortages
North Korea's future 'is bright'
Satellite footage and reports from inside North Korea indicate that the prison population rose sharply in the last three months of 2021 and the first three months of 2022.
Some citizens have also been punished for violating quarantine rules, despite the regime insisting that not one case of the coronavirus has been detected in the North.
Yet, Park remains upbeat about the outlook of her homeland. "Things are definitely getting better in North Korea," she said. "Millennials there are quite different from their parents' generation and they have grown up depending on the black market, which is essentially a form of capitalism."
"And when people see business working, their desire for things increases. That is only natural," she added.
"The market system helps people to see what is possible, they are watching foreign television and they are analyzing themselves and their government. It will take time, but I do believe the future is bright."
Edited by Sou-Jie van Brunnersum


DW · by Deutsche Welle (www.dw.com)

8. Pope Francis, Japan’s Kishida discuss hopes for nuclear-free world after North Korea test launch, Ukraine war

Pope Francis, Japan’s Kishida discuss hopes for nuclear-free world after North Korea test launch, Ukraine war
By Associated Press South China Morning Post2 min


  • Meeting came as nuclear-armed Russia pressed its war in Ukraine, and North Korea launched a ballistic missile and vowed to continue developing nuclear arsenal
  • Francis has changed church teaching on nuclear weapons, saying their mere possession was ‘immoral’

This handout photo taken and released on May 4, 2022, by Vatican Media, the Vatican press office, shows Pope Francis
Pope Francis and the prime minister of Japan, the only country to be hit by atomic bombs, met on Wednesday and discussed their common hope for a world free of nuclear weapons.
Francis and Fumio Kishida met for about half an hour in a receiving room of the Vatican’s audience hall just before Francis held his general audience for thousands of people in St. Peter’s Square.
The meeting came as nuclear-armed Russia pressed its war in Ukraine and after North Korea launched a ballistic missile toward its eastern waters and vowed to speed up the development of its own nuclear arsenal.
In a statement, the Vatican said the talks touched on bilateral and international relations “with particular attention to the war in Ukraine, stressing the urgency of dialogue and peace and expressing the hope, to this end, for a world free of nuclear weapons.”
Francis has changed church teaching on nuclear weapons, saying their mere possession was “immoral.” He made the comments during a 2019 visit to Japan, where he paid tribute to survivors of the atomic bombs in Nagasaki and Hiroshima.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un recently vowed to speed up the development of his nuclear weapons “at the fastest possible pace” and threatened to use them against rivals.
Speaking to reporters in Rome, Kishida said the North’s actions that “threaten the peace, safety and stability of the international community are impermissible.”
South Korean and Japanese officials reported on Wednesday that North Korea had test-fired a ballistic missile.
The meeting between the pontiff and the Japanese prime minister came on the same day that Russia’s foreign ministry announced sanctions against 63 Japanese officials, including Kishida, for engaging in what it called “unacceptable rhetoric” against Moscow.
Additional reporting by Reuters


9. What do young North Koreans think about the country's recent military parade?

A data point of two. But interesting perspectives nonetheless.

Excerpts:
Jang did express sympathy for the soldiers who worked so hard to prepare for the parade, however. He said he would return home dead tired during the two months of rehearsals, and when he saw the soldiers up close, they looked really haggard.
Jang further said that when he looked at the soldiers who trained for almost a year to march just one minute and 40 seconds down Kim Il Sung Square, he could feel how their “blood and tears made the parade possible.”
...
However, some young people reportedly worry that Kim’s comments could lead to warped views about war among the country’s younger generation.
Jang said young people win praise for their “revolutionary statements” when they call for the nation to use the nuclear weapons “created as they tightened their belts,” or to “turn the entire world into a nuclear sea of fire if anyone touches us.” He said older people around him whisper that the youth of today do not take the tragedy of war seriously, and that this is due to state propaganda efforts that solely emphasize the power of nuclear weapons.
He said some North Koreans say ideological education must teach the younger generation from a “proper perspective” rather than encourage “warped patriotism and loyalty” through aggressive comments that instill belligerence in the youth.
Kim, for his part, said North Korea has never hurt any other country, even though there are food shortages and the economy is in bad shape. He said that Kim’s statements hinting at the preemptive use of nuclear weapons is an “opportunity to awaken people to the idea that we can destroy the world with nuclear weapons if anyone touches us.”

Jang said some people in their 20s think differently, however. He said skeptical young people say North Koreans would all die if Pyongyang initiates a nuclear war. According to him, young people critical of Kim’s speech say nobody wants to die, and that leaders should get permission from the next generation — i.e., them — before firing nuclear weapons.

What do young North Koreans think about the country's recent military parade? - Daily NK
Daily NK recently interviewed two young people - one from Pyongyang, the other from Yanggang Province - about their thoughts regarding the parade
By Jeong Tae Joo - 2022.05.05 4:00pm
dailynk.com · May 5, 2022
KCNA reported on Apr. 26 that a military parade was held in Pyongyang the previous day. (KCNA)
North Korea carried out its biggest night-time military parade to mark the 90th anniversary of the military’s founding on Apr. 25, putting its new strategic weapons on full display.
Rodong Sinmun ran a photo on Monday of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un posing for a commemorative photo with Pyongyang university students and young workers who helped make the military parade a success. This suggests North Korea tried to promote unity and loyalty by demonstrating through the country’s unique “politics of commemorative photos with Kim” how the state prioritizes the younger generation.
How is North Korea’s “MZ generation” responding to all of this? Daily NK interviewed a man in his 20s from Pyongyang who took part in the military parade, along with a man in his 20s from Yanggang Province who watched the military parade on Korean Central Television.
People in their 20s give the parade rave reviews
Both Jang, a young worker from Pyongyang, and Kim, a university student from Hyesan, agreed that the event was the most spectacular and splendid night-time military parade they had ever seen.
Jang said it was a shame he could not properly see the parade because, as he was marching in it, he was mainly paying attention to the light signalers (who ensure everyone marching stays in coordination) on top of the presidential platform. He said it was a great event equal to any foreign parade, and that it demonstrated “the nation grows younger if the leader is young.” He also said he felt North Korea was moving toward a “new kind of society.”
Jang did express sympathy for the soldiers who worked so hard to prepare for the parade, however. He said he would return home dead tired during the two months of rehearsals, and when he saw the soldiers up close, they looked really haggard.
Jang further said that when he looked at the soldiers who trained for almost a year to march just one minute and 40 seconds down Kim Il Sung Square, he could feel how their “blood and tears made the parade possible.”
Kim said that as he watched the event on TV, he felt the parade was as spectacular as commemorative military parades in China or Russia. He also said North Korea had grown younger because its leader is young.
Kim noted that many people also had high praise for the parade. In particular, he said North Korean authorities had ordered people to write their thoughts upon the end of North Korea’s holiday period, and that the letters reflected praise of the parade.
Many young people welcome Kim’s comments on the use of nukes
Currently, North Korea is showing its intent to continue developing nuclear weapons so it can bolster its ability to independently manage the country’s defense. In particular, the country is taking advantage of the gap in international solidarity over North Korean denuclearization that has emerged due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and hegemonic tensions between the US and China.
During the military parade, Kim Jong Un — dressed in a uniform reminiscent of his grandfather, North Korean founder Kim Il Sung — said in his address that while the basic mission of his country’s nuclear arsenal is to deter war, he would also use nuclear weapons when enemies attempt to violate North Korea’s fundamental interests.
Many North Korean young people are responding ecstatically to Kim’s speech. The two young people interviewed by Daily NK said that many in the younger generation responded to Kim’s discussion of the preemptive use of nuclear weapons by saying, “Let’s bring it on.”
Jang from Pyongyang said he was glad to hear Kim’s remarks. He said the declaration to make active use of nuclear weapons — rather than to just deter war — once again demonstrated “confidence in victory.” Many young people in their 20s are apparently welcoming Kim’s statement that North Korea could use nuclear weapons in a preemptive way. Kim’s comments were essentially a “revolutionary” statement to turn young people into “loyal elements.”
Kim from Yanggang Province also said that everyone understands the North Korean leader’s speech to mean that the country can use its nuclear weapons not just for defense, but also to attack, if need be. He said he felt glad that the North Korean leader had the guts to declare before the world that North Korea would boldly make offensive use of its nuclear weapons.
Kim said he felt pride after hearing the North Korea’s leader’s first formal declaration that North Korea could also use its nuclear weapons, and that young people are saying, “Let’s have a go with our enemies using nukes.” He said many students at his university think like him.
Meanwhile, North Korea’s leadership is promoting the idea that dozens of years of belt-tightening amid US sanctions and external pressure allowed North Korea to become a nuclear power. The authorities have also tasked party organizations with researching how people of all walks of life feel about Kim’s comments regarding the preemptive use of nuclear weapons, and these findings are being reported to the government.
“Young people don’t think about the tragedy of war…”
However, some young people reportedly worry that Kim’s comments could lead to warped views about war among the country’s younger generation.
Jang said young people win praise for their “revolutionary statements” when they call for the nation to use the nuclear weapons “created as they tightened their belts,” or to “turn the entire world into a nuclear sea of fire if anyone touches us.” He said older people around him whisper that the youth of today do not take the tragedy of war seriously, and that this is due to state propaganda efforts that solely emphasize the power of nuclear weapons.
He said some North Koreans say ideological education must teach the younger generation from a “proper perspective” rather than encourage “warped patriotism and loyalty” through aggressive comments that instill belligerence in the youth.
Kim, for his part, said North Korea has never hurt any other country, even though there are food shortages and the economy is in bad shape. He said that Kim’s statements hinting at the preemptive use of nuclear weapons is an “opportunity to awaken people to the idea that we can destroy the world with nuclear weapons if anyone touches us.”
Jang said some people in their 20s think differently, however. He said skeptical young people say North Koreans would all die if Pyongyang initiates a nuclear war. According to him, young people critical of Kim’s speech say nobody wants to die, and that leaders should get permission from the next generation — i.e., them — before firing nuclear weapons.
Translated by David Black. Edited by Robert Lauler.
Please direct any comments or questions about this article to dailynkenglish@uni-media.net.
dailynk.com · May 5, 2022


10. Yoon names 19 presidential secretaries


Yoon names 19 presidential secretaries
Politics 16:18 May 05, 2022
SEOUL, May 5 (Yonhap) -- President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol on Thursday named 19 presidential secretaries, including six under the senior economic secretary and seven under the chief of staff, his office said.
Yoon also decided to establish a new office to handle policy coordination and tapped his political adviser Jang Sung-min to lead it. Jang served as a political affairs secretary for President Kim Dae-jung in the late 1990s.
Yoon's pick of the secretaries came five days ahead of his inauguration. On Sunday, he named all five senior presidential secretaries and his national security adviser.
The six secretaries to deal with economy-related affairs were mostly chosen from among public servants with expertise in their respective areas, including Kim Byung-hwan of the finance ministry for secretary for the economy and finance, and Kang Kyeong-seong of the industry ministry for secretary for industrial policy, Yoon's office said.
Two people were named to assist the senior political secretary: former Rep. Hong Ji-man for political secretary and Seo Soung-woo, former deputy governor of North Chungcheong Province, for autonomous administration secretary.
The three secretaries chosen to work with Jang in the new office will handle planning, speechwriting and campaigning to host the 2030 World Expo in Busan, respectively.
"The (new office) will collect the short- to mid-term policy projects produced by the policy departments, and build a creative schedule and message that complement them, while coordinating and managing the short-term projects that need to produce results," said Chang Je-won, Yoon's chief of staff during the transition period.
The seven secretaries chosen to assist the presidential chief of staff include Kim Il-bum, Yoon's assistant for foreign press, as chief of protocol, and former presidential officer Han Oh-seop as chief of the situation room for state affairs. Joo Jin-woo, a former prosecutor, was tapped for legal affairs secretary.
Yoon is expected to announce his nominations for the remaining secretarial positions Sunday.

This compilation image shows Hong Ji-man (L), new presidential secretary for political affairs, and Seo Soung-woo, new presidential secretary for autonomous administration. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
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(END)



11. China says it is set for stronger cooperation with new S. Korean gov't

It is hardly a surprise the Chinese would say this at this time. Just wait. What will China do if another THAAD system is deployed?

China says it is set for stronger cooperation with new S. Korean gov't
Diplomacy 13:52 May 05, 2022
BEIJING, May 5 (Yonhap) -- China said it is ready to strengthen cooperation with the incoming South Korean administration for progress in efforts to resolve the Korean Peninsula issue.
Beijing's foreign ministry expressed the commitment in a note on the results of talks between the two countries' top nuclear envoys in Seoul on Tuesday.
Liu Xiaoming, special representative for peninsula affairs, visited Seoul for a meeting with his South Korean counterpart, Noh Kyu-duk.
"China is prepared to strengthen communication and coordination with the new ROK administration to jointly push forward the process of political settlement of the Peninsula issue," it read. ROK is the acronym for South Korea's official name, Republic of Korea. Yoon Suk-yeol is scheduled to be inaugurated as South Korea's president Tuesday.
Liu was quoted as telling Noh that China does not want to see an escalation of tension on the peninsula and disapproves of actions by any party that could aggravate the situation. North Korea has carried out a series of major missile tests, mostly recently on Wednesday, when the Chinese envoy was in South Korea. The United States is seeking additional U.N. sanctions on the North, while China has apparently maintained a rather tepid stance.
Liu noted that Beijing and Seoul "share similar positions and broad common interests" on the peninsula issue and that China supports the two Koreas in improving their relations, as it highly commends the active efforts made by the Moon Jae-in administration and the outcomes it achieved, according to the statement posted on the ministry's website.

Noh Kyu-duk (R), special representative for Korean Peninsula peace and security affairs, shakes hands with his Chinese counterpart, Liu Xiaoming, during a meeting in Seoul on May 3, 2022. (Pool photo) (Yonhap)
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(END)

12. N. Korea slams South’s new president Yoon as ‘pro-US’ and ‘confrontational’

As we suspected would happen. The Propaganda and Agitation Department must have recevied their marching orders.

N. Korea slams South’s new president Yoon as ‘pro-US’ and ‘confrontational’
By flip.it2 min

A major North Korean propaganda website denounced on Thursday South Korea’s incoming president Yoon Suk-yeol, who has vowed to take a tougher line on weapons tests by Pyongyang, describing him as “pro-United States,” and “confrontational.”
The North’s state media have yet to make formal comments on Yoon, a conservative who is set to take office on May 10, but the website Uriminzokkiri issued scathing criticism ahead of his inauguration.
“Yoon Suk-yeol had aroused shock with such preposterous remarks as ‘preemptive strike’ and ‘main enemy,’ and stirred up confrontational madness trumpeting a ‘stronger South Korea-US alliance,’” it said.
It was referring to comments by Yoon that he would allow a pre-emptive strike on North Korea if signs of attack were imminent, and his description of the neighboring nation as a “main enemy.”
That description of the North has been shunned by outgoing progressive President Moon Jae-in, who had sought to improve relations.
The propaganda site’s remarks are a departure from past practice, when state media have trumpeted news of a missile test by the North on the day following, but have this time kept silent, instead, about Wednesday’s weapons test.
The propaganda site criticized Yoon and his picks for ministers of defense, foreign affairs and the unification portfolio as “pro-US toadies” who had sought confrontation while serving in previous conservative governments.
“There’s nothing strange for him to nominate pro-US toadies seeking confrontation with the same people,” it added.
On Wednesday, South Korea’s military reported the North’s 14th known weapons test this year, which analysts said could aim at testing its reconnaissance satellite technology.
In March, South Korea said a North Korean intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) exploded mid-air soon after liftoff. State media made no mention at the time, but another, presumably successful, ICBM launch took place days later.
“North Korea might not announce failed tests, but it’s too early to say that’s the case, and the latest launch appeared rather successful as it showed some progress,” said Park Won-gon, a professor of North Korean studies at Ewha Womans University in Seoul.
Read more:


13. Has Moon Jae-in’s North Korea Peace Process Failed?
I have a different perspective. It is not that Moon's peace agenda failed, it is that Kim Jong-un would never accept it. It is not that the Peace Agenda showed a different possible path - it showed that even when Kim had the two presidents most likely to make a deal that Kim live with he would not or could not make it. The value of Moon's peace agenda is that it illustrated Kim's true intent. He does not seek denuclearization, peace and co-existence. He only seeks domination

Conclusion:

Rather than saying Moon’s peace process failed, it’s more accurate to say it showed a possible path to tackle North Korea issues – albeit a path that was not followed in the end. Yet the Yoon administration will likely ring the death knell for Moon’s peace process by intensifying the arms race on the Korean Peninsula in the name of rebuilding broken ties with the United States. Yoon will justify this by saying the North has already crossed the red line by testing its ICBM in March, while Pyongyang will also use South Korea’s military developments as a pretext for further missile and nuclear tests.

Has Moon Jae-in’s North Korea Peace Process Failed?
Conservatives – including President-elect Yoon – argue that the initiative damaged the South Korea-U.S. alliance. But would South Korea really have been better off without President Moon’s peace process?
thediplomat.com · by Mitch Shin · May 4, 2022
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Since the current South Korean President Moon Jae-in took office in May 2017, he has strived to engage in talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to deescalate the tensions on the Korean Peninsula, which were intensified during nine years of conservative governments before Moon gained power.
Even though Moon reached his hands out to Pyongyang immediately upon his inauguration in May 2017, Pyongyang conducted its sixth nuclear test in September 2017, leading then-U.S. President Donald Trump to warn about unleashing “fire and fury” against North Korea if it conducts another nuclear or missile test. Trump and Kim exchanged harsh words against each other, increasing tensions on the Korean Peninsula even more. Two months after the nuclear test, North Korea tested its Hwasong-15 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), bringing much more anger from Washington and Seoul.
Still, Moon vowed to build peace and prosperity on the Korean Peninsula with a policy centered on dialogue, which is the classical approach of progressive governments on North Korea issues. He utilized the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Games as an opportunity to entice Pyongyang to agree to dialogue. When Kim accepted Moon’s offer to participate in the Winter Olympics in PyeongChang, Moon’s blueprint to denuclearize North Korea and construct lasting peace on the peninsula was activated.
Two months after the PyeongChang Olympics closed, Moon and Kim held a historical inter-Korean summit meeting in the inter-Korean House of Freedom in Panmunjom. Moon’s approval ratings reached above 80 percent at that time, demonstrating how strongly South Koreans wished to see peace and stability in the Korean Peninsula.
After holding the first inter-Korean summit meeting in April 2018, the leaders of the two Koreas announced the joint Panmunjom declaration to introduce common goals for constructing peace and deescalating tensions on the Korean Peninsula. Among the commitments in the joint declaration, pledges to realize “complete denuclearization” and “a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula” helped attract Trump to the idea of being the first-sitting U.S. president to hold summit meetings with the North Korean leader.
Along with Moon and Kim’s stated goal to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula, they also agreed to declare the end of the 1950-53 Korean War, which could be a steppingstone for the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.
A month after the first inter-Korean summit meeting, Moon and Kim met again in DMZ on the North’s side. This closed-door summit meeting was held on Kim’s request. As the North Korea-U.S. summit meeting was scheduled in June 2018, it is believed that Kim wanted Moon’s advice over how to negotiate with Trump, while reaffirming the two Koreas’ strong will to carry out the Panmunjom joint declaration announced in April of that year.
Despite criticism and opposition, including within the Republican Party, over the summit meeting with Kim, Trump did not miss this opportunity to write his name on history. He met Kim in Singapore in June 2018. However, the joint U.S.-North Korea statement published their meeting demonstrated a lack of mutual understanding on the step and scale of denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. There were no details on the timeline and process to denuclearize North Korea.
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In order to make substantive progress on the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and the end of the Korean War, Moon visited Pyongyang in September 2018 to hold the third inter-Korean summit meeting since he took office. Moon made a speech at the stadium in Pyongyang, with about 150,000 North Korean citizens in attendance. Moon and Kim both clearly mentioned “the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula” for peace in their speeches. This was the high point, the moment when it looked like Moon’s peace process could actually make progress as Kim publicly showed his will to denuclearize his country in front of his people.
However, the spring days on the Korean Peninsula would not last. The Hanoi summit meeting between Kim and Trump in 2019 became the turning point of this drama, which Moon was dedicated to finishing with a happy ending.
In the Hanoi summit meeting, Kim demanded that Trump lift the economic sanctions that affect the daily lives of his people in exchange for dismantling the Yongbyon nuclear facility. Experts believe Kim was essentially offering Trump a phased denuclearization process. However, Trump wanted to make a big, all-in-one deal. He refused Kim’s offer and instead demanded the “complete, verifiable, and irreversible dismantlement” (CVID) of North Korea’s nuclear program – a longtime U.S. demand that is anathema to Pyongyang.
Back in Washington, U.S. Republicans supported Trump’s decision to walk out of the negotiating table without reaching an agreement with Kim, saying that “no deal is better than a bad deal.” But Trump’s decision made the Korean Peninsula issues more complicated as Pyongyang continues to believe that Trump humiliated Kim in Hanoi.
Although Kim met Trump in Panmunjom four months after the Hanoi summit, no substantive progress toward denuclearization has been made since Kim returned to Pyongyang empty-handed. Instead, North Korea shifted its stance on the nuclear talks and inter-Korean relations. Pyongyang has been refusing offers of dialogue while returning to a rapid pace of missile testing not seen since 2017.
North Korea has conducted 14 missile tests so far this year, including one just today. Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff announced Wednesday that North Korea had launched a ballistic missile from the Sunan area near Pyongyang. The missile flew 470 kilometers with a maximum altitude of 780 km. Considering the performance of the missile, North Korea might have tested its Hwasong-17 ICBM or its older Hwasong-15 ICBM under an intentionally limited range and altitude.
Under its five-year plan to modernize the country’s military system, North Korea is explicitly showing its will to prepare for a “strength to strength” power game with the United States. Experts also believe Pyongyang is preparing for a nuclear test, as North Korea is restoring its Punggye-ri nuclear site.
Based on the rising tensions on the Korean Peninsula caused by Pyongyang’s flurry of missile tests this year, South Korean President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol and conservatives have criticized Moon’s policy on North Korea issues, saying he was submissive to North Korea. Yoon’s party has downplayed the inter-Korean summit meetings as a disguised peace show, while belittling Moon’s Defense Ministry and Joint Chiefs of Staff for calling North Korea’s missiles “projectiles” when they announced the North’s missile tests. Yoon also repeatedly said the current Moon administration damaged the South Korea-U.S. military alliance, citing the scaled-backed joint military drills held in the past few years.
As the candidate from Moon’s Democratic Party failed to win the presidential election in March, due in large part to strong anti-incumbency sentiment in South Korea, jubilant conservatives have raised their voices on North Korea issues in preparation for the Yoon administration. However, compared with the military provocations of North Korea and tensions on the Korean Peninsula under successive conservative presidents from 2008 to 2017, Moon’s peace process has actually worked well. Ultimately, there were no direct military conflicts between the two Koreas on Moon’s watch.
Although Moon’s peace process has ended with no substantive progress on the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula or the declaration of the end of the Korean War, conservatives have embraced a malicious framing of Moon’s peace process as a submissive overture to North Korea. This ploy still resonates among those who perceive progressives as anti-American and pro-North Korean. This ideological framework, which was created after the North invaded the South in 1950, is still embedded in those who believe that progressive governments waste South Koreans’ taxes by providing aid and support to North Korea with no preconditions.
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This framing also appeared in Yoon’s remarks during his presidential campaign. The incoming Yoon administration will likely differentiate itself from the Moon government on North Korea issues by being a yes-man to Washington while taking a hawkish stance on Pyongyang.
Rather than saying Moon’s peace process failed, it’s more accurate to say it showed a possible path to tackle North Korea issues – albeit a path that was not followed in the end. Yet the Yoon administration will likely ring the death knell for Moon’s peace process by intensifying the arms race on the Korean Peninsula in the name of rebuilding broken ties with the United States. Yoon will justify this by saying the North has already crossed the red line by testing its ICBM in March, while Pyongyang will also use South Korea’s military developments as a pretext for further missile and nuclear tests.
thediplomat.com · by Mitch Shin · May 4, 2022
14. Phillip Goldberg on his way to being U.S. envoy to Seoul

Phillip Goldberg on his way to being U.S. envoy to Seoul

Philip Goldberg
The United States Senate committee ratified the nomination of Philip Goldberg to be ambassador to Korea.
 
At a hearing in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday, the Foreign Relations Committee unanimously approved Goldberg’s nomination. The only procedure left is for the nomination be passed by a plenary session of the Senate.
 
Whether Goldberg will attend President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol’s inauguration ceremony remains unknown, because it's not known when the Senate will vote on the nomination.
 
At the hearing Wednesday, Goldberg called North Korea a “rogue regime” and expressed a hardline stance, saying that “complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearization of North Korea” (CVID) must be achieved.
 
Goldberg served as the State Department’s coordinator for UN sanctions enforcement on North Korea from 2009 to 2010 during the Barack Obama administration. He oversaw the implementation of UN Resolution 1874 on North Korea. He was assistant secretary of state for the Bureau of Intelligence and Research from 2010 to 2013. Goldberg then served as acting ambassador to Chile, acting ambassador to Bolivia, ambassador to the Philippines, and has been serving as ambassador to Colombia since 2019, having started during the Trump administration.
 
Goldberg is a so-called career ambassador, the highest rank in the U.S. Foreign Service.
 
The U.S. government has given some 60 diplomats the title of career ambassador, which means they met a number of requirements including serving at least 15 years in a position of responsibility in a government agency and rendering exceptionally distinguished service to the government, according to the State Department. The president nominates ambassadors as career ambassadors, and the Senate confirms the nominations.
 
Goldberg’s experiences as a negotiator date back to the Dayton Peace Conference, which put an end to the Bosnian War in 1995. Goldberg, as special assistant to top negotiator and ambassador Richard Holbrooke, was a member of the American negotiating team in the lead-up to the peace conference and chief of staff for the American delegation. 
 
If Goldberg is appointed ambassador to Korea, it will be the first time in seven years that a career diplomat takes the job. The last two American ambassadors in Seoul were Mark Lippert, who was chief of staff to the Secretary of Defense at the time of nomination, and Harry Harris, who was head of the U.S. Pacific Command before being named ambassador.
 
The U.S. ambassadorship to Korea has been vacant since Harris left the position in January 2021.
 

BY LIM JEONG-WON [lim.jeongwon@joongang.co.kr]







V/R
David Maxwell
Senior Fellow
Foundation for Defense of Democracies
Personal Email: david.maxwell161@gmail.com
Web Site: www.fdd.org
Twitter: @davidmaxwell161
VIDEO "WHEREBY" Link: https://whereby.com/david-maxwell
Subscribe to FDD’s new podcastForeign Podicy
FDD is a Washington-based nonpartisan research institute focusing on national security and foreign policy.

V/R
David Maxwell
Senior Fellow
Foundation for Defense of Democracies
Personal Email: david.maxwell161@gmail.com
Web Site: www.fdd.org
Twitter: @davidmaxwell161
Subscribe to FDD’s new podcastForeign Podicy
FDD is a Washington-based nonpartisan research institute focusing on national security and foreign policy.

If you do not read anything else in the 2017 National Security Strategy read this on page 14:

"A democracy is only as resilient as its people. An informed and engaged citizenry is the fundamental requirement for a free and resilient nation. For generations, our society has protected free press, free speech, and free thought. Today, actors such as Russia are using information tools in an attempt to undermine the legitimacy of democracies. Adversaries target media, political processes, financial networks, and personal data. The American public and private sectors must recognize this and work together to defend our way of life. No external threat can be allowed to shake our shared commitment to our values, undermine our system of government, or divide our Nation."
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