Quotes of the Day:

"It is logical that the United States should do whatever it is able to do to assist in the return of normal economic health in the world, without which there can be no political stability and no assured peace. Our policy is directed not against any country or doctrine but against hunger, poverty, desperation, and chaos. "

- Excerpt from a speech by Secretary of State George Marshall laying out his plan for U.S.-led economic recovery of Europe after World War II. The plan, which came to be known as the Marshall Plan, was signed and put into effect by President Harry S. Truman in 1948

"I do not like to state an opinion on a matter unless I know the precise facts." 

- Albert Einstein

If you make listening and observation your occupation, you will gain much more than you can by talk." 

- Robert Baden-Powell

1. North Korea keeps building more powerful weapons, with no end in sight

2. S. Korea, U.S. hold air drills involving B-52H strategic bomber: defense ministry

3. Yoon says foreign policy directly related to people's livelihoods

4. S. Korean police, FBI chiefs discuss tighter cooperation on cybercrime, antiterrorism

5. Yoon to meet U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee members this week

6. IMF warns Korea of property market risk

7. Korea to continue negotiations with U.S. over IRA

8. South turns hawkish as UN council condemns North

9. North Korea holds conference of journalists' union for first time in 22 years

10. U.S. lawmakers officially ask Yoon to address Congress

11. N. Korean hacking group finances Kim Jong Un

12. What Nuclear Weapons Sharing Trends Mean for East Asia

13. N. Korea expands number of hours markets can operate in border region

14. ​North Korea and Burkina Faso Plot New Relationship​

15. In K-Pop’s Quest for Global Growth, Korean Fans Feel Cast Aside

16. Yoon reiterates stronger security cooperation with US, Japan

17. US hinders S. Korea’s nuclear plant export to Czech Republic

1.  North Korea keeps building more powerful weapons, with no end in sight

​

No strategy has worked for 4 decades. That is why we need a new strategy. (National Strategy for Countering North Korea, https://nipp.org/information_series/robert-joseph-robert-collins-joseph-detrani-nicholas-eberstadt-olivia-enos-david-maxwell-and-greg-scarlatoiu-national-strategy-for-countering-north-korea-no-545-january-23-2023/)

We need to understand the nature, objectives ,and strategy of the Kim family regime to assess the efficacy of diplomacy to lead to the elimination of the regime's nuclear weapons.

Let me reprise my 5 Key Questions:

1. What do we want to achieve in Korea?

1. What is the acceptable durable political arrangement that will protect, serve, and advance US and ROK/US Alliance interests on the Korean Peninsula and in Northeast Asia?

1. Who does Kim fear more: The US or the Korean people in the north? (Note it is the Korean people armed with information knowledge of life in South Korea)

1. Do we believe that Kim Jong-un has abandoned the seven decades old strategy of subversion, coercion-extortion (blackmail diplomacy), and use of force to achieve unification dominated by the Guerrilla Dynasty and Gulag State in order to ensure the survival of the mafia like crime family cult known as Kim family regime?

1. In support of that strategy do we believe that Kim Jong-un has abandoned the objective to split the ROK/US Alliance and get US forces off the peninsula? Has KJU given up his divide to conquer strategy - divide the alliance to conquer the ROK?

The answers to these questions should guide us to the strategy to solve the "Korea question" (para 60 of the Armistice) and lead to the only acceptable durable political arrangement: A secure, stable, economically vibrant, non-nuclear Korean peninsula unified under a liberal constitutional form of government with respect for individual liberty, the rule of law, and human rights, determined by the Korean people.  A free and unified Korea or, in short, a United Republic of Korea (UROK).

Although denuclearization of the north remains a worthy goal, it must be viewed as aspirational as long as the Kim family regime remains in power. The conventional wisdom has always been that denuclearization must come first and then unification will follow and that there should be no discussion of human rights out of fear that it would prevent Kim Jong Un from making a denuclearization agreement. Today even a blind man can read the tea leaves and know that Kim Jong Un will not denuclearize despite the fact that his policies have been an abject failure. His political warfare and blackmail diplomacy strategies completely failed in 2022 because Presidents Yoon and Biden, like their predecessors, refused to make the political and economic concessions he demanded just to come to the negotiating table: namely to remove sanctions. It is time for the U.S and the ROK/U.S. alliance to execute a political warfare strategy that flips the conventional wisdom and seeks unification first and then denuclearization. Everyone must come to the understanding that the only way to end the nuclear program and the human rights abuses is through unification of the Korean peninsula. The ROK and U.S. must continue to maintain the highest state of military readiness to deter war and then adopt a human rights upfront approach, a comprehensive and sophisticated information and influence activities campaign, and focus all efforts on the pursuit of a free and unified Korea- ultimately a United Republic of Korea (UROK).

​

North Korea keeps building more powerful weapons, with no end in sight | Lowy Institute

Diplomacy is desperately needed to avoid an irreversible

escalation in nuclear capability and the excuse to use it.

lowyinstitute.org · by Gabriela Bernal

North Korean weapons tests are nothing new. Pyongyang has been conducting missile tests for years, even holding large annual parades to show off its arsenal. However, things are changing at a rapid pace, with North Korea’s weapons technology and capabilities posing an increasing threat to regional and global peace. With diplomacy at a stalemate, the stakes are higher than ever to find a way back to the negotiating table before it’s too late.

What has changed is the way North Korea has chosen to respond to current ongoing military drills on the southern half of the Korean peninsula.

North Korea has come a long way from the days when it only tested a handful of missiles per year. Pyongyang began showing an increasingly bold attitude in 2022 when it launched more than 90 missiles over a 12-month period – the most ever in its history. The bulk of these provocations were largely motivated by combined military drills held by South Korea and the United States, which in turn provide a convenient excuse for the North to test out its weapons and evaluate its strengths and shortcomings. North Korea has long seen such drills as preparation for war, invasion and a preemptive attack. This perception remains the same in 2023.

What has changed, however, is the way North Korea has chosen to respond to current ongoing military drills on the southern half of the Korean peninsula. Last year, its provocations involved various kinds of missile tests, artillery fire and warplane flight formations. This year, North Korea has once again upped the ante.

Last month alone, North Korea conducted various shows of force including the firing of two submarine-launched cruise missiles (SLCMs) on 12 March, an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) on 16 March, four cruise missiles on 22 March, and tested a new underwater attack drone from 21–23 March and 25–27 March. The latter has especially made headlines.

A view to the Korean demilitarised zone (DMZ) and, beyond it, North Korea (Ben Kucinski/Flickr)

According to North Korean media, the country’s military is now capable of mounting nuclear warheads on not just ballistic missiles but also cruise missiles and self-destructing unmanned underwater crafts. While many experts are sceptical about the claims, photos released last week by North Korea’s Rodong Sinmun newspaper revealed a tactical nuclear warhead for the first time. One noteworthy point was how the country’s leader Kim Jong-un was shown inspecting multiple serially produced warheads, suggesting a high degree of confidence that they will perform as intended even though they are yet to be tested. In addition, the photos showed warheads intended for use with at least eight different delivery platforms displayed on posters hanging on a wall.

Prioritising a return to diplomacy with North Korea seems beyond the Biden administration’s attention span.

Nevertheless, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff spokesperson argues that North Korea’s ability to place smaller nuclear warheads in short-range missiles cannot be considered successful “until they are tested in a real-world environment”. Seemingly undeterred by the weapons advancements being made in the North, the South has continued with more joint drills with the United States. South Korea is keeping its focus on increased military cooperation with the United States.

With Washington distracted by the war in Ukraine, strategic competition with China, and domestic issues, prioritising a return to diplomacy with North Korea seems beyond the Biden administration’s attention span. However, again adopting a “strategic patience” approach where Washington waits for Pyongyang to suddenly agree to talks or crumbles under pressure is unrealistic, and risks escalating military tensions on the peninsula to levels not seen in years.

In fact, it does seem that many in both Seoul and Washington have become desensitised to North Korea’s military provocations and rhetoric. The same day the Rodong Sinmun report was published, a US carrier strike group led by the USS Nimitz docked at South Korea’s Busan naval base, marking the ship’s first visit in six years. Regarding the Republic of Korea–US drills, US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said that Washington “will continue to make sure that we have the appropriate military capabilities and the appropriate readiness to use those capabilities if need be, to protect our national security interests and those of our allies,” adding that he believes the joint drills “will help us with those readiness capabilities”.

Despite Washington’s perspective, however, stronger efforts at deterrence have done nothing to curb the North Korean threat. This was made clear in the wake of joint drills last year and is once again underscored by the current ongoing exercises. If anything, Pyongyang is becoming ever bolder and more dangerous with its vast array of military provocations and increasing advances in weapons technologies.

One unwanted consequence that could result from this current situation is South Korea pushing to acquire its own nuclear weapons capabilities, something that has come up repeatedly, particularly in the past few months. The mayor of Seoul floated the idea once again as recently as 13 March. Such a move could, however, result in a proliferation domino effect that would endanger the region and the wider world.

Such rhetoric from Seoul – paired with the North repeatedly displaying its readiness and capability to strike South Korea, Japan and even the United States – highlights the urgent need for a diplomatic breakthrough to stop the tit-for-tat cycle of military escalations on both sides of the 38th parallel. The Biden and Yoon administrations must quickly adjust their North Korea approach to place the priority on more flexible and realistic negotiation strategies before Pyongyang gains even more diplomatic leverage by further expanding and upgrading its military capabilities.

lowyinstitute.org · by Gabriela Bernal

2. S. Korea, U.S. hold air drills involving B-52H strategic bomber: defense ministry

The new normal. It is not just about the two major annual exercises. The ROK/US alliance is ensuring readiness through sustained interoperability training.

(LEAD) S. Korea, U.S. hold air drills involving B-52H strategic bomber: defense ministry | Yonhap News Agency

en.yna.co.kr · by 송상호 · April 5, 2023

(ATTN: UPDATES with more details in paras 5-7)

SEOUL, April 5 (Yonhap) -- South Korea and the United States held combined air drills, involving at least one U.S. B-52H strategic bomber, Wednesday, Seoul's defense ministry said, amid joint efforts to sharpen deterrence against evolving North Korean threats.

The bomber was redeployed to the Korean Peninsula about a month after its last deployment here amid tensions caused by Pyongyang's provocative moves, such as its unveiling of the Hwasan-31 tactical nuclear warhead last week.

The South Korean Air Force mobilized its F-35A radar-evading fighters for the drills, while the U.S. side deployed F-35B and F-16 fighters.

The training focused on practicing procedures to protect the strategic bomber from potential aerial enemy threats, and strengthening the allied forces' interoperability and combined operational capabilities, according to the ministry.

"It is assessed that the successive deployments to the peninsula of key U.S. strategic assets have represented the U.S. putting into action its determination to defend the Republic of Korea (ROK) and its efforts to enhance the credibility of extended deterrence," the ministry said in a press release, referring to the South's official name.

Extended deterrence refers to the U.S.' commitment to using the full range of its military capabilities, including nuclear, to defend its ally.

Lt. Gen. Park Ha-sik, the commander of the ROK Air Force Operations Command, said the two countries' air drills demonstrated their alliance's "perfect" readiness to respond "swiftly and overwhelmingly" to any North Korean provocations.

In recent months, the U.S. has deployed a series of its high-profile military assets, including a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, in an apparent show of force against potential North Korean provocations.

This file photo, provided by the U.S. Central Command on Nov. 11, 2022, shows a U.S. B-52H strategic bomber. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

sshluck@yna.co.kr

(END)

en.yna.co.kr · by 송상호 · April 5, 2023

3. Yoon says foreign policy directly related to people's livelihoods

Interesting that a meeting was held at Cheong Wa Dae.

Excerpts:

"Running state affairs and diplomacy are one and the same. They are two sides of the same coin," he said during the meeting at the former presidential complex of Cheong Wa Dae.

The country's future, he noted, depends on whether it can build stronger supply chains in the face of the current polycrisis and secure a technological advantage through innovations in cutting-edge technology.

"At a time when cooperation in cutting-edge science and technology comes in a package, foreign policy and national security are directly related to our people's livelihoods," he said.

...

"At the center of diplomacy is the economy," he said. "We will strengthen cooperation on nuclear energy, semiconductors and supply chains by expanding global cooperation, and combine our capabilities to achieve results in exports and overseas markets."

Yoon says foreign policy directly related to people's livelihoods | Yonhap News Agency

en.yna.co.kr · by 이해아 · April 5, 2023

SEOUL, April 5 (Yonhap) -- President Yoon Suk Yeol said Wednesday foreign policy and national security are directly related to people's livelihoods, and emphasized the importance of cooperation with allies and partners.

Yoon made the remark at a meeting held to check progress on his administration's foreign policy and national security goals, with 128 people in attendance, including 97 members of the public and the ministers for foreign affairs, unification, defense and veterans affairs.

"Running state affairs and diplomacy are one and the same. They are two sides of the same coin," he said during the meeting at the former presidential complex of Cheong Wa Dae.

The country's future, he noted, depends on whether it can build stronger supply chains in the face of the current polycrisis and secure a technological advantage through innovations in cutting-edge technology.

"At a time when cooperation in cutting-edge science and technology comes in a package, foreign policy and national security are directly related to our people's livelihoods," he said.

President Yoon Suk Yeol (2nd from R, front) presides over a meeting held to check progress on his administration's foreign policy and national security goals at the former presidential complex of Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul on April 5, 2023. (Yonhap)

The session was the second of its kind following the first session in December, which covered issues related to the economy, regional development, and labor, education and pension reforms.

Yoon said North Korea's unlawful nuclear and missile development, and repeated provocations have rendered the security situation on the Korean Peninsula and in Northeast Asia graver than ever.

He called for strengthening extended deterrence measures under the South Korea-U.S alliance and reinforcing the South Korean three-axis system, which involves anti-missile defense, a program to incapacitate the North Korean leadership and a preemptive strike platform.

"Our military must establish a firm understanding of the enemy and military discipline so that in whatever circumstance, when we are attacked first, we can fight and win," he said.

Yoon also referred to the government's first public release of a North Korean human rights report last week, saying it is "very important" to widely publicize the "appalling violations of human rights" against the North Korean people.

"In order to overcome challenges, such as the polycrisis and the North Korean nuclear threat, trilateral cooperation among South Korea, the United States and Japan is more important than ever," he said.

"The South Korea-U.S. alliance has already developed from a military and security alliance to a global comprehensive strategic alliance, while the importance of South Korea-Japan relations cannot be emphasized enough," he added.

Yoon recalled his administration unveiled its Indo-Pacific strategy last year as a "global pivotal state," and took economic security cooperation with Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates to a higher level.

He also said he conducted "sales diplomacy" in his summit meetings with foreign leaders to help produce results for the economy

"At the center of diplomacy is the economy," he said. "We will strengthen cooperation on nuclear energy, semiconductors and supply chains by expanding global cooperation, and combine our capabilities to achieve results in exports and overseas markets."

hague@yna.co.kr

(END)

en.yna.co.kr · by 이해아 · April 5, 2023

4. S. Korean police, FBI chiefs discuss tighter cooperation on cybercrime, antiterrorism

And north Korea's global illicit activities that occur across the spectrum.

S. Korean police, FBI chiefs discuss tighter cooperation on cybercrime, antiterrorism | Yonhap News Agency

en.yna.co.kr · by 박보람 · April 5, 2023

SEOUL, April 5 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's police chief has met with the head of the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FIB) and discussed ways to tighten cooperation to jointly deal with cybercrime, terrorism and other security matters, the police here said Wednesday.

In the meeting held on Tuesday (U.S. time) at the FBI headquarters in Washington, Commissioner General Yoon Hee-keun of the National Police Agency and FIB Director Christopher Wray also discussed personnel exchanges and education cooperation to strengthen their forces, the police said.

"Through firm solidarity and cooperation between the two agencies, we would be able to undercut and thwart threats we face," Yoon was quoted as saying in the meeting.

Yoon is visiting Washington as part of his two-nation trip at the invitation of the Canadian police and the FBI. He is set to return home on Thursday.

The National Police Agency of South Korea (Yonhap)

pbr@yna.co.kr

(END)

en.yna.co.kr · by 박보람 · April 5, 2023

5. Yoon to meet U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee members this week

Yoon to meet U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee members this week | Yonhap News Agency

en.yna.co.kr · by 김수연 · April 4, 2023

SEOUL, April 4 (Yonhap) -- President Yoon Suk Yeol will meet with a delegation from the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee, led by Chairman Michael McCaul, this week to discuss the Seoul-Washington alliance, diplomatic sources said Tuesday, ahead of his scheduled state visit to the U.S. this month.

Yoon will meet Chairman McCaul (R-Texas) and seven other U.S. lawmakers Wednesday at the presidential office in Yongsan, central Seoul, according to the sources. The bipartisan delegation, which arrived here earlier in the day, will stay in Seoul until Thursday.

The visit came as this year marked the 70th anniversary of the establishment of the South-U.S. alliance.

It is not known what they will discuss, but there is the possibility they may discuss Yoon's address at a joint session of the U.S. Congress during his state visit to the U.S.

Yoon is scheduled to hold a summit with U.S. President Joe Biden in Washington, D.C., on April 26.

Whether Yoon will deliver a speech at Congress will be decided depending on the invitation of U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy.

Meanwhile, South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin hosted a dinner for the U.S. congressional delegation, stressing the importance of strengthening the alliance to mark its 70th anniversary.

"Bipartisan support by the U.S. Congress is a key axis for the allies' partnership. We expect to work with you for a more promising future of the global comprehensive strategic alliance, which was built on common commitment to universal values," Park said.

Seoul and Washington have bolstered their joint defense posture in response to North Korea's evolving nuclear and missile threats.

President Yoon Suk Yeol delivers remarks at an investment ceremony at Samsung Display Co.'s campus in Asan, 87 kilometers south of Seoul, on April 4, 2023. (Pool photo) (Yonhap)

(END)

en.yna.co.kr · by 김수연 · April 4, 2023

6. IMF warns Korea of property market risk

IMF warnings acare Koreans. The 1997 IMF crisis is not a distant memory for many.

IMF warns Korea of property market risk

donga.com

Posted April. 05, 2023 07:53,

Updated April. 05, 2023 07:53

IMF warns Korea of property market risk. April. 05, 2023 07:53. by Hyoun-Soo Kim, Do-Hyong Kim kimhs@donga.com,dodo@donga.com.

Concerns are mounting that real estate loans may set off a series of risks as the housing market slowdown and global financial market uncertainty continue. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) noted in its April issue of the Global Financial Stability Report that the banking sector crisis triggered by the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank revealed vulnerabilities in the financial businesses and that the risk may worsen for months. As for the vulnerabilities in the non-bank financial sector in particular, the report cited the case of distressed project financing in Korea's property market, pointing out that concerns persist over possible risks and defaults due to falling housing prices.

Korea's non-bank real estate project financing sector is currently showing signs of distress with its risk exposure size and rising delinquency rates. According to the Bank of Korea (BOK), the risk exposure of the real estate project financing by non-banking financial institutions was 115.5 trillion Korean won as of September 2022, a two-to-four-fold increase in just five years across a variety of businesses. The delinquency rates have more than doubled in just nine months overall businesses, with securities companies climbing up to 8.2%. If the sluggish real estate market continues, a credit crisis may spill over to the second-tier financial sector from an increasing number of businesses faltering with distressed project financing.

Mortgage lending, which had been stagnant for a while, is also signaling an increase as home purchase sentiment is being rekindled with a series of housing loan deregulations and a sharp decline in mortgage rates. Around 40% of some 64,000 people who purchased a house in March 2023 were first-time home buyers, and the number of those in their 20s and 30s who bought an apartment complex was at a two-year high. Government pressure on banks to lower interest rates resulted in the floor rate of mortgage loans falling to the annual 3% range in just a year, rendering the BOK's efforts futile, which had raised the benchmark interest rate for seven consecutive times.

Mortgage loan late payment to major financial institutions breached one trillion won as of late 2022. If mortgage borrowing resurges, the number of financially-distressed households that are unable to repay loans will go up, risking even the whole financial sector. Already 5% of all indebted households in Korea cannot repay their loans even if they liquidate all of their assets. The ratio of such highly-distressed households exceeds 20% in the second-tier financial sector.

The government should be fully ready to prevent household mortgage debts or small-scale distressed project financing experienced by construction companies from morphing into a full-blown financial crisis by checking all possible risk factors and developing responsive measures. It should keep a close eye on non-bank financial institutions with high delinquency rates while being decisive enough to allow pre-emptive restructuring led by the private sector for project-financed businesses with high insolvency risk. We urgently need a solution that can induce a soft landing in the property market while reducing the ratio of real estate loans.

한국어

donga.com

7. Korea to continue negotiations with U.S. over IRA

Wednesday

April 5, 2023

 dictionary + A - A 

Korea to continue negotiations with U.S. over IRA

https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/2023/04/05/business/economy/korea-ira-finance-ministry/20230405161757244.html

Finance Minister Choo Kyung-ho speaks at a ministerial meeting held at the government complex in central Seoul on Wednesday. [NEWS1]

Korea will continue to conduct pan-governmental negotiations with the United States over the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) to maximize the interests of Korean corporations.  

"As much as uncertainties still remain, we will continuously negotiate with the United States and related industries to maximize our corporations’ interests and minimize difficulties,” said Finance Minister Choo Kyung-ho ahead of a closed-door meeting held at the government complex in central Seoul on Wednesday. 

The meeting was attended by ministers and vice ministers of relevant ministries, including the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

The U.S. IRA aims to catalyze investments in domestic manufacturing capacity and encourage procurement of essential supplies domestically or from free-trade partners, ostensibly to reduce carbon emission reductions, but also likely to curb China's rise.

The U.S. Treasury Department announced new guidelines of the act last week. 

While the new guidelines largely reflect Korea’s positions, ambiguity remains, Seoul says.  

“Uncertainties remain regarding conditions for receiving semiconductor subsidies, how much information needs to be submitted in the process of applying for them, and export restrictions on chip equipment,” Choo said. 

Choo further vowed to work with Europe on its establishment of green subsidies. 

Choo said the government will also negotiate with the EU to make sure Korea’s stance is properly reflected, considering that the legislative procedure typically takes around two years.

He added the government will reduce the burden on corporations and help them develop technologies that can reduce carbon emissions.

Europe is pushing the Critical Raw Materials Act, aimed to ensure the EU’s access to a secure and sustainable supply of critical raw materials, and the Net-Zero Industry Act, which aims to promote green technology development in the EU to accelerate the region's transition to decarbonization. 

Brussels announced proposals for the acts last month, which Korea’s trade ministry said are “not discriminatory, unlike the U.S. IRA.”

Korea will also diversify free-trade partners to expand export markets.

Choo said Korea will continue efforts to diversify its trade portfolio and speed up free-trade negotiations, including those with Ecuador and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), a regional organization with six members, including Saudi Arabia, UAE and Qatar.

Korea held a seventh round of negotiation with the GCC on free trade in February.

Korea will also launch negotiations with Georgia and Mongolia in the first half of this year to help Korean companies enter overseas market and diversify supply chain networks. 

Korea’s exports fell for six months straight in March as global demand for semiconductors remains weak amid an economic slowdown. It also suffered a trade deficit for 13 months in a row.

BY JIN MIN-JI [jin.minji@joongang.co.kr]

8. South turns hawkish as UN council condemns North

I do not think "hawkish" is the right description for taking the morally right action.

Wednesday

April 5, 2023

 dictionary + A - A 

South turns hawkish as UN council condemns North

https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/2023/04/05/national/northKorea/korea-north-korea-human-rights/20230405182019416.html

This photo taken on Feb. 27 shows the 52nd session of the United Nations Human Rights Council taking place at the Palais des Nations in Geneva, Switzerland. [XINHUA/YONHAP]

South Korea's recent international engagement regarding North Korea suggests Seoul may be returning to a hawkish stance toward Pyongyang.

The UN Human Rights Council in Geneva adopted a resolution Tuesday condemning human rights violations by the North Korean regime.

South Korea co-sponsored the resolution, ending a multi-year hiatus that began during the previous liberal administration, which favored improving relations with the North. 

The latest resolution, drafted by Sweden on behalf of the European Union, was adopted without a vote at the council's 52nd regular session, meaning that it was adopted by consensus.

The resolution kept to its usual language, condemning “in the strongest terms" North Korea's "long-standing and ongoing systemic, widespread and gross human rights violations."

A noticeable change in the resolution was how it specifically addressed a North Korean law against "reactionary thought and culture," calling attention to the regime’s efforts to keep its citizens in the dark in both in the online and offline spaces.

The resolution urged the North Korean government to take immediate steps to end crimes, abuses and violations of “rights of freedom of opinion, expression and association, both online and offline,” by allowing independent newspapers and media to operate in the country, and to review its laws “including the Law on Rejecting Reactionary Thought and Culture.”

“It's the first time ever that a UN resolution condemning human rights violations in North Korea mentioned a specific law in the country,” said a diplomatic insider in speaking with the JoongAng Ilbo recently.

Through the so-called "Law on Rejecting Reactionary Thought and Culture" enacted in 2020, the North Korean regime has banned citizens from bringing in, viewing or distributing “reactionary ideology and culture,” including TV shows and movies from South Korea, with violators subject to harsh penalties, including death. 

UN resolutions on North Korean human rights have been passed consistently by the international body every year since 2003.

South Korea was co-sponsor of the resolution from 2008 to 2018 but stopped in 2019 as the liberal Moon Jae-in administration focused on engaging with Pyongyang.

North Korea balked at the resolution’s passage on Tuesday.

“It is a document that is full of lies and contains a political conspiracy that has nothing to do with promoting human rights,” said Han Tae-song, North Korean ambassador to the UN Office in Geneva. “It was created with the sole purpose of undermining the prestige of my country and realizing the unrealistic dream of overthrowing our society.”

He added that the draftee countries were “making the Human Rights Council a stage for interfering in the internal affairs of sovereign countries.”

Efforts to address North Korean issues will continue in Seoul this week as the nuclear envoys of South Korea, the United States and Japan meet in Seoul to discuss the North Korean nuclear threat.

Kim Gunn, South Korea's nuclear negotiator, will meet with American nuclear envoy Sung Kim and Japanese nuclear envoy Takehiro Funakoshi on Friday, according to the Foreign Ministry. 

The envoys will hold bilateral meetings on Thursday.

They will discuss the “grave situation on the Korean Peninsula following North Korea's recent series of provocations” and discuss countermeasures, said Lim Soo-suk, a ministry spokesperson in a press briefing on Tuesday. 

North Korea has engaged in a string of provocative actions in recent years, firing over 90 missiles in 2022 alone, and passing a law last September announcing its readiness to launch pre-emptive nuclear strikes against any country that poses an imminent threat to North Korea and its leadership. 

BY PARK HYUN-JU, ESTHER CHUNG [chung.juhee@joongang.co.kr]

9. North Korea holds conference of journalists' union for first time in 22 years

The regime's message in three words: Do propaganda better.

Wednesday

April 5, 2023

 dictionary + A - A 

North Korea holds conference of journalists' union for first time in 22 years

https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/2023/04/05/national/northKorea/North-Korean-media-North-Korean-journalists-Korean-Central-TV/20230405095632254.html

North Korea holds the 9th conference of the Journalists Union of Korea on Monday and Tuesday. [KOREAN CENTRAL NEWS AGENCY]

North Korea held a conference of its journalists' union earlier this week for the first time in 22 years and urged its members to become "devoted spokespeople" of the ruling Workers' Party, state media reported Wednesday.

The 9th conference of the Journalists Union of Korea took place in Pyongyang on Monday and Tuesday, joined by top state media officials, including Ri Chun-hee, the iconic news presenter for Korean Central TV, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

The North last convened the union's conference in November 2001, long before the country's current leader Kim Jong-un took power in 2011.

This week's conference could be intended to bolster the regime's propaganda efforts as it seeks to ward off foreign influences and battles with chronic food shortages, observers said.

During the meeting, the chairman of the union's central committee called on its members to accept the policies and stance of the ruling party as the "absolute truth" and become its "devoted spokespeople" to lead the country's socialist construction, it said.

The members unanimously voted to revise the union's rules, although the KCNA did not provide details on its content. They also elected a new chairman and vice chairman of the union's central committee.

The KCNA said the conference served as an "important opportunity" to improve the country's work on publication and news reporting by establishing the ruling party's ideology on them as a "firm guideline."

The North is known for being one of the worst countries for press freedom in the world, with its media outlets tightly controlled by the state.

Yonhap

10. U.S. lawmakers officially ask Yoon to address Congress

A lot of Congressmen in Korea this week – 2 separate delegations.

Is this an official invitation to address a joint session of Congress?

Wednesday

April 5, 2023

 dictionary + A - A 

U.S. lawmakers officially ask Yoon to address Congress

https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/2023/04/05/national/diplomacy/Korea-Yoon-Suk-Yeol-US-Congress/20230405185309652.html

President Yoon Suk Yeol, left, greets Rep. Michael McCaul, who is leading a U.S. congressional delegation of the House Foreign Affairs Committee on a trip Korea, at the Yongsan presidential office in central Seoul Wednesday. [PRESIDENTIAL OFFICE]

President Yoon Suk Yeol was officially asked by a visiting U.S. congressional delegation Wednesday to give an address to the U.S. Congress during his state visit to the United States later this month, the presidential office said.

Yoon met with eight lawmakers of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, led by committee chairman Rep. Michael McCaul, a Republican of Texas, along with U.S. Senator Jon Ossoff, who is on a separate trip, at the Yongsan presidential office in central Seoul.

A bilateral summit with U.S. President Joe Biden at the White House is set for April 26, and Yoon's visit is expected to be an opportunity for the Korean president to address a joint session of the U.S. Congress for the first time in 10 years as the two countries mark the 70th anniversary of the Korea-U.S. alliance. 

Yoon told the U.S. lawmakers that he will be "delighted to stand on the podium of the Congress to give a historic speech on the special occasion of the 70th anniversary of the Republic of Korea-U.S. alliance," Lee Do-woon, presidential spokesman, said in a briefing Wednesday evening. 

Yoon asked for "special attention and support from the U.S. Congress" for the strengthening the alliance, said Lee.

In turn, McCaul and Ossoff said that the Congress will provide maximum bipartisan support for the success of Yoon's state visit to the United States this month.

Six previous Korean presidents have made a speech to the U.S. Congress. 

The bipartisan House delegation arrived in Korea for a three-day visit Tuesday. 

Sen. Ossoff, a Democrat of Georgia, home to several major Korean plants, led a U.S. economic delegation to Seoul for a four-day trip starting Tuesday.

A strong advocate of the Korea-U.S. alliance, Ossoff met with Yoon, then a presidential candidate, during a trip to Korea in November 2021. He also met with Foreign Minister Park Jin on Wednesday. 

During their visit, the House Foreign Affairs Committee lawmakers met with Korean officials and lawmakers, including Foreign Minister Park and National Assembly Speaker Kim Jin-pyo, to discuss the South Korea-U.S. alliance and strengthening coordination on North Korean threats.

Park asked for full support from the U.S. Congress for Yoon's successful state visit to the U.S. during their talks Tuesday, the Foreign Ministry said in a statement. The two sides also discussed marking the 70th anniversary of the Korea-U.S. alliance and other regional and global matters. 

Park stressed that it was essential to strengthen bilateral cooperation in strategic industries, such as semiconductors and batteries, in order for the countries to go beyond a traditional security alliance and develop into an alliance that responds together to 21st century challenges, such as economic security and advanced technology. 

He requested that the Congress continue to show interest and support in resolving Korean companies' uncertainties in relation to the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). 

McCaul and the other American lawmakers agreed that cooperation between the two countries, which share core values, is important in the midst of complex regional and international crises, according to the ministry. 

They assured that the U.S. Congress will do their best to ensure a successful state visit by the Korean president to mark the 70th anniversary of the alliance. They also said they are encouraged that the two countries are expanding the role of the alliance under the common vision of freedom, democracy and the rule of law, the ministry said. 

On Tuesday evening, Park, a former four-term lawmaker with close ties to the U.S. Congress, hosted a dinner for the U.S. delegation. 

The delegation included Reps. French Hill, a Republican of Arizona; Young Kim, a Republican of California; Ami Bera, a Democrat of California; and Madeleine Dean, a Democrat of Pennsylvania. 

Also on Wednesday, Edgard Kagan, senior director for East Asia and Oceania at the White House National Security Council (NSC), met with First Vice Foreign Minister Cho Hyun-dong and discussed ways to strengthen bilateral cooperation for the 70th anniversary, the Foreign Ministry said.

Cho is currently tapped to become Korean ambassador to the United States after previous ambassador Cho Tae-yong was appointed as Yoon's new national security adviser last week following the abrupt resignation of his predecessor.

Foreign Minister Jin Park, center, poses for a commemorative photo with a U.S. congressional delegation of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, led by Rep. Michael McCaul, at a banquet to welcome them at the government complex in Jongno District, central Seoul Tuesday. [NEWS1]

BY SARAH KIM [kim.sarah@joongang.co.kr]

11.  N. Korean hacking group finances Kim Jong Un

Another indicator of how important the regime's all-purpose sword is to Kim Jong Un' s survival.

N. Korean hacking group finances Kim Jong Un

donga.com

Posted April. 05, 2023 07:53,

Updated April. 05, 2023 07:53

N. Korean hacking group finances Kim Jong Un. April. 05, 2023 07:53. namduck2@donga.com.

A North Korean hacking group known as “Kimsuky” or “Thallium” is financing the North Korean regime by engaging in cybercrimes, including stealing cryptocurrency and laundering money, a new analysis has found.

Luke McNamara, a chief analyst at global cyber security company Mandiant, a subsidiary of Google Cloud, held a media briefing in Yongsan, Seoul on Tuesday and briefed the “North Korean Hacking Group APT43 Analysis Report.” APT43 is a North Korean hacking group that Mandiant officially named after APT42 in September of last year.

According to the report, APT43's main activities are in line with the mission of the Reconnaissance General Bureau (RGB), North Korea's overseas and South Korean intelligence agency. Their main task was collecting information about the North Korean regime, including nuclear development and geopolitical issues. Its major targets include government and policy research institutes, think tanks, and corporations in Korea, the U.S., Japan, and Europe.

"It imposters as individuals or journalists in the foreign affairs/defense sector and has been using stolen personally identifiable information to capture information in various industries," McNamara explained.

It was also found that APT43 laundered and procured funds by stealing cryptocurrency and converting it into a new cryptocurrency. McNamara said, "APT43 supported North Korea's espionage activities through money laundering and other activities and collaborated with other hacking groups."

한국어

donga.com

12. What Nuclear Weapons Sharing Trends Mean for East Asia

Excerpts:

As a further potential candidate, growing calls, including from senior officials in South Korea for the country to develop its own nuclear arsenal can be interpreted as a means of placing pressure on the United States to offer a nuclear sharing agreement. The U.S. has long opposed any potential nuclear ambitions by Seoul, which would seriously undermine the rationale for a continued American presence in the country as a protector and potentially make South Korea far more confident in its security independence. A nuclear sharing agreement could potentially do the opposite, however, and precipitate a return of American nuclear weapons to the peninsula seven decades after they were first deployed there in 1956. While South Korean public opinion is reportedly highly in favor of acquiring some kind of nuclear attack capability, calls for a nuclear sharing agreement specifically based on the NATO model have also been made and remain by far the most politically feasible option. Most recently on March 29 senior politician Joo Ho-young, the floor leader of the ruling People Power Party, raised such a possibility, highlighting that it was being considered preceding President Yoon Suk-yeol’s state visit to the U.S. in April.

The threat posed by nuclear sharing to the security interests of potential targets of Western military action, most notably China, was specifically drawn attention to by Chinese Ambassador Li Song at the Tenth Review Conference of the Treaty on Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons in August 2022. He warned that the “clamour for nuclear sharing in the Asia-Pacific,” alongside the proliferation of nuclear attack submarines through AUKUS, was one of “two emerging issues facing the international nuclear non-proliferation regime.” As the United States continues to refocus its military attentions towards East Asia, nuclear sharing is likely to be pursued to strengthen its position, and could prove highly beneficial as the conventional balance of power becomes increasingly unfavorable to Western interests. By contrast, options for America’s potential adversaries to benefit from initiating similar arrangements in retaliation remain extremely limited. Rapid proliferation of the F-35 which can effectively serve as a short ranged nuclear bomber with both tactical and strategic sized payloads, and which has a respectable range by Western standards, has ensured that a potent asset for nuclear delivery is already in operation in very significant numbers across the region allowing nuclear sharing arrangements to materialize a serious impact much more quickly. How widely the aircraft is fielded also underlines how much wider America’s network of security partners are in facing down challengers to its regional dominance, drawing a strong contrast to China or Russia which have not proliferated any assets with remotely comparable offensive applications. The underwhelming nature of Belarus’ strike capabilities using nuclear weapons ultimately serves to highlight how limited American adversaries’ options for responses are, with this inability to respond translating into a limited ability to deter and thus providing an opening for the U.S. to push ahead with nuclear sharing.

What Nuclear Weapons Sharing Trends Mean for East Asia

Washington’s possible pursuit of nuclear sharing in Asia would capitalize on one of its main strategic advantages in the region: its many partners and allies.

thediplomat.com · by A. B. Abrams · April 4, 2023

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The announcement on March 25 by President Vladimir Putin that Russian nuclear weapons would be stationed in Belarus, and that the two states would enter a nuclear sharing agreement, is a highly significant development not only for its impacts on the balance of power in Europe itself but rather for what it indicates regarding an emerging trend in nuclear proliferation. Widespread nuclear sharing today appears to be becoming increasingly likely as tensions in Europe and East Asia continue to rise, with the term referring to a concept and system created by NATO members allowing countries to host their allies’ nuclear weapons on their territory, train to use these weapons, and field suitable delivery vehicles to conduct nuclear strikes. This is done with the intention that in the case of war, nuclear warheads are transferred to the hosting countries by their allies and can be used near immediately. These highly controversial agreements, which have often been criticized for essentially turning countries into nuclear weapons states, appear likely to be more widely pursued, with the case of Belarus being perhaps the least consequential in its strategic impacts compared to other nuclear sharing arrangements thought to be under consideration today.

Belarus formerly hosted much of the Soviet Union’s forward-deployed nuclear arsenal before the 1990s and maintained much of the related infrastructure intact. This infrastructure, and the already close and growing integration between its armed forces and those of Russia, could help facilitate the rapid implementation of a nuclear sharing arrangement. The impacts of such an agreement, however, remain very limited compared to those of similar agreements elsewhere. Belarus has no aircraft well-suited to deploying nuclear weapons. Its Su-24M strike fighters were its most modern in the Soviet era but have since been sold off to Sudan – and seen action in the Yemeni Civil War in conventional roles. With Belarus’ conventional forces being largely obsolete, only its Iskander tactical ballistic missile systems, very recently transferred from Russia, could provide effective nuclear delivery vehicles. The country’s tiny defense budget of well under $1 billion significantly constrains its ability to make serious use of a nuclear arsenal, while Russian Iskander ballistic missiles and other assets such as Su-35 fighters based in the country could provide the same and greater nuclear strike capabilities on behalf of the alliance.

In contrast to Belarus’ limitations, however, other candidates for nuclear sharing agreements, as well as the existing nuclear sharing arrangements the United States has with NATO members Belgium, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Turkey, have far more serious implications.

The often overlooked significance of existing nuclear sharing agreements in Europe was recently highlighted by the German Air Force’s procurement dilemma regarding a replacement for its Cold War era Tornado fighters, as the Eurofighter aircraft currently in production with Britain and continental partners is not capable of carrying nuclear weapons. While Germany is not a nuclear weapons state, the ability to carry out nuclear strikes is nevertheless a core mission that its air force equips and trains for and is expected to carry out in the event of war in Europe – as do the air forces of the other participants in nuclear sharing using American warheads on their territories. Accordingly, after the Boeing F-18E/F Super Hornet used primarily by the U.S. Navy was briefly considered, Berlin in early 2022 settled on acquisitions of the Lockheed Martin F-35 fifth generation stealth fighter. The F-35 is the only fighter of its generation known to be designed for nuclear strikes, with its deep weapons bays accommodating B61 nuclear bombs accordingly. These bombs can deliver payloads close to 25 times the size of the 15-kiloton payload used by the U.S. Army Air Force against Hiroshima. In contrast to Belarus’ limited nuclear delivery capabilities, the German, Belgian, Dutch and Italian F-35 fleets with advanced stealth capabilities, and sufficient range to engage targets across much of Russia and beyond, including bases in Syria, very significantly increase the alliance’s offensive nuclear potential.

While the United States may in the future explore nuclear sharing options with other NATO members, such as Poland, Russia’s options for nuclear sharing remain extremely limited due to the rapid erosion of its sphere of influence. The scarcity of military allies facing common perceived threats left Belarus as essentially the only candidate. As Western military attentions increasingly center on the Western Pacific, however, it is there rather than in Europe where new nuclear sharing arrangements could have potentially the most destabilizing consequences and potentially fuel a Cold War type division into military blocs as seen in Europe for most of the past 80 years. Some of the dangers of expanded nuclear sharing arrangements following the European precedent were highlighted in 2008 before the British House of Commons Defense Committee, as part of an assessment of the future of NATO and European defense, where it was noted at the time:

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There are concerns that this arrangement undermines, and possibly contravenes, Articles I and II of the NPT. According to U.S. lawyers, the transfer of control is legal because, on the outbreak of “general war”, the NPT has failed in its purpose and can be regarded as no longer in controlling force… However, a nuclear sharing arrangement that may have had some logic in the pre-NPT and cold war world is now a source of weakening for the NPT, as it offers a rationale to other states to pursue a similar programme. NATO’s nuclear sharing programme could now be used as an excuse by China, Pakistan or any other nuclear-armed nation to establish a similar arrangement. Imagine if China were to offer such an arrangement to persuade North Korea to give up its nuclear ambitions. Or if Pakistan were to undertake nuclear sharing with Saudi Arabia or Iran.

While 15 years later many of the potential nuclear sharing possibilities highlighted in 2008 appear far less likely, the dangers the precedent set by NATO’s nuclear sharing, and now followed by Russia and Belarus, remain very significant. In particular, pursuit of nuclear sharing in Asia could be highly beneficial to U.S. interests primarily because it capitalizes on one of the country’s main strategic advantages in the region – namely its very large network of security partnerships and military bases and its wide sphere of influence. Japan, South Korea and Australia are leading potential candidates for nuclear sharing arrangements, with others in Southeast Asia such as Singapore potentially following suit. By contrast U.S. adversaries, namely China, have very limited options to deter or counter such proliferation with similar nuclear sharing agreements. With the majority of the region remaining neutral only North Korea is otherwise aligned firmly against U.S. and Western interests, but since the country is already a nuclear weapons state, and is in any case subjected to strict U.N. Security Council restrictions on any sharing of nuclear technologies, while also being highly unwilling to consider foreign bases on its territory, it is effectively ruled out. Thus much as Russia after the Cold War’s end could not respond to NATO nuclear sharing by proliferating nuclear strike capabilities among its own allies, with the collapse of the Warsaw Pact having effectively eliminated such options, for China too its lack of comparable security partnerships to those established by the U.S. around its borders limits its ability to respond.

A leading candidate to be equipped with American nuclear weapons under a sharing agreement to strengthen Washington’s position in East Asia is Australia, with the AUKUS agreement and its facilitating of the Royal Australian Navy’s acquisitions of American nuclear powered attack submarines potentially paving the way to this. Indeed, with U.S.-Australian nuclear sharing having been frequently called for for years before AUKUS was announced, primarily to be aimed at China, it has been speculated that this has been the end goal for which AUKUS was established from the outset. Australian nuclear powered attack submarines will be able to operate for extensive periods in East Asia and could be equipped with very large arsenals of long-range nuclear-tipped cruise missiles. The focus on naval capabilities, rather than aerial ones as in European sharing agreements, would reflect the different requirements of the theater as well as the much greater distances over which a potential conflict would be fought. It also reflects the fact that, while in Europe conflict is primarily between regional powers, in East Asia the U.S. and most of its allies are external powers seeking to sustain a regional order based on projecting their dominance from outside. Nuclear submarines are ideal for strengthening collective Western capabilities against challengers to Western-led order in East Asia due to their high survivability, endurance and payload. Beyond submarines, the possibility of Australia acquiring American B-21 Raider intercontinental range strategic bombers, which would be another key asset for nuclear delivery, has been highlighted and at times strongly advocated, although it remains less likely and could be cost prohibitive depending on how the program evolves over the next decade.

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Following the announcement of the formation of AUKUS, in February 2022 former Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzo called for his country to consider a nuclear sharing agreement with the United States, emphasizing that nuclear weapons should no longer be a taboo subject for Tokyo. He reiterated this point the following month, which gained significant support from a number of senior Japanese lawmakers. While in power Abe had spearheaded moves to expand Japanese strike capabilities, which included placing major orders for the F-35 that will make Japan its leading foreign operator, as well as moving to acquire air launched cruise missiles capable of engaging targets across the region. Japan has since moved to make major acquisitions of Tomahawk cruise missiles which, with the third largest fleet of destroyers in the world, could transform its capabilities further still. These developments could all be key to paving the way for a nuclear sharing agreement, which would allow its F-35s and potentially its destroyer and submarine fleets to potentially carry American nuclear warheads.

As a further potential candidate, growing calls, including from senior officials in South Korea for the country to develop its own nuclear arsenal can be interpreted as a means of placing pressure on the United States to offer a nuclear sharing agreement. The U.S. has long opposed any potential nuclear ambitions by Seoul, which would seriously undermine the rationale for a continued American presence in the country as a protector and potentially make South Korea far more confident in its security independence. A nuclear sharing agreement could potentially do the opposite, however, and precipitate a return of American nuclear weapons to the peninsula seven decades after they were first deployed there in 1956. While South Korean public opinion is reportedly highly in favor of acquiring some kind of nuclear attack capability, calls for a nuclear sharing agreement specifically based on the NATO model have also been made and remain by far the most politically feasible option. Most recently on March 29 senior politician Joo Ho-young, the floor leader of the ruling People Power Party, raised such a possibility, highlighting that it was being considered preceding President Yoon Suk-yeol’s state visit to the U.S. in April.

The threat posed by nuclear sharing to the security interests of potential targets of Western military action, most notably China, was specifically drawn attention to by Chinese Ambassador Li Song at the Tenth Review Conference of the Treaty on Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons in August 2022. He warned that the “clamour for nuclear sharing in the Asia-Pacific,” alongside the proliferation of nuclear attack submarines through AUKUS, was one of “two emerging issues facing the international nuclear non-proliferation regime.” As the United States continues to refocus its military attentions towards East Asia, nuclear sharing is likely to be pursued to strengthen its position, and could prove highly beneficial as the conventional balance of power becomes increasingly unfavorable to Western interests. By contrast, options for America’s potential adversaries to benefit from initiating similar arrangements in retaliation remain extremely limited. Rapid proliferation of the F-35 which can effectively serve as a short ranged nuclear bomber with both tactical and strategic sized payloads, and which has a respectable range by Western standards, has ensured that a potent asset for nuclear delivery is already in operation in very significant numbers across the region allowing nuclear sharing arrangements to materialize a serious impact much more quickly. How widely the aircraft is fielded also underlines how much wider America’s network of security partners are in facing down challengers to its regional dominance, drawing a strong contrast to China or Russia which have not proliferated any assets with remotely comparable offensive applications. The underwhelming nature of Belarus’ strike capabilities using nuclear weapons ultimately serves to highlight how limited American adversaries’ options for responses are, with this inability to respond translating into a limited ability to deter and thus providing an opening for the U.S. to push ahead with nuclear sharing.

GUEST AUTHOR

A. B. Abrams

B. Abrams is the author of "China and America’s Tech War from AI to 5G: The Struggle to Shape the Future of World Order" and "Immovable Object: North Korea’s 70 Years at War with American Power." He has published widely on international security and geopolitics with a focus on East Asia, and holds related Master's degrees from the University of London.

thediplomat.com · by A. B. Abrams · April 4, 2023

13. N. Korea expands number of hours markets can operate in border region

This is potentially significant. It recognizes that the people need the markets in order to procure food and tacitly acknowledges that the Korean Workers party cannot feed the people through its failed public distribution system.

It confirms what we have long known. Effective markets are the key to survival in north Korea.

N. Korea expands number of hours markets can operate in border region

The increase in market operating hours is part of the North Korean government’s efforts to alleviate food shortages ahead of Kim Il Sung’s birthday on Apr. 15, a reporting partner claimed

By Lee Chae Un - 2023.04.05 2:20pm

dailynk.com

FILE PHOTO: A market official on patrol in Sunchon, South Pyongan Province. (Daily NK)

North Koreans living near the border with China are welcoming a reduction in curfew hours and an expansion in the number of hours markets are allowed to operate, Daily NK has learned.

“Beginning on Apr. 1, the curfew hours for the border area in Yanggang Province switched over to summer hours, and the curfew hours have been reduced by one hour. Now, border residents are forbidden from traveling at night between 9 PM and 5 AM the next morning,” a reporting partner in Yanggang Province told Daily NK yesterday, speaking on condition of anonymity.

In August 2020, North Korea’s Ministry of Social Security issued an order declaring measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the country.

The order set forth a nine-hour summer curfew (April – September) between 8 PM and 5 AM and a 13-hour winter curfew (October – March) from 6 PM to 7 AM.

According to Daily NK’s reporting partner, these curfew hours have remained in effect in the border areas of Yanggang Province.

The summer curfew took effect beginning on Apr. 1, but unlike previous years, the curfew hours were reduced by one hour. Instead of starting at 8 PM like in past years, the curfew now begins at 9 PM.

INCREASE IN MARKET HOURS

Starting Apr. 1, the authorities have also increased the number of hours markets are allowed to operate, a development that has been welcomed by local residents.

“Before COVID-19, the markets operated for more than eight hours a day, but since the start of the pandemic, markets have only been allowed to operate for three hours in the winter and four hours in the summer. That made many people’s lives much more difficult. From Apr. 1, however, the market can operate for six hours a day, a move that has been welcomed by everyone,” the reporting partner explained.

The reporting partner claimed that the increase in market operating hours is part of the North Korean government’s efforts to alleviate food shortages ahead of Kim Il Sung’s birthday on Apr. 15.

The new policy seems to indicate that authorities are aware of growing public discontent over the continued closure of the border despite the government’s announcement last year that it had won the battle against COVID-19, he added.

In fact, one Hyesan resident told Daily NK: “As recently as last month, market hours of operation were limited to just three hours between 2 PM and 5 PM. With just three hours to do business, I was constantly worried about whether I’d be able to make a living. It’s been an enormous relief to see that market operating hours have doubled.

“Everyone is happy to see the market hours extended. With the longer market hours, we can make enough money to put at least a little porridge on the table so we won’t starve to death.”

Translated by Rose Adams. Edited by Robert Lauler.

Daily NK works with a network of reporting partners who live inside North Korea. Their identities remain anonymous due to security concerns. More information about Daily NK’s reporting partner network and information gathering activities can be found on our FAQ page here.

Please direct any comments or questions about this article to dailynkenglish@uni-media.net.

Read in Korean

dailynk.com

14. ​North Korea and Burkina Faso Plot New Relationship​

For north Korea - a returning market. This is business for the Kim family regime.  

​North Korea and Burkina Faso Plot New Relationship​

By JIMMY QUINN

April 4, 2023 2:41 PM

https://www.nationalreview.com/corner/north-korea-and-burkina-faso-plot-out-new-relationship/

North Korea has re-established its diplomatic ties with Burkina Faso, the West African country’s foreign minister announced at a government meeting late last month. This follows a coup that brought a new junta to power in that country last fall.

Pyongyang will send an ambassador, Chae Hui Chol, to represent North Korea, the government of Burkina Faso revealed in a summary of the March 29 meeting of its ministerial council, and he will reside in Senegal’s capital city, Dakar. Turkey’s state-run Anadolu news service first reported the news.

Burkina Faso hopes to establish an ambitious partnership with North Korea, encompassing not just a diplomatic relationship but also cooperation in other far-reaching areas.

Foreign minister Olivia Rouamba said at the meeting that the resumption of the relationship between the two countries will allow “exemplary bilateral cooperation on security, taxes, military equipment, mining, health, agriculture, and research.”

It’s not immediately clear what forms this cooperation will take. However, North Korea has long shored up its other partners, such as Russia and China, by sending laborers abroad to work in conditions that some critics say resemble slavery.

Previously, Rouamba also said, the two countries had had a “privileged partnership” during Burkina Faso’s August 1983 revolution. That uprising brought a contingent of Marxist military officers to power for several years.

Burkina Faso cut off its diplomatic relationship with North Korea in 2017, amid a U.N. effort to force compliance with Security Council resolutions on Pyongyang’s nuclear program, Anadolu noted.

In 2017, Burkina Faso also moved to cut off imports from North Korea, after the government became aware that the country’s imports from January to August of that year reached $7 million, then–foreign minister Alpha Barry told Voice of America. At the time, the landlocked West African country was the largest importer of North Korean products in Africa, as the U.N. was seeking to clamp down on Pyongyang’s international economic lifelines.

In that same VOA article, Grant Harris, a former national-security council official in the Obama administration, said that the U.S. should help African countries that have extensive ties to North Korea wean themselves off their economic dependencies on the East Asian dictatorship.

​15. In K-Pop’s Quest for Global Growth, Korean Fans Feel Cast Aside

In K-Pop’s Quest for Global Growth, Korean Fans Feel Cast Aside

The New York Times · by John Yoon · April 4, 2023

A bidding war for a K-pop label — a deal with global ramifications for the genre — has left listeners in its home market questioning their relevance.

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K-pop girl group Girls’ Generation, represented by SM Entertainment, performing in Suwon, South Korea, last year.Credit...Heo Ran/Reuters

By

Reporting from Seoul, the heart of the K-pop industry

April 4, 2023

In a nightclub in Seoul, the crowd cheered when Harim Choi played some of the latest K-pop hits. But the decade-old songs, like those by 2NE1 and Wonder Girls, seemed to have a special resonance for the partygoers.

“The older songs bring us back to a time when we could simply enjoy the music, when we didn’t have to worry about the business behind it all,” Mr. Choi, a 26-year-old D.J., said.

In recent months, an unusually public and acrimonious corporate feud involving major K-pop companies has captivated die-hard fans, casual listeners, artists and industry figures alike. At the center was SM Entertainment, a K-pop mainstay whose roster of artists includes Girls’ Generation. Circling it were two suitors: Hybe, the company behind BTS, and Kakao, a South Korean technology giant.

Both companies saw the acquisition of SM Entertainment as an opportunity to expand their reach overseas.

After years of growth at home, K-pop’s future now lies outside South Korea. While the genre has fans in almost every corner of the world, the sales of K-pop’s biggest labels account for a tiny sliver of the global music market.

This effort to increase K-pop’s global appeal has excited some Korean fans but has made others feel alienated, raising an uncomfortable question: Does K-pop still need the fans at home?

“There’s a sense that the industry is targeting the West and leaving Korean fans behind,” said Kim Yoon Ho, a 36-year-old fan who lives in Seoul.

Many of today’s biggest K-pop hits are wired for an American audience. This week, “Like Crazy,” a single by the BTS member Jimin, topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart but ranked lower in South Korea.

Among K-pop labels, Hybe has been one of the most successful abroad.Credit...Gang Min-Ji/Yonhap, via Associated Press

In a statement, Hybe said its ambitions were always global and that the company “will continue to be committed to bringing content to fans around the world, regardless of culture, religion, gender or geography.” SM Entertainment said it was paying “close attention” to fans everywhere.

One of the first signs of upheaval came in February, when SM Entertainment pushed out its founder, the producer Lee Soo-man, considered the godfather of K-pop, over allegations of financial improprieties. Mr. Lee, 70, denied wrongdoing and sold part of his stake in the company to Hybe, which became the biggest shareholder in SM Entertainment.

“There have been large and small management disputes in the 30 years of K-pop,” said Lee Dong Yeun, a professor at the Korea National University of Arts. “But none as big as this.”

Sensing an opportunity to expand its roster a few months after BTS announced a hiatus, Hybe moved to increase its ownership in SM Entertainment, which has a large fan base in Japan and Southeast Asia. But SM Entertainment saw the overture as hostile and instead proposed a deal with Kakao, whose messaging and payment apps have become crucial infrastructure in South Korea but have had little success overseas.

A deal would help Kakao establish a foothold in the K-pop business and offer a chance to expand abroad, Mr. Lee said. Kakao is trying to tap the South Korean culture wave to build its international business with webtoons, games and music.

Fresh from raising nearly a billion dollars from sovereign wealth funds in Saudi Arabia and Singapore, Kakao offered $962 million for a 35 percent stake in SM Entertainment.

Lee Soo-man, the founder and former chief producer of SM Entertainment, was pushed out over allegations of financial improprieties, which he denied.Credit...Yonhap/EPA, via Shutterstock

Hybe accused SM Entertainment of “illogical behavior” and sought a court injunction to block a deal with Kakao. SM Entertainment gave employees a 15 percent raise to get them in line behind a merger with Kakao. Dissenters were pushed out.

In the end, Kakao’s deep pockets won out. Last week, it announced it had taken a 40 percent stake in SM Entertainment, whose shares had doubled in value during the takeover battle. In a statement, Kakao said SM Entertainment would make the decisions about artists.

To fans, the maneuvering was a display of how the companies’ profit-driven motives trumped the interests of artists and supporters, with global interests taking priority over local record sales and concerts.

“The fight has created a situation where you can’t just listen to K-pop comfortably,” said Mr. Choi, the D.J. “It’s as if the artists are chess pieces to them.”

Lee Sangmi, 36, a longtime fan of SM Entertainment’s groups, said she was wary that her favorite groups might “have less freedom” after a merger. Kwon Yeyoung, 17, a high school student who runs a YouTube fan channel, said she was waiting to see how album covers, the artists’ fashion, the mood of the concerts and merchandise design would change. Others fear more K-pop songs would be written entirely in English.

The anxiety hasn’t been limited to Korean fans.

“I’m still nervous for Kakao to run the show. I don’t feel like music is their top priority,” said Deena Marshall, 36, who lives in Washington. “Who knows, maybe they’ll surprise us.”

To be sure, some fans expressed excitement about potential innovations. Kakao founded a girl group that exists only in the metaverse and generated more than 20 million views on YouTube.

Kakao, a South Korean technology giant, has tried to break in to the K-pop industry with a band that exists only in the metaverse.Credit...Jun Michael Park for The New York Times

Before K-pop grew into a multibillion-dollar cultural juggernaut, labels were funded by individual producers. Mr. Lee, a former folk singer, started SM Entertainment in the 1990s with the equivalent of about $38,000. Other powerhouses in the industry, like YG and JYP, had similarly humble beginnings.

In the following decades, the companies courted investors and sold shares to the public. Eventually Kakao and Naver, another big South Korean tech company, also started backing music and video ventures, in part to reach customers overseas.

Among K-pop labels, Hybe has been one of the most successful abroad. In 2021, it bought Ithaca Holdings, which manages Justin Bieber and Ariana Grande, for about $1 billion. In February, it acquired the Atlanta rap label Quality Control Music. These deals have helped Hybe more than double its sales, three-quarters of which now come from outside South Korea.

Overall, about 90 percent of all K-pop listeners live outside South Korea, according to K-Pop Radar, an industry tracker. And as the industry jostles for more fans overseas, some fans say the labels are no longer focusing on what made K-pop so successful.

“A hobby that was supposed to be fun became more of a source of worry,” said Kim Su-yeon, 19, a student in Seoul. “The changes have stressed me out.”

The New York Times · by John Yoon · April 4, 2023​

​16. Yoon reiterates stronger security cooperation with US, Japan

north Korea keeps making our trilateral relationship stronger and more vital.

Yoon reiterates stronger security cooperation with US, Japan

koreaherald.com · by Shin Ji-hye · April 5, 2023

President Yoon Suk Yeol has reiterated the importance of cooperation and solidarity with countries that share universal values ​​at a meeting on national affairs Wednesday, underscoring the need for security collaboration with the United States and Japan to counter the North Korean threat.

Yoon presided over the second national task inspection meeting to discuss major diplomatic and security issues, including Korea-Japan relations and North Korean nuclear threats, with 100 experts and citizens, according to the presidential office.

During his opening speech, Yoon said that his administration prioritizes "solidarity and cooperation with nations that uphold universal values such as freedom, human rights and the rule of law." He also noted that such solidarity is critical for the country's survival, national interest, liberal democracy and the market economy.

Noting that “state affairs” and “diplomacy” are two sides of the coin, the president said the country’s future is at stake in strengthening supply chains and securing technological advantage through high-tech innovation in the face of a complex crisis.

President Yoon also explained his administration’s diplomatic and security achievements.

He said cooperation among South Korea, the US and Japan is “more important than ever” to overcome the severe security crisis, including the global complex crisis and the North Korean nuclear threats.

“The South Korea-US alliance has already developed into a comprehensive global strategic alliance beyond a military security alliance, and the importance of Korea-Japan relations cannot be overemphasized,” he said.

Yoon sought to mend ties with Japan over long-standing issues related to wartime forced labor by giving a commemorative speech stressing a partnership with Japan on March 1, a day to mark the protest movement for independence from Japan, and proposed a third-party compensation plan for the victims. His approval rating dropped as public opinion turned sour.

Regarding North Korean provocations, Yoon said the security situation on the Korean Peninsula and in Northeast Asia is “more serious than ever” due to North Korea’s recent illegal nuclear and missile development and a series of provocations.

“We need to strengthen the alliance's extended deterrence capability and restore the Korean-style three-axis system,” he said.

The three-axis system refers to the South Korean military’s response plan to intercept and destroy North Korea’s nuclear weapons and missiles and destroy key facilities such as its command. This system includes the Kill Chain system, the Korea Air and Missile Defense and the Korea Massive Punishment and Retaliation plan.

The Kill Chain system would launch a preemptive strike against the North's missile facilities and possibly its leadership if an imminent attack is detected; the KAMD would intercept North Korean missiles heading for the South; and the KMPR would be used to take out North Korea's leadership and military facilities if it strikes South Korea.

“Under any circumstances, when we are attacked first, our military must establish a firm view of the enemy and discipline so that we can fight and win, and maximize our capabilities through effective combat training,” he said.

Last month, the government publicly published a North Korean human rights report for the first time in order to properly publicize the human rights situation in North Korea, he said.

“It is most important to widely publicize the gruesome human rights abuses of North Koreans in the international community at home and abroad, and we must strive to ensure that the North Korean Human Rights Act is practically implemented.”

He also explained that he took economic and security cooperation with Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates to the next level and implemented “sales diplomacy” in all directions to produce practical results and benefits in summit diplomacy.

In January, Yoon was invited by Emirati leader Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan as the first state visit by a Korean leader, drawing $30 billion from the nation during a summit.

According to military media Janes on Tuesday, South Korea's Chunmoo multirange rocket was deployed to Saudi Arabia's military. In March last year, Saudi Arabia’s state-run news agency SPA reported that the Saudi Defense Ministry signed a $800 million contract from Hanwha Aerospace to introduce the Chunmoo system, although it was not confirmed by the Korean government or Hanwha Aerospace.

By Shin Ji-hye (shinjh@heraldcorp.com)

koreaherald.com · by Shin Ji-hye · April 5, 2023

17. US hinders S. Korea’s nuclear plant export to Czech Republic

Another alliance friction point.

Excerpts:

Westinghouse asserts that the Korean companies’ nuclear reactor technologies are their own technologies, so they need to obtain the approval of the US government when exporting them to a third country. The US energy company is also asking the court to block KHNP’s potential deal with Saudi Arabia.

On the other hand, the Korean side claims that the earlier stages of developing reactors were supported by Westinghouse, but the current models pushing for export deals have been developed with its technologies, so it should not be curbed by US restrictions. KHNP says the company has been able to come up with its original reactor technology over the past 30 years and now owns the intellectual property rights to its nuclear power plant technology.

“We have decided that the best course of action is to accommodate DOE’s response and its request that KHNP works with (Westinghouse) in order to prevent further complication of the issues pending in the case between Westinghouse and KHNP,” said KHNP in a letter to Westinghouse.

US hinders S. Korea’s nuclear plant export to Czech Republic

koreaherald.com · by Kan Hyeong-woo · April 5, 2023

The US government has turned down Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power’s report on bidding for a nuclear power plant project in the Czech Republic, raising concerns that the Korean export plans of reactors may fall short due to ongoing litigation with Westinghouse Electric Co.

The documents, which were submitted to the US District Court in Washington, showed Wednesday that KHNP submitted the relevant paperwork to the Department of Energy in December in compliance with the US Code of Federal Regulations that requires approval by the DOE or a prior report to the DOE when trying to transfer certain nuclear power technologies.

According to the Code of Federal Regulations, companies planning to export nuclear power plants to the Czech Republic only need to report the activity within 30 days of the beginning of related operations. Following the necessary steps, KHNP said it should have been given the right to export its nuclear power plants to the Czech Republic.

However, the DOE said in a letter to KHNP in January that the report to the DOE must be submitted by "US Persons." In this case, "US Persons" refers to Westinghouse, which filed a lawsuit with a US federal court against KHNP and Kepco.

The US company claimed that the Korean companies infringed on the US firm’s nuclear reactor design and technology in October to stop them from selling reactors to Poland. In specifics, Westinghouse said Korea’s APR1400 reactors copied the System 80 reactor designed by Combustion Engineering, which was acquired by Westinghouse in 2000. Poland is evaluating offers from Westinghouse, KHNP and France’s EDF for the establishment of the first commercial nuclear power plant in the country.

Westinghouse asserts that the Korean companies’ nuclear reactor technologies are their own technologies, so they need to obtain the approval of the US government when exporting them to a third country. The US energy company is also asking the court to block KHNP’s potential deal with Saudi Arabia.

On the other hand, the Korean side claims that the earlier stages of developing reactors were supported by Westinghouse, but the current models pushing for export deals have been developed with its technologies, so it should not be curbed by US restrictions. KHNP says the company has been able to come up with its original reactor technology over the past 30 years and now owns the intellectual property rights to its nuclear power plant technology.

“We have decided that the best course of action is to accommodate DOE’s response and its request that KHNP works with (Westinghouse) in order to prevent further complication of the issues pending in the case between Westinghouse and KHNP,” said KHNP in a letter to Westinghouse.

“Accordingly, we expect that Westinghouse will take actions as it deems necessary to file a report with DOE regarding submission of KHNP’s bid,” it added.

KHNP issued a statement later in the day that the US government was not blocking the nuclear export to the Czech Republic, explaining that the letter from the DOE was a simple notice to instruct the procedures.

"Regarding the Czech Republic's nuclear power plant project, KHNP submitted its bid in November and the bidding process of the open competition is ongoing," it said.

The Yoon Suk Yeol administration has picked nuclear power plants as a core pillar of exports, with a goal to sell 10 reactor units overseas by 2030.

By Kan Hyeong-woo (hwkan@heraldcorp.com)

koreaherald.com · by Kan Hyeong-woo · April 5, 2023

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De Oppresso Liber,

David Maxwell

Vice President, Center for Asia Pacific Strategy

Senior Fellow, Foundation for Defense of Democracies

Senior Fellow, Global Peace Foundation

Editor, Small Wars Journal

Twitter: @davidmaxwell161

Phone: 202-573-8647

email: david.maxwell161@gmail.com