Quotes of the Day:

“In an ever-changing, incomprehensible world, the masses had reached a point where they would, at the same time, believe everything, and nothing, think that everything was possible, and that nothing was true. […] under such conditions, one could make people believe the most fantastic statements, one day, and trust that, if the next day they were given irrefutable proof of their falsehood, they would take refuge in cynicism; instead of deserting, the leaders would lie to them, they would protest that they had known all along that the statement was a lie, and would admire the leaders for their superior tactical cleverness.” 

- Hannah Arendt, The original of Totalitarianism

"The one thing that holders of power fear is that they personally should be held responsible for their own actions.

- Stuart Christie

All men make mistakes, but a good man yields when he knows his course is wrong, and repairs the evil The only crime is pride."

- Sophocles

1. Two minor natural earthquakes strike near N. Korea's nuclear test site: weather agency

2. S. Korea-U.S.-Japan summit to lead to security cooperation framework: official

3. Yoon to leave Thursday for trilateral summit at Camp David

4. Two-Korea solution favored as unification choice

5. SK Telecom to invest US$100 mln in U.S. AI firm Anthropic

6. After 70 years, S. Korea mulls ‘grand strategy’

7. Seven challenges for South Korea's social, economic survival

8. Prepare to join the G7 plus (Korea)

9. Aftermath of Jamboree: Political tug-of-war

10. North Korean hackers still coming for crypto platforms

11. North Korea: Could They Arm Russia to Fight Ukraine?

12. Emirates in Flag Controversy After Displaying North Korean Flag During Cabin Crew Graduation Ceremony For South Korean Flight Attendant

13. Biden’s First Camp David Summit Looks to Align Allies Facing China Threat

14. Voice of America [Washington Talk] Upgrade of US-ROK-Japan security cooperation... South Korea's nuclear armament is not breaking the US-ROK alliance

1. Two minor natural earthquakes strike near N. Korea's nuclear test site: weather agency

Whenever I read these reports I always ask whether the 6 nuclear tests at Punggye-ri have somehow affected the geology and make the area more prone to earthquakes.

(LEAD) Two minor natural earthquakes strike near N. Korea's nuclear test site: weather agency | Yonhap News Agency

en.yna.co.kr · by Lee Haye-ah · August 13, 2023

(ATTN: UPDATES with additional quake; CHANGES headline)

SEOUL, Aug. 13 (Yonhap) -- Two minor natural earthquakes struck near North Korea's nuclear test site Sunday, the latest in a series of natural earthquakes to hit the region in recent months, South Korea's state weather agency said.

The first earthquake of 2.7 magnitude occurred about 40 kilometers north-northwest of Kilju, North Hamgyong Province, at 3:13 a.m., while the second of 2.3 magnitude struck 42 km north-northwest of Kilju at 7:55 a.m., according to the Korea Meteorological Administration.

The epicenter of the first earthquake was at a latitude of 41.3 degrees north and a longitude of 129.19 degrees east at a depth of 15 km, while the epicenter of the second quake was at a latitude of 41.31 degrees north and a longitude of 129.16 degrees east at a depth of 5 km, it said.

Kilju is home to the Punggye-ri nuclear test site, where North Korea conducted all six of its nuclear tests.

In 2022 alone, eight natural earthquakes were reported to have struck the area.

This is a photo capture from the United States Geological Survey website, which shows the position of Punggye-ri (red mark), a North Korean nuclear test site in Kilju, North Hamgyong Province. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

hague@yna.co.kr

(END)

en.yna.co.kr · by Lee Haye-ah · August 13, 2023

2. S. Korea-U.S.-Japan summit to lead to security cooperation framework: official

​Perhaps an interim step toward a trilateral alliance?

S. Korea-U.S.-Japan summit to lead to security cooperation framework: official | Yonhap News Agency

en.yna.co.kr · by Lee Haye-ah · August 13, 2023

By Lee Haye-ah

SEOUL, Aug. 13 (Yonhap) -- This week's trilateral summit involving South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, U.S. President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will lead to the establishment of a "key framework" for security cooperation among the three countries, a presidential official said Sunday.

Yoon is scheduled to depart Thursday to attend the summit at the U.S. presidential retreat Camp David, near Washington, the following day, Principal Deputy National Security Adviser Kim Tae-hyo told reporters.

Talks are also under way to arrange a South Korea-U.S. summit and a South Korea-Japan summit on the sidelines, he said.

Principal Deputy National Security Adviser Kim Tae-hyo briefs reporters on an upcoming trilateral summit between South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, U.S. President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida at the presidential office building in Seoul on Aug. 13, 2023. (Yonhap)

"Through this summit, we will be able to create a key framework in the future for trilateral security cooperation between South Korea, the U.S. and Japan, and institutionalize it," Kim said during a press briefing at the presidential office, noting the leaders will use the summit to discuss a common vision and basic principles for trilateral cooperation, as well as to build comprehensive and multilayered cooperation mechanisms across diverse sectors at every level.

Kim said the summit will also serve to further strengthen trilateral security cooperation for peace and stability in the region in the face of common threats, with the leaders holding in-depth talks on practical cooperation measures to respond to North Korea's nuclear and missile threat.

In addition, the three leaders will discuss measures to cooperate for joint regional prosperity and future growth, including ways to cooperate on cutting-edge technologies and strengthen partnerships to respond to economic security issues, such as supply chain and energy risks.

Moreover, Kim said the summit will serve as a "pivot" in the three countries' pursuit of freedom, peace and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region.

"Through the upcoming South Korea-U.S.-Japan summit, Camp David will be recorded in 21st century diplomatic history as the site that opened a new chapter in trilateral cooperation," Kim said. "Trilateral consultations between South Korea, the U.S. and Japan will gain a clear independent identity as an Indo-Pacific cooperation body."

The three leaders will have lunch together and also hold a joint press conference to announce the results of their talks.

This will be the first standalone trilateral summit among the three countries, though their leaders have met a total of 12 times on the sidelines of multilateral gatherings, beginning with the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in 1994.

Yoon will depart the U.S. on Friday evening to return home. He will not be accompanied on the trip by first lady Kim Keon Hee, according to a presidential official.

hague@yna.co.kr

(END)

en.yna.co.kr · by Lee Haye-ah · August 13, 2023

3. Yoon to leave Thursday for trilateral summit at Camp David

I hope they include infication in the agenda. Iw ould like to see a Camp David Consensus onKorean unification.

Excerpts:

“This is the first time in history that an exclusive meeting [between the leaders of the three countries] has been held."

He said the meeting would allow the three countries to form a "clearly independent" cooperative body within the Indo-Pacific region.

Kim said with the leaders spending such a long time with each other at Camp David, the trilateral meeting will serve as the center of freedom, peace and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region. 

The presidential office said it expects discussions on strengthening national security cooperation between the three countries to take place, including joint efforts in deterring threats, as well as on economic cooperation for joint prosperity and future growth. 

“Based on such cooperation between Korea, the United States and Japan, we hope to strengthen policy coordination with Asean and Pacific countries,” Kim said. 

The security advisor also added that the Korean government will use the upcoming meeting as an opportunity to schedule bilateral meetings with the United States and Japan. 

Among the issues to be discussed are artificial intelligence, cyberattacks and economic security.  

Sunday

August 13, 2023

 dictionary + A - A 

Published: 13 Aug. 2023, 19:37

Yoon to leave Thursday for trilateral summit at Camp David

https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/news/2023-08-13/national/diplomacy/Yoon-to-leave-Thursday-for-trilateral-summit-at-Camp-David/1845790

Kim Tae-hyo, the first deputy director of national security, at a press conference on Sunday. [YONHAP]

President Yoon Suk Yeol will be leaving for the United States on Thursday to meet with President Joe Biden and his Japanese counterpart Prime Minister Fumio Kishida at Camp David.  

The presidential office on Sunday emphasized that it's the first exclusive meeting between the leaders of the three countries. 

“This summit between Korea, the United States and Japan isn't taking place on the sidelines of an international multilateral meeting,” said Kim Tae-hyo, the first deputy director of national security, on Sunday.

“This is the first time in history that an exclusive meeting [between the leaders of the three countries] has been held."

He said the meeting would allow the three countries to form a "clearly independent" cooperative body within the Indo-Pacific region.

Kim said with the leaders spending such a long time with each other at Camp David, the trilateral meeting will serve as the center of freedom, peace and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region. 

The presidential office said it expects discussions on strengthening national security cooperation between the three countries to take place, including joint efforts in deterring threats, as well as on economic cooperation for joint prosperity and future growth. 

“Based on such cooperation between Korea, the United States and Japan, we hope to strengthen policy coordination with Asean and Pacific countries,” Kim said. 

The security advisor also added that the Korean government will use the upcoming meeting as an opportunity to schedule bilateral meetings with the United States and Japan. 

Among the issues to be discussed are artificial intelligence, cyberattacks and economic security. 

The meeting comes on the heels of intensifying tensions in the region, including continuing threats by North Korea. 

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on Thursday urged preparations for “offensive” military actions in case of possible war. 

Kim presided over the enlarged meeting of the Central Military Commission of the North's ruling Workers' Party on Wednesday, reported the state-run Korean Central News Agency.

The meeting aimed at preparing the military more "thoroughly" to deter "military moves of the chief culprits of [the] deteriorated situation that disturb peace and stability in the Korean Peninsula and its vicinity." 

The North Korean news agency on Aug. 6 released a photo of Kim firing a rifle while touring a military weapon production plant. 

However, the president’s office noted that the discussion between the three heads of state will not include Japan’s discharging of treated radioactive water from the ruins of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. 

“Most of the requests made by the Korean government regarding the discharge of the water have already been conveyed to or accepted by the Japanese government, and therefore no additional discussions are expected to take place,” a presidential official said. 

He added that there will be no direct mention of China or any hostile expressions against China.

However, the joint statement will likely address North Korea, especially the rising threats from its ballistic missile and nuclear weapons. 

According to the presidential office, the three countries' leaders have gotten together in the same room 12 times since a trilateral meeting at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in 1993. 

Additionally, this is the fourth time that Yoon has attended a meeting with Biden and Kishida. The first was in June 2022, a month after Yoon was sworn into office, at the NATO summit in Madrid.  

Yoon is the second Korean president to be invited to Camp David.

The first to be invited to the U.S. presidential vacation home was Lee Myung-bak, who spent time there with then-U.S. President George W. Bush in April 2002.

BY LEE HO-JEONG [lee.hojeong@joongang.co.kr]

4. Two-Korea solution favored as unification choice

Not surprising because the Korean people have never been presented with a comprehensive vision and plan for unification. This is one of the critical lines of effort for the Ministry of Unification. It must take its plans and policies to the people and inform and educate them about unification in order to overcome the misconceptions that exists due to lack of information.

Two-Korea solution favored as unification choice

koreaherald.com · by Choi Si-young · August 13, 2023

The majority of South Koreans favor a unified Korean Peninsula, but half of those prefer a model where the two Koreas remain separate, with each side able to freely cross the border, according to a survey released Friday.

In a poll conducted by the National Unification Advisory Council from June 9-11, 52 percent of 1,000 South Korean respondents aged 19 and older considered keeping the two Koreas separate while allowing free travel across the border the best way to reunite the peninsula, which remains divided following the 1950-53 Korean War. Only 28.5 percent of those surveyed approved of an entirely unified peninsula.

Asked whether the two Koreas need to reunite in the first place, 73.4 percent of the respondents said yes, according to the council, a presidential-led body that conducts the poll every quarter as part of efforts to prepare for reunification.

“Even among those who said yes to reunification, 48.6 percent of them want this two-country peninsula. … That’s a real change in the way South Koreans think about unification,” the council said.

Creating a bigger economy is the leading reason for unification, the survey noted, citing 30.9 percent of the respondents. Defusing risks of a potential war and restoring Korea’s homogeneity came next.

Almost 9 out of 10 respondents said that North Korea needs to address its human rights conditions and that the way to resolve the issue is to reopen inter-Korean dialogue, which has been suspended since 2019. The North still refuses to engage the South, demanding concessions from it and its biggest ally, the US.

According to the poll, the nuclear deal reached at the April summit between the two allies has bolstered Seoul’s capabilities to deter Pyongyang’s aggression. The Washington Declaration gives South Korea a bigger say in managing US nuclear assets to prevent a North Korean strike.

US President Joe Biden is hosting a three-way summit with the South Korean and Japanese leaders at the Camp David retreat on Friday, the first of its kind, to double down on the US-led coalition’s efforts for disarming North Korea.

The trilateral gathering is expected to deepen security links between Seoul and Tokyo, which since last year have improved ties marred by historical disputes over Japan’s 1910-45 colonial occupation of the peninsula.

Over 53 percent of the respondents said closer ties among the three countries would have positive effects on the political situation surrounding the Korean Peninsula.

By Choi Si-young (siyoungchoi@heraldcorp.com)

koreaherald.com · by Choi Si-young · August 13, 2023

5. SK Telecom to invest US$100 mln in U.S. AI firm Anthropic

SK Telecom to invest US$100 mln in U.S. AI firm Anthropic | Yonhap News Agency

en.yna.co.kr · by Woo Jae-yeon · August 13, 2023

SEOUL, Aug. 13 (Yonhap) -- SK Telecom Co., South Korea's largest wireless carrier, said Sunday it will invest US$100 million in the U.S. artificial intelligence (AI) company Anthropic in a partnership deal to expand its footprint in the AI sector.

Anthropic is a San Francisco-based AI safety and research company, with products like the AI assistant Claude. It was founded in 2021 by former members of OpenAI, the operator of ChatGPT.

SK Telecom said it planned to collaborate with Anthropic to develop an AI platform, as well as a large language model (LLM) that supports various languages, including Korean, English, German and Japanese.

Anthropic's chief scientist and co-founder Jared Kaplan will lead the development of a new LLM, SK Telecom said.

Based on the collaboration, SK Telecom plans to bolster its own LLM model to better and more efficiently serve customers' needs.

Last month, SK Telecom signed an agreement with Deutsche Telekom, e& and Singtel to form the global Telco AI Alliance "to accelerate AI transformation of the existing telco business and create new business opportunities with AI services."

SK Telecom said the new partnership with Anthropic is expected to help accelerate multilateral efforts to develop the Telco AI Platform.

"We aim to take a leading role in fostering an AI ecosystem jointly with global telecommunication companies, based on SKT's AI technologies specialized in Korean and Anthropics' global AI competence," SK Telecom CEO Ryu Young-sang said.

This undated file photo provided by SK Telecom Co. shows its headquarters in Seoul. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

jaeyeon.woo@yna.co.kr

(END)

en.yna.co.kr · by Woo Jae-yeon · August 13, 2023

6. After 70 years, S. Korea mulls ‘grand strategy’

So who is Korea's Mister X? And can Korea create the equivalent of an NSC 68? Can they have a Solarium Commission?

But this is necessary and I hope Korea can create a grand strategy. Of course My recommendation is that it should be built on the vision of a free and unification Korea.

After 70 years, S. Korea mulls ‘grand strategy’

koreaherald.com · by Choi Si-young · August 13, 2023

The last 70 years have marked South Korea’s ascent to an economic power able to cope with threats from North Korea, its nuclear-armed neighbor that it has yet to sign a peace treaty with to resolve the 1950-53 Korean War.

Seoul’s postwar efforts had relied on working with the US, the South’s biggest ally. In the early 1960s, aid from Washington accounted for 35 percent of Seoul’s budget and 73 percent of its defense spending. The 1965 agreement the South signed with Japan to restore ties following Japan's 1910-1945 occupation of the peninsula also helped rebuild the economy.

Sending workers to German mines from 1963 and troops to help fight in the Vietnam War in 1965 were other parts of a push to buttress the economy. Loans were secured and local companies expanded business overseas as a result, growing the economy.

The efforts led to a bigger global role for the country. In 1996, South Korea joined the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. In 1999, it joined the Group of 20, a collection of 20 key industrialized and emerging economies. In 2010, Seoul hosted the G-20 summit, the first for an Asian country and nonmember of the then-Group of Eight, a more select group of the G-20 nations.

The remarkable economic progress, however, has been haunted by ever-growing nuclear threats from North Korea. Pyongyang is expanding its nuclear arsenal, having abandoned the inter-Korean nonproliferation agreement in 1992 and global nonproliferation pact in 2003, known as the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

The escalating standoff between the US-led alliance of democracies and closer China-Russia ties is rendering the security and economic predicaments trickier to resolve as countries are asked to choose sides.

Addressing global threat

International efforts for North Korea’s disarmament took off in earnest in 2003, when the two Koreas, the US, China, Japan and Russia opened the six-party talks, shortly after the North’s withdrawal from the nonproliferation treaty the same year. Diplomacy has long since stalled. The six parties were close to what some believed was a lasting breakthrough in 2018, when the leaders of the two Koreas met. But ties dipped back the next year.

In December last year, South Korea made a pivot to the three-way US-led coalition on disarmament, unveiling the Indo-Pacific strategy, a “watershed” in South Korean history according to its foreign minister. The three partners -- South Korea, the US and Japan -- place priority on sanctions over diplomacy.

The foreign policy, a doctrine promoting “freedom and democracy,” came at a time when Seoul, like most countries, finds itself having to pick a side between the US and China amid their escalating rivalry, which some liken to a “new Cold War.” Beijing is at unease with Seoul over the initiative, urging the South to “respect other countries.”

Priorities ahead for Seoul

Bolstering the US-led coalition is expected to be the priority for the Yoon administration, which took power in May last year, vowing closer ties with Washington and Tokyo. Yoon’s decision to put behind historical disputes that had plunged Seoul-Tokyo ties to a record low has led to ever closer three-way cooperation.

The three countries’ leaders will meet at the Camp David retreat in Maryland on Friday. Whether the gathering could lay groundwork for a trilateral security arrangement remains to be seen.

“That’s (the security pact) a bit premature at the moment, but I’d say it’s ultimately in the right direction,” said Shin Kak-soo, South Korea’s former vice foreign minister.

Shin, who later served as ambassador to Japan, underscored “taking things at the right pace,” saying the three partners would have to build trust to shake hands on something as binding as a security pact.

Park Won-gon, a professor of North Korean studies at Ewha Womans University, said institutionalizing a permanent three-way consultation will help start that long process. According to Yoon officials, talks are underway to make that happen, though they note that the three leaders would have to decide on details themselves.

“We’ll have to see but the chances of Korea doing something to immediately prompt intense protest from China or Russia aren’t high, even if it backs a permanent trilateral meeting with the US and Japan,” Park said of criticism that trilateral cooperation could anger Beijing and Moscow.

Seoul plans to resume regular three-way summits with Japan and China as this year’s host, after a four-year hiatus prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic. That meeting could be an opportunity for Seoul to engage both the US and China, Park added.

But some experts contend such a parallel push could be superficial and even unsustainable if policymakers in the South don’t figure out a more holistic approach to policy on Washington, Beijing and Moscow.

Balancing ties

“A stronger three-way coalition is unavoidable in the face of growing nuclear threats from North Korea. I’m not saying we reverse that,” said Wi Sung-lac, who served as South Korea’s chief nuclear envoy on North Korea during the right-wing Lee Myung-bak administration and later as ambassador to Russia.

The Yoon administration offers a clear blueprint on the way it wants to deal with the US and Japan, but no such plans seem to be in place for Beijing and Moscow, Wi said. He argues that just as much diplomacy should take place with the two to prevent their closer ties with Pyongyang. China and Russia, two permanent United Nations Security Council members, often block attempts at sanctioning the North.

“I’m talking about an integrated, long-term strategy that places priority on the US while leaving some room for China and Russia. We don’t have that now, because we have only quick fixes,” Wi said, referring to recent spats Seoul had with both of them.

In June, South Korea and China called in each other’s top envoy in a tit-for-tat spat over the Chinese ambassador’s public warning Seoul’s pro-US policies could bring it harm. Seoul and Beijing are still at odds over the South’s potential backing for Taiwan, a self-ruled democratic island Washington supports. Beijing claims it could take back the island by force if necessary.

Meanwhile, Russia warned Korea over Yoon’s conditional offer of military support for Ukraine. That did not stop the Korean leader from making a surprise tip last month to Ukraine’s capital Kyiv, a move some experts see as reinforcing a push to align Seoul with a tighter Western coalition decrying Russia’s war in Ukraine.

“If we need something in return from someone, we need to find the ‘right tone’ on the issue someone wants resolved,” said Chung Jae-hung, director of the Center for Chinese Studies at the Sejong Institute. “So we need policy change on the Taiwan and Ukraine issues.”

Hong Wan-suk, head of Russian and CIS studies at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, said Russia is serious about bolstering ties with North Korea, citing a Russian delegation that visited Pyongyang for the July 27 celebrations. That’s a holiday on which the North marks what it calls victory against the US-led UN forces in the 1950-53 Korean War.

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, who led the mission, held talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un -- the first high-level dialogue for Pyongyang since the COVID-19 pandemic started in early 2020. The two countries touted their ties.

‘Grand strategy’

Projecting global clout while mustering international support to disarm North Korea requires a “grand strategy,” one that includes concrete steps on Seoul’s dealings with major powers, while avoiding being forced to pick sides in the US-China rivalry, said Chun Chae-sung, a professor of political science and international relations at Seoul National University.

“We need a coherent policy on US-China relations and also on North Korea. The former is more urgent because that’s more crucial to our own survival,” Chun said of the Yoon administration’s Indo-Pacific strategy, a plan that he said has yet to be fleshed out.

Nothing is too late, Chun added, saying that Washington and Beijing are themselves still in the process of adjusting policy on each other, with many countries also undecided on how they should approach the US-China competition.

“At least, we’re going in the right direction. We just need more coordinates, and we need them fast,” Chun said.

By Choi Si-young (siyoungchoi@heraldcorp.com)

koreaherald.com · by Choi Si-young · August 13, 2023

7. Seven challenges for South Korea's social, economic survival

A useful overview for Korea:

Climate crisis becomes irreversible reality

Coping with the consequences of the world's fertility rate

Fading brilliance of Korean education

Economic growth losing steam

Embrace diversity to keep the Korean Wave from crashing

Making a more productive politics

A tall order called happiness

Seven challenges for South Korea's social, economic survival

koreaherald.com · by Son Ji-hyoung;Shim Woo-hyun;Park Jun-hee;Jo He-rim;Park Ga-young;Kim So-hyun · August 13, 2023

Moving forward from South Korea's dynamic seven decades, The Korea Herald identifies the seven most crucial challenges the nation must overcome for a sustainable and prosperous future. – Ed.

(123rf)

Climate crisis becomes irreversible reality

Climate change has long been considered a future disaster rather than a present threat by many Koreans. However, it has now become a largely irreversible reality, manifesting as a series of extreme weather events that significantly affect people's daily lives.

The average rainfall across the country came to about 650 millimeters for this year's monsoon season, a period of about a month ending on July 26, often involving extremely heavy rain recording 50 mm of precipitation per hour. It was the third-largest total volume for an annual monsoon season after 2006 and 2020. The downpours left 50 people dead or missing, and nearly 20,000 people displaced.

The record monsoon rains immediately gave way to a heat wave that has killed 21 people so far this year as of Aug. 7. The number of deaths believed to be caused by the heat wave approached half that of the record of 44 in 2018.

The seriousness of such extreme weather events, combined with worsening air quality, highlights the slower-than-expected transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy that remains unresolved thus far in Korea -- which is considered one of the 10 largest carbon-emitting countries in the world.

Korea’s greenhouse gas emissions more than doubled from 1990 to 2020. As a result, as of 2021, about 77 percent of Korea's primary energy came from fossil fuels.

With the goal of reaching carbon neutrality by 2050 first introduced in 2020 under the previous Moon Jae-in administration, the nation's climate neutrality target is enshrined in a framework act that came into effect in 2022.

In April, Korea approved the five-year implementation plan to emit a net 436.6 million metric tons of carbon dioxide and its equivalent in 2030, down 40 percent – in line with its updated Nationally Determined Contribution to the United Nations in December 2021 – compared to 727.6 million tons in 2018.

But Korea's current plan of action to fight climate change is regarded to be "highly insufficient."

According to the latest Climate Action Tracker report in July, Korea’s implementation of policies will lead to a yearly emissions level of at least 650 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent in 2030 -- which would be 116 percent above the 1990 level. In absolute terms, excluding reductions from land use, land use change, forestry and international credits, the annual carbon emissions would amount to 501 million tons.

"If all countries were to follow South Korea’s approach, warming could reach over 3 C and up to 4 C," indicated a July report by Climate Action Tracker, a collaborative project of Climate Analytics and NewClimate Institute.

What happens if the planet undergoes 3 C of warming, according to a separate projection by Climate Transparency, is that the volume of rainfall in Korea will jump threefold compared to the average between 1986 and 2006, and the number of people annually exposed to heat waves in the country will be 4,913 times higher than the number of people affected between 1986 and 2006.

In the case of 1.5 C of warming, as optimally suggested under the Paris Agreement, the volume of rainfall will rise 3.6 percent, and about 500 more people than currently will be exposed to heat waves under this latter scenario.

This result was echoed by the Climate Change Performance Index released in November 2022 jointly by Germanwatch, NewClimate Institute and Climate Action Network.

Korea's actions to mitigate climate change ranked the country near the bottom -- 60th out of the 63 countries surveyed -- in the latest CCPI report, receiving "very low" ratings in the areas of greenhouse gas emissions, renewable energy, energy use and climate policy.

The report attributed Korea's poor ratings to its decision to lower its renewable energy target from the previous 30 percent to 21.5 percent by 2030 in its National Electricity Plan earlier this year.

It also pointed to serious challenges hindering the necessary expansion of renewable energy in Korea, including the current power market, which is structured to favor fossil fuels over renewable energy.

Senior citizens wait in line for free meals at Tapgol Park in central Seoul, Aug. 1. (Yonhap)

Coping with the consequences of the world's fertility rate

South Korea is undergoing a major demographic upheaval, fueled by its low fertility rate, ushering in multifaceted changes in society.

Schools are closing due to low enrollment. Troop numbers have been cut down as the number of men eligible for conscription falls. Companies are also concerned about labor shortages that will likely get worse down the road.

In 2021, South Korea experienced the first on-year decline in the country’s total population, to 51.73 million, since the country started to collect related data in 1949. The population dropped again in 2022 to 51.69 million, according to data released by Statistics Korea at the end of July.

The decrease is largely due to the country’s dropping fertility rate, which hit 0.78 children born per woman over her lifetime in 2022, the lowest level since records were first kept in 1970.

At the current rate, the country’s total population will fall into the 40 million range in 2041 and plunge to some 38 million by 2070, the agency said.

Experts pointed out that increases in housing prices, the cost of raising a child, living costs and changing attitudes toward marriage have propelled the downward trend in the country's population.

"Korea's response to the dropping fertility rate was belated," said Ha Joon-kyung, a professor of economics at Hanyang University. "The country's fertility rate dropped below 2.0 (the fertility rate needed to ensure a broadly stable population) first during the 1980s, but the country did not take preemptive measures until the 2000s, allowing the rate to go down at a rapid pace,"

Of many different sectors, South Korea's decreasing fertility rate and the number of newborns has hit the country’s education sector first, forcing schools and kindergartens to shut down.

Thirteen kindergartens have closed their operation this year. One elementary school has also closed, and three high schools will close next year, according to the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education.

The declining youth population has forced the country to lower its troop numbers, which could jeopardize its military capabilities against North Korea, the world's fourth-largest military with over 1 million active personnel.

In 2019, the government announced that it would adjust the number of troops to 500,000 by 2020, but recently removed the target in consideration of the declining young male population.

“To maintain the country’s troop numbers at 500,000, the government has to recruit 220,000 new soldiers (every year), but the population of males aged 20 is expected to go below 220,000 in 2036 and 120,000 by 2042,” South Korean Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup said at the National Assembly in June.

Together with the low fertility rate, the country’s increasing aging population is anticipated to spark labor shortages in the near future.

According to Statistics Korea, the working-age population -- those aged between 15 and 64 -- has dropped by 883,000 from five years ago. In 2022 alone, the country’s working-age population saw an on-year decrease of 258,000.

On the other hand, the number of people aged 65 and over increased by 440,000 in 2022 to reach 9 million, or 17.5 percent of the total population.

Professor Ha warned that the declining working-age population and climbing aging population has started to impact the country's economy. "From a long-term perspective, South Korea should try to recover its fertility rate, while providing jobs for senior citizens."

As labor shortages are expected to deepen in the future, the government too is speeding up its process to establish an immigration agency.

“To counter labor shortages, which the country will start to face in 2030, South Korea needs to speed up and establish an immigration agency that can take charge of bringing foreign talents needed in different industries,” said Cho Young-tae, a demography professor at Seoul National University, during a lecture organized by the Justice Ministry in July.

Fading brilliance of Korean education

The driving force that propelled war-ravaged South Korea into an economic and industrial powerhouse has been a skilled, educated workforce that made up for the nation’s lack of natural resources.

Korea’s success story, however, has lost some of its steam as its public education system falters.

The system, which supports 12-year school courses, has turned into a racing track of getting children to enter prestigious colleges and get high-paid jobs. Critics have warned that its essential function of providing education, knowledge and the necessary skills to become responsible citizens and social workers have been disappearing, not to mention the opportunity to nurture creative minds to navigate an uncertain future.

For some, the country’s cutthroat education landscape has driven them to take their talents overseas. According to data provided by the Education Ministry, 194,916 high school students were enrolled in overseas schools in 2020, 156,520 in 2021 and 124,320 in 2022 -- mostly in the US and Canada.

Another troubling trend is parents and students’ skewed preferences for the medical profession, seeing it as a “golden ticket” to a lifetime job tenure and high income, which is how society defines one’s achievement and success, according to critics.

In some cases, the preparation for getting into med school starts as early as elementary school. A survey earlier this year showed 1 in 5 elementary and middle school students have expressed a desire to attend medical school. The trend has fanned concerns of a black hole of talent and a shortage of skills in other fields, such as science and engineering.

Observers say the med school dream is likely to persist unless the government increases the enrollment quota at medical schools. The quota, which has been unchanged at 3,058 students per year since 2006, has prompted fierce competition.

Some students who were accepted into the semiconductor department at prestigious universities this year have even rejected the offers, with industry analysts saying they likely chose to go to med school instead, reports said.

Students shun the offers despite a guaranteed job at conglomerates after they graduate with a major in semiconductors. Yonsei University and Korea University -- the nation’s top schools -- have teamed up with Samsung Electronics and SK hynix to nurture future talent in system chips under the condition that the company will hire all students after graduation.

Data also showed many students took entrance exams multiple times until they got into med schools.

Education Minister Lee Ju-ho, however, believes the medical school craze has “reached its peak,” leaving no room for further expansion, Lee said during an interview with The Korea Herald in June. He added that focusing on each student and fostering talents will become easier with a decline in population.

To unlock a new pool of young talent and help them spread their wings, Park Nam-gi, a professor at Gwangju National University of Education, advises creating incentives for students to pursue different paths and provide more job opportunities at younger ages so they could grow into workers that contribute to the community.

“Schools should help students discover the characteristics of different careers through field trips and meeting professionals that could give them practical experience and the choice to do what they want in the future,” he said, adding that parents should be more open-minded when it comes to their children’s future careers.

Park noted that creativity comes with smartness, adding that teachers should continue providing activities that fit students’ abilities and ages while helping them explore new ideas and encourage curiosity.

(Source: The bank of Korea)

Economic growth losing steam

Over the past seven decades, South Korea has transformed itself from being one of the poorest countries into a high-income nation -- probably one of the fastest countries to achieve the status.

Standing as an advanced economy, categorized by the UN Conference on Trade and Development for first time in 2021, Korea has been an illustrative example that sustained robust economic growth to escape the so-called "middle-income trap" in its growth.

But now, the world’s 13th- and Asia’s fourth-largest economy is facing hurdles to advance further, with the latest economic figures signaling the country may be falling into a long-term stagnation in growth.

In 2022, Korea witnessed the third-largest decline in its gross domestic product per capita of 8.2 percent when compared to the year earlier, posting $32,142. The decline was the largest after Japan and Sweden among major economies.

The growth outlook for Korea does not look upbeat either, with the International Monetary Fund anticipating the rate to be at 1.4 percent, a sharp drop from last year's 2.6 percent. The figure is also lower than the IMF's global projection rate of 3 percent, and 4.6 percent for the Asia region.

Months of trade deficit has weighed on the country's economy that is heavily reliant on exports. In trade, Korea only barely recovered to make ends meet in June and July, after running a deficit for 15 consecutive months.

In July, Korea's outbound shipments logged $50.33 billion, down 16.5 percent on-year, and inbound shipments fell 25.4 percent to record $48.7 billion -- leading to a trade surplus of $1.63 billion.

External factors, such as the unprecedented outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the ensuing global economic slump and persistent inflation are obviously affecting the country's low growth trend.

But experts say the latest economic figures show that Korea has fallen into the phase where economic growth is limited, and that, the country should carry out structural reforms and explore new industries.

To overcome the sluggish growth, experts said Korea needs to address the problems of low birth rate and the aging population, and pursue new channels and explore new industries for future growth.

For advanced countries, keeping growth consistent becomes the more realistic goal than creating double-digit growth.

"South Korea has already entered the structural phase of low-growth trend," Kim Young-ik, a professor of economics at Sogang University Graduate School of Business said, explaining that the country should diversify its export channels and reduce dependency on one country, China, Korea's top trading partner.

The neighbor's slow recovery after reopening its borders from the COVID-19 pandemic has taken a toll on Korea's economy, logging deficit for over a year in bilateral trade.

The escalating rivalry between the US and China is also raising alarm for Korea, which strongly relies on semiconductor exports and is home to the world’s top two memory chipmakers, Samsung Electronics and SK hynix.

Ju Won, deputy director of the Hyundai Research Institute, also pointed out that the country lacks the "new drive" for growth.

"We have a couple of key industries, such as semiconductors and cars, that has been lifting the country's economy for the past years. But there is no other drive for growth and this is hard when established industries struggle," Ju said.

"The country is also seeing a shrinking working age population."

Korea’s leading conglomerates are now eyeing new fields for future growth, such as batteries, electric vehicles, biopharmaceuticals and hydgrogen energy among others.

Explaining how the United States maintains its economic growth rate steadily in the 2 percent range by leading new technologies and adopting proactive immigration policies, Ju said Korea should find new industrial strengths and address the low birth rate and aging population.

(123rf)

Embrace diversity to keep the Korean Wave from crashing

The ongoing growth of Hallyu, for more than 25 years, may seem a source of both astonishment and concern for onlookers, considering the history of cultural products from less powerful nations to become merely fleeting trends, as seen with Hong Kong films and J-pop.

While the global popularity of Korean cultural content is not limited to one or two domains, experts caution that for Hallyu to continue developing in a lasting manner, South Korea must cultivate cultural sensitivity while actively embracing cultural diversity.

“Due to the (increased consumption of Korean culture) over a wide range of areas in a short period of time, there has been a lack of preparation for how (Korea) is perceived in various cultural spheres, which can lead to misunderstandings and pose risks,” Lee Sung-min, an assistant professor in the Department of Media Arts and Sciences at Korea National Open University, told The Korea Herald in an interview last week.

One salient example is the portrayal of an Arab prince as gullible and affluent as well as a womanizer in the drama series, “King the Land,” last month, the role of which was actually performed by an Indian actor. In response to outrage expressed by overseas viewers, the production company issued two apologies in the span of one day for its cultural insensitivity.

“Based on the idea that Hallyu is only made possible by foreign consumption, understanding how we should view and accommodate those who consume Hallyu content becomes a fundamental premise for the phenomenon to exist,” Kim Sae-mee, a research professor of regional studies and cultural policy at Hanyang University's Peace Institute, told The Korea Herald on Tuesday.

“There still seems to be an exclusionary attitude among Koreans toward countries that are not considered 'advanced nations.' For instance, there is not enough Korean content portraying Southeast Asians in a positive light. Despite being major consumers of content, these regions are often only depicted as tourist destinations, with few instances of successful CEOs or prominent figures from those areas being portrayed in Korean content,” Kim noted.

Embracing diversity is inevitable, essential and requires deliberate efforts, experts said.

That is partly because globally and in Korea, lifestyles have been greatly diversifying, while the notion of "the average" -- referring to blending into one mainstream, or attempting to conform to one set of standardized norms -- is losing significance according to the annually published book, “2023 Consumer Trend Insights.”

Unlike countries where citizens' identity is based on embracing high levels of diversity, Korea has promoted a national identity based on ethnic and cultural homogeneity for much of its modern history. That’s why it’s necessary today for Koreans actively to seek out opportunities to come into contact with diverse people from other cultures, he explained. “It's important to expand opportunities to encounter diversity in Korean society through (watching and producing) culturally diverse content,” Lee said.

In addition to reflecting carefully and sensitively on how other cultures are portrayed in Korean cultural content, the entire production process should be more representative of greater diversity -- meaning those who work in the industry -- both Lee and Kim noted.

Lee, who is one of the authors of “Hallyu and Cultural Diversity,” a report published by the Korean Foundation for International Cultural Exchange in June, pointed out that ultimately, curiosity about other cultures as well as demand for more diversity and representation are behind the popularity of Hallyu in the first place, so they integral to its sustainability as well.

“The consumption and popularity of Korean cultural products are part of the response to growing demand for cultural diversity to begin with,” Lee said, adding that “If this fact is forgotten and it transforms into a superior or unilateral attitude (on the part of Korean cultural content and its creators), it becomes a risk.”

Making a more productive politics

To tackle all these major challenges, the country needs a leadership that can effectively articulate its causes and execute solutions, while engaging with the public to win its support.

Unfortunately, this is something South Korea is failing spectacularly at right now.

Nearly every project pushed by the Yoon Suk Yeol administration bears the hallmarks of political sectarianism, while social cohesion and consensus have become an increasingly elusive goal. The situation was not so different under the previous administration led by Moon Jae-in.

South Korea remains unwavering in its commitment to democratic institutions, with a track record of removing occupants of the highest office through peaceful means, including recently via the impeachment process.

But, when it comes to whether this vibrant democracy can get the job done, there are growing doubts.

Given that those running for office can realize their ideas only if they win, fighting or smearing the other team to get elected falls within their job scope.

But in Korea, where most former presidents have faced investigations or imprisonment once their power is relinquished to the other side, an unending cycle of revenge compels politicians to resort to extreme measures at any expense to clinch victory and crush opponents.

In this winner-takes-it-all environment, coupled with the media’s tendency to write what sells, the emphasis shifts away from the productive policy discussions and collaborative problem-solving that are essential to tackle national challenges. The priority becomes making rivals look bad to ensure the best chance at winning the next election.

Negative public perception of the role of the leadership and politics were among the reasons cited for South Korea’s drop in the annual Democracy Index 2022 by the Economist Intelligence Unit, released earlier this year.

The country fell eight spots from a year earlier to rank 24th out of the 24 nations classified as “full democracies,” in the study of 167.

“Years of confrontational party politics have taken a toll on South Korea’s democracy,” points out the EIU in the report.

“A Manichaean interpretation of politics has shrunk the space for consensus-building and compromise, often paralyzing policymaking. Politicians focus their political energies on taking down rival politicians rather than working to find consensus and improve the lives of citizens.”

Domestic public opinion surveys have also indicated a growing public disillusionment with the country’s rival political camps, locked in a seemingly permanent gridlock.

In the latest National Barometer Survey, conducted jointly by four pollsters here, 37 percent of respondents, the largest group, answered that they support "no political group.” Supporters of the ruling People Power Party came next at 34 percent, while its archrival Democratic Party of Korea garnered 21 percent.

The Yoon administration has set labor, education and the national pension scheme as its primary targets for reform. The success of these initiatives hinges on the administration's active involvement in political dialogue and its ability to foster public consensus, which could in turn become a catalyst for positive change.

(123rf)

A tall order called happiness

After its swift transition from a postwar wreck to a developed economy, the rise of mental health challenges and hate violence are among the toughest problems South Korea faces.

Almost every day, Koreans come across news articles about people with mental illnesses who have killed themselves or hurt others in shocking ways.

Psychiatrists report they are seeing an increasing number of patients, ranging from toddlers with ADHD to seniors with depression.

Korea came 32nd among 33 member countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development on the Better Life Index, which measures the status of well-being. Korea ranked at the bottom in a similar study by the UN, and at the bottom in terms of the quality of sleep.

Korea’s suicide rate has long been the highest among OECD countries, though partly because Lithuania was not a member before 2018.

Contrary to the trend in most OECD countries, it rose significantly in the decade after 2000. After hitting a high of 33.3 suicide deaths per 100,000 people in 2011, compared to the OECD average of 12.4, Korea’s suicide rate fell slightly, but was still at 26 in 2021.

Suicide rates are a proxy indicator of the mental health status of a population, giving a broad understanding of how well the mental health system is working, in particular regarding access to services and combating stigma, according to the OECD.

“Korea’s very high suicide rate should be seen as a call for action around mental ill-health,” the OECD said in its report on Korea.

Extreme meritocracy, which in Korea’s case involves ranking people based on various test results, is one major source of stress here. This can lead people to direct their anger against those who they think didn’t work as hard as they did or deserve less.

For instance, there was fierce opposition from mostly job seekers in their 20s and 30s to a decision by the Incheon International Airport Corp. to grant permanent positions to its security officials in 2020. Their issue was that permanent jobs were given through a special recruitment process for workers in easier-to-obtain contract positions, rather than the standard, highly competitive route others faced to get permanent positions.

While other countries also see conflicts and hate crimes against minorities, the demographics that become targets of hatred -- women, men, seniors and temporary or nonregular workers, for instance -- are much larger, according to Lee Joo-hee, a professor of sociology at Ewha Womans University.

“I think the common cause of these different conflicts in Korea is economic instability. In the case of a gender conflict, for instance, as women in their 20s looked for jobs more actively compared to the past, it got harder for men in their 20s to get high-quality jobs, and their desperate instability fanned hatred toward women,” Lee said.

“The national and local governments should work toward bridging the widening economic gap between different groups by offering a universal social safety net. Collecting more taxes from a certain group to benefit another would only trigger hatred from taxpayers and increase tax resistance.”

Lee also wrote in her recently published book that the government should start reviewing the provision of universal basic income for all in the near future, in addition to key welfare such as education, medical service and child care.

By Son Ji-hyoung (consnow@heraldcorp.com)

Shim Woo-hyun (ws@heraldcorp.com)

Park Jun-hee (junheee@heraldcorp.com)

Jo He-rim (herim@heraldcorp.com)

Park Ga-young (gypark@heraldcorp.com)

Kim So-hyun (sophie@heraldcorp.com)

koreaherald.com · by Son Ji-hyoung;Shim Woo-hyun;Park Jun-hee;Jo He-rim;Park Ga-young;Kim So-hyun · August 13, 2023

8. Prepare to join the G7 plus (Korea)

Sunday

August 13, 2023

 dictionary + A - A 

Published: 13 Aug. 2023, 20:09

Prepare to join the G7 plus

https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/news/2023-08-13/opinion/columns/Prepare-to-join-the-G7-plus/1845806

Shin Kak-soo

The author, a former vice foreign minister, is a senior advisor at the law firm Shin & Kim and a member of the diplomacy and security division of the JoongAng Ilbo’s Reset Korea campaign.

The post-Cold War international order is undergoing a major shift from the Ukraine war amid the deepening U.S.-China rivalry. Coupled with mega challenges such as the Covid-19, climate disaster, energy transition, digitalization, and population cliff, the world is headed to unprecedented confusion. The globe has been fragmented into a U.S.-led group of democracies, a league of authoritarian states such as China, Russia, Iran and North Korea, and Global South which is not aligned to either of them. The alarming developments raise the need for diplomatic safety nets and multilateralism. In that vein, Korea’s joining the ranks of the Group of Seven (G7) countries draws keen attention.

Starting as G5 for consultation among the U.S., Japan, Germany, the UK, and France in 1975 after the Nixon shock and oil shock in the early 1970s, it expanded to G7 after accepting Italy and Canada the following year. Russia became an official member of G7 in 1998, but lost its membership in 2018, four years after its annexation of Crimea. The European Union (EU) — represented by the presidents of the European Council and the European Commission — has attended G7 summits as a “non-enumerated” member since 1981.

After the rise of China in particular, G7’s GDP noticeably declined to 46 percent of the world’s in 2022 — or $44 trillion — from 70 percent in the beginning, but G7 still flexes its muscles on global economic, diplomatic and security issues. After the de facto neutralization of the UN Security Council from the frequent exercise of veto by Russia and China, G7’s role is growing as some sort of a “Western committee” to jointly deal with the Russian invasion of Ukraine, China’s offensive diplomatic and security policy, and other regional disputes. The 40-page joint statement from the Hiroshima G7 summit in May covered nearly all global issues.

Korea must look at the expansion of G7 from the perspective of “global governance” to deal with global challenges. Due to the weakened influence of G7 on the global economy, G20 was launched in 2008 to cope with the global financial crisis that year. But due to its inability to deal with political issues in the face of oppositions from emerging countries — and due to a lack of homogeneity among members — G20 has showed the limits since the war in Ukraine.

Under such circumstance, the idea of expanding G7 to G10 by inviting countries sharing the same values and interest gained momentum after former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson proposed to add Korea, Australia and India — and further expand it to G11 following Donald Trump’s proposal to add Russia — but no progress has been made because of oppositions from the UK, Germany and Canada. Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida adhered to Tokyo’s opposition to Korea’s participation in the G7 plus. Given the need for a consensus among existing members, it takes time for Korea to join the exclusive group, but once the G7 decides to broaden it, Korea is a good candidate.

If G7 is enlarged in the process of building a new international order, Korea must grasp the chance. Otherwise, the country must follow the international norms created by the precious few — instead of establishing them for others to follow. Korea’s joining the prestigious group will carry great significance as the maintenance and development of a liberal international order is the very foundation for Korea’s peace and prosperity.

When Korea will have the chance is uncertain, but it must thoroughly prepare for the day. First of all, Korea had better join the G7+ at an appropriate time. If it joins too early, it will have trouble meeting the obligations and other requirements for the group. If it joins too late, it could miss the chance forever.

Second, Korea’s participation in the G7+ signifies a great paradigm shift for its diplomacy as it represents an elevated stature of the country as a middle power in the West. However, given the divided land, its heavy reliance on foreign countries for trade, and its perennial geopolitical risks, Korea must brood over how to address obvious constraints in its strategic autonomy from its participation in the G7+.

Third, Korea’s preparedness for the G7+ is still lacking, as seen in the deep-rooted chauvinism, victimhood, and substandard diplomatic awareness among the general public. The public consciousness and political culture should be enhanced to meet the international standards.

Fourth, an extreme conflict between the conservatives and liberals over the direction of diplomacy will make it difficult for the government to grab the opportunity. That demands fixing a bipartisan position on the country’s entry into the club and an integral preparation from the government.

Last, Korea must hurry to nurture diplomatic talent and prepare fiscal resources to meet the obligations required from the international community.

Korea attended the G7 summits on four occasions — in Japan (2008), Italy (2009), Britain (2021) and Japan (2023) — all as a guest. The country needs to continue participating in the summit as a guest in close connection and cooperation with its European members. In particular, Korea must show tangible results by joining a number of networks led by G7 and its individual members so that the country can prove its merits. The door to the G7+ will surely be opened to Korea on its path to become a global pivotal country.

Translation by the Korea JoongAng Daily staff.

9. Aftermath of Jamboree: Political tug-of-war

A large black mark for Korean soft power. But the ROK government did seem to rapidly react to the crisis - Korea seems to do well in crisis but less well in the deliberate long term planning for events like this (though the 1998 and 2018 Olympics and 2002 World Cup were very well done).

Aftermath of Jamboree: Political tug-of-war

koreaherald.com · by Lee Jung-youn · August 13, 2023

As the curtains fell on the 25th World Scout Jamboree on Friday in Seoul, ending with a grand K-pop concert, the controversies surrounding the event are far from over.

Mired in issues including a persistent heat wave, inadequate preparation and typhoon-related disruptions, the recently concluded Jamboree is now at the center of the political blame game. While politicians argue over who holds the responsibility, efforts from companies, religious organizations and local governments across the nation have demonstrated a united response in support of the Scouts.

The official investigation into the Jamboree will begin with a probe by the Board of Audit and Inspection. The BAI is expected to launch an audit as early as this week to clarify where responsibility lies for the event's overall mismanagement.

According to reports, the BAI has begun preparing an inspection of agencies related to the event, such as the Jamboree Organizing Committee and North Jeolla Province, as well as supporting ministries including the Gender Equality Ministry and the Interior Ministry.

The official launch of the inspection will be announced as soon as details concerning the inspection team are determined.

Aftereffects of the Jamboree chaos have expanded to a political battle ahead of the regular parliamentary session in September, creating tension between the ruling and opposition parties.

The ruling People Power Party plans to focus on clarifying the responsibility of North Jeolla Province, the regional government in charge of the event that was held on reclaimed land of Saemangeum, but the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea is considering pushing for a parliamentary inspection, claiming that the ultimate responsibility lies with the central government led by Yoon Suk Yeol.

Rep. Chung Kyung-hee of the ruling party, who is also a member of the National Assembly's Gender Equality and Family Committee, said in a press conference on Sunday that North Jeolla Province should be held accountable, and claimed the province "only paid attention to the budget consisting of people's taxes."

She demanded a reexamination of the Jamboree venue's selection process, and called for thorough investigation into the measures the province had taken to address the problems that had been raised since the preparation period -- the lack of water, sewage facilities, drainage problems and the possibility of ground subsidence.

"Preparations for the Jamboree, which began in the Moon Jae-in regime, have been neglected for the past six years, only wasting the budget," said Kim Min-su, spokesperson of the People Power Party, in a statement released Saturday.

Ruling party leader Kim Gi-hyeon took aim at the Gender Ministry and North Jeolla Provincial Office during a Supreme Council meeting Thursday.

“Our party will carefully examine the problems of the Gender Ministry, which did not sufficiently play its role as a supporting ministry. We will also thoroughly inspect what the former and current governors of North Jeolla Province, who led the Jamboree, have done to prepare for the event," Kim said.

The Democratic Party fired back, arguing that the Yoon administration is trying to shift the blame to the previous regime, the Gender Ministry and the North Jeolla Provincial Office.

Rep. Kim Yun-duk of the main opposition, who is co-chairman of the Jamboree Organizing Committee, apologized for the poor preparation in a press conference Sunday afternoon, but added that it is not right to solely blame the Gender Ministry and North Jeolla Province.

"The ultimate reason (of the problems surrounding the Jamboree) cannot be properly clarified through an inspection attempt by powerful agencies which aim to cover up their faults and scapegoat weak front-line civil servants," he said.

Rep. Kim Yun-duk argued that the government, North Jeolla Province, related ministries and the organizing committee should all be thoroughly examined through a parliamentary investigation.

Rep. Kim Sung-ju of the Democratic Party demanded an official apology from the president, the resignation of Prime Minister Han Duck-soo and a parliamentary investigation. The Yoon government is most responsible, he said, summarizing the jamboree crisis as "a lack of preparation, poor operation and avoidance of responsibility."

He also stressed that it was the Park Geun-hye government which decided on the Saemangeum site in 2015, while preparation for the event was the Yoon government's task.

On Wednesday, the first day of the temporary parliamentary sessions this month, a plenary session of the Public Administration and Security Committee will be held. Interior Minister Lee Sang-min, one of the co-chairs of the Jamboree committee, is scheduled to attend. The battle between the ruling and opposition parties over mismanagement of the international event is expected to be fierce.

Whether the budget allocation was appropriate is one of the biggest questions to be debated.

According to the organizing committee on Saturday, the budget, which was originally 49.1 billion won ($36.8 million) at the time of the venue's selection in 2017, more than doubled to 117.1 billion won while preparing for the event. After the World Scout Jamboree kicked off and concerns were raised about hygiene issues and a heat wave, an additional 6.9 billion won was urgently allocated.

As participants were relocated due to the threat of Typhoon Khanun, additional funds were spent on alternative accommodations, food and transportation, leaving the final budget yet to be confirmed.

This contrasts with the Yamaguchi jamboree held in Japan in 2015, which had a price tag of about 39.5 billion won, according to the Japan Scout Association, although it was also held on reclaimed land.

The Gender Ministry also faces mounting criticism, as it was the main supporting ministry for the event. Minister Kim Hyun-sook, who co-chaired the organizing committee along with the culture and interior minister, is scheduled to attend the Gender Equality and Family Committee meeting on Aug. 25.

Kim has been severely criticized for the poor preparations, especially after she had claimed last year at the annual parliamentary inspection that there was "no problem regarding the preparation of the jamboree."

As a ministry that has been surrounded by rumors of abolishment — one of President Yoon's presidential election pledges — the Gender Ministry may find itself on the verge of shutting down again.

Meanwhile, companies, religious organizations and local governments across the country rallied together to provide some positive experiences for the teenage participants of the botched jamboree.

After Scouts left the campsite due to Typhoon Khanun, temples and churches nationwide provided accommodations, bottled water, snacks and alternative programs. The Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism provided the government with 44 temples for 1,600 participants to stay in. Churches across the country also provided free accommodation for about 5,000 Scouts.

Major conglomerates such as Samsung, Hyundai Motor, SK, LG and Posco opened up their facilities to the Scouts as well. Hyundai Motor sent about 100 personnel to the Jamboree site to support the clean-up, along with supplies such as bottled water and temporary toilets.

After the original Jamboree program was canceled due to the typhoon, search giant Naver invited some 200 Scouts to its headquarters in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, on Thursday for a tour, while mobile messaging operator Kakao invited some 230 participants to its Pangyo headquarters on Friday.

Municipal governments across the country also prepared cultural experience programs for the Scouts to make up for the canceled programs.

By Lee Jung-youn (jy@heraldcorp.com)

koreaherald.com · by Lee Jung-youn · August 13, 2023

10. North Korean hackers still coming for crypto platforms

I guess I am glad not to have the money to dabble in crypto currency.  

Kim's all purpose sword is at work.

North Korean hackers still coming for crypto platforms

TL;DR Breakdown

• North Korean hackers aggressively target global crypto platforms.
• Last year, they allegedly stole $1.7 billion from crypto and financial sectors.
• The hackers are believed to be from North Korea's Reconnaissance General Bureau (RGB).

Jai Hamid - August 13, 2023

2 mins read

cryptopolitan.com

Description

Despite international efforts to thwart their exploits, North Korean hackers persistently and aggressively target global cryptocurrency platforms. Their audacity leaves one wondering: What fuels their unyielding interest in the crypto sector, and why hasn’t the global community found an effective solution? A Persistent Threat to the Digital Frontier Undeterred by international sanctions, North Korea’s drive … Read more

Despite international efforts to thwart their exploits, North Korean hackers persistently and aggressively target global cryptocurrency platforms.

Their audacity leaves one wondering: What fuels their unyielding interest in the crypto sector, and why hasn’t the global community found an effective solution?

A Persistent Threat to the Digital Frontier

Undeterred by international sanctions, North Korea’s drive for funding its nuclear ambitions remains robust and ever-evolving. Independent monitors tasked with evaluating these sanctions recently discovered the nation’s continuous and unabated efforts in the crypto space.

As North Korea further develops its nuclear and weaponry projects, their evident interest in the vast and relatively unprotected terrain of cryptocurrency serves as a reminder of the digital vulnerabilities the world is grappling with.

Last year, the audacity of North Korea’s cyber warriors reached unprecedented heights, with allegations pinning them for cyber thefts that amounted to a staggering $1.7 billion.

Their targets? Cryptocurrency exchanges and various financial institutions that, despite the repeated onslaughts, still seem unprepared for the level of sophistication North Korean hackers bring to the table.

The Reconnaissance General Bureau: North Korea’s Elite Cyber Unit

Hiding behind the screens are hackers believed to be members of the Reconnaissance General Bureau (RGB), North Korea’s primary foreign intelligence outfit. The RGB, notorious for its intricate cyber-espionage tactics, seems to have further honed its craft.

They’re not just attacking at random; they’ve pinpointed sectors that promise lucrative returns. Besides the obvious attraction of cryptocurrency platforms, their hit-list includes defense, energy, and even health sectors.

These deliberate and calculated moves shine a light on North Korea’s strategic operations in the international digital domain.

Not only are they keen on exploiting the financial gains the crypto sector offers, but they also seem interested in gathering intelligence, possibly to further strengthen their position both domestically and internationally.

However, it’s not just about cyberattacks and stealing funds. North Korea has found various avenues to bypass international financial systems, further engaging in covert financial operations that slip under the global radar.

International Relations: A Game of Chess

The United Nations’ effort to stifle North Korea’s ambitions, especially in the nuclear and weaponry domain, isn’t new.

The international body, in a bid to discourage North Korea’s nuclear aspirations, enforced sanctions as early as 2006. However, despite the unanimous strengthening of these sanctions in the past, challenges have arisen.

The U.N. Security Council currently finds itself in a predicament. While some of its members, namely China and Russia, vouch for a softer approach, suggesting an easing of these sanctions to lure North Korea back to the negotiation table, others argue for the continued pressure approach.

It’s a delicate balance. One wrong move and the world might face a North Korea further emboldened by its digital victories.

The relentlessness of North Korean hackers should serve as a stark wake-up call for the global community. It’s not just about funds; it’s about security, intelligence, and the ever-looming nuclear threat.

As North Korea refines its tactics, it’s crucial for the world to be several steps ahead. The international digital frontier is at stake, and complacency could lead to irreversible consequences.

Disclaimer: The information provided is not trading advice. Cryptopolitan.com holds no liability for any investments made based on the information provided on this page. We strongly recommend independent research and/or consultation with a qualified professional before making any investment decision.

cryptopolitan.com

11. North Korea: Could They Arm Russia to Fight Ukraine?

North Korea: Could They Arm Russia to Fight Ukraine?

There has also been much speculation that North Korea might have sold munitions to the Wagner Group, as the DPRK has stockpiles of older artillery and mortar round Russia could use to fight Ukraine. 

19fortyfive.com · by Maya Carlin · August 12, 2023

Russia has been rightfully boycotted by the majority of the international community following its unjust “special military operation” in Ukraine. The rogue regime has had to lean on like-minded nations in order to sustain its war efforts in Kyiv. Since February 2022, Moscow has lost scores of military equipment and weapons systems on the battlefield and continues to face significant stockpile shortages. From main battle tanks (MBTs) to airframes, Moscow has turned to its storage-ridden piles of antiquated weapons in order to aid its advances in Ukraine.

Perhaps the most recognizable Russian partnership is with the Islamic Republic of Iran. Last summer, the White House revealed that Russian delegations had visited Tehran’s Kashan airfield to inspect lethal unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). For months, Iran denied providing Moscow with its combat drones but ultimately admitted this transaction this Fall. As Moscow’s missile arsenal began to diminish, it was able to rely on Iranian-delivered UAVs to consistently barrage critical infrastructure and military assets in Kyiv.

Russian military aircraft spotted in North Korea

An usual sighting of a Russian airframe in Pyongyang this week indicates that the Kremlin may be developing another ally. According to tracking datafrom FlightRadar24, a Russian Air Force Ilyushin IL-62M flew from Moscow to Pyongyang late last month and returned in early August. The last time this specific type of aircraft was seen in North Korea was in 2019, when Russian Deputy Defense Minister Alexander Fomin visited the Hermit Kingdom. The presence of this Russian jet in North Korea indicates that the Kremlin could procure weapons from the Kim Jon Un regime. Both Pyongyang and Moscow are heavily sanctioned and share a vehement anti-American sentiment. A partnership between the two rogue allies could be mutually beneficial.

In response to the sighting of the Russian plane, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said that “We have made clear our concerns about cooperation between Russia and North Korea, we have made clear our concerns about North Korea seeking to assist Russia in its aggression in Ukraine,” adding that “We will continue to make those concerns clear and we will continue to enforce all of our sanctions.”

Which weapons would Moscow procure from Pyongyang?

North Korean drones were also displayed at the Victory Day Parade, a weapon certainly needed by Russian forces as Kyiv’s counteroffensive rages on.

Moscow is also in desperate need of functioning main battle tanks and infantry fighting vehicles, which Pyongyang could provide spare parts for.

There has also been much speculation that North Korea might have sold munitions to the Wagner Group, as the DPRK has stockpiles of older artillery and mortar round Russia could use to fight Ukraine.

Maya Carlin, a Senior Editor for 19FortyFive, is an analyst with the Center for Security Policy and a former Anna Sobol Levy Fellow at IDC Herzliya in Israel. She has by-lines in many publications, including The National Interest, Jerusalem Post, and Times of Israel. You can follow her on Twitter: @MayaCarlin.

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In this article:

Written By Maya Carlin

Maya Carlin, a Senior Editor for 19FortyFive, is an analyst with the Center for Security Policy and a former Anna Sobol Levy Fellow at IDC Herzliya in Israel. She has by-lines in many publications, including The National Interest, Jerusalem Post, and Times of Israel.

19fortyfive.com · by Maya Carlin · August 12, 2023

12.  Emirates in Flag Controversy After Displaying North Korean Flag During Cabin Crew Graduation Ceremony For South Korean Flight Attendant

Sigh... This seems to happen more often than we think. It reminds me of someone meeting someone from the Republic of Korea who asked, "is that the good Kore or the bad Korea?"

Emirates in Flag Controversy After Displaying North Korean Flag During Cabin Crew Graduation Ceremony For South Korean Flight Attendant

paddleyourownkanoo.com · by Mateusz Maszczynski · August 12, 2023

Emirates has found itself in the middle of another flag controversy after the Dubai-based airline displayed the flag of North Korea during a cabin crew graduation ceremony while a flight attendant from South Korea was receiving her crew diploma.

The embarrassing incident was flagged by the popular cabin crew Facebook page ‘A Fly Guy’s Cabin Crew Lounge’, which shared a leaked photo of newly graduated Emirates cabin crew lined up in front of a photo of the North Korean flag.

Emirates does not fly to North Korea, and while the airline hires cabin crew from around the world, it does not send recruiters to North Korea.

On the face of it, it would appear that someone accidentally used the wrong flag for the graduation ceremony, perhaps after using Google to get a photo of a Korean flag without specifying whether they meant North or South Korea.

This isn’t the first time that Emirates has found itself in hot water over the use of country flags. For many years, the carrier used country flag pins as part of the cabin crew uniform so that flight attendants could show off where in the world they came from.

Emirates cabin crew represent 140 nationalities, but several years ago, Chinese officials discovered that cabin crew from Taiwan were wearing the flag of the Republic of China, known as the ‘white sun in a blue sky, and a wholly red earth’.

The flag is controversial because it is used to symbolise Taiwan’s independent governance. The People’s Republic of China has, however, long laid claim to Taiwan, and Beijing frequently takes issues with organisations and governments that support Taiwan’s claim to independence or suggest that the island is separate from the rest of China.

Chinese officials effectively threatened Emirates with sanctions because cabin crew of Taiwanese descent were wearing the ‘white sun in a blue sky, and a wholly red earth’ flag on their lapels.

As a result, Emirates initially asked its cabin crew from Taiwan to wear the flag of the People’s Republic of China, but when crew members objected, the airline then decided just to ditch the flag pins altogether.

paddleyourownkanoo.com · by Mateusz Maszczynski · August 12, 2023

13. Biden’s First Camp David Summit Looks to Align Allies Facing China Threat

I am still holding out hope for a "Camp David Consensus" on unification.

That said this is also a very important opportunity to improve the security relationship interoperability among the three countries.

While north Korea tries to drive wedges in US alliance relationships China has been explicit (to South korea) at fleas tit does not wan ttintergated missile defenses and a trilateral llaince.

Excerpts:

The annual military exercises will include training to track and destroy ballistic missiles by knitting together radar, satellites and weapons systems used by the three allies in real time, according to officials involved in the planning. 

The U.S. military traditionally has worked closely but separately with the militaries of its allies, Japan and South Korea.

The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Army Gen. Mark Milley, met in July with his South Korean and Japanese counterparts, first in a three-way meeting in Hawaii, then individually in Seoul and Tokyo. The U.S. has been prodding the two countries to work together, and the meetings bore fruit with agreements in principle for joint exercises, officials said.

“The whole idea is to make sure that we demonstrate that we are all shoulder-to-shoulder,” Milley told reporters after the meetings.  

Many Koreans are wary of the Japanese military playing a regional role because of Japanese aggression in the early 20th century. Japan colonized the Korean Peninsula from 1910 to 1945, and there have been spats in recent years over historical concerns.

As a result, the direct South Korea-Japan defense partnership remains underdeveloped, according to security experts. Their missile defenses aren’t tightly linked, and they lack a pact to share supplies such as munitions, water and fuel if either is attacked. 

Biden’s First Camp David Summit Looks to Align Allies Facing China Threat

Leaders of U.S., Japan and South Korea are set to meet and agree on annual military exercises

https://www.wsj.com/articles/bidens-first-camp-david-summit-looks-to-align-allies-facing-china-threat-89626785?mod=hp_lista_pos1

By Alastair Gale

Follow

 in Tokyo and Timothy W. Martin

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 in Seoul

Aug. 13, 2023 10:00 am ET

President Biden met with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol during the G-7 summit in Hiroshima earlier this year. PHOTO: JONATHAN ERNST/REUTERS

They have done the diplomatic courtship. Now the U.S., Japan and South Korea are trying to make their three-way relationship more permanent—in particular on military matters with annual joint exercises.

Two years ago Tokyo and Seoul were barely on speaking terms. How much has changed will become clear on Friday when President Biden is set to host South Korea’s president, Yoon Suk Yeol, and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida at Camp David.

Countering China and North Korea is the main aim of the three-way meeting, which is marked by a pair of firsts. It is the first time Biden is greeting foreign leaders at the presidential retreat in rural Maryland, and the first time leaders of the three countries have held a stand-alone summit, instead of gathering at another event. 

The three leaders are set to announce that their countries will hold joint military exercises every year across a range of forces, and they also plan to make their summit an annual event, officials said. 

U.S. soldiers participating in a joint exercise with South Korean troops near the border with North Korea. PHOTO: CHUNG SUNG-JUN/GETTY IMAGES

National-security advisers from the three nations are set to meet twice a year, and a hotline for the three leaders is in the works. They are also planning tighter economic cooperation as they try to shield supply chains from China-related risks.

“When the U.S., Japan and Korea are in lockstep, it changes the strategic landscape in a fundamental way,” said Rahm Emanuel, the U.S. ambassador to Japan.

China, North Korea and Russia are forging their own closer military ties, including a recent joint naval patrol by Beijing and Moscow near Alaska. North Korea is advancing its nuclear program through frequent test launches.

Closer relations between Seoul and Tokyo, driven by Yoon, have opened an opportunity for the two longtime U.S. allies to work more closely together. Already, Yoon and Kishida, fellow conservatives, have visited each other’s country, and dozens of three-way meetings involving top officials have taken place.

Biden has said that he is running next year for re-election but could be succeeded by someone less committed to global alliances, while the South Korea-Japan rapprochement has historically been prone to abrupt backsliding. 

Locking in the gains now to keep the three-way relationship strong will be an essential goal at the Camp David summit, said Tongfi Kim, a professor of Asian geopolitics at the Brussels School of Governance. 

“So, basically make the breakup more difficult,” he said.

The annual military exercises will include training to track and destroy ballistic missiles by knitting together radar, satellites and weapons systems used by the three allies in real time, according to officials involved in the planning. 

The U.S. military traditionally has worked closely but separately with the militaries of its allies, Japan and South Korea.

Eyeing China Threats, NATO Strengthens Ties in the Pacific

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Eyeing China Threats, NATO Strengthens Ties in the Pacific

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WSJ looks at what NATO partnerships could mean in the event of a conflict over Taiwan. Illustration: David Fang

The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Army Gen. Mark Milley, met in July with his South Korean and Japanese counterparts, first in a three-way meeting in Hawaii, then individually in Seoul and Tokyo. The U.S. has been prodding the two countries to work together, and the meetings bore fruit with agreements in principle for joint exercises, officials said.

“The whole idea is to make sure that we demonstrate that we are all shoulder-to-shoulder,” Milley told reporters after the meetings.  

Many Koreans are wary of the Japanese military playing a regional role because of Japanese aggression in the early 20th century. Japan colonized the Korean Peninsula from 1910 to 1945, and there have been spats in recent years over historical concerns.

As a result, the direct South Korea-Japan defense partnership remains underdeveloped, according to security experts. Their missile defenses aren’t tightly linked, and they lack a pact to share supplies such as munitions, water and fuel if either is attacked. 

U.S., South Korean and Japanese warships participated in an exercise last September. PHOTO: SOUTH KOREAN DEFENSE MINISTRY/GETTY IMAGES

Emanuel, the U.S. ambassador to Japan, said it was important for Japan and South Korea to work directly together. 

“Participating with all three at the table has been a very successful formula,” he said. “That will be what will be institutionalized. So people don’t talk through us, they talk to each other.”

Camp David, about 60 miles outside of Washington, D.C., is the rural residence of the U.S. president. Biden has visited it more than two dozen times, but has yet to host foreign leaders there, as President Barack Obama did.

Earlier this month, the Global Times newspaper, an outlet of China’s Communist Party, criticized the scheduled Camp David summit, saying the U.S. wanted to create a North Atlantic Treaty Organization-style alliance in the region that would be dangerous for Japan and South Korea.

Wang Yi, a top Chinese official, warned Japan and South Korea in July against drawing too close to the West. “No matter how blond you dye your hair, or how sharp you make your nose, you’ll never turn into a European or American,” Wang said.

North Korea said the tighter coordination between Washington, Tokyo and Seoul was part of their “new sinister measures.”

Gordon Lubold in Washington contributed to this article.

Write to Alastair Gale at alastair.gale@wsj.com and Timothy W. Martin at Timothy.Martin@wsj.com

14. Voice of America: [Washington Talk] Upgrade of US-ROK-Japan security cooperation... South Korea's nuclear armament is not breaking the US-ROK alliance

Syd Seiler provides an explanation of the NIE and a message to the regime at the end (in Korea but with English subtitle). I wish Mr. Flietz had a little more understanding of threats of the regime: the nature, objectives, and strategy of the regime and especially an understanding of unification. Frankly, Mr. Fleitz' discussion of unification was disappointing and ill-informed but that is typical of those who only think about these issues in the context of denuclearization. It was good that Syd was able to provide a little more nuanced context when he described changes inside the regime. Mr. Fleitz also provided a full throated defense of Trump-Kim relations and stated explicitly that John Bolton wanted to bomb north Korea during his entire tenure as NSA. And also seems ot support the ROK (and perhaps Japan) having nuclear wepaons and said it would not be detasbilizing).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8mX3nro2qss

[Washington Talk] Upgrade of US-ROK-Japan security cooperation... South Korea's nuclear armament is not breaking the US-ROK alliance

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16,990 views Premiered Aug 12, 2023 #North Korea #VoiceofAmerica #Xi Jinping

Former senior U.S. officials said the three countries' capabilities were complementary, saying that the U.S., South Korea, and Japan are stepping up security cooperation in response to the growing threat from North Korea and China. He also predicted that South Korea's nuclear armament would cause regional instability, but given the regional threat, it would not lead to the breakdown of the US-ROK alliance. Moderator: Cho Eun-jung / Conversation: Sydney Seiler (Former National Intelligence Analyst in charge of North Korea), Fred Fleitz (Former White House NSC Chief of Staff) 2:11 Introduction of today's panel 4:12 Summit meeting

on upgrading

trilateral cooperation Important

6:52 China uses coercive measures against South Korea

9:45 Unification of the Korean Peninsula is different from Germany

12:52 Has Trump's policy made North Korea bold?

14:46 Bolton wants to bomb North Korea

17:23 National intelligence assessment, North Korea's coercive use of nuclear weapons

20:27 South Korea's nuclear armament, US-ROK alliance is not broken

23:00 North Korea, nuclear threat is useless

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De Oppresso Liber,

David Maxwell

Vice President, Center for Asia Pacific Strategy

Senior Fellow, Global Peace Foundation

Editor, Small Wars Journal

Twitter: @davidmaxwell161

Phone: 202-573-8647

email: david.maxwell161@gmail.com