Informal Institute for National Security Thinkers and Practitioners

Quotes of the Day:

"Because we decline to fight genuine, strategically conceived political warfare, a considerable part of our billions in foreign-aid dollars has been wasted, squandered on useless projects, ... or used to build up industry for the enemy or his friends to inherit."

- James Burnham, Sticks. Stones, & Atoms (1961)

“Always forgive your enemies; nothing annoys them so much.”

- Oscar Wilde

"Make sure you’re not made ‘Emperor,’ avoid that imperial stain. It can happen to you, so keep yourself simple, good, pure, saintly, plain, a friend of justice, god-fearing, gracious, affectionate, and strong for your proper work."

- Marcus Aurelius

1. N. Korea hits out at U.N. chief over remarks on denuclearization

2. Yoon renews pledge to honor people who sacrificed themselves for nation

3. F-4E fighter jet crashed in the Yellow Sea, two pilots escaped

4. Yoon set to unveil 'audacious plan' for North Korea's denuclearization

5. No challenge, no opportunity (South Korea)

6. A recurring Thaad nightmare

7. 'The Netflix effect': Why Western women are heading to South Korea in search of love

8. Ex-USFK commander rejects China's claims over THAAD

9. Our bubbles of certainty: A perspective from my life in North Korea | Seohyun Lee | TEDxUCLA

10. What to Make of North Korea’s Twisted COVID ‘Revenge’ Threat

11. South Korea Says Missile Shield ‘Not Negotiable’ With China

1. N. Korea hits out at U.N. chief over remarks on denuclearization

Rather quick response. The Propaganda and Agitation Department must have been prepared for this.

We should understand without question that the regime has absolutely no intention of giving up its nuclear weapons for any reason.

(LEAD) N. Korea hits out at U.N. chief over remarks on denuclearization | Yonhap News Agency

en.yna.co.kr · by 이치동 · August 14, 2022

(ATTN: UPDATES with details; ADDS photo)

SEOUL, Aug. 14 (Yonhap) -- North Korea accused U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Sunday of lacking impartiality as head of the global agency, taking issue with his denuclearization-related remarks during a visit to Seoul last week.

In a press statement, Kim Son-gyong, vice foreign minister for international organizations, denounced the U.N. chief for his reported expression of "full support for the complete, verifiable and irretrievable denuclearization (CVID)" of North Korea.

Guterres met with President Yoon Suk-yeol on Friday.

According to an English-language report of the Korean Central News Agency, Kim said,

"I cannot but express deep regret over the said remarks of the UN secretary-general that grossly lack impartiality and fairness and go against the obligations of his duty, specified in the UN Charter, as regards the issue of the Korean peninsula."

"The so-called CVID, touted by the U.S. and its vassal forces, is just an infringement upon the sovereignty of the DPRK as it demands the unilateral disarmament, and Secretary-General Guterres perhaps knows well that the DPRK has totally rejected it without any toleration," the vice foreign minister added. The DPRK is the acronym for the North's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

Kim said the North's nuclear program is its "inevitable choice" to defend its own security and called on Guterres to "be careful in making such dangerous words and deeds as "pouring gasoline on flames" at a time of the "extremely acute situation" on the Korean Peninsula.

(END)

en.yna.co.kr · by 이치동 · August 14, 2022

2. Yoon renews pledge to honor people who sacrificed themselves for nation

I saw some comments on social media that President Yoon will unveil his audacious bold new plan for north Korea on Liberation Day, August 15th.

Yoon renews pledge to honor people who sacrificed themselves for nation | Yonhap News Agency

en.yna.co.kr · by 김덕현 · August 14, 2022

SEOUL, Aug. 14 (Yonhap) -- President Yoon Suk-yeol on Sunday renewed his determination to create a nation where those who sacrificed themselves for the country are properly honored, a day before Liberation Day, celebrating the Korean Peninsula's liberation from Japan's 1910-1945 colonial rule.

"The government will ensure that there is not an inch of negligence in honoring those who sacrificed and committed themselves to the nation and people," Yoon said in a speech during a ceremony to place the remains of 17 anti-Japanese Korean independence fighters at Seoul National Cemetery in southern Seoul.

"What we need to remember until the end is the heroes who have fallen for the independence of our country," Yoon said.

The remains had been placed at a cemetery in northern Seoul but were laid to rest at the national cemetery a day before Liberation Day.

"The freedom that we enjoy to the fullest stands on the sacrifice of those who threw their lives like candles for freedom and the independence of our homeland, despite the grim reality and despair of the Japanese colonial era," Yoon said.

During the speech, Yoon mentioned the names of the 17 independence fighters and their fight against Japan's colonial rule.

kdh@yna.co.kr

(END)

en.yna.co.kr · by 김덕현 · August 14, 2022

3. F-4E fighter jet crashed in the Yellow Sea, two pilots escaped

Hard to believe the F-4 and F-5 are still in operation. Of course they can defeat any aircraft in the nKPA inventory.

South Korea has a broad range of aircraft capabilities from the F-4 to the F-35.

F-4E fighter jet crashed in the Yellow Sea, two pilots escaped

donga.com

Posted August. 13, 2022 07:27,

Updated August. 13, 2022 07:27

F-4E fighter jet crashed in the Yellow Sea, two pilots escaped. August. 13, 2022 07:27. by Sang-Ho Yun ysh1005@donga.com.

An Air Force F-4E fighter jet crashed in the Yellow Sea on Friday due to its engine catching fire during flight. The two pilots made an emergency escape and were unharmed.

According to the Air Force, an F-4E crashed 9km south of Jeongok Port in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province around 12:20 p.m. on the same day. The jet took off from Suwon Base at 11:41 a.m. and was returning to base after carrying out its mission. "After finding that the engine was on fire, the two pilots turned to the shoreline where there were no civilian residencies, and made an emergency escape," the Air Force said.

The jet in question is one of the well-known fighter jet models introduced decades ago in 1979, and about 20 are currently still in operation. The Air Force plans to retire the F-4E around 2024 after operating them for another three years. However, after the crash of six F-4E jets since 2000, some raise concerns that these jets should be retired earlier.

In January, the crash of an F-5E fighter jet operated at the same base during takeoff killed the pilot Major Sim Jeong-min. The cause of the accident has been found to be corrosion of fuel conduit in the engine of the 36-year-old fighter jet.

Following the accident, the Air Force suspended flights of all types except for reconnaissance and emergency standby forces. In particular, flights of the F-4E aircraft will be suspended until the cause of the accident is identified. In addition, an accident countermeasure committee chaired by Yoon Byung-ho, deputy chief of staff of the Air Force, has been formulated to investigate the cause of the accident, including possible engine defects.

한국어

donga.com

4. Yoon set to unveil 'audacious plan' for North Korea's denuclearization

Looking forward to the new plan. I just hope he includes a plan for unification.

I will continue to argue that the only way we are going to see an end to the nuclear program and military threats as well as the human rights abuses being committed against the Korean people living in north is through achievement of unification and the establishment of a free and unified Korea. One that is secure and stable, non-nuclear, economically vibrant with free market principles, and unified under a liberal constitutional form of government based on individual liberty, freedom, rule of law, and human rights as determined by the Korean people – A free and unified Korea or in short, a United Republic of Korea (UROK).

Yoon set to unveil 'audacious plan' for North Korea's denuclearization

The Korea Times · by 2022-08-14 14:41 | Politics · August 14, 2022

President Yoon Suk-yeol delivers a speech during a ceremony to commemorate deceased veterans of the Korean Liberation Army at Seoul National Cemetery in Dongjak District, Seoul, Sunday. YonhapPresident expected to drop hints at Liberation Day speech

By Nam Hyun-woo

A series of recent meetings with senior U.S. officials dealing with issues on the Korean Peninsula are raising speculation that President Yoon Suk-yeol will soon unveil his "audacious plan," possibly a set of incentive packages, to entice North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons.

Based on remarks and indications by the presidential office and Cabinet members dealing with the issue, the plan is anticipated to boil down to providing economic support and security guarantees to the North Korean regime.

However, diplomatic observers believe that it remains to be seen if Yoon's plan will come to fruition amid uncertainties that the Kim Jong-un regime is unlikely to respond to it.

The audacious plan, unveiled at his inauguration speech, May 10, refers to Seoul's preparation to work with the international community to come up with measures that will vastly strengthen North Korea's economy and improve the quality of life for its people if the North embarks on a process toward complete denuclearization. Key details are likely to be announced today when Seoul marks National Liberation Day or during a press conference, Wednesday, which marks the 100th day of Yoon's inauguration.

During a press conference, July 22, Unification Minister Kwon Young-se hinted that Yoon's plan will contain "not only economic support but also a measure to address the North's security concerns," Pyongyang's logical ground for not giving up its nuclear weapons.

According to the presidential office, Yoon met with U.S. Forces Korea Commander Gen. Paul LaCamera and U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Philip Goldberg at a closed-door dinner on Aug. 9. On Friday, the president had successive meetings with former U.S. Secretary of State Michael Pompeo, United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres and U.S. Senator Ed Markey, the chair of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on East Asia, the Pacific, and International Cybersecurity Policy.

Although details of their meetings were not disclosed, the president is believed to have had discussions on North Korea's nuclear and missile programs, especially the direction of the Yoon government's North Korea policy.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un gestures as he delivers a speech at a national meeting reviewing emergency anti-epidemic measures in Pyongyang on Aug. 10, in this photo released by the North's official Korean Central News Agency on Aug. 11.

Yonhap

Yoon renews pledge to honor people who sacrificed themselves for nation

However, experts are raising doubts over whether Yoon's plan will contain any viable options that will actually result in tangible outcomes.

"Those enticements are quite difficult to have feasible outcomes," said Park Won-gon, a professor of North Korean studies at Ewha Womans University. "There is a slim chance of North Korea giving up its nuclear program for the sake of economic incentives."

Park cited former President Lee Myung-bak's failed attempt, known as Vision 3,000 policy, which was unveiled in his inaugural speech in 2008. The policy sought to provide comprehensive aid to North Korea to bring its per capita income to $3,000 (3.9 million won) within the next 10 years if the North gives up its nuclear program and opens up its borders. This, however, failed to result in a noticeable outcome as North Korea showed no signs of denuclearization.

"The North then criticized the Vision 3,000 policy, saying it is aimed at introducing free democracy into North Korea, thus negating what it seeks as a socialist state," Park said.

Park also stressed that guaranteeing the security of the regime can be elusive. "It means diplomatic ties between the United States and the North. However, the North has already proclaimed that the diplomatic ties and its pursuit of a nuclear program are separate matters," he said.

Go Myong-hyun, a research fellow at the Asan Institute for Policy Studies, also noted that "details should be added on how to draw desirable responses from the North and attract the U.S.' interest in this issue."

"Since its inauguration, the Yoon administration has been putting emphasis on deterrence against the North's threats, but there should also be a gesture indicating that his government is not entirely hostile toward the Kim Jong-un regime," Go said. "An audacious plan also means that the North should be audacious in accepting Seoul's olive branch."

As an option, Go proposed expanding humanitarian aid _ mostly medical supplies _ given the growing necessity of addressing North Korea's COVID-19 situation.

"So far, humanitarian aid has been more close to a face-saving tool. However, the pandemic situation in the North is increasing the necessity of medical supplies. Since this is not undermining the North Korean sanction framework of Seoul and Washington, there seems to be enough room to expand humanitarian aids."

The Korea Times · by 2022-08-14 14:41 | Politics · August 14, 2022

5. No challenge, no opportunity (South Korea)

A thought provoking OpEd for the Yoon administration and national security professionals.

Excerpts:

Should South Korea take the risk to be a global player? South Korea’s diplomatic and security role should not be restricted to the Korean Peninsula. The frontline on international conflict has been shifting. In the past, the demilitarized zone of the Korean Peninsula and the Berlin Wall had been the frontline of the battle between democracy and communism. Since the dismantling of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War, Korea’s DMZ and antiterrorism stood as the frontline.

Today, a new front has emerged. The free democracy front is pitted against authoritarian states of China and Russia, while the frontlines are expanding to the Pacific encompassing the East and South China Seas and Indian Ocean.

Aside from the security battleground, the tech and economic frontline has been formed for hegemony in artificial intelligence, chips, batteries and bio supply chain. The frontlines have become complicated with technology and values added to the physical front.

Readiness against the North Korean threat alone cannot ensure future security. South Korea’s role in the international society has strengthened. When the country contributes to security and commands strong economic and tech capabilities, allies will come to back South Korea in case of a security crisis in the Korean Peninsula.

...

The future is uncertain. There are always challenges and dangers. The Covid-19 pandemic side effects, Ukraine war, and U.S.-China contest have been generating new phenomenon on the economic and security fronts. The U.S. is leveraging on NATO, Quad and newer alliance grouping of AP4 and Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) to contain China, defend security order, and redesign global value chain. The U.S.-China strategic contest has become a fixture. A multi-faceted approach through economic, technology, and international cooperation can safeguard security and national interests on top of traditional military power. We must set eyes far and wide, as there cannot be opportunities without taking risk.

Sunday

August 14, 2022

dictionary + A - A

No challenge, no opportunity

https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/2022/08/14/opinion/columns/China-Korea-US/20220814195217361.html?detailWord=

Kim Min-seok

The author is an editorial writer and senior researcher at the Institute for Military and Security Affairs at the JoongAng Ilbo.

Japan became a global power after winning the Russo-Japanese war of 1904-1905. Japan took on the Russian Empire a decade after its triumph in the first Sino-Japanese war of 1894-1895. Japan, with its imperial ambitions, stopped expansionist Russia in Manchuria and the East Sea. Russian troops retreated from the Liaodong Peninsula to as far as Harbin. Its proud Baltic Fleet was nearly destroyed at the Battle of Tsushima between Korea and southern Japan.

Western powers had vied heavily to expand their colonies across Africa, the Middle East and Asia. In the underdeveloped Far East, Japan rose as the sole formidable Asian power against Western powers. Japan, which had eagerly accepted Western institutions and styles, stood next to the British empire, France, Germany and the United States. Though humbled after losing the Second World War, Japan remains a key player on the international political stage and an ally to America. Washington refers to its alliance with Japan as the “cornerstone” of U.S. security interests in Asia

In the meantime, Korea was forcibly annexed to Japan and devastated by the 1950-1953 Korean War. But today, the country has ascended to a respectable position on the international stage. Together with Japan, South Korea was invited to the NATO summit in Madrid, Spain, in June.

China is a superpower in Asia, but remains a state-controlled autocracy. To democratic states, the country is regarded as a bully who intimidates smaller states or buys them over with its riches. It has been muscling its way into the East and South China Seas and expanding its influence over the Indo-Pacific. It is in a different category from South Korea, where freedom of expression and the press is guaranteed. China is a partner in economic terms, and an important one, but can be seen as a political adversary with Russia and North Korea.

South Korea joined three other members from the Asia-Pacific — Australia, New Zealand and Japan — at the NATO Summit. The summit has been restricted to members and aspirant members, but the Asia-Pacific’s four (AP4) were invited as strategic partner states. South Korea made the fourth member after Australia, New Zealand and Japan in recognition of its capabilities and value in contributing to international peace and order.

The summit among AP4 came under spotlight during the NATO summit. AP4 was first mentioned by U.S. State Secretary Antony Blinken in April. The role of AP4 could be expected to work together with the U.S. and NATO to safeguard freedom and order in the Indo-Pacific region and supplement the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (QUAD) among the U.S., Japan, Australia and India. Kim Yeoul-soo, chief of the Security Strategy Office at the Korea Institute of Military Affairs, observed that the NATO summit had discussed the role and contribution of AP4 in upholding world peace and prosperity.

But South Korea’s activity on the AP4 could stoke conflict with China. Beijing strongly protested the four nations being invited to the NATO summit, as it means “encircling China.” Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi recently went on a tour across five Mekong countries of Southeast Asia that included Myanmar, Indonesia, and Thailand. Chinese President Xi Jinping attacked NATO while chairing a virtual foreign ministerial meeting of BRICs by calling for resistance to collective and ideological contest.

NATO’s position on China is clear. The Western military alliance found China’s ambitions and “coercive policies” challenging the Western bloc’s “interests, security, and values.” The NATO strategic concept published in Madrid found Beijing “strives to subvert the rule-based international order, including in the space, cyber, and maritime domains.”

In a separate AP4 summit meeting, President Yoon Suk-yeol proposed joint actions versus global security threats.

Yoon’s remarks could be interpreted as Seoul’s willingness to cooperate with the Western security alliance to defend an international order based on universal values of freedom and human rights. It is a sharp departure from the Moon Jae-in government, which was mute on human rights so as not to upset China and North Korea. The shift would pose new opportunities and challenges for South Korea along with the risk of conflict with China.

Should South Korea take the risk to be a global player? South Korea’s diplomatic and security role should not be restricted to the Korean Peninsula. The frontline on international conflict has been shifting. In the past, the demilitarized zone of the Korean Peninsula and the Berlin Wall had been the frontline of the battle between democracy and communism. Since the dismantling of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War, Korea’s DMZ and antiterrorism stood as the frontline.

Today, a new front has emerged. The free democracy front is pitted against authoritarian states of China and Russia, while the frontlines are expanding to the Pacific encompassing the East and South China Seas and Indian Ocean.

Aside from the security battleground, the tech and economic frontline has been formed for hegemony in artificial intelligence, chips, batteries and bio supply chain. The frontlines have become complicated with technology and values added to the physical front.

Readiness against the North Korean threat alone cannot ensure future security. South Korea’s role in the international society has strengthened. When the country contributes to security and commands strong economic and tech capabilities, allies will come to back South Korea in case of a security crisis in the Korean Peninsula.

Korea must look beyond the peninsula for a more active role in setting a new multilateral order. It must take the initiative in setting new standards for safe international sea routes and realignment of the global supply chain.

The seas around China and across the Indo-Pacific region are the key routes for Korean container and fuel carriers. Future security and growth also hinge on the supply chain for chips, AI and other high tech. The sea routes on which Korea has so far prospered could turn into epicenters for conflict due to challenges from China.

Can South Korea endure the future challenges and risks? We must look on the positive side. First, South Korea commands the 10th biggest GDP in the world. It is home to core technologies including chips. Samsung, SK and other major conglomerates in May pledged over 1,000 trillion won ($767.5 billion) in capital investments over the next five years to advance technologies. The bulk or 80 percent would be spent at home. The pledged 800 trillion won doubles annual government budget.

The investment targets of battery, bio, chips, energy and ESG, AI, and big data are crucial to enhance economic growth and security for the country. “We are staking our lives,” said Lee Jae-yong, vice chairman of Samsung Electronics. Korea’s technology capacity will sharply rise. Korea could become a cornerstone in the new global value chain. The asset also would be the core of security.

Second, South Korea also commands the sixth strongest military power. The Korean forces share command with the U.S. forces, but independently can carry out all types of military operations. On military levels, it is in a better position than NATO members with scaled-back military power and Japan with restrictions in military operation. South Korea’s military capabilities come after America among advanced free democracies. If not for nuclear weapons, China, Russia and North Korea cannot dare to invade South Korea.

Lastly, South Korea’s commitment to universal values — freedom and democracy — defines its strength.

The future is uncertain. There are always challenges and dangers. The Covid-19 pandemic side effects, Ukraine war, and U.S.-China contest have been generating new phenomenon on the economic and security fronts. The U.S. is leveraging on NATO, Quad and newer alliance grouping of AP4 and Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) to contain China, defend security order, and redesign global value chain. The U.S.-China strategic contest has become a fixture. A multi-faceted approach through economic, technology, and international cooperation can safeguard security and national interests on top of traditional military power. We must set eyes far and wide, as there cannot be opportunities without taking risk.

6. A recurring Thaad nightmare

Excerpts:

The official’s remarks explain the exact reason why Korean companies are sticking with China markets in the face of unjustified pressure and obstruction of business. Though China took such retaliatory actions in a surprisingly concerted manner, Beijing has never accepted its responsibility as the orchestrator of the boycott and instead attributed it to individual companies and citizens.

Five years have passed since, but China is still Korea’s largest export market as the country takes a whopping 23.4 percent of Korea’s all exports as of May. But a bigger problem is that Korea has not yet discovered a replacement for the China market even while Korea’s exports to China are rapidly dwindling. Many industry insiders single out the conundrum as a fundamental problem for Korea’s trade. After the shocking reversal in Korea’s trade surplus with China in May, Korea will likely record trade deficit with China for four consecutive months until August at least.

A deeper look into the alarming development points to more vexing reasons. A noticeable decline in Korea’s trade with China after Beijing’s economic retaliation often results from the fast growing competitiveness of Chinese products.

Sunday

August 14, 2022

dictionary + A - A

A recurring Thaad nightmare

https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/2022/08/14/opinion/columns/China-Thaad-retaliation/20220814194756743.html?detailWord=

Choi Ji-young

The author is theeconomic news editor at the JoongAng Ilbo

On Wednesday, the Chinese Foreign Ministry made an out-of-the-blue announcement. Over the deployment of the U.S. Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (Thaad) system in Korea, the ministry claimed that the past Korean government had agreed to the so-called “three no’s” plus “one restriction.” The three no’s refer to no additional Thaad deployments, no joining of a broader U.S. missile defense system and no Korea-U.S.-Japan military alliance. On top of that, the Korean government — or the previous Moon Jae-in administration — promised to limit the operation of the Thaad batteries already deployed in Korea, China claimed. That translates into a brazen demand from Beijing that the conservative Yoon Suk-yeol administration stop putting the interrupted Thaad deployment back on track.

As the operation of the Thaad missile defense system is directly related to Korea’s sovereignty, the Yoon administration cannot surrender to the pressure from China. After sending a strong message against China on Wednesday, Korea made it clear the following day that the antimissile system cannot be an object for negotiation. For Korean companies, however, the word Thaad is itself a nightmare as they saw their market share in China plunge precipitously after Beijing took retaliatory actions on their products after the Thaad deployment in Korea.

Let’s go back to 2017. After Lotte Group provided its golf course in Seongju, North Gyeongsang, as a base for Thaad batteries, the company was pressured by China from all fronts. Following Chinese consumer protests and boycotts of Lotte products and local contractors’ refusal to provide supplies, Beijing went so far as to force out Lotte Mart China. The fifth largest chaebol in Korea had to sell most of its assets in China at even lower prices than their market value and pulled out.

What about Hyundai Motor and Kia whose combined market share exceeded 10 percent in China before the Thaad retaliation? The two Korean carmakers — one of Top 3 foreign car brands in China — were compelled to replace their suppliers with local ones, followed by boycotts from local consumers and the government’s sly obstruction of business. Their market share, which fell to 2.7 percent last year, is expected to drop further to the one percent range this year.

That’s not all. No Korean game companies could get permit for their services in China, and no Korean dramas or movies could find local TV channels or movie theaters to show them in China. When I asked a Hyundai official why the automaker hold on to the China market despite Beijing putting brazen pressure on even joint ventures between Korea and China, he said, “How could we give up the world’s largest market if we really want to become a top-tier global carmaker?”

The official’s remarks explain the exact reason why Korean companies are sticking with China markets in the face of unjustified pressure and obstruction of business. Though China took such retaliatory actions in a surprisingly concerted manner, Beijing has never accepted its responsibility as the orchestrator of the boycott and instead attributed it to individual companies and citizens.

Five years have passed since, but China is still Korea’s largest export market as the country takes a whopping 23.4 percent of Korea’s all exports as of May. But a bigger problem is that Korea has not yet discovered a replacement for the China market even while Korea’s exports to China are rapidly dwindling. Many industry insiders single out the conundrum as a fundamental problem for Korea’s trade. After the shocking reversal in Korea’s trade surplus with China in May, Korea will likely record trade deficit with China for four consecutive months until August at least.

A deeper look into the alarming development points to more vexing reasons. A noticeable decline in Korea’s trade with China after Beijing’s economic retaliation often results from the fast growing competitiveness of Chinese products.

The predicament of Korean cosmetics companies in China shows it all. In the June 18 Shopping Festival staged by JD.com — the biggest online shopping event in the first half of the year staged by the second largest online retailer in China — not a single Korean cosmetics company made the Top 10 list. Korean exporters are already nervous about any possible retaliation from Beijing in case Korea joins the U.S.-led Chip 4 alliance with Taiwan and Japan. If China takes retaliatory steps against Korean products just like it did in 2015, Korean products will likely lose their competitive edge further in China.

Korea Inc. can learn from Taiwan. After U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s trip to Taipei on August 2, China pressured Taiwan from all directions, yet stops short of banning high-tech imports from the neighbor. In China’s cutting-edge technology market, Taiwan takes up 25.2 percent, comfortably outpacing Korea (15.9 percent) and Japan (7.2 percent) as of 2021.

During China’s economic retaliation on Korea, the Chinese government and private sector zeroed in on certain areas where they had heated competition with Korean products around the globe. No doubt the solution for Korea lies in producing and selling items China desperately needs.

7. 'The Netflix effect': Why Western women are heading to South Korea in search of love

A controversial aspect of another form of soft power no one probably gave much thought to. This starts out seeming to be positive but ends quite negatively.

'The Netflix effect': Why Western women are heading to South Korea in search of love

CNN · by Jake Kwon, CNN

(CNN) — There was something puzzling about the young Western women staying at the youth hostels in Seoul, thought researcher Min Joo Lee.

Unlike their Asian counterparts, who she saw squeezing in as many sights and shops as possible during their stays in the South Korean capital, these women -- mostly in their early 20s -- seemed uninterested in the usual tourist trails.

Instead, for most of their days they would remain inside their hostel, sleeping or watching Korean TV shows -- venturing out only after dark.

They had come to the attention of Lee, who researches Korea's gender and race politics as a postdoctoral fellow at Indiana University Bloomington, because she was in town to find out what influence the rising international profile of Korean pop culture was having on tourism.

After visiting eight hostels and interviewing 123 women, mostly from North America and Europe, Lee came to the conclusion that many had been drawn to the country by what she calls "the Netflix effect."

Hit Korean television shows like "Crash Landing on You" and "Goblin," were selling more than men with beautiful faces and chiseled bodies like their stars Hyun Bin and Gong Yoo. They were offering a glimpse into a world where men were romantic and patient, an antithesis to what the women saw as the sex-obsessed dating culture of their home countries.

South Korean actor Gong Yoo on October 30, 2019 in Seoul.

Han Myung-Gu/WireImage/Getty Images

The appeal of Korean men

The women Lee interviewed were fascinated with Korean men who were portrayed on TV as being in touch with their emotions and willing to embrace their "effeminate sides," Lee said.

They considered Korean men cultured and romantic while complaining that men in their home countries often neglected their appearances and had one-track minds.

Grace Thornton, a 25-year-old gardener from the United Kingdom, traveled to Seoul in 2021 after watching K-drama "Crash Landing on You" on Netflix.

She was struck by how men in the show did not jeer at or catcall women on the street, as happens in her home country.

In her eyes, Korean men are "gentlemen, polite, charming, romantic, fairytale-like, chivalrous, respectful." She said it also helps that Korean men dress well and groom themselves.

"(English men in comparison) are half drunk, holding a beer, holding a dead fish," she said -- a reference to what she said was the prevalence of fishing pictures in British male dating app profiles.

And the appeal is not entirely about the men.

As Thornton puts it: "In England, I'm very common looking and sound the same as everyone else. In Korea, I'm different, exciting and foreign. People pay attention to me. I felt special."

'International couples' and professional boyfriends

The popularity of Korean television shows with global audiences has coincided with a steady increase in the number of women tourists to South Korea.

In 2005, 2.3 million women visited the country -- compared to 2.9 million men, according to government data. By 2019 -- the last year before the coronavirus played havoc with tourism -- nearly 10 million women visited the country, compared to just 6.7 million men.

At the same time, there has been an explosion in social media content centered on couples featuring Korean men with women from abroad.

On YouTube, the hashtag "#Gukjecouple" ("#international couple") has become a genre covering 2,500 channels and 34,000 videos, the most popular of which feature a Korean man with an American or European partner. Sometimes these videos feature couples pranking each other, playing on cultural differences, and sometimes they simply portray the couples going about their everyday lives.

Among the proponents of the genre is Heo Jin-woo, a Korean YouTuber based in Seoul who once ran a channel devoted to videos in which he pretends to be the viewer's boyfriend.

The videos featured him acting as if he were on a video call with a lover, asking viewers how their day went or inviting them to dinner at the new Italian restaurant in town. He would speak in sleepy, soft tones with a slight Korean accent and pepper his speech with occasional Korean phrases.

According to Heo, the channel amassed 14,000 followers, mostly foreign women in their 20s who were interested in Korean culture, but he shut it down after meeting his girlfriend Harriet, who is from the UK.

The 'Jin and Hattie' show.

From Jin and Hattie

Instead, the pair have created an "international couple" channel titled "Jin and Hattie."

It mainly consists of videos in which they "prank" each other based on misunderstandings and differences in their cultures.

One video, titled "Making my Korean boyfriend jealous prank," features Harriet wearing short dresses in front of Heo, who asks her to dress more modestly.

"Don't forget to wear your couple ring," he says before Harriet lets him in on the joke and they embrace. The comments beneath the video -- mostly from English speaking female fans -- praise how respectful Heo is to his now wife.

Since its launch in February 2020, the channel has gained 70,000 subscribers each month, according to analysis service Socialblade, and now has 1.7 million subscribers. Though the couple says the channel was never meant to be a business, their channels on various platforms have more than 3.5 million subscribers combined.

Money spinner

Hugh Gwon, a consultant specializing in YouTube channel management, is one of the original creators of "international couple" content.

He said creators of couples channels who have more than a million subscribers can earn between 30 to 50 million won ($23,000 to $38,000) for each sponsored video.

But the genre's worth goes beyond the dollar signs -- it is also about helping couples adjust to cultural differences.

Gwon and his Australian wife Nichola run a blog called "My Korean Husband" that discusses intercultural marriage and reflects how attitudes to such relationships are changing.

Nichola says the image of Korean men has transformed since she met her husband 10 years ago in Sydney.

Back then, she grew used to hearing prejudiced comments such as peers saying that her husband was good-looking "for an Asian."

Related content

Why North Korea is so afraid of K-pop

When she googled "Korean husband" after their engagement, most results were horror stories of Southeast Asian migrant wives married to abusive Korean men. Today, the search yields pictures of Korean celebrities and her blog, along with a Quora link to an anonymous user asking how one can find a Korean husband.

She says the best "international couple" channels promote cultural understanding, but warns some are only selling looks and fantasies.

The reality she says, is that women who are serious about settling down with a Korean husband should recognize there will be cultural differences to adjust to, such as living in a society known for long work hours and patriarchal gender norms.

"(At first) you're going to the Han River on picnics, and it's all wonderful and you feel like you're in a K-drama but then what's the reality of actually having a family in Korea?" she said.

'A temporary pleasure'

Unfortunately, some women find after their arrival that the men they encounter are not as perfect as the ones portrayed on their screens.

Mina, a 20-year-old student from Morocco, said K-pop and Korean TV shows influenced her decision to come to the southern city of Busan in 2021.

The men she saw on TV were depicted as "respectful, good looking, rich men who are protective of you," she said.

But during her nights out, she was groped in a bar and propositioned for sex from strangers on the street. She felt some Korean men tended to believe that foreign women are more open to casual sex than local women.

"We are temporary pleasure," she said, adding, "Men are men, humans are alike everywhere."

Since then she has lost her enjoyment of Korean TV shows and no longer wants to date Korean men.

Quandra Moore, a 27-year-old English teacher from Washington, came to Seoul in 2017 and searched for a partner through dating apps and in nightclubs. But she too was disappointed.

She encountered racist attitudes -- being rejected by one who told her to "go back to Africa" -- and found many men seemed interested only in sex.

In her experience, Korean men treated foreign women differently. "Why can't we go to dinner first? It's so crass. They know Korean women won't tolerate it," she said.

It's a point that Lee, the researcher, echoed, saying that some men felt they could treat foreign women badly with impunity because, as foreigners, they were limited to smaller social circles.

Related content

The K-pop lover's guide to Seoul

Still, such is the draw that even those who have bad experiences are not always put off.

Some women who flew home disappointed told Lee they felt it was their own fault they had not found their ideal man and would come back and try harder next time.

"They clearly see that not all Korean men are (perfect), but they just need an alternative to the disappointing dating market back in their home countries," she said.

"They can't really let go of it because they hope that the ideal dating relationships exist somewhere in the world," she said.

CNN · by Jake Kwon, CNN

8. Ex-USFK commander rejects China's claims over THAAD

Excerpts:

...Abrams said the Chinese side has yet to indicate how the missile shield infringes on its strategic security interests.

"Please explain to us how THAAD in southern ROK undermines PRC strategic security," Abrams said on Twitter, July 27. The PRC refers to the People's Republic of China.

"It is an area defensive system. Certainly, your high tech sensors can distinguish what mode the TPY-2 radar is operating in…right?" he added. The AN/TPY-2 radar serves as the eyes of the THAAD system.

Ex-USFK commander rejects China's claims over THAAD

The Korea Times · August 14, 2022

By Kang Seung-woo

The former commander of U.S. Forces Korea, Robert Abrams, refuted China's claims that the previous South Korean administration promised to restrict the operations of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system on the Korean Peninsula and that the U.S. missile defense battery undermines Beijing's security interests.

In 2016, South Korea decided to deploy the U.S.-owned system on its soil due to growing North Korean nuclear and missile threats.

Robert Abrams / Korea Times file

Since the new South Korean government was inaugurated in May, the THAAD deployment has been emerging as a contentious issue between Seoul and Beijing as President Yoon Suk-yeol has vowed to strengthen South Korea's alliance with the United States amid the intensifying strategic competition between the U.S. and China.

The latest dispute over the THAAD issue came last week as the Chinese foreign ministry claimed that the Yoon administration should abide by the "Three Nos" and "One Restriction" policy, which was announced by the preceding Moon Jae-in administration.

The Three Nos refers to no additional deployments of the anti-missile systems, no integration into a U.S.-led missile defense system and no trilateral alliance with the U.S. and Japan. The One Restriction means limiting the use of THAAD here in Korea.

Retired Army Gen. Robert Abrams, who led the USFK and the U.N. Command from 2018 to 2021, rejected the Chinese assertion about the restriction of THAAD operations.

"While I was in [South] Korea from 2018 to 2021, the THAAD system was always fully capable of conducting its defensive mission to defeat any incoming ballistic missiles and protect [South] Korean people and infrastructure along with select ROK-U.S. forces," retired Army Gen. Robert Abrams told Radio Free Asia, Thursday (local time). The ROK refers to the Republic of Korea, South Korea's official name.

In response to the claim, the South Korean government maintains that the preceding administration's Three Nos policy was not a commitment to China.

As for China's repeated claims that the THAAD system's radar can spy on its military maneuvers and undermine its security interests, Abrams said the Chinese side has yet to indicate how the missile shield infringes on its strategic security interests.

"Please explain to us how THAAD in southern ROK undermines PRC strategic security," Abrams said on Twitter, July 27. The PRC refers to the People's Republic of China.

"It is an area defensive system. Certainly, your high tech sensors can distinguish what mode the TPY-2 radar is operating in…right?" he added. The AN/TPY-2 radar serves as the eyes of the THAAD system.

Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup also told reporters, Thursday, that the THAAD radar cannot be used to intercept Chinese missiles en route to the U.S. mainland, because a mountain stands between the THAAD base and China, blocking the radar's reach in that direction.

The Korea Times · August 14, 2022

9. Our bubbles of certainty: A perspective from my life in North Korea | Seohyun Lee | TEDxUCLA

As Korea celebrates Liberation Day on August 15th I recommend watching this video from our good friend Seohyun Lee from north Korea. Her powerful story is worth 12 minutes of your time to hear.

The root of all problems in Korea is the existence of the most evil mafia- like crime family cult known as the Kim family regime that has the objective of dominating the Korean Peninsula under the rule of the Guerrilla Dynasty and Gulag State.

The only way we are going to see an end to the nuclear program and military threats as well as the human rights abuses and crimes against humanity being committed against the Korean people living in the north by the mafia-like crime family cult known as the Kim family regime is through achievement of unification and the establishment of a free and unified Korea that is secure and stable, non-nuclear, economically vibrant, and unified under a liberal constitutional form of government based on individual liberty, rule of law, and human rights as determined by the Korean people.: A free and unified Korea or in short, a United Republic of Korea (UROK).

Our bubbles of certainty: A perspective from my life in North Korea | Seohyun Lee | TEDxUCLA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qh25Zo58UQY

12,246 views Aug 7, 2022 Seohyun Lee’s life as a member of North Korea’s elite was turned upside down when she was allowed to live and study abroad from the North Korean regime. Living in freedom, Seohyun had her basic beliefs challenged and then later saw the effects of guilt by association. Seohyun presents a first-hand account of facing the decision to live a life of certainty as part of a elite group, or escaping into the uncertainty of a free world that she had been groomed to fear.

Seohyun Lee was born and raised in central Pyongyang and received the most “prestigious” education in North Korea as a daughter of a high-level government official. In 2008 she enrolled at Kim Il Sung University and studied abroad at China Dongbei University of Economics and Finance. However, after experiencing a series of brutal purges by the Kim Jong Un regime, her family defected to South Korea and finally resettled in the United States in 2016.

She has immersed herself in North Korean human rights issues as a human rights advocate, commentator, and YouTube creator (PyongHattan). She was awarded the 2022 North Korea Freedom Scholarship from the Bush Foundation. She will begin her graduate studies in Fall 2022 at Columbia University’s School of Public Affairs (SIPA) with her ultimate goal of freeing the North Korean people. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx

10. What to Make of North Korea’s Twisted COVID ‘Revenge’ Threat

Comments from a number of us.

My complete comments (understanding not all comments can be used by journalists).

I think it is simply rhetoric to blame the South and make north Korean look great (again). Conducting a biological warfare attack is a possibility but you have to ask to what end? What would be the effect they are trying to achieve? They certainly would not claim it as that could invite retaliation. So it would be covert and for no-attribution. Then what? Would the effect simply be to create chaos and possible unrest in the South? Simply to make the South Look bad? What kind of biological weapon would they use? We suspect they have been working on anthrax (which is why we attracted the anthrax vaccination program two decades ago.

While it is always a possibility and should never be discounted I do not see how a biological attack would support current objectives of the regime. Since it would be covert it would not be useful for blackmail diplomacy. Since our declaratory policy is such that we supposedly reserve the right to respond to any weapons of mass destruction attack - biological weapons fall into the WMD category - how would we respond especially if it was not attributable to the regime? If they used it and we learned to counter it (vaccination or some kind of antidote) would it be worth the loss of its potential use at a more appropriate time such as the lead up to hostilities. If it is exposed we will work hard to neutralize it so it may have no future potential value. Weighing the pros and cons and the cost and benefit I think Kim Yo Jong's threats are merely words and part of the political warfare strategy of the regime.

What to Make of North Korea’s Twisted COVID ‘Revenge’ Threat

BIO-WAR?

Kim Jong Un’s kid sister has warned of “deadly” retaliation after accusing South Korea of spreading COVID to the North. Some experts say it’s no bluff.

Donald Kirk

Published Aug. 13, 2022 7:37PM ET

The Daily Beast · August 13, 2022

Photo Illustration by Thomas Levinson/The Daily Beast/Getty

SEOUL—North Korea leader Kim Jong Un’s kid sister Kim Yo Jong is brandishing the threat of germ warfare in retaliation for balloon launches from South Korea that she blames for spreading COVID-19 in the North.

Kim Yo Jong, in a speech carried on North Korean state TV, said, after having considered “various counteraction plans, our countermeasure must be a deadly retaliatory one.”

Her remark suggests she and her brother are not only fed up with defectors from North Korea launching balloons from the South carrying anti-North propaganda but are determined to respond in kind. The logical answer to her claim that the South is sending the dread disease to the North, it’s feared, would be for North Korea to inflict diseases on the South.

“If the enemy persists in such dangerous deeds as fomenting the inroads of virus into our Republic,” Pyongyang’s Korea Central News Agency quotes her as saying, “we will respond to it by not only exterminating the virus but also wiping out the south (sic) Korean authorities.”

The fact that North Korean TV showed Kim Yo Jong making a speech was a sure sign of the seriousness of the message. Previously, when expressing her brother’s views more boldly than he might want to do publicly, she was quoted in reports, not live on TV.

Kim Yo Jong, whose only title is vice department director of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party, ranks at or near the top of the regime’s hierarchy. Were the hefty Kim Jong Un, 38, whose health is always open to question, to die or be incapacitated, 34-year-old Yo Jong would inevitably be a leading possibility to succeed him.

None of which means she’s about to take over soon or has the power to do anything Kim Jong Un hasn’t ordered. She spoke before a meeting convened by the party’s central committee at which he “solemnly declared the victory in the maximum emergency anti-epidemic campaign for exterminating the novel coronavirus.”

North Korean TV quoted her as saying her brother led the anti-virus campaign even though he himself had come down with the bug. “He was battling a fever but could not rest because he was worried about the people,” she was quoted as saying.

Kim Yo Jong’s call for vengeance against the South was a reminder that North Korea has focused on both biological and chemical warfare as weapons of mass destruction in addition to the nuclear program that it says is needed for self-defense.

“Kim Yo Jong’s threats are not hollow statements.”

“The North has the ability to produce traditional infectious biological warfare agents or toxins and biological weapons,” said a study produced two years ago by the Federation of American Scientists. “If North Korea did choose to employ biological weapons, it probably could use agents like anthrax, plague, or yellow fever against water and food supplies in the South's rear area.”

Kim Yo Jong may have to wait, however, before the North can actually wage biological warfare. The non-profit Nuclear Threat Initiative in Washington has estimated that North Korea “possesses a range of pathogen samples that could be weaponized, and the technical capabilities to do so, rather than deployed, ready-to-use biological weapons.”

Nonetheless, “Kim Yo Jong’s threats are not hollow statements,” Leif-Eric Easley, professor of international relations at Seoul’s Ewha University, told The Daily Beast. He believed, however, before resorting to weapons of mass destruction, the North Koreans “might fire at leaflet balloons and could even try to shell what they believe to be launch sites in South Korea.”

Kim Yo Jong’s claims “about the coronavirus entering the country via the southern border,” he said, “are more about domestic propaganda than military escalation.”

David Maxwell, retired army colonel, now with the Foundation for Defense of Democracies in Washington, told The Daily Beast “a biological warfare attack is a possibility” but asked, “To what end?”

The North “certainly would not claim it as that could invite retaliation,” he said. While it “should never be discounted,” he argued, “I do not see how a biological attack would support current objectives of the regime.”

Steve Tharpe, a retired U.S. army officer here, told The Daily Beast that “biological agents are much harder to control than nukes and chemical agents” and require “great care in employment to avoid unintentional harm to the North Korean army and/or population.”

In fact, North Korea is more likely at first to show its anger over the leaflets by conducting a seventh underground nuclear test—its first since September 2017.

“When North Korea conducts their next nuclear test, they will say in their public releases that this is necessary in order to protect themselves from the aggressive and provocative behavior of the South,” Bruce Bechtol, author of numerous books and articles on North Korea’s military leadership, told The Daily Beast. The North would claim the test was “purely a necessary defensive measure in order to upgrade their ‘deterrent.’”

Evans Revere, a retired senior U.S. diplomat who specialized in North Korean issues, told The Daily Beast that the North “has stockpiles of chemical and biological weapons” but attributed Kim Yo Jong’s “threats to the usual bluster from Pyongyang.”

Nonetheless, “Experience also tells us that we need to keep a watchful eye just in case the North Koreans decide to do something foolish.”

Bruce Bennett, Korea expert at RAND, doubted if Kim Yo Jong “understands much about biological weapons” She needs to know, he said, “that the U.S. threat to eliminate the North Korean regime if it uses nuclear weapons could be extended to include eliminating the North Korean regime if it uses biological weapons.”

Kim Yo Jong, however, may be losing patience.

“We can no longer overlook the uninterrupted influx of rubbish from South Korea,” she said. The fact that COVID-19 was first reported near the line between the two Koreas “pushed us to suspect the despicable ones in South Korea,” she explained. “It is quite natural for us to consider strange objects as vehicles of the malignant pandemic disease.”

South Korea, under a law enacted while the liberal Moon Jae-in was president, forbids defectors from launching the balloons over the North, but authorities haven't been enforcing it much since the inauguration of Moon’s successor, the conservative Yoon Suk-yeol, in May.

The unification ministry, responsible for South Korea’s dealings with the North, said Kim Yo Jong’s claims were not only “groundless” but “immensely rude and threatening.” The South, said a spokesman, was “ready for all possibilities.”

The Daily Beast · August 13, 2022

11. South Korea Says Missile Shield ‘Not Negotiable’ With China

South Korea must stand up to the bully.

South Korea Says Missile Shield ‘Not Negotiable’ With China

TIME · by Jeong-Ho Lee/Bloomberg

South Korea said the possible operation of a controversial American-made missile shield was “not negotiable,” pushing back at China’s efforts to hold President Yoon Suk Yeol to his predecessor’s policy to freeze its deployment.

Decisions on the deployment of Lockheed Martin Corp.’s Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense system was a matter of South Korea’s self-defense, a senior presidential official told reporters Thursday in Seoul. The Yoon administration is accelerating efforts to “normalize” the operation of the US base in the southern city of Seongju that deployed the Thaad system, the official said.

China is pushing to reaffirm former South Korean President Moon Jae-in administration’s policy of not allowing additional Thaad deployments. The Moon administration made the announcement in 2017 as it aimed to resolve Chinese trade curbs imposed after the first missile-defense system was delivered as part of US-led efforts to counter North Korea’s nuclear expansion.

Yoon has pledged make the current Thaad system fully operational and install another unit in the Seoul area. China objects to the shield over concerns its powerful radar would allow spying on its own missile systems.

The missile shield represents the latest test of Yoon’s promise to strengthen security ties with the US and Japan, and take a tougher line against China and North Korea. He refused an in-person meeting with US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in Seoul earlier this month after her visit to Taiwan and initially appeared hesitant at joining President Joe Biden’s chip alliance.

Yoon’s administration has since proposed preliminary talks with Washington on taking part in the Chip 4 grouping. He told reporters Friday that the US-South Korea partnership now “goes far beyond a security alliance, which now encompasses economic security.” He added that the alliance was “fundamental” to South Korean diplomacy.

Foreign Minister Wang Yi reiterated Beijing’s desire to maintain what it claims is an agreement with Moon during a meeting with his South Korean counterpart, Park Jin, Tuesday in Qingdao. Under the “Three Nos” policy, the Moon administration announced no additional Thaad deployments, no participation in a US-led missile-defense network and no involvement in a three-way alliance with the US and Japan.

“China attaches importance to this position of the ROK government,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told a regular news briefing Wednesday in Beijing, referring to South Korea’s formal name. “Based on the understanding between the two sides, China and the ROK were able to properly handle the Thaad issue.”

Operation of the first Thaad system has been hindered by protests near the site. The Yoon administration wants to bring the base into normal operation by the end of this month, the South Korean official said.

—With assistance from Colum Murphy