Quotes of the Day:
“All history proves that there is no cheap and easy way to defeat guerrilla movements”
- Henry Kissinger, 1962
"Education is what remains after one has forgotten what one has learned in school."
- Albert Einstein
"It’s limited war for Americans, and total war for those fighting Americans. The United States has more power; its foes have more willpower."
- Dominic Tierney
1. Yoon to Hold Trilateral Summit with Biden, Kishida in Madrid
2. Hanwha, Kongsberg partner on combat vehicle, long-range fires system
3. North Korea's Kim oversees military meeting amid potential nuclear test
4. N. Korea discusses revising operational plans of its front-line military units
5. Unvaccinated North Korean soldiers told to use saltwater, mugwort smoke when sick
6. S. Korea, U.S. stage combined patrol flight in show of air defense readiness
7. Ukraine lawmakers to visit Seoul next month: ruling party
8. Outgoing U.N. rapporteur on N.K. human rights to visit Seoul next week
9. Recent lectures in Hamhung refocus attention on anti-reactionary thought law
10. N. Korea's new smartphone not yet available in stores
11. Some regions of N. Korea falsely claim completion of rice transplanting activities
12. Korea to offer $1 mil. in aid to quake-hit Afghanistan
13. Top South Korean, US military officers hold virtual talks on North Korea's threats
14. Kim’s psy-war coup spooks Seoul
15. Former officials "Support for 'peaceful reunification of the Korean Peninsula' by the US... North Korea's 'nuclear possession' status is impossible"
16. Beyond Nuclear Crisis: New and Long-Term Strategy for the Korean Peninsula (Lecture)
17. ‘Not in This for the Money’: Why Some Families Sue North Korea
1. Yoon to Hold Trilateral Summit with Biden, Kishida in Madrid
However, after pleasantries are exchanged I hope President Biden would say you two need to work things out ASAP. I am going to step out now and leave you two to get things worked out. Do not leave this room until you can pledge to work together for the good of mutual security and prosperity and a commitment that you will manage your historical issues without impact on our trilateral national security affairs. Get it done.
Yoon to Hold Trilateral Summit with Biden, Kishida in Madrid
President Yoon Suk-yeol will hold a trilateral summit with U.S. President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Madrid next week.
A presidential official on Wednesday told reporters that "the possibility is open" for a trilateral summit. Another official said, "The leaders will talk about trilateral security cooperation" focusing on North Korea's nuclear and missile threats.
Yoon and Kishida will be thrown together at least twice already during the NATO summit -- in a full session of the leaders from 30 NATO members and invited leaders from non-NATO countries, and during a summit of four Asia-Pacific countries (Korea, Japan, Australia and New Zealand). A "pull-aside" head-to-head between the leaders of the fractious neighbors is also on the cards.
Yoon will sit down with about 10 leaders during the NATO summit to discuss exports of nuclear reactors and defense goods, win support for Busan's bid to host the 2030 World Expo, and gain cooperation in resolving the North Korean nuclear issue, according to the presidential office.
The government plans to establish a permanent mission to NATO in Brussels.
2. Hanwha, Kongsberg partner on combat vehicle, long-range fires system
The ROK is stepping up. Some NATO countries (and soon to be NATO countries) can benefit from South Korean military systems.
Hanwha, Kongsberg partner on combat vehicle, long-range fires system
Correction: A previous version of this story misidentified the timeline for Norway’s request for information on infantry fighting vehicles. The country has already released the RFI.
SEOUL — South Korean company Hanwha and Norwegian firm Kongsberg have signed a memorandum of understanding to cooperate on the development of an infantry fighting vehicle and a long-range precision fires system, the former announced.
The memo was signed during the Eurosatory defense expo in Paris, France, on June 14 by three Hanwha affiliates — Hanwha Defense, Hanwha Defense Australia and Hanwha Corporation — and Kongsberg Defence and Aerospace.
The Norwegian Defence Material Agency has issued a request for information on new infantry fighting vehicles, and later this year it plans to release another RFI for a long-range precision fires system, namely multiple launch rocket systems.
Hanwha Defense and its Australian subsidiary have previously developed and delivered armored combat vehicles, such as the amphibious K21, which is in service with the South Korean Army, and the Redback, which is shortlisted as one of two candidates for the Australian LAND 400 Phase 3 project for the Australian Defence Force.
“This MoU confirms our ongoing work with Kongsberg on different programs, including Australia and internationally, bringing together best of breed technology solutions from all companies,” said Richard Cho, the managing director of Hanwha Defense Australia, referring to an existing memorandum of understanding with Kongsberg Defence Australia for the integration of tactical communication systems and battle management systems into the AS9 Hunsman, an Australian version of the K9 Thunder self-propelled howitzer.
Representatives of Hanwha’s defense subsidiaries and Kongsberg Defence and Aerospace shake hands at a signing ceremony of a memorandum of understanding on infantry fighting vehicles and long-range precision fires systems during the Eurosatory defense expo in Paris on June 14. (Courtesy of Hanwha Group)
Hanwha Corporation is a leading South Korean defense company specialized in precision-guided munitions and missiles. It developed the K239 Chunmoo to replace the American-made M270 Multiple Launch Rocket System.
The Chunmoo is a multicaliber rocket system using 130mm, 227mm and 230mm rockets.
Brian Kim is the South Korea correspondent for Defense News.
3. North Korea's Kim oversees military meeting amid potential nuclear test
Never forget that Kim continues to focus on warfighting capabilities. Note emphasis on frontline units.
Excerpts:
At the meeting, the party discussed adding operation duties of the frontline units, modifying operation plans and restructuring key military organisational formations, Korea Central News Agency (KCNA) said, adding Kim stressed the importance of efforts to enhance the operational capabilities of the frontline units.
The meeting is being closely watched as it could provide clues on the timing of a nuclear test, which the North is seen to have been preparing for weeks. South Korean officials have said the test can come "at any time" and that the timing would be decided by Kim.
North Korea's Kim oversees military meeting amid potential nuclear test
SEOUL, June 23 (Reuters) - North Korean leader Kim Jong Un continued to preside over the second day of the nation's major party meeting on its military and defence policies on Wednesday, the state media reported on Thursday, amid concerns over a potential imminent nuclear test.
At the meeting, the party discussed adding operation duties of the frontline units, modifying operation plans and restructuring key military organisational formations, Korea Central News Agency (KCNA) said, adding Kim stressed the importance of efforts to enhance the operational capabilities of the frontline units.
The meeting is being closely watched as it could provide clues on the timing of a nuclear test, which the North is seen to have been preparing for weeks. South Korean officials have said the test can come "at any time" and that the timing would be decided by Kim.
But an official at South Korea's presidential office on Wednesday said he thought North Korea could be delaying what would be its seventh nuclear test in consideration of China's political calendar and the nation's COVID-19 situation.
Kim Jong Un on Tuesday presided over the military meeting, which KCNA reported would discuss major tasks to further enhance the function and role of the military commissions at all levels as well as the military policy line and key defence policies of the party.
Last year, Kim laid out military development plans that included smaller nuclear bombs, hypersonic missiles, spy satellites, and drones.
In April, he called on the country's military to "bolster up their strength in every way to annihilate the enemy", and has tested an unprecedented number of ballistic missiles this year, including massive intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), new hypersonic missiles, and a short-range missile potentially designed for tactical nuclear weapons.
Meanwhile, North Korea has recently reported an outbreak of an unidentified intestinal epidemic in its faming region, which has been adding further strain on the isolated economy, already battling chronic food shortages and a wave of COVID-19 infections.
Reporting by Joori Roh; Additional reporting by Josh Smith; Editing by Sandra Maler
4. N. Korea discusses revising operational plans of its front-line military units
How many different ways can you attack along the Kaesong-Munson, Chorwan, and Eastern approaches?
(3rd LD) N. Korea discusses revising operational plans of its front-line military units | Yonhap News Agency
(ATTN: UPDATES with response by South Korea's defense, unification ministries in paras 8-13)
By Yi Wonju
SEOUL, June 23 (Yonhap) -- North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and other top officials had discussions on adding missions and revising operational plans of front-line military units during a major party meeting, according to state media Thursday.
The news came two months after the Kim regime openly hinted at deploying tactical nuclear weapons in front-line artillery units. The secretive nation has reportedly completed preparations for a nuclear test seen as part of efforts to develop smaller nuclear warheads to fit on tactical guided weapons and upgraded short-range ballistic missiles.
During the second-day session of the third enlarged meeting of the eighth Central Military Commission of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK), which opened Tuesday, "the work of additionally confirming the operation duties of the frontline units of the Korean People's Army (KPA) and modifying the operation plans" was discussed, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said in its English-language report.
Among other agenda items at the meeting chaired by Kim were "the issues related to reorganization of key military organizational formations," it added.
Regarding the adoption of "important military measures to enhance the operational capabilities of the frontline units," Kim "stressed the importance of this work and clarified all the principles, tasks and ways for implementing it," the KCNA reported without elaborating.
Photos made public by the KCNA showed Ri Thae-sop, chief of the General Staff of the KPA, delivering a presentation for Kim, using a military map of the eastern region and the East Sea. Apparently the map was secret as the released image was blurred.
Two top military officials, Pak Jong-chon and Ri Pyong-chol, were seated right next to leader Kim, suggesting they currently serve as vice chairmen of the Central Military Commission of the WPK.
The meeting appears to signal that Pyongyang will intensify its offensive against Seoul, an official at South Korea's unification ministry said.
"We find it highly likely that (the North) will escalate the level of military threat against us, given that it also intentionally released a map showing South Korea's eastern region on the Korean Peninsula," the official said on the condition of anonymity.
The official added that the North's rare disclosure of discussions on its operational plan -- usually kept behind closed doors -- and the assignment of an additional mission to such border units directed at South Korea, are viewed as an indication of more provocative acts.
South Korea's military said it is trying to analyze implications behind the North's talk of altering operational plans of frontline troops.
"We are keeping close tabs on related (North Korean) movements," Col. Kim Jun-rak, spokesperson for the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told a regular press briefing.
Kim also pointed out the ongoing efforts by Seoul and Washington to update their war plans in consideration of shifts in the security environment, the North's evolving military threats and other elements.
After the North test-fired a new tactical guided weapon in April, it stated that the weapon has "great significance" in "enhancing the efficiency in the operation of tactical nukes of the DPRK and diversification of their firepower missions." DPRK stands for the North's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
This week's party meeting has drawn keen attention from the outside world seeking a clue to whether and when the North will press ahead with what would be its first underground nuclear experiment in more than four years despite repeated warnings by South Korea and the United States of punitive measures.
It remains unconfirmed when the session will finish. Following the end, Pyongyang's state-controlled media is expected to release reports on its results.
julesyi@yna.co.kr
(END)
5. Unvaccinated North Korean soldiers told to use saltwater, mugwort smoke when sick
Gives new meaning to traditional medicine. Or is this non-traditional and just witch doctor stuff?
Seriously, note that not all soldiers are being vaccinated.
But why did we not come up with a pithy name for our vaccines? But nothing can top the "potion of love."
Unvaccinated North Korean soldiers told to use saltwater, mugwort smoke when sick
Only the soldiers assigned to duties off-base have received COVID-19 vaccines.
By Jieun Kim for RFA Korean
2022.06.21
With a shortage of vaccines in North Korea, the government is telling unvaccinated soldiers to rely on unproven folk remedies if they come down with coronavirus symptoms, sources in the country told RFA.
North Korea has been importing Chinese vaccines for use among the military and has held widely publicized vaccination campaigns involving soldiers. But not every member of the military has been fortunate enough to receive the so-called “potion of love” from the country’s leader, Kim Jong Un.
Instead, they have been told to turn to unproven folk remedies if they get sick.
“Fever continues to emerge among soldiers who could not be vaccinated due to a lack of vaccines,” a resident of South Hwanghae province, on the peninsula’s western coast, told RFA’s Korean Service on condition of anonymity for security reasons.
“Military authorities are recommending folk remedies such as indoor disinfection using mugwort smoke and gargling with salt water,” she said.
According to the source, only soldiers working off base were vaccinated due to an insufficient amount of vaccine inventory imported from China.
“The vaccinations were limited to the soldiers of the military police squadron who perform crackdowns against other soldiers, the communication battalion, the divisional medical office, and the rear support battalion. Even so, soldiers within those units who are on ordinary guard duty, are known to have been excluded from the vaccination,” she said.
“Unvaccinated troops and soldiers were excluded from rural support or community service. Last year, soldiers helped rice planting and harvesting at a nearby farm. But, this spring, the authorities banned the unit from rural support activities due to fear of the spread of COVID-19,” said the source.
In North Hamgyong province, in the country’s northeast, only the coast guard, the military police and staff of military hospitals are vaccinated, a resident there told RFA on condition of anonymity to speak freely.
“The military authorities are designating units and soldiers to be vaccinated separately as there is a shortage of COVID-19 vaccines. Only officers and soldiers who have been vaccinated are permitted to engage in outside activities,” the second source said.
“Most soldiers who did not get vaccinated were instructed not to leave the barracks and to prevent COVID-19 with folk remedies such as mugwort smoke disinfection and gargling salt water,” she said.
Soldiers tending two salmon farms, one of which Kim Jong Un once visited to provide guidance on its operations, were also excluded from vaccination, according to the source. Places visited by the country’s leaders are usually given special considerations long after the trip, so it is somewhat surprising that the fish-raising soldiers did not receive vaccines.
“There are complaints within the military over what authorities have implemented. The authorities have declared a national emergency and even implemented nationwide lockdown measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19, but they have failed to secure enough COVID-19 vaccines,” said the second source.
“Very few soldiers have been vaccinated. However, some soldiers are rather fortunate in that they were not mobilized for rural support labor because they are not vaccinated,” she said.
RFA reported in May that the North Korean government began a vaccination campaign for soldiers working on a high-priority construction project in Pyongyang. The event was filmed and used as propaganda, complete with soldiers weeping at receiving Kim Jong Un’s “Immortal Potion of Love.”
Citizens who saw the propaganda complained that the government only secured enough vaccines for the military, not for the general public.
After two years of denying the pandemic had penetrated its closed borders, North Korea in May declared a “maximum emergency” and acknowledged the virus had begun to spread among participants of a large-scale military parade the previous month.
Though North Korea has not been tracking confirmed coronavirus cases, possibly due to lack of testing equipment, state media has been publishing daily figures of people who report fever symptoms.
As of Monday, 4.65 million people have come down with fever, nearly 99.4 percent of whom have recovered, according to data published by the state run Korea Central News Agency.
Translated by Claire Lee and Leejin J. Chung. Written in English by Eugene Whong.
6. S. Korea, U.S. stage combined patrol flight in show of air defense readiness
Lucky journalists:
Members of South Korea's defense press corps were invited to cover the event on the back seats of the South's F-15K jets. It marked the first time journalists had boarded the warplanes in such allied air maneuvers.
S. Korea, U.S. stage combined patrol flight in show of air defense readiness | Yonhap News Agency
SEOUL, June 23 (Joint Press Corps-Yonhap) -- South Korea and the United States conducted a combined patrol flight over key former battle sites earlier this week, the Air Force here said Thursday, in a show of their readiness against North Korea's nuclear and missile threats.
The allies carried out the operation over the sites of the 1950-53 Korean War on Tuesday, involving four South Korean F-15K fighters and four U.S. F-16 jets, after the South's Air Force carried out a stand-alone formation flight the previous day.
Members of South Korea's defense press corps were invited to cover the event on the back seats of the South's F-15K jets. It marked the first time journalists had boarded the warplanes in such allied air maneuvers.
The flight came as concerns have grown about the possibility of Pyongyang carrying out what would be its seventh nuclear test despite lingering tensions caused by a series of its earlier ballistic missile tests.
"Even for a pilot, a flight over major former battle sites is a rarity," Brig. Gen. Kim Tae-wook, head of the 11th Fighter Wing, told reporters. "We would like to show our confident posture without wavering anytime based on a strong power that can be trusted by people."
The former battle sites in the formation flight included the southeastern city of Daegu, where the South Korean Air Force flew F-51 Mustang fighters brought in from the U.S. for the first time during the war.
Also among the sites were the southern cities of Pohang and Busan, a key battle site and a wartime logistical hub, respectively, as well as the southern island of Geoje, where a large number of prisoners of war were accommodated in a camp.
The flight was also conducted over a battle site in Pyeongtaek, 70 kilometers south of Seoul. The city is where Samsung Electronics' key semiconductor factory is located. President Yoon Suk-yeol and his U.S. counterpart, Joe Biden, visited the factory last month.
sshluck@yna.co.kr
(END)
7. Ukraine lawmakers to visit Seoul next month: ruling party
(I know I am a broken record). Another opportunity for the ROK to step up.
Ukraine lawmakers to visit Seoul next month: ruling party | Yonhap News Agency
SEOUL, June 23 (Yonhap) -- A group of Ukrainian lawmakers will pay a reciprocal trip to Seoul next month, a ruling party official said Thursday, to discuss South Korea's humanitarian assistance to the war-torn nation.
The anticipated visit will come around a month after the ruling People Power Party (PPP) delegation led by Chairman Lee Jun-seok paid a weeklong visit to Kyiv and other cities earlier in June. They met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for discussions on various support measures.
"As far as I know, their visit to South Korea will be around July 4," a PPP official said on the customary condition of anonymity. "The size of the delegation will be similar (to that of the PPP)."
The Ukraine delegation is expected to be led by diplomat-turned-lawmaker Andriy Nikolayenko, according to sources.
On Tuesday, the South Korean government approved an additional US$30 million in humanitarian aid for Ukraine.
The budget will be used to provide medical and food supplies but not weapons. South Korea plans to allocate an additional $20 million, depending on the situation in Ukraine, which would raise its total amount spent for the war-torn nation this year to $100 million.
colin@yna.co.kr
(END)
8. Outgoing U.N. rapporteur on N.K. human rights to visit Seoul next week
Time for a ROK, US, and international community human rights upfront approach.
Outgoing U.N. rapporteur on N.K. human rights to visit Seoul next week | Yonhap News Agency
SEOUL, June 23 (Yonhap) -- The outgoing U.N. special rapporteur on North Korea's human rights situation will visit here next week, the U.N. Human Rights Office in Seoul said Thursday.
Tomas Ojea Quintana will arrive in Seoul on Monday for a three-day trip, which will likely be his last visit to South Korea during his term, according to the U.N. office. His six-year term ends in July.
He is scheduled to give a lecture at Seoul National University on Tuesday and is expected to meet with officials from the South Korean government and civic groups on North Korean human rights.
Attention has been drawn to whether Quintana will meet the bereaved family of a South Korean fisheries official killed by North Korean troops near the inter-Korean sea border in 2020.
The previous administration tentatively concluded the official attempted to defect to the North. The Coast Guard and the defense ministry recently reversed the stance, announcing they had not found any circumstances backing the probe results from two years ago. They apologized to his family.
During his visit here in February, Quintana received a petition from the family and urged the government to reveal related information.
colin@yna.co.kr
(END)
9. Recent lectures in Hamhung refocus attention on anti-reactionary thought law
The only threat greater than the ROK/US alliance, US nuclear weapons, natural disasters, and COVID 19 is the Korean people in north Korea - especially when they are armed with information. The number one priority for the regime is to ensure sufficient oppression and repression of the population to ensure regime survival. The population, when armed with information, is an existential threat to the regime.
The article below illustrates the COVID paradox - the regime is deathly afraid of and must defend against COVID on the one hand. But on the other it has provided the opportunity for Kim to further crack down on the population.
Recent lectures in Hamhung refocus attention on anti-reactionary thought law - Daily NK
Since the COVID-19 lockdowns, the Ministry of State Security has been intensifying surveillance and controls over the local population, a source told Daily NK
A view of Hamhung (Clay Gilliland, Flickr, Creative Commons)
Officials in Hamhung, South Hamgyong Province, recently conducted lectures that refocused attention on the country’s law to eradicate “reactionary thought and culture.” This suggests that North Korean authorities — aware of mounting public disaffection following protracted COVID lockdowns — are renewing efforts to ensure people are staying ideologically in line.
According to a Daily NK source in North Hamgyong Province on Monday, the Hamhung branch of the Ministry of State Security held lectures on June 11 calling for an intense “struggle” against “anti-socialist and non-socialist behavior.”
“The lectures focused on certain articles of the law to eradicate reactionary thought and culture,” he added.
A leading cadre from the city’s Ministry of State Security branch along with a security officer went from inminban to inminban to conduct the lectures. The lecturers warned that some people “who are not yet properly aware of the law to eradicate reactionary thought and culture” were “unhesitatingly engaging in anti-socialist and non-socialist behavior.” They then proceeded to provide an in-depth explanation of the first three chapters of the law.
The first chapter (articles 1 to 7) included the law’s mission, covering the definition of “reactionary thought and culture,” the basic principles of “eradicating reactionary thought and culture,” and the principles of the “mass struggle.”
Chapter 2 (articles 8 to 14) focused on the government’s basic message that the influx of reactionary thought and culture into the country must be stopped, as well as remarks related to the influx of thought and culture through the border and via the Internet, including publications and propaganda material from “enemy countries” like South Korea.
Chapter 3 (articles 15 to 26), meanwhile, included mention of bans on consuming or distributing reactionary thought and culture, spreading reactionary thought and culture using copiers and printers, and the use of South Korean speech, writing or song styles.
Beyond mere explanations of the law, the lecturers tried to elicit caution on the part of the audience, citing the example of a family that was arrested after they gathered to watch South Korean films amid the COVID-19 lockdowns.
“The lecturers said some people have yet to get their heads straight and were committing grave sins before the nation and people by getting caught up in enemy psychological schemes,” said the source. “They even threatened that watching or distributing South Korean films would be branded as espionage against socialism, and that people who engage in such behavior will pay the price.”
The lecturers also explained how information is crossing in and out of the China-North Korea border region. They shared examples of people who were punished for secretly using illegal foreign-made mobile phones to receive and share information from the outside world, or to leak internal information overseas.
The source said that since the COVID-19 lockdowns, the Ministry of State Security has been intensifying surveillance and controls over the local population.
“It appears to be part of efforts to prevent people from becoming ideologically disaffected with the regime,” he said.
Translated by David Black. Edited by Robert Lauler.
Please direct any comments or questions about this article to dailynkenglish@uni-media.net.
10. N. Korea's new smartphone not yet available in stores
Hopefully we will get our hands on this when it is released and figure out how to exploit it for support information and influence activities.
N. Korea's new smartphone not yet available in stores - Daily NK
The new phone boasts much improved security, takes good pictures and has plenty of storage, a source told Daily NK
The new "Madusan" smartphone. ("Foreign Trade")
North Korea’s new smartphone, the “Madusan,” is not yet available in stores, Daily NK has learned.
NK Economy, a South Korean news website specializing in North Korean IT news, reported recently that the new smartphone was announced through this year’s second issue of “Foreign Trade,” a North Korean magazine.
In a phone conversation with Daily NK on Tuesday, a source in Pyongyang said the Madusan smartphone was released this year to mark late North Korean leader Kim Jong Il’s birthday on Feb. 16, as well as the 110th birthday of late North Korean founder Kim Il Sung on Apr. 15.
“Development of the mobile phone began in 2020,” he said.
North Korea had released two or three new smartphones per year from 2017 to 2019. However, no new phones were released over the last two years because the closure of the borders due to COVID-19 ended much of the country’s international trade.
North Korea has clearly faced difficulties releasing new products, yet it released a new smartphone to help commemorate Kim Jong Il’s and Kim Il Sung’s birthdays.
Madusan is a “revolutionary battle site” in the Anju district of South Pyongan Province. North Korea promotes it as the “second Paekdusan,” and has actively used the site to idolize the “Paekdu bloodline.”
The Madusan smartphone is not available in stores, according to the source.
“The phone isn’t sold in information centers or service centers yet,” he said. “It’s not a device ordinary people can buy.”
“Foreign Trade” is a magazine that introduces North Korean factories and exports to the outside world. North Korea revealed to overseas readers that it had released a new smartphone, but inside North Korea, the phone does not appear to be on sale.
North Korea appears intent on demonstrating to the outside world that despite economic troubles and sanctions, the country continues to develop smartphones as normal, and that other economic activities are trouble-free as well. However, given the phone has yet to hit stores, the product does not appear to be in mass production.
“I don’t know how much the phone costs since it’s not in stores,” said the source. “However, people in the information centers say it’s around USD 750.
“Since it’s not on sale, few people are seeking it out,” he continued, adding, “But if they begin to sell it, there’s a class of people who will wait to buy one — that is, people in Pyongyang and Sinuiju, cadres, donju and officials with the unified command on non-socialist and anti-socialist behavior.”
Ascertaining the precise specifications of the phone is difficult given its not currently for sale. The source told Daily NK that the new phone boasts much improved security, takes good pictures and has plenty of storage.
“They say another feature is that [users] can’t delete their viewing history,” he said. “That’s to prevent currently available circumvention programs from working.”
This suggests that North Korean authorities have taken measures to block users from viewing unapproved programs or files.
North Korean smartphones record all documents, images and applications users access. Users cannot store or install unapproved files, either.
However, some North Koreans have developed programs that delete the viewing history from smartphones or allow users to use unapproved applications, videos or files.
Translated by David Black. Edited by Robert Lauler.
Please direct any comments or questions about this article to dailynkenglish@uni-media.net.
11. Some regions of N. Korea falsely claim completion of rice transplanting activities
I read something somewhere once that said no centrally controlled economy has ever been successful.
And in north Korea who would ever want to report failure? Failure can be fatal.
Some regions of N. Korea falsely claim completion of rice transplanting activities - Daily NK
North Korean authorities have threatened punishments of those who failed to achieve this year’s grain production targets
A picture of a collective farm in South Hwanghae Province taken in 2009 (Flickr, Creative Commons)
North Korea’s Rodong Sinmun recently claimed that the country had completed rice transplanting on time despite an unprecedented drought and the “maximum emergency anti-epidemic situation.” However, some regions reportedly made false reports to Pyongyang out of fear of punishment.
According to a Daily NK source in South Pyongan Province, the North Korean Cabinet’s Agricultural Commission recently ordered each province to send regular reports so that it could analyze the state of the nationwide “rice transplanting struggle.”
The commission also implored officials to finish the rice transplanting by June 15. Outwardly, the order appeared aimed at ascertaining the situation and encourage officials to complete the rice transplanting by the deadline. In reality, the order amounted to a threat that officials would face severe punishment if they did not complete their “mission” on time.
Naturally, provinces felt the pressure, and there were places that decided — after long discussions — to report that they had completed rice transplanting, even if this was not completely true.
For example, South Pyongan Province reported to Pyongyang on June 9 that it had completed its rice transplanting activities. Internally, provincial authorities believed this would present no problems since the rice transplanting would take just five or so more days from the time the report was sent up the line.
However, the situation on the ground was much worse than they thought. Faced with the sudden order to complete rice transplanting in just five days, farmers in the province’s Mundok County, Sukchon County and Pyongwon County had no choice but to plant rice by torchlight at night.
“They were told to finish by June 15, but there are places that have yet to finish rice transplanting,” said the source. “How are they supposed to finish so quickly when water, labor and even oil are in short supply?”
Earlier this year, North Korean authorities supplied South Pyongan Province — North Korea’s biggest breadbasket after South Hwanghae Province — with 100 rice planting machines as an “act of consideration from the party and a special measure from the Emergency Anti-epidemic Command.” However, farmers have been unable to use them with the increase in oil prices.
The source said North Korean authorities have responded to the provincial reports by underscoring that the autumn harvest would demonstrate “whether officials conscientiously carried out the rice transplanting or not,” and that they would review the performance of local officials at harvest time. They also threatened punishments of those who failed to achieve this year’s grain production targets.
The source said the South Pyongan Province government pleaded to the authorities for help, complaining that if the state “fails to ensure the supply of electricity, we will face trouble watering the fields and have small crop yields.”
Translated by David Black. Edited by Robert Lauler.
Please direct any comments or questions about this article to dailynkenglish@uni-media.net.
12. Korea to offer $1 mil. in aid to quake-hit Afghanistan
Korea to offer $1 mil. in aid to quake-hit Afghanistan
People affected by an earthquake wait for relief in Gayan village in Paktia Province, Afghanistan, June 23. More than 1,000 people were killed and over 1,500 others injured after a 5.9 magnitude earthquake hit eastern Afghanistan. EPA-Yonhap
Korea plans to provide emergency humanitarian aid worth $1 million to Afghanistan for victims and others suffering from the effects of an earthquake there earlier this week, according to the government, Thursday.
More than 1,000 people have reportedly been killed in the 5.9 magnitude quake that struck the country's southeastern province of Paktika the previous day.
"The government expresses deep condolences and sympathies to the numerous victims and their families of the earthquake that occurred in southeastern Afghanistan on Wednesday," the foreign ministry's spokesperson Choi Young-sam said in a statement.
The government plans to send the assistance "at the earliest date" possible through international organizations, a ministry official told reporters on the condition of anonymity. (Yonhap)
13. Top South Korean, US military officers hold virtual talks on North Korea's threats
Top South Korean, US military officers hold virtual talks on North Korea's threats
Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Won In-choul, right, and his U.S. counterpart, Gen. Mark A. Milley, hold virtual talks on North Korean threats and the alliance, June 23. Yonhap
The top military officers of South Korea and the United States held virtual talks on North Korea's military threats, Thursday, and agreed the allies' combined defense posture was "more solid than at any other time," according to Seoul's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS).
The talks between JCS Chairman Gen. Won In-choul and his U.S. counterpart, Gen. Mark A. Milley, came as concerns have grown about the possibility of Pyongyang conducting a nuclear weapon test amid lingering tensions over a series of earlier missile launches.
"The two countries' JCS chairs concurred that North Korea's missile launches this year were a significant challenge threatening peace and stability not only on the Korean Peninsula but also in the Indo-Pacific region, and that the South Korea-U.S. alliance and their combined defense posture are more solid than at any other time," the JCS said in a press release.
Won pointed out the possibilities of the North conducting an additional intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) launch or a nuclear test, and stressed the importance of close cooperation to display the allies' capabilities and will to respond "sternly" to possible provocations.
Milley reaffirmed that the U.S.' security commitment to the defense of South Korea remains "ironclad," according to the JCS.
He also expressed his gratitude to the outgoing South Korean JCS chair for his contributions to the development of the alliance. (Yonhap)
14. Kim’s psy-war coup spooks Seoul
Speculation about east coast offensive operations.
Kim’s psy-war coup spooks Seoul
Crafty image release comes amid North’s emphasis on short-range missiles, tactical nukes and expansion of usage doctrine
SEOUL – A photo of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un directing a meeting of military officials is generating ripples across South Korea.
The photo, published in North Korean state media on Wednesday, accompanied a story about Kim overseeing a meeting of the Korean Workers’ Party’s Central Military Commission.
So far, so normal.
What raised hackles is that in the background could be seen a map – carefully blurred out – of South Korea’s east coast.
The photo appears at a time when North Korea is on a missile0testing spree, and is making multiple allusions to tactical, rather than strategic, nuclear weapons.
Kim and his handlers are past masters at strategic ambiguity. But Pyongyang’s current development emphasis on shorter-range delivery systems, and related hints in official statements, suggests weapons designed for battlefield use in the Korean theater, rather than cross-Pacific strategic deterrence.
A North Korean photo of a map of South Korea’s east coast has been run widely in South Korea – including by the country’s leading daily, the Chosun Ilbo. Image: Screenshot / Chosun Ilbo
Pyongyang tradecraft
With the Korean Peninsula engulfed in a near-constant conflict of nerves, the photo in question looks like both a crafty feat of psychological warfare and a low-cost deployment of propaganda.
It was reprinted widely in South Korean media, which routinely monitor North Korean media, winning prominent placement in the country’s most widely read newspaper, the Chosun Ilbo, and the leading news agency, Yonhap.
It showed a bespectacled Kim sitting at a table surrounded by officials and officers, examining notes. To his side, a uniformed and bemedaled briefing officer stood beside a map of South Korea’s eastern coastline.
The markings on the map, which looked to be around 3 meters in height and two meters in width, were blurred out.
Northern media said that the meeting discussed “modifying the operation plans” of North Korean army units and “issues related to reorganization of key military organizational formations.”
Pyongyang state media commonly reveal photos and footage of military might – from strategic missiles on transporter-erector-launchers to special-forces assault rifles with oversized magazines. Such photos are eagerly dissected and discussed by Pyongyangologists and arms experts.
More rarely, Kim is shown in front of maps and graphics. In 2017, a year of high tensions with the US, he was photographed in front of a map of Guam, and subsequently, of a chart with missile destinations terminating in Austin, Texas.
With the pro-engagement Moon Jae-in administration having left office in May, to be replaced by the current conservative Yoon Suk-yeol government, at least one South Korean civil servant took Kim’s bait.
“We find it highly likely that [North Korea] will escalate the level of military threat against us, given that it also intentionally released a map showing South Korea’s eastern region,” an unnamed official of South Korea’s Ministry of Unification warned Yonhap.
So why South Korea’s east coast?
The key north-south lines of communication of the Korean Peninsula run up the more densely populated east coast. The capitals of the two Koreas, Seoul and Pyongyang, both sit astride these lines.
The rugged and mountainous northeast coast of South Korea is more sparsely populated. These terrain and population factors have made it vulnerable to infiltration.
North Korean special forces armed with modified AK rifles fitted with what are believed to be high-capacity magazines parade through Pyongyang. The weapons photographed generated extensive discussion online among military pundits and Pyongyangologists. Photo: AFP
Imbalances of forces, battle scenarios
In the 1960s and ’70s, there were multiple firefights in the area between South Korean forces and North Korean infiltrators. In the 1990s, two North Korean mini submarines separately ran aground on the northeast coast. The 1996 infiltration attempt sparked a massive and bloody manhunt.
However, after the fall of communism in Eastern Europe, and the dissolution of key supporter the Soviet Union, North Korea’s economy imploded. More promisingly, in the first decade of the 2000s, liberal administrations in Seoul initiated inter-Korean rapprochement.
Amid these trends, North Korean military thinking shifted. With its regular forces unable to afford the high-tech kit US-led coalitions wielded in the Gulf Wars, national funds were instead concentrated on weapons of mass destruction – notably, ICBMs and nuclear devices.
In 2017, serious fears arose of North Korea-US war. Those fears were extinguished by the surprise dalliance between Kim and then-US president Donald Trump. However, tensions returned after Trump walked out of a 2019 summit. In 2021, North Korea announced a new list of weaponry – including tactical nuclear arms.
This year, North Korea has tested a wide variety of short-range delivery systems: hypersonics, train-launched ballistic missiles and multiple-launch rocket systems. There are signs that it is preparing for another nuclear test – quite possibly with a small-yield tactical device rather than the high-yield strategic warheads it has pursued prior.
That could be a game changer – particularly if deployed on the east coast.
As regards invasion scenarios, “the assumption is that the North Koreans would concentrate their main thrust on the west of the country, targeting Seoul,” said Go Myong-hyun, a North Korea watcher at Seoul’s Asan Institute.
“I hear South Korean conventional troops have the upper hand on the eastern front,” Go told Asia Times. “It is possible our troops could push up there – so maybe the North wants to balance its firepower on the eastern front.”
For Kim personally, there is a particular vulnerability: In recent years he has spent considerable time and overseen major investments in the east coast resort city of Wonsan – just north of the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ).
But a concentration of North Korean firepower on the east coast would have offensive reasons, too – because of its target-rich environment.
Strategically, South Korea’s Marine headquarters depot is sited in the east coast city of Pohang, while the port city Busan further south is a key reinforcement hub for US troops who would arrive from Japan and elsewhere in the event of hostilities.
Economically, targets on the east coast include the car- and ship-manufacturing center of Ulsan (“Hyundai Town”), as well as nuclear reactors.
A North Korean infiltration submarine captured in 1996 stands in stark contrast to the bunker in the background – an active-duty east coast fortification manned by South Korean troops. Photo: Andrew Salmon / Asia Times
Kim rejigs doctrine
In a 2021 Party Congress, North Korea announced that tactical nuclear weapons were on its arms shopping list. These have smaller nuclear yields than strategic nuclear weapons, which can lay waste entire cities, and which Pyongyang already possesses.
Tactical nuclear devices are delivered via battlefield systems – usually tube or rocket artillery. They can be used for “grid-square removal” – that is, denying an enemy a maneuver space – or to obliterate a key target – such as a base, depot, or port – more effectively than conventional explosives.
The expectation among North Korea watchers is that if Kim decides on another nuclear test – and activity has been reported at the underground test site at Punggye-ri – it will be of a tactical, not a strategic device.
“North Korea’s level of nuclear [warhead] miniaturization is estimated to be around 60 centimeters in diameter,” Kim Jung-sup, a senior research fellow at the Sejong Institute, said at a forum in Seoul last week, as reported by Yonhap News Agency. “In order to be mounted on [the nation’s] new tactical guided weapons and hypersonic missiles, like the Hwasong-8, it needs to become even smaller.”
He continued, “If any forces try to violate the fundamental interests of our state, our nuclear force will have to decisively accomplish its unexpected mission.”
While that statement is a masterpiece of strategic ambiguity, delivery systems are already in place.
As reported by Asia Times in January, North Korea’s testing of hypersonic missiles – against which there is currently no reliable defense – points to a possible shift away from long-range deterrence to short-range offense.
So to return to Kim’s media play on Wednesday: The map at his elbow and the reference to new delegations of command responsibility are – potentially – two more pieces of the puzzle.
“Tactical nukes, and delegating decisions on their use to ground-level commanders, suggests North Korea would deploy tactical nukes to make up for the disparity in firepower on the eastern front,” said Go.
Follow this writer on Twitter @ASalmonSeoul
15. Former officials "Support for 'peaceful reunification of the Korean Peninsula' by the US... North Korea's 'nuclear possession' status is impossible"
Eun Jung Cho of VOA takes a look at Korean unification. This is a Google translation of her article. The translation is sufficient to understand her analysis and the commentary.
Comments from Evans Revere, Robert Einhorn, Joseph Detrani, Robert King (and past comments by former SECSTAE Tillerson) and yours truly.
Not all comments can be included in an interview of course. Below the article is some of the background information I provided to Eun Jung Cho. As most know I focus heavily on the importance of a free and unified Korea and the establishment of a United Republic of Korea (UROK).
Former officials "Support for 'peaceful reunification of the Korean Peninsula' by the US... North Korea's 'nuclear possession' status is impossible"
2022.6.23
Former US officials emphasized that the US government has supported peaceful unification of the Korean Peninsula and that close coordination of the US-ROK alliance is essential to formulating a long-term strategy. However, he said that the US government will not support the unification of the present nuclear-armed North Korea and South Korea, nor is it seeking to change the North Korean regime. On the occasion of the 72nd anniversary of the Korean War, reporter Cho Eun-jung listened to the views of former US officials on the reunification of the Korean Peninsula.
Former U.S. officials who dealt with the Korean Peninsula issue have repeatedly reaffirmed that peaceful reunification of the Korean Peninsula based on liberal democracy is the common goal of the U.S.-ROK alliance.
Evans Revere, former senior assistant secretary of state for East Asia and Pacific Affairs at the State Department, told VOA on the 22nd that "it is important to remember that achieving peaceful reunification of the Korean Peninsula is a policy of the South Korean and US governments, and that their predecessors also agreed on this goal. do,” he said.
He also pointed out that the United States does not support unification with North Korea, which possesses nuclear weapons.
[녹취: 리비어 전 수석부차관보] “It is the policy of the U.S. to support the peaceful reunification of the Korean Peninsula and certainly this or any former or any future U.S. administration is not going to support the idea of the reunification of the Korean Peninsula under North Korea as a nuclear-armed hostile, authoritarian, anti-democratic state.”
"Neither the current Biden administration, nor any previous or future US government, will support the unification of the Korean Peninsula by a nuclear-armed, hostile, authoritarian and anti-democratic North Korea," Revere said.
Former State Department special adviser for non-proliferation and disarmament, Robert Einhorn, said, "It is unimaginable for the North Korean government and South Korea to come together as they are now."
Former Special Adviser Einhorn, who focused on the non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction issues for over 40 years at the State Department, including participating in the Geneva nuclear and missile negotiations with North Korea in the 1990s, conveyed the perception of US government officials about the unification of the Korean Peninsula.
[녹취: 아인혼 전 특보] “I think the general perception was that reunification would not be feasible without a radical change in the North Korean system of governance, so it wasn’t something that the South Korean administration could negotiate successfully with the Kim dynasty. That was hard to imagine. Both North and South Korea support the goal of reunification, the problem is that the terms that they favor for reunification are completely incompatible with one another. I think that was the basic impression in the US government at least when I was there. That there needed to be either what we sometimes call regime change, or I prefer to call a complete transformation of governance and values in North Korea would be required for reunification.”
"It was a common perception that unification would not be feasible without radical changes in North Korea's governing system," said former special adviser Ain-Hon.
“The two Koreas both support the goal of unification, but the problem is that the conditions for unification preferred by the two Koreas are completely contradictory to each other,” he said.
“Therefore, there was a perception that unification requires a 'complete change in North Korea's governing system and values,' which I sometimes call 'regime change', which I prefer,” Einhorn explained.
In May 2017, then US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson referred to the 'four dollar principle' while explaining the Trump administration's North Korea policy to State Department employees.
“US government does not seek regime change in North Korea”
However, former officials have also made it clear that the US government is not seeking regime change in North Korea.
When former Secretary of State Rex Tillerson announced a 'four no' policy toward North Korea in 2017, former special adviser Einhorn said, "He was referring to the policy of the United States."
Former Secretary of State Tillerson has said that he is not seeking a regime change or collapse in North Korea, is not attempting to accelerate the reunification of the Korean Peninsula, and is not seeking reasons to send US troops north of the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ).
[녹취: 아인혼 전 특보] “What he was talking about was U.S. policy… I think those were sensible policies so as not to appear provocative to the North and encourage engagement in reasonable terms, but I don’t think Secretary Tillerson or anyone else believe that such policies were going to lead expeditiously to complete reunification.”
Former Special Advisor Einhorn said that Tillerson's policy was "a sensible policy to encourage North Korea to engage in reasonable terms and not appear provocative". I wouldn't,” he said.
Former Senior Deputy Assistant Secretary Revere also explained that Tillerson's 'four no' remarks have been a long-standing US government policy.
[녹취: 리비어 전 수석부차관보] “I think the fairest way to describe that is that in a very general sense, it described the policy of various U.S. administrations that have pursued better relations with North Korea. U.S. administration that have sought to reassure North Korea about U.S. intentions. And U.S. administrations that have tried to tell the North Korean regime that our goal is to resolve all of the fundamental problems on the Korean peninsula in a peaceful fashion, and that American intentions vis a vis North Korea are not what the North Koreans have long described them to be. It’s not the first time these things have been said, and it’s not the last time these things have been said. I think if you would approach an American official today and put that question to them, I think you will find that the answer is not very different from when then Secretary Tillerson said.”
"Former Secretary Tillerson's comments expressed the policies of several US governments that sought to improve relations with North Korea and to reassure North Korea of US intentions," Revere said.
"The U.S. governments were trying to make clear that the goal is to peacefully resolve all fundamental problems on the Korean Peninsula, and that the U.S. intentions for North Korea are different from what North Korea has long portrayed," he said.
Former Deputy Assistant Secretary Revere said the 'four no' remarks were "not the first, nor the last," and said, "If you ask a U.S. official the same question now, it won't be much different from what Tillerson said." .
U.S. State Department special representative for North Korea, Sung Kim, speaks during a meeting between the U.S., South Korea and Japan, in Seoul on the 3rd. Kim repeatedly urged North Korea to respond to the US's proposal for dialogue.
'Unification must be denuclearized' Vs 'Unification is the solution to the North Korean problem'
There were also different opinions about the precedence and precedence of denuclearization and unification.
Joseph Detrani, former director of the National Center for Non-Proliferation, who served as deputy deputy chief of the Six-Party Talks from 2003 to 2006, cited North Korea's nuclear and missile development and human rights issues as the biggest obstacles and priorities for unification.
[녹취: 디트라니 전 소장] “We’ve all been pursuing resolution of the core issues that are hindering movement towards reunification i.e. their missile programs, their nuclear program, their human rights record, and from the North Korean side they have the extreme unhappiness with the sanctions that have been imposed on them so these are the core issues.”
"We have all been seeking solutions to the core issues that have hindered the movement for unification," said Detrani, "that is, North Korea's missile program, nuclear program, and human rights record."
“North Korea has expressed extreme displeasure with the sanctions imposed on them, and these are the core issues,” he said.
Detrani said, “There must be a movement to resolve these key issues, and in proportion to that, the possibility of eventual unification will increase.”
On the other hand, David Maxwell, a senior researcher at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracy, who was a former chief of staff for the ROK-U.S. Combined Forces Command, said that North Korea's denuclearization problem would only be resolved through unification of the Korean Peninsula.
[녹취: 맥스웰 연구원] “It’s not a magic bullet. Unification is hard, unification is difficult and it is going to be very complex. But it is the goal, the objective that must be sought after by the ROK and the international community. There is no solution to nuclear weapons, missiles and human rights without unification, because as long as the Kim family regime is in power, those activities and abuses will continue.”
Researcher Maxwell said, “Unification is a difficult and complex process, but it is a goal that Korea and the international community must pursue.”
"Without unification, there is no solution to nuclear weapons, missiles, and human rights violations," he said.
However, Maxwell also said that regime change in North Korea is not a policy pursued by the US government, and that the US and South Korea should establish a security strategy with the long-term goal of unification.
Based on the joint defense capabilities of the United States and South Korea, it is necessary to establish a strategy for unification of the Korean Peninsula that integrates political warfare, aggressive diplomacy, sanctions, cyber activities, and intelligence and influence activities.
Former State Department special envoy for North Korean human rights Robert King, who served from 2009 to 2017, also emphasized the importance of cooperation between the United States and South Korea in unification policy.
[녹취:킹 전 특사] “I think the key thing is that the U.S. needs to work very closely with South Korea in terms of moving towards reunification, in terms of bringing an end to the division of Korea. I’m very happy that the relationship between Washington and Seoul is so good. It was good under President Moon and I think the beginning of the Yoon administration seem to suggest that it’s going to be equally good.”
"The key is for the United States to work closely with South Korea toward unification and the end of the division of the Korean Peninsula," said former Special Envoy King.
Former Special Envoy King said that North Korea's refusal to improve relations with the US and South Korea ultimately led to unification as the only solution to the Korean Peninsula problem.
[녹취:킹 전 특사] “We’ve had so little progress in terms of developing a relationship with North Korea and moving in a positive direction with North Korea, that I don’t think there’s any other alternative. I think that’s the way we have to move forward but it’s not going to be quick.”
"I don't think there is any other alternative (other than unification) because there hasn't been much progress in improving relations with North Korea and moving in a positive direction with North Korea," King said.
Former Special Reporter Ein-Hon also described the reunification of the Korean Peninsula as a 'desired goal' and 'a goal that is not realistic now', such as 'complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula'.
This is Jo Eun-jung from VOA News.
The Alliance way ahead is an integrated deterrence strategy as part of the broader strategic competition that is taking place in the region. There is a need for a Korean “Plan B” strategy that rests on the foundation of combined ROK/U.S. defensive capabilities and includes political warfare, aggressive diplomacy, sanctions, cyber operations, and information and influence activities, with a goal of denuclearization but ultimately the objective must be to solve the “Korea question” (e.g., the unnatural division of the peninsula) with the understanding that denuclearization of the north and an end to human rights abuses and crimes against humanity will only happen when the Korea question is resolved that leads to a free and unified Korea, otherwise known as a United Republic of Korea (UROK).
Presidents Lee and Obama, Park and Obama, and Moon and Trump all stated that peaceful unification was an alliance objective.. Mona dn Biden and Yon and Biden did not state that in their joint statements in 2020 and 2021. Biden stated his desire for unification in his special contribution to Yonhap in October 2020 prior to the election and in a 2013 speech at Yonsei University as Vice President.
The Armistice called for peaceful settlement of the "Korea question" in 1953 in para 60.
Article IV
Recommendations to the Governments Concerned on Both Sides
60. In order to insure the peaceful settlement of the Korean question, the military Commanders of both sides hereby recommend to the governments of the countries concerned on both sides that, within three (3) months after the Armistice Agreement is signed and becomes effective, a political conference of a higher level of both sides be held by representatives appointed respectively to settle through negotiation the questions of the withdrawal of all foreign forces from Korea, the peaceful settlement of the Korean question, etc.
Bottom Line:
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. In short, a United Republic of Korea (UROK).
A New Durable Acceptable Political Arrangement (“end state”) for consideration:
“A stable, secure, peaceful, economically vibrant, non-nuclear peninsula, reunified under a liberal constitutional form of government determined by the Korean people.
United Republic of Korea (UROK)"
There are four paths to unification: peaceful, war, regime collapse, and new emergent leadership in north Korea that seek unificaiton.
Some references:
Should The United States Support Korean Unification
And If So, How?
Unification Options and Scenarios:
Assisting A Resistance
Recommendations For Yoon-Biden Summit – Must Build On The Strong Alliance Foundation
How Will President-Elect Yoon Manage The South Korea – U.S. Alliance And North Korea?
16. Beyond Nuclear Crisis: New and Long-Term Strategy for the Korean Peninsula (Lecture)
I will be presenting this lecture at the Institute of World Politics on July 7th.
Beyond Nuclear Crisis: New and Long-Term Strategy for the Korean Peninsula
Thu, Jul 7, 2022, 4:30pm - 6:00pm
You are cordially invited to attend a lecture on the topic of
Beyond Nuclear Crisis: New and Long-Term Strategy for the Korean Peninsula
with
Col. David Maxwell (ret.)
Senior Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD)
Thursday, July 7, 2022
4:30-6:00 PM EDT
The Institute of World Politics
1521 16th St. NW
Washington D.C. 20036
Marlatt Mansion, Commodore Barry Room
About the Lecture: The Yoon and Biden administrations have an opportunity for a new approach to the Korean security challenge. The Alliance way ahead is an integrated deterrence strategy as part of the broader strategic competition that is taking place in the region. There is a need for a Korean “Plan B” strategy that rests on the foundation of combined ROK/U.S. defensive capabilities and includes political warfare, aggressive diplomacy, sanctions, cyber operations, and information and influence activities, with a goal of denuclearization but ultimately the objective must be to solve the “Korea question” (e.g., the unnatural division of the peninsula) with the understanding that denuclearization of the north and an end to human rights abuses and crimes against humanity will only happen when the Korea question is resolved that leads to a free and unified Korea, otherwise known as a United Republic of Korea (UROK).
About the Speaker: Colonel David S. Maxwell (ret.) is the Editor-in-Chief of Small Wars Journal. He is a Senior Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a Senior Fellow at the Global Peace Foundation (where he focuses on a free and unified Korea), and a Senior Advisor to the Center for Asia Pacific Strategy. He is a 30-year veteran of the US Army, retiring as a Special Forces Colonel. He has worked in Asia for more than over 30 years, primarily in Korea, Japan, and the Philippines. Colonel Maxwell served on the United Nations Command / Combined Forces Command / United States Forces Korea CJ3 staff where he was a planner for UNC/CFC OPLAN 5027-98 and co-author of the original ROK JCS – UNC/CFC CONPLAN 5029-99 (North Korean instability and regime collapse). He later served as the Director of Plans, Policy, and Strategy and then Chief of Staff for the Special Operations Command Korea. He commanded the Joint Special Operations Task Force Philippines (JSOTF-P), served as the G3 for the United States Army Special Operations Command, and culminated his service as a member of the military faculty at the National War College.
Following retirement, he served as the Associate Director of the Security Studies Program at Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service. Colonel Maxwell is a fellow at the Institute of Corean-American Studies, an advisory to Spirit of America, and on the Board of Directors of the Committee for Human Rights in North Korea, the International Council of Korean Studies, the Council on Korean-US Security Studies, the Special Operations Research Association, the OSS Society, and the Small Wars Journal. He earned a B.A. in political science from Miami University, and an M.A. in Military Arts and Science from the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College and from the School of Advanced Military Studies, and an M.S. in National Security Studies from the National War College. Colonel Maxwell teaches Unconventional Warfare and Special Operations for Policy Makers and Strategists.
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17. ‘Not in This for the Money’: Why Some Families Sue North Korea
‘Not in This for the Money’: Why Some Families Sue North Korea
June 22, 2022
Families whose relatives have been abducted or imprisoned by North Korea are seeking to hold the country financially accountable despite the long odds of collecting money from the isolated nation.
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Choi Byung-hee, whose father was abducted by North Korea, holding the only picture she has of him. She is seated with her aunt and uncle (and her father’s siblings): Choi Cha-moon, 86, left, and Choi Tae-boon, 79, at Mr. Choi’s home in Seoul in June.Credit...Chang W. Lee/The New York Times
June 22, 2022, 10:02 a.m. ET
SEOUL — A grieving couple in Ohio, a retired preschool teacher in South Korea and a woman who left Japan 62 years ago have one thing in common: They are among a small number of people who have sued North Korea.
Their civil litigation — often over physical mistreatment and abductions at the hands of North Korean authorities — is part of a quiet, yearslong effort by a handful of individuals seeking justice despite the huge challenge of ever collecting money from the isolated nation. Similar suits have been filed against the governments of Iran, Syria and other American adversaries.
These families typically hope the lawsuits will keep their accusations in the public eye and lay the groundwork for criminal prosecutions in international courts, said Gregory S. Gordon, a law professor who has served as a prosecutor or adviser for international criminal cases in Bosnia, Cambodia and Rwanda.
On a personal level, the cases are vehicles for families to grapple with the trauma of their loss, said Professor Gordon, who teaches at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. “Being able to bring these claims allows them to go through that process more effectively and more holistically,” he added.
Choi Byung-hee, who is trying to get compensation for North Korea’s abduction of her father, at her home in Gyeongsang Province, South Korea, in June.Credit... Chang W. Lee/The New York Times
Even though the lawsuits are rare and the chances of giant payouts exceedingly slim, American courts have recently awarded a few plaintiffs money derived from seized North Korean assets. That has given some families in the United States and East Asia a reason to be cautiously optimistic.
The retired teacher, Choi Byung-hee, has a fresh court hearing in South Korea later this summer. “I’m going to keep pushing until we get justice,” said Ms. Choi, 73, whose father was abducted and sent to North Korea when she was a baby. “Since the government won’t help us, I’m taking things into my own hands.”
Success and setbacks
In the United States, a flurry of cases were filed in civil courts against individuals, many of them government officials, starting in the 1980s, under an obscure 18th-century law that has since been narrowed by the Supreme Court. Other families have filed civil cases under the 1976 Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act, which opened federal courts to categories of cases, including terrorism, against foreign governments.
Perhaps the most notable recent victory was the case involving the parents of Otto Warmbier, an American college student who died in 2017 after suffering a brain injury in a North Korean prison. They were awarded more than half a billion dollars in damages the following year. And in 2021, the same court awarded $2.3 billion to the crew members (and their surviving relatives) of the U.S.S. Pueblo, an American naval ship that had been held hostage by North Korea for 11 months in 1968.
Otto Warmbier, an American student held captive in North Korea who later died from his injuries, is escorted from court in Pyongyang, the country’s capital, in 2016. Credit...Jon Chol Jin/Associated Press
That partial success has inspired some people outside the United States to sue North Korea in local courts. One is Eiko Kawasaki, 79, an ethnic Korean woman born in Japan, who moved to North Korea in 1960 and eventually married a North Korean man. She did not return to Japan until she defected in 2003 after the death of her husband, leaving her children behind.
Ms. Kawasaki had traveled to the North as part of a resettlement program that was run by Pyongyang and facilitated by Japan, which had colonized the Korean Peninsula from 1910 to 1945. She worked for years in a North Korean factory and suffered from discrimination and a lack of food, she said.
In 2018, a few months after the Warmbiers won their case in the United States, Ms. Kawasaki and four other defectors sued Kim Jong-un, the North’s leader, in a Tokyo court for damages they said they had suffered under the resettlement program.
The court rejected their case in March, in part because a 20-year statute of limitations had expired. But it accepted much of the evidence they submitted, potentially laying the groundwork for future cases against the North. Their lawyer said at the time that they planned to appeal.
Ms. Kawasaki’s children remain in North Korea, and she said in an interview that the ruling, along with the Warmbier family’s 2018 court victory, gave her hope that she could win the appeal. She added that her financial claim — 100 million yen, about $734,000 — was far less important than her desire to see her family.
Eiko Kawasaki, who sued North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong-un, over her forced resettlement in the country, at a park near her home in Tokyo in June. Credit...Chang W. Lee/The New York Times
It may be hard for young people today to understand how such human rights violations could take place in North Korea, she added. “But it could really happen to anyone, anytime. Like Otto. Or me.”
‘They want justice’
Winning a default civil judgment against North Korea in the United States does not translate into an immediate cash award, in part because the country has few assets or properties that the American authorities can seize. That forces plaintiffs to pursue other options.
Cindy and Fred Warmbier, parents of Otto Warmbier, who died after being held prisoner in North Korea, at a 2019 news conference in Washington regarding federal legislation named after their son.
Multiple efforts to reach the Warmbiers and their lawyers were unsuccessful. In 2018, Otto’s father, Fred Warmbier, said at a symposium at the United Nations headquarters in New York that the family was trying to build a legal “pathway” to holding Mr. Kim, the North’s leader, responsible for their 22-year-old son’s death.
“How can anybody be quiet when this is going on? The only thing we can do is rub their noses in this,” Otto’s mother, Cindy Warmbier, said at the symposium, referring to North Korean officials. “It embarrasses them.”
The family’s lawyers appear to be following a strategy of filing court claims on seized North Korean assets before they can be deposited into a United States government fund that compensates victims of state-sponsored terrorism around the world, said Joshua Stanton, a lawyer in Washington who has helped Congress draft legislation related to sanctions on North Korea.
As for the Warmbiers, he said, “They’re not in this for the money. They want justice.”
A life of waiting
In South Korea, there is no system for giving financial support to victims of North Korean abductions during the Korean War, according to the country’s Ministry of Unification. A few plaintiffs have won judgments against North Korea in local courts, but were unable to collect money.
In one case, two former South Korean soldiers who had been taken to North Korea as prisoners of war in the 1950s sued the country in 2016, 15 years after escaping. The men, now 88 and 92, were each awarded about 21 million won, or $16,200, in damages.
Eiko Kawasaki at a park near her home in Tokyo in June. Credit...Chang W. Lee/The New York Times
In another case, Ms. Choi, the retired preschool teacher whose father, Choi Tae-jip, was abducted and brought to North Korea in 1950, won 50 million won in damages after suing North Korea.
The plaintiffs in both cases requested compensation from the Foundation of Inter-Korea Cooperation, a South Korean nonprofit that had collected two billion won, or about $1.5 million, in copyright royalties from South Korean media outlets that had used content in North Korea’s state-run news media. When the foundation refused to pay, arguing in a court that its royalties did not belong to the North Korean state, the plaintiffs sued.
A Seoul court dismissed the case filed by the former prisoners of war, saying the money did not belong to the North Korean state. Tae-seob Um, a lawyer who represents them, said in an interview that they planned to appeal.
Ms. Choi, who was born Choi Sook-yi, has a court hearing in August. She said her father’s long absence had inflicted deep psychological wounds on her family. When her mother died in 1993, she had for decades been holding out a faint hope that her husband might miraculously return.
“If we had known that he had died, we would have grieved the loss and been done with it,” Ms. Choi said through tears in a quavering voice. “Instead, my mother lived a life of waiting.”
Choi Byung-hee in Seoul in June. Credit...Chang W. Lee/The New York Times
Hisako Ueno contributed reporting from Tokyo.
De Oppresso Liber,
David Maxwell
Senior Fellow, Foundation for Defense of Democracies
Senior Fellow, Global Peace Foundation
Senior Advisor, Center for Asia Pacific Strategy
Editor, Small Wars Journal
Twitter: @davidmaxwell161
Phone: 202-573-8647
