Quotes of the Day:
"Happiness is not something readymade. It comes from your own actions."
- Dalai Lama
"When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be."
- Lao Tzu
"Those of us who shout the loudest about Americanism in making character assassinations are all too frequently those who, by our own words and acts, ignore some of the basic principles of Americanism:
The right to criticize;
The right to hold unpopular beliefs;
The right to protest;
The right of independent thought.
The exercise of these rights should not cost one single American citizen his reputation or his right to a livelihood nor should he be in danger of losing his reputation or livelihood merely because he happens to know someone who holds unpopular beliefs. Who of us doesn’t? Otherwise none of us could call our souls our own. Otherwise thought control would have set in . . .
The nation sorely needs a Republican victory. But I don’t want to see the Republican Party ride to political victory on the Four Horsemen of Calumny -- Fear, Ignorance, Bigotry, and Smear."
- Speech of Senator Margaret Chase Smith, given in the Senate Chamber 1 June 1950
1. U.S. supports humanitarian aid for N. Korean people: State Dept.
2. U.S. expert suggests easing sanctions on N.K., with snapback clause attached, for nuclear talks
3. New spy satellites can provide data on North Korea and other key areas
4. Japan's new leader states plan to demand 'appropriate' action by S. Korea to address diplomatic stand-offs
5. North Korea distributes new emergency COVID-19 rules to its population
6. North Korea Accepts Pandemic Aid, But Border With China Remains Closed
7. Ministry: N. Korea seems to maintain strict land border controls despite signs of easing sea route
8. Unification minister talks with Jim Rogers, renews calls for 'New Deal' initiative related to inter-Korean cooperation
9. North Korea sanctions must be lifted as food shortages loom, U.N. expert says
10. U.N. member countries voice concern over N.K. missile launches
11. Family member of security agent in Hoeryong murdered recently
12. Perspective | Should South Korea build its own nuclear bomb?
13. Six in 10 Americans support US troop intervention in case of Korean conflict: survey
14. Iran-SKorea row worsens over oil billions frozen by US sanctions
15. Blinken, new Japanese counterpart share concerns on North Korea
16. Moon Jae-in Suggests Ending the Korean War; Pyongyang Agrees, but Says It’s an Unfavourable Time
17. Sue Mi Terry Appointed Director of the Hyundai Motor Korea Foundation Center
1. U.S. supports humanitarian aid for N. Korean people: State Dept.
And we are correct to do so. Again, as I have written many times, we are more about the welfare of the Korean people in the north than does Kim Jong-un. One he has refused humanitarian assistance but he is also the cause of the people's suffering because he continues to prioritize his nuclear and missile programs over the welfare of the people.
(LEAD) U.S. supports humanitarian aid for N. Korean people: State Dept. | Yonhap News Agency
(ATTN: UPDATES with additional remarks regarding U.S. sanctions on Iran in last 5 paras)
By Byun Duk-kun
WASHINGTON, Oct. 7 (Yonhap) -- The United States supports efforts to alleviate the suffering of North Korean people and is engaged in efforts to provide humanitarian assistance to such people in the reclusive North, a State Department spokesman said Thursday.
Ned Price also noted the U.S. would support humanitarian assistance for the North even if its efforts to denuclearize the country do not move forward.
"Even when we disagree with a particular regime, we believe that we must work to the best of our ability to do all we can to alleviate the suffering of the people," he said when asked about the U.S. position on the recent shipments of COVID-19 medical supplies to North Korea.
The World Health Organization said on Thursday (Seoul time) that it has begun sending such supplies to the North.
"And so we continue to support international efforts aimed at the provision of critical humanitarian aid to the DPRK," Price added, referring to North Korea by its official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
The department spokesman, however, emphasized that the North Korean regime itself was largely to blame for the suffering of its own people.
"The regime continues to exploit its own citizens, to violate their human rights, to divert resources from the country's people to build up its unlawful WMD (weapons of mass destruction) and ballistic missiles program," he said.
Still, the United States is involved in efforts to facilitate and also expedite the provision of humanitarian assistance to the North Korean people, Price noted.
"We are involved in efforts to facilitate the provision of humanitarian aid to the neediest in North Korea. This is most evident, I would say, in our ongoing work to expedite approvals in the U.N. 1718 committee for organizations from around the world to deliver life saving aid to the DPRK," he said, referring to a U.N. sanctions regime that prohibits shipments of sensitive items to and from the North.
"We also know that whether it's our own sanctions regime, whether it's the UN sanctions regime, there are certainly carve-outs in these regimes to ensure that, in the first instance, we are not doing anything that would compound the suffering, the deprivation of the North Korean people," Price added.
The resumption of humanitarian assistance for North Korea also comes amid stalled negotiations on ending North Korea's nuclear ambition.
Pyongyang has ignored numerous overtures made by the Biden administration that came into office in January, while also staying away from denuclearization negotiations with the U.S. since early 2019.
Price reiterated U.S. commitment to engaging with North Korea in dialogue.
"Our goal remains the complete denuclearization of Korean peninsula, and to that end, we remain prepared to meet with the DPRK without preconditions, anytime, anywhere," he said, urging North Korea to "respond positively to our outreach."
North Korea had kept its border closed since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic early last year, with many people saying an outbreak would have been especially devastating in the country that lacks even the most basic medical supplies and equipment.
Meanwhile, the State Department spokesman praised Seoul for its efforts to help bring Iran back to a multinational nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), commenting on a recent discussion between U.S. special representative for Iran, Robert Malley, and South Korean Vice Foreign Minister Choi Jong-kun.
"The ROK has been a stalwart partner. The ROK and we see eye to eye when it comes to the utility of mutual return compliance with the JCPOA," said Price, referring to South Korea by its official name, the Republic of Korea.
Seoul currently holds about US$7 billion in Iranian funds frozen at South Korean banks under U.S. sanctions. The U.S. had signed a waiver in March to allow the use of the Iranian funds to pay off debts owed to South Korean and Japanese businesses, but maintains the rest of the funds must remain frozen until the Middle Eastern country returns to compliance with the nuclear deal.
"We appreciate the ROK's vigorous enforcement of existing sanctions. Those sanctions do remain in effect as you know until and unless we are able to reach that mutual return to compliance," he added.
The U.S. withdrew itself from the JCPOA in 2018 under former President Donald Trump, soon prompting Iran's departure from the nuclear deal that was signed in 2015.
bdk@yna.co.kr
(END)
2. U.S. expert suggests easing sanctions on N.K., with snapback clause attached, for nuclear talks
As I have written many times I strongly disagree with lifting sanctions. It will only lead to more malign north Korean behavior as Kim assesses his political warfare strategy and blackmail diplomacy works.
And when have "snapback" mechanisms ever worked?
U.S. expert suggests easing sanctions on N.K., with snapback clause attached, for nuclear talks | Yonhap News Agency
SEOUL, Oct. 7 (Yonhap) -- The United States should consider easing sanctions against North Korea under the so-called snapback mechanism for the resumption of denuclearization talks, an American expert said Thursday.
Ken Gause, a senior analyst at the Center for Naval Analyses, made the point in an online seminar, stressing the need for the U.S. administration to adopt a reciprocal and phased strategy centered on implementing a peace regime.
"The initial phase should seek a freeze of North Korea's nuclear program in return for limited sanctions relief tied to a snapback provision if it violates one of these three demands: no provocations, no testing and no proliferation," he said. The snapback clause would enable Washington to reimpose sanctions on Pyongyang in case it fails to comply with the proposed preconditions.
He then called on the U.S. administration to revisit its policy on North Korea and introduce pragmatic approaches to bring Pyongyang to the table first before demanding steps for denuclearization.
"Right now, what the U.S. is doing... is they're asking for North Korea to take major steps on denuclearization as a way into negotiations, but I think denuclearization should be at the back end of negotiations," he said.
Gause also urged Washington to make a "serious assessment" of former President Donald Trump's top-down approach, saying a bottom-up approach in nuclear talks with Pyongyang can be "very ineffective and counterproductive."
Nuclear negotiations between the U.S. and the North have been stalled since the Hanoi summit between Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in 2019 ended without a deal.
julesyi@yna.co.kr
(END)
3. New spy satellites can provide data on North Korea and other key areas
Excerpts:
The director of the National Reconnaissance Office has revealed that two new satellite programs developed in collaboration with the private sector have been delivering new insights into North Korea and other areas of interest to U.S. intelligence.
...
The two systems aided Haiti in the aftermath of the recent earthquake, helped image areas in Afghanistan to help with evacuation efforts, “and provided insight into areas of North Korea where we’ve struggled to collect in the past,” Scolese said.
New spy satellites can provide data on North Korea and other key areas
The director of the National Reconnaissance Office has revealed that two new satellite programs developed in collaboration with the private sector have been delivering new insights into North Korea and other areas of interest to U.S. intelligence.
“Both went from concept to orbit in less than three years, and both were delivered on schedule and within budget,” said Director Chris Scolese at an industry conference on Thursday. “These two systems started contributing almost immediately.”
The two systems aided Haiti in the aftermath of the recent earthquake, helped image areas in Afghanistan to help with evacuation efforts, “and provided insight into areas of North Korea where we’ve struggled to collect in the past,” Scolese said.
Scolese acknowledged how rare it is for the office to be open about its projects, saying that “for anyone who’s been around the NRO long enough, the fact we’re sharing this much information in public is probably a big surprise.” The federal government did not acknowledge the agency’s existence between its founding in 1961 and declassification in 1992.
The agency is looking to be more open about its mission in order to enlist the help of private-sector innovation, which contributed to the success of the two satellite projects.
“We no longer have the luxury of treating our advantage in space as a given,” Scolese said, highlighting the agency’s stronger ties with U.S. allies and the need to “stay focused and aggressive” on gaining advantages through private-sector cooperation and continuous innovation.
“The commercial sector presents incredible opportunities,” he said. “For us, commercial isn’t just a priority. It’s a must. We don’t just want it. We need it.”
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4. Japan's new leader states plan to demand 'appropriate' action by S. Korea to address diplomatic stand-offs
Does not seem to be a positive sign for improved relations.
Japan's new leader states plan to demand 'appropriate' action by S. Korea to address diplomatic stand-offs | Yonhap News Agency
TOKYO, Oct. 8 (Yonhap) -- Japan's new leader said Friday he will "strongly" demand that South Korea take "appropriate" measures to end drawn-out diplomatic stand-offs between the two sides and restore healthy bilateral relations.
In his first keynote address at a parliamentary session as prime minister, Fumio Kishida signaled no immediate shift in Tokyo's hardline stance toward Seoul, as he cited its "consistent stance."
"(We) will strongly demand an appropriate response from South Korea in order to return the relationship to a healthy one in line with our country's consistent position," he stressed.
He added that South Korea is an "important neighbor," briefly mentioning the Seoul-Tokyo ties during his relatively lengthy speech.
The tone of Kishida's remarks on South Korea was similar to that of his predecessor Yoshihide Suga in his parliamentary speech delivered a month after his inauguration last September.
The two sides are locked in disputes over shared history, especially Japan's wartime forced labor and sexual slavery during its brutal colonial rule of Korea from 1910-45.
On North Korea, the new prime minister called its development of nuclear and missile programs "unacceptable," and vowed continued efforts to help resolve the North's nuclear and other issues in steps toward realizing the normalization of diplomatic relations with Pyongyang.
He also reiterated the government's stance regarding the abductions of Japanese nationals by North Korea in the 1970-80s, calling it "the most important task" for which he will strive to "realize the return of every victim in the abductions."
He added that he is "determined to sit face to face" and "without preconditions" with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un to discuss the matter.
elly@yna.co.kr
(END)
5. North Korea distributes new emergency COVID-19 rules to its population
Excerpts:
“Locals are saying that [the isolated people] might also be people diagnosed as positive for the coronavirus,” said the source. “Some also worry that the infectious disease might be going around their areas.”
The emergency order also included items long stressed by the authorities, including continued mandates on hand disinfecting, masks and social distancing, a ban on touching birds or wild animals and a command that locals avoid touching and immediately report balloons or strange items suspected from entering the country from abroad, as well as items from unknown sources.
Meanwhile, North Korea is reportedly meting out cruel punishments to individuals who violate emergency quarantine protocols. There are many cases of people being sent to political prison camps on charges of “harming the national economy and violating party policy” after they failed to comply with quarantine rules.
With the number of quarantine violators rising, North Korea even appears to be building new political prison camps to bolster the country’s holding capacity.
North Korea distributes new emergency COVID-19 rules to its population - Daily NK
Daily NK has learned that North Korea recently distributed emergency COVID-19 rules to locals. A source says the materials stressed that residents must stay away from designated danger spots and avoid contact with suspected COVID patients.
A source in South Pyongan Province told Daily NK on Tuesday that the Emergency Anti-epidemic Command “is issuing emergency orders to residents regarding behavior rules for the coronavirus.” He said the command was conveying “matters of absolute compliance” to locals at all government institutions, enterprises, study groups for party workers and inminban (people’s units).
The source said the emergency order’s most important point was to ban all residents from approaching specific districts, buildings or quarantine facilities marked “Danger: Quarantined.”
“The order also said people must not contact or exchange items with people in those areas,” he said.
North Korea has long issued severe quarantine rules or responded to suspected cases by putting entire cities under lockdown, confining all residents to their homes. It has also banned residents from approaching the homes of suspected patients, posting signs in front of houses saying the residents are in quarantine.
The authorities have also moved to prevent people from doing things that go against the law — no fewer than 12 of the national emergency quarantine law’s 70 articles deal with punishments.
However, North Korea’s emergency quarantine law simply explains protocols for disinfecting, guarding and managing quarantine facilities. It does not ban locals from going near them.
There is speculation that a serious quarantine violation or a suspected outbreak may have led to the emergency order.
North Korean public health workers disinfecting a bus in Sinuiju. / Image: Rodong Sinmun
“Some of the students who took part in the national foundation day event [Sept. 9] are in isolation at the Pyongsong Sanitorium building,” said the source. “[The authorities] are banning contact with those students in particular.”
Daily NK reported that everyone who took part in commemorative events to mark the 73rd anniversary of North Korea’s founding on Sept. 9 were put in isolation. According to the report, about 10 students from Pyongyang’s Civil Defense University were rushed into ambulances after displaying symptoms of COVID-19.
Locals, too, speculate that the authorities issued the emergency measure because some of the people who took part in Sept. 9 parades fell ill.
“Locals are saying that [the isolated people] might also be people diagnosed as positive for the coronavirus,” said the source. “Some also worry that the infectious disease might be going around their areas.”
The emergency order also included items long stressed by the authorities, including continued mandates on hand disinfecting, masks and social distancing, a ban on touching birds or wild animals and a command that locals avoid touching and immediately report balloons or strange items suspected from entering the country from abroad, as well as items from unknown sources.
Meanwhile, North Korea is reportedly meting out cruel punishments to individuals who violate emergency quarantine protocols. There are many cases of people being sent to political prison camps on charges of “harming the national economy and violating party policy” after they failed to comply with quarantine rules.
With the number of quarantine violators rising, North Korea even appears to be building new political prison camps to bolster the country’s holding capacity.
Please direct any comments or questions about this article to dailynkenglish@uni-media.net.
6. North Korea Accepts Pandemic Aid, But Border With China Remains Closed
A lot of organizations are trying to help the Korean people in the north. But it is Kim Jong-un that is the roadblock.
Excerpts:
A spokesperson for UNICEF told RFA that it was also able to move essential health supplies into North Korea, but not in significant amounts.
Other organizations have reported difficulty in sending aid to North Korea.
The Norwegian Red Cross told RFA last month that it was preparing to provide aid to North Korea, but it was unable to provide in-kind assistance.
First Steps Health Society, a support group for North Korea located in Vancouver said in a newsletter last month that the import of aid materials to North Korea was still suspended.
The Canadian group voiced concern that some of its supplies in Dalian were perishable and would go to waste if not shipped soon.
North Korea still claims that it is completely virus-free and has not reported a single confirmed case of the coronavirus.
Observers doubt the claim, citing costly quarantine measures and reports that hospitals isolate “suspected cases,” while those who die of suspected symptoms are quickly cremated before COVID-19 can be confirmed as the cause of death.
North Korea Accepts Pandemic Aid, But Border With China Remains Closed
Reopening will hinge on the population having access to vaccines, expert says.
North Korea has begun accepting international aid to help it combat the spread of COVID-19, but its border with China remains tightly sealed, experts and observers told RFA.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has started sending shipments of medical supplies to North Korea through the Chinese port city of Dalian, it said in its most recent weekly report for South and East Asia, which covered the week of Sept. 20 to 26.
The supplies had been stranded in China since the start of the pandemic in January 2020, when Pyongyang and Beijing closed the Sino-Korean border and suspended all trade, the WHO’s representative to North Korea, Edwin Salvador, told RFA’s Korean Service Thursday.
“A few months ago, UN agencies were informed by the Ministry of Public Health that they would allow some of these items stranded in China to be transported to DPR Korea through Dalian seaport,” Salvador said
“Consequently, WHO was able to transport some of the items by ship to Nampo seaport. We are informed that these items along with the other items from the other UN agencies, remain under quarantine,” he said.
The border closure has proven disastrous for the North Korean economy, as China accounts for more than 90 percent of North Korea’s trade and much of the country’s economic activity revolves around the purchase and sale of goods from its northern neighbor.
Without Sino-Korean trade, commerce in entire North Korean towns has dried up, and ships sit idle in port rusting from disuse.
The UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization estimated in a recent report that North Korea would be short about 860,000 tons of food this year, about two months of normal demand.
With the border closed, food from China cannot bridge the gap. Starvation deaths have been reported, and if the border does not reopen soon, North Korea could descend into a food crisis similar to the 1994-1998 famine that killed millions, or as much as 10 percent of the population by some estimates.
Pyongyang’s plans to eventually reopen the border have nothing to do with it allowing shipments of medical supplies from the WHO, Ahn Kyungsoo, head of the South Korea-based dprkhealth.org, told RFA’s Korean Service.
“Ultimately North Korea must first get a vaccine. In fact, a complete border opening will be possible only when there is a certain amount of herd immunity,” said Ahn.
Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, said on Thursday that there are “no updates at this stage” in response to RFA’s inquiry about support for COVID-19 vaccine in North Korea.
Pyongyang surprised observers last month when it turned down Beijing’s offer of about three million doses of China’s Sinovac vaccine.
Britain’s former ambassador to North Korea pointed out to RFA that North Korea has allowed isolated shipments of goods during the pandemic.
“The fact that it is reported in this case to be doing so again does not necessarily indicate or presage any more general opening on its border,” said Alastair Morgan, who was stationed in Pyongyang between 2015 and 2018.
But the shipment could indicate the beginning of a gradual reopening, according to Ramon Pacheco Pardo, Korea Chair at Vrije Universiteit Brussel.
“I believe that Pyongyang will continue to reopen before the winter arrives. Then the Kim regime will have the opportunity to decide whether it wants to close the border during the winter and start to fully re-open from the spring, or whether the regime feels that it is safe to carry on reopening,” he said.
“I think that North Korea will need to be satisfied that the new COVID-19 strains are weaker than previous ones. It will also need to start receiving vaccines so that at least the regime feels that it is safe for its people to meet with others,” said Pacheco Pardo.
A spokesperson for UNICEF told RFA that it was also able to move essential health supplies into North Korea, but not in significant amounts.
Other organizations have reported difficulty in sending aid to North Korea.
The Norwegian Red Cross told RFA last month that it was preparing to provide aid to North Korea, but it was unable to provide in-kind assistance.
First Steps Health Society, a support group for North Korea located in Vancouver said in a newsletter last month that the import of aid materials to North Korea was still suspended.
The Canadian group voiced concern that some of its supplies in Dalian were perishable and would go to waste if not shipped soon.
North Korea still claims that it is completely virus-free and has not reported a single confirmed case of the coronavirus.
Observers doubt the claim, citing costly quarantine measures and reports that hospitals isolate “suspected cases,” while those who die of suspected symptoms are quickly cremated before COVID-19 can be confirmed as the cause of death.
Reported by Jeongeun Ji for RFA’s Korean Service. Translated by Leejin Jun. Written in English by Eugene Whong.
7. Ministry: N. Korea seems to maintain strict land border controls despite signs of easing sea route
Ministry: N. Korea seems to maintain strict land border controls despite signs of easing sea route | Yonhap News Agency
SEOUL, Oct. 8 (Yonhap) -- North Korea appears to maintain its tight restrictions on the movement of materials through land borders with China despite some signs that it is easing up its maritime border controls to bring in outside assistance, Seoul's unification ministry said Friday.
The World Health Organization reported that it has begun shipping COVID-19 medical supplies to North Korea through the Chinese port of Dalian, indicating that Pyongyang might be opening a maritime route that has been blocked since July last year due to the pandemic.
"Media reports show that there are signs that some materials are being delivered (to North Korea) ... but up until now, no concrete changes have been confirmed about the resumption of land-based materials movement between Dandong (of China) and Sinuiju (of the North)," Cha Deok-cheol, the ministry's deputy spokesperson, told reporters.
"It is hard to predict exactly when it will be reopened at the moment, and we will keep an eye on relevant developments for the time being," he added.
North Korea has claimed to be coronavirus-free and rejected outside help for its anti-epidemic campaign for fear that any shipment could spread the virus on its soil.
A ministry official earlier said that the North might be easing its long-enforced border restrictions, given that its trade with China has been on a marked rise in recent months.
kokobj@yna.co.kr
(END)
8. Unification minister talks with Jim Rogers, renews calls for 'New Deal' initiative related to inter-Korean cooperation
Well, I defer to Rogers and investment experts. However, I do not think he understands the nature, objectives, and strategy of the Kim family regime and the threat it poses. And that threat will not be reduced by an end of war declaration or a peace regime.
And as an aside if the Koreas are unified there will no longer be a South Korea. There will be a United Republic of Korea (UROK).
Excerpts:
Rogers expressed support for Lee's vision, stressing that inter-Korean exchanges will be "beneficial for all and will provide fresh opportunities," the ministry said.
He also pointed out that the world will pay attention to South Korea if the two Koreas are reunified and stressed that more companies will invest on the peninsula.
Unification minister talks with Jim Rogers, renews calls for 'New Deal' initiative related to inter-Korean cooperation | Yonhap News Agency
SEOUL, Oct. 8 (Yonhap) -- Unification Minister Lee In-young stressed the need for the Korean-version New Deal project to expand to cross-border cooperation with North Korea, while speaking online with Jim Rogers, a well-known investor, according to the ministry Friday.
During a conversation with Rogers the previous day, the minister said that the so-called Peace New Deal will serve as a new growth engine for the South Korean economy.
"The minister said that ... if economic cooperation between the two Koreas develops into a Peace New Deal, it will pave the way for a new leap in the South Korean economy," Cha Deok-cheol, the ministry's deputy spokesperson, told a regular press briefing.
Rogers expressed support for Lee's vision, stressing that inter-Korean exchanges will be "beneficial for all and will provide fresh opportunities," the ministry said.
He also pointed out that the world will pay attention to South Korea if the two Koreas are reunified and stressed that more companies will invest on the peninsula.
julesyi@yna.co.kr
(END)
9. North Korea sanctions must be lifted as food shortages loom, U.N. expert says
"Creeping apathy" - or long time donor fatigue because of Kim Jong-un's policy decisions?
Excerpts;
Ojea Quintana welcomed a pledge by U.S. President Joe Biden and South Korean President Moon Jae-in last May to work to improve North Korea’s rights situation.
“In any possible upcoming peace negotiations, the Republic of Korea and the United States of America should secure commitments with measurable benchmarks…to a meaningful process of engagement on human rights,” he said.
North Koreans are still detained in political prison camps, along with their families, while some have been released from labor training centers due to the unavailability of food and work, he said.
Again, Presidents Moon and Biden care more about the Korean people in the north than Kim Jong-un. We must take a human rights upfront approach. Human rights is a moral imperative and a national security issue because Kim Jong-un must deny the human rights of the Korean people in the north in order to remain in power.
North Korea sanctions must be lifted as food shortages loom, U.N. expert says - National | Globalnews.ca
North Korea‘s most vulnerable risk starvation after it slipped deeper into isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic and U.N. sanctions imposed for its nuclear and missile programs should be eased, a U.N. rights investigator said in report seen by Reuters.
The worsening humanitarian situation could turn into a crisis and it is coinciding with a global “creeping apathy” about the plight of North Korea’s people, said Tomas Ojea Quintana, U.N. special rapporteur on human rights in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
“Sanctions imposed by the UN Security Council should be reviewed and eased when necessary to both facilitate humanitarian and lifesaving assistance and to enable the promotion of the right to an adequate standard of living of ordinary citizens,” he said in a final report to the U.N. General Assembly, to be presented on Oct. 22.
North Korea does not recognize Ojea Quintana’s mandate or cooperate with him and its mission in Geneva did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The government in Pyongyang does not take questions from foreign media.
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Leader Kim Jong Un in June said the food situation was “tense” because of natural disasters last year and acknowledged that citizens had faced sacrifices during the pandemic. In April, North Korean officials called a U.N. report on child malnutrition a “sheer lie.”
North Korea has not reported any COVID-19 cases and has imposed strict anti-virus measures, including border closures and domestic travel curbs.
1:26 International Olympic Committee suspends North Korea till end of 2022
International Olympic Committee suspends North Korea till end of 2022 – Sep 8, 2021
But many North Koreans relying on commercial activities along the border with China have lost their incomes, and that has been compounded by the impact of sanctions, Ojea Quintana said.
“People’s access to food is a serious concern and the most vulnerable children and elderly are at risk of starvation,” he said, adding that North Koreans “should not have to choose between the fear of hunger and the fear of COVID-19.”
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“Essential medicines and medical supplies are in short supply and prices have increased several fold as they stopped coming in from China, and humanitarian organizations have been unable to bring in medicines and other supplies.”
Most diplomats and aid workers have left North Korea amid strict travel restrictions and a shortage of essential goods and health facilities, Ojea Quintana said.
Progress in vaccination, women and children’s health and water and sanitation was eroding, he said.
“The current worsening humanitarian situation could turn into a crisis and must be averted,” he said.
'Creeping apathy'
He also voiced concern that growing challenges to obtaining information were “leading to a creeping apathy in global attention to the worsening human rights situation there.”
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Ojea Quintana called for easing military tension on the divided peninsula and urged the United States and South Korea to “send clear signals” to revive diplomacy aimed at securing the North’s denuclearisation.
In recent weeks, North Korea carried out a series of weapons tests including ballistic missiles and a cruise missile with potential nuclear capabilities.
1:39 Biden names U.S. special envoy to North Korea
Biden names U.S. special envoy to North Korea – May 21, 2021
Ojea Quintana welcomed a pledge by U.S. President Joe Biden and South Korean President Moon Jae-in last May to work to improve North Korea’s rights situation.
“In any possible upcoming peace negotiations, the Republic of Korea and the United States of America should secure commitments with measurable benchmarks…to a meaningful process of engagement on human rights,” he said.
North Koreans are still detained in political prison camps, along with their families, while some have been released from labor training centers due to the unavailability of food and work, he said.
The camps, known as kwanliso, the existence of which is denied by the state, can be qualified as constituting crimes against humanity, he said.
© 2021 Reuters
10. U.N. member countries voice concern over N.K. missile launches
Excerpts:
South Korea's Ambassador to the U.N. Cho Hyun used the session to highlight the importance of President Moon Jae-in's recent proposal for the declaration of a formal end to the 1950-53 Korean War.
"An end of war declaration would mark a pivotal point of departure in creating a new order of reconciliation," Cho was quoted as saying.
Exercising the right of reply, a North Korean representative criticized the U.S.' offer to hold talks with no preconditions as a "smokescreen hiding its hostile acts" and defended its military activities as "self-defensive" preparations.
U.N. member countries voice concern over N.K. missile launches | Yonhap News Agency
SEOUL, Oct. 8 (Yonhap) -- U.N. member countries, including Italy and Britain, have voiced concerns over North Korea's recent missile launches during a U.N. General Assembly committee session, calling for the regime to return to dialogue, relevant documents showed Friday.
The First Committee handling disarmament and international security held a general debate session earlier this week in the wake of the recent series of the North's missile launches, including the test of a new hypersonic missile in September.
"The repeated ballistic missile launches, including the most recent ones by the DPRK, undermine regional and international peace and security and are a matter of serious concern," Italian Ambassador Stefano Stefanile said during the debate, according to the transcript posted on the website of the country's permanent mission to the U.N. in New York.
DPRK stands for the North's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
"We urge the DPRK to refrain from further provocations and take concrete steps towards a complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearization. In the meantime, the international sanctions regime needs to remain in place and be effectively implemented," he added.
During the session, Britain's representative, Ambassador Aidan Liddle, urged the North to resume nuclear talks with the United States, which have been stalled since the no-deal Hanoi summit in 2019 between then U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, according to a U.N. document.
Thomas Gobel, the representative of Germany, called for Pyongyang to react "positively" to the efforts by Seoul and Washington to establish dialogue, the summary of the committee session showed.
South Korea's Ambassador to the U.N. Cho Hyun used the session to highlight the importance of President Moon Jae-in's recent proposal for the declaration of a formal end to the 1950-53 Korean War.
"An end of war declaration would mark a pivotal point of departure in creating a new order of reconciliation," Cho was quoted as saying.
Exercising the right of reply, a North Korean representative criticized the U.S.' offer to hold talks with no preconditions as a "smokescreen hiding its hostile acts" and defended its military activities as "self-defensive" preparations.
sshluck@yna.co.kr
(END)
11. Family member of security agent in Hoeryong murdered recently
Another anecdote to make us wonder about internal instability.
Family member of security agent in Hoeryong murdered recently - Daily NK
Daily NK has learned that the family member of a security agent was recently murdered in Hoeryong.
According to a Daily NK source in North Hamgyong Province, a woman identified by her family name of Kim — the wife of an agent of the local branch of the Ministry of State Security in Hoeryong — left her house at around 10 AM on Sept. 28 after receiving a phone call from an unknown individual. Three hours later, she was discovered dead.
The individual on the phone told Kim that her mother had an emergency, and that she should come to a place in front of the local zoo with KPW 20,000. She quickly collected the money and went to the spot.
When she failed to return home by lunchtime, her husband called his mother-in-law to ask if his wife was still there. His mother-in-law told him she had made no phone call to her daughter, nor had her daughter visited her.
Sensing something was wrong, the security agent immediately informed the city branches of the Ministry of State Security and Ministry of Social Security. Ultimately, however, Kim was found dead. Her mangled body was reportedly stuffed in a burlap sack and left near the zoo.
Hasambong, North Hamgyong Province, in early June of 2019. / Image: Daily NK
“The criminal has yet to be caught, but locals are saying it looks like somebody with a grudge against the agent took their revenge against his family,” said the source. “This is because there are many resentful locals since they have suffered such indescribable harm due to the excessive loyalty of the Ministry of State Security and its agents.”
Security agents watch people who fail to tow the political and ideological line and weed out spies to protect the regime. Agents are stationed at the provincial, city, county and even village level. They are deployed to government institutions and workplaces as well, where they watch over and crack down on the people.
In border areas such as Hoeryong, Ministry of Security agents have recently arrested many residents for using Chinese-made mobile phones to make overseas calls. Many of those arrested are publically tried or sent to political prison camps on charges of espionage.
In particular, the source said since agents not only punish the offender, but also exile their families, a growing number of aggrieved, disgruntled locals await opportunities to take revenge.
“With the border closure lasting over a year, locals cannot bear it any longer,” said the source. “Security agents know this full well, but are still harassing and mercilessly punishing locals in the name of controlling and observing ideological tendencies. So, [that is why these acts of revenge] are taking place.”
Please direct any comments or questions about this article to dailynkenglish@uni-media.net.
12. Perspective | Should South Korea build its own nuclear bomb?
No.
And I challenge the notion the alliance is weakening. Friction, yes. Problems and challenges, yes. But we have faced many challenges in the last 7 decades. The alliance will transcend the politics of current leaders as it has for 7 decades.
Then again perhaps Dr Lind and Dr Press are providing the alliance with a wake up call.
Excerpts:
As a result the alliance faces credibility problems. South Korea can’t be sure it can depend on its U.S. ally for protection. At the very moment that the two countries’ strategic priorities are diverging, the risks that the United States must bear to defend South Korea are growing a thousandfold. North Korea, too, may question whether Washington would rush to Seoul’s aid during a war when doing so would threaten the survival of the United States.
Washington and its allies faced a similar credibility problem during the Cold War. In the early 1950s, NATO members wondered whether the emerging Soviet nuclear threat to the U.S. homeland meant they could no longer rely on the United States. Would the Americans really sacrifice Boston to protect Bonn? The allies addressed this credibility problem with three partial solutions. Britain and France acquired their own nuclear arsenals. For others, NATO implemented nuclear sharing: storing some U.S. weapons on allied bases in Europe, to be transferred to the allies if war erupted. And the U.S. military stationed large ground and air forces on the continent, deploying troops with their families, to intertwine the United States in any major war from the outset.
...
A South Korean nuclear arsenal is not what Washington prefers — indeed, it goes against a core U.S. policy of preventing nuclear spread. But it might be the best course given the weakened foundation of the alliance. If Seoul decides to take this step, the United States should focus blame where it belongs — on Pyongyang’s illegal nuclear program — and render political support to a valued ally.
Perspective | Should South Korea build its own nuclear bomb?
The once-strong alliance between South Korea and the U.S. is weakening.
The Washington Post · by Jennifer Lind and Daryl G. Press Today at 1:45 p.m. EDT · October 7, 2021
The alliance between the United States and South Korea seems as if it should be stronger than ever. America is finally shifting its strategic attention to Asia, aided by the end of its “forever war” in Afghanistan. Meanwhile, the growing North Korean nuclear threat should be energizing shared U.S. and South Korean interests in denuclearization and deterrence. At a glance, the bonds that lock Seoul and Washington together appear solid.
In fact, the alliance is in trouble — pulled apart by powerful geopolitical forces. The only way to save it might be for South Korea to move in a direction that much of Washington considers unthinkable: to develop an independent nuclear arsenal.
The Trump years certainly damaged the relationship; President Donald Trump made clear that he thought South Korea was taking advantage of the United States. But the true root of the problem lies in two long-term trends. First, the rise of China is creating a rift between American and South Korean foreign policy priorities. Managing the growth of China’s power has become America’s primary national security goal. As the costs and dangers of countering China rise, Washington increasingly expects its allies to join in this effort.
But the South Koreans never signed up for that deal. Their alliance with the United States has always been about North Korea. A counterbalancing effort against China would poison South Korea’s relations with its No. 1 trading partner — which is also the most powerful country in the region. Fear of offending China partly explains South Korea’s reluctance to join “the Quad,” a U.S.-led alignment that includes India, Australia and Japan. The United States is an important player in East Asia right now; China, Koreans know, will be their neighbor forever.
The situation is made worse by a second trend: the growing sophistication of North Korea’s nuclear capabilities. Pyongyang has made major strides toward developing high-yield thermonuclear weapons and missiles that can carry them to the continental United States. This development fundamentally changes the alliance’s risk-reward calculus. For decades, American leaders accepted that defending South Korea could be very costly, possibly claiming the lives of thousands of U.S. soldiers. But now the costs of a conflict in Korea could be truly catastrophic for the United States.
In the event of war, leaders in Pyongyang would have powerful incentives to use nuclear weapons to stalemate South Korea’s conventional military superiority. Should the United States retaliate, the American homeland would become a target. War on the Korean Peninsula could thus lead to the destruction of multiple American cities — and the political, economic and social chaos that would follow.. The American people never signed up for that deal.
As a result the alliance faces credibility problems. South Korea can’t be sure it can depend on its U.S. ally for protection. At the very moment that the two countries’ strategic priorities are diverging, the risks that the United States must bear to defend South Korea are growing a thousandfold. North Korea, too, may question whether Washington would rush to Seoul’s aid during a war when doing so would threaten the survival of the United States.
Washington and its allies faced a similar credibility problem during the Cold War. In the early 1950s, NATO members wondered whether the emerging Soviet nuclear threat to the U.S. homeland meant they could no longer rely on the United States. Would the Americans really sacrifice Boston to protect Bonn? The allies addressed this credibility problem with three partial solutions. Britain and France acquired their own nuclear arsenals. For others, NATO implemented nuclear sharing: storing some U.S. weapons on allied bases in Europe, to be transferred to the allies if war erupted. And the U.S. military stationed large ground and air forces on the continent, deploying troops with their families, to intertwine the United States in any major war from the outset.
The United States has shown no interest in creating a Korean nuclear sharing agreement — for good reason. An agreement premised on plans to give nuclear weapons in a time of war to nonnuclear allies is legally questionable, given that the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) prohibits their transfer. (Indeed, NATO’s nuclear sharing exists in a legal gray area)
Additionally, with modern locks, such weapons would still be firmly in the control of American leaders, and hence no more credible than other elements of the U.S. nuclear arsenal. Nor does the United States seem likely to increase the size of its conventional deployments on the Korean Peninsula or intertwine them with the Korean forces on the border. In fact, the number of American troops there has declined, with the forces positioned farther from the demilitarized zone.
That leaves the first option, however distasteful it may seem: South Korea may choose to acquire its own nuclear arsenal. Such a move would protect South Korea against the North Korean threat — more securely than today’s arrangement — and help the country manage its other long-term security problem: how to retain political independence in a region where China wields ever-greater power and influence.
Some analysts see nuclearization as a nonstarter, fearing it would make South Korea — an NPT member — a pariah like the North. But North Korea’s development of nuclear weapons was illegal, violating multiple United Nations Security Council resolutions. South Korea’s would be legal and justified. The NPT’s Article X was written for precisely the circumstances that South Korea faces today. It offers a withdrawal option if a member faces “extraordinary events” that “have jeopardized the supreme interests of its country.” North Korea’s illegal development of nuclear weapons and its threats against the South certainly qualify as extraordinary circumstances. South Korea’s development of nuclear weapons would be a proportional response to North Korea’s actions.
Seoul may already be heading in this direction. Former foreign minister Song Min-soon has said that South Korea “taking its own measures to create a nuclear balance on the peninsula” is an idea “widely touted” by leaders and analysts. Seventy percent of the South Korean public endorses the move. And Seoul’s new fleet of ballistic missile submarines is an unusual acquisition: a vastly expensive way to deliver a handful of conventional missiles. Those subs, however, would make an ideal platform for a future nuclear deterrent.
A South Korean nuclear arsenal is not what Washington prefers — indeed, it goes against a core U.S. policy of preventing nuclear spread. But it might be the best course given the weakened foundation of the alliance. If Seoul decides to take this step, the United States should focus blame where it belongs — on Pyongyang’s illegal nuclear program — and render political support to a valued ally.
Twitter: @profLind
The Washington Post · by Jennifer Lind and Daryl G. Press Today at 1:45 p.m. EDT · October 7, 2021
13. Six in 10 Americans support US troop intervention in case of Korean conflict: survey
Six in 10 Americans support US troop intervention in case of Korean conflict: survey
A visitor uses a smartphone to film North Korea from the observatory of the Aegibong Peace Ecopark in Gimpo, South Korea, Oct. 5. AP-YonhapMore than six out of every 10 American adults believe the United States should get involved when and if there is an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula, a survey showed Thursday.
In an annual survey by the Chicago Council on Global Affairs, 63 percent of respondents said they would support using U.S. troops to defend South Korea in case North Korea invaded.
The figure marks the highest among four hypothetical instances that also asked those surveyed if they would support using U.S. troops to defend Taiwan from China, Israel from its neighboring countries and a European ally from a Russian invasion.
For Israel, 59 percent of respondents said they would support using U.S. troops, while 52 percent said the same about Taiwan in case of a Chinese invasion.
The figure for South Korea also marks the second highest since at least 1982 after 64 percent tallied in 2018.
The survey also showed 77 percent of Americans hold "net favorable views" of Koreans, noting what it called the anti-immigrant rhetoric amplified by former President Donald Trump and other public figures "is not widely shared among the American public."
The survey was conducted from July 6 to July 26, among a representative national sample of 2,086 adults, the council said, adding it was partly funded by the Korea Foundation, a non-profit public diplomacy organization based in Virginia. (Yonhap)
14. Iran-SKorea row worsens over oil billions frozen by US sanctions
Iran-SKorea row worsens over oil billions frozen by US sanctions
Late last month, Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi banned the import of household appliances from South Korea, on instruction from supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who said the imports could harm local production.
TEHRAN: A row between Iran and South Korea is intensifying, with Tehran threatening legal action unless Seoul releases more than $7 billion in funds for oil shipments frozen because of US sanctions.
The Islamic republic was South Korea's third-largest Middle Eastern trade partner before the United States unilaterally withdrew from a 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and world powers and reimposed crippling sanctions.
Iran had been a key oil supplier to resource-poor South Korea and in turn imported industrial equipment, household appliances and vehicle spare parts from Seoul.
"We have $7.8 billion of our money blocked in South Korean banks," said Iranian lawmaker Alireza Salimi, who is involved with the case.
South Korea took delivery of the Iranian oil "but did not pay for it", he told AFP.
"It is not a reliable trading partner and it should pay interest on the money it is improperly holding," he charged.
A foreign ministry official in Seoul told AFP that "it is difficult to confirm" the exact amount of money involved.
South Korea stopped purchasing Iranian oil after former US president Donald Trump exited the nuclear deal in 2018, reimposing the harsh sanctions and threatening to punish anyone buying crude from Iran.
That year, Iran-South Korea trade fell by half compared to 2017, when it had stood at $12 billion, according to Iran's embassy in Seoul.
The volume of trade tumbled to just $111 million by mid-July 2020, according to embassy figures.
In January, Iran's Revolutionary Guards seized a South Korean-flagged tanker, the Hankuk Chemi, and held it and its captain for three months, ostensibly over alleged environmental violations.
The seizure was widely seen in South Korea as an attempt to force Seoul's hand over the frozen funds, though Tehran repeatedly denied there was any connection.
Last week, Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian warned that his country would sue South Korea if it continued to refuse to honour its debt.
"US pressure (on Seoul) is a fact but we cannot continue... to turn a blind eye to this question," he said.
If Seoul fails to unblock the funds, the government would allow Iran's central bank to take legal action against two South Korean lenders holding the money, he said.
Amir-Abdollahian said he spoke with his South Korean counterpart Chung Eui-yong about the issue at the end of last month.
"I told him it was unacceptable for our people to wait for three years" for the funds, he said.
The foreign ministry official in Seoul said there was no way to send the money due to US sanctions.
"We have been transferring the cost of crude oil imports to a Korean won account under the name of the Iranian central bank. And when a South Korean company exports to Iran, it receives payments from that account in Korean won," the official added.
South Korea also has used the frozen fund to pay around $16 million in Iranian arrears to the United Nations, the official said.
President Joe Biden's administration says it is ready to return to the 2015 deal and lift sanctions but negotiations have stalemated.
Rob Malley, the US pointman on Iran, spoke Thursday by telephone with South Korean Vice Foreign Minister Jong Kun Choi.
"We appreciate (South Korea's) vigorous enforcement of existing sanctions. These sanctions do remain in effect, as you know, until and unless we are able to reach that mutual return to compliance," State Department spokesman Ned Price said.
Lawmaker Salimi said Washington had given South Korea approval to supply Iran with merchandise in lieu of returning the funds.
But the South Korean foreign ministry official said that "for now, only humanitarian transactions, such as medicines, are possible with frozen funds".
Late last month, Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi banned the import of household appliances from South Korea, on instruction from supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who said the imports could harm local production.
But South Korean appliances are still in high demand, despite the ban.
The head of Iran's appliances sector union said Iran's home appliance market is worth $6 billion per year, 40 percent of which is contraband goods smuggled in from abroad.
Maryam, a bride-to-be shopping in Tehran's Amin-Hozour street, a hub for household appliances, said she preferred to buy foreign products because "the quality is better and the prices are not so different from what is produced locally".
But Amine Feizi, a machine operator, said he had bought a fridge, a washing machine and a television set, all made in the Islamic republic.
"I prefer products made in Iran because foreign ones are more expensive and because I want to support national production," Feizi said.
"In the years since our country has been under sanctions, the quality of Iranian-made products has improved."
15. Blinken, new Japanese counterpart share concerns on North Korea
And the ROK should share those concerns as well. We need good trilateral cooperation on north Korea.
Blinken, new Japanese counterpart share concerns on North Korea
The Hill · by Jordan Williams · October 7, 2021
Secretary of State Antony Blinken and his new Japanese counterpart “shared concerns” about North Korea in a call on Wednesday.
Blinken spoke with Japanese Foreign Minister Motegi Toshimitsu to congratulate him on being appointed to the role, according to a statement from State Department spokesperson Ned Price.
During the call, Blinken and Motegi maintained that the U.S.-Japan alliance is “the cornerstone of peace, security, and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific and beyond,” the statement said.
“Additionally, the Secretary and the Foreign Minister shared their concerns about the DPRK’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs,” Price said referring to North Korea by its official name of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
The two “reaffirmed their commitment to address and resolve these issues through U.S.-Japan-Republic of Korea trilateral cooperation towards complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula,” Price continued.
North Korea resumed missile tests last month, notably firing two rounds of ballistic missiles from the Korean Peninsula into the Sea of Japan. The move drew swift condemnation from Japan.
Blinken and Motegi spoke by telephone for about 15 minutes, according to a separate statement from Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Both sides exchanged a “wide range of views on regional issues,” including North Korea and China, as well as climate change.
Earlier this week, President Biden spoke with new Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio to congratulate him on his election.
According to a readout of the call, Biden said he “looks forward to strengthening the relationship in the years ahead given the critical role our countries play in advancing our common vision of a free and open Indo-Pacific region.”
The Hill · by Jordan Williams · October 7, 2021
16. Moon Jae-in Suggests Ending the Korean War; Pyongyang Agrees, but Says It’s an Unfavourable Time
An "unfavorable time" means the regime does not think it can yet effectively exploit the end of war declaration to support its strategy to break the alliance and get US forces off the peninsula. It will continue to try to shape the information environment and conditions to its perceived advantage.
Moon Jae-in Suggests Ending the Korean War; Pyongyang Agrees, but Says It’s an Unfavourable Time
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In September 2021, the President of the ROK visited the USA once again to participate in the 76th session of the UN General Assembly, where he made a speech separately addressing the issue of peace on the Korean Peninsula. The South Korean President speaking at the UN had previously proposed to declare an end to the Korean War, In 2018 and 2020. He added specifics, indicating that the ROK, the DPRK, the USA and China should participate in the process.
In addition, Moon Jae-in suggested resuming as soon as possible the program of meetings between separated families of the South and the North, and developing inter-Korean cooperation in the fields of health care and disaster control. However, he made no mention of the North’s recent missile launches, remaining cautious about resuming dialogue with Pyongyang.
On September 22, Moon Jae-in re-emphasized the need to formally end the Korean War during a joint ceremony to hand over military remains in Hawaii.
The US Department of Defense immediately noted that “we continue to seek engagement with the DPRK to address a variety of issues, and we are open to discussing the possibility of an end of war declaration.” At the same time, the Department of Defense spokesman, John Kirby, said the goal is still the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.
The Minister of Unification, Lee In-young, also said that formally ending the Korean War could serve as a valuable and cost-effective measure to demonstrate the absence of hostility and the resumption of nuclear negotiations with North Korea.
The conservative and main opposition People Power Party has criticized Moon’s proposal, saying peace cannot be achieved through a declaration. As former North Korean diplomat and current lawmaker Tae Yong-ho has stressed, a declaration of an end to the war should only be considered after North Korea takes a meaningful step toward denuclearization. Meanwhile, the North continues to launch missiles and has reportedly begun operating its nuclear facilities in Yongbyon. In this situation, “a declaration of cessation of war would only lead North Korea to incorrectly believe that it could see the withdrawal of US troops from the Korean Peninsula.” Involving China in a quadrilateral declaration of cessation of war is also unlikely, given the intertwined rivalry between Washington and Beijing.
Much more interesting is the North Korean response. On September 23, Vice Foreign Minister Lee Tae-ho noted that the declaration of the war’s end is a political declaration officially proclaiming the end of the armistice on the Korean Peninsula, which has lasted for a long time so far. In this sense, it has symbolic value, but so far, the adoption of a declaration ending the war is “premature and cannot resolve existing differences.” Lee noted a range of US military preparations aimed at the DPRK, including lifting missile restrictions on the ROK or the Minuteman III ICBM launches in February and August of this year. And he concluded from this that “there is no guarantee that an end-of-war declaration, which is only a piece of paper, will lead to the abandonment of hostility toward us when the situation on the Korean Peninsula is fraught with explosion.” In such a situation, the assurance of an end to the war “will not help stabilize the situation on the Korean Peninsula and can be used as a cover for US hostile policies”.
A few hours after that, Kim Yo-jong, vice department director of the Central Committee of Korea’s Workers’ Party, issued a slightly different press statement. “An end-of-war declaration in the sense of physically ending the long-standing unsustainable ceasefire on the Korean Peninsula and abandoning hostility towards the vis-a-vis is an interesting proposal and a good idea.” However, now is not the time to discuss this idea – “in such an environment, when double standards, bias, hostile policies, hostile words and actions against our state continue, as it is now,” such a statement will lead to group photos at most, and all the problems will remain. “Proclaiming the end of the war requires mutual respect on both sides and, above all, biased view of the other side, brutal, hostile policies and unjust double standards must be abolished.” If South Korea breaks with past tactics, “always thinking of further words and actions and not acting in a hostile manner, we would be happy to maintain a close understanding between the North and the South again and have constructive discussions on the restoration of relations and their further development.”
As Blue House Senior Presidential Secretary for Public Affairs Park Soo-hyun said on September 24, Seoul perceives North Korea’s positive response to Moon Jae-in’s proposal as something very important and weighty. As for the two responses from the North on the same day, Park argued that he saw no inconsistency between the statements.
Against this backdrop, Kim Yo-jong again gave “good advice to South Korea” on September 25:
“We can see that the atmosphere of different stratas of South Korea to restore the frozen inter-Korean relations and achieve peaceful stability as soon as possible is strong to the extent that it cannot be obstructed, and we have no other desire either. Therefore, there is no need for the North and the South to pick on the other side, engage in rhetoric and waste valuable time.” If South Korea wants to restore and develop inter-Korean relations, it should not judge the North’s actions as “provocations” and engage in doublethink while developing its own military might as a “necessity to deter the North.” Therefore, the North is waiting for the South to take action “aimed at removing all sparks that fuel confrontation, including the unjust, hostile double-standard policy against the DPRK, as well as offensive rhetoric.” Only if “impartiality and respect for each other are maintained” can both the restoration of the North-South liaison office and the holding of an inter-Korean summit be discussed constructively. “The end of the war will also be proclaimed in due course.”
Kim noted that all of the above is her personal opinion and recalled that “we already gave advice last August that South Korea should make the right choice.”
On the other hand, the author uses the occasion to draw attention to some other issues. The Korean War of 1950-53 ended with an armistice, technically leaving the divided Koreas in a state of war to this day. At the same time, it was signed by the DPRK, UN troops, and “Chinese volunteers.” The ROK representative refused to sign an armistice because Syngman Rhee wanted to fight until the end. As a result, the problem of finally ending the Korean War involved a series of complex legal procedures related to who should sign for whom and what.
It is clear that an agreement to end the conflict must be signed by its main parties, North Korea, South Korea, the USA, and China, but …
To begin with, formally, it was South Korea and the UN troops that came to its aid, the vast majority of whom were Americans, who fought against North Korea. However, they were not formally fighting on their own but under the UN flag. But since the North and South are now members of the UN, the UN cannot sign a truce with any of its member countries.
The second problem concerns the involvement of China, which also took part in the war, did so not officially, but in the form of the Chinese People’s Volunteers. This has helped avoid further escalation of conflicts but is now causing problems. Including setting a precedent that such an option, originally sent for unofficial participation, is nevertheless equated with official participation.
Another problem is that South Korea did not sign the ceasefire agreement. It was then about Lee Seung-Man, but if one were to dig deeper, the declaration signed in multilateral format makes all participants equal parties and is an implicit recognition that there are two states on the Korean Peninsula after all, which is really unacceptable at least to the South, whose national security law interprets the North as an anti-state organization controlling part of the ROK territory.
The author would like to recall that when Lee Myung-bak thought of eliminating the Ministry of Unification and handing over the inter-Korean issue to the Foreign Ministry at the beginning of his administration, the project was canceled due to firm public condemnation, as such a move would recognize North Korea as an independent country rather than an illegally alienated part of the peninsula.
Again, what will be the format of the declaration? Unlike a peace treaty, which requires parliamentary approval, a declaration of cessation of war is a non-binding political statement and a more straightforward step for both Washington and Pyongyang. However, the question arises to what extent such a statement would be legally enforceable.
On the other hand, the war’s end will remove an essential status that justifies a lot. In war, many means unacceptable in peacetime are suitable, and wartime emergencies justify a lot in domestic politics.
North Korea has repeatedly put forward proposals to end the Korean War, but it seems to the author that the goal is not so much to end the conflict with the South as to end the war with America. This is why proposals to end the war were put forward by Pyongyang during the talks with the US, as a ceasefire agreement preserves the state of war, opposed to a final solution to the issue.
However, it is essential to Pyongyang that the signed document does not turn into a piece of paper with no relevance to the actual state of affairs. That’s why Kim Yo-jong’s response boiled down to the phrase, “we’ll come back to this issue when Seoul’s policy toward Pyongyang becomes less hostile and other than words you start to move towards it.” And the separation of words from deeds is an important matter because the author constantly draws attention to it: even though Moon can be taken as a supporter of dialogue according to the rhetoric, fundamental steps in this direction can be made only after the third strike of his fist on the table. But military spending and other preparations are growing in ways that conservatives have never dreamed of.
Then, even if all parties agree, it will take some time before Moon’s presidential term is up, and not every Democratic candidate will be as enthusiastic about the idea. As the most leftist, Lee Jae-myung is likely to do so, but he needs to live to see the election.
Therefore, this proposal was considered and not rejected as a matter of principle but postponed until better times. And when those times come, judging by Kim Jong-un’s sister’s speech, it’s up to Seoul to decide.
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Konstantin Asmolov, PhD in History, leading research fellow at the Center for Korean Studies of the Institute of the Far East at the Russian Academy of Sciences, exclusively for the online magazine “New Eastern Outlook”.
Featured image is from NEO
Related
17. Sue Mi Terry Appointed Director of the Hyundai Motor Korea Foundation Center
Congratulations to Dr. Sue Mi Terry.
Sue Mi Terry Appointed Director of the Hyundai Motor Korea Foundation Center
WASHINGTON–The Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars today announced the appointment of Dr. Sue Mi Terry as Director of the Center’s Hyundai Motor-Korea Foundation Center for Korean History and Public Policy.
“Dr. Terry is a recognized thought leader and analyst on matters involving the Korean Peninsula,” said Ambassador Mark Green, Wilson Center President and CEO. “I know she will take our sector-leading Korean work to new heights.”
Prior to joining the Wilson Center, Dr. Terry served in a range of important policy roles related to both Korea and its surrounding region. Formerly a Senior Fellow with the Korea Chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), she served as a Senior Analyst on Korean issues at the CIA (2001-08), Director for Korea, Japan, and Oceanic Affairs at the National Security Council (2008-09), and Deputy National Intelligence Officer for East Asia at the National Intelligence Council (2009-10). She holds a Ph.D. (2001) and an M.A. (1998) in international relations from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University and a B.A. in political science from New York University (1993).
“I’m delighted to be joining the all-star team at the Wilson Center,” Dr. Terry said. “The Wilson Center has a well-established reputation for in-depth, objective and nonpartisan analysis on some of the most pressing foreign policy issues facing American policy makers —especially when it comes to Asia. It’s a privilege to further their focus of the US-South Korea alliance, the challenges of North Korea, and related regional issues.”
Dr. Terry, who will also serve as Deputy Director of the Wilson Center’s Asia Program, is a regular guest on radio, podcasts, and television, including CNN, MSNBC, ABC, PBS, and NPR, and she has authored numerous publications in prominent publications including the New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times, and Chosun Ilbo. Her latest article is “North Korea’s Nuclear Family: How the Kims Got the Bomb and Why They Won't Give It Up” for the September/October 2021 edition of Foreign Affairs.
The Wilson Center also announced that previous Korea Center Director, Jean Lee, will continue to serve as a Senior Fellow while focusing on her role as co-host of the BBC World Service podcast on North Korea, "The Lazarus Heist."
“Jean has made tremendous contributions to the Wilson Center’s work on the Korean Peninsula, and put our Korea Center on the map. We are thrilled to welcome Sue to the Wilson Center, and excited that the Korea Center will now include the expertise and insights from both remarkable scholars,” said Abraham Denmark, Director of the Asia Program.
Notes to editors:
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The Wilson Center provides a strictly nonpartisan space for the worlds of policymaking and scholarship to interact. By conducting relevant and timely research and promoting dialogue from all perspectives, it works to address the critical current and emerging challenges confronting the United States and the world.
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The Asia Programprovides a forum in the nation's capital for enhancing deeper understanding of, and policy debate about, Asia. It seeks to furnish an intellectual link between the world of ideas and the world of policy on issues relating to Asia and U.S. interests in Asia. The Program organizes dozens of conferences and other meetings and produces several major publications every year, each featuring the work of Asia specialists ranging from distinguished scholars and prominent policymakers to journalists, entrepreneurs, and grassroots activists.
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The Hyundai Motor-Korea Foundation Center for Korean History and Public Policywas established in 2015 with the generous support of the Hyundai Motor Company and the Korea Foundation to provide a coherent, long-term platform for improving historical understanding of Korea and informing the public policy debate on the Korean peninsula in the United States and beyond.
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V/R
David Maxwell
Senior Fellow
Foundation for Defense of Democracies
Phone: 202-573-8647
Twitter: @davidmaxwell161
FDD is a Washington-based nonpartisan research institute focusing on national security and foreign policy.
