Quotes of the Day:
"The worst government is often the most moral. One composed of cynics is often very tolerant and humane. But when fanatics are on top there is no limit to oppression."
– H. L. Mencken
"I have learned over the years that when one's mind is made up, this diminishes fear; knowing what must be done does away with fear."
– Rosa Parks
"Learning is not attained by chance, it must be sought for with ardor and diligence."
– Abigail Adams
1. N.Korea 'Poised to Resume Nuke, ICBM Tests'
2. Intelligence chiefs gather in Seoul for trilateral meeting
3. Is discussion of end-of-war declaration gaining momentum?
4. Photo of Kim Jong Un and Pak Jong Chon ignites intense interest among N. Korea's elite
5. Unification Minister calls for talks to discuss the North’s ‘double standard’ accusation
6. North Korea's efforts to raise birth rate seem to be failing to address root causes
7. S. Korea to kick off large-scale defense exhibition
8. US general calls for strong space partnership with S. Korea
9. Seoul closely monitoring N. Korean leader's increased messages toward U.S.: ministry
10. North Korea Flexes Nuclear Muscles And Defies Western World – OpEd
11. TV Show : SEAL Team in north Korea
1. N.Korea 'Poised to Resume Nuke, ICBM Tests'
This is probably why the DIA report on north Korean Military Power was delayed for so long. I suspect that some in the bureaucracy may have felt that a realistic assessment of north Korean military power and regime intentions would upset diplomacy with both the South and the north.
I was asked by a Japanese journalist if this report was written to counter the Moon administration's push for an end of war declaration. As I have noted the report was a long time in development. My sense is the DIA analysts pushed for a realistic assessment that was not politicized. But interestingly it was released on a Friday afternoon. I do wonder about the timing.
But the bruised lede is here:
Seoul already gained permission from Washington to send humanitarian aid to the North several months ago. But Pyongyang rejected the overture. The impending announcement of "specific proposals" suggests that Pyongyang's attitude has softened recently.
The ROK does not need US permission to provide humanitarian assistance to the north. It is disappointing the press would perpetuate that myth but Kim Jong-un probably likes it as it is something that can help drive a wedge in the alliance.
This excerpt; however, is more accurate. The US is unlikely to lift sanctions. Now we just need to enforce them aggressively.
But Washington is firmly against easing sanctions, an issue Moon has been pushing in apparent hopes of increasing his own party's chances in next year's presidential election.
N.Korea 'Poised to Resume Nuke, ICBM Tests'
North Korea could be poised to resume tests of nuclear bombs and intercontinental ballistic missiles, a U.S. intelligence agency warns.
In a report released last week, the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency said, "Integrating a nuclear weapon with a ballistic missile and enabling that nuclear-armed missile to function reliably as a system is North Korea's ultimate operational goal. Further underground nuclear tests to validate weapon capabilities are possible if North Korea reconstitutes its nuclear test site or establishes a new one."
"North Korea also will work to improve its newer solid-propellant ballistic missiles -- solid fueled missiles can be made ready for launch more quickly than liquid fueled missiles," the report warns. "It is possible we could see a test of a long-range missile over the next year."
North Korea has conducted no nuclear tests since declaring a moratorium in 2017 and has "reversibly dismantled portions of its WMD infrastructure," it adds. "However, we continue to observe activity" at the Yongbyon nuclear facility and elsewhere that is "inconsistent with full denuclearization."
In an inter-Korean summit held on Sept. 19, 2018, the North promised to permanently dismantle the Yongbyon nuclear facility on condition of a reciprocal action from the U.S. But it restarted the facility in July this year. North Korea "is unlikely to give up all of its WMD stockpiles, delivery systems, and production capabilities," the report concludes.
South Korea's chief nuclear negotiator Noh Kyu-duk arrived in Washington a day after the DIA report was released for talks with his U.S. and Japanese counterparts.
State Department spokesman Ned Price told reporters last week, "We have made, in fact, specific proposals to [North Korea] and we will await a response." There is speculation that a humanitarian aid package including healthcare and medical assistance, will be announced soon.
Seoul already gained permission from Washington to send humanitarian aid to the North several months ago. But Pyongyang rejected the overture. The impending announcement of "specific proposals" suggests that Pyongyang's attitude has softened recently.
"We've detected signs of a change since last month, when the North hinted at restoring cross-border hotlines and welcomed President Moon Jae-in's proposal to declare a formal end to the Korean War," a government source here said.
But Washington is firmly against easing sanctions, an issue Moon has been pushing in apparent hopes of increasing his own party's chances in next year's presidential election.
2. Intelligence chiefs gather in Seoul for trilateral meeting
Trilateral engagement is important.
Monday
October 18, 2021
Intelligence chiefs gather in Seoul for trilateral meeting
Suh Hoon, national security advisor of Korea, left, and Avril Haines, the U.S. director of national intelligence, in separate photos taken at the Shilla Hotel in Seoul on Monday. Haines is visiting Korea this week to meet with Korea's and Japan's intelligence officials to discuss North Korea and other top agendas of trilateral concern. [YONHAP]
Heads of intelligence of Korea, Japan and the United States met in Seoul on Monday, just as their nuclear envoys gathered in Washington.
Gathered in Seoul on Monday were National Intelligence Service Director Park Jie-won, U.S. Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines and Japan’s Cabinet intelligence director Hiroaki Takizawa.
This is the first time in five months for the three to meet, after they last got together in Tokyo in May. The trilateral meeting was to be followed by another meeting between Park and Haines.
National Security Advisor Suh Hoon was also reported to have met with Haines on Monday.
“The gathering of the South Korean, U.S., and Japanese intelligence chiefs signals that there is an urgent agenda to discuss, and at this meeting, we plan to exchange a wide range of opinions on an approach to North Korea, including dialogue with North Korea, and on North Korea's nuclear program,” said an official of Korea’s Foreign Ministry on Monday. “We will also have time to listen to the opinions of the United States and Japan on the Korean government’s initiative to declare an end to the [1950-53 Korean] War.”
The armistice agreement signed by the U.S.-led UN Command, North Korea and China on July 27, 1953, brought a complete ceasefire to hostilities until a final peaceful settlement is achieved. Thus, the two Koreas remain in a technical state of war.
It’s been an agenda of the Moon Jae-in government to formally put an end to the war, an initiative the president repeated during his address to the United Nations General Assembly last month.
Noh Kyu-duk, South Korea’s top nuclear envoy, upon arrival in Washington on Saturday also declared ending the war as part of his delegation’s agenda. Noh was scheduled to meet with Sung Kim, U.S. nuclear envoy, on Monday, and with his Japanese counterpart Funakoshi Takehiro, director-general for Asian and Oceanian affairs of Japanese Foreign Ministry, on Tuesday.
“It is expected that there will be more full-fledged discussions at the working level on various measures, including the declaration of the war's end,” Noh told reporters at the Dulles airport on Saturday.
The issue was also brought up during the meeting between national security advisor Suh and his American counterpart Jake Sullivan in Washington last week.
Korea's nuclear envoy Noh Kyu-duk at the Dulles airport on Saturday. Noh is scheduled for talks with his counterparts Sung Kim, U.S. nuclear envoy, and Funakoshi Takehiro, director-general for Asian and Oceanian affairs of Japanese Foreign Ministry, this week. [YONHAP]
The U.S. government has not been vocal on whether it plans to support the Korean government’s initiative to declare the end of the war, other than a brief statement from John Kirby, the Pentagon spokesman, on Sept. 23, when he said the U.S. government is “open to discussing” the possibility of formally ending the Korean War.
The Joe Biden administration since its North Korea policy review in April has repeatedly communicated to Pyongyang that it is open for talks on a number of top agendas between the two, including complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, but has adhered to its principles of enforcing strict sanctions and not offering any incentives for the sole sake of talks with Pyongyang. The administration in June extended the sanctions on the regime, in place since 2008, for another year.
Japan’s new Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has also highlighted the importance of denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and the importance of full implementation of the UN Security Council resolutions and sanctions in his recent call with President Moon last Friday.
In the meeting between Noh and Kim in Washington on Monday, the two were expected to discuss possible humanitarian aid into North Korea, which includes aid in the fields of health care, Covid-19 prevention, drinking water and hygiene.
Seoul and Washington have repeatedly signaled their intention to provide humanitarian aid to Pyongyang, a call that it has not officially responded to.
BY JEONG JIN-WOO, ESTHER CHUNG [chung.juhee@joongang.co.kr]
3. Is discussion of end-of-war declaration gaining momentum?
Yes it is. I fully support peace on the Korean peninsula. But we must have a realistic understanding of the nature, objectives, and strategy of the Kim family regime.
Most importantly it is in the US interests to prevent war on the Korean peninsula. We need to ask how will an end of war declaration enhance the security of the ROK or at least not harm the security?
Hoa can we ensure the defense of the ROK if Kim jong-un exploits an end of war declaration to demand an end to the US hostile policy which Kim definesas as the ROK/US alliance the presence of US forces and extended deterrence and the nuclear umbrella over the ROK and Japan).
We must thoroughly examine this assumption and if it is found to be false how do we adjust our strategy? (I personally think it is an erroneous assumption - Kim may not agree to it at all unless he believes he can exploit it to drive an end to the US hostile policy).
"The declaration is meaningful as a gateway to talks for complete denuclearization and lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula."
Is discussion of end-of-war declaration gaining momentum?
Barricades are set up in front of Tongil Bridge in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, in this Sept. 24 photo. Yonhap
By Kang Seung-woo
A series of moves regarding North Korea are raising speculation that talks for a declaration to officially end the Korean War are gaining momentum.
According to sources, Park Jie-won, head of South Korea's National Intelligence Service (NIS), sat down for talks in Seoul, Monday, with Avril Haines, the U.S. director of national intelligence, and Hiroaki Takizawa, Japan's Cabinet intelligence director. The meeting follows a similar one in May.
Although details of their discussion were not made public, they were said to have talked about President Moon Jae-in's proposal for a declaration to formally end the war, and a subsequent push by Seoul and Washington to bring Pyongyang back to denuclearization talks.
The two Koreas are still technically at war, as the 1950-53 conflict ended with an armistice, not a peace treaty, and Moon suggested once again in his United Nations speech in September that the two Koreas and the United States, probably joined by China, declare a formal end to the war.
In addition, the chief nuclear negotiators of the three countries are set to hold a trilateral meeting in Washington, D.C., Tuesday (local time), further fueling conjecture that an "end-of-war" declaration may be high on the agenda.
"I expect more in-depth discussions on various issues at the working level, including the end-of-war declaration," Noh Kyu-duk, Seoul's top nuclear envoy, told reporters at Dulles International Airport, Saturday.
"The declaration is meaningful as a gateway to talks for complete denuclearization and lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula."
"I think that it is one of the issues under discussion among the parties involved in the North Korea issue. The Moon government is openly pressing for an end of war declaration, including the President himself and the ministers of foreign affairs and unification. And it would be an important political move if it happens," said Ramon Pacheco Pardo, a professor of international relations at King's College London.
Pacheco Pardo also said North Korea would be interested in the proposal.
"North Korea has realized that it has to address U.S.-North Korea and inter-Korean relations in parallel now that Biden is U.S. president," he said.
"It has also realized that it has to address political relations with the U.S., inter-Korean reconciliation, nuclear issues and possible economic assistance in parallel. This wasn't the case during the Trump years, but it is under Biden."
Park Won-gon, a professor of North Korean studies at Ewha Womans University, said a series of moves by the three countries were aimed at containing North Korea's military provocation rather than declaring an end to the Korean War.
"When it comes to ending the Korean War, the DNI need not come to Korea let alone the Central Intelligence Agency chief," Park said.
CIA Director William Burn also visited here last week to meet with President Moon.
Park said recent moves between the three countries may have to do with the Kim Jong-un regime's bellicosity that has ratcheted up tensions on the peninsula with its multiple missile tests.
According to a report by the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) under the U.S. Department of Defense, North Korea may resume underground nuclear tests if it does not agree to complete denuclearization. The country last conducted its sixth nuclear test in September 2017.
The repeated meetings of the nuclear envoys appears to be focused on keeping North Korea's provocative actions in check ahead of bringing the country back to negotiations.
4. Photo of Kim Jong Un and Pak Jong Chon ignites intense interest among N. Korea's elite
I will leave it to the experts on north Korean leadership to assess this. But it is some interesting speculation.
Excerpts:
The source said within the party and military, people are likening the relationship between Kim Jong Un and Park Jong Chon to that between Kim Il Sung and Kim Chaek and that between Kim Jong Il and O Jin U.
Pak got tongues wagging within the North Korean military once before following his being named chief of the General Staff in 2019 after commanding North Korea’s artillery units, breaking the long-established practice that the chief of the General Staff should first head the headquarters of the General Staff Department. At the time, people said the extraordinary appointment was due to Kim Jong Un’s particular affection for artillery — the North Korean leader majored in artillery at Kim Il Sung Military University.
Two years later, Pak was named a marshall — the highest rank within the North Korean military — for his skills as a commander in pushing Kim’s desire to organize, deploy and improve North Korea’s artillery arsenal.
At an enlarged politburo meeting in late June, Pak was reprimanded due to a “grave case” involving quarantine efforts and demoted a rank. About two months later, however, he was elected to the Presidium of the Politburo of the Central Committee and secretary of the Central Committee, key positions that greatly elevated his status.
Photo of Kim Jong Un and Pak Jong Chon ignites intense interest among N. Korea's elite - Daily NK
Within the party and military, people are likening the relationship between the two men to that between Kim Il Sung and Kim Chaek
Image: YouTube capture
A large photograph hung at the venue of the National Defense Exhibition “Self-Defense 2021” to mark Party Foundation Day (Oct. 10) has become a hot topic of discussion among party and military cadres.
The venue also had solo portraits of Kim as well as photos of Kim with military cadres. However, party and military cadres reportedly took a keen interest in a photo of Kim with Central Committee secretary Pak Jong Chon.
A Daily NK source in North Korea said Friday that party and military cadres who attended the defense expo were “wide-eyed” upon seeing the photo of Kim and Pak. “Because of this, rumors are circulating within the Central Committee and military of the things the Supreme Leader (Kim) has said about Comrade Pak Jong Chan.”
According to the source, officials from the party’s Military Industries Department; researchers, scientists and technical experts from the Academy of Defense Sciences and defense universities; cadres from the General Political Bureau, General Staff Department and Ministry of Defense; and army corps heads and commanders who attended the event were surprised at the large photo, saying it reminded them of old photos of Kim Il Sung with Kim Chaek.
The source said within the party and military, people are likening the relationship between Kim Jong Un and Park Jong Chon to that between Kim Il Sung and Kim Chaek and that between Kim Jong Il and O Jin U.
Pak got tongues wagging within the North Korean military once before following his being named chief of the General Staff in 2019 after commanding North Korea’s artillery units, breaking the long-established practice that the chief of the General Staff should first head the headquarters of the General Staff Department. At the time, people said the extraordinary appointment was due to Kim Jong Un’s particular affection for artillery — the North Korean leader majored in artillery at Kim Il Sung Military University.
Two years later, Pak was named a marshall — the highest rank within the North Korean military — for his skills as a commander in pushing Kim’s desire to organize, deploy and improve North Korea’s artillery arsenal.
At an enlarged politburo meeting in late June, Pak was reprimanded due to a “grave case” involving quarantine efforts and demoted a rank. About two months later, however, he was elected to the Presidium of the Politburo of the Central Committee and secretary of the Central Committee, key positions that greatly elevated his status.
With such a big photograph of Pak with Kim hanging at the expo venue, party and military cadres are reportedly showing intense interest, recalling Kim Il Sung’s relationship with Kim Chaek and Kim Jong Il’s relationship with O Jin U.
A statue of Kim Chaek / Image: Wikipedia
Kim Chaek led the strengthening of North Korea’s national defense during the days of Kim Il Sung by bolstering the defense industries. Kim reportedly showed great trust in him, calling him a singularly close comrade, a revolutionary fighter with whom he agreed, and a political ally who transcended family.
The source said when Kim Il Sung died, there was only one photograph in his personal safe: that of him with Kim Chaek. From this was born the song, “One Photograph.”
If Kim Il Sung had Kim Chaek, Kim Jong Il had O Jin U. O, who vouched for Kim when the latter entered the ruling party, mobilized former anti-Japanese partisans to back Kim during his succession period. Accordingly, North Koreans call him Kim’s “singular comrade” who played a leading role in passing down the accomplishments of the “Juche Revolution” to the next generation.
Pointing thusly to the close aides of Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il, Central Committee members and military cadres are reportedly saying several things about the relationship between the current North Korean leader and Pak Jong Chan.
The source said that during Kim’s on-the-spot guidance tours, the North Korean leader said Pak was to him “like Kim Il Sung’s comrade Kim Chaek.” He also said Kim called Pak “a commander who could lead from the front like Kim Chaek.”
The source said cadres say Kim considers Pak a “frank, unpretentious and loyal official.” They believe Pak to be a military official who has worked hard to bolster the nation’s artillery forces by accepting Kim’s belief that artillery is at the heart of “modern warfare.”
Please direct any comments or questions about this article to dailynkenglish@uni-media.net.
5. Unification Minister calls for talks to discuss the North’s ‘double standard’ accusation
It is not a double standard. north Korea's ballistic missile program has been sanctioned by the UN. The South has not. Why the difference? South Korea is a responsible member of the international community. The Kim family regime is not.
Unification Minister calls for talks to discuss the North’s ‘double standard’ accusation
Published : Oct 18, 2021 - 16:07 Updated : Oct 18, 2021 - 17:58
Unification Minister Lee In-young speaks during a parliamentary audit of the ministry at the National Assembly on Monday. (Yonhap)
Unification Minister Lee In-young on Monday stressed the need for talks with North Korea on the regime’s demand that the South drop its “double standards” as a condition of progress on inter-Korean relations.
During a parliamentary audit session, Lee responded to a question on whether Seoul could accept Pyongyang’s call for an end to what it called “double standards” -- meaning the way the South characterizes the firing of ballistic missiles by the North as “provocations,” while justifying its own arms buildup.
“The issues regarding to the ‘double standard’ are something that cannot be unilaterally imposed from one to another,” said Lee. “Because this issue is related to South Korea’s self-defense, I hope we can resolve this matter through military talks (between the two Koreas),” said Lee. “Through this process, there will be areas we can accept and where we can’t.”
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un last week accused South Korea of “hypocrisy” and “double standards,” repeating earlier accusations made by his powerful younger sister Kim Yo-jong, who took issue with the South condemning the North’s weapons development tests as “provocations” and “threats” while building up its own military capabilities and purchasing high-tech weaponry from the US.
The North has repeatedly said it is willing to resume inter-Korean talks, if the South ends “hostile policies” and “double standards.”
Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong was asked a similar question earlier this month: whether Seoul would agree to Pyongyang’s demand for an end to “double standards.”
Chung said the demand was Pyongyang’s unilateral claim, which was not desirable.
At the parliamentary session, Lee also said North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s public messages on the US had increased recently and had become more detailed. He said there was a need to watch closely for the North’s next move.
Lee urged an “active response” so that the situation could be managed through dialogue and engagement, not military tension.
Early this month, the inter-Korean hotlines were restored, about two months after Pyongyang unilaterally cut off contact in August, raising cautious hopes of an inter-Korean rapprochement.
“The two Koreas have many different stances, but as the hotlines are restored, we will work on establishing the (inter-Korean) videoconference system and resolve differences through dialogue,” he said.
Lee also talked about the prospect of providing COVID-19 vaccines to the North.
“The possibility of (provision) is growing as there is a certain social consensus among our citizens, and (Korea) is reaching a stage of securing enough (vaccines),” said the minister. “But on the other side, North Korea’s position on the receiving end is quite important as well.”
Lee added that South Korea and the US’ plans to provide humanitarian aid to the North, has made some quite specific progress.
6. North Korea's efforts to raise birth rate seem to be failing to address root causes
The selfless suffering of the Korean people living in the north. The subtitle says it all.
North Korea's efforts to raise birth rate seem to be failing to address root causes - Daily NK
“Many people think it would be better not to have children than to have children and make them suffer,” a source told Daily NK
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un called for new childcare policies in a recent policy speech before the Supreme People’s Assembly, but this has met with a chilly public response. In fact, a source says that more and more people are choosing not to marry.
In a telephone conversation with Daily NK on Thursday, the source, who is based in North Korea, said the country’s low birth rate has worsened since Kim took power. “People no longer even wish to have one child to raise really well,” he said. “Now they are choosing not to have any children at all.”
According to a report on the world population in 2021 published by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in April, the total fertility rate per woman in North Korea was 1.9, far below the global average of 2.4.
North Korean authorities, too, sense just how serious the low birth rate is and are working to create and implement childcare policies.
Speaking before the Fifth Meeting of the 14th Supreme People’s Assembly on Sept. 29, Kim called for prompt efforts to implement the party’s new childcare policies and the tripling of dairy production nationwide. In particular, he called for the development of dairy processing technology and “thorough guarantees for the quality of dairy products.”
With young married people avoiding pregnancy and childbirth due to burdens in the face of economic difficulties, the policy appears aimed at inducing couples to have children by ostensibly resolving the burdens of childcare.
In fact, North Korean authorities recently ordered government organizations and enterprises to provide dairy products and processed dairy products at state-set prices to children under the age of five once a week.
However, locals reportedly believe the party’s new childcare policies fail to address the root cause of the country’s low birth rate.
A doctor administers a vaccination to a child in North Korea. / Image: Yonhap News Agency
The source said North Korea’s low birth rate has “nothing to do with dairy products,” and that ordinary people “have no interest” in how much effort the government makes to distribute these products.
“Many people think it would be better not to have children than to have children and make them suffer,” he said. “The party isn’t getting a proper sense of why people aren’t having children.”
This means the low birth rate is less due to the cost of childcare and more due difficulties making ends meet amid economic insecurity.
Because of this, the source said the authorities’ inducements are having no impact on the birth rate.
Moreover, North Korea’s measures address only the cost of childcare. They reportedly provide insufficient support for pregnancy and childbirth.
The source said under Kim Il Sung, the government had policies that gave favorable treatment to new mothers. Those benefits disappeared, however, when the state healthcare system began failing under the “Arduous March” during the Kim Jong Il era.
“In some big city hospitals like Pyongyang Maternity Hospital, they provide you seaweed soup when you have a child,” he said. “Besides that, there are no other state benefits.
“To the contrary, you have to treat the medical staff when you give birth,” he added. “Some locals bribe the doctors with money to handle their childbirths well.”
In particular, a growing number of people are avoiding marriage altogether due to economic insecurity.
“There’s a popular expression that a woman begins a life of forced labor the moment she gets married,” said the source. “That’s how dim a view women take of marriage.
“They are avoiding marriage due to economic difficulties,” he continued, adding, “The childbirth and marriage problems have worsened due to COVID-19 pandemic.”
Meanwhile, North Korea is banning doctors from providing birth control or performing abortions to prevent the birthrate from falling. However, locals are still using birth control and getting abortions in secret.
“Most adult women use vaginal rings,” said the source, referring to the birth control device. “In particular, most parents make their daughters use them after they graduate from senior middle school [the equivalent of South Korean high school].
“Legally, abortions are banned, but most doctors secretly perform them for money,” he continued. “If prosecutors uncover an abortion during an investigation, [the doctor] gets punished with forced labor.
“Ob/gyn doctors make money secretly providing vaginal rings or performing abortions,” he further explained, adding, “And there is always at least some work for them to do.”
Please direct any comments or questions about this article to dailynkenglish@uni-media.net.
7. S. Korea to kick off large-scale defense exhibition
It will be interesting to compare this with north Korea/s exposition/convention last week. One difference will be that all of the South Korean equipment is real and not mock-ups.
S. Korea to kick off large-scale defense exhibition
Published : Oct 18, 2021 - 16:16 Updated : Oct 18, 2021 - 16:16
Black Eagles, South Korean Air Force's acrobatic flight team, performs an air show at Seoul Air Base, located just south of Seoul, on Monday, ahead of the official opening of the Seoul International Aerospace & Defense Exhibition (ADEX). (Yonhap)
SEONGNAM -- South Korea will kick off a biennial defense exhibition this week to showcase cutting-edge military hardware and technologies, including stealth fighters, hydrogen-fuel drones and laser weapons, organizers said Monday.
The Seoul International Aerospace & Defense Exhibition (ADEX) will begin its five-day run on Tuesday at Seoul Air Base in Seongnam, just south of Seoul, as the security landscape in Northeast Asia is fraught with uncertainties stemming from a muscle-flexing China and a nuclear-ambitious North Korea, to say nothing of an intensifying Sino-U.S. rivalry.
The exhibition follows Pyongyang's recent defense show presenting an intercontinental ballistic missile, a hypersonic missile and other weapons -- a stark reminder of the recalcitrant regime's evolving threats.
This year's edition involves 440 companies from 28 countries, including 171 from overseas, the organizers said. It marks the largest number of participating firms in the exhibition first launched in 1996.
Among the items on display will be large hydrogen-fuel drones, virtual reality-based training systems, laser weapons systems, multi-purpose unmanned vehicles, as well as dozens of military aircraft, such as FA-50 fighters and KT-1 basic trainer jets.
The ADEX will also feature ground-based arms as well, including the K-2 battle tanks and K-9 howitzer.
"This exhibition will serve as an opportunity for the Korean industry to take a leap forward in the global market. We are expecting greater exports in new line ups of products," said Lee Jong-ho, an organizer of the event.
Among the key participants is the U.S. defense firm, Lockheed Martin Corp., which will display the radar-evading F-22 and F-35 fighters. Boeing will also take part to showcase AH-64E Apache helicopters and the MV-22 vertical-takeoff-and-landing-capable transport aircraft.
Korea Aerospace Industries will display a life-size model of the country's first indigenous fighter jet, the KF-X, currently under development.
The exhibition will also unveil a set of military hardware running on green resources, such as the hydrogen-powered cargo drone cells, developed by LIG Nex1 Co.
Around 20 international symposiums and conferences will be held on the sidelines of the exhibition as well, organizers said.
During the preview event on Monday, a KC-330 military tanker transport aircraft, a RF-16 reconnaissance plane, along with F-15K and KF-16 jets carried out flyovers over the venue, along with the Air Force's acrobatic flight team, Black Eagles. (Yonhap)
The event comes around a week after North Korea hosted a defense development exhibition, dubbed "Self-Defence-2021," to mark the 76th founding anniversary of the ruling Workers' Party.
8. US general calls for strong space partnership with S. Korea
A global and intergalactic alliance. Or an alliance that is out of this world. (apologies for the attempt at humor).
US general calls for strong space partnership with S. Korea
Published : Oct 18, 2021 - 15:16 Updated : Oct 18, 2021 - 15:16
This image shows the official poster of the International Aerospace Symposium hosted by South Korea's Air Force.
A top US military official called Monday for strong space cooperation with South Korea, stressing credible deterrence in the "contested" security domain comes from a robust partnership based on "mutual trust and shared values."
Gen. Jay Raymond, the chief of Space Operations at the United Nations Space Force, made the call during a security forum in Seoul, as a Sino-US competition is intensifying with Beijing pushing to become a major space power.
"A key part of credible deterrence comes from strong international partnerships built on mutual trust and shared values.
The long-standing alliance between the US and the Republic of Korea is a great example of this strong partnership," he said in a keynote speech at the International Aerospace Symposium hosted by South Korea's Air Force.
"We look forward to continuing that national cooperation in this space domain," he added.
Stressing space is "critical to national security," the general said it has become a "contested domain," in apparent allusion to growing global competition among major powers to increase their presence or secure primacy in space.
Raymond also touched on an agreement he signed with South Korea's Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Park In-ho earlier this year to hold regular space engagement talks, which he said would allow the allies to build a deeper partnership.
"In fact, one of the Space Force's top priorities is building partnerships with nations around the globe, including the Republic of Korea. We are working with these nations to train together, to build new capabilities together and to operate together," he said.
"That is the deep level of cooperation required in the contested space domain today."
In his congratulatory speech, Seoul's Defense Minister Suh Wook reaffirmed South Korea's commitment to bolstering space security capabilities.
"Our military will continue to procure various space capabilities to proactively respond to future threats from space down the road," Suh said. "We will fulfill our role and responsibilities to ensure our Republic of Korea will lead a new era of space."
Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Park underscored that space has become a core domain for national security, and called for thorough preparations for future space operations. (Yonhap)
9. Seoul closely monitoring N. Korean leader's increased messages toward U.S.: ministry
Excerpts:
"North Korea's following moves on the U.S. require attention as leader Kim Jong-un's messages on the U.S. have recently increased as well as become more detailed," the ministry said in the report.
The assessment came a week after Kim said there are no grounds to believe why Washington is not hostile toward Pyongyang, though adding that neither South Korea nor the U.S. is its "arch-enemy."
The ministry report also came amid a series of diplomatic activities surrounding the Korean Peninsula with top nuclear envoys of South Korea, the U.S. and Japan set to meet in Washington this week.
In Seoul, the intelligence chiefs of the three countries were to gather for closed-door talks during which they are expected to discuss North Korea, among other issues.
(LEAD) Seoul closely monitoring N. Korean leader's increased messages toward U.S.: ministry | Yonhap News Agency
(ATTN: ADDS 2nd photo, unification minister's remarks in paras 11-13)
By Choi Soo-hyang and Chae Yun-hwan
SEOUL, Oct. 18 (Yonhap) -- North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has publicly mentioned the United States more often recently, drawing attention to Pyongyang's next move amid a prolonged deadlock in their nuclear talks, according to South Korea's unification ministry Monday.
The ministry made the assessment in a report to lawmakers for an annual parliamentary audit, calling for an "active response" to resume dialogue in the face of growing volatility in the region.
North Korea conducted four new missile tests in September alone, including what it called a "hypersonic" missile and a long-range cruise missile.
"North Korea's following moves on the U.S. require attention as leader Kim Jong-un's messages on the U.S. have recently increased as well as become more detailed," the ministry said in the report.
The assessment came a week after Kim said there are no grounds to believe why Washington is not hostile toward Pyongyang, though adding that neither South Korea nor the U.S. is its "arch-enemy."
The ministry report also came amid a series of diplomatic activities surrounding the Korean Peninsula with top nuclear envoys of South Korea, the U.S. and Japan set to meet in Washington this week.
In Seoul, the intelligence chiefs of the three countries were to gather for closed-door talks during which they are expected to discuss North Korea, among other issues.
Referring to the restoration of the inter-Korean liaison and military hotlines earlier this month, the ministry said the North appears to be seeking ways to resume external activities.
The denuclearization negotiations between the U.S. and North Korea have stalled since the collapse of the Hanoi summit between Kim and then U.S. President Donald Trump in February 2019.
The ministry said it will continue efforts to find opportunities, such as the upcoming Beijing Winter Olympics, to restart the inter-Korean and U.S.-North Korea talks.
Unification Minister Lee In-young said South Korea could also consider providing coronavirus vaccines to North Korea.
"The possibility is growing as we have a certain social consensus and are reaching a stage of securing enough (vaccines)," the minister said during the audit session at the National Assembly, adding that the North's willingness to accept the support is also important.
On the North's protest against South Korea's combined exercise with the U.S. and introduction of new weapons, Lee said such issues will have to be discussed in detail through inter-Korean defense dialogue.
When the talks resume, Seoul will also push to discuss the North's blowing up of an inter-Korean liaison office in its border city of Kaesong and the killing of a South Korean fisheries official who went adrift in waters north of the inter-Korean border, the ministry said.
Regarding North Korea's long-enforced tight border controls due to the pandemic, the ministry said the North is preparing to reopen its train routes with China.
Earlier this month, the World Health Organization (WHO) said that it has begun the shipment of COVID-19 medical supplies to North Korea through the Chinese port of Dalian.
"(North Korea) needs cooperation with the international community to fight COVID-19 and stabilize its people's living conditions, though its food situation is expected to be better than last year considering this year's improved weather," the ministry said.
scaaet@yna.co.kr
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10. North Korea Flexes Nuclear Muscles And Defies Western World – OpEd
If we give up sanctions we will Kim double down on his political warfare strategy and blackmail diplomacy;
Excerpts:
“The exhibition was one of the biggest displays of weaponry North Korea has staged in recent years,” said the Times.
“We are a nuclear power with self-reliance,” one of the huge banners proclaimed, with a sense of nationalistic pride. “We are a great missile power,” read another banner.
Matt Korda, Associate Researcher with the Nuclear Disarmament, Arms Control and Non-proliferation Program at the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), told IDN despite some apparent attempts to meet with DPRK negotiators, the administration of US President Joe Biden, has had little success in convincing North Korean leader Kim Jong-un that its approach to the Korean Peninsula will be meaningfully different than that of his predecessor.
This is a serious problem, he said, because Kim has been quite clear that he isn’t going to come back to the negotiating table until the United States unilaterally changes its approach.
“And if the Biden administration declines to do so, we’re probably going to see quite a lot of new DPRK weaponry over the coming years”, said Korda, who is also Senior Research Associate and Project Manager with the Nuclear Information Project at the Federation of American Scientists (FAS).
North Korea Flexes Nuclear Muscles And Defies Western World – OpEd
By Thalif Deen
North Korea, long dubbed as a “hermit kingdom” has continued to remain cut off from the rest of the world—politically, economically and geographically.
But neither rigid sanctions, nor international isolation and growing food insecurities, have prevented the country—officially known as the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK)—from making significant advances as the world’s ninth nuclear power, along with the US, Britain, France, Russia, China, India, Pakistan and Israel.
In a news story originating in the South Korean capital of Seoul, the New York Times reported that North Korea on October 11 displayed its growing military arsenal, including an array of ballistic missiles.
“The exhibition was one of the biggest displays of weaponry North Korea has staged in recent years,” said the Times.
“We are a nuclear power with self-reliance,” one of the huge banners proclaimed, with a sense of nationalistic pride. “We are a great missile power,” read another banner.
Matt Korda, Associate Researcher with the Nuclear Disarmament, Arms Control and Non-proliferation Program at the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), told IDN despite some apparent attempts to meet with DPRK negotiators, the administration of US President Joe Biden, has had little success in convincing North Korean leader Kim Jong-un that its approach to the Korean Peninsula will be meaningfully different than that of his predecessor.
This is a serious problem, he said, because Kim has been quite clear that he isn’t going to come back to the negotiating table until the United States unilaterally changes its approach.
“And if the Biden administration declines to do so, we’re probably going to see quite a lot of new DPRK weaponry over the coming years”, said Korda, who is also Senior Research Associate and Project Manager with the Nuclear Information Project at the Federation of American Scientists (FAS).
He also pointed out that nuclear-armed ballistic missiles are a 1950s-era technology, and the concepts themselves aren’t necessarily prohibitive—especially if you have help from other countries, as the DPRK did at the beginning of its nuclear program.
“At this point, North Korean scientists and engineers have become quite adept at developing indigenously-designed systems, and unless the security drivers of the DPRK’s nuclear program are addressed very soon, I fully believe that it will be only a matter of time before we see Pyongyang roll out some dramatic new capabilities, including road-mobile solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missiles,” declared Korda.
Joseph Gerson, President of the Campaign for Peace, Disarmament and Common Security, told IDN North Korean development of its nuclear weapons and its increasingly advanced and dangerous delivery systems are the logical/illogical response to historical and current perceived threats of attack.
“Pyongyang’s nuclear weapons program is the logical, response to the repeated nuclear threats made by the United States and the military threats posed by the U.S.-Japanese-South Korean alliance system. You point your gun at me, I point mine back at you. You develop missile defenses that may be able to disarm our nuclear forces, we will build nuclear weapons that can circumvent your systems,” he said.
It is a classical spiraling nuclear arms race and is not entirely different from China’s development of its “minimum deterrent” nuclear arsenal, which appears to be on the very of being increased and upgraded to become a “medium deterrent” arsenal, said Gerson, who is Co-Founder of the Committee for a Sane U.S.-China Policy, and author of “Empire and the Bomb: How the U.S. Uses Nuclear Weapons to Dominate the World.”
Like the United States and other nuclear powers’ preparations for nuclear war, North Korea is practicing what C. Wright Mills termed “crackpot realism”. Were their nuclear weapons to be launched (their display is already a “use”), at a minimum, they would result in the genocidal murder of tens of millions of innocent people.
“Worse, their use could ignite omnicidal nuclear exchanges, bringing on nuclear winter and ending civilization and nearly all life as we know it,” Gerson warned.
Cable News Network (CNN) reported October 13 that the North Korean leader, standing against a backdrop of missiles, said weapons are needed to defend the country against a “hostile” United States.
“The US has been frequently sending signals that they are not hostile towards our country, but there is no single evidence that they are not hostile,” Kim was quoted as saying.
Kim described the missiles as “our precious (weapons)” and said every country should maintain strong military power, even in peaceful times, according to CNN.
In a statement released August 30, the Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said it is “deeply troubled” by indications that the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea appears to have restarted its Yongbyon nuclear reactor.
The 5-megawatt reactor is widely believed to have produced plutonium for nuclear weapons and is at the heart of North Korea’s nuclear program, the agency said.
At a news briefing, UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric, said Secretary-General António Guterres was aware of the reports “and concerned by the latest developments”.
“He calls for the DPRK to refrain from any nuclear weapon-related activities and to resume talks with the other parties concerned.
“Diplomatic engagement remains the only pathway to sustainable peace and complete and verifiable denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula,” he added.
Asked about the status of its relationship with DPRK, Ned Price, Spokesperson for the US State Department, told reporters October 15: “As you know, part of our strategy when it comes to the DPRK is to work closely with our allies and partners, to work in lockstep with our allies and partners towards our ultimate objective—and that is the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. That is why we have put such a premium on our coordination, on our consultation with our Japanese allies, with our allies from the Republic of Korea”.
He pointed out that the first physical trip the US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken undertook, upon his confirmation in the job, was to Japan and the Republic of Korea. He was accompanied by the Secretary of Defense, where he met jointly with foreign minister counterparts and the minister of defense counterparts as well in a 2+2 format with—in Japan and South Korea.
“But we’re also committed to the trilateral relationship, knowing just how important it is. And we’ve had any number of opportunities to meet with our Republic of Korea and Japanese counterparts in a trilateral format,” he said.
In fact, Price said, the Secretary did that just the other week on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York (late September). He has done that on other travels as well. Special Representative Sung Kim has done the same with his Japanese and South Korean counterparts.
“I don’t have any meetings to announce at this time but suffice to say that we are—we continue to work closely on a bilateral basis as well as on a trilateral basis with our Japanese and South Korean counterparts to advance that ultimate policy objective,” Price declared.
Asked about specific proposals, he said the US remains prepared to meet with the DPRK without preconditions to try to advance that overarching policy goal.
“We have conveyed messages and we have made specific proposals for discussion with the DPRK.”
“Those aren’t specific messages or proposals that we are in a position to detail, but our—the message we have been quite clear about is that we are ready and willing to engage in constructive diplomacy even as we continue to engage, as I said before, with our allies and partners around the world, including our allies in the Indo-Pacific, Japan, and the Republic of Korea,” Price added.
11. TV Show : SEAL Team in north Korea
SEAL Team is not a show I normally watch. BUt two episodes take place in north Korea so I guess now I will have to check them out on demand.
Quite story here:
First, a quick recap of the mission: With smuggler Kwan captured, it looks like Bravo has to cut their losses and leave without Jin, the godfather of the North Korean weapons program who wants to defect, in order to safely make it out of the country. But once it becomes clear that the North Koreans only knew about Kwan’s involvement, they push forward, coming up with a new (risky) plan and eventually racing the clock to make it to the sub (with Jin!) before the Americans have to worry about a possible World War III..
'SEAL Team' Has Us Very Worried About Jason (RECAP)
[Warning: The below contains MAJOR spoilers for SEAL Team Season 5 Episode 2 “Trust, But Verify: Part 2.”]
The second episode of SEAL Team Season 5 picks up right where the premiere left off, with most of Bravo hiding from North Korean guards in a substation and their op turned sideways, but we know how that’s going to end. What we don’t know is what’s next for Bravo 1 himself, Jason Hayes (David Boreanaz), suffering from a TBI (traumatic brain injury), the effects of which are felt mid-op and could have disastrous consequences.
First, a quick recap of the mission: With smuggler Kwan captured, it looks like Bravo has to cut their losses and leave without Jin, the godfather of the North Korean weapons program who wants to defect, in order to safely make it out of the country. But once it becomes clear that the North Koreans only knew about Kwan’s involvement, they push forward, coming up with a new (risky) plan and eventually racing the clock to make it to the sub (with Jin!) before the Americans have to worry about a possible World War III.
And now, let’s check in with the team. First, the (very) happy news: Stella’s (Alona Tal) pregnant! She and Clay (Max Thieriot) — who is happy after he gets over the shock — are going to have to once again rethink their honeymoon plans.
Meanwhile, while on the mission, Sonny (AJ Buckley) continues to worry openly about Ray (Neil Brown Jr.) operating. “You never know when somebody’s going to break under pressure,” he says when Ray is willing to put his trust in Kwan not giving them up. “We’re rolling with a guy we can’t trust” and he’s squared away “until he isn’t,” Sonny comments to Clay later. “There’s too much at stake here for me to put Ray’s feelings in front of what’s best for Bravo. I’m not sure where Jason’s head is on this.”
After their mission is a success and they’re on their way home, Ray checks in with Jason since, in his mind, his assignment suggested the team leader doesn’t trust him. He’s good, Jason says. But while Ray seems to be on board with continuing to keep his PTS secret — if the wrong person tells command, it wouldn’t be good for his career — he opens up to the team once they’re home.
Ron Jaffe/CBS
The last deployment left him with questions, he tells them. “One answer I found is I have PTS. The trauma I went through when I was held captive, it had its hooks in me harder than I wanted to admit. That’s what made me freeze up in Nigeria. Thank god Sonny was there to take the shot when I couldn’t, just like every one of you has saved me at some point, which is why I owe you the truth,” he explains. “Whatever consequences it might bring. I’m doing the work to make sure I’m solid, but here’s what I need from you: you have any doubts about me, my fitness to operate, you speak up, here or to command. I’d rather you wound my pride, my paygrade than have you think I’m putting anyone at risk out there.” His brothers, of course, have his back.
Ray’s not the only one greatly affected by their ops. Jason’s memory problems are getting worse, and this time, it almost costs them everything. He leaves a probe he used to safely cross a minefield behind, and if the North Koreans find it, they’ll know Bravo was there — exactly what they can’t have happen. He retrieves it just in time. “Figures, Jason Hayes has the slightest mental glitch and nearly causes Armageddon. Man does nothing halfway,” Clay remarks on the flight home. Jason blames it on all the moving pieces of the op, but as Clay points out, that’s nothing new.
The mission for the new season? Leave ’em wanting more so fans follow when the drama exits CBS.
The only way to describe the scene that ends the episode is heartbreaking. Once home, Jason looks in his fridge, then tries to write down everything that was inside. But each time, he can’t get past beer, milk, mustard, and mayo (leaving off OJ, eggs, and carrots).
SEAL Team has never shied away from tackling the effects of combat on soldiers, and once again, just with these last three episodes (going back to the Season 4 finale), it’s doing so with care with Jason and Ray’s arcs.
SEAL Team, Sundays, 10/9c, CBS
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.
