Quotes of the Day:
"To improve is to change, so to be perfect is to have changed often."
- Winston Churchill
"The unconscious, not quite articulate, belief of most Occidentals is that there is one map which adequately represents reality. By sheer good luck, every Occidental thinks he or she has the map that fits. Guerrilla ontology, to me, involves shaking up that certainty."
- Robert Anton Wilson
"Ontology is the study of being; the guerrilla approach is to so mix the elements of each book that the reader must decide on each page 'How much of this is real and how much is a put-on?"
- Robert Anton Wilson
1. South Korea official signals leaflet balloons might again float over the North
2. U.S. Raps S.Korean Gov't for Press Intimidation
3. Yoon picks last 2 Cabinet nominees
4. N. Korea marks late founder's birth anniv. with completion of riverside apartments
5. No progress in denuclearization, no normalization in inter-Korean ties: minister nominee
6. U.N. OKs sanctions waiver for S. Korean NGO to send coal briquette machines to N. Korea
7.N. Korea promotes six commanding officers to 'general' for late founder's birth anniversary
8. Inter-Korean relations cannot be normalized without denuclearization efforts: nominee
9. Time to Shelve Denuclearization and Negotiate a Halt to North Korea’s ICBM Program
10. S. Korea to send non-lethal military supplies to Ukraine
11. Top S. Korean, U.S. military officers board U.S. aircraft carrier in East Sea
12. Set up a top-notch overseas spy agency
13. South Korea: [Friends for decades] Israeli ambassador says it's time the two countries get married
14. N. Korea mobilizes students in Pyongyang to prepare for Apr. 15 events
1. South Korea official signals leaflet balloons might again float over the North
Good news here. But it is not just about balloon launches, it is about all forms of information and information dissemination capabilities. However, South Korea will have to abolish the law and I think the General Assembly has to do that.
But we have an opportunity with the incoming Yoon administration to finally harness, organize, synchronize, and orchestrate all the information capabilities of the ROK, US and international community to conduct strategic influence through information advantage. It is the one area that we have never fully embraced and implemented that can both exert real internal pressure on the regime and bring change in north Korea.
I hope our PSYOP professionals are dusting off their area studies and target audience analyses for north Korea. (for the three main target audiences, the elite, the 2d tier leadership, and the population).
We should also watch for Kim Yo-jong's harsh response to this. That will confirm that Kim Jong-un is more fearful of the Korean people living in the north than he is of the US - especially when the people are armed with information.
South Korea official signals leaflet balloons might again float over the North
SEOUL, April 14 (Reuters) - A South Korean official likely to oversee North Korean ties said on Thursday he opposed a ban on sending propaganda into North Korea, signalling the possible return to the skies of leaflet-laden balloons that infuriate North Korea.
Kwon Young-se, nominated for the post of unification minister in a new conservative government, said he believed a ban on people sending propaganda, introduced by the outgoing liberal government as it tried to improve ties with the North, was a violation of the right to free speech.
"I thought legally regulating such activities was constitutionally problematic," Kwon told reporters.
North Korean defectors and activists in South Korea had for decades sent balloons carrying leaflets floating across the tightly guarded border between the two Koreas. read more
They also sent food, medicine, money, mini radios and USB sticks loaded with South Korean news and dramas via balloons and plastic bottles on border waterways.
North Korea, which is still technically at war with the South after their 1950-53 conflict ended in a truce, has in the past threatened to attack South Korea over the balloons.
The outgoing government banned the propaganda efforts in 2020 saying they jeopardised the safety of residents on the border.
Defectors and activists denounced the ban as part of efforts to white-wash the North and silence critics as the government tried to improve ties.
President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol, set to take office on May 10, nominated Kwon on Wednesday for the job of handling North Korea policy at the Unification Ministry as a new government takes shape that is expected to take a harder line with the North. read more
Kwon said he maintained a position set out in a 2021 commentary in which he called for abolishing the ban and accused the then administration of neglecting ordinary North Koreans.
"The current government appeared to be only keen to improve relations with the North's leadership, and not interested in changing North Korean society," he wrote at that time.
Kwon, who will face a parliamentary confirmation hearing, said it would be "difficult to normalise" inter-Korean ties at a time when Pyongyang continues to develop its nuclear programme.
A Yoon administration might look "hardline" and "hawkish" as it sought to build up its military capability to better deter North Korean threats but he would work to create momentum for dialogue to defuse tension, Kwon said.
Reporting by Hyonhee Shin; Editing by Robert Birsel
2. U.S. Raps S.Korean Gov't for Press Intimidation
Strong allies can be frank with one another.
U.S. Raps S.Korean Gov't for Press Intimidation
April 14, 2022 13:25
The U.S. State Department's latest human rights report raps the South Korean government for intimidation of the press and corruption but gives it a comparatively fairly clean bill of health on a global scale.
The Country Reports on Human Rights Practices published Tuesday warned a planned defamation law ostensibly intended to combat "fake news" "may limit the expression of ideas."
The State Department publishes the reports every year on 198 countries.
Limitations on freedom of expression are South Korea's main problem apart from endemic corruption, according to the report. "The government and public figures used libel and slander laws, which broadly define and criminalize defamation, to restrict public discussion and harass, intimidate, or censor private and media expression," it said.
It cites the indictment of a man in his 30s on charges of contempt for distributing flyers criticizing President Moon Jae-in, and former Seoul mayor Park Won-soon's family suing citizens for defamation after they posted comments on the Internet criticizing him for sexually harassing a staffer, a scandal that led to his suicide.
But the most egregious example is the planned press law "that would allow victims of reporting found to be false or fabricated to seek punitive damages from media organizations and online intermediaries."
Next was the government's ban on activists sending leaflets across the border into North Korea. "In 2020 the Ministry of Unification revoked the permits of two defector-led... NGOs that send leaflets across the border... citing national security concerns and several other grounds. Critics continued to view the revised law and related investigations as suppressing activists' and defectors' freedom of expression."
The report also highlights unresolved cases of corruption among figures close to the government such as the 2015 development scandal in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province that came back to haunt ruling-party presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung, and the recent conviction of fly-by-night ex-Justice Minister Cho Kuk's wife Chung Kyung-sim for doctoring their daughter's resume for university admission.
Others include land speculation by officials of the state-run Land and Housing Corporation.
The entry on North Korea, meanwhile, as usual focuses on arbitrary killings, disappearance, torture, and other cruel treatment or punishment, arbitrary arrest or detention, and denial of fair public trial.
- Copyright © Chosunilbo & Chosun.com
3. Yoon picks last 2 Cabinet nominees
Now we just need to know who will be the Director of the National Intelligence Service and the National Security Advisor.
(LEAD) Yoon picks last 2 Cabinet nominees | Yonhap News Agency
(ATTN: UPDATES with announcement of nomination in paras 1-7; CHANGES headline, photo)
By Lee Haye-ah
SEOUL, April 14 (Yonhap) -- President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol announced his nominees for agriculture and labor ministers Thursday to complete his first Cabinet lineup.
Chung Hwang-keun, former head of the Rural Development Administration and a former presidential secretary for agriculture, was named agriculture minister, while Lee Jung-sik, former secretary general of the Korea Labor and Employment Service, was tapped for labor minister.
Chung is the "right person to not only resolve issues facing rural communities but also boost the competitiveness of the agriculture, forestry and livestock industries and develop them into future growth industries," Yoon said at a press conference.
Lee was chosen for his expertise on labor-management relations, Yoon said.
"He is the right person to draw a blueprint for the establishment of rational labor-management relations where the value of labor is properly respected," he said.
With Thursday's announcement, Yoon filled all 18 Cabinet positions ahead of the launch of his administration on May 10.
All 18 people, plus the prime minister nominee, will be subject to a parliamentary confirmation process, but only the prime minister nominee will require parliament's approval.
Subsequently, Yoon is expected to announce the first members of his presidential office, including his national security adviser and senior secretaries for political and economic affairs.
Kim Sung-han, Yoon's childhood friend and foreign policy mentor, is widely mentioned as his first national security adviser, while former Rep. Lee Jin-bok and Kim So-young, an economics professor at Seoul National University, are considered likely to be named senior secretaries for political affairs and economic affairs, respectively.
On Wednesday, Yoon tapped Kim Dae-ki, an economic technocrat, for his first chief of staff.
He also nominated Rep. Park Jin, a politician well versed in relations with the United States, as foreign minister, and Han Dong-hoon, his closest prosecutor colleague, as justice minister.
hague@yna.co.kr
(END)
4. N. Korea marks late founder's birth anniv. with completion of riverside apartments
Kim shows his concern for the people, but just some people. The photos do appear to show Kim returning to his normal fighting weight.
(2nd LD) N. Korea marks late founder's birth anniv. with completion of riverside apartments | Yonhap News Agency
(ATTN: UPDATES with comments from ministry official in last 3 paras)
By Yi Wonju
SEOUL, April 14 (Yonhap) -- North Korean leader Kim Jong-un attended a ceremony to celebrate the completion of a construction project of riverside apartments in Pyongyang ahead of its late founder's birth anniversary, state media said Thursday.
During the ceremony held the previous day, Kim said that he misses his late grandfather Kim Il-sung "more than ever" as the luxurious residential district has been built at a site related to him on the occasion of his birth anniversary, according to the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
The terraced apartments along the Pothong River running through Pyongyang is where a special residence for Kim Il-sung was located until the 1970s. The site is considered to be situated in one the best locations in Pyongyang.
"The Pothong Riverside Terraced Residential District, a new scenery of Pyongyang symbolizing the great era of Kim Jong-un, will shine as an edifice representing Korean-style civilization, demonstrating the people-first idea of the Party believing in the people as in Heaven and the indomitable spirit of socialist Korea which is making leaping progress on the great strength of self-reliance," the KCNA said.
Kim added that his grandfather would have been "satisfied to see the cozy dwellings built for the patriots and persons of merit."
At the ceremony, Kim also gifted a riverside flat to Ri Chun-hee, North Korea's most famous anchor, known for her dramatic and effusive reporting style, at the state-run Korean Central Television.
Ri, who has received great acclaim from the past, was given a "marvelous dwelling house" in Block No. 7 of the Kyongrudong residential district.
"Hearing her words in joy, the General Secretary said it is the sincerity of the Party that there is nothing to spare for the treasures of the country like her who has worked as a revolutionary announcer for the Party for more than 50 years since her girlhood," the KCNA said.
Earlier this week, Kim attended a ceremony marking the completion of 10,000 apartments in the Songsin and Songhwa areas of Pyongyang as part of his five-year project to build 50,000 apartments in the capital to resolve housing problems.
The North's latest move comes in an apparent effort to drum up public support ahead of the 110th birthday of the late Kim Il-sung on Friday. The North usually commemorates every fifth and 10th anniversary of such major events with mass rallies or military parades.
Kim has carried out seven known rounds of field inspection in the economic sector this year, all of which were related to construction, an official at Seoul's unification ministry handling inter-Korean affairs told reporters.
Kim appears to be underlining the country's economic achievements through the major housing projects and using the celebrations as opportunities to work up a festive mood ahead of his grandfather's birth anniversary, the official said.
During the party congress in January last year, Kim admitted to the failure of his five-year economic plan and unveiled a new development scheme amid crippling sanctions, including the construction of new houses in Pyongyang.
julesyi@yna.co.kr
(END)
5. No progress in denuclearization, no normalization in inter-Korean ties: minister nominee
A frank admission from Minister-designate Kwon.
Excerpts:
The nominee made clear that the South can't incessantly dangle "carrots" for the North while it refuses dialogue. He added the incoming government will explore how to create momentum for dialogue although that is not an easy task under the current circumstances.
"For sure, (we) will make a request for dialogue," he said in response to a question about whether the Yoon Suk-yeol administration to be launched in May has an intention of proposing talks with the North.
(LEAD) No progress in denuclearization, no normalization in inter-Korean ties: minister nominee | Yonhap News Agency
(ATTN: UPDATES with additional remarks in paras 5-8)
By Chae Yun-hwan
SEOUL, April 14 (Yonhap) -- Unification Minister-designate Kwon Young-se said Thursday it would be "difficult" to normalize inter-Korean ties as long as the nuclear-armed North Korea continues to advance its nuclear development.
Kwon, a four-term People Power Party lawmaker, made the remarks as he appeared at his office for the first time in central Seoul after being nominated to lead the ministry handling Seoul-Pyongyang affairs.
"Amid a situation that North Korea has nuclear weapons and is continuing to make advancements in its nuclear development, I think the normalization of inter-Korean relations is difficult," he told reporters.
"One of the big obstacles (to inter-Korean relations) is the nuclear issue," he said.
Kwon took issue with the latest statement by Kim Yo-jong, the sister of the North's leader, which carried a thinly-veiled threat to mobilize its "nuclear combat force" against the South. She was angrily responding to South Korean Defense Minister Suh Wook's remarks that the South's military has "preemptive strike" capabilities that can be used if needed to destroy the origin of an imminent North Korean missile attack.
The nominee made clear that the South can't incessantly dangle "carrots" for the North while it refuses dialogue. He added the incoming government will explore how to create momentum for dialogue although that is not an easy task under the current circumstances.
"For sure, (we) will make a request for dialogue," he said in response to a question about whether the Yoon Suk-yeol administration to be launched in May has an intention of proposing talks with the North.
The North has recently ratcheted up tensions in the region, resuming the test-firing of an intercontinental ballistic missile last month that ended its yearslong moratorium on such tests.
yunhwanchae@yna.co.kr
(END)
6. U.N. OKs sanctions waiver for S. Korean NGO to send coal briquette machines to N. Korea
U.N. OKs sanctions waiver for S. Korean NGO to send coal briquette machines to N. Korea | Yonhap News Agency
SEOUL, April 14 (Yonhap) -- A U.N. Security Council committee has granted a sanctions waiver for a South Korean civic group to send coal briquette machines to North Korea to help prevent waterborne and other infections, a U.N. website showed Thursday.
Coal Briquettes for Neighbors in Korea (CBNK) has received the waiver for the shipment of 173 items, including conveyor frames, in an apparent effort to help North Koreans in the eastern border county of Kosong boil water and heat food to ward off infections.
A total of 14,000 households in the North's eastern villages, including Onjong-ri and Samilpo, will benefit from the project, according to the website.
The sanctions waiver is to remain valid for a year until April 5, 2023.
Humanitarian activities in North Korea are not banned under international sanctions, but the shipment of materials requires a sanctions waiver from the U.N.
julesyi@yna.co.kr
(END)
7. N. Korea promotes six commanding officers to 'general' for late founder's birth anniversary
There is slime upward mobility in the north Korean People's Army. But promotions as a birthday gift? We should also keep in mind these generals have no combat experience (fortunately), But they sure do have a lot of medals.
N. Korea promotes six commanding officers to 'general' for late founder's birth anniversary | Yonhap News Agency
By Yi Won-ju
SEOUL, April 14 (Yonhap) -- Six North Korean military officials have been promoted to the rank of four-star general at the order of leader Kim Jong-un on the occasion of the 110th birth anniversary of late national founder Kim Il-sung, state media reported Thursday.
The announcement came on the eve of the anniversary, one of the country's biggest celebrations, apparently aimed at rallying unity within the military amid heightened regional tensions.
Kim has conferred the title of general to former Defense Minister Kim Jong-gwan, who was demoted to a three-star colonel general from vice marshal in a military reshuffle last year, according to the state-run Korean Central Broadcasting Station.
Other military officials promoted to general are Kim Myong-sik, Kim Kwang-hyok, Jong Kyong-thaek, O Il-jong and Kang Sun-nam.
Kim expressed "firm belief that all the commanding officers, the hard core of the armed forces of the DPRK, would fully discharge their duties in the honorable struggle to turn the revolutionary armed forces into the elite ones under the leadership of the Party Central Committee, remaining boundlessly loyal to the Party and the revolution," the broadcaster reported.
Currently, Kim holds the second-highest position in the North's military of "marshal." Only his late grandfather and late father Kim Jong-il are titled "grand marshal," the highest rank.
julesyi@yna.co.kr
(END)
8. Inter-Korean relations cannot be normalized without denuclearization efforts: nominee
I hope Minister Kwon will also focus on the ministry's role in planning and preparing for unification. He needs to lead substantive planning efforts for unification.
Some interesting statements here:
The unification minister nominee also said the Yoon government will be selective with adopting the Moon Jae-in government’s peace initiative.
“It is inappropriate for us to entirely reject the previous government’s North Korea policy or accept it as a whole,” he said.
But Kwon said he opposes the law banning the spreading of anti-North Korean leaflets along the inter-Korean border, which took effect in March 2021.
“At that time, I voiced opposition as my opinion is that regulating the matter by law is problematic from a constitutional perspective,” he said when asked why he openly and repeatedly voiced opposition to the enactment.
“We should view the issue of sending leaflets to North Korea from a liberal perspective.”
Inter-Korean relations cannot be normalized without denuclearization efforts: nominee
Nominee says new government will seek substantial ways to bring N. Korea back to dialogue table
Published : Apr 14, 2022 - 15:14 Updated : Apr 14, 2022 - 17:44
Rep. Kwon Young-se, nominated by President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol as unification minister, speaks to reporters as he arrives at the Office of Inter-Korean Dialogue in Seoul on Thursday to prepare for his parliamentary confirmation hearing. (Yonhap)
The unification minister nominee said Thursday that progress toward denuclearization was essential to normalizing inter-Korean relations, but he would strive to create new momentum for dialogue to that end.
Rep. Kwon Young-se, the four-term lawmaker of the People Power Party, said the denuclearization process by itself is the “same path to normalize inter-Korean relations,” reiterating that the steps should be taken simultaneously and in parallel.
The unification minister nominee elucidated the meaning of the “normalization of inter-Korean relations,” which President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol has proposed as the major goal of the North Korea policy, during a first standalone conference held one day after his nomination.
Kwon pointed to the infeasibility of normalizing the South-North relationship as long as North Korea “possesses and continues to advance nuclear weapons.”
The nominee also referred to the press statement issued by Kim Yo-jong, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s powerful sister, this month. North Korea warned that it will inevitably use nuclear weapons against South Korean conventional forces if South Korea chooses a military confrontation.
“Inter-Korean relations cannot be solely normalized without making progress toward denuclearization under such circumstances,” Kwon told reporters at the Unification Ministry’s Inter-Korean Dialogue office in central Seoul.
“One of the biggest obstacles to inter-Korean relations is the nuclear issue. Therefore, (the path to) normalization of the South-North relationship can be said to be progress toward eliminating the nuclear threat.”
Momentum for inter-Korean dialogue
Kwon, at the same time, reiterated the significance of jump-starting dialogue as the initial step to “set the direction to improve” the South-North relationship and resolve pending issues.
During the conference, the nominee repeatedly underscored his resolve to provide new impetus to restart inter-Korean talks despite challenges, in an attempt to alleviate public concern that the Yoon government will take a hard-line stance on North Korea.
“I am taking great pains to come up with ways to create a momentum for inter-Korean talks in the situation where the talks between the two Koreas have been completely cut off and North Korea has continued to make provocations by launching ballistic missiles,” Kwon said.
The unification minister nominee also notably suggested that the Yoon government will likely take a carrot-and-stick and two-pronged approach to North Korea.
Kwon emphasized Seoul cannot always “throw a carrot away” and adhere to an appeasement policy to persuade Pyongyang to return to the dialogue table.
Unification Ministry’s unique, different role
But Kwon clarified that South Korea’s Unification Ministry will put more “effort for dialogue” and diplomatic solutions while coordinating with the defense and foreign ministries.
The nominee pointed out that the Unification Ministry has a different and unique role in handling inter-Korean relations and the North Korean nuclear issue compared to the two ministries which focus on sanctions and military options against North Korea.
“The Unification Ministry should play an important role in building relations between the two Koreas and establishing peace while pursuing unification,” he said.
“I accepted the nomination with the determination to at least lay the foundations for making meaningful advances in inter-Korean relations or groundbreaking advances, which I hope for.”
Kwon pledged that he “will, for sure, offer to talk” to North Korea as a unification minister, reiterating that Seoul does not necessarily take a “pessimistic view” of the potential inter-Korean dialogue.
“It is a matter of course,” the nominee said, adding that he has openly called for the Kim Jong-un regime to “stop provocations and engage in dialogue.”
The nominee underlined that the incoming South Korean government should come up with substantial ways to break a yearslong deadlock and elicit a response from North Korea.
“It is not crucial to just leave behind a record that we offer dialogue, but it is rather crucial to make our counterpart engage in dialogue.”
The unification minister nominee also said the Yoon government will be selective with adopting the Moon Jae-in government’s peace initiative.
“It is inappropriate for us to entirely reject the previous government’s North Korea policy or accept it as a whole,” he said.
But Kwon said he opposes the law banning the spreading of anti-North Korean leaflets along the inter-Korean border, which took effect in March 2021.
“At that time, I voiced opposition as my opinion is that regulating the matter by law is problematic from a constitutional perspective,” he said when asked why he openly and repeatedly voiced opposition to the enactment.
“We should view the issue of sending leaflets to North Korea from a liberal perspective.”
(dagyumji@heraldcorp.com)
9. Time to Shelve Denuclearization and Negotiate a Halt to North Korea’s ICBM Program
north Korea is not India or Pakistan (though it absolutely would like to be treated that way in terms of its nuclear weapons). This gives Kim Jong-un exactly what he wants. He will assess his strategy as a success andd; therefore, continue to execute it. And this will not lead to the desired outcome any more than the focus on denuclearization will and this will likely make north Korea stronger.
Conclusion:
In the early 2000s, President George W. Bush made strategic decisions to accommodate nuclear-armed India and Pakistan in the international community when America needed their help in combating larger security threats from al-Qaeda and then from China. In the face of Beijing’s relentless challenges to U.S. interests today, why does America put off negotiations with the North all together, while letting the North’s missile program grow in the meantime to such an extent that it would distract the United States and its allies from confronting the larger Chinese threat?
Time to Shelve Denuclearization and Negotiate a Halt to North Korea’s ICBM Program - War on the Rocks
With the entire world’s attention riveted on Ukraine, Kim Jong-Un is doubling down on his nuclear and missile programs and has recently tested what he claims to be a new intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM). According to early estimates the Hwasong-17 (a.k.a. KN-27) missile could have reached the U.S. East Coast if launched on a normal trajectory. Despite South Korean doubts over the claim, the test results clearly suggest the North’s steady technological progress. Pyongyang is expected to carry out more provocations in the coming months, especially on April 15th on the occasion of the 110th anniversary of its founder Kim Il-Sung’s birth. To reassure U.S. allies in the region, some U.S. analysts advocate a high-profile announcement of new deterrence initiatives with allies such as joint exercises, and South Korean President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol seems to agree and seek more frequent drills. Talks to reiterate U.S. alliance commitments are certainly important, but such showy military exercises — which Kim typically views as a major aggression toward the North — would be a primrose path. They would only partially meet allied demands for stronger security assurances in the near term while driving Kim to further his ICBM technologies, which already “present a real danger to the U.S. homeland,” as Gen. Mark Milley said, and thus undermine the credibility of U.S. nuclear umbrellas in the region. One should not miss the forest for the trees. North Korean issues are a distraction from a more serious issue in East Asia: the strategic competition with China. To repair the umbrellas over the allies that Washington needs on its side, it is time to negotiate with Kim to limit his ICBMs before he perfects them, to officially end the Korean War, and to wean him off Beijing’s economic assistance and political influence.
After Ukraine, North Korea Isn’t Giving Up Its Nuclear Weapons
The United States needs to set a more realistic policy rather than insisting on North Korea’s complete, verifiable, and irreversible denuclearization, which virtually every expert thinks is an unattainable goal. To many observers, the war in Ukraine and the West’s responses so far have weakened the international nuclear nonproliferation regime. This war has unfortunately raised the perceived deterrent value of nuclear weapons. Were it not for Russian nuclear forces, the arguments go, U.S. and NATO forces would likely already be in Ukraine to defeat Russia. As North Koreans also see their nuclear weapons as a defensive means to deter U.S. military attacks, one should expect that this war — as well as the advocated joint deterrence exercises — will give Pyongyang a stronger reason to hold on to its nuclear forces at all costs. Meanwhile, the war has also shaken allied confidence in U.S. extended deterrence, and revived the nuclear question both in Seoul and Tokyo. Whereas the war may have helped unite NATO allies under U.S. leadership to some extent, a parallel unity should not be expected in Asia. Japan and South Korea, two of the world’s most technologically advanced states, have delicate relations with each other, and both possess latent nuclear capabilities, with which they could threaten nuclear breakout to resist U.S. pressures. Moreover, while there are many good reasons why states want to stay non-nuclear, powerful popular sentiments may very well drive state decisions in a different direction: a recent survey conducted in December 2021 shows that 71 percent of South Koreans are in favor of their country developing its own nuclear weapons.
The Longer We Wait, the Stronger Kim’s Position
Pyongyang’s latest ICBM test, the first since 2017, rubbed salt in the allied wounds of the concerns over extended deterrence caused by measured U.S. responses to Ukraine’s requests for help. Yet the United States and its allies’ responses to North Korea’s missile test hardly go beyond familiar diplomatic condemnation. Their calls for more biting sanctions quickly fizzle out because they know China and Russia would veto such attempts anyway. The Biden administration says it is open to talks without preconditions but shows little interest in actively enticing North Korea into negotiations and refuses to ease sanctions unless the North takes concrete steps toward its denuclearization. This approach is failing, because it is premised on the unrealistic assumption that Kim Jong-Un will one day desperately come to a negotiating table to beg for economic assistance at the expense of his nuclear weapons. Every time Korea experts predict Pyongyang’s economic collapse, they are later proven wrong. Despite reports of food shortages last year, the North Korean military remains unscathed and has been steadfastly augmenting its nuclear arsenal, testing a submarine-launched ballistic missile, and even resuming operations at the Yongbyon Nuclear Science and Weapons Research Center. The more time that elapses, the more sophisticated Pyongyang will be in evading the effects of economic sanctions and the stronger its negotiating position will be as its nuclear arsenal grows. On the other hand, launching a preventive strike on North Korea, as Donald Trump was reportedly considering in 2017, is a terrible idea, as it would be not only very unlikely to destroy all the nuclear facilities but would be almost certain to trigger a Korean War 2.0 — potentially a nuclear one. Kim Yo Jong, the powerful sister of Kim Jong-Un, recently threatened to use nuclear weapons if attacked.
Time to Negotiate with a Focus on ICBMs and Neutrality Vis-à-Vis China
Thus, anyone claiming to be seriously working on the North’s denuclearization looks like an emperor with no clothes. It is time to tell North Korea that the United States is willing to ease economic sanctions and provide food assistance before the North denuclearizes, if Kim meets certain conditions including halting his long-range missile activities and remaining neutral in East Asian contingencies involving China, in particular. He may well be interested in accepting limits on ICBM activities. Analysts agree that his missile tests so far have yet to demonstrate mastery of ICBM reentry vehicle technologies to protect a warhead. And yet, he declared in 2017 that he now possessed “complete” nuclear forces, and added in 2018 that he needed no further testing on his nuclear or long-range missiles programs. While technological limitations may shape his incentive to negotiate on ICBMs, Kim could still save face with the argument that no more tests are needed since his past successful tests brought the world’s most powerful nation to heel, forcing it to abandon its hostile policy toward his country. Moreover, his nuclear weapons delivered by shorter-range missiles are already more than enough to deter U.S. attempts to invade his country.
A deepening rift in Chinese-North Korean ties worries Pyongyang as it grows more dependent on Beijing’s assistance. A pandemic lockdown in North Korea resulted in a substantial fall in its imports of food, fertilizer and other agricultural items and caused malnutrition in more than forty percent of its population – situation so dire that China sneaked food aid into North Korea through their officially “closed” border. Pyongyang’s desire to reduce its reliance on Chinese food stamps presents a great opportunity for the Biden administration to negotiate neutrality in case of contingencies involving China. For example, if North Korea, upon U.S. requests, cancels a Chinese lease of North Korean ports such as Rajin (Rason), this may help reduce operational uncertainties. It is certainly unlikely that China would enjoy full military support from North Korea anyway, but the North’s neutrality pledge in exchange for economic benefits would lower the likelihood of North Korean provocations that could distract the U.S. military from fighting the Chinese.
The Biden administration should initiate negotiations immediately to add to its (now limited) diplomatic achievements before the mid-term elections in November. North Koreans are also eager to claim a high-profile diplomatic success this year, which is of particular importance to their regime as a few anniversaries converge: the 110th anniversary of Kim Il-Sung’s birth, the 80th anniversary of Kim Jong-Il’s birth, and the 10th year of Kim Jong-Un’s tenure.
A predictable counter-argument would be that the tacit U.S. acknowledgement of a nuclear-armed North Korea would prompt Seoul to seek its own nuclear arsenal. However, let’s not forget that Seoul will still be protected by U.S. forces in Korea and in Japan. In addition, continued U.S. engagement with the two Koreas going forward would allow an opportunity to nudge them toward denuclearization in the event of unification.
Reaching a deal successfully may require a few rounds of tit-for-tat negotiations — a method more suitable than a Trump-style grand bargain when mutual trust is lacking — and simultaneous close consultations with Tokyo and Seoul throughout the process. First, Washington could promise a partial relief of unilateral economic sanctions conditional on a halt of all North Korean ICBM activities such as development, testing, manufacturing, and deployment for a certain period — say 12 months. Second, the United States could promise an official end to the Korean War to normalize diplomatic relations, if North Korea continues to halt ICBM activities and refrains from testing shorter-range missiles without prior notice for, say, another 12 months. In the third stage, the United States and its allies could offer a removal of all remaining sanctions with a “snapback” mechanism, if Pyongyang meets all of the conditions above, engages in a regular high-level dialogue with South Korea, and keeps its neutrality vis-à-vis China.
In the early 2000s, President George W. Bush made strategic decisions to accommodate nuclear-armed India and Pakistan in the international community when America needed their help in combating larger security threats from al-Qaeda and then from China. In the face of Beijing’s relentless challenges to U.S. interests today, why does America put off negotiations with the North all together, while letting the North’s missile program grow in the meantime to such an extent that it would distract the United States and its allies from confronting the larger Chinese threat?
Dr. Mayumi Fukushima is currently a postdoctoral research fellow with the International Security Program and the Project on Managing the Atom at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs of the Harvard Kennedy School. She formerly served as a senior career diplomat at the Japanese foreign ministry and more recently as a visiting scholar with the Japanese navy (Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force)’s Command and Staff College. She has extensive experiences working with senior U.S. officials and Japanese policymakers on various security issues including the North Korean and Iranian nuclear weapons programs.
10. S. Korea to send non-lethal military supplies to Ukraine
Very disappointing. South Korea has tremendous military capabilities that would be very useful in Ukraine. The Ukraine military could benefit from SouthM Korean artillery and tanks, I hope this decision is changed in a few weeks when the new administration assumes office.
S. Korea to send non-lethal military supplies to Ukraine
Posted April. 14, 2022 08:05,
Updated April. 14, 2022 08:05
S. Korea to send non-lethal military supplies to Ukraine. April. 14, 2022 08:05. by Sang-Ho Yun ysh1005@donga.com.
South Korean President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol drew a line to providing Ukraine with combat supplies after he takes office. The military announced that it would send non-lethal military aids worth 2 billion won to Ukraine.
“As far as I know, the incumbent Moon administration denied providing weapons to Ukraine,” the president-elect’s spokeswoman Bae Hyun-jin said when asked about Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky’s request for military weapons support at the virtual speech on Wednesday. The response is that the new administration will not provide military weapons to Ukraine. Bae said the new administration will consider whether to expand humanitarian relief toward Ukraine.
From as early as next week, the military plans to send 2 billion won worth non-lethal military supplies to Ukraine by the end of April through air cargo heading Europe. An official from the military authority said that the Korean military will provide Ukraine with bulletproof vests and helmets, combat rations, and medical supplies, and it is currently preparing for transportation for the cargo.
The non-lethal military supplies that the military will provide additionally are twice as much as the materials it has already supplied (1 billion won). The Ukraine government asked for the provision of items it urgently requires, and it is reported that the Korean military is having talks with the Ukraine government. Yet the military stated that there is no change in the government’s stance that it cannot provide lethal weapons.
Ukrainian President Zelensky gave a virtual speech on Monday before the members of the Korean National Assembly. He publicly requested weapons assistance, saying, “South Korea has various military equipment that can stop Russian military’s vessels and missiles.” Earlier on April 8, Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov asked his South Korean counterpart, Seo-wook, for military assistance, including mobile anti-tanks and air guided weapons.
11. Top S. Korean, U.S. military officers board U.S. aircraft carrier in East Sea
Good.
Top S. Korean, U.S. military officers board U.S. aircraft carrier in East Sea | Yonhap News Agency
SEOUL, April 14 (Yonhap) -- Top South Korean and U.S. military officers on Thursday boarded a U.S. nuclear-powered aircraft carrier sailing in the East Sea, sources said, in a rare move to highlight the allies' unity amid concerns about possible North Korean provocations.
Seoul's Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Won In-choul and Gen. Paul LaCamera, the head of the South Korea-U.S. Combined Forces Command, met aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier that arrived in the waters earlier this week in a show of America's military might.
Their symbolic meeting came amid speculation that the North could engage in provocative acts, like another intercontinental ballistic missile launch or a nuclear test, in time for its key political events, including the 110th birthday of its late national founder Kim Il-sung on Friday.
On Wednesday, the U.S. 7th Fleet showed photos depicting the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier, F-35Cs, an F/A-18E Super Hornet and E-2D Hawk Eye early warning aircraft engaging in the drills with Japan's Maritime Self-Defense Force.
It marks the first such carrier maneuvers of the U.S. Navy in the East Sea since late 2017, when tensions soared due to a string of Pyongyang's major provocations, including its sixth nuclear experiment.
In November 2017, the U.S. sent three flattops -- USS Ronald Reagan, USS Nimitz and USS Theodore Roosevelt -- to the East Sea operational area, called the Korea Theater of Operations (KTO), in an unprecedented display of force against North Korea.
sshluck@yna.co.kr
(END)
12. Set up a top-notch overseas spy agency
Excerpts:
The time has come for Korea to establish a spy agency devoted to overseas intelligence to fit its elevated international stature, not to mention its proud history of establishing democracy. Korea also needs to foster regional experts and reinforce intelligence networks overseas. If the government chooses to ignore the importance of international intelligence, it cannot plan for the future.
Our lawmakers’ shameful reaction to the Ukrainian president’s speech to the National Assembly shows Korea has a long way to go. To prevent such pitiful scenes in the future, we must set up an independent overseas intelligence institution.
Wednesday
April 13, 2022
Set up a top-notch overseas spy agency
Chae In-taek
The author is a senior writer on international affairs at the JoongAng Ilbo.
A big reason for the stalemate in the invasion of Ukraine is Russia’s underestimation of its neighbor. Based on its comparative strength as a military and economic power, Russia thought it could topple the Ukrainian government and establish a puppet regime in a few days. But the Ukrainians stood up against the invaders just like South Koreans did during the Korean War seven decades ago. In a remote speech on Monday to the National Assembly, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky urged South Korea to supply defensive weapons such as the Cheongung-II surface-to-air missiles the South Korean government proudly sold to the UAE for 4-trillion-won ($3.3-billion).
Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoygu’s alleged request for missile supplies from China and North Korea also shows the predicament Moscow faces in its war with Ukraine despite a massive mobilization of tanks, missile attacks and soldiers. The request by Russia, if true, could mean an attempt to secure weapons parts to evade international sanctions on Russia for strategic materials, including semiconductors.
Despite uncertainties over the progress of the war, poor decisions can be attributed to the Kremlin’s failure to get correct intelligence. The U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan last year following the Soviets’ pullout in 1989 reaffirmed that a victory in war is not guaranteed by military hardware or economic power. Putin almost certainly went to war based on poor intelligence.
Collecting and analyzing pieces of information and judging a situation is a unique skill. Political disruptions and hubris lead to misjudgments. On January 31, 1968, at the peak of the Vietnam War, the U.S. forces and South Vietnamese forces were caught off guard when the North Vietnamese and communist Viet Cong forces staged the Tet Offensive. A critical lack of intelligence brought about a crisis. During the Fourth Arab-Israeli War, also called the Yom Kippur War, in October 1973, Israel lost nearly all of its fighter jets and tanks when Egyptian forces armed with Soviet-made ground-to-air and anti-tank missiles launched a surprise attack. Israel could stand on its feet after Uncle Sam came to its rescue. Signs of an imminent attack were detected but ignored. Misjudgments about the enemy after the elation over victory in the Six-Day War in 1967 played a big part in Israel’s defeat.
Misjudging international situations has a lasting impact. The United States did not anticipate the Islamic Revolution in Iran in January 1979. Just five months earlier, the CIA issued a report flatly denying the possibility of a revolution. America is still paying the price for not detecting signs of revolution in the Middle East.
The U.S. intelligence community’s inability to foresee the breakup of the Soviet Union is still being criticized for helping trigger extreme chaos in the transitional period. That experience may have set the foundation for Russia’s offensive foreign policy today.
The 9/11 terror attack is one of the biggest failures of intelligence. U.S. intelligence agencies had the threads of the terror attack, but could not pull them together. Based on that shameful experience, Congress passed the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 followed by the establishment in 2005 of the Director of National Intelligence (DNI), which oversees 16 other intelligence organizations, including the CIA and FBI.
It should be noted that the DNI is an independent body beyond the jurisdiction of the president — a fundamental mechanism to ensure its head only serves the people and nation based on expertise without any political pressure. Since the start of Joe Biden’s administration in January last year, the DNI has attended Cabinet meetings and maintains close networks with the White House and other departments. In the U.S., intelligence reform means an integration of related agencies to elevate their stature.
The same applies to Israel’s Mossad. That national intelligence agency only reports to the prime minister. The average term of its head is five years and six months. Changes in administrations usually does not affect their term in office.
The time has come for Korea to establish a spy agency devoted to overseas intelligence to fit its elevated international stature, not to mention its proud history of establishing democracy. Korea also needs to foster regional experts and reinforce intelligence networks overseas. If the government chooses to ignore the importance of international intelligence, it cannot plan for the future.
Our lawmakers’ shameful reaction to the Ukrainian president’s speech to the National Assembly shows Korea has a long way to go. To prevent such pitiful scenes in the future, we must set up an independent overseas intelligence institution.
13. South Korea: [Friends for decades] Israeli ambassador says it's time the two countries get married
A very interesting perspective.
Thursday
April 14, 2022
[Friends for decades] Israeli ambassador says it's time the two countries get married
Akiva Tor, ambassador of Israel to Korea, speaks with the Korea JoongAng Daily on March 14 at the diplomatic residence in Seoul. [PARK SANG-MOON]
There’s no mistaking where you’re standing when you enter the Israeli residence in Seoul.
Like windows looking in, landscape paintings of Mounts Tabor and Hermon, the Golan Heights and Tiberias decorate the walls on one side, while the other end is decorated with more modern expressions of the story of Absalom from the Bible and the ports of Haifa and Jaffa.
The creators behind the works speak for the past and present of Israel, for they include Leo Ray, the artist who made Aliyah from Lithuania, landscape artist Ludwig Blum who fared from the Czech Republic, American-born Israeli artist Ivan Schwebel and sculptor and painter Menashe Kadishman known for his sheep motifs.
“When Israel was established, Jews came from all over the world — they came from Arab countries, they came from Eastern Europe, they came from Latin America, they came from North Africa,” said Akiva Tor, ambassador of Israel to Korea, speaking at the residence on March 14 on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of Israel-Korea relations.
"All of the widespread Jewish communities have always been in correspondence and in contact with each other throughout history.”
Such was evident in the house — a menorah stood on the fireplace, a plate of hamantaschen cookies for Purim, a Jewish holiday that was to begin later that week, was ready on the table, and a full set of the Babylonian Talmud and books on the history of Zionism and modern Israeli literature filled the bookshelves in the house.
But placed in between were also objects clearly not Israeli in its nature, like a gilt depiction of the Grand Mosque of Abu Dhabi, placed next to the menorah.
“That was a gift from the U.A.E. ambassador,” said Tor, recalling the time he hosted an iftar meal for the ambassadors of Muslim countries at peace with Israel.
The U.A.E. became the third Arab country to normalize ties with Israel when it did so in 2020, following Egypt in 1979 and Jordan in 1994. Leaders of Israel, Egypt and the U.A.E. hosted their first trilateral summit in March.
It’s something the top Israeli envoy in Seoul envisions for Israel-Korea relations as well.
“We should be moving forward a triangle of economic cooperation — Israel, Korea, U.A.E. — where each part of the triangle brings something,” he said. “Israel brings innovation, Korea brings high-tech manufacturing, U.A.E. brings finance and a unique green sensibility focused on water conservation and clean energy. All of the elements are in place for us to be working together.”
The celebration of the 60th anniversary comes with a number of milestones to count, including the successful vaccine swap last year, which was the world’s first ever, and the signing of the bilateral free trade agreement last May, Korea’s first with a Middle Eastern nation and Israel’s first with an Asian country.
Asked to sum up where the two countries could be headed for the next 60 years, Tor put the relations into rather relatable terms.
“I would say that we’ve been dating, Korea and Israel,” he said after giving the question a thought. “It’s time to get married.”
The following are edited excerpts of the interview.
On top of a fireplace at the Israeli diplomatic residence in Seoul is a menorah and a gift from the U.A.E. embassy depicting the Grand Mosque of Abu Dhabi. [ESTHER CHUNG]
질의 :
Israel and Korea established ties officially in 1962, but countries oftentimes have significant exchanges before tying the knot. What were some for Korea and Israel?
응답 :
The Korean conflict looms very large in Israel’s national self-identification. Both countries were declared formally in 1948. Israel finished its war of independence in 1949, and shortly afterwards the [1950-53] Korean War broke out. So when the Israeli government had to decide where it stood on the Korean conflict, it really brought about a process of sharpening Israel’s international orientation into unambiguously pro-West. David Ben-Gurion wanted to send soldiers to the Korean conflict, [but] in the end, Israel sent medical supplies of about $100,000 at the time.
질의 :
Sixty years from then, Korea and Israel have signed their FTA, conducted a successful vaccine swap and both gained global attention for their Covid-19 policies. But how did it go from 1962 to today?
응답 :
We had some good parts, and we had some less good parts.
Israel opened an embassy [in Seoul] in 1964, but Korea did not open an embassy in Israel. Our Foreign Minister Moshe Dayan made an awful diplomatic decision. He closed the Israeli Embassy in 1978 in Seoul for what was called budgetary reasons. It turned out to be a big mistake for us, because when Korea’s economic potential became very evident already during the '80s, we had a hard time convincing the Korean government to reopen the embassy. They were concerned about how Arab states would react. And in fact we weren’t able to open the embassy again until 1992.
The good parts are that our relations are 60 years old and that the countries see each other, in each other. In other words, both are ancient and new nation states. Korea is even more ancient than the Jewish people. Israel lost its independence in 70 A.D., Korea in the 19th century. But we regained sovereignty in modern political form in the same year. I think that both countries see themselves as countries who overcame incredible adversity. Israel, the deep tragedy of the Jewish people in World War II, destruction of European Jewry in the Holocaust. Korea, the horror of the Korean War and the huge loss of life here. Both were young states that went through great economic hardship in their first decades, and without natural resources, they basically built the countries with their 10 fingers. I think both countries see each other as nations of destiny.
Yoo Myung-hee, drector general for FTA negotiation at Korea's Trade Ministry, right, and Amir Peretz, Israel's minister of economy, left, sign the Korea-Israel free trade agreement at Lotte Hotel Seoul on May 12, 2021. [NEWS]
질의 :
The Israel-Korea FTA is ready to be ratified by both legislatures. Do you think the agreement reflects well where the two countries are headed on the trade and investment front?
응답 :
The Israeli and Korean economies are both extremely dynamic, but they don’t compete [with each other]. Korea does amazing technological manufacturing, whereas Israel is an innovation powerhouse. Israel is No. 3 in the world after the United States and China in terms of the number on Nasdaq listings. The potentiality for what we can do for each other is so clear. [For instance,] Israel makes the disruptive code that is required for autonomous vehicles, for which Korea makes the high-tech hardware including the chips. But the trade statistics are not what they should be today, and there is great potentiality for us to do more together.
질의 :
President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol has called for a need to strengthen the nation’s pre-emptive strike capacity. Israel’s defense system is often cited by experts worldwide when it comes to pre-emptive strike capacity. How did you see Yoon’s security policies, and where is the bilateral cooperation on defense today?
응답 :
The security dynamics of Israel and Korea are not the same. Nevertheless, we are probably the only two democracies facing a very significant missile threat with a nuclear dimension. In the case of Korea, it’s North Korean missiles and nuclear weapons. In the case of Israel we’re looking at Iran, which does not have nuclear capabilities, but it wants to, and is able to launch satellites and has very strong missile capacity. I think it means that Korea and Israel need to look to each other to create together the missile defense systems that we need in order to defend ourselves.
질의 :
Can you give more specifics on what kinds of defense systems the two countries are working on together?
응답 :
Both Korea and Israel are looking at an ICBM [intercontinental ballistic missile] threat, an intermediate missile threat and short-range threat on cities. Honestly I can’t think of any other country looking at it from the same level. Israel has a very significant missile shield, which is multi-phase, and Korea also has developed and is developing these capacities. It would only be natural for us to be working together on these kinds of things.
The Israeli Iron Dome missile defence system, left, intercepts rockets, right, fired by the Hamas movement towards southern Israel from Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip as seen in the sky above the Gaza Strip overnight on May 14, 2021. [AFP/YONHAP]
질의 :
The chair of the National Assembly’s foreign affairs committee is visiting Israel with the CEO of Birthright Israel Foundation as we speak. Do you think the birthright trips are something that Korea could benchmark for its overseas diaspora like Koryoin?
응답 :
One of the meetings Rep. Lee Kwang-jae held in Israel was with the CEO of Birthright, which is a groundbreaking program to offer every young Jewish person between 18 and 26 a free 10-day visit to the State of Israel as a gift of the Jewish people. It’s an action of reaching out to our diaspora and saying to them, you are part of us. It costs [the foundation] about $3,000 per participant. If you want young Koreans and Jews around the world to maintain their identity and a sense of feeling towards their home country, then you ought to do something like this.
질의 :
There has yet to be a visit from a Korean president to Israel. Any updates on this?
응답 :
Several Israeli presidents and prime ministers of Israel have visited Korea. I very much hope that we’ll see a visit of a Korean president, a Korean foreign minister or defense minister to Israel soon, because at some level, high-level political visits are very important for maintaining close relations between two countries. I really feel that for Korea, deepening of the relationship with Israel is net gain. There’s no political cost to be paid — the Arab boycott is over, it doesn’t in any way get into the America and China competition — it’s only good.
People sit at cafe terraces in Jerusalem on March 9, 2021, after Israeli authorities reopened restaurants, bars and cafes to vaccinated ″green pass″ holders. The pass pollicy was dropped in February this year as Israel saw continued decline in daily cases of infections. [AFP/YONHAP]
질의 :
Both Israeli and Korean policies on Covid-19 were highlighted several times since the onset of the pandemic, for different reasons. How do you compare the two?
응답 :
The Israeli approach and Korean approach were both successful but opposite. The Israeli approach from the start was that we achieve a high vaccination rate as quickly as possible. So there was a willingness to sign multiple contracts with companies even though they didn’t have tested vaccines yet. Our approach was: Better that we waste money on vaccines than having to close down the economy. As a result we were able to begin a very strong vaccination campaign early on.
Korea, on the other hand, carried out a rigorous, and, in my mind, successful, social distancing program which meant you never had to close down the economy.
Israel and Korea were also the only ones to successfully carry out a vaccine swap. Here I saw where the two countries are very similar. When it was necessary to do this, the Health Ministry on both sides were willing to work around the clock, through the weekend, to make it happen; we were able to break through legal problems and move through everything quickly. Here I saw that we are both very hardworking countries, quite patriotic and really wanting to do the right thing for our people.
Timeline of Israel-Korea ties
1950 Israel sends medical supplies
When the 1950-53 Korean War broke out, Cabinet of Israel instructed the Ministry of Health to immediately assemble medical supplies produced in Israel. Throughout the war, Israel sent some $100,000 worth of medical supplies for the United Nations forces in Korea.
Medical supplies from Israel to Korea to aid the United Nations forces after the oubreak of the Korean War in 1950. [COHEN FRITZ/ISRAEL GOVERNMENT PRESS OFFICE]
1962 Israel and Korea establish ties
Two years after diplomatic ties were established in 1962, Israel opened its embassy in Seoul and Korea appointed its first ambassador to Israel, a non-resident, in 1969. The Israel Embassy in Seoul closed from 1978 to 1991 and reopened in 1992, a year after which Korea opened its embassy in Israel.
Korea's first ambassador to Israel, Yu Jae-hung, left, presents his credentials to Israel's President Zalman Shazar, in Jerusalem, in April 1969. [COHEN FRITZ/ISRAEL GOVERNMENT PRESS OFFICE]
1994 Prime Minister Rabin in Seoul
Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin visited Seoul in December 1994 to meet with President Kim Young-sam, marking the first visit from an Israeli prime minister to Korea. In August 1997, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu followed up with his visit to Korea.
Israel's Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, left, speaks with Korean President Kim Young-sam at the Blue House in Seoul during the prime minister's visit in December 1994. [SA'AR YA'ACOV/ISRAEL GOVERNMENT PRESS OFFICE]
1999 Prime Minister Kim in Israel
Prime Minister Kim Jong-pil visited Israel in February 1999, which marked the first state visit to Israel by a Korean prime minister. Former United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon visited Israel in 2005, when he was the foreign minister.
2010 President Peres in Korea
President Shimon Peres became the first Israeli president to visit Korea when he did so in June 2010, meeting with President Lee Myung-bak. Peres won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1994 for his contribution to the Israel-Jordan peace treaty that year.
Israel's President Shimon Peres meets with Korean President Lee Myung-bak at the Blue House in Seoul in June 2010. [MOSHE MILNER/ISRAEL GOVERNMENT PRESS OFFICE]
2021 FTA & vaccine swap
Korea and Israel signed a free trade agreement in May 2021, five years after they first held their FTA negotiations. The agreement was a first for Korea with a Middle Eastern country and the first for Israel with an Asian nation. Later in the year, Israel and Korea swapped 781,000 vaccines, the only two countries to successfully do so.
Israeli Ambassador to Korea Akiva Tor, right, members of the embassy and Korea's Health Ministry pose as vaccines arrive from Israel to Korea on July 7, 2021, as part of the bilateral agreement on vaccine swap. [EMBASSY OF ISRAEL IN KOREA]
2022 Anniversary celebrations
For the 60th anniversary, the Israel Embassy in Seoul is hosting Israeli artists who will perform at festivals including the SIDance and Asia Theater Directors’ Festival. The embassy is also planning a metaverse event in June to showcase an anniversary exhibition and a major academic conference on the history of Israel-Korea relations.
Israeli singer-songwriter Idan Raichel takes part in the Korea Foundation Cheonggyecheon World Music Festival October 2014. [KOREA FOUNDATION]
BY ESTHER CHUNG [chung.juhee@joongang.co.kr]
14. N. Korea mobilizes students in Pyongyang to prepare for Apr. 15 events
We should soon be hearing reports of the great celebration. What will April 15th bring for us?
N. Korea mobilizes students in Pyongyang to prepare for Apr. 15 events
Pyongyang’s adult and student populations have been preparing for events in downtown areas and empty areas of the city since last month, a source told Daily NK
By Jeong Tae Joo - 2022.04.14 3:23pm
Statues of Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il in Pyongyang. (Rodong Sinmun)
North Korea is mobilizing students in Pyongyang to prepare for political events to mark the 110th birthday of late national founder Kim Il Sung on Apr. 15. In fact, the country’s education ministry recently issued an administrative order to schools in Pyongyang to “suspend classes.”
A source in Pyongyang said the education ministry issued the order on Apr. 9 to the administrative departments of universities and general higher-level middle schools (high schools) in Pyongyang. The order suspended classes from Apr. 11, and called on students to focus on practicing for holiday political events from 7 AM to 7 PM.
According to the source, Pyongyang’s adult and student populations have been preparing for events in downtown areas and empty areas of the city since last month. University students and high school students had been going to school in the morning, leaving in the afternoon to practice for the events until 9 PM.
However, the order — issued just a few days before the “Day of the Sun,” as Kim’s birthday is called — suspended classes from Apr. 11 so students could practice the entire “flow” of the events, training for 12 hours a day. This means students are spending all day training for the events, just like adults are.
The source said Pyongyang residents and students are leaving home early to practice, bringing their lunch with them. They train until the evening, and only when they finish can they return home.
That the authorities have suspended classes and fully mobilized students for event training — in contrast to the holiday celebrating late North Korean leader Kim Jong Il’s birthday on Feb. 16 — shows North Korea’s intention to use them in the finale of this year’s political events to celebrate the 110th birthday of Kim Il Sung.
However, the education ministry reportedly excluded graduate students, undergraduate honor roll students, and students from high schools for the gifted from the preparations for the events.
The ministry said the order “temporarily adjusted class hours” to ensure the events marked the “greatest holiday of the Korean people” with “great political passion.” It also issued another order directing that schools make up the progress missed due to event training after the holiday.
In particular, North Korean authorities — concerned about the risk of COVID-19 spreading as people congregate to prepare for the event — are imploring students mobilized for the training to adhere to quarantine rules and health management through the same “five-minute quarantine education” protocol they follow at school (where teachers explain disease control measures in the five minutes before classes start).
Many Pyongyang residents are criticizing the authorities for mobilizing university and high school students, as if mobilizing the adults all day for training was not bad enough. They also complain that in times like this, “people in the provinces [areas outside of Pyongyang] have it easier.”
Please direct any comments or questions about this article to dailynkenglish@uni-media.net.
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.
