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Quotes of the Day:
“What should young people do with their lives today? Many things, obviously. But the most daring thing is to create stable communities in which the terrible disease of loneliness can be cured.“
– Kurt Vonnegut
"Perhaps a revolution can overthrow autocratic despotism and profiteering or power-grabbing oppression, but it can never truly reform a manner of thinking; instead, new prejudices, just like the old ones they replace, will serve as a leash for the great unthinking mass."
– Immanuel Kant, What Is Enlightenment
"Revolutions are usually a matter of people picking up the power of a state in disintegration, a government that has lost the will to enforce its laws."
– Brian Reynolds Myers, interview with Joshua Stanton (August 2017), One Free Korea
1. North Korean Military Advances in the West Sea: A Strategic Response
2. China is watching warily as Putin and Kim forge new ‘alliance’
3. Japan and South Korea Are Fighting Over an App at a Tense Time
4. South Korea battery plant fire kills 22 people, most of them Chinese
5. Hyundai and Kia Zip Into the U.S. Car Market’s Fast Lane
6. US and Key Asian Allies Denounce Putin and Kim’s Military Pact
7. S. Korea says parasites detected in trash-filled balloons from N. Korea
8. Defector group sends more plastics bottles containing rice to N. Korea, raising concerns about Pyongyang's trash balloons
9. N. Korea supports Russia's war with Ukraine as 'legitimate act of self-defense'
10. Hwaseong battery plant fire likely to go down as worst chemical plant accident in history
11. N. Korea vows 'overwhelming, fresh' deterrence measures against arrival of U.S. aircraft carrier
12. The Chinese in the Korean War
13. Parasites, poop and propaganda: Trash balloons reveal hardships faced by North Koreans
14. N. Korea Likely Provided 1.6 Mil Artillery Shells to Russia
15. UN approves ROK province’s plan to send water purification aid to North Korea
1. North Korean Military Advances in the West Sea: A Strategic Response
Excerpt:
The best option is not to fight but to negotiate. This is the realm of political leaders. The military option should be one of many available to political leaders. North Korea must understand that South Korea is capable and determined to defend itself, while South Korea must recognize the potential costs of conflict. A negotiated settlement remains the best path to avoid escalation and maintain regional stability.
North Korean Military Advances in the West Sea: A Strategic Response
Commentary | June 21, 2024
In-bum CHUN
Lieutenant General, ROK, Ret.
https://globalnk.org/commentary/view?cd=COM000146
Editor's Note
Lieutenant General In-bum Chun (ROK, Ret.) examines North Korea’s coastal defense capabilities in the West Sea and analyzes how its ongoing military modernization and territorial claims exacerbate security tensions on the Korean Peninsula. He points out that countering North Korean coastal threats necessitates careful political decision-making, as any military action could lead to escalation. In this context, Chun stresses that negotiation, rather than conflict, is the essential path to stability.
Kim Jong Un declared in January 2024 that North Korea would no longer seek peaceful unification with South Korea, effectively abandoning decades-long goal of reunification based on national homogeneity. This announcement, made during a session of the Supreme People’s Assembly, also included a call for a constitutional change labeling South Korea as the “primary foe” (Korean Central News Agency [KCNA] 1/16/2024). This policy shift reflects a significant hardening of North Korea’s stance, aligning with Kim’s strategy of bolstering military capabilities and reducing diplomatic engagements.
At first glance, it seemed as if North Korea was resigned to a status quo of two Koreas on the Korean Peninsula and, with nuclear weapons to protect them from external threats, was going to focus on internal stability and economic improvements for its people. However, following the initial announcement, North Korea swiftly erased all notions of peaceful unification by changing station names, altering song lyrics, and demolishing monuments related to the goal of unification. North Korea continues with missile developments, attempted satellite launches, and a possible nuclear test.
Recently, Kim Jong Un has made several provocative statements regarding the Northern Limit Line (NLL), the so called “disputed” maritime border between North and South Korea. During a test-firing of a new surface-to-sea missile, Kim ordered a strengthened defense posture near the NLL, which he described as “a ghost one without any ground in the light of international law or legal justification” (KCNA 2/15/2024). He emphasized that North Korea does not recognize the NLL and warned that any incursion by South Korean vessels would be considered an act of war. In the same speech at the Supreme People’s Assembly in January 2024, Kim reiterated his stance, stating that the “illegal northern limit line and any other boundary can never be tolerated” (KCNA 1/16/2024). He warned that even a minimal violation of North Korean territorial waters would be seen as a provocation and a casus belli, potentially leading to armed conflict.
I. Historical Background
When the armistice agreement was signed, all islands surrounding the Korean Peninsula were under the control of the United Nation (UN) Forces. The Korean War Armistice Agreement, signed on July 27, 1953, includes specific provisions regarding these islands. The agreement stated that certain coastal islands occupied by one side but controlled by the other side as of June 24, 1950, would be addressed. It stipulated that islands north and west of the provincial boundary between Hwanghae-do and Gyeonggi-do would fall under the military control of the North Korean People’s Army and the Chinese People’s Volunteers, except for five island groups (Baengnyeongdo, Daecheongdo, Socheongdo, Yeonpyeongdo, and Udo), which would remain under the control of the United Nations Command (UNC).
Many of the islands north of the boundary between Hwanghae-do and Gyeonggi-do were controlled by UN forces, mainly guerilla and commando units comprised of anti-communist North Koreans. These islands served as bases for infiltrating North Korean rear areas to conduct special operations and rescue missions for downed UN pilots. When the agreement was signed, many of these men and women were forced to give up control of the islands they had defended with their lives and at great sacrifice.
North Korea began to lay formal claims to the northwest island area, including the Five West Sea Islands, in 1973. This was when North Korea made a claim to extend its territorial waters to 12 nautical miles, which included these islands administered by South Korea but located closer to the North Korean mainland. This claim challenged the NLL, which was established unilaterally by the United Nations Command (UNC) in 1953 following the Korean War to demarcate the maritime boundary between the two Koreas.
The NLL was intended to prevent accidental naval clashes, but North Korea has never recognized this boundary and has frequently contested it. In 1999, North Korea further escalated its claims by declaring its own maritime border, known as the “West Sea Military Demarcation Line,” which overlaps with the NLL and excludes the disputed islands. This ongoing “dispute” has led to numerous military clashes over the years, including the sinking of a South Korean naval vessel in 2010 and artillery shelling of Yeonpyeong Island later that same year.
II. North Korean Military Capabilities in the Northwest Islands
It is estimated that North Korea has close to two hundred coastal artillery pieces aimed at the NLL and within range. Although these are medium caliber artillery guns, they are fortified in caves and bunkers, making them hard to destroy with conventional ship guns. These fixed positions have an advantage in a gunnery duel with ships that must shoot afloat. Additionally, North Korea has Surface to Ship Silkworm missiles that have a range of 100 km and a sizable warhead. The Silkworm missile is significant in naval warfare, particularly in coastal defense roles, due to its effectiveness in targeting surface ships. Recently, North Korea has been test launching the Padasuri (바다수리), or Sea Eagle.
The Padasuri-6 missile is a newly developed surface-to-sea missile by North Korea, prominently mentioned in recent military reports. It was recently tested under the supervision of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. The test was reported on February 15, 2024, by KCNA. The missile flew for approximately 23 minutes over the East Sea and successfully hit a target boat. The Padasuri -6 is modeled after the Russian Kh-35 Uran cruise missile, indicating that it is a subsonic anti-ship missile with a potential range of over 100 km. It is intended to enhance North Korea’s coastal defense capabilities and is likely equipped with improved guidance systems for targeting South Korean ships that patrol the NLL.
The missile test was part of North Korea’s broader strategy to bolster its military presence and readiness around disputed maritime areas, particularly near the NLL. Kim Jong Un has emphasized the importance of maintaining military preparedness in the waters north of South Korea’s Yeonpyeong and Baengnyeong islands, where he claims South Korean warships frequently encroach. The development and testing of the Padasuri-6 missile come amidst heightened tensions between North and South Korea, with Kim Jong Un reiterating North Korea’s refusal to recognize the NLL and threatening to consider any violation of its claimed maritime boundaries as an act of war. These developments reflect North Korea’s continued efforts to modernize its military arsenal and assert its territorial claims in the region, further complicating the security dynamics on the Korean Peninsula.
In addition to the threat to shipping in the Northwest islands, the North Korean military has the capability to mass fires against the islands as well as attempt amphibious landings with hovercraft. Although this will be a costly operation for any military force, it is within the realm of possibility and probability that the North Koreans have been preparing for.
III. Countering the Military Threat in the Northwest Islands
Military vessels are armed with anti-ship defense measures, but a barrage of missiles fired at one target will always be a challenge to defend. Therefore, to counter North Korean coastal threats, the most effective strategy is to neutralize their coastal guns and missile sites before they launch. However, this requires careful political decision-making. Detecting North Korean radar targeting our ships would necessitate either halting naval operations or risking our sailors’ safety. Preemptive airstrikes to destroy radar sites could escalate the conflict, activating North Korean air defenses and anti-aircraft missiles. Consequently, the best option is negotiation. Political leaders must balance military readiness with diplomatic efforts to avoid escalation.
For these North Korean guns or missiles to be effective, they must target our ships with radar. When North Korean radar sites start targeting our ships, we would have to either cease naval operations or put our sailors in danger. The other alternative is to destroy these radar sites with air power. Fighter aircraft launched from aircraft carriers or land bases would be deployed to take out these radar sites. The North Koreans, of course, would activate their air defenses and launch their anti-aircraft missiles at our aircraft. Due to this threat, we would have to target and destroy these anti-aircraft radar sites before attempting to destroy the anti-ship radar sites. The unfortunate conclusion is that escalation would be unavoidable.
The best option is not to fight but to negotiate. This is the realm of political leaders. The military option should be one of many available to political leaders. North Korea must understand that South Korea is capable and determined to defend itself, while South Korea must recognize the potential costs of conflict. A negotiated settlement remains the best path to avoid escalation and maintain regional stability.
References
Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). 2024. “Respected Comrade Kim Jong Un Makes Policy Speech at 10th Session of 14th SPA.” January 16. http://kcna.co.jp/item/2024/202401/news16/20240116-02ee.html
________. 2024. “Respected Comrade Kim Jong Un Guides Test-fire of Surface-to-sea Missile Padasuri-6.” February 15. http://www.kcna.kp/en/article/q/2866630de1847cb23e4c8b38b53dfcb7.kcmsf
■ Lieutenant General In-bum CHUN (ROK, Ret.) served 38 years in the South Korean Army and retired in 2016. He is currently a Senior Fellow with the Association of the United States Army.
■ Typeset by: Jisoo Park, Research Associate
For inquiries: 02 2277 1683 (ext. 208) | jspark@eai.or.kr
2. China is watching warily as Putin and Kim forge new ‘alliance’
I am not sure China is as worried as we would hope it would be. I think there is some wishful thinking among pundits who see this as an opportunity for US-China cooperation on north Korea. I think hoping for cooperation will not make it so.
China is watching warily as Putin and Kim forge new ‘alliance’ | CNN
CNN · by Nectar Gan · June 23, 2024
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin ride a Mercedes-Benz at a welcoming ceremony in Pyongyang on June 19, 2024.
Gavriil Grigorov/Pool/AFP/Sputnik/Getty Images
Editor’s Note: Sign up for CNN’s Meanwhile in China newsletter which explores what you need to know about the country’s rise and how it impacts the world.
Hong Kong CNN —
As Russian President Vladimir Putin glided through the crowd-lined streets of Pyongyang atop a luxury Mercedes-Benz alongside his North Korean host Kim Jong Un last week, the two autocrats’ most important partner was watching from the sidelines hundreds of miles away in Beijing.
Five years ago, Xi Jinping was offered the same open-top ride with Kim when he became the first Chinese leader to visit Pyongyang in 14 years. At the time, the two leaders vowed to strengthen ties and deepen cooperation, but the language paled in comparison with the “breakthrough” new partnership struck by Kim and Putin.
In a wide-ranging treaty spanning political, trade, investment, and security cooperation, North Korea and Russia pledged to use all available means to provide immediate military assistance in the event the other is attacked.
Putin said Russia and North Korea have ramped up ties to a “new level.” Kim, meanwhile, called the new “alliance” a “watershed moment” in bilateral relations.
The new landmark defense pact agreed by the two nuclear-armed regimes rattled the United States and its Asian allies. Japan voiced “grave concerns” about Putin’s vow not to rule out cooperation with Pyongyang on military technology. South Korea responded by convening an emergency national security meeting and said it would now consider sending arms to Ukraine.
In contrast, the reaction from China, the main political and economic patron for both Russia and North Korea, has been all but muted.
A spokesperson for China’s Foreign Ministry declined to comment on the treaty, calling it a bilateral matter between Russia and North Korea.
Beneath the official reticence, however, China is likely watching warily, analysts say.
China ‘aims to control the situation’
The deepening ties between two wayward autocrats risk creating new uncertainty for Xi, who needs peace and stability in Northeast Asia as he grapples with a raft of domestic challenges, especially the slowing economy.
Beijing is worried that Moscow’s assistance to Pyongyang – especially on military technology – would further enable and embolden the erratic Kim regime, which has drastically accelerated the buildup of nuclear weapons and missile programs, said Liu Dongshu, an assistant professor focusing on Chinese politics at the City University of Hong Kong.
“When it comes to the North Korea issue, China aims to control the situation and prevent escalation, but it also does not want North Korea to completely collapse either” – a scenario that Beijing fears would allow the US to extend its control right to its doorstep, Liu said.
Previously, Russia had been largely aligned with China on the issue, but its desperate need for North Korea to support its grinding war in Ukraine risks undermining the delicate balance.
Kim Jong Un takes Chinese leader Xi Jinping on a ride through the streets of Pyongyang, North Korea, on June 21, 2019.
KCNA/Reuters/File
Russia has received more than 10,000 shipping containers – the equivalent of 260,000 metric tons of munitions or munitions-related material – from North Korea since September, according to a US statement in February. Both Russia and North Korea have rejected the claim.
And while the US has accused China of providing Russia with dual-use goods that bolster the warring nation’s military industrial complex, Beijing has refrained from offering direct military assistance to Putin and has steered clear of supporting Kim’s nuclear and missile programs.
“If Putin provides more support to North Korea on nuclear issues, including some technical assistance, it will become more difficult for China to control the situation on the Korean Peninsula,” Liu said.
The mutual defense pact signed by Kim and Putin harks back to a 1961 treaty between North Korea and the Soviet Union during the Cold War. That deal was replaced with one that offered much weaker security assurances after the collapse of the Soviet Union.
But North Korea’s mutual defense treaty with China, also signed in 1961, remains in place after multiple renewals.
The Sino-North Korea Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance is the only formal military alliance treaty China has signed with another country, though Beijing doesn’t admit it as such and remains deliberately vague about whether China is obliged to automatically come to North Korea’s defense when a war breaks out.
Similarly, it remains unclear what Russia and North Korea are willing – and able – to do for one another under the new defense pact.
The new treaty comes amid heightened tensions on the Korean Peninsula, where Kim has ramped up fiery rhetoric and scrapped a longstanding policy of seeking peaceful reunification with South Korea. After the end of the Korean War in 1953, a formal peace treaty was never signed between the two Koreas, leaving them technically in a state of war.
But the political message of the pact is loud and clear. Driven by a shared hostility to the US and its allies, the two autocratic nations are seeking to undermine and create an alternative to the Western-led global order – a goal shared by China.
Speaking after his meeting with Kim, Putin rankled against what he called “the imperialist policy of the United States and its satellites.”
Putin and Xi attend a concert together in Beijing on May 16, 2024.
Alexander Ryumin/Pool/AFP/Getty Images
A month ago, Putin and Xi delivered a similar swipe at the US during the Russian leader’s visit to Beijing. In a sweeping joint statement, the two “old friends” took aim at what they described as a global security system defined by US-backed military alliances – and pledged to work together to counter it.
Western observers have warned against a loose but growing coordination of interests among China, Russia, North Korea and Iran – something one senior US military commander recently likened to a new “axis of evil.”
As Moscow and Pyongyang deepen their alliance, Beijing would be cautious to keep a distance, Liu said, adding that “China certainly doesn’t want to be seen as part of a new Axis.”
But despite the absence of Xi, China would have been the elephant in the room throughout Putin and Kim’s meeting.
“Any such meeting will also include discussion of China,” said Edward Howell, a lecturer in politics at the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom, who focuses on the Korean Peninsula.
“Russia will know full well that China does not want to be left out of any substantial negotiations involving North Korea, not least since China is far more important – compared to Russia – to North Korea.”
Yun Sun, director of the China program at the Washington-based Stimson Center think tank, said China doesn’t feel it can control the pace and extent of the deepening engagement between Russia and North Korea.
“But they do know that China plays an irreplaceable role for both Russia and North Korea,” she said.
China remains the largest trade partner to both Russia and North Korea, providing a crucial lifeline to the heavily sanctioned economies. Beijing also lends significant political support and diplomatic cover to the two international pariahs.
“China doesn’t think that an alliance between Russia and North Korea would be a betrayal,” said Liu with the City University of Hong Kong.
“Neither of the two countries has the capacity to betray China. They still need to rely on China despite their alliance.”
CNN’s Simone McCarthy contributed reporting.
CNN · by Nectar Gan · June 23, 2024
3. Japan and South Korea Are Fighting Over an App at a Tense Time
The historical friction plays out in various ways.
Japan and South Korea Are Fighting Over an App at a Tense Time
By River Akira Davis
Reporting from Tokyo
June 24, 2024,
12:01 a.m. ET
The New York Times · by River Akira Davis · June 24, 2024
SoftBank and Naver helped bridge geopolitical relations with a joint venture to own the operator of the messaging app Line, but now the partnership is fraying.
Listen to this article · 7:23 min Learn more
Diplomats and international relations experts fear that a rift over the ownership of a Naver-SoftBank venture could again put stress on ties between Japan and South Korea.Credit...Lee Jae-Won/AFLO/Shutterstock, Takaaki Iwabu/Bloomberg
A joint venture set up in 2019 by two top Japanese and South Korean companies was hailed as a beacon of cooperation amid strained diplomatic relations.
Executives from South Korea’s Naver and Japan’s SoftBank Group said they would jointly own the operator of Line, a South Korean-developed messaging app popularized in Japan. They gave the project a code name that emphasized cooperation: Gaia.
Five years later, Japan and South Korea have made significant strides in easing longstanding historical tensions. But a rift has emerged over the ownership of the Naver-SoftBank venture, and diplomats and international relations experts fear it could again put stress on ties between the countries.
Japan and South Korea, both key United States allies in Asia, have a sensitive history. Japan colonized Korea from 1910 until Japan’s surrender in World War II in 1945, and Japan and South Korea have often scuffled over territory and geopolitical differences.
“As we’ve seen many times in the past, relations between Japan and Korea shift, and smaller points of tension — whether they be wartime or modern — can quickly escalate to impact defense and diplomacy more broadly,” said Maiko Takeuchi, regional managing director at CCSI, a group in New York that advises governments on international security issues.
The stakes are elevated given concerns about North Korean nuclear proliferation and heightened instability in the region, Ms. Takeuchi said. “There is a strong view from the U.S. and elsewhere that preserving Japan and Korea’s good relations is more important than ever,” she said.
The messaging platform at the center of the dispute, Line, was introduced in Japan in 2011 by Naver, the operator of South Korea’s leading search engine. After the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami that year, when phone lines in Japan were disrupted, Line enabled users to communicate via an internet connection.
A demonstration in support of Naver outside the Japanese Embassy in Seoul in May.Credit...Yonhap/EPA, via Shutterstock
Since then, Line, known for its in-screen stickers featuring expressive rabbits and bears, has become Japan’s most popular messaging app — amassing hundreds of millions of users and expanding into Thailand, Taiwan and Indonesia.
In 2019, the SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son and Hae-Jin Lee, a co-founder of Naver, agreed to create a 50-50 joint venture that would indirectly operate Line. Reports referred to the deal as the “Son-Lee alliance,” when Japanese-South Korean relations were at a historic low.
The previous year, South Korea’s Supreme Court had ordered several Japanese companies to compensate South Koreans forced to work in their factories during World War II. Japan reacted to the judicial order in 2019 by imposing export restrictions on chemicals essential to South Korea’s semiconductor industry.
The countries’ top leaders were not speaking, and there was talk of severing intelligence-sharing agreements. This was a big problem for the United States, which had been trying to get Japan and South Korea to work together to counter challenges from China and North Korea.
But relations between South Korea and Japan then improved greatly. In March 2023, President Yoon Suk Yeol of South Korea announced a plan to compensate former forced laborers using money from a government-led fund. Later that month, Mr. Yoon met one on one with Japan’s prime minister, Fumio Kishida — the first such meeting in 12 years — and Japan lifted its restrictions on semiconductor material exports.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida of Japan, right, escorting President Yoon Suk Yeol before their meeting in Tokyo last year.Credit...Pool photo by Franck Robichon
But late last year, cracks started opening in the Naver-Softbank venture.
Line’s operator, a company called LY Corporation, said in November that a third party had gained unauthorized access to its systems via Naver’s cloud storage system. In turn, Japan’s communications ministry issued an ambiguous statement that was widely interpreted as a directive to Naver to sell down its stake in its joint venture.
In South Korea, the move caused a stir. Some analysts and politicians interpreted it as an attempt by Japan to use political pressure to undermine Naver, one of South Korea’s biggest companies. Naver’s union said it opposed any sale, and the company’s chief executive, Choi Soo-Yeon, said she found the Japanese government’s directive “highly unusual.”
An editorial last month in the Korea Economic Daily equated the move to state interference. “For the Japanese government to now demand Naver’s exit, after all the hard work and investment, seems at odds with the principles of a civilized nation,” the article stated.
In South Korea, opposition parties have criticized Mr. Yoon for taking what they view as overly conciliatory positions toward Japan, and cite Naver as the latest victim of those policies. Cho Kuk, a key ally of South Korea’s former president, has called Mr. Yoon’s approach to Japan “humiliating,” accusing the president of failing to support a successful domestic firm.
In a briefing in May, Mr. Yoon’s policy chief of staff, Sung Tae-yoon, said that as long as Line’s operator was able to lay out satisfactory plans to strengthen security, the Japanese government should not move forward with “adverse measures” that would force a Naver stake sale. South Korea’s government will “continue to ensure that Korean companies are not subjected to any discriminatory measures or unfair treatment overseas,” he said.
South Korea’s presidential policy chief, Sung Tae-yoon, said the government would “ensure that Korean companies are not subjected to any discriminatory measures or unfair treatment overseas.” Credit...Yonhap/EPA, via Shutterstock
SoftBank and Naver are discussing possible revisions to the ownership structure of Line’s operator, according to the companies.
Naver executives have largely remained quiet on the topic. A spokeswoman for Naver said the company was open to all possibilities. A spokesman for Japan’s communications ministry said it was up to Line’s operator to decide how to improve its security governance.
Leaders on both the Japanese and South Korean sides appear determined to prevent the quarrel over Line from escalating. Mr. Kishida and Mr. Yoon agreed in late May that the dispute should not get in the way of diplomatic relations.
In the past, even seemingly minor incidents have proven capable of turning into prolonged diplomatic conflicts. In 2018, when a South Korean naval ship was accused of aiming its fire-control radar at a Japanese aircraft flying over the Sea of Japan, the countries responded by halting defense-related exchanges. That deadlock eased only this month.
How Japan ultimately handles the issue of Line’s ownership may affect the broader trajectory of Japanese-Korean relations, said Yul Sohn, president of the East Asia Institute, a think tank in Seoul.
“From the Korean side, the general public believes that the Yoon government has shown its intentions and the cup is still half empty and waiting for Japan to respond,” he said.
If Japan shows it is willing to reciprocate, even through a gesture like a concession related to the dispute over Line, Mr. Yoon could use that to maneuver further cooperation, Mr. Sohn said.
“We are in a phase of recovering relations, but both parties are highly aware of what has happened in the past,” he said. “Even with a stronger foundation built, there are still cracks that need to be reckoned with.”
John Yoon contributed reporting from Seoul.
River Akira Davis covers Japan, including its economy and businesses, and is based in Tokyo. More about River Akira Davis
The New York Times · by River Akira Davis · June 24, 2024
4. South Korea battery plant fire kills 22 people, most of them Chinese
South Korea battery plant fire kills 22 people, most of them Chinese
By Daewoung Kim and Hongji Kim
https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/about-20-bodies-found-after-fire-south-korea-battery-plant-yonhap-reports-2024-06-24/?utm
June 24, 20246:41 AM EDTUpdated 21 min ago
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HWASEONG, South Korea, June 24 (Reuters) - A powerful explosion set on fire a lithium battery factory in South Korea on Monday, killing 22 workers, most of them Chinese nationals, local fire officials said.
The fire, which has largely been extinguished, ripped through a factory run by battery manufacturer Aricell in Hwaseong, a major industrial cluster about 90 minutes southwest of the capital Seoul.
Eighteen Chinese workers and one Laotian were among the dead. The nationality of the remaining deceased worker was not yet confirmed, Kim Jin-young, a local fire official, told reporters, citing information from company officials.
The blaze began at 10:31 a.m. (0131 GMT) after a series of battery cells exploded inside a warehouse with some 35,000 units, Kim said. What had triggered the explosion remains unclear, he added.
A Reuters witness saw firefighters moving up to six bodies out of the factory. Due to the intensity of the blaze, rescuers were finding it difficult to identify the dead, Kim added.
Two people were being treated for major burns, officials at the scene said.
Live TV footage showed firefighters spraying the damaged steel and concrete building. Parts of the upper level had collapsed, and large chunks of the building looked like they had been blown out into the street by an explosion. Aerial footage showed massive smoke clouds billowing from the structure.
Item 1 of 5 Emergency personnel move the body of a person killed in a deadly fire at a lithium battery factory owned by South Korean battery maker Aricell, in Hwaseong, South Korea, June 24, 2024. REUTERS/Kim Hong-ji
[1/5]Emergency personnel move the body of a person killed in a deadly fire at a lithium battery factory owned by South Korean battery maker Aricell, in Hwaseong, South Korea, June 24, 2024. REUTERS/Kim Hong-ji Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab
Kim Jae-ho, Fire and Disaster Prevention professor at Daejeon University, said the fire had probably spread too quickly for workers to escape.
"Battery materials such as nickel are easily flammable," he said. "So often, there is not enough time to respond, compared to a fire caused by other materials."
President Yoon Suk Yeol was monitoring the situation, his office said, while Interior Minister Lee Sang-min called on the local authorities to take steps to prevent any hazardous chemicals from contaminating the surroundings.
Established in 2020, Aricell makes lithium primary batteries for sensors and radio communication devices. It has 48 employees, according to its latest regulatory filing and its Linkedin profile.
Calls to Aricell offices were unanswered.
The company is not listed on South Korea's stock market but is majority owned by S-Connect, according to Aricell regulatory filing. S-Connect is registered on the junior Kosdaq index and its shares closed down 22.5%.
South Korea, a major industrial economy, has made efforts to improve its safety record after several past accidents, many of which have been blamed on negligence.
Get the latest news and expert analysis about the state of the global economy with Reuters Econ World. Sign up here.
Reporting by Hyonhee Shin, Ju-min Park, Joyce Lee and Heekyong Yang, writing by Jack Kim; Editing by Kim Coghill and Miral Fahmy
5. Hyundai and Kia Zip Into the U.S. Car Market’s Fast Lane
Will this become a political football in US politics?
Hyundai and Kia Zip Into the U.S. Car Market’s Fast Lane
South Korea’s automakers are getting a geopolitics boost with growing EV sales
https://www.wsj.com/business/autos/hyundai-and-kia-zip-into-the-u-s-car-markets-fast-lane-532735a5?mod=Searchresults_pos1&page=1
By Jacky Wong
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June 24, 2024 7:00 am ET
A Hyundai SUV during the 2023 New York International Auto Show in New York. Nearly 8% of Hyundai’s cars sold in the U.S. last year were EVs. PHOTO: STEPHANIE KEITH/BLOOMBERG NEWS
South Korean automakers Hyundai and Kia 000270 0.31%increase; green up pointing triangle already make some of America’s most popular cars, particularly in the hybrid category. Now geopolitics is helping them be even more competitive in the growing EV market.
Investors in the companies, which have designs and some ownership in common, have found themselves in the fast lane as a result. Shares of Hyundai Motor 005380 0.36%increase; green up pointing triangle have gained 85% since the end of 2022 while those of Kia have more than doubled. Hyundai is Kia’s largest shareholder with a 34% stake. The two companies reported record earnings last year, with both increasing their operating profits by more than 50% from 2022.
The U.S. has been the major growth driver for both companies as they have steadily increased their market share. Hyundai and Kia together have more than 10% of the U.S. market, according to Goldman Sachs. Their combined revenue in North America has doubled in the past five years alone. With lucrative sport utility vehicles such as the Tucson and the Santa Fe, Goldman estimates that the U.S. is their most profitable market.
Their success in green technology is helping: Nearly 8% of Hyundai’s cars sold in the U.S. last year were EVs. That proportion was even higher at 16% in more EV-friendly Europe. But they have also been offering a more balanced portfolio of products: Around 10% of Hyundai’s cars sold in the U.S. were conventional hybrids.
That is especially important as hybrid sales could grow faster in the next few years while consumers sit on the fence for the EV transition. Nomura expects global hybrid sales to grow an average 26% between 2023 and 2026, outpacing the 19% growth in pure EVs. Nomura predicts even faster growth of 34% in the U.S. market.
A Kia EV during the 2024 New York International Auto Show. Hyundai and Kia together have more than 10% of the U.S. market, according to Goldman Sachs. PHOTO: GABBY JONES/BLOOMBERG NEWS
Geopolitics will provide another tailwind as affordable Chinese EVs face obstacles in America. Currently, EVs from the Korean automakers aren’t necessarily eligible for $7,500 tax credits under the Inflation Reduction Act, but that would change after Hyundai’s $7.6 billion manufacturing plant in Georgia opens later this year.
Booming India is becoming another important market for the Korean automakers. Hyundai plans to spin off a minority stake in its Indian unit in what could become the country’s largest-ever initial public offering, raising billions of dollars in the process. The companies have been moving their production capacity from China to India in the past decade—especially as the relationship between China and Korea has deteriorated.
Hyundai and Kia collectively are already the second largest automaker in India, with around a fifth of the market. Sales are mostly internal combustion engine vehicles. EVs and hybrids could be the next leg in their growth. EVs only accounted for 2% of the Indian market last year, according to Counterpoint Research, but sales nearly doubled in 2023 and the government said in March that it would cut import duties on some EVs for companies that invest at least $500 million to make their cars there.
That may lead to more competition from Chinese EV makers. BYD, for example, sells cars in India. But geopolitics might stymie Chinese players: The Indian government rejected BYD’s proposed $1 billion manufacturing plan last year.
That potential doesn’t come at a premium price: Hyundai and Kia both trade at around 5 times forward earnings, below most of their peers. Toyota, for example, fetches 9 times. Investors should at least consider a test drive.
Write to Jacky Wong at jacky.wong@wsj.com
6. US and Key Asian Allies Denounce Putin and Kim’s Military Pact
But I wish they would emphasize that this military pact is a result of weakness, fear, and envy.
Russia and north Korea are weak and this is an attempt to overcome their weaknesses.
They fear the ROK/US and Japan/US alliances and trilateral cooperation.
They envy alliances of democratic powers and recognize their strength and power.
US and Key Asian Allies Denounce Putin and Kim’s Military Pact
By Jon Herskovitz
June 23, 2024 at 10:59 PM EDT
The US and its allies Japan and South Korea condemned in “the strongest possible terms” the deepening military cooperation between Russia and North Korea, calling it a grave concern and a threat to stability.
Top envoys from the three nations discussed Vladimir Putin and leader Kim Jong Un reaching an agreement last week to come to each other’s defense in case of attack, according to a joint statement released by the US State Department. The pact was made during the Russian president’s first visit to North Korea in 24 years.
The US and its Asian allies have said they saw the visit as advancing the transfer of munitions from Kim’s regime to help Putin in his war on Ukraine.
The cooperation “should be of grave concern to anyone with an interest in maintaining peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula, upholding the global non-proliferation regime, and supporting the people of Ukraine as they defend their freedom and independence against Russia’s brutal aggression,” according to the joint statement.
The talks Monday were among US point person for North Korea, Jung Pak, South Korean Vice Foreign Minister for Strategy and Intelligence Cho Koo-rae and Hiroyuki Namazu, an assistant minister at Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the State Department said.
The US and its partners have accused Kim of sending millions of rounds of artillery and scores of ballistic missiles to Putin for his war on Ukraine. The weapons gained in prominence as Kyiv’s supplies dwindled due to the US Congress holding up new military aid. But with President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s government now taking delivery of billions of dollars in fresh arms from its US and European allies, the window for a Russian breakthrough is narrowing.
7. S. Korea says parasites detected in trash-filled balloons from N. Korea
S. Korea says parasites detected in trash-filled balloons from N. Korea | Yonhap News Agency
en.yna.co.kr · by Kim Han-joo · June 24, 2024
SEOUL, June 24 (Yonhap) -- Parasites have been detected in some of the trash-filled balloons sent by North Korea to South Korea, but no harmful substances were found, Seoul's unification ministry said Monday.
In recent weeks, North Korea has sent more than 1,000 trash-carrying balloons toward the South on multiple occasions in retaliation for South Korean activists' leaflet campaigns condemning the North Korean regime.
"Numerous parasites, such as roundworms, whipworms and threadworms, were found in the soil contained in the trash," the ministry said in a press release, adding that the parasites are believed to originate from human excrement.
The findings are based on an examination of 70 balloons.
Among the trash-filled balloons, torn pieces of clothing, such as neckties and blue jackets, which appeared to have been cut with scissors or knives, were also discovered. These clothes were identified as items previously provided to North Korea by a South Korean company.
"It appears that North Korea damaged and sent these previously supplied items to express extreme hostility toward the leaflet campaigns and to highlight the adversarial stance against South Korea," said a ministry official, who requested anonymity.
The official noted that most of the trash consisted of wastepaper and vinyl rather than ordinary household waste, suggesting that North Korean authorities might be trying to prevent the disclosure of the daily lives of North Koreans to the outside world.
For years, North Korean defectors in South Korea and conservative activists have sent anti-Pyongyang leaflets to the North using balloons, aiming to encourage North Koreans to rise up against the Kim family regime.
North Korea has strongly opposed these propaganda campaigns, fearing that an influx of outside information could threaten the leadership of its regime.
One of the hundreds of trash-filled balloons flown by North Korea overnight is found in a rice paddy in the northwestern border county of Ganghwa on June 10, 2024. (Yonhap)
khj@yna.co.kr
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en.yna.co.kr · by Kim Han-joo · June 24, 2024
8. Defector group sends more plastics bottles containing rice to N. Korea, raising concerns about Pyongyang's trash balloons
The South cannot let the regime's filth balloon barrage deter launches from the South. The South is launching information to the north from the moral high ground.
Defector group sends more plastics bottles containing rice to N. Korea, raising concerns about Pyongyang's trash balloons | Yonhap News Agency
en.yna.co.kr · by Kim Han-joo · June 23, 2024
By Kim Han-joo
SEOUL, June 23 (Yonhap) -- A group of North Korean defectors said Sunday that it has sent 200 plastic bottles containing rice across the border, heightening concerns that Pyongyang may resume sending balloons filled with trash in retaliation.
Keunsaem, the organization behind the effort, said the bottles also contained U.S. dollar bills and USBs. The bottles were sent from the western border island of Ganghwa on Saturday morning.
The organization has regularly sent these bottles every month. On June 7, around 500 plastic bottles were released.
On Thursday night, another defectors' group sent 20 balloons carrying approximately 300,000 leaflets, U.S. dollars and USB sticks containing a popular K-drama and songs across the border from the border city of Paju.
On Friday, Kim Yo-jong, the influential sister of North Korea's leader Kim Jong-un, hinted at launching more trash-carrying balloons into South Korea. She condemned "human scum" for sending what she described as "dirty wastepaper and things."
This image, provided by Keunsaem on June 23, 2024, shows plastic bottles containing rice that were sent across the border. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
khj@yna.co.kr
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en.yna.co.kr · by Kim Han-joo · June 23, 2024
9. N. Korea supports Russia's war with Ukraine as 'legitimate act of self-defense'
N. Korea supports Russia's war with Ukraine as 'legitimate act of self-defense' | Yonhap News Agency
en.yna.co.kr · by Kim Han-joo · June 24, 2024
SEOUL, June 24 (Yonhap) -- North Korea on Monday criticized the United States for its military support of Ukraine and supported Russia's actions as a "legitimate act of self-defense," underscoring the growing military ties between Moscow and Pyongyang.
"If the rulers of the U.S. persist in recklessly pushing their war machine into Ukraine for a proxy war against Russia, it will inevitably provoke a stronger response from Russia," Pak Jong Chon, vice chairman of the Central Military Commission of the Workers' Party of Korea, said in a statement carried by the Korean Central News Agency.
Pak further said, "It is Russia's right to self-defense to make a strategic counterattack to defend its security from the ever-aggravating threat posed by hostile forces. Any responsive action taken by Russia will be a legitimate act of self-defense."
Last week, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un expressed "full support" for Russia's war in Ukraine and pledged to strengthen strategic cooperation with Moscow as he held summit talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Pyongyang.
"We will always stand together with the Russian army and people in a just struggle to defend sovereign rights, strategic stability, and the territorial integrity of their country," Pak said.
In particular, Pak criticized the U.S. for recently expanding its agreement with Ukraine to strike over the border inside Russian territory wherever Russian forces are engaging in cross-border attacks into Ukraine, not just in the Kharkiv region as was previously signed.
"This time the U.S. has gone so far as to allow the Ukrainian neo-Nazis to strike any part of Russian territory at their will," Pak said.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un (R) and Russian President Vladimir Putin pose for a photo after signing the "Treaty on Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) and the Russian Federation" at the Kumsusan State Guest House in Pyongyang on June 19, 2024, in this photo provided by the North's official Korean Central News Agency the following day. DPRK refers to North Korea. (For Use Only in the Republic of Korea. No Redistribution) (Yonhap)
khj@yna.co.kr
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en.yna.co.kr · by Kim Han-joo · June 24, 2024
10. Hwaseong battery plant fire likely to go down as worst chemical plant accident in history
(News Focus) Hwaseong battery plant fire likely to go down as worst chemical plant accident in history | Yonhap News Agency
en.yna.co.kr · by Lee Haye-ah · June 24, 2024
SEOUL, June 24 (Yonhap) -- The lithium battery plant fire that killed at least 22 people in Hwaseong on Monday is likely to go down as the worst chemical plant accident in the country's history, with experts raising questions about lax safety measures as the cause of the disaster.
Firefighters are still searching for survivors eight hours after the blaze started at lithium battery maker Aricell's plant in Hwaseong, 45 kilometers south of Seoul, at around 10:30 a.m.
Of the 102 people confirmed to have been working in the three-story building where the fire broke out, 23 people were unaccounted for, including 20 foreign nationals, according to firefighters.
Firefighters retrieve the bodies of workers at the site of a fire at a primary lithium battery factory in Hwaseong, 45 kilometers south of Seoul, on June 24, 2024. The fire reportedly left about 20 workers dead. (Pool photo) (Yonhap)
Around 20 bodies were found, presumably of the missing people, after one worker was found dead earlier in the day. Several others sustained injuries.
Chemical plants are particularly vulnerable to large-scale accidents due to the highly flammable nature of the chemicals they handle.
Similar accidents have occurred in various parts of the country in the past, with one of the worst being the LG Chem plant explosion in Yeosu, 316 kilometers south of Seoul, in 1989. That accident resulted in the deaths of 16 people and 17 others being injured.
In 2011, three workers died and five others were injured in the explosion of oil mist at an HDC Hyundai EP plant in the southeastern city of Ulsan, while in 2012, eight people were killed and around 10 injured after a chemical solvent drum can exploded at an LG Chem plant in the central city of Cheongju.
Prime Minister Han Duck-soo (C) visits the site of a fire at a primary lithium battery factory in Hwaseong, 45 kilometers south of Seoul, on June 24, 2024. The fire reportedly left about 20 workers dead. (Yonhap)
Given their wide distribution, with many located inside industrial complexes nationwide, and their often small-scale operations, chemical plants have been a site of tragedies annually, and sometimes multiple times a year, despite regular safety inspections carried out by the government and related agencies.
Chemical plant accidents also require strict follow-up measures as toxic material released in fires or explosions can cause secondary damage to neighboring areas.
Lithium-ion batteries, in particular, are known to be deadly in case of fire, because they set off a "thermal runaway" process in which increased temperature releases energy that in turn further increases the temperature.
Conventional fire extinguishing methods are rarely enough to put out such fires, as while the fire may appear extinguished from the outside, the batteries are still hundreds of degrees hot on the inside, which can easily spark another fire.
The lithium battery plant that caught fire Monday was reportedly storing mostly primary batteries, which pose a lower risk of fire than lithium-ion batteries that are rechargeable.
Still, even primary batteries can be dangerous as lithium in general is highly reactive to air and heat. Around 35,000 lithium batteries were reportedly being stored inside the plant at the time of the fire.
"A fire in one electric car will take three hours to put out by throwing water on it, so with the amount of lithium batteries storied at this plant, it has to be extremely difficult to put out the fire," said Kong Ha-sung, a professor at Woosuk University's Fire and Disaster Prevention Department.
"More and more sectors of society are using lithium, so a response strategy has to be drawn up with special care," he said.
Some observers questioned whether the large number of casualties in Monday's fire was caused by lax safety measures, drawing parallels with other disasters in recent years.
Last year, 14 people were killed when an underground roadway in the central town of Osong flooded during heavy rain. Authorities were accused of failing to properly control traffic on the roadway and bungling their response to emergency calls.
The 2022 crowd crush in Itaewon, which left 159 people dead, was also considered a man-made disaster.
The government launched an industrial disaster response team shortly after Monday's fire to determine the exact circumstances that led to the accident.
Firefighters retrieve the bodies of workers at the site of a fire at a primary lithium battery factory in Hwaseong, 45 kilometers south of Seoul, on June 24, 2024. The fire reportedly left about 20 workers dead. (Pool photo) (Yonhap)
hague@yna.co.kr
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en.yna.co.kr · by Lee Haye-ah · June 24, 2024
11. Korea vows 'overwhelming, fresh' deterrence measures against arrival of U.S. aircraft carrier
For those who are afraid of the regime's rhetoric please describe what actions you expect the north to take.
As we think about the regime's political warfare and blackmail diplomacy strategies we should keep in mind these six steps.
Policymakers should keep in mind that the Kim family regime’s political warfare strategy relies heavily on its blackmail diplomacy – the use of increased tension, threats, and provocations to gain political and economic concessions. Part of an information and influence strategy should be to counter the criticism that a North Korean provocation is a US and South Korean policy failure.
The ROK and U.S. should make sure the press, pundits, and public understand that this is a fundamental part of North Korean strategy and that it conducts provocations for specific objectives. It does not represent a policy failure; it represents a deliberate policy decision by Kim Jong-un to continue to execute his political warfare strategy. The following is a response framework for consideration:
First, do not overreact. But do not succumb to the criticism of those who recommend ending exercises. Always call out Kim Jong-un’s strategy As Sun Tzu would advise- “ …what is of supreme importance in war is to attack the enemy’s strategy; … next best is to disrupt his alliances.” Make sure the international community, the press, and the public in the ROK and the U.S. and the elite and the Korean people living in the north know what Kim is doing.
Second, never ever back down in the face of North Korean increased tension, threats, and provocations.
Third, coordinate an alliance response. There may be times when a good cop-bad cop approach is appropriate. Try to mitigate the internal domestic political criticisms that will inevitably occur in Seoul and DC. Do not let those criticisms negatively influence policy and actions.
Fourth, exploit weakness in North Korea – create internal pressure on Kim and the regime from his elite and military. Always work to drive a wedge among the party, elite, and military (which is a challenge since they are all intertwined and inextricably linked).
Fifth, demonstrate strength and resolve. Do not be afraid to show military strength. Never misunderstand the north’s propaganda – do not give in to demands to reduce exercises or take other measures based on North Korean demands that would in any way reduce the readiness of the combined military forces. The north does not want an end to the exercises because they are a threat, they want to weaken the alliance and force U.S. troops from the peninsula which will be the logical result if they are unable to effectively train.
Sixth, depending on the nature of the provocation, be prepared to initiate a decisive response using the most appropriate tools, e.g., diplomatic, military, economic, information and influence activities, cyber, etc., or a combination.
https://www.19fortyfive.com/2022/01/north-koreas-ballistic-missile-test-a-6-step-strategy-to-respond/
N. Korea vows 'overwhelming, fresh' deterrence measures against arrival of U.S. aircraft carrier | Yonhap News Agency
en.yna.co.kr · by Kim Soo-yeon · June 24, 2024
SEOUL, June 24 (Yonhap) -- North Korea on Monday condemned the U.S. sending of a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier to the Korean Peninsula, saying that the North is open to taking "overwhelming and fresh" deterrence measures against such a provocative act.
North Korean Vice Defense Minister Kim Kang-il issued a statement slamming the arrival of the USS Theodore Roosevelt in the southeastern port city of Busan on Saturday.
Kim slammed Washington and Seoul for playing "very dangerous" games in a show of force, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
"With the most powerful rhetoric, we sternly condemn provocative acts by fanatics in the U.S. and South Korea, while leaving open the possibility of us taking overwhelming and fresh deterrence measures," the official was quoted as saying by the KCNA.
The arrival of the aircraft carrier came as the United States, South Korea and Japan will hold their first-ever trilateral multidomain exercise, dubbed Freedom Edge, later this month, in a bid to bolster three-way security cooperation against North Korea's military threats.
The USS Theodore Roosevelt made a port call for the first time in South Korea. It also marked the first arrival of a U.S. aircraft carrier here in seven months.
North Korea has long denounced joint military drills between Washington and Seoul and also the U.S. dispatch of its strategic assets to the Korean Peninsula as a rehearsal for an invasion of the North.
The nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt arrives at a naval base in the southeastern port city of Busan on June 22, 2024, in this photo provided by the Navy. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
sooyeon@yna.co.kr
(END)
en.yna.co.kr · by Kim Soo-yeon · June 24, 2024
12. The Chinese in the Korean War
Tomorrow will mark the 74th anniversary of the start of the Korean War.. More to follow.
The Chinese in the Korean War
The Korea Times · June 23, 2024
By Mark Peterson
One of the projects I’m working on these days is a documentary film about a Utah National Guard battalion that fought several major battles in the Korean War and yet returned home miraculously with no fatalities. I’ve written about the 213 Field Artillery Battalion here before, but today, I thought I’d bring you up-to-date on what we are finding in our background research for the film.
Lately, we’ve been looking at the “enemy” — the Chinese unit that was so beaten up by the Utah National Guard. In one battle, the Second Battle of Gapyeong, on May 26, 1951, the Utah battalion, actually two batteries of the battalion, faced a surprise attack from a Chinese division, or at least a regiment or two of that division, maybe 4,000 soldiers. There were 240 on the Utah side, and though greatly outnumbered and caught off-guard by the surprise attack in the middle of the night, and though they had to fight with their small arms and machine guns — they couldn’t use their artillery in those close quarters — the Utah soldiers were able to kill 350 Chinese and capture 831 prisoners, without a single fatality on the Utah side — “the Miracle of Gapyeong.”
In doing the research on the film, we were struck by the statement of one of the Utah soldiers in regard to the Chinese prisoners. He said they had called the Chinese by a pejorative word and dehumanized the enemy — which is common in war. But he said when they took the prisoners, they looked at their belongings and found many had a wallet with pictures of family at home. There was a mother, father, brothers and sisters and sometimes a picture of a girlfriend. The Utah National Guard soldier said, “They were just like us.”
This was a rare touch of humanity amid the chaos and violence of war. “They are just like us.” A true revelation.
In looking at the unit from which most of the soldiers were captured we found remarkable parallels in the Chinese unit and the Utah unit. The Chinese division was the 180th. They were from rural Sichuan province, western China. Utah is in the western United States and is rural.
The Chinese unit was mobilized in October 1951. The Utah National Guard was called up, mobilized, in October 1951. The Chinese unit was sent from Sichuan to Hubei for training in preparation for entering the Korean War. The Utah unit was sent to Seattle for training to go to Korea. The Chinese unit appeared on the north of the Amnok River in January 1951. The Utah unit arrived in Busan in January 1951.
Then, as part of the Chinese Spring Offensive, also called the Fifth Offensive, the Chinese 180th Division and several other divisions of the 60th Chinese Army met in combat in April and May of 1951. The Chinese broke through the defenses set up by the ROK 6th Infantry Division, north of Gapyeong in late April. The Chinese were trying to retake Seoul — they had taken Seoul in January and lost it in February. Gapyeong was the easternmost of four natural “avenues” into Seoul. And though the Chinese broke through, they could not make the right-hand turn into Seoul but rather pushed a little further south, crossing the Bukhan River, where, in May, they were met by the ROK 6th Division and several U.N. units and severely beaten up.
The defeat of the Chinese Army at Mount Yongmun, southeast of Gapyeong, is one of the great stories of victory by the ROK forces and the U.N. Forces. The 6th Division, which had collapsed and ran in April, was able to reconstitute itself and gain reinforcements such that it was they who led the charge against the Chinese in May. The story of the Sixth Division is one of the great stories of the Korean War. The defeat of the Chinese forces at Mount Yongmun in May marked the last great effort of the Chinese in the war. Thereafter, they made no other significant attacks until one last futile effort in July 1953, just before the armistice was signed.
It was retreating Chinese forces that ran into the 213th Field Artillery Battalion of the Utah National Guard. Fighting for their lives, they must have fought harder than in the thrust of the first invasion. Though retreating, they had seen many comrades fall and knew that they must fight or die when they ran into the 213th. However, the boys of the 213th fought ferociously through the night so that by morning light, many of the Chinese were killed, and one escaping group faced fire in the path of its retreat. They had to put up their hands and hope they could survive as prisoners — 831 of them.
It was these prisoners, who, opening their belongings and revealing pictures from home that made the Utah soldier say, “They’re just like us.” A touch of humanity amidst the brutality of war.
Mark Peterson (markpeterson@byu.edu) is a professor emeritus of Korean, Asian and Near Eastern languages at Brigham Young University in Utah.
The Korea Times · June 23, 2024
13. Parasites, poop and propaganda: Trash balloons reveal hardships faced by North Koreans
The "Three P's" is not "price, price, price" per the insurance TV commercial.
This might be a useful message for transmission back into. north Korea to inform the Korean people about how the regime is exposing their suffering.
Monday
June 24, 2024
dictionary + A - A
Published: 24 Jun. 2024, 19:18
Updated: 24 Jun. 2024, 19:19
Parasites, poop and propaganda: Trash balloons reveal hardships faced by North Koreans
https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/news/2024-06-24/national/northKorea/Parasites-poop-and-propaganda-Trash-balloons-reveal-hardships-faced-by-North-Koreans/2075374
A balloon carrying a waste-filled bag is discovered in Songpa District, eastern Seoul, earlier this month. [YONHAP]
Parasites were discovered in trash-laden balloons launched by North Korea into South Korea, Seoul's Ministry of Unification said Monday.
From late May to early June, North Korea sent over 1,000 balloons carrying waste across the border in response to leaflet campaigns led by North Korean defector groups criticizing the Kim Jong-un regime.
The ministry unveiled such findings on Monday after examining 70 balloons carrying feces.
“Experts found numerous parasites such as roundworms, whipworms and threadworms in the soil contained in the waste,” the ministry said, adding that the soil-mediated parasites are believed to have originated from human feces.
However, the risk of soil pollution or infectious disease is small, the ministry said, as the feces-laden balloons carried only a minimal amount of soil, and the military promptly collected the balloons upon crossing the border.
Pieces of clothing items discovered within waste sent over the border by a balloon [MINISTRY OF UNIFICATION]
Many other items were identified among the waste.
There were pieces of clothing, such as neckties and denim jackets, previously provided by a South Korean company. These items appeared to have been cut with scissors or knives.
A ministry official said damaging items provided by the South and sending them back may have been intended to highlight the antagonism between the two Koreas and “to express hostility toward South's leafleting.”
The official said that most of the trash consisted of evenly cut wastepaper and plastic rather than ordinary household waste, suggesting that North Korean authorities may have been trying to conceal the harsh living conditions of North Koreans.
Labels and caps of bottles were also purposely removed, likely to prevent the disclosure of product information, the official said.
However, daily necessities, such as worn socks, gloves, masks and t-shirts, were also found, revealing the hardships faced by North Koreans.
Papers praising late leader Kim Jong-il and the North's ruling Workers’ Party were also found.
The ministry finds this extraordinary given the harsh punishments North Korea metes out to people who damage images of the country's leaders or materials on ruling party teachings.
“We are investigating if North Korean citizens took part in sending balloons,” said a Unification Ministry official, suggesting that the discovery may be linked to ordinary North Koreans' discontent with their leaders.
BY WOO JI-WON [woo.jiwon@joongang.co.kr]
14. N. Korea Likely Provided 1.6 Mil Artillery Shells to Russia
N. Korea Likely Provided 1.6 Mil Artillery Shells to Russia
https://world.kbs.co.kr/service/news_view.htm?lang=e&Seq_Code=186245
Written: 2024-06-24 08:31:34/Updated: 2024-06-24 09:31:03
Photo : KBS
North Korea reportedly provided more than 74-thousand tons of explosives for Russia from last August through January this year.
The explosives were distributed from two ports in Russia’s Far East to 16 sites mainly along the country’s western borders near Ukraine, according to The Washington Post on Saturday.
The newspaper, quoting data obtained by the global security nonprofit Center for Advanced Defense Studies(C4ADS), said the explosives are equal to about one-point-six million artillery shells of the type Russia has used in the war.
It added that analysis of satellite imagery and marine traffic date by The Post and C4ADS found evidence of Russian ship movements between North Korea and Russia during the same period.
The Post also noted the Royal United Services Institute(RUSI), a British think tank, found 27 shipments between the North Korean port of Rajin and the two Russian ports between roughly the same period, estimating that thousands of containers had been moved, although the contents of the containers remain unknown.
15. UN approves ROK province’s plan to send water purification aid to North Korea
UN approves ROK province’s plan to send water purification aid to North Korea
But Gyeonggi Province must still receive OK from unification ministry before it can ship goods worth more than $500K
Ifang Bremer June 24, 2024
https://www.nknews.org/2024/06/un-approves-rok-provinces-plan-to-send-water-purification-aid-to-north-korea/
A girl carrying water on a road in a rural area in North Korea | Image: Eric Lafforgue (May 2009)
The U.N. Security Council (UNSC) has approved a sanctions exemption request from South Korea’s Gyeonggi Province to ship aid to North Korea, according to a notice posted by the U.N.
But Seoul’s unification ministry told NK News that despite receiving the green light from the UNSC, the province did not request approval from the ROK government to send the materials for a water purification plant as required by law.
Gyeonggi Province’s exemption marks the first time a South Korean government body has received UNSC permission to send aid since Seoul seemingly stopped approving domestic inter-Korean aid requests last year.
It remains to be seen if it will also receive the approval it needs from the unification ministry.
According to the inter-Korean exchange law, South Korean organizations that wish to send aid to the DPRK need approval from the unification ministry.
The South Korean government has rejected humanitarian groups’ requests to contact North Korean partners to arrange aid shipments since last year. President Yoon Suk-yeol has criticized such shipments, accusing the unification ministry of acting like a “North Korea aid ministry” in the past.
As a result, private ROK aid groups have found themselves in the awkward position of receiving approval from the UNSC, but not from Seoul.
In response to NK News questions, the unification ministry said that “approval of the U.N. sanctions exemption does not immediately translate to approval for humanitarian aid to North Korea. Additional measures by the government, such as approval for contact with North Korean residents and export permits, are required for humanitarian aid.”
Gyeonggi Province requested the exemption “to provide materials for a water purification facility to prevent water-borne disease and supply clean, uncontaminated water to residents in rural villages in the DPRK,” according to the letter from the UNSC.
In their request to the UNSC, Gyeonggi Province stated that the water purification facility is needed to help “health-impaired people, including children and pregnant women, and residents living in Anseok-ri and nearby villagers.”
The UNSC approval grants Gyeonggi Province an exemption until June 6, 2025 to send machine parts worth $506,061 for a water purification facility in North Korea.
The intended shipment date listed on the province’s request to the UNSC is Feb. 2025, though it is uncertain if the DPRK will even accept the aid.
If it does, the province said it will send the machine parts to the DPRK by ship from South Korea’s Incheon to North Korea’s Nampho via the Chinese ports of Dalian or Dandong.
The request further detailed that Gyeonggi Province wants to “ensure assistance is used for the intended purpose,” through monitoring by “ROK and North Korean officials” and “international monitoring experts.”
This could pose additional problems, as North Korea has kept its doors shut to international aid personnel ever since the last foreign aid workers left in the spring of 2021.
Asked if the South Korean government will start accepting inter-Korean aid requests again, the unification ministry reiterated its position that “humanitarian aid for vulnerable groups in North Korea should be pursued without political or military consideration.”
“However, due to North Korea’s refusal of South Korean supplies, border closures and the abolition of the inter-Korean liaison office, it is challenging to negotiate with and deliver aid to the North,” the ministry told NK News.
“In order to provide practical support, the North must be willing to accept aid from the South, and transparency in the aid distribution must be secured to ensure it clearly reaches the vulnerable groups in North Korea,” the ministry added.
Following the approval for Gyeonggi Province’s aid request, the UNSC has now granted three sanctions exemptions for assistance to North Korea in 2024.
According to UNICEF, only 61% of the DPRK’s population has access to safely managed drinking water services that are readily available and “free from fecal and priority chemical contamination.”
NK Pro found last year that North Korea has launched a large-scale project to expand infrastructure for treating and storing water in Pyongyang, but there have been no signs that projects of similar scale have been initiated in remote regions.
Edited by Alannah Hill
De Oppresso Liber,
David Maxwell
Vice President, Center for Asia Pacific Strategy
Senior Fellow, Global Peace Foundation
Editor, Small Wars Journal
Twitter: @davidmaxwell161
Phone: 202-573-8647
email: david.maxwell161@gmail.com
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