Quotes of the Day:
“Never has our future been more unpredictable, never have we depended so much on political forces that cannot be trusted to follow the rules of common sense and self-interest—forces that look like sheer insanity, if judged by the standards of other centuries. It is as though mankind had divided itself between those who believe in human omnipotence (who think that everything is possible if one knows how to organize masses for it) and those for whom powerlessness has become the major experience of their lives.”
— The Origins Of Totalitarianism (Harvest Book Book 244) by Hannah Arendt
https://a.co/4RRw8Eb
"Life continues... it goes on. In these three words I can sum up everything I have learned in my 80 years about life, it goes on."
- Robert Frost
"Our doubts are traitors, and make us lose the good we oft might win, by fearing to attempt."
- William Shakespeare
1. Yoon says N.K.'s recent artillery firing a violation of inter-Korean military agreement
2. Defense minister rebuffs President-elect over NK's violation of military accord
3. Defense Ministry to seek permanent deployment of US strategic assets in South Korea
4. Moon vows to fulfill his duty as commander-in-chief until end of term
5. White House said to be role model for Yoon's presidential office reform
6. Defense ministry considering reactivating EDSCG to discuss U.S. strategic asset deployment
7. Defense chief warns of difficulties relocating ministry at short notice
8. Conflict intensifies over relocation of presidential office
9. Yoon, Moon butt heads over moving president's office
10. Russia, North Korea discuss developing relations
11. ＜Inside N. Korea＞ The State of Emergency Ensues with Coronavirus Expansion in China. Night curfew, quarantine in cold symptoms. Construction along the border has been halted too.
12. ＜Inside N. Korea＞ Regime Maintains 8 Year Enlistment Policy but Shifts Focus to Training University Graduates for “Scientific Warfare”
13. North Korea investigates farmers for unregistered cattle
1. Yoon says N.K.'s recent artillery firing a violation of inter-Korean military agreement
The Moon administration is protecting the Comprehensive MIlitary Agreement since it was signed in September 2019. And since then the north has not lived up to the agreement in myriad ways.
Yoon says N.K.'s recent artillery firing a violation of inter-Korean military agreement | Yonhap News Agency
SEOUL, March 22 (Yonhap) -- President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol said Tuesday that North Korea's recent artillery firing was a violation of an inter-Korean military tension reduction agreement.
Yoon made the remark during a meeting with members of his transition team, two days after South Korea's military said North Korea fired four shots from multiple rocket launchers into the Yellow Sea.
hague@yna.co.kr
(END)
2. Defense minister rebuffs President-elect over NK's violation of military accord
As I said, the Moon administration will defend the CMA against all criticism.
Defense minister rebuffs President-elect over NK's violation of military accord
By Kang Seung-woo koreatimes.co.kr3 min
President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol and Defense Minister Suh Wook were not on the same page, Tuesday, regarding whether North Korea's recent artillery fire violated an inter-Korean military agreement.
President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol presides over a meeting of the presidential transition committee at the team's office in Seoul, Tuesday. Yonhap
On Sunday, the defense ministry announced that Pyongyang fired four shots from a multiple rocket launcher into the West Sea.
"North Korea has staged military provocations 11 times this year alone, but this is the first time that it fired artillery, isn't it?" Yoon asked during a meeting with members of his transition team.
From the start of the year, North Korea has conducted 10 missile tests and fired artillery, threatening to lift its self-imposed moratorium on nuclear weapons and long-range missile tests.
"(The artillery firing) is a clear violation of the pact," Yoon added.
The president-elect also asked the transition team members to manage the current security situation seamlessly under watchful eyes.
South Korea and North Korea signed an agreement to reduce military tensions following an inter-Korean summit in September 2018. The agreement bans all hostile acts within a buffer zone of 135 kilometers over the West Sea border and 80 kilometers into the East Sea.
However, hours later, the defense minister rebuffed Yoon's claim, saying the firing occurred beyond the buffer zone.
Defense Minister Suh Wook attends a plenary session of the National Defense Committee at the National Assembly in Seoul, Tuesday. Yonhap
When asked if Yoon's comments about the violation of the inter-Korean military accord are correct, the defense minister said they weren't.
"No, it is far north," Suh said during a parliamentary session. "It was not an area covered by the agreement."
According to military sources, North Korea conducted the firing from close to Sukchon, north of Pyongyang.
During the campaign, Yoon showed his hardline stance against North Korea, vowing to deploy an additional THAAD battery to South Korea and launch a preemptive strike on North Korea if necessary as part of enhancing deterrence against North Korea's growing threats.
As for the inter-Korean military agreement, Yoon said he might consider the possibility of ditching the pact if there is no change in North Korea's attitude.
"If elected, I will urge North Korea to make good on the inter-Korean military agreement," he said in a media interview back in November.
"Should the North show no signs of change in its attitude and renew its call for the withdrawal of a 'hostile policy,' it would be difficult for us to keep the agreement, or a cancellation of the agreement."
Meanwhile, North Korea is expected to launch an inter-continental ballistic missile or test a nuclear weapon on the occasion of the 110th birthday anniversary of its founder Kim Il-sung, April 15. In addition, it is also anticipated to hold a military parade at an airport in Pyongyang as it has mobilized more than 6,000 troops for the event, according to the South Korean military.
3. Defense Ministry to seek permanent deployment of US strategic assets in South Korea
This is a huge ask. I doubt the US will even consider it. We cannot do more than episodic rotations. We could never permanently assign strategic assets to Korea.
Defense Ministry to seek permanent deployment of US strategic assets in South Korea
The Ministry of National Defense / Yonhap
Defense minister rebuffs President-elect over NK's violation of military accord
By Kang Seung-woo
The defense ministry is set to discuss with Washington the rotational deployment of strategic U.S. assets on the Korean Peninsula under the new South Korean administration to deter North Korea's provocations.
Strategic assets refer to long-range bombers, nuclear-powered submarines or aircraft carriers.
The Ministry of National Defense gave a policy briefing to the transition committee of President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol on Tuesday and said it will seek to resume regular meetings of the Extended Deterrence Strategy and Consultation Group (EDSCG) to ensure the presence of U.S. strategic assets. Yoon has pledged to enhance South Korea's deterrence against Pyongyang's nuclear and missile threats.
The EDSCG, established by the two-plus-two foreign and defense ministerial meeting between the allies in October 2016, is a high-level consultative mechanism to achieve North Korean denuclearization through steadfast deterrence.
Extended deterrence refers to the commitment to use nuclear weapons to deter attacks on allies. The U.S. has provided extended deterrence or a nuclear umbrella to South Korea after removing all of its nuclear assets from the South in 1991.
In 2016, the former Park Geun-hye administration wanted the permanent rotational deployment of U.S. strategic assets, but Washington rejected it.
Since then, the two sides had discussed the issue via the EDSCG, with the first meeting taking place in December 2016. But the issue has not been discussed after the second meeting in January 2018.
The defense ministry also said in its briefing that it will conduct an environmental?effects?evaluation on the deployment of the U.S. Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) missile defense system in Seongju, North Gyeongsang Province.
During his election campaign, Yoon pledged to complete the environmental study.
In 2017, the U.S. installed the anti-missile shield in the county to counter North Korea's missile threats. But local residents have been opposed to the stationing of the battery in their village, citing environmental and other concerns. As a result, hundreds of U.S. and South Korean service members work in shipping containers set up on an old golf club there, while basic supplies for troops and fuel have often been airlifted in.
Also on Tuesday, the president-elect and Defense Minister Suh Wook disagreed on whether North Korea's recent artillery fire violated an inter-Korean military agreement.
President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol presides over a meeting of the presidential transition committee at the team's office in Seoul, Tuesday. YonhapOn Sunday, the defense ministry announced that Pyongyang fired four shots from a multiple rocket launcher into the West Sea.
"North Korea has staged military provocations 11 times this year alone, but this is the first time that it fired artillery, isn't it?" Yoon asked during a meeting with members of his transition team.
From the start of the year, North Korea has conducted 10 missile tests and fired artillery, threatening to lift its self-imposed moratorium on nuclear weapons and long-range missile tests.
"(The artillery firing) is a clear violation of the pact," Yoon added.
The president-elect also asked the transition team members to manage the current security situation seamlessly under watchful eyes.
South Korea and North Korea signed an agreement to reduce military tensions following an inter-Korean summit in September 2018. The agreement bans all hostile acts within a buffer zone of 135 kilometers over the West Sea border and 80 kilometers into the East Sea.
However, hours later, the defense minister rebuffed Yoon's claim, saying the firing occurred beyond the buffer zone.
Defense Minister Suh Wook attends a plenary session of the National Defense Committee at the National Assembly in Seoul, Tuesday. YonhapWhen asked if Yoon's comments about the violation of the inter-Korean military accord are correct, the defense minister said they weren't.
"No, it is far north," Suh said during a parliamentary session. "It was not an area covered by the agreement."
According to military sources, North Korea conducted the firing from close to Sukchon, north of Pyongyang.
During the campaign, Yoon showed his hardline stance against North Korea, vowing to deploy an additional THAAD battery to South Korea and launch a preemptive strike on North Korea if necessary as part of enhancing deterrence against North Korea's growing threats.
As for the inter-Korean military agreement, Yoon said he might consider the possibility of ditching the pact if there is no change in North Korea's attitude.
"If elected, I will urge North Korea to make good on the inter-Korean military agreement," he said in a media interview back in November.
"Should the North show no signs of change in its attitude and renew its call for the withdrawal of a 'hostile policy,' it would be difficult for us to keep the agreement, or a cancellation of the agreement."
Meanwhile, North Korea is expected to launch an inter-continental ballistic missile or test a nuclear weapon on the occasion of the 110th birthday anniversary of its founder Kim Il-sung, April 15. In addition, it is also anticipated to hold a military parade at an airport in Pyongyang as it has mobilized more than 6,000 troops for the event, according to the South Korean military.
4. Moon vows to fulfill his duty as commander-in-chief until end of term
There can be only one commander in chief. But note that now he considers the security situation as grave.
I guess since we have not maintained the highest state of readiness he can now say this:
"It is time for our military to maintain its highest security readiness," Moon said.
Moon vows to fulfill his duty as commander-in-chief until end of term | Yonhap News Agency
SEOUL, March 22 (Yonhap) -- President Moon Jae-in called Tuesday for watertight national security and vowed to fulfill his duty as commander-in-chief until his term ends, a day after expressing concern successor-elect Yoon Suk-yeol's plan to relocate the presidential office could leave a security vacuum.
Moon, whose term ends on May 9, said during a Cabinet meeting that his "last mission" is to "fulfill duties as head of state, chief of the administration, and commander-in-chief of the military that the Constitution has granted to the president."
Moon also said the security situation on the Korean Peninsula is "grave."
"It is time for our military to maintain its highest security readiness," Moon said.
kdh@yna.co.kr
(END)
5. White House said to be role model for Yoon's presidential office reform
Very interesting I wonder if the apparent alignment with the US on many issues will spur a backlash of anti American sentiment? Certainly the north Korean Propaganda and Agitation department will jump on his actions statements and use them to call the ROK a puppet state of the US.
White House said to be role model for Yoon's presidential office reform | Yonhap News Agency
SEOUL, March 22 (Yonhap) -- An upcoming government reform envisioned by President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol is centered on diminishing the power of the presidential office and strengthening the Cabinet's discretionary power to end the controversial imperial presidential system, officials close to him said Tuesday.
Yoon, a prosecutor-turned-politician, is said to have set the White House as a role model for not only the layout of his new presidential office but also the way the presidential secretariat and the Cabinet work.
The most noticeable change is expected to be the disappearance of the senior presidential secretary system from Yoon's presidential office, the officials said.
Instead, the ideal form of government envisaged by Yoon is one where ministers and vice ministers in each government ministry essentially work as the president's secretaries, they noted.
"The current structure, in which ministers and vice ministers report to senior presidential secretaries, who subsequently report to the president, is strange," said an official at Yoon's transition team.
"Ministers and vice ministers should each become secretaries reporting directly to the president."
In this context, the incoming government will strongly consider introducing the U.S.-style concept of secretary to the ministerial position, the official added.
"The title of senior presidential secretary itself is old-fashioned. (The presidential secretariat) may be streamlined into advisers, secretaries and administrators," another transition team official said.
"The authoritative, power-oriented and command-like feeling from the word of senior presidential secretaries will be adjusted horizontally," the official stressed.
Yoon is said to be strongly determined to push for a sweeping reform of government organization. His transition team held the first official meeting of the presidential office reform task force Monday. At the meeting also attended by senior officials from the finance and interior ministries, problems of the existing presidential office, Cheong Wa Dae, and alternatives were broadly discussed, according to reports.
Yoon has vowed to relocate the presidential office from Cheong Wa Dae to the defense ministry compound in Yongsan, central Seoul, to depart from imperial presidency. Yoon said he wants to work closely with his secretaries, advisers and the press in one building, unlike Cheong Wa Dae, where individual buildings are quite far apart.
But President Moon Jae-in has put the brakes on Yoon's relocation scheme, citing a possible security vacuum from the defense ministry.
Regardless of the situation, however, Yoon's transition team is determined to further accelerate discussions on overhauling Cheong Wa Dae, the officials said.
Meanwhile, a number of public-private joint committees to be set up within Yoon's presidential office are expected to play a role in presenting broad national agendas to be implemented by each ministry, they noted.
ycm@yna.co.kr
(END)
6. Defense ministry considering reactivating EDSCG to discuss U.S. strategic asset deployment
It is amazing that there is this effort taking place now in the last months of the Moon administration.
Defense ministry considering reactivating EDSCG to discuss U.S. strategic asset deployment | Yonhap News Agency
SEOUL, March 22 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's defense ministry on Tuesday reportedly told President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol's transition team it is looking into an option of practically reactivating the Extended Deterrence Strategy and Consultation Group (EDSCG) to discuss the issue of U.S. strategic asset deployment.
In its report to the presidential transitional committee, the ministry reportedly said it plans to discuss with the United States through the EDSCG over the permanent deployment of U.S. strategic assets to South Korea on a rotational basis in case of heightening tensions on the Korean Peninsula.
Strategic assets refer to formidable U.S. military hardware, such as nuclear-powered submarines and aircraft carriers, which are often used as a show of force to deter provocations or aggression by potential adversaries.
The EDSCG was launched in 2016 to ramp up discussions between the allies over various measures on extended deterrence. But its talks have not been held since 2018, as both South Korea and the U.S. then worked on holding a summit with North Korea.
The last EDSCG meeting came in January 2018.
The ministry's report to the transition team also reportedly included a plan of holding vice ministerial EDSCG meetings on a regular basis to discuss deterrence measures against North Korea's nuclear and missile threats.
The ministry's plan appears to follow a campaign pledge from Yoon who earlier said he will seek to further strengthen the U.S. extended deterrence by practically resuming the EDSCG talks.
Regarding the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system operated by U.S. Forces Korea, the ministry reportedly told the committee it will swiftly carry out environmental impact inspections.
A THAAD battery was first deployed to the southeastern county of Seongju in 2017. It has since been in the status of "temporary installation" pending South Korea's environmental impact assessment.
During his campaigning, Yoon said he will "normalize" the THAAD battery and complete the environmental impact assessment.
kdon@yna.co.kr
(END)
7. Defense chief warns of difficulties relocating ministry at short notice
I do feel for the installation commander! He has his work cut out for him.
Defense chief warns of difficulties relocating ministry at short notice
Military feels burdened with moving during US-South Korea joint military drills
Published : Mar 22, 2022 - 15:20 Updated : Mar 22, 2022 - 17:23
Defense Minister Suh Wook speaks during a parliamentary session at the National Assembly in Seoul on March 22, 2022. (Yonhap)
The South Korean defense minister on Tuesday publicly warned of “various and overlapping difficulties” in relocating and dispersing the military departments and units on a tight schedule, noting the necessity to “minimize” security vacuum at a critical juncture.
President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol’s transition team on March 15 asked the Defense Ministry to come up with ways to vacate the building by the end of this month by using its existing facilities, the ministry said in a written report to the National Assembly’s defense committee.
The ministry said the presidential transition committee underscored the “necessity of the expeditious relocation to guarantee conditions” for Yoon to carry out his duties upon inauguration.
Yoon on Sunday officially announced the plan to relocate the presidential office at the Defense Ministry compound by his inauguration on May 10.
The Defense Ministry’s departments and military units will move into the adjacent building currently used by the Joint Chiefs of Staff, which will be gradually relocated to the Capital Defense Command in Namtaeryeong, Gwanak-gu in Seoul.
But the Defense Ministry said in Tuesday’s report that “conditions need to be guaranteed to maintain the (military) readiness posture in consideration of security conditions during the government transition period and the schedule of the combined military training.”
Seoul and Washington expect to conduct the joint military drills in mid-April, while North Korea is widely expected to launch an intercontinental ballistic missile or a satellite around the same time.
South Korean Defense Minister Suh Wook also told lawmakers that he personally sees the “necessity to consult on the timing and schedule” of the relocation plan with the transition team, while attending the emergency meeting of the National Assembly’s defense committee.
Relocation at a sensitive time
The defense minister said he has expressed concerns over infeasibility and “military difficulties” caused by the plan in his meeting with the presidential transition committee.
In particular, Suh pointed to the “peril” of moving the Defense Ministry’s departments and military units in April, when the South Korea-US joint military drills are scheduled to be conducted. The defense chief went on to say that the military “feels the burden” of the current timeframe.
“There will be various and overlapping difficulties as the places (we work) and we conduct military exercises are different,” the minister told lawmakers.
Suh admitted that “there appears to be a lot of concern over the relocation as it has been decided in such a short time and without review.”
Suh said the National Security Council members raised concerns over pending issues at a meeting held the previous day. The issues include moving equipment of the presidential office’s crisis management center into the Defense Ministry compound and maintaining watertight military readiness in the process of redeployment
But the defense minister repeatedly pledged that the military will strive to “minimize” a security vacuum that might be caused by the relocation, emphasizing that Seoul has “military options” to respond to North Korea’s unexpected “provocations.”
During the meeting, the defense chief said the relocation of the presidential office also requires the redeployment of air defense artillery corps.
Suh additionally admitted that he has “concerns about” the presidential office, the Defense Ministry, and the JCS being located at the same place.
“In my view, it is a principle that (the three) should be dispersed based on military considerations,” Suh told lawmakers. “Therefore, careful examination is needed.”
In a written report, the military also pointed out there are limitations in finding available space that can accommodate 16 military units and around 6,500 personnel currently working at the Defense Ministry compound.
The Defense Ministry underlined that the transition team should take account of the time required to sign a contract with a packing service company and complete the redeployment into existing facilities without refurbishment.
The ministry said it takes “at least four weeks” to disperse and relocate military departments and units into the JCS headquarters and other nearby facilities, including the vacant building previously used by the Defense Acquisition Program Administration.
By Ji Da-gyum (dagyumji@heraldcorp.com)
8. Conflict intensifies over relocation of presidential office
It looks like the president-elect is going to fall on his sword on this. And this will be the defining controversy of the new administration.
Conflict intensifies over relocation of presidential office
President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol reads a report during a meeting with presidential transition committee members at the committee's office in Tongui-dong, Jongno District, Seoul, Tuesday. Joint Press Corps
Clash over relocation plan risks smooth power transition
By Nam Hyun-woo
Concerns are growing over a smooth transfer of power due to an escalating conflict between the incoming and outgoing administrations over President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol's plan to move the presidential office to the defense ministry compound in Yongsan District.
The ruling and opposition blocs are refusing to budge in their confrontation over the controversial relocation plan, with Yoon, President Moon Jae-in and their parties exchanging salvos every day.
"Given the situation so far, (President-elect Yoon) may have to begin his presidency at the presidential transition committee office," Yoon's spokesperson and Rep. Kim Eun-hye of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) told reporters, Tuesday.
"If Cheong Wa Dae delivers its intention, we will carefully consider it," she added.
Kim's remarks came a day after Moon voiced concerns over Yoon's plan to set up a new presidential office at the Ministry of National Defense headquarters and begin his presidency on May 10 without spending a single day at Cheong Wa Dae, citing a possible "security vacuum" caused by the sudden relocation of the presidential office and its security related facilities during the power transition.
Yoon wants to move the presidential office in order to become more accessible to the public. He believes the existing presidential office compound in Cheong Wa Dae is too secluded, while critics of his plan say the sequestered location ensures the safety of the President.
Citing concerns of a security vacuum, Cheong Wa Dae dismissed the presidential transition committee's proposal to approve necessary funding for the relocation at Tuesday's Cabinet meeting. Yoon seeks to tap into state reserve funds to finance approximately 50 billion won ($40.9 million) of the relocation cost. But that requires Cabinet approval.
Moon did not mention the relocation plan during the Cabinet meeting, but commented on a related issue.
"There should be no vacuum in state affairs, not even the smallest one," Moon said. "National security, the economy and public safety, in particular, should be handled flawlessly."
"With tensions surrounding the Korean Peninsula escalating, there should be no unstable factors when it comes to national security. We should spare no efforts to manage the situation of the Korean Peninsula stably in the period of transition."
President Moon Jae-in enters a meeting room to preside over a Cabinet meeting at Cheong Wa Dae, Tuesday. YonhapThe confrontation over the presidential office casts a grim outlook on Yoon's efforts to achieve a smooth transition of power. Reflecting such differences, Moon postponed a meeting with Yoon earlier this month to discuss the transfer of power.
"There is no fixed schedule for working-level talks to arrange a meeting between Yoon and Moon," Yoon's spokesperson said.
Rep. Ahn Gyu-back of the Democratic Party of Korea, front, touches his forehead during a National Assembly National Defense Committee meeting on Tuesday. Joint Press Corps
Defense ministry's move
Lawmakers of the main opposition PPP and the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) also clashed over the consequences of the defense ministry's relocation. Yoon seeks to set up the new presidential office inside the defense ministry building. The ministry will move to the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) headquarters located in an adjacent building. The JCS will move to the Namtaeryeong area in southern Seoul later.
During a parliamentary National Defense Committee meeting on Tuesday, DPK lawmakers lambasted the relocation as "an unimaginably hasty plan" which will seriously compromise national security. PPP members fought back by insisting that the ruling party is citing an imaginary national security vacuum simply to oppose Yoon's plan.
"Even the Special Committee for National Security Measures would not imagine this kind of hasty, military operation-like relocation plan," DPK Rep. Hong Young-pyo said, referring to a junta committee set up when former authoritarian President Chun Doo-hwan staged a coup to take the presidency. "Such a plan is bound to cause a serious national security vacuum. The current plan is close to disbanding the ministry into multiple branches."
According to a defense ministry report to the transition committee, the ministry and the JCS will be categorized into nine groups that will be relocated to eight different locations. The minister's office and other departments related to the ministry's command function can share spaces with the JCS, but other departments have to be relocated to other buildings. Some functions of the JCS also need to be relocated when the ministry shares the same building.
DPK Rep. Kim Min-ki asked defense minister Suh Wook if it is possible to move the defense ministry to some place within two months. Suh said, "I wouldn't do that under normal situations."
On the other hand, PPP members said there will be no security vacuum even if the presidential office and the ministry move.
"The JCS said there will be no security vacuum based on the current military operation capability," PPP Rep. Sung Il-jong said. "If the incoming and outgoing powers cooperate in the process of government transition, there will be no vacuum in national security or state affairs. I cannot understand why the ruling bloc is trying to impede the incoming administration."
PPP Rep. Shin Won-sik also said concerns of a national security vacuum are "exaggerated," and added, "The defense minister does not work in his office in the ministry if there's an emergency situation."
9. Yoon, Moon butt heads over moving president's office
It is getting ugly and I fear it will get worse.
Tuesday
March 22, 2022
Yoon, Moon butt heads over moving president's office
President Moon Jae-in vows to fulfill his duty as commander-in-chief until the end of his term in a Cabinet meeting at the Blue House in central Seoul Tuesday. The Blue House expressed worries Monday over President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol’s plans to relocate the presidential office to the Defense Ministry compound in Yongsan, citing security concerns. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]
The Blue House and incoming president are locking horns over relocating the presidential office to the Defense Ministry in Yongsan in central Seoul.
President Moon Jae-in in a National Security Council (NSC) meeting said Monday he was worried that such a move could leave a "security vacuum" on the Korean Peninsula.
He was responding to President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol's plan to relocate the presidential office to the National Defense Ministry compound in Yongsan District right after his inauguration on May 10. The move would require major reshuffling within the compound, including the Defense Ministry moving into the adjacent Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) headquarters.
Park Soo-hyun, senior presidential secretary for public communication, said after the NSC meeting Monday afternoon that Moon "sympathizes with the idea of returning the Blue House to the people," having made a similar pledge of a Gwanghwamun presidential office during his presidential campaign.
But Park noted that the plan to relocate the Defense Ministry, JCS, the presidential office and presidential security in such a short period of time seems to be "unreasonable."
North Korea conducted 10 missile tests this year, and Seoul and Washington are scheduled to hold an annual military joint exercise in April, putting the move at an especially busy and delicate time for the Defense Ministry.
"As the security crisis on the Korean Peninsula is escalating," said Park, "it is necessary to sufficiently look into concerns that the unprepared moving of the Defense Ministry, JCS and the Blue House crisis management center could cause a security vacuum and confusion during a government transition period when security capability is most important."
The Blue House's objection could be a big problem for the transition team's plan to move the presidential office to Yongsan with less than 50 days until Yoon's inauguration.
Yoon's decision to relocate the presidential office is part of a campaign pledge to bring the president closer to the people. He has described the secluded Blue House, located in northern Gwanghwamun, as a symbol of "imperial power" and made it clear he has no intention of moving into its compound. His initial pledge was to move the presidential office to Gwanghwamun, but that plan was scrapped because of security concerns and higher costs.
Under the Yongsan plan, the presidential office will move into the 10-story main building of the Defense Ministry. In turn, Defense Ministry personnel will move into the JCS headquarters next door, while the JCS will partly move into the Army public affairs division building. Eventually, the JCS is expected to be relocated to the Namtaeryeong area in southern Seoul, where the war command is situated. The Defense Ministry could also eventually relocate to the government complex in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi.
A national park will be built on land returned from the nearby U.S. Army Garrison in Yongsan, and Yoon promises the public more access to the president and his office. The Blue House compound will be turned into a public museum or park at the beginning of Yoon's term, according to this plan.
Yoon's transition team initially estimated a budget of 49.6 billion won ($40.9 million) for the presidential office relocation. However, the estimate didn't appear to cover any other expenses than the move of the president's office.
If the JCS moves to a war command center in Namtaeryeong, southern Seoul, the construction cost for a new building could be around 120 billion won, Yoon's spokesperson Kim Eun-hye said Monday.
Addressing the Blue House objection, spokesperson Kim said in a press briefing Tuesday, "We are well aware that the people's demand for a change in government is also a sincere wish for it to work properly."
She continued, "We want to work. Please help us work."
Kim also rejected reports that the transition team was asking Moon to vacate the Blue House premises before midnight on May 10 so that Yoon can open the compound to the public the same day.
"We are not scary tenants," she said. "What we mean is that because President-elect Yoon will begin his official duties as commander-in-chief that day, he will symbolically keep his promises with responsibility to the people."
Cabinet approval is needed to fund the presidential office move. Moon has stressed that the president remains commander-in-chief until his term ends on May 9.
Should Moon block the presidential office relocation plan and Yoon refuses to enter the Blue House, the new president may have to begin his term in his transition office in Tongui-dong, central Seoul.
Moon in a Cabinet meeting later Tuesday stressed, "I will consider it my last mission to fulfill my duties as head of state, head of the administration and commander-in-chief of the military, as granted to the president by the Constitution."
He told his aides, "There cannot be even a small vacuum in state affairs. In particular, there must be not a single gap moment in national security, the economy and public safety."
Noting that the security situation on the Korean Peninsula is "grave," he stressed that now is the time for the military to "maintain its highest security readiness."
Moon and Yoon have yet to meet since a luncheon at the Blue House was abruptly canceled last week. The two sides claimed to need more preparatory work, but had clashed over the issue of end-of-term personnel appointments to public institutions. Such an in-person meeting could possibly resolve some of the issues between the president and his successor.
Lawmakers of the ruling Democratic Party (DP) and opposition People Power Party (PPP) butted heads over the issue Tuesday in a defense committee hearing at the National Assembly Tuesday.
Defense Minister Suh Wook was grilled on the Yongsan relocation plan by the parliamentary committee and said he was first informed about the plan from Yoon's transition team on March 14.
The Defense Ministry said that the relocation of the ministry's offices to the JCS building and other facilities will take at least four weeks and a minimum budget of 11.8 billion won for moving. The current departments housed in the Defense Ministry's main building are expected to be dispersed across eight government facilities including the JCS headquarters, an annex building, the former Defense Acquisition Program Administration building and Korea Meteorological Administration.
When asked if a Defense Ministry move will be possible within two months, Suh replied, "I don't think it would be done under normal procedures."
Suh added that building a new JCS headquarters is expected to cost more than the 120 billion won estimate raised by Yoon's spokesperson the previous day, taking into consideration that it cost 175 billion won to build the current building in 2010, and noting inflation and other factors.
DP Rep. Suh Hoon, a fifth-term lawmaker, said, "Moving the presidential office is not a child's joke, and even if it is relocated to Yongsan, you have to take the time to do it properly," adding it is not too late to move into the Blue House.
PPP Rep. Sung Il-jong acknowledged that the time for moving is "tight" but noted, "if there are security vacuum concerns, the old and new power can cooperate," adding "a solution can be achieved only through cooperation in the process of transitioning governments."
DP lawmakers in the meeting questioned the rush, some hinting that Yoon might have undisclosed reasons for not wanting to move into the Blue House, such as feng shui. PPP representatives said that the Yongsan move was considered feasible by the Defense Ministry and a promise to the people.
Officials on Yoon's transition team accused the Blue House and DP of objecting to the Yongsan move for the sake of whipping up support for the June local elections.
The majority of the public wasn't keen on moving the president out of the Blue House, with 58.1 percent surveyed against the plan, according to a poll conducted by Mediatomato released Tuesday.
In contrast, 33 percent supported the relocation and 8.7 percent were unsure in the poll conducted over Saturday and Sunday on 1,018 adults.
BY SARAH KIM [kim.sarah@joongang.co.kr]
10. Russia, North Korea discuss developing relations
What could they be discussing? What nefarious plans could they hatch to pose dilemmas for the US?
Russia, North Korea discuss developing relations
LONDON, March 22 (Reuters) - Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Igor Morgulov met with North Korea's ambassador to Russia and discussed developing bilateral relations "in the context of changes happening on the international arena," the Russian foreign ministry said on Tuesday.
The contact took place as Russia faces increasing isolation over its invasion of Ukraine, which has drawn sweeping international sanctions.
North Korea last month blamed the Ukraine crisis on the "hegemonic policy" and "high-handedness" of the United States and the West.
Reporting by Reuters
11. ＜Inside N. Korea＞ The State of Emergency Ensues with Coronavirus Expansion in China. Night curfew, quarantine in cold symptoms. Construction along the border has been halted too.
north Korea's COVID paradox.
＜Inside N. Korea＞ The State of Emergency Ensues with Coronavirus Expansion in China. Night curfew, quarantine in cold symptoms. Construction along the border has been halted too.
(Photo) Workers wearing protective clothing repair the embankment on the riverside of the Yalu River, a border river with China. Photographed from the Chinese side in October 2020 (ASIAPERSS).
◆Coronavirus is just around the corner!
In response to the expanding coronavirus infection in Jilin Province, China, North Korean authorities have placed the country's border region with China on a state of emergency alert (Kang Ji-won).
The growing tendency of coronavirus outbreak started in early March in Jilin Province. At one time, more than 4,000 people were infected, and cases even emerged in areas bordering North Korea. In Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture, which faces the Tumen River on the border, more than 10 people were infected at one time in Hunchun City, Yanji City, etc., and in Baishan City in the upper reaches of the Yalu River. On March 20, there were 8 infected persons in the Yanbian area, including asymptomatic persons.
Although the actual situation is unknown, the North Korean authorities, which had been advertising " Zero Coronavirus," tensed up.
"It's a super emergency. The government explained the situation on the Chinese side of the outbreak to the residents and said, 'The coronavirus is just around the corner. Keep tense at all times,' and raised the alert level."
Our reporting partner who lives in Hyesan City, Ryanggang Province, told us so.
◆Quarantine with similar symptoms to coronavirus.
To summarize the reports from our reporting partner, the emergency measures currently implemented are as follows.
● To enforce the night-time traffic ban.
The night-time traffic ban introduced in 2020 from 6 p.m. to 7 a.m. was slightly eased in February but is now completely banned again. Shopping and visiting neighbours are no longer allowed.
● No access to border rivers - "Absolute prohibition."
The approach to the Yalu River itself is completely blocked. Construction and other work near the river have been halted. Border guards are also prohibited from using the Yalu River's water, and military personnel are complaining of its inconvenience. Also, censor teams have been dispatched to troops to prevent border guards from aiding and abetting smuggling.
● Medical care is limited to cold medicine and quarantine.
Doctors in charge assigned to each people's group check whether people are showing any cold symptoms, and those who are symptomatic are sent to quarantine facilities. Recently, the government supplied medical institutions with antipyretics and saline solutions made in China. All patients suspected of having coronavirus are prescribed cold medicine.
● Quarantine and Lockdown.
Quarantine personnel have been increased, and intensive disinfection of institutions, workplaces, and people's groups is in progress. If a person with coronavirus symptoms does not report or is not quarantined, the entire area involved will be sealed off.
◆ What is more frightening than coronavirus is the hardship of living.
How are the residents reacting to the sudden shift to a state of high alert? According to our reporting partner, people are more worried about their livelihoods than they are about the disease, with the following explanations.
"I am very afraid that the city will be in lockdown for a long time. Some people do not go to the hospital even if they are sick and do not report it, because they will be quarantined if they are found to have caught a cold. If they are quarantined, they will not be able to do business and will not be able to survive."
In addition, it is said that there are many disappointed that the COVID-19 outbreak in an adjacent area of China has made the trade resumption even more distant.
Meanwhile, the Chinese side bordering with Hyesan City has a growing suspicion that the original infectious agent of the coronavirus is North Korea, and border guards are keeping a watchful eye on border-crossers from North Korea.
※ASIAPRESS contacts its reporting partners in North Korea through smuggled Chinese mobile phones.
Map of North Korea ( ASIAPRESS)
12. ＜Inside N. Korea＞ Regime Maintains 8 Year Enlistment Policy but Shifts Focus to Training University Graduates for “Scientific Warfare”
Scientific warfare. Nuclear weapons, missiles,and cyber?
Note continued misuse of the military and continued corruption.
＜Inside N. Korea＞ Regime Maintains 8 Year Enlistment Policy but Shifts Focus to Training University Graduates for “Scientific Warfare”
Is covering your nose with a mask a nuisance in every country? Young soldiers stand guard on the other side of barbed wire. All three of them look thin. Photographed in Sinuiju City from the Chinese side in mid-July, 2021 (ASIAPRESS).
◆ Party policy is to redirect personnel to construction projects
A domestic investigation conducted by ASIAPRESS has revealed that the length of military service for boys enlisting this spring in North Korea is the same as last year: eight years. The Kim Jong-un regime reduced the total number of military personnel last year by drastically shortening the length of military service, and this policy has been maintained. It was also found that this year, the government is encouraging university enrolment to prioritize the development of human resource professionals (ISHIMARU Jiro/Kang Ji-won).
The length of military service in North Korea is far too long; it began to grow gradually starting in the 2000s, and according to an ASIAPRESS domestic investigation, by 2020 it had reached 13 years for men and 8 years for women (women are volunteers only). This is the longest military service in the world.
It is unfortunate that they have to spend their youth, the most dynamic period of their lives, in military camps. Moreover, the long period of military service has caused a serious shortage of young workers at industrial sites.
After the 8th Congress of the Workers' Party of Korea held last January, the Kim Jong-un regime decided to drastically reduce the total number of military personnel. It shortened the length of military service to eight years for men and five years for women and discharged a large number of soldiers who had exceeded their service terms to instead work in agriculture and mining, where production was hampered by a shortage of personnel.
What about this year's military service period? Parents with sons and daughters had been very worried.
The skinny soldier shopping at a market is an officer. Photographed in Hyesan City in August 2013 by ASIAPRESS.
◆"We have nuclear missiles..."
In North Korea, a recruiting program called "invitation recruitment" runs every April. Prospective graduates of upper secondary schools (equivalent to high schools) must choose whether to enlist in the military, continue their education, or be assigned to a workplace. Since the "Military Service Law" requires boys to enlist between the ages of 17 and 25, the majority of them enlist after graduation. For girls, although it is a volunteer system that stipulates that "you can enlist by the age of 18," the government has strongly promoted the enlistment of girls over the past dozen years to make up for the shortage of soldiers.
Military service is handled by the "Military Mobilization Department," a government office under the Defence Ministry's Formation Replenishment Bureau, which is established throughout the country. ASIAPRESS contacted three of our reporting partners in North Hamkyung Province and Ryanggang Province in mid-March, and asked them to meet with the personnel in charge of the "Military Mobilization Department" and school officials to investigate.
The results were consistent in each area. The length of military service for those set to graduate from upper secondary schools and enlist in April this year is 8 years for boys and 5 years for girls. This is the same as last year. However, for special military units, such as missile units, military service lengths can be more than 10 years.
One of our reporting partners who conducted an investigation of the "Military Mobilization Department" gave the following statement:
"When I asked the officer in charge if there were not enough soldiers because of the large number of troops discharged last year, he replied that 'Modern war is technological and scientific warfare. We have nuclear missiles, so it is the Party's policy to give priority to socialist construction.'"
(Photo) A construction unit soldier on his way to the hospital after becoming malnourished. Photographed by Koo Kwang-ho in South Pyongan Province in July 2011 (ASIAPRESS).
◆ Encouraging students to go to college, but...
In North Korea, a recruiting program called "invitation recruitment" runs every April. Prospective graduates of upper secondary schools (equivalent to high schools) must choose whether to enlist in the military, continue their education, or be assigned to a workplace. Since the "Military Service Law" requires boys to enlist between the ages of 17 and 25, the majority of them enlist after graduation. For girls, although it is a volunteer system that stipulates that "you can enlist by the age of 18," the government has strongly promoted the enlistment of girls over the past dozen years to make up for the shortage of soldiers.
Military service is handled by the "Military Mobilization Department," a government office under the Defence Ministry's Formation Replenishment Bureau, which is established throughout the country. ASIAPRESS contacted three of our reporting partners in North Hamkyung Province and Ryanggang Province in mid-March, and asked them to meet with the personnel in charge of the "Military Mobilization Department" and school officials to investigate.
The results were consistent in each area. The length of military service for those set to graduate from upper secondary schools and enlist in April this year is 8 years for boys and 5 years for girls. This is the same as last year. However, for special military units, such as missile units, military service lengths can be more than 10 years.
One of our reporting partners who conducted an investigation of the "Military Mobilization Department" gave the following statement:
"When I asked the officer in charge if there were not enough soldiers because of the large number of troops discharged last year, he replied that 'Modern war is technological and scientific warfare. We have nuclear missiles, so it is the Party's policy to give priority to socialist construction.'"
◆ Still, the reality is that students must be able to afford to go on to higher education.
However, the number of students going on to college is not seeming to increase by much.
"In fact, most families choose not to encourage their children to go on to higher education but to enlist in the military. This is because they cannot afford to send their children to college unless they can make ends meet."
The three reporting partners who conducted research into this matter all reported back similarly. In North Korea, college tuition is supposed to be free. Yet, why do children from poor families give up on higher education?
In North Korea, students are often placed in dormitories for university. Although dormitory fees are free, students are undernourished unless they supplement their meagre school lunches with additional food. In the last 20 years or so, uniforms and educational materials are almost entirely self-funded. Without money sent by their parents, students are simply unable to survive.
◆ Military placement is decided by bribes
On the other hand, for parents who enlist their children in the military, the primary concern is which unit their children will be placed in. The main reason is the poor treatment of enlistees in the general units. It is common in North Korea for new soldiers to become malnourished, and accidents are frequent in units engaged in construction and civil engineering work.
"All parents want their children to be placed in well-supported units. But that can't happen without doing 'business.' In short, giving a bribe."
It is said that the most popular units are the Ministry of Security (secret police), the Security Ministry (police), and the Coast Guard units. Previously, the most popular units were the border guards posted along the border with China. This was because border guards could receive bribes from people living along the border by turning a blind eye to smuggling and border crossing. However, such benefits disappeared when border controls were tightened to prevent the coronavirus.
"The bribe required for entering Ministry of Security units ranges from 3,000 to 5,000 RMB, for Security Ministry units, 2,000 RMB, and for Coast Guard units, about 1,500 RMB. People in the Military Mobilization Department are competing with each other for ‘clients’ since the spring enlistment period is the best time to earn money" (100 Chinese yuan is equal to about 15.75 USD).
Our reporting partner, who told us all this, also has two children. Soon it will be time for them too to worry about their children’s career paths.
※ASIAPRESS contacts its reporting partners in North Korea through smuggled Chinese mobile phones.
13. North Korea investigates farmers for unregistered cattle
North Korea investigates farmers for unregistered cattle
Farmers are not happy that the cows they fed and raised can be called to work on a cooperative farm.
By Hyemin Son
2022.03.21
North Korean authorities are going from farmhouse to farmhouse to check if farmers are hiding any unregistered cows, threatening to send the contraband cattle to work on collective farms, sources in the country told RFA.
Owning a cow without registering it with the government is a crime in North Korea, where cattle have been considered a means of production to be owned and managed by the government, and lent out to businesses and people, like farmers, as needed.
However, a few years after leader Kim Jong Un came to power in 2011, the government instituted policies giving farmers the responsibility to raise their own cattle, register them with the state, and use them to plow the fields and for transportation — all while still making them available for cooperative farm work.
Under the so-called Responsible Farmland System, the state retained the power to grant the farmers the field they worked but it was relieved of the responsibility of providing them the means to plow the fields.
But farmers have been breeding their own cattle and have stopped registering them, a resident of Ryongchon county in the northwestern province of North Pyongan told RFA’s Korean Service March 17.
Authorities are now cracking down.
“From yesterday, the cooperative farms in Sosok village have been sent to investigate privately owned cattle, under the direction of the county and led by the Farm Management Committee,” said the source who requested anonymity for security reasons.
“They went house to house. The cattle were classified and registered as either having or not having a nose ring. The cows with nose rings are eligible to be mobilized at cooperative farms for plowing,” the source said.
In the city of Chongju, in the same province, a resident explained how the Responsible Farmland System, which began in 2015, had originally been seen as a setback for the farmers.
“At that time, they had to borrow the cooperative farm-owned cattle to plow. There were many complaints, as they had to pay for the cattle with their autumn grain rations, so they saw it as a deduction,” said the second source, who requested anonymity to speak freely.
“Some of the farmers solved the problem by buying calves from the cooperative farms and raising them on their own. Since then, calf trades among the farmers are on the rise and are common these days,” she said.
Since the whole point of the Responsible Farmland System was to collect more grain from the farmers, the authorities simply allowed them to register and own the cattle, but then the farmers started using them for purposes other than farming, the second source said.
“Many of them found that they could earn more money by using the cattle to haul goods to the market for merchants by oxcart instead of merely plowing fields. So now there are lots of cases where the farmers are raising cattle for personal income,” she said.
Shortly after the Responsible Farmland System began, privately owned cattle still needed to be registered under a cooperative farm, the second source said.
“My cousin registered his calf with the management office, but he uses it for his personal income. He even built a cart for his calf by himself. There are many individuals who trade calves between themselves. One small calf is traded between 300,000 to 400,000 won [U.S. $50 to $67],” she said.
“More personal cattle are now used to make income after they are registered, and it’s now becoming normal for cows to be owned and used without registration at all. This is why the authorities are taking measures to discover privately owned cattle,” she said.
After discovering unregistered cattle in the investigation, the collective farm will be able to mobilize all cattle in the area for its own spring plowing.
“The farmers are now complaining that the government did not help them feed or raise the cattle but now they get to use the cows for cooperative farm work without compensating the farmers,” the second source said.
According to both sources, this is the first time that the authorities have taken measures to count these privately owned animals. Once a cow is registered with the state, the cattle can be called into service whenever the farm needs it, even if it is not farming season.
Translated by Claire Lee. Written in English by Eugene Whong.
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.
