Quotes of the Day:
"Never, never, never believe any war will be smooth and easy, or that anyone who embarks on the strange voyage can measure the tides and hurricanes he will encounter. The statesman who yields to war fever must realise that once the signal is given, he is no longer the master of policy but the slave of unforeseeable and uncontrollable events. Antiquated War Offices, weak, incompetent, or arrogant Commanders, untrustworthy allies, hostile neutrals, malignant Fortune, ugly surprises, awful miscalculations all take their seats at the Council Board on the morrow of a declaration of war."
- Winston Churchill
"I have seen war. I have seen war on land and sea. I have seen blood running from the wounded. I have seen men coughing out their gassed lungs. I have seen the dead in the mud. I have seen cities destroyed. I have seen two hundred limping exhausted men come out of line-the survivors of a regiment of one thousand that went forward forty-eight hours before. I have seen children starving. I have seen the agony of mothers and wives. I hate war."
- Franklin D. Roosevelt
Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired signifies, in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed.
- Dwight D. Eisenhower
1. North Korea showcases new SLBM in the military parade
2. North Korea showcases its biggest ICBM yet as Kim vows to hasten development of North's nuclear arsenal
3. North Korea Holds Military Parade, Testing U.S. and Allies
4. Respected Comrade Kim Jong Un Makes Speech at Military Parade Held in Celebration of 90th Founding Anniversary of KPRA
5. Ri Pyong-chol reinstated as top N. Korean official, report shows
6. Transition team vows to bolster capabilities to deter N.K. nuclear, missile threats
7. U.S. Attorney Announces Charges Against Two European Citizens For Conspiring With A U.S. Citizen To Assist North Korea In Evading U.S. Sanctions
8. Crypto Conference in North Korea Leads to More Criminal Charges
9. North Korean State Actors Deploying Novel Malware to Spy on Journalists
10. U.S. commission says religious freedom remains worst in N. Korea
11. Appointments at the 50th session of the Human Rights Council (13 June to 8 July 2022) (including Special Rapporteur for north Korea)
12. Yoon's delegates, Japan's leader agree on need to pursue 'shared interests'
13. N. Korean leader Kim ramps up nuclear threat, alludes to more aggressive doctrine
14. For Peace, Let There Be Nukes
15. THE STORY OF LEE MIN-HAK (1930–2016), A KOREAN WAR VETERAN AND NORTH KOREAN REFUGEE
16. South Korea key for Europe to manage fallout from China-U.S. rivalry, report says
1. North Korea showcases new SLBM in the military parade
North Korea showcases new SLBM in the military parade - Naval News
North Korea presented its new SLBM (submarine-launched ballistic missile) during the military parade held on April 25th, in celebration of its 90th year of the establishment of the KPA (Korean People’s Army).
A smaller SLBM that North Korea claimed it successfully launched from a submarine last October was also shown. The small SLBM appeared to have a sharper warhead tip. This variation of SLBMs with different ranges seems to indicate that they will be deployed in a very short time.
The new SLBM has a larger warhead and length than the Pukguksung-5ㅅ, which was first displayed at the January 2021 military parade. This improvement means that the new SLBM has a much longer range and is capable of carrying MIRVs (multiple independently-targetable reentry vehicles) that can destroy multiple cities at once with just one nuclear-tipped SLBM.
It is estimated that the length of the missile is 3 meters longer than that of the previous Pukguksung-5ㅅ SLBM, which could be called Pukguksung-6 or an improved 5. Given its size, the SLBM could be loaded on North Korean 3000-ton submarines currently in the final stages of construction at the Sinpo shipyard.
Source: KODEF (Korea Defense Forum)
The Associate Research Fellow of the Asan Institute for Policy Studies, Mr. Uk Yang, analyzed the new missile in an interview with local media.
“The diameter of the new and the valuable SLBMs has not changed, the height of the missiles and the cabin of the launch vehicles are identical. The new SLBM protrudes more than 0.5mm beyond the front of the carrier vehicle, confirming that the new missile is slightly longer.”
Mr. Uk Yang, Associate Research Fellow of the Asan Institute for Policy Studies
Yang added that the increased length was due to the addition of more combustion parts to increase the range, as well as the enlargement of the warhead, presumably for the placement of a MIRV warhead.
After presenting strategic nuclear weapons, including SLBMs, ICBM, tactical guided missiles, etc., North Korean leader Kim Jong Un delivered a speech on his new nuclear doctrine, which envisions lowering the inhibition threshold for using nuclear weapons and using his nuclear arsenal more actively when North Korea’s nuclear interests are violated, emphasizing deterrence capability. Kim Jong Un has not specified what his regime’s “core interests” are and intends to expand the scope for using nuclear weapons.
In response, the transition team of conservative President-elect Suk-yeol Yoon held a press conference on April 26 to comment on the North Korean military parade. Deputy spokesman Ilhee Won, speaking on behalf of the transition team, said, “It proves that North Korea is threatening peace on the Korean Peninsula, in Northeast Asia, and in the world while pretending to push for peace and talks for five years. Because North Korea poses a real and serious threat to us, deterrence is our top priority. We will pursue both opposing weapons systems and the super-gap in military technology side by side.”
Daehan Lee is a political, security affairs researcher who worked at the U.S. Embassy in Seoul and the People Power Party. Prior to his work in politics and diplomacy, Lee served for the Republic of Korea Navy as a secretary to the Vice Admiral and a translator for Master Chief Petty Officers of the Navy, shortly working at the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He writes about Korean naval acquisition and development. Fields of interest include maritime security, defense acquisition, Korean politics and foreign policy.
2. North Korea showcases its biggest ICBM yet as Kim vows to hasten development of North's nuclear arsenal
This certainly signals Kim's intent - political warfare, deterrence, and offensive military operations to dominate the Korean peninsula. We should pay attention to Kim's words. There is no appeasement that will do anything to ensure the security of the ROK.
Excerpts:
"(We) will continue to take measures for further developing the nuclear forces of our state at the fastest possible speed," Kim told his troops and the crowd gathered for the parade at a Pyongyang plaza, according to the official Korean Central News Agency.
He repeated an earlier message that the North could pre-emptively use its nuclear weapons when threatened by attacks and called for his nuclear forces to be fully prepared to go "in motion at any time."
"The fundamental mission of our nuclear forces is to deter a war, but our nukes can never be confined to the single mission of war deterrent even at a time when a situation we are not desirous of at all is created on this land," Kim said. "If any forces try to violate the fundamental interests of our state, our nuclear forces will have to decisively accomplish its unexpected second mission," which would leave any invading force "perished," he said.
North Korea showcases its biggest ICBM yet as Kim vows to hasten development of North's nuclear arsenal
Seoul, South Korea — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un vowed to bolster his nuclear forces at "maximum speed" and threatened to use them if provoked in a speech he delivered during a military parade that featured powerful weapons systems targeting the United States and its allies, state media reported Tuesday.
His remarks suggest he will continue provocative weapons tests in a pressure campaign to wrest concessions from the U.S. and other rivals. The parade Monday night marked the 90th anniversary of North Korea's army - the backbone of the Kim family's authoritarian rule - and came as the country faces an economy battered by pandemic-related difficulties, punishing U.S.-led sanctions and its own mismanagement.
State media photos showed Kim, dressed in a white military ceremonial coat, smiling and waving from a balcony along with his wife Ri Sol Ju and other top deputies.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un watches a nighttime military parade to mark the 90th anniversary of the founding of the Korean People's Revolutionary Army in Pyongyang, North Korea, in this undated photo released by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on April 26, 2022. KCNA via Reuters
"(We) will continue to take measures for further developing the nuclear forces of our state at the fastest possible speed," Kim told his troops and the crowd gathered for the parade at a Pyongyang plaza, according to the official Korean Central News Agency.
He repeated an earlier message that the North could pre-emptively use its nuclear weapons when threatened by attacks and called for his nuclear forces to be fully prepared to go "in motion at any time."
"The fundamental mission of our nuclear forces is to deter a war, but our nukes can never be confined to the single mission of war deterrent even at a time when a situation we are not desirous of at all is created on this land," Kim said. "If any forces try to violate the fundamental interests of our state, our nuclear forces will have to decisively accomplish its unexpected second mission," which would leave any invading force "perished," he said.
The parade featured goose-stepping troops shouting "hurrah!" and an array of modern weapons including missiles potentially capable of reaching the U.S. homeland as well as shorter-range missiles that can be fired from land vehicles or submarines and threaten South Korea and Japan.
One of the weapons showcased at the brightly illuminated Kim Il Sung Square, named after Kim's late grandfather and state founder, was North Korea's biggest, newly built intercontinental ballistic missile, the Hwasong-17.
Hwasong-17 intercontinental ballistic missiles in a nighttime military parade to mark the 90th anniversary of the founding of the Korean People's Revolutionary Army in Pyongyang, North Korea, in this undated photo released by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on April 26, 2022. KCNA via Reuters
North Korea claimed to have test-fired that missile last month in its first full-range ICBM liftoff in more than four years. South Korea disputed that, saying Pyongyang launched a smaller, existing Hwasong-15 ICBM following a failed launch of the Hwasong-17. Despite the outside doubts, the missile fired on March 24 flew longer and higher than any other missile North Korea has launched, demonstrating potential ability to reach deep into the U.S. mainland.
KCNA said spectators at the parade raised loud cheers when they saw the Hwasong-17, which it said showed "the absolute power of Juche (self-reliance), Korea and the strategic position of our republic to the world."
North Korea often commemorates key state anniversaries with huge fanfare to boost internal unity. Tuesday's KCNA dispatch praised Kim for accomplishing "the historic great cause of completing the nuclear forces by making a long journey of patriotic devotion with a death-defying will in order to make sure that the people would eternally enjoy happiness free from the horrors of war generation after generation."
Kim has also been reviving nuclear brinkmanship aimed at forcing the United States to accept North Korea as a nuclear power and to remove crippling economic sanctions. Analysts say North Korea is exploiting a favorable environment to push forward its weapons program as the U.N. Security Council remains divided over Russia's war in Ukraine.
People watch a television screen showing a news broadcast of a military parade held in Pyongyang to commemorate the 90th founding anniversary of the Korean People's Revolutionary Army, at a railway station in Seoul on April 26, 2022. JUNG YEON-JE/AFP via Getty Images
Nuclear negotiations between Washington and Pyongyang have been stalled since 2019 because of disagreements over the potential easing of the U.S.-led sanctions in exchange for North Korean disarmament steps. Kim has stuck to his goals of simultaneously developing nuclear weapons and the country's dismal economy in the face of international pressure and has shown no willingness to fully surrender a nuclear arsenal he sees as his biggest guarantee of survival.
Kim's comments about the possible use of nuclear weapons and his decision to show up at the parade in a military coat, rather than his regular suit and tie, signals a tough approach toward South Korea's incoming conservative government, which may take a harder line toward Pyongyang than current liberal President Moon Jae-in, according to analyst Cheong Seong-Chang at the South's Sejong Institute.
President-elect Yoon Suk Yeol, who takes office on May 10, has criticized Moon's inter-Korean engagement polices for supposedly ignoring a gathering North Korean threat. He has vowed to strengthen South Korea's defense in conjunction with its alliance with the U.S., which he says would include enhancing preemptive strike capabilities.
"North Korea's nuclear weapons and missiles have become a serious and realistic threat four our country and acquiring an ability to deter (the North's threat) is an urgent task," Yoon's office said in a statement.
North Korea has conducted 13 rounds of weapons tests this year, including its claimed launch of the Hwasong-17. There are also signs North Korea is rebuilding tunnels at a nuclear testing ground that was last active in 2017, possibly in preparation for exploding a nuclear device.
In 2017, North Korea claimed to have acquired an ability to launch nuclear strikes on the U.S. mainland after a torrid run of nuclear and missile tests. The North had halted such high-profile tests before it entered the now-dormant diplomacy with the United States.
The North has spent much of the past three years focusing on expanding its short-range arsenal targeting South Korea as nuclear negotiations with the United States stalled.
Kim's aggressive military push could also be motivated by domestic politics since he doesn't otherwise have significant accomplishments to show to his people as he marks a decade in power.
He failed to win badly needed sanctions relief from his diplomacy with then-President Donald Trump, and the COVID-19 pandemic unleashed further shocks to the country's broken economy, forcing him to acknowledge last year that North Korea was facing its "worst-ever situation."
3. North Korea Holds Military Parade, Testing U.S. and Allies
Excerpts:
... The event included displays of tactical weapons and the country’s biggest intercontinental ballistic missile, the Hwasong-17, KCNA said, adding its missile can respond to “any kind of warfare in the sky, the earth, the sea, and the universe.”
“In preparation for the turbulent political and military situation and all kinds of crises in the future, we will go forward faster and more steadfastly on the road of self-defense and modern force construction,” Kim said in a speech at the parade, according to KCNA. “We will continue to take measures to strengthen and develop the nuclear force at the highest possible speed.”
North Korea Holds Military Parade, Testing U.S. and Allies
April 25, 2022, 10:38 AM EDTUpdated onApril 26, 2022, 12:51 AM EDT
North Korea staged its first military parade in seven months, with leader Kim Jong Un pledging to strengthen his state’s atomic arsenal as he presided over an event showcasing nuclear-capable weapons that threaten the U.S. and its allies.
The parade was held Monday night in central Pyongyang, the state’s official Korean Central News Agency reported Tuesday. The event included displays of tactical weapons and the country’s biggest intercontinental ballistic missile, the Hwasong-17, KCNA said, adding its missile can respond to “any kind of warfare in the sky, the earth, the sea, and the universe.”
“In preparation for the turbulent political and military situation and all kinds of crises in the future, we will go forward faster and more steadfastly on the road of self-defense and modern force construction,” Kim said in a speech at the parade, according to KCNA. “We will continue to take measures to strengthen and develop the nuclear force at the highest possible speed.”
North Korea hasn’t released video of the event, but its state media has put out photos that include images of the Hwasong-17 intercontinental ballistic missile, hypersonic missile systems and submarine-launched ballistic missiles.
“When Kim Jong Un arrived together with his wife Ri Sol Ju, all the participants broke into stormy cheers of ‘hurrah!’ as a token of their deep reverence for him, the invincible and iron-willed commander representing the mightiness of the Party and the state,” KCNA reported.
Kim was dressed in a white military tunic, reminiscent of what his grandfather and state founder Kim Il Sung had worn at similar events. The appearance was a rare one for Ri, who doesn’t come out often in public and was last noted in state media for attending a Lunar New Year art performance in February.
The parade to mark the 90th anniversary of the founding of its army comes as North Korea appears ready to test its first nuclear device since 2017 and has rolled out in recent months new weapons designed to evade U.S.-operated missile shields. Tensions are also set to increase when South Korean President-elect Yoon Suk Yeol takes office on May 10 with pledges to pursue a tough line on Pyongyang.
U.S. President Joe Biden is expected to visit South Korea and Japan in late May, according to local media reports. Any display of the weapons in Kim’s nuclear arsenal would serve as a reminder of the pressing security problems posed by Pyongyang that have simmered as his administration has been focused on the war in Ukraine.
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“Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, especially relevant to North Korea and the new South Korean presidential administration, present opportunities for Kim to demonstrate his country’s military prowess,” said Soo Kim, a policy analyst with the Rand Corp. who previously worked at the Central Intelligence Agency. “That the date marks an important anniversary for the North Korean military helps justify the parade.”
Satellite imagery of training indicated the parade in Kim Il Sung Square may have involved about 20,000 troops and more than 250 pieces of military equipment, including hypersonic missile systems and an intercontinental ballistic missile designed to deliver nuclear warheads to the U.S., Yonhap News Agency reported an unnamed security source as saying.
North Korea’s biggest display of new weaponry under Kim Jong Un came at an October 2020 parade that included what the first public showing of the Hwasong-17, which weapons experts said was likely the world’s largest road-worthy ICBM. The parade took place at midnight and video of it was broadcast the following evening.
The Hwasong-17 seems to be designed to carry a multiple nuclear warhead payload to the U.S. and appears to have failed shortly after takeoff in the skies over Pyongyang in a test in March, South Korean authorities and weapons experts said. North Korea conducted a successful ICBM test eight days later, with South Korea saying its neighbor fired off a different rocket -- a less advanced Hwasong-15 missile that was used in its last ICBM test in 2017.
A military parade to mark the 90th anniversary of North Korea’s army at the Kim Il Sung Square, on April 25.Source: Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service/AP Photo
North Korea tried to deceive the world and its people about the type of missile it fired off, South Korea said, putting together a slickly produced video that combined the two launches and claiming it showed Kim overseeing a successful launch of the Hwasong-17 -- despite the outside world seeing it as an embarrassing failure. Tightly controlled North Korea blocked any mention of the mishap to its people.
“If the Hwasong-17 was not displayed at the parade, it would give an impression that North Korea acknowledges the failure,” said Wang Son-taek, director of the Global Policy Center at the Han Pyeong Peace Institute in South Korea.
(Updates with KCNA reports.)
4. Respected Comrade Kim Jong Un Makes Speech at Military Parade Held in Celebration of 90th Founding Anniversary of KPRA
Here is the KCNA translation of Kim Jong-un's speech so we can read it for ourselves.
Note the importance of the myth of anti-Japanese partisan warfare to the national narrative and the legitimacy of the Kim family regime. Although he did not use these words specifically, I think he wants to characterize north Korea as a revolutionary nuclear power.
Respected Comrade Kim Jong Un Makes Speech at Military Parade Held in Celebration of 90th Founding Anniversary of KPRA
Pyongyang, April 26 (KCNA) -- The respected Comrade
Kim Jong Un made a speech at the military parade held in celebration of the 90th anniversary of the founding of the Korean People's Revolutionary Army (KPRA) on April 25, Juche 111 (2022).
The following is the full text of the speech:
All the brave officers and men of the armed forces of our Democratic People's Republic of Korea,
Officers and men of the units participating in the military parade,
Comrade war veterans, exemplary soldiers and merited persons invited to this square of celebration,
Esteemed Pyongyang citizens,
Dear comrades,
Today we are holding a grand military parade in celebration of an anniversary, significant and glorious for our great Party, state and people.
At this moment overflowing with the glory of the long history of our army building, we are all here filled with a great pride in having the armed forces that firmly defend the Party, the revolution, the country and the people and reliably guarantee peace and stability.
Seeing the dependable elite units massed in this Kim Il Sung Square with their victorious colours and feeling, through them, the level of the modern character of the armed forces of our Republic, all the people across the country will realize once again the profound and great significance the birth of their country's first genuine armed forces 90 years ago had in the history of our revolution and nation and will have in the future development of our state and people.
The founding of the Korean People's Revolutionary Army was an event of national significance that declared a death-defying resistance against imperialism under the unfurled banner of winning national liberation and independence by our own efforts, as well as a historic event that ushered in a new era of the Juche revolution that relies on powerful revolutionary armed forces.
The major meaning of this event is not confined only to the fact that our people, who were forced to live a pitiable life in the turmoil of history, could have their own national army and the hope of their revival; it also lies in the fact that the event declared at home and abroad the steadfast idea of anti-imperialist revolution of the Korean revolutionaries to settle accounts to the end and by force of arms with those who infringed upon the dignity and sovereignty of our nation and their unyielding will to win the people's freedom and liberation and the revolution's victory without fail by the internal forces.
History has clearly proved that this determination and will the Korean revolutionaries opted for to carve out the destiny and future of their people was absolutely correct.
The revolutionary weapons the fine sons and daughters of our people held aloft in the forests of Paektu were an expression of the soaring spirit of independence of the Korean nation, their hope and the great banner of their unity, as well as the force that loaded the mettle of self-dependence and Herculean strength in the tear-stained fists of the Korean people.
Thanks to these armed ranks, a far-reaching plan of the Korean revolution was matured, the unyielding spirit and formidable strength with which to prevail over the imperialist tyranny were nurtured, and the great traditions, basic and everlasting in the development of our revolution, were created.
The ideology, faith and traditions, which our revolutionary army cherished and succeeded from the outset of its founding, constituted the basis of the spiritual strength and ever-victorious guarantee that made it possible to display an undying heroic and self-sacrificing spirit in defending the Party, the revolution, the territory and the people in the fiercest-ever anti-imperialist confrontation, in the first line of grim class struggle and in the ever-changing circumstances of history, mindful of its intrinsic revolutionary and class nature and mission. This army achieved the great cause of the country's liberation and nation's revival through an unprecedented bloody struggle, repulsed the armed aggression by the US-led allied imperialist forces and defended with honour the sovereignty, dignity and safety of the country with an unrivalled heroic spirit; it has recorded ever-victorious feats while defending the ruling Party, the government, the territory and the people throughout the historical course of the socialist revolution and construction with an ennobling self-sacrificing spirit. Our Party and people regard it as a source of their greatest honour and pride to have such a brave, steely and loyal army.
All our priceless gains, plus everything else on this land, are associated, first of all, with the services of our revolutionary army. This we should keep in mind.
Not only as the main force for national defence but also as a powerful force for national development, our revolutionary army, true to the Party's intentions, has always made devoted efforts to carry out the ambitious revolutionary undertakings aimed at attaining lofty ideals. By doing so, it has performed such great exploits, which no others could do, in creating a new history of socialist construction and enhancing the dignity and honour of our great state. Regarding it as its lifeblood and top honour to be faithful to the Party, the government and the people, our revolutionary army has kept the lineage of the Korean revolution safe and sound and defended the ideology and cause of the Workers' Party of Korea resolutely, and reliably guaranteed the existence and development of our state and the welfare of our people. Thanks to these exploits of lasting value it has performed over the past 90 years, the annals of the Korean revolution spanning a century are resplendent with victory and glory.
We will remember for all ages that our great armed forces have always opened up the way for advance in the vanguard at each of the difficult revolutionary stages and that the glorious and worthwhile victories of our Republic have been won at the cost of the priceless blood and sweat our revolutionary army shed and the noble self-sacrifice it made.
The glorious history of our armed forces is embodied in the proud and honourable successors, that is, the officers and men from the elite units of the Republic's armed forces, who will march in fine array across this square of victors, and all other soldiers standing guard at the air, ground and naval posts and performing feats of labour at sites of grand socialist construction throughout the country.
Availing myself of this meaningful opportunity, I, on behalf of our Party and government, would like to pay noble tribute to the anti-Japanese revolutionary forerunners and martyrs of the People's Army, who dedicated their precious lives in the struggle for national sovereignty and independence and the people's liberation, for the build-up of the revolutionary armed forces and for the victorious advance of the socialist cause. I also offer hearty congratulations to all the officers and men of the Korean People's Army and all other members of the armed forces of our Republic, who are making a great journey of faithful succession to their revolutionary forerunners.
In addition, I would like to offer heartfelt thanks to all the families on this land, which have had their dear husbands and children stand at the forefront of national defence.
Comrades,
The glorious 90-year journey our revolutionary armed forces have made safeguarding the prosperity and development of the country by force of arms, should be continued for another hundred, nay a thousand years.
In the era we are living in now, we should continue to exalt the glory of the powerful army and change to be more powerful at a fast speed incomparable with the past 90 years.
In the present world where different forces collide fiercely with one another, a nation's dignity and sovereignty and reliable genuine peace are guaranteed by powerful defence capability that can overpower any enemy.
We should continuously grow stronger.
There is no satisfaction or accomplishment in cultivating strength for defending ourselves, and, whoever we confront, our military supremacy should be more secure.
The revolution demands this, and the future of all the generations to come depends upon this.
Our general line of building the revolutionary armed forces is to make the People's Army an ever-victorious army.
An ever-victorious army–this must be the eternal name of our People's Army and shine as a priceless honour belonging only to our revolutionary armed forces.
The People's Army should hold fast to our Party's orientation and general line of army building and dynamically open up a new phase of its development.
To do so, it should define it as the core target to strengthen itself politically and ideologically and make itself strong in military technology, and give a stronger impetus to consolidating itself into an army, strong in ideology and faith, which is absolutely loyal to the leadership of the Workers' Party of Korea and boundlessly faithful to its revolutionary cause and into an elite force possessed of courage, capability and self-confidence for responding to any type of war and crisis without any hesitation.
Strengthening it politically and ideologically is the main aspect and first strategic task of our building of the army.
The political and ideological preparedness of the army and the ideological and spiritual preparedness of the masses of the soldiers, the motive force of the armed forces, are basic in the effort to make our revolutionary army fulfil its mission as the army of the Party, people and class and actively respond to any type of war and crisis.
The staunch revolutionary spirit and class awareness of the army we have to further cultivate in the future will play a decisive role in building up the fighting efficiency of our army and defence capabilities of the nation.
The unique character of our revolution is that one generation of the revolution is continually replaced by another and we have to face for a long period of time the imperialists who grow ever more ferocious with each passing day. This presents it as a crucial strategic task of army building and anti-imperialist struggle to stoutly carry on the baton of the great revolutionary ideology and spirit which originated in Paektu. When we carry out this task as the core in army building, we will surely be able to maintain and consolidate the qualitative supremacy of our revolutionary armed forces.
All the Party organizations and political bodies of the People's Army should continue to stoke up the flames of the ideological revolution and focus their all-out effort on cultivating the revolutionary ideology and spiritual strength of the soldier masses.
Regarding it as our top-priority task to develop the People's Army into an army strong in ideology and faith, we should prepare all the service personnel to be ideological guardsmen who fight only in line with the revolutionary ideology and will of the Party Central Committee, who cherish staunch class awareness and indomitable fighting spirit as part of their mental qualities, and who never allow a single misfire or an inch of deviation from the centre of the target designated by the Party Central Committee.
We should also strongly push ahead with building it up into an army strong in military technology with a view to radically improving its fighting efficiency.
The global trend of military development and rapidly-changing style of warfare at present demand that we modernize our army at a faster rate in terms of military technology.
Holding aloft the slogan of modernizing the army, we should strive to the utmost to develop our People's Army into a powerful army equipped with highly advanced military technology.
By pressing ahead with the modernization of the military talents training system, we should bring up a larger number of officers who are fully capable of commanding units of different arms and services at all levels. And we should make all the units and sub-units of the army fully ready to carry out any combat missions by modernizing their operation and combat training.
The sectors of defence science and munitions industry should continue to develop and deploy for actual combat cutting-edge military hardware of new generations so as to ceaselessly increase the military power of the People's Army.
In particular, the nuclear forces, the symbol of our national strength and the core of our military power, should be strengthened in terms of both quality and scale, so that they can perform nuclear combat capabilities in any situations of warfare, according to purposes and missions of different operations and by various means.
The prevailing situation demands that more proactive measures be taken to provide a firm and sustained guarantee for the modern character and military technological supremacy of our Republic's armed forces.
To cope with the rapidly-changing political and military situations and all the possible crises of the future, we will advance faster and more dynamically along the road of building up the self-defensive and modern armed forces, which we have followed unwaveringly, and, especially, will continue to take measures for further developing the nuclear forces of our state at the fastest possible speed.
The fundamental mission of our nuclear forces is to deter a war, but our nukes can never be confined to the single mission of war deterrent even at a time when a situation we are not desirous of at all is created on this land.
If any forces try to violate the fundamental interests of our state, our nuclear forces will have to decisively accomplish its unexpected second mission.
The nuclear forces of our Republic should be fully prepared to fulfil their responsible mission and put their unique deterrent in motion at any time.
Comrades, officers and men of the People's Army,
Our armed forces are now fully prepared for any type of war.
If any forces attempt military confrontation with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, they will be perished.
All the armed forces of the DPRK, with the heroic Korean People's Army as their core, should always firmly believe in their cause, march forward valiantly against all challenges filled with confidence, remain faithful to their sacred mission of defending the safety, dignity and happiness of the people, and securely guarantee the development of our socialism by maintaining their invincible military supremacy.
All the officers and men of the armed forces of the Republic,
As long as your hearts are pulsating with the precious blood and noble spirit of the revolutionary forerunners and as long as the revolutionary armed forces are always standing at the vanguard of the revolution as the embodiment of the ideology and will of the Workers' Party of Korea and of the strength of our state and people, the cause of socialism of our own style will be ever-victorious in the future, too.
Commanding officers and men of the KPA and all other armed forces of the DPRK,
For the safety and happiness of our great people,
For the eternal glory and victory of our great state,
Let us fight vigorously.
Long live our great revolutionary armed forces!
Long live our great country, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea! -0-
www.kcna.kp (Juche111.4.26.)
5. Ri Pyong-chol reinstated as top N. Korean official, report shows
He must have been successfully rehabilitated to get his mind right.
(LEAD) Ri Pyong-chol reinstated as top N. Korean official, report shows | Yonhap News Agency
(ATTN: ADDS photo, more info in paras 5-7)
By Yi Wonju
SEOUL, April 26 (Yonhap) -- Ri Pyong-chol, known for his leading role in North Korea's nuclear and missile development under the Kim Jong-un regime, has returned to public view after a 10-month disappearance, Pyongyang's state media showed Tuesday.
He was known to have been dismissed from all posts in July last year as he was accused of neglecting official duties.
But he was among dignitaries participating in the nighttime military parade staged in central Pyongyang on Monday to commemorate the 90th founding anniversary of the Korean People's Revolutionary Army (KPRA), according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
It called him a "member of the Presidium of the Political Bureau and secretary of the WPK Central Committee."
The politburo presidium, previously held by only five members including leader Kim, is one of the North's most powerful party organizations that determines key policies.
With the addition of Ri, the presidium appears to have been reorganized into a six-member organ.
Observers say the North's decision to include two military officials in the presidium could reflect Kim's intention to speed up the country's weapons development.
Photos, released by the KCNA, showed Ri standing next to Kim during the event, together with Pak Jong-chon, the North's top military official.
Ri reportedly spearheaded the North's nuclear and missile development from the early months of Kim's rule that started in late 2011. He was even given the title of "marshal," the highest rank of the country's soldiers.
Delivering a speech at the parade, Kim stated his regime will bolster the nation's nuclear capabilities.
(END)
6. Transition team vows to bolster capabilities to deter N.K. nuclear, missile threats
Pretty clear statement of the incoming Yoon administration's intent:
"The incoming Yoon Suk-yeol government will strengthen the South Korea-U.S. alliance and swiftly complete the South Korean three-axis system to respond to North Korea's nuclear and missile threats, while simultaneously developing far-superior military technologies and weapons systems," it added.
The three-axis system is designed to counter North Korea's nuclear and missile threats and consists of Korea Massive Punishment and Retaliation (KMPR), an operational plan to incapacitate the North Korean leadership in a major conflict; the Kill Chain pre-emptive strike platform; and the Korea Air and Missile Defense system (KAMD).
The statement came only hours after North Korean state media said Kim attended the parade in Pyongyang on Monday and vowed to boost the country's nuclear capabilities at "the fastest rate."
(LEAD) Transition team vows to bolster capabilities to deter N.K. nuclear, missile threats | Yonhap News Agency
(ATTN: UPDATES throughout with details; ADDS photo)
By Lee Haye-ah
SEOUL, April 26 (Yonhap) -- The government of incoming President Yoon Suk-yeol will bolster capabilities to deter North Korea's nuclear and missile threats, the transition team said Tuesday, after North Korean leader Kim Jong-un vowed in a military parade to further strengthen his nuclear arsenal.
The parade only proved that North Korea has focused on developing the means to threaten peace not only on the Korean Peninsula but in Northeast Asia and the world, while outwardly calling for peace and dialogue for the past five years, the transition team said in a statement.
"North Korea's nuclear and missile threats have become a serious and realistic threat to us, so building the capability to deter them is the most urgent task," the statement said.
"The incoming Yoon Suk-yeol government will strengthen the South Korea-U.S. alliance and swiftly complete the South Korean three-axis system to respond to North Korea's nuclear and missile threats, while simultaneously developing far-superior military technologies and weapons systems," it added.
The three-axis system is designed to counter North Korea's nuclear and missile threats and consists of Korea Massive Punishment and Retaliation (KMPR), an operational plan to incapacitate the North Korean leadership in a major conflict; the Kill Chain pre-emptive strike platform; and the Korea Air and Missile Defense system (KAMD).
The statement came only hours after North Korean state media said Kim attended the parade in Pyongyang on Monday and vowed to boost the country's nuclear capabilities at "the fastest rate."
He also warned the country's nuclear weapons "cannot be confined solely within the boundaries of preventing a war" if a situation arises "that we never hope to witness in this land."
The parade marked the 90th founding anniversary of the Korean People's Revolutionary Army (KPRA), an anti-Japanese guerilla force known to have been created by national founder Kim Il-sung in 1932.
The public display of weapons, including the Hwasong-17 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), came amid concern North Korea could stage a major provocation, such as a nuclear or ICBM test, ahead of Yoon's inauguration on May 10.
hague@yna.co.kr
(END)
7. U.S. Attorney Announces Charges Against Two European Citizens For Conspiring With A U.S. Citizen To Assist North Korea In Evading U.S. Sanctions
U.S. Attorney Announces Charges Against Two European Citizens For Conspiring With A U.S. Citizen To Assist North Korea In Evading U.S. Sanctions
Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Matthew G. Olsen, the Assistant Attorney General for National Security, and Michael J. Driscoll, the Assistant Director-in-Charge of the New York Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), announced today the unsealing of a Superseding Indictment charging ALEJANDRO CAO DE BENOS, a citizen of Spain, and CHRISTOPHER EMMS, a citizen of the United Kingdom, with conspiring to violate United States sanctions on the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (“DPRK” or “North Korea”) by working with U.S. citizen Virgil Griffith to illegally provide cryptocurrency and blockchain technology services to the DPRK. Both CAO DE BENOS and EMMS remain at large. Griffith previously pled guilty to conspiring to assist North Korea in evading sanctions in violation of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (“IEEPA”), and was sentenced to 63 months in prison and a $100,000 fine by U.S. District Judge P. Kevin Castel.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “As alleged, Alejandro Cao de Benos and Christopher Emms conspired with Virgil Griffith, a cryptocurrency expert convicted of conspiring to violate economic sanctions imposed on North Korea, to teach and advise members of the North Korean government on cutting-edge cryptocurrency and blockchain technology, all for the purpose of evading U.S. sanctions meant to stop North Korea’s hostile nuclear ambitions. In his own sales pitch, Emms allegedly advised North Korean officials that cryptocurrency technology made it ‘possible to transfer money across any country in the world regardless of what sanctions or any penalties that are put on any country.’ The sanctions imposed against North Korea are critical in protecting the security interests of Americans, and we continue to aggressively enforce them with our law enforcement partners both here and abroad.”
Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen said: “The United States will not allow the North Korean regime to use cryptocurrency to evade global sanctions designed to thwart its goals of nuclear proliferation and regional destabilization. This indictment, along with the successful prosecution of co-conspirator, Virgil Griffith, makes clear that the Department will hold anyone, wherever located, accountable for conspiring with North Korea to violate U.S. sanctions.”
FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Michael J. Driscoll said: “The two subjects charged here today, as alleged, conspired to provide financial services to the DPRK in direct violation of sanctions against North Korea imposed by the United States government. Our government puts sanctions in place to protect our national interests, and today's action demonstrates our commitment to enforcing them both domestically and globally.”
According to the allegations contained in the Superseding Indictment unsealed today in Manhattan federal court,
as well as other documents in the public record and statements made in public court proceedings in connection with the Griffith prosecution:Pursuant to the IEEPA and Executive Order 13466, United States persons are prohibited from exporting any goods, services, or technology to the DPRK without a license from the Department of the Treasury, Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) and it is illegal to conspire with U.S. persons to do the same.
Beginning in or about early 2018, CAO DE BENOS, the founder of the “Korean Friendship Association,” a pro-DPRK affinity organization, and EMMS, a cryptocurrency businessman, partnered to jointly plan and organize the “Pyongyang Blockchain and Cryptocurrency Conference” (the “DPRK Cryptocurrency Conference”) for the benefit of the DPRK. CAO DE BENOS and EMMS recruited Griffith, an American cryptocurrency expert, to provide services to the DPRK at the DPRK Cryptocurrency Conference and arranged Griffith’s travel to the DPRK in April 2019 for this purpose, in contravention of U.S. sanctions. CAO DE BENOS coordinated approval from the DPRK government for Griffith’s participation in the Conference. EMMS confirmed for Griffith that “the dprk will not stamp your passport,” which could risk revealing Griffith’s travel to U.S. authorities, and that EMMS had “obtained a rare full permission” from the DPRK “for US citizens to enter the country” for the DPRK Cryptocurrency Conference.
At the DPRK Cryptocurrency Conference, EMMS and Griffith provided instruction on how the DPRK could use blockchain and cryptocurrency technology to launder money and evade sanctions. EMMS and Griffith’s presentations at the DPRK Cryptocurrency Conference had been approved by DPRK officials and tailored to the DPRK audience. For example, EMMS opened the DPRK Cryptocurrency Conference by stating that it was a “great honor” to be “leading this delegation” to “explain to you a lot about Blockchain . . . and how you can use this technology here in the DPRK.” EMMS introduced Griffith as an “early scientist” behind blockchain technology, which, according to EMMS, made it “possible to transfer money across any country in the world regardless of what sanctions or any penalties that are put on any country.”
EMMS and Griffith answered specific questions about blockchain and cryptocurrency technologies for the DPRK audience, including individuals whom they understood worked for the North Korean government, proposed plans to create specialized “smart contracts” to serve the DPRK’s unique interests, and mapped out cryptocurrency transactions designed to evade and avoid U.S. sanctions, including by diagramming such transactions on a whiteboard for the North Korean audience. In one question-and-answer session, EMMS described how North Koreans could use over-the-counter cryptocurrency providers in transactions to evade and avoid U.S. sanctions.
After the DPRK Cryptocurrency Conference, CAO DE BENOS and EMMS continued to conspire with Griffith to provide additional cryptocurrency and blockchain technology services to the DPRK, including by seeking to develop potential cryptocurrency infrastructure and equipment inside North Korea, attempting to broker introductions for DPRK Cryptocurrency Conference attendees, through Griffith, to other cryptocurrency service providers, and recruiting others through Griffith’s contacts, including Americans, to provide expert services relating to cryptocurrency to the DPRK. As part of these efforts, CAO DE BENOS, EMMS, and Griffith planned to hold a second cryptocurrency conference in the DPRK in 2020.
CAO DE BENOS and EMMS took steps in an effort to conceal their activity, and Griffith’s role in the conspiracy, from U.S. authorities. Griffith was arrested by U.S. authorities in November 2019, disrupting CAO DE BENOS, EMMS, and Griffith’s scheme and the second conference planned for 2020. At no time did CAO DE BENOS, EMMS, or Griffith obtain permission from OFAC to provide goods, services, or technology to the DPRK.
* * *
CAO DE BENOS, 47, of Spain, and EMMS, 30, of the United Kingdom, are charged with one count of conspiring to violate and evade U.S. sanctions, in violation of IEEPA, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
The maximum potential sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendants will be determined by a judge.
Mr. Williams praised the outstanding investigative work of the FBI and its New York Field Office, Counterintelligence Division, and thanked the Department of Justice’s National Security Division, Counterintelligence and Export Control Section, the Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs, U.S. Department of Commerce’s Office of Export Enforcement, and the Singapore Police Force for their assistance.
The case is being handled by the Office’s National Security and International Narcotics Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kimberly J. Ravener and Kyle A. Wirshba are in charge of the case, with assistance from Trial Attorney Matthew J. McKenzie of the Counterintelligence and Export Control Section.
The charges in the Superseding Indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
As the introductory phrase signifies, the Superseding Indictment, and the description of the Superseding Indictment set forth herein, constitute only allegations, and every fact described should be treated as an allegation.
The communications described and quoted herein are set forth in substance and in part.
8. Crypto Conference in North Korea Leads to More Criminal Charges
This could not happen to a nicer guy, Alejandro Cao de Benos. He really does need mental help.
Crypto Conference in North Korea Leads to More Criminal Charges
Alejandro Cao de Benos Photographer: Josep Lago/AFP/Getty Images
April 25, 2022, 2:58 PM EDT
Two men were charged with helping a U.S. cryptocurrency expert evade U.S. sanctions on North Korea by discussing blockchain technology at a conference held in the isolated East Asian country.
Alejandro Cao de Benos of Spain and Christopher Emms, a U.K. citizen, were charged in a superseding indictment with conspiracy to violate U.S. sanctions, the Department of Justice said Monday. Cao de Benos and Emms allegedly worked with Virgil Griffith, a former Ethereum Foundation cryptocurrency scientist, who participated in a 2019 blockchain and cryptocurrency conference in the North Korean capital, Pyongyang, the department said.
Griffith was sentenced to more than five years in prison this month after pleading guilty to violating sanctions. Cao de Benos, 47, and Emms, 30, face as many as 20 years in prison if convicted. They are not in U.S. custody.
Prosecutors claim Emms, a cryptocurrency businessman, told North Korean officials that blockchain technology makes it possible to “transfer money across any country in the world regardless of what sanctions or any penalties that are put on any country.”
Cao de Benos, founder of the Korean Friendship Association -- a group friendly to the regime of North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un -- allegedly helped coordinate official approval for Griffith’s participation in the conference.
Griffith, 39, admitted he ignored specific State Department warnings against attending the conference. He was arrested in November 2019 in Los Angeles on charges of providing technical blockchain information to the regime. Prosecutors said the information could be used to help the country launder money and evade sanctions.
Griffith was the subject of a 2008 New York Times Magazine profile that described him as a “cult hacker” and dubbed him the “Internet Man of Mystery.“
The case is U.S. v. Griffith, 20-cr-00015, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York (Manhattan).
9. North Korean State Actors Deploying Novel Malware to Spy on Journalists
Many journalists have been targeted by north Korea and its all purpose sword.
North Korean State Actors Deploying Novel Malware to Spy on Journalists
Spear-phishing campaign loaded with new "Goldbackdoor" malware targeted journalists with NK News, analysts found.
New analysis has attributed a spear-phishing campaign targeting journalists covering North Korea to APT37/Ricochet Chollimia, a state-backed group linked to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK). Notably, researchers said the group is deploying a novel malware strain called Goldbackdoor, a variation of Bluelight malware previously attributed to APT37.
According to a report from researchers at Stairwell, multiple phishing emails were sent to NK News on Mar. 18 that appeared to be from the personal email address of the previously compromised former head of of the South Korean National Intelligence Service, and contained Goldbackdoor malware. NK News handed over the information to Stairwell for further investigation, the cybersecurity firm said.
"Due to the sensitive nature of journalists' work, they are often targets of surveillance and malware, intent on stealing information, ferreting out sources or even destroying evidence and scaring the reporters into not publishing stories," Erich Kron, security awareness advocate at KnowBe4, said in response to the news. "In regimes like North Korea, where news is tightly controlled by the state, articles or information that paints the leadership or government in a negative light is treated as a serious threat to national security."
10. U.S. commission says religious freedom remains worst in N. Korea
Human rights is a moral imperative and national security issue.
Excerpts:
The state department in 2021 designated North Korea as a "country of particular concern" for a 20th consecutive year.
The USCIRF recommended the department redesignate North Korea as a country of particular concern and "impose targeted and broad sanctions" that are appropriate for religious freedom violation in the reclusive country.
The commission said the U.S. may consider lifting certain sanctions in "return for concrete progress in religious freedom and related human rights."
Nadine Maenza, head of the USCIRF, noted sanctions alone may not be enough to get North Korea to change when asked how they may promote religious freedom in the reclusive country.
"It's not a magic weapon. It's just a piece of the puzzle in a way that the U.S. government can help to incentivize religious freedom," she said in a webinar marking the release of the 2022 report.
Maenza added, "So there's different ways to use sanctions," noting the commission also recommends lifting certain sanctions when and if the North makes concrete progress toward religious freedom,
(LEAD) U.S. commission says religious freedom remains worst in N. Korea | Yonhap News Agency
(ATTN: UPDATES with remarks from USCIRF chair in paras 9-11, 13; ADDS photo)
By Byun Duk-kun
WASHINGTON, April 25 (Yonhap) -- Religious freedom conditions in North Korea remain among the worst in the world, a U.S. government commission said Monday, recommending the U.S. government to designate North Korea as a country of particular concern.
The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) also called on the state department to bring up human rights issues when negotiating security issues with North Korea.
"In 2021, religious freedom conditions in North Korea remained among the worst in the world," the commission said in its annual report, noting religious adherents in the country are severely persecuted.
"The (North Korean) government attempts to provide an illusion of religious freedom to the outside world through state-backed religious organizations and sites such as the Jangchung Cathedral. In reality, religious freedom remains nonexistent in North Korea as authorities actively and systematically target and persecute religious groups and adherents," the report added.
The report provides country-specific recommendations to the Department of State, which, in turn, produces its own annual report on religious freedom.
The state department in 2021 designated North Korea as a "country of particular concern" for a 20th consecutive year.
The USCIRF recommended the department redesignate North Korea as a country of particular concern and "impose targeted and broad sanctions" that are appropriate for religious freedom violation in the reclusive country.
The commission said the U.S. may consider lifting certain sanctions in "return for concrete progress in religious freedom and related human rights."
Nadine Maenza, head of the USCIRF, noted sanctions alone may not be enough to get North Korea to change when asked how they may promote religious freedom in the reclusive country.
"It's not a magic weapon. It's just a piece of the puzzle in a way that the U.S. government can help to incentivize religious freedom," she said in a webinar marking the release of the 2022 report.
Maenza added, "So there's different ways to use sanctions," noting the commission also recommends lifting certain sanctions when and if the North makes concrete progress toward religious freedom,
The commission also recommended the U.S. government "integrate security and human rights as complementary objectives in broader U.S. policy toward and in bilateral negotiations with North Korea."
"These are very difficult situations, and so there's a lot of different ways the U.S. government can still bring religious freedom to the table as they are dialoguing (holding dialogue) on security issues and other issues, and that's what we encourage them to do," said Maenza.
To this end, the commission called on the government to "fill and maintain the position of special envoy for North Korean human rights issues at the U.S. Department of State," which has been vacant since January 2017.
It said the special envoy can "promote and integrate religious freedom and human rights in U.S. policy toward North Korea, including by coordinating multilateral efforts in international fora, such as in the United Nations, and with the European Union and other like-minded countries."
bdk@yna.co.kr
(END)
11. Appointments at the 50th session of the Human Rights Council (13 June to 8 July 2022) (including Special Rapporteur for north Korea)
Note there are 14 Chinese candidates and 6 US on a number of committees. I am of course most interested in the Special Rapporteur for north Korea:
Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea
Austria
United States of America
Albania
Bangladesh
Thailand
Poland
Peru
Philippines
Appointments at the 50th session of the Human Rights Council (13 June to 8 July 2022)
Application processes and deadlines
Secretariat note verbale of 8 April 2022
Extension of the deadline for applications for four vacancies of mandate holders to be appointed at the fiftieth session of the Human Rights Council
For the following four mandates only, the application process opened on 22 February and closed on 13 April 2022 (12 noon Geneva time). APPLICATIONS ARE NO LONGER ACCEPTED FOR:
1. Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief
2. Special Rapporteur on the right to education
3. Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea
4. Working Group on the issue of human rights and transnational corporations and other business enterprises, member from African States
For the following four mandates only, the application process opened on 22 February and closed on 6 April 2022 (12 noon Geneva time). APPLICATIONS ARE NO LONGER ACCEPTED FOR:
5. Expert Mechanism on the Right to Development, member from Latin American and Caribbean States
6. Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
7. Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances, member from Eastern European States
8. Working Group on the issue of human rights and transnational corporations and other business enterprises, member from Western European and other States
Secretariat note verbale of 22 February 2022
Call for applications for mandate holders of the Human Rights Council to be appointed at the fiftieth session of the Council
Only nationals of the States belonging to the regional groups, for which specific Working Group vacancies have been advertised, are eligible to apply for the Working Group mandates. Please refer to the list of the United Nations regional groups of Member States.
Nomination, Selection and Appointment of Mandate Holders
Mandates and list of candidates
MANDATELIST OF ELIGIBLE CANDIDATESExpert Mechanism on the Right to Development, member from Latin American and Caribbean States*
Colombia
Plurinational State of Bolivia
Brazil
Peru
Ecuador
Argentina
Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief
India
China
Islamic Republic of Iran
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
China
China
China
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Poland
Canada
Senegal
China
United States of America
United States of America
India
Germany
Special Rapporteur on the right to education
United States of America
Saudi Arabia
France
Greece
India
Belgium
Algeria
Kenya
Algeria
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
El Salvador
India
China
China
Tunisia
Spain
Kenya
Brazil
Kenya
Pakistan
Saudi Arabia
Kenya
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
China
France
India
China
Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea
Austria
United States of America
Albania
Bangladesh
Thailand
Poland
Peru
Philippines
Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment*
Nigeria
Iraq
Trinidad and Tobago
Finland
United States of America
United States of America
Canada
Germany
Canada
Australia
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Chile
United States of America
United States of America
China
Colombia
Nigeria
China
China
China
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Bangladesh
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Argentina
China
Senegal
Latvia
Ukraine
United States of America
Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances, member from Eastern European States
Poland
Albania
Slovakia
Poland
Working Group on the issue of human rights and transnational corporations and other business enterprises, member from African States*
Nigeria
Nigeria
South Africa
Zimbabwe
Ethiopia
Kenya
South Africa
Democratic Republic of the Congo
Nigeria
Senegal
Burkina Faso
Working Group on the issue of human rights and transnational corporations and other business enterprises, member from Western European and other States
United States of America
Greece
Italy
United States of America
United States of America
Spain
Australia
Ireland
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Australia
Ireland
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
United States of America
Germany
United States of America
Netherlands
12. Yoon's delegates, Japan's leader agree on need to pursue 'shared interests'
Good words but action is necessary. Again, both the President-elect and the Prime Minister must state definitively that they will prioritize national security and national prosperity while managing the historical issues and will not let the historical issues harm security or prosperity.
(2nd LD) Yoon's delegates, Japan's leader agree on need to pursue 'shared interests' | Yonhap News Agency
(ATTN: UPDATES with delegation's meeting with industry officials in paras 13-14)
TOKYO, April 26 (Yonhap) -- South Korean President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol's delegation and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida shared the same view Tuesday on the need to seek "shared interests," the head of the team said.
Rep. Chung Jin-suk of Yoon's People Power Party briefed media on the outcome of its meeting with Kishida at the premier's residence in Tokyo.
During the 25-minute meeting, Yoon's delegation delivered to Kishida the incoming president's handwritten letter encapsulating his hope for forward-looking relations with Japan, according to Chung.
"We have shared the view that both South Korea and Japan, which now stand on a new starting line, should make efforts for the future-oriented development of relations and for shared interests," Chung told reporters.
Yoon's letter includes his desire to pursue a forward-looking partnership with Japan while facing up to shared history -- a stance enshrined in a 1998 declaration between then South Korean President Kim Dae-jung and then Japanese Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi, Chung added.
The declaration paved the way for closer cooperation between the two countries at that time, as Obuchi expressed "keen remorse" and apologized for "great damage and pain" that Japan inflicted on Koreans during its 1910-45 colonization of the Korean Peninsula.
"The Japanese prime minister also shared the understanding on the idea of inheriting and furthering the spirit of the Kim-Obuchi declaration," Chung said
Chung, however, stressed the need to restore trust between the two countries.
"To that end, we relayed our view on the need to expand and revitalize people-to-people exchanges suspended due to COVID-19 and other reasons ... and Prime Minister Kishida shared that view," he said.
During the talks, the two sides also touched on the long-simmering issues of Japan's wartime sexual slavery and forced labor in broad generalities.
Those issues have remained major thorns in bilateral relations, as Tokyo has demanded Seoul should first present measures to address the issues.
Japan claims that the forced labor issue has been already settled under a 1965 treaty aimed at normalizing bilateral relations, while the sexual slavery conundrum was addressed under a 2015 government-to-government deal.
In a separate meeting with Japanese industry officials, the delegation underscored the need for Tokyo to lift its 2019 export curbs on South Korea, which were seen as a retaliation against a 2018 Seoul court ruling on forced labor.
"The export regulations are causing negative effects on both nations," Chung said, referring to Japan's export curbs on some critical materials for semiconductors and displays.
Yoon's seven-member delegation arrived in Japan on Sunday for "policy consultations" with Japanese officials ahead of the launch of the new administration May 10.
(END)
13. N. Korean leader Kim ramps up nuclear threat, alludes to more aggressive doctrine
How can regime doctrine be more aggressive than seeking to dominate the Korean peninsula under the rule of the Guerrilla Dynasty and Gulag State?
(News Focus) N. Korean leader Kim ramps up nuclear threat, alludes to more aggressive doctrine | Yonhap News Agency
By Song Sang-ho
SEOUL, April 26 (Yonhap) -- Beyond the typical display of the newest strategic weapons and hard-bitten warriors at this week's military parade, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un made a more menacing move: the threat to use nuclear arms in case of encroachment on his country's "fundamental rights."
During Monday's parade marking the 90th founding anniversary of the Korean People's Revolutionary Army (KPRA), Kim signaled an apparent shift in his nuclear doctrine, which had mostly been seen as having a narrow range of uses for nuclear weapons, like deterring a war.
Kim's use of the ill-defined expression, "fundamental rights," could represent a widening of the scope of his regime's possible nuclear use and raise the odds of North Korean nuclear attacks in crisis scenarios, analysts said.
"Leader Kim appears to have inched toward a more aggressive nuclear doctrine given the North's tendency to define its 'fundamental rights' in broad terms," Park Won-gon, a professor of North Korean studies at Ewha Womans University, said.
The North has long suggested a focus, at least ostensibly, on using its nukes for the purpose of self-defense in the form of deterring aggression, launching retaliatory strikes or repelling enemy attacks.
Signs of the North's apparent pivot to an aggressive nuclear posture were detected earlier this month when Kim Yo-jong, the North Korean leader's powerful sister, laid out a scenario of the North using its nuclear force to "take initiative at the outset of war" and prevent protracted hostilities.
Her remarks raised the prospects of Pyongyang launching nuclear preemptive strikes even in a conventional war against hostile forces.
Pyongyang's ongoing push to develop tactical nuclear arms further reinforced concerns about the reclusive regime's apparent tilt toward an assertive nuclear strategy. In line with that push, the North conducted a test-firing of a tactical guided weapon that it said improved the efficiency of tactical nuclear operations.
Monday's military parade showcasing various tactical and strategic weapons highlighted the North's ongoing drive to secure more reliable, longer-range nuclear delivery capabilities.
Among the weapons was the Hwasong-17 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) that the North claimed to have tested on March 24 in a launch that ended its yearslong self-imposed moratorium on nuclear and ICBM tests.
The Hwasong-17 is known to carry multiple warheads, potentially including decoys, and can travel some 15,000 kilometers -- a range that can strike the whole of the continental U.S.
The North also unveiled what appears to be a new submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM). The length of its warhead appeared to be about 1 meter longer than an SLBM showcased during a military parade in January last year. An SLBM is another formidable asset capable of launching surprise retaliatory nuclear attacks.
A small-size SLBM was also among the weapons on display – an indication that the North is working on diversifying its SLBM fleet for various battle scenarios. In October last year, the North claimed to have successfully launched the "mini-SLBM."
sshluck@yna.co.kr
(END)
14. For Peace, Let There Be Nukes
Excerpt:
However, the U.S. government fears that if South Korea built nuclear weapons, any hope of a nuclear-free Korean peninsula would evaporate. In addition, the United States is apprehensive that a nuclear South Korea could start a nuclear arms race in the East Asian region.
For Peace, Let There Be Nukes - The American Conservative
For Peace, Let There Be Nukes
The U.S. fantasy of a nuclear-free Korean peninsula has long been a mirage.
April 26, 2022
The blatantly aggressive invasion of Ukraine by Russia, complete with apparent war crimes, has shaken up world politics—especially in faraway East Asia. Russia, in an attempt to recover from an initially bungled invasion of Ukraine, is making nuclear threats to try to attenuate U.S. and Western assistance to that nation. Thus, the thinking is that China or North Korea might also rely on such weapons to try to similarly shield an aggressive invasion of a non-nuclear country in East Asia.
A recent poll in South Korea showed more than 70 percent of South Koreans support their government getting nuclear weapons. Although South Korea has a very good conventional military by world standards, much better than its arch-rival North Korea, the North Koreans have nuclear weapons. Pressure is building in South Korea to obtain nuclear weapons because of fears that the United States’ “extended deterrence” (using its nuclear weapons to protect its ally South Korea) might be unreliable if North Korea invaded South Korea.
As it gets longer range missiles to deliver nuclear weapons, North Korea could invade South Korea and threaten the United States’ cities and military bases in the Pacific with nuclear holocaust if it came to the South’s assistance. Stupidly, during the debate in South Korea about whether to make a drive for nuclear weapons, North Korea warned that it would use its nuclear arsenal “at the outset of war” with the South. Also in South Korea’s neighborhood, China and Russia also have nuclear weapons and could possibly turn unfriendly.
However, the U.S. government fears that if South Korea built nuclear weapons, any hope of a nuclear-free Korean peninsula would evaporate. In addition, the United States is apprehensive that a nuclear South Korea could start a nuclear arms race in the East Asian region.
Taiwan, nervous about an attack from an increasingly nationalist China and without the mutual defense treaty South Korea has with the United States, likely is thinking similar thoughts as the South Koreans. And maybe even the more pacifist Japan—which has a mutual defense treaty with the United States, but also has difficult relations with China, Russia, North Korea, and even South Korea—might be having nuclear daydreams.
Instead of obtaining nuclear weapons, at least one senior South Korean official has proposed enhancing extended deterrence by the United States reaching a nuclear-sharing agreement with South Korea similar to the one enjoyed by NATO nations. Under such an arrangement, if a war broke out, South Korean aircraft would be allowed to carry U.S. nuclear weapons.
This proposal is the wrong way to go. The United States should learn the right lesson from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, not the wrong one. It is true that Ukraine was invaded because it was not a member of NATO. However, despite the awful nature of the aggressive and heinous Russian invasion, at the end of the day, Ukraine is not strategically vital to the United States, and President Joe Biden, despite President Volodymyr Zelensky’s valiant and understandable effort to shame America into doing more to help him, has no obligation to do so.
The United States, now $30 trillion in debt, foolishly has assumed the burden of defending relatively wealthy far-forward states near Russia—for example, Poland, Romania, and the Baltics—and in East Asia, especially South Korea, Japan, and informally Taiwan. Whenever a severe security crisis occurs, such as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, all such states make it known they are nervous that U.S. extended deterrence will not hold. These states, and others in Pax Americana, should be apprehensive, because when war with any nuclear power is afoot, would the United States sacrifice Los Angeles, New York, and Chicago to save Seoul, Tokyo, and Taipei?
In a time when the financially strapped United States should be thinking about a more modest security posture in the world, it should allow South Korea, Japan, and Taiwan to arm themselves with nuclear weapons. The arms race did not start with them, it started with the pariah state North Korea getting nuclear weapons. The U.S. fantasy of a nuclear-free Korean peninsula has long been a mirage because North Korea will never give up its growing nuclear arsenal.
South Korea, Taiwan, and Japan have been responsible players in the international system for some time now and would likely be good stewards of nuclear weapons. However, the price for the United States allowing them to obtain such arms would be to abrogate all U.S. security guarantees. In the longer term, after the Ukraine crisis has passed, the United States should even rethink defending NATO countries. The Russian military has already proven it is a hollow shell; Europe already has Britain and France, two countries with a nuclear deterrent to counter the Russian one; and the wealthy European Union had five times the GDP of Russia, even before recent Western economic sanctions have devastated it, thus allowing Europe to amply defend itself without a U.S. nuclear and conventional umbrella.
Ivan Eland is a senior fellow with the Independent Institute and author of War and the Rogue Presidency, about why and how NATO bears some responsibility for the impending crisis in Ukraine.
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15. THE STORY OF LEE MIN-HAK (1930–2016), A KOREAN WAR VETERAN AND NORTH KOREAN REFUGEE
We must never forget the human element in any war. This story describes the division, the war, and the effects (never to return home or see family ever again).
How many of these stories remain locked away in personal journals and letters being passed down to family remembers?
Thank you to Teresa J. Y. Kim for sharing this.
4/25/2022
This was taken during a monthly ceremony held by the South Korean Army. In this photograph, soldiers are standing in formation in a field bearing the South Korean flag, surrounded by civilians. Date taken: 1959. © Teresa J. Y. Kim 2022.
By Teresa J. Y. Kim, HRNK International Outreach Fellow
Edited by Raymond Ha, HRNK Director of Operations and Research
Lee Min-Hak, a veteran of the Korean War (1950–53) and a North Korean refugee, never spoke of the war with his family during his lifetime. It was too painful to recount.
He did, however, leave a journal behind. A few years after his passing, I watched my mother – his daughter – pull out his journal from under a pile of his belongings. She held back her tears as she began sifting through its pages. The journal is beautifully intact, its pages orderly and neat. In his journal entries, you can see faint pencil ruler markings underneath the dark, glossy black ink of his carefully written script of Hangul (the Korean language) and Hanja (the use of Chinese characters for writing in the Korean language).
Lee Min-Hak was a military engineer. In this photograph, he presents a construction project to the army force and to local residents. Date taken: February 1972. © Teresa J. Y. Kim 2022.
Following Lee Min-Hak’s service in the South Korean Army during the Korean War, he continued to serve in the army as a military engineer. He soon joined the officer corps (장교단) and eventually retired as a colonel (공병 연대장) from the Engineer Battalion.
Lee received multiple awards for his service to the country from the government of the Republic of Korea. Most notably, he received awards from President Park Chung-Hee (October 1, 1971) and President Kim Young-Sam (June 1, 1993). He also received a medal from the United Nations acknowledging his role as a “6.25 War Correspondent” for the Republic of Korea, which is shown below.
© Teresa J. Y. Kim 2022
The red markings on this map by Lee Min-Hak retraces his route from his hometown in Dancheon, northern Korea to the southernmost area of the Korean Peninsula in Busan. Lee met his wife close to the time of the armistice (1953) in Busan. On the left of the map, Lee circled his new home, Ilsan-dong, where his wife still lives to this day. © Teresa J. Y. Kim 2022.
When the war first erupted, Lee Min-Hak was a young, 21-year-old schoolteacher in his hometown in Dancheon.
One day, South Korean soldiers came to the playground of the school to warn him that he, being a schoolteacher, was in imminent danger. The soldiers offered him a seat on their truck that was leaving Dancheon that very day.
Fearful of what the South Korean soldiers told him, Lee went home, packed a bag, and quickly said goodbye to his mother with the mind that he would return home once it was deemed to be safe again. He got onto the truck with the South Korean soldiers. Lee was then driven out of Dancheon. He neither returned nor saw his family ever again.
Once he arrived in southern Korea, Lee chose to enlist as a South Korean soldier purely out of necessity. During the war, there was virtually no other choice for a young man like Lee. Not to mention, Lee was essentially a refugee, with no form of identity or a place to belong in unfamiliar surroundings. This was why Lee became a soldier. He had to survive and defend himself as a young Korean man living through war.
Poems from Lee Min-Hak’s journal – “Middle of Fall (2010)” and “May 2000” – written in a mixed script of Hangul and Hanja. © Teresa J. Y. Kim 2022.
Hangul and English translations of “Middle of Fall (2010)” and “May 2000.” Translations by Estel JeeHee Lee, daughter of Lee Min-Hak. © Teresa J. Y. Kim 2022.
The diary that Lee left behind offers deeply emotional entries about missing his hometown back in Dancheon, a port city in the north-eastern part of South Hamgyong Province in North Korea. Throughout his diary, he describes the agonising pain of not being able to reunite with his family members, who remained in Dancheon after the armistice was signed in 1953.
Upon reading his writings, “missing” family seems like an understatement. What Lee conveys in his diary is a lifetime of deep sorrow, having been forcibly separated from his parents and siblings due to the war. Most of his entries express this unending sadness. Not knowing whether his family is still alive and if he will be able to reunite with them in a “unified Korea” is met with a heart-wrenching acknowledgement by those who are willing to resonate with a man’s experience of war.
This is the Daejeon National Cemetery (국립대전현충원), located in Daejeon, South Korea. This cemetery is reserved for Korean War veterans, and it is overseen by the Ministry of Patriots' and Veterans' Affairs (국가보훈처). Date taken: August 5, 2018. © Teresa J. Y. Kim 2022.
Lee Min-Hak was 86-years-old when he passed away on the 18th of May, 2016. He is now laid to rest among fellow veterans amidst the tranquil beauty of rolling hills and green landscapes provided as open spaces for loved ones to visit and pay tribute, especially during Chuseok (Korean Harvest Day), at the Daejeon National Cemetery (국립대전현충원).
Lee’s life and legacy represents one of many narratives surrounding war, migration, and displacement. As aforementioned, Lee fought for peace so he could return back home to Dancheon to be with his family. Yet, his story is only one of countless experiences of people who were pushed into a life of war and displacement without being given a choice other than to fight. As a generation of Korean War veterans pass away, we must not forget why they fought in the first place. After all, to honour the efforts of advocating for North Korean rights is to honour the lives of people like Lee Min-Hak.
This article is written by Teresa J. Y. Kim, granddaughter of Lee Min-Hak.
Teresa J. Y. Kim is the International Outreach Fellow and Head of the Legal Research Division at HRNK. She received a Master of Laws (LLM) in International Law from the University of Edinburgh, with Distinction, in December 2021. Previous to this, she received a Bachelor of Arts (Hons) in History and International Relations from King’s College London in 2020. Teresa hopes that in sharing Lee Min-Hak’s story, she can shed light on North Korean human rights in the context of a young Korean man who fought in the Korean War.
All images used in this article are copyrighted by Teresa J. Y. Kim.
16. South Korea key for Europe to manage fallout from China-U.S. rivalry, report says
Excerpts:
But deeper cooperation could help boost their strategic value to Washington and Beijing, said Kim Chang-beom, a former South Korean ambassador to the EU.
"It would give additional manoeuvring rooms for South Korea in its dealings with the policy dilemma arising from the rising competition," he told Reuters.
South Korea key for Europe to manage fallout from China-U.S. rivalry, report says
SEOUL, April 26 (Reuters) - Closer ties between the European Union and South Korea under President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol are imperative for managing China's rising power and the increasing rivalry between Beijing and Washington, former ambassadors and officials said.
The crisis in Ukraine and the need to counter "Moscow’s direct threat to the rules-based international order" further make EU-South Korea cooperation important, the former officials said in a report to be released on Tuesday by the Brussels School of Governance.
Yoon has said he plans to dispatch a delegation of special envoys to the EU before he takes office on May 10, one of the first such delegations by his transition team.
"Cooperation between Seoul and Brussels can help mitigate the most negative effects of Sino–American competition and ensure that the United States does not turn on its allies but rather cooperates with them," said the report's authors, who include former EU and South Korean envoys.
Yoon has vowed to look beyond North Korea and make South Korea a bigger player on the international scene, including by expanding "the breadth of diplomacy in the EU and throughout Asia."
South Korea-Europe cooperation has traditionally taken a back seat to both sides' alliances with the United States.
But deeper cooperation could help boost their strategic value to Washington and Beijing, said Kim Chang-beom, a former South Korean ambassador to the EU.
"It would give additional manoeuvring rooms for South Korea in its dealings with the policy dilemma arising from the rising competition," he told Reuters.
The two sides should establish bilateral councils and diplomatic hotlines, and cooperate on issues such as North Korea's denuclearisation, the report said.
The two sides should also modernize their free trade agreement, which has been superseded in terms of scope and ambition by the agreements that the EU has signed with direct South Korean competitors like Japan.
South Korea's bid to join the Digital Economy Partnership Agreement (DEPA) and the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) could have a negative effect on trade links between South Korean and European firms if not addressed, the report added.
"I think that the need for cooperation goes beyond specific issues," said Ramon Pacheco Pardo, the Korea Chair at the Brussels School of Governance, noting their shared interests and values, and capabilities.
"But Russia's invasion of Ukraine or China's assertiveness make clear that there are specific reasons why Korea and the EU need to cooperate."
Reporting by Josh Smith Editing by Shri Navaratnam
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.
