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Quotes of the Day:
"Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck."
– Dalai Lama
"The evil that is in the world almost always comes of ignorance, and good intentions may do as much harm as malevolence if they lack understanding."
– Albert Camus
"Nothing in life is to be feared, it is only to be understood. Now is the time to understand more, so that we may fear less."
– Marie Curie
1. S. Korea, China, Japan to hold 1st trilateral summit in 4 1/2 years in Seoul next week
2. S. Korea remains unchanged on China-Taiwan issue: foreign ministry
3. N.K. leader praises construction workers of newly built ruling party training school
4. S. Korea says N.K. threats undermine peace after Lavrov's criticism of joint drills with U.S., Japan
5. S. Korea, Czech Republic discuss nuclear power cooperation at bilateral economic talks
6. Blinken vows to ensure support for US envoy for N. Korean human rights
7. S. Korea, U.S. end 2nd round of talks on defense cost sharing
8. ＜Inside N. Korea＞Crackdowns aren’t focused just on the “South Wave” anymore…Hands down the “April 27 Directive” to intensify crackdowns on the form of videos made by domestic individuals
9. South Korea Unveils $19 Billion Package for Chip Industry
10. Korea-China-Japan summit Monday could be ‘turning point’ to normalized ties in Northeast Asia
11. China summons South Korean, Japanese diplomats to lodge Taiwan-related protests
12. Has North Korea made an unwanted change we never expected?
13. 'Trump-proofing' Korea
14. Chongjin intensifies street-level inspections of mobile phones
15. High-resolution satellite imagery suggests N. Korea is producing fissile materials
16. Kim's portrait is publicly displayed in North Korea. Here's a look at what it means
17. Kim Jong-un was 'desperate to get rid of his nuclear weapons and did not want his daughter's generation to 'live with the burden' of nukes'
1. S. Korea, China, Japan to hold 1st trilateral summit in 4 1/2 years in Seoul next week
(LEAD) S. Korea, China, Japan to hold 1st trilateral summit in 4 1/2 years in Seoul next week | Yonhap News Agency
en.yna.co.kr · by Kim Eun-jung · May 23, 2024
(ATTN: UPDATES with more comments, details in paras 3, 5, 8, 16)
By Kim Eun-jung
SEOUL, May 23 (Yonhap) -- Leaders of South Korea, China and Japan will hold a long-suspended trilateral summit in Seoul next week for the first time in 4 1/2 years, the presidential office said Thursday.
President Yoon Suk Yeol will meet with Chinese Premier Li Qiang and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in Seoul on Monday, Principal Deputy National Security Adviser Kim Tae-hyo said during a press briefing.
Yoon will separately hold bilateral talks with Li and Kishida at the presidential office on Sunday. It will be Li's first visit to South Korea since taking office in March 2023.
It marks the first trilateral summit among the Asian countries since December 2019, after a hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic and strained Seoul-Tokyo relations over historical disputes.
Kim said the summit will cover six areas of cooperation, comprising economy and trade, sustainable development, health issues, science and technology, disaster and safety management, and people-to-people exchanges, which will be included in a joint statement.
"The summit will serve as a turning point for fully restoring and normalizing the trilateral cooperation system among South Korea, Japan and China," Kim said.
"It will also provide an opportunity to recover future-oriented and practical cooperation momentum that will allow the people of the three countries to feel the benefits," he added.
The leaders will also discuss regional and international issues and engage with about 80 businesspeople at a welcome dinner on Sunday and a business forum the next day, according to Kim.
Principal Deputy National Security Adviser Kim Tae-hyo announces the schedule for the trilateral summit among South Korea, China and Japan during a briefing at the presidential office on May 23, 2024. (Yonhap)
The leaders are expected to explore cooperation in economic, trade and health sectors while aiming to avoid friction, as Seoul and Tokyo have aligned more closely with Washington amid its intensifying rivalry with Beijing.
The upcoming summit follows the August 2023 Camp David summit, where leaders of the U.S., South Korea and Japan underscored their security cooperation against North Korean threats and reinforced their commitment to a "free and open Indo-Pacific."
South Korea and Japan are likely to ask China to play a role in curbing Pyongyang's nuclear and missile threats amid concerns over North Korea's arms supply to Russia for its ongoing war in Ukraine.
Beijing could address security concerns over deepening trilateral cooperation between Seoul, Washington and Tokyo, which have held joint military drills since the Camp David summit.
At a recent bilateral summit, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin criticized the U.S. and its allies for their "intimidation in the military sphere" against North Korea.
In March, Russia vetoed a United Nations resolution to extend a monitoring panel on the enforcement of North Korean sanctions, with China abstaining, thwarting U.S.-led efforts to rein in Pyongyang's weapons program.
While their differences over regional security issues are not likely to be resolved at the meeting, Seoul officials say it represents a crucial step in reviving trilateral dialogue to avoid conflict and boost collaboration in economy, technology and health sectors.
"The issue of North Korea's denuclearization and inter-Korean relations is a complicated subject that is unlikely to result in a clear agreement," a senior presidential official told reporters. "Most of the time is likely to be dedicated more to economic and livelihood-related matters ... However, we will make efforts to include security issues in the joint statement to some extent."
ejkim@yna.co.kr
(END)
en.yna.co.kr · by Kim Eun-jung · May 23, 2024
2. S. Korea remains unchanged on China-Taiwan issue: foreign ministry
Walking the tightrope.
S. Korea remains unchanged on China-Taiwan issue: foreign ministry | Yonhap News Agency
en.yna.co.kr · by Kim Han-joo · May 23, 2024
By Kim Han-joo
SEOUL, May 23 (Yonhap) -- South Korea remains committed to respecting the "One China" policy amid tensions in the Taiwan Strait following the inauguration ceremony of Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te earlier this week, the foreign ministry said Thursday.
Earlier in the day, China's military began two days of what it calls "punishment" drills around the island, just days after the inauguration ceremony, which Beijing strongly condemned.
"There is no change in our government's stance of respecting the One China policy," Lim Soo-suk, a foreign ministry spokesperson, said during a press briefing.
This undated file photo shows Lim Soo-suk, a foreign ministry spokesperson. (Yonhap)
The inauguration ceremony on Monday drew more than 500 foreign dignitaries from 51 countries, including Cho Kyoung-tae, a lawmaker of South Korea's ruling People Power Party, and South Korea's representative to Taiwan, Lee Eun-ho.
On Tuesday, China's embassy in South Korea strongly condemned the attendance, stating that it "runs counter to the China-South Korea strategic cooperative partnership." The embassy further urged the Seoul government not to interfere in China's internal affairs in any manner.
Lim said the Seoul government is closely communicating with Beijing on issues related to Taiwan, and the Chinese government is well aware of Seoul's stance.
Meanwhile, Cho said China's rebuke of his attendance at the inauguration constitutes Beijing's interference in South Korea's internal affairs.
"China is rather interfering in our internal affairs," Cho told Yonhap News Agency, emphasizing that South Korea, as a sovereign state, should not be overly conscious of China.
South Korea did not send an official delegation, in a move widely seen as an effort to manage ties with China, which considers Taiwan part of its territory.
Cho, who heads the Korea-Taiwan Parliamentary Friendship Association, reiterated that his visit was through an official invitation, separate from the government stance.
"We don't refrain from doing things just because the government says not to," he said, noting that South Korea is a country with a separation of powers, unlike China.
South Korea severed diplomatic ties with Taiwan in 1992 when it established diplomatic relations with China. In 1993, South Korea opened a mission in Taipei to maintain unofficial bilateral relations and continue substantive cooperation.
This undated file photo shows Rep. Cho Kyoung-tae of the ruling People Power Party. (Yonhap)
khj@yna.co.kr
(END)
en.yna.co.kr · by Kim Han-joo · May 23, 2024
3. N.K. leader praises construction workers of newly built ruling party training school
Nothing but the best for elite party members. All the best ideology training for them.
(2nd LD) N.K. leader praises construction workers of newly built ruling party training school | Yonhap News Agency
en.yna.co.kr · by Kim Han-joo · May 23, 2024
(ATTN: ADDS more info in paras 3-5, photo)
By Kim Han-joo
SEOUL, May 23 (Yonhap) -- North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has praised construction workers of a newly built school for the country's ruling party officials, state media reported Thursday.
Kim had a photo session with members of Unit 267, who participated in the construction of the Central Cadres Training School of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) on Wednesday, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
Footage from the state-run Korean Central TV also showed Kim arriving at the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun, where the photo session took place, by self-driving his luxury sedan, a Mercedes-Maybach.
The site is where the bodies of national founder Kim Il-sung and the current leader's late father, Kim Jong-il, lie in state.
Kim has made multiple public appearances in different Mercedes-Maybach vehicles, including a limousine, despite international sanctions on North Korea's nuclear and missile programs that ban such luxury items.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un gets out of a luxury sedan, a Mercedes-Maybach, as he arrives at the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun on May 22, 2024, in this photo captured from the North's Central TV the followig day. (For Use Only in the Republic of Korea. No Redistribution) (Yonhap)
The KCNA said the leader praised workers "for having demonstrated to the whole world the prestige of the world's most prestigious political and ideological school with perfect appearance as the 'pedigree farm' for training core members of the WPK."
Kim also said that the unit is "extraordinary in its capacity, as evidenced by many world-startling monumental edifices it has built over more than recent decade." The unit also has participated in the construction of major facilities aimed at idolizing the Kim regime.
Kim visited the site on March 30 and May 15 before attending the opening ceremony Tuesday, a move that could show his commitment to the education of party officials.
Seoul's unification ministry noted that such frequent visits to the site within just around 50 days are "extremely unusual," hinting at the regime's emphasis on the importance of ideological education for officials.
"In the future, it is expected that there will be an increased emphasis on Kim Jong-un's status as an ideological leader and his idolization, along with a strengthening of the ideological training of party officials," a ministry official said on customary anonymity.
The training school, which traces its roots back to the Central Party School established in 1946, is the highest educational facility to train WPK officials.
The North's official Korean Central News Agency said May 23, 2024, that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un held a photo session with workers of the newly built Central Cadres Training School of the Workers' Party of Korea in Pyongyang the previous day. (For Use Only in the Republic of Korea. No Redistribution) (Yonhap)
khj@yna.co.kr
(END)
en.yna.co.kr · by Kim Han-joo · May 23, 2024
4. S. Korea says N.K. threats undermine peace after Lavrov's criticism of joint drills with U.S., Japan
Trilateral ROK, Japan, and US cooperation is a threat to north Korea and Russia.
S. Korea says N.K. threats undermine peace after Lavrov's criticism of joint drills with U.S., Japan | Yonhap News Agency
en.yna.co.kr · by Kim Seung-yeon · May 23, 2024
By Kim Seung-yeon
SEOUL, May 23 (Yonhap) -- South Korea said Thursday that North Korea's nuclear and missile threats are what undermine peace and security on the Korean Peninsula, after Russia's top diplomat denounced Seoul's joint military exercises with the United States and Japan as a source destabilizing the region.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said after a ministerial meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization on Monday that the U.S. and its allies are "aggravating the security situation in the Asia-Pacific with their 'provocative actions,'" referring to the joint military exercises with the South and Japan, according to Russia's TASS news agency.
Lavrov said that North Korea has recently expressed its concern over the joint drills, adding the situation is worsening to the point of "a hot phase."
On Thursday, South Korea's foreign ministry rebutted Lavrov's claims.
"North Korea's illegal nuclear and missile development and provocations in violation of U.N. sanctions are what threaten regional peace and security," ministry spokesperson Lim Soo-suk said in a briefing.
"The combined exercises with the United States and the trilateral exercises, among South Korea, the U.S. and Japan, are defensive actions to protect our citizens from the North's escalating nuclear and missile threats," Lim said.
He also pointed out that South Korea remains open to dialogue, but it is Pyongyang that has refused to talk.
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lim Soo-suk speaks during a media briefing at the ministry building in Seoul on May 9, 2024. (Yonhap)
elly@yna.co.kr
(END)
en.yna.co.kr · by Kim Seung-yeon · May 23, 2024
5. S. Korea, Czech Republic discuss nuclear power cooperation at bilateral economic talks
South Korea is a global pivotal state that chooses to be a peaceful nuclear power and is a partner in the arsenal of diplomacy that supports the rules based international order.
S. Korea, Czech Republic discuss nuclear power cooperation at bilateral economic talks | Yonhap News Agency
en.yna.co.kr · by Kim Seung-yeon · May 23, 2024
SEOUL, May 23 (Yonhap) -- South Korea asked the Czech Republic on Thursday to pay closer attention to the ongoing bilateral efforts for cooperation in the commercial nuclear power plant sector, Seoul's foreign ministry said.
Kim Hee-sang, deputy foreign minister for economic affairs, delivered the request to Petr Tresnak, deputy industry minister of the Czech Republic, during their joint South economic dialogue earlier in the day, the ministry said.
Kim used the session to highlight South Korean industry's strengths and competitiveness in the construction of nuclear power plants, in relation to the new projects being pushed for by the Central European nation.
Thursday's talks also included discussions on ways to expand cooperation in global supply chains, trade and investment, as well as energy and science and technology, the ministry said.
Kim Hee-sang (R), South Korea's deputy foreign minister for economic affairs, shakes hands with Petr Tresnak, deputy industry minister of the Czech Republic, during their economic talks in Seoul on May 23, 2024, in this photo provided by Seoul's foreign ministry. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
elly@yna.co.kr
(END)
en.yna.co.kr · by Kim Seung-yeon · May 23, 2024
6. Blinken vows to ensure support for US envoy for N. Korean human rights
Blinken vows to ensure support for US envoy for N. Korean human rights
The Korea Times · May 23, 2024
Julie Turner, U.S. special representative on North Korea's human rights, attends a media session at the American Diplomacy House in Yongsan District, Seoul, Oct. 18, 2023. Yonhap
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken pledged Wednesday to ensure his top envoy for North Korean human rights has what she needs for her mission amid claims of insufficient internal support for the diplomat.
Blinken made the remarks during a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing as Rep. Kim Young (R-CA) pointed out concerns among "outside stakeholders" that Ambassador Julie Turner relies on staff from other offices to carry out her work.
"In fact, I think as we speak, Special Envoy Turner is right now in South Korea, working on this critical portfolio, and yes, I'm going to make sure that she continues to have the resources and the support that she needs," the secretary said.
Turner is currently in Seoul to meet South Korean officials, civil society members and North Korean escapees, and to attend the Asian Leadership Conference hosted by the Chosun Ilbo, a local daily newspaper.
Rep. Kim stressed that she is "concerned" that Turner's office has not been given the "proper" attention by the State Department leadership.
Blinken reiterated that he would ensure Turner has the tools required for her work.
"But of course, it would help if we got our budget passed, and we were able to actually resource the department, including with the staff," he said.
Turner, a career diplomat of North Korean descent, was sworn in for the special envoy post in October following her Senate confirmation in July. (Yonhap)
The Korea Times · May 23, 2024
7. S. Korea, U.S. end 2nd round of talks on defense cost sharing
Excerpts:
The talks were led by Lee Tae-woo, South Korea's chief negotiator from the foreign ministry, and his U.S. counterpart, Linda Specht from the State Department.
This week's negotiations have been about "enhancing the understanding of each other's positions," a foreign ministry official said on condition of anonymity.
"We exchanged opinions for a mutual review on the main positions and areas of interest in relation to defense cost sharing, which were presented by both sides in the first round of talks in Honolulu in April," the official said.
The next round of the negotiations is expected to take place in Washington.
S. Korea, U.S. end 2nd round of talks on defense cost sharing | Yonhap News Agency
en.yna.co.kr · by Kim Seung-yeon · May 23, 2024
By Kim Seung-yeon
SEOUL, May 23 (Yonhap) -- South Korea and the United States wrapped up their second round of negotiations Thursday on the sharing of costs for the upkeep of American troops here, Seoul officials said.
The three-day talks came about a month after Seoul and Washington launched the negotiations on determining how much South Korea should shoulder for the stationing of the 28,500-strong U.S. Forces Korea (USFK), beginning in 2026.
The talks were led by Lee Tae-woo, South Korea's chief negotiator from the foreign ministry, and his U.S. counterpart, Linda Specht from the State Department.
This week's negotiations have been about "enhancing the understanding of each other's positions," a foreign ministry official said on condition of anonymity.
"We exchanged opinions for a mutual review on the main positions and areas of interest in relation to defense cost sharing, which were presented by both sides in the first round of talks in Honolulu in April," the official said.
The next round of the negotiations is expected to take place in Washington.
A U.S. delegation for defense cost sharing talks with South Korea arrives at the Korea Institute for Defense Analysis in Seoul on May 21, 2024. (Yonhap)
The launch of the talks came earlier than planned, amid the view that Seoul wants an early deal to avoid likely tough bargaining with Washington in case former President Donald Trump returns to the White House.
Under Trump's presidency, Washington had demanded more than a fivefold increase in Seoul's payment to US$5 billion.
Under the current six-year deal, known as the Special Measures Agreement (SMA), ending in 2025, South Korea agreed to raise the payment by 13.9 percent from 2019 to $1.03 billion for 2021 and increase the payment every year for the subsequent four years in line with the rise in Seoul's defense spending.
Since 1991, Seoul has partially shouldered costs under the SMA for Korean USFK workers; the construction of military installations, such as barracks, and training, educational, operational and communications facilities; and other logistical support.
elly@yna.co.kr
(END)
en.yna.co.kr · by Kim Seung-yeon · May 23, 2024
8. ＜Inside N. Korea＞Crackdowns aren’t focused just on the “South Wave” anymore…Hands down the “April 27 Directive” to intensify crackdowns on the form of videos made by domestic individuals
Creation of deontic video content could be an indication of acts of resistance among the people.
This is the real threat to the regime.
＜Inside N. Korea＞Crackdowns aren’t focused just on the “South Wave” anymore…Hands down the “April 27 Directive” to intensify crackdowns on the form of videos made by domestic individuals
asiapress.org
A 17-year-old girl in North Korea is shown in a birthday celebration video on a cell phone that she made for her friend. The video, believed to have been made in 2013, was obtained by ASIAPRESS.
North Korean authorities have issued the so-called "April 27 Directive," which punishes individuals for distributing self-made videos on cell phones and computers. According to an ASIAPRESS reporting partner, the directive condemns the making and distributing videos without state approval as non-socialism, and warns of severe punishment for both the creators and distributors of video content. (JEON Sung-jun / KANG Ji-won)
◆ Creation and dissemination of videos considered “non-socialist behavior”
A reporting partner living in the northern region of North Korea said the "4.27 Directive" was issued at a neighborhood watch unit meeting in early May.
"We were told to report cases of photographers and computer experts editing and distributing videos using editors imported from China, and especially young people making videos of themselves dancing, singing, or learning guitar, which are considered non-socialist acts."
Until now, North Korean authorities have strongly cracked down on and punished the dissemination and viewing of South Korean or foreign content, especially with the enactment of the Anti-Reactionary Thought Law in December 2020. The maximum penalty stipulated by that law is death.
Domestically produced videos have also been criminalized, but what triggered this recent directive? The reporting partner explained:
"It started when students in Pyongyang were caught filming and showing each other how to date and how to kiss, among other things. Even educational materials that are useful for everyday life, such as how to speak in a relationship (language etiquette) and how to use honorifics, are subject to the crackdown." The reporting partner complained that even domestic videos that he thought were completely innocuous were subject to government ire.
◆ The authorities intensify crackdowns, conducting surprise inspections through neighborhood watch units to identify problematic video content
The authorities are also cracking down on independently produced videos and publications, the reporting partner said.
"If you have a phone, they take it away and test it, and if you make a call on the street, they look at the phone before anything else," he said. "There are random computer checks by neighborhood watch units, and because of that, there are constant checks at places like photo studios, libraries, and e-communication service centers (specialty stores that sell telecommunications products like phones and apps)."
A North Korean smartphone. North Korea calls it an intelligent cell phone. Image obtained by ASIAPRESS from North Korea in 2020.
But the authorities are facing difficulties in cracking down on these illegal activities because of how videos are created and distributed.
"They're cracking down on videos that are made by individuals who don't get them from Gildongmu (North Korea's navigation app) or the official intranet, but they're also trying to identify videos that are made and edited by individuals. Because phones don't have a lot of capacity, people can only save and watch short videos. And that’s a problem for the authorities."
Following crackdowns on content made outside of the country, North Korean authorities are now cracking down on videos made domestically. This is a sign of the Kim Jong-un regime's intention to both prevent the inflow of outside information and tightly manage internal information and public opinion.
※ ASIAPRESS communicates with its reporting partners through Chinese cell phones smuggled into North Korea.
asiapress.org
9. South Korea Unveils $19 Billion Package for Chip Industry
South Korea Unveils $19 Billion Package for Chip Industry
Tax breaks set to expire at the end of the year will be extended to facilitate large-scale investment by the industry
https://www.wsj.com/tech/south-korea-unveils-19-billion-package-for-chip-industry-0733c676?mod=Searchresults_pos1&page=1
By Kimberley Kao
Follow
May 23, 2024 6:32 am ET
South Korea has announced a $19 billion package largely providing financial support for chip makers and suppliers. PHOTO: SEONGJOON CHO/BLOOMBERG NEWS
South Korea has unveiled a $19 billion support package to bolster its semiconductor industry, seeking to catch up with international rivals amid soaring demand for advanced chips to power artificial intelligence and other computing.
The 26 trillion won ($19.03 billion) package, announced by President Yoon Suk Yeol on Thursday, focuses largely on providing financial support through state-run Korea Development Bank for chip makers and suppliers to invest in semiconductor infrastructure in the North Asian nation.
Tax breaks set to expire at the end of the year will be extended to facilitate large-scale investment by the semiconductor industry, the presidential office quoted Yoon as saying.
South Korea, home to some of Asia’s top chip makers, including Samsung Electronics 005930 0.77%increase; green up pointing triangle and SK Hynix, saw semiconductor exports rise 56% on year in April, leading the country’s overall trade growth.
Its chip makers have been facing intense competition from companies like Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.and 2330 1.27%increase; green up pointing triangle Intel.
Yoon’s office added that South Korea’s market share of the global fabless industry — in which companies specialize in chip design but outsource production, and is primarily dominated by Nvidia — is around 1%, and said there is a gap between the country’s chip makers and other leading players.
SK Hynix last month said it plans to invest an additional $14.6 billion to expand its AI chip capacity in South Korea, while Samsung recently replaced the head of its semiconductor business, and called the leadership change a “pre-emptive measure” aimed at strengthening the company’s competitiveness.
The chip aid package comes as the U.S. moves to boost its chip sector and attract manufacturing amid the race for AI development.
Last month, the U.S. granted up to $6.4 billion to Samsung to build a chip-making facility in Texas, and up to $6.6 billion to help TSMC as the world’s largest contract chip maker invests $65 billion in chip factories in Arizona, making the companies two of the biggest recipients of subsidies under the U.S. Chips Act. Intel and GlobalFoundries earlier this year received grants under the act as well.
Write to Kimberley Kao at kimberley.kao@wsj.com
10. Korea-China-Japan summit Monday could be ‘turning point’ to normalized ties in Northeast Asia
Really? How so?
Excerpt:
"This summit will serve as a turning point for Korea, Japan and China to fully restore and normalize our trilateral cooperation system," Kim Tae-hyo, principal deputy national security adviser, said in a press briefing at the Yongsan presidential office.
"It will provide an opportunity to secure the momentum for future-oriented and practical cooperation that will enable the people of the three countries to feel tangible benefits."
Thursday
May 23, 2024
dictionary + A - A
Published: 23 May. 2024, 17:32
Updated: 23 May. 2024, 19:27
Korea-China-Japan summit Monday could be ‘turning point’ to normalized ties in Northeast Asia
https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/news/2024-05-23/national/diplomacy/KoreaChinaJapan-summit-Monday-could-be-turning-point-to-normalized-ties-in-Northeast-Asia/2053494
Principal Deputy National Security Adviser Kim Tae-hyo speaks on a trilateral summit bringing together the leaders of Korea, China and Japan over Sunday and Monday during a briefing at the Yongsan presidential office in central Seoul Thursday. [NEWS1]
South Korea, China and Japan will hold a long-stalled trilateral summit in Seoul on Monday, a meeting expected to serve as a stepping stone towards normalization of relations between the three Northeast Asian neighbors.
President Yoon Suk Yeol will host the three-way meeting, the first of its kind in four years and five months, inviting Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Chinese Premier Li Qiang to the country for a two-day visit from Sunday, the presidential office announced Thursday. Korea is the current rotating chair.
"This summit will serve as a turning point for Korea, Japan and China to fully restore and normalize our trilateral cooperation system," Kim Tae-hyo, principal deputy national security adviser, said in a press briefing at the Yongsan presidential office.
"It will provide an opportunity to secure the momentum for future-oriented and practical cooperation that will enable the people of the three countries to feel tangible benefits."
The summit, the ninth of its kind, will address six areas of cooperation: economy and trade; sustainable development and climate response; health and an aging society; science and technology in the age of digital transformation; disaster and safety management; and people-to-people exchanges.
The leaders are expected to issue a joint statement afterwards to demonstrate their intent to pursue such cooperation. This statement is expected to lead discussions in lower-level consultative bodies and future cooperative projects among the three countries.
On Sunday afternoon, Yoon will hold separate bilateral talks with Li and Kishida at the Yongsan presidential office.
Later that evening, Yoon is scheduled to host an official welcome dinner for the three countries' delegations, including 80 business figures.
Yoon, Li and Kishida will hold a summit Monday morning. Later that day, they will attend and speak at a business forum involving the three countries.
The trilateral summit between the Northeast Asian countries, first launched in December 2008, was last held in Chengdu in December 2019, when China was the chair. The meeting, however, went on hiatus due to the Covid-19 pandemic and strained relations between Seoul and Tokyo over historical and trade issues.
The gathering comes as Seoul and Tokyo have normalized bilateral relations and aligned more closely with Washington in the past two years amid intensifying Sino-U.S. competition and Pyongyang's increased nuclear and missile threats.
The strengthened trilateral security cooperation between South Korea, the United States and Japan was exemplified through the Camp David summit in August last year, juxtaposed to China, Russia and North Korea's stronger bonds in recent times.
The upcoming Seoul-Beijing-Tokyo summit is expected to provide an opportunity for the neighbors to seek cooperation in shared sectors, such as the economy, trade and health.
"Our government's ultimate goal for trilateral cooperation is to create an environment where the people of our three countries can trust each other, actively interact and work in healthy and safe environments," Kim said, stressing that promoting the economic development of all three countries lends way to improving such quality of life.
The Korea-China-Japan summit is also expected to be a venue to discuss ways to expand the scope of three-way cooperation to include tackling wider regional and global issues they can agree on.
This could include working together in the UN Security Council "to respond to complex global crises and contribute to peace and prosperity in the international community," Kim said.
It is unclear whether the leaders will discuss the matter of suspected arms transactions between North Korea and Russia, said a presidential official, noting that it will be difficult for Seoul, Tokyo and Beijing to come to an agreement on issues involving Pyongyang's denuclearization "in a short period of time."
In his bilateral talks with Li, Yoon is expected to discuss "regional and global issues, including the situation on the Korean Peninsula," according to Kim, as well as promoting strategic communication, expanding economic and trade cooperation, creating a favorable investment environment in China, expanding people-to-people and cultural exchanges, and discuss regional and global issues, including the situation on the Korean Peninsula.
This will be Li's first visit to Korea since taking office in March 2023. The Chinese premier traditionally attends the summit rather than the president.
Yoon's talks with Kishida will mark their first bilateral summit this year, after a series of meetings last year following the revival of bilateral shuttle diplomacy between the two countries' leaders in March 2023 as relations normalized.
He plans to exchange opinions with Kishida "on ways to promote substantive cooperation between the two countries," such as the situation on the Korean Peninsula, trilateral cooperation between Seoul, Washington and Tokyo, and regional and global cooperation, including in the Indo-Pacific region, Kim said.
Yoon continues a flurry of diplomatic events in Seoul this month, following Korea's general election in April.
Last week, Yoon held a bilateral summit with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet in Seoul. He also co-hosted a virtual leader's session of the AI Seoul Summit alongside British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Tuesday.
Next week, Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, president of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), will make a state visit to Seoul on Tuesday and Wednesday.
His two-day trip will mark the first state visit to the country by a UAE president.
The two leaders are expected to discuss ways to strengthen cooperation in various sectors, including economic investment, energy, the defense industry and advanced technologies.
In January last year, Yoon made a state visit to the UAE, becoming the first foreign leader to do so since President Mohamed was inaugurated in May 2022.
BY SARAH KIM [kim.sarah@joongang.co.kr]
11. China summons South Korean, Japanese diplomats to lodge Taiwan-related protests
Korea and Japan are standing up for Taiwan with their simple presence at the presidential inauguration and that upsets China.
Thursday
May 23, 2024
dictionary + A - A
Published: 23 May. 2024, 13:49
Updated: 23 May. 2024, 14:06
China summons South Korean, Japanese diplomats to lodge Taiwan-related protests
https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/news/2024-05-23/national/diplomacy/China-summons-South-Korean-Japanese-diplomats-to-lodge-Taiwanrelated-protests/2053260
New Taiwan's President Lai Ching-te, center, Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim, right, and former President Tsai Ing-wen wave during Lai's inauguration ceremonies in Taipei, Taiwan, on Monday. [AP/YONHAP]
China's Foreign Ministry summoned senior South Korean and Japanese diplomats in Beijing to lodge a protest regarding Taiwan on Wednesday. The Chinese government’s action is likely to have been motivated by the presence of South Korean and Japanese political figures at Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te’s inauguration on Monday.
In a press release Wednesday, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said that Liu Jin-song, director-general of the Department of Asian Affairs at the ministry, met with Chief Minister of the Japanese Embassy in China Akira Yokochi and Kim Han-kyu, a minister at the Korean Embassy, for a “comprehensive and in-depth exchange of views on matters related to China-Japan-ROK cooperation,” referring to South Korea by its official name, the Republic of Korea.
“Lin also expressed China’s solemn position on the Taiwan question,” the Chinese Foreign Ministry said in the press release.
Although the wording in the Mandarin version of the press release did not use the highest level of protest commonly used by the Chinese Foreign Ministry, the term used meant that the South Korean and Japanese diplomats were summoned to a separate location and given a complaint.
Related Article
The Chinese Foreign Ministry did not specify the reasons for the summons, but Beijing may have taken issue with the attendance of Korean and Japanese political figures at Lai’s inauguration on Monday.
Previously, the Chinese Embassy in Korea announced in a message to reporters on Tuesday that it had protested the Korean government regarding People Power Party (PPP) Rep. Cho Kyoung-tae’s attendance at the inauguration, calling Cho’s presence an “unauthorized visit.”
“This runs counter to the ROK-China strategic cooperative partnership,” the Chinese Embassy in Seoul said in the message. “We urge South Korea to adhere to the one-China principle and to not interfere in China’s internal affairs in any way.”
In the case of Japan, 31 figures led by a bipartisan group of pro-Taiwan lawmakers attended Lai’s inauguration and met directly with Lai.
South Korea did not formally send a delegation to Lai's inauguration, and an official from Seoul's Foreign Ministry said Tuesday that "there is no change in our government's position regarding Taiwan" and that South Korea "respects China's one-China principle."
On Thursday, just four days after Lai’s inauguration, China launched a large-scale military exercise around Taiwan, heightening tensions.
BY LIM JEONG-WON [lim.jeongwon@joongang.co.kr]
12. Has North Korea made an unwanted change we never expected?
Very interesting and thoughtful analysis from Micahel Breen.
What is missing from this analysis (and that of most pundits) is asking the question of whether the regime still seeks domination of the entire Korean peninsula as the path to long term regime survival? There is a difference between having a policy of peaceful unification and a strategy of peninsula domination.
I for one, do not think there has been a change to the nature, objectives, or strategy of the Kim family regime. The regime still, seeks domination. There are two reasons for the recent change of north Korean rhetoric. One is the severe stress he is under because of the failed promise that nuclear weapons would bring peace and prosperity to the north. The second is the failed promise and other "dissatisfaction" with their lives in the north is leading to internal threats and thus Kim must ratchet up the propaganda to create the perception of the external threat from the South and the US.
RI Jong Ho and I discussed some of this in our article here.
The Real Reason North Korea Is Threatening War
https://nationalinterest.org/blog/korea-watch/real-reason-north-korea-threatening-war-209331?page=0%2C1
Has North Korea made an unwanted change we never expected?
The Korea Times · May 23, 2024
By Michael Breen
For decades now, since the world came to agree with what South Koreans felt all along — that theirs was the better Korea — we have been figuratively peering across the DMZ, waiting for the failed side to accept the painful truth.
Experts have been on permanent alert for a clue, a hint, a wink, anything to signal the inevitable shift.
I wonder now, could the signs be there but getting misread? I wonder, has North Korea turned a corner and we have just not noticed?
I can’t say I’m sure, but here is what has triggered these thoughts.
As readers will know, at the end of last year, Kim Jong-un declared that North Korea would no longer pursue reconciliation and reunification with South Korea.
This was more than just words. Through January and February, there was nationwide follow-up. Laws were changed. Wording was tweaked. Songs were unsung. Government and party offices were closed, and people reassigned. Maps were airbrushed — like, weather reports changed from being the whole peninsula to just North Korea. Without enough time before the new school year to print new textbooks, students were recruited in the holidays to stick bits of paper over words like “unification” and anything that suggested South Koreans were compatriots.
Had Kim stopped there, we would have been left thinking he was serious. President Yoon Suk Yeol might have proposed a summit to make him change his mind, been rebuffed, and now we would be planning the invasion or talking about the two Koreas having to forge separate paths.
But in the same speech, Kim laid into South Korea. “I believe that it is a mistake, that we must no longer make, to deal with the people who declare us as ‘the main enemy’ and seek only opportunities for ‘[our] regime collapse’ and ‘unification by absorption,’” he said, according to the country’s KCNA news agency.
He went further. South Koreans are no longer our brothers and sisters, he said. They are foreigners and that their state is North Korea’s officially designated “main enemy.”
That was not very nice. The effect was to make some experts and politicians in this country and overseas think he was having a hissy fit against President Yoon. Others, meanwhile, saw belligerent intent and claimed Kim was laying the foundation for a nuclear attack.
What these reactions have in common is that nobody was taking Kim at face value. This may well be the biggest strategic change on the Korean Peninsula since South Korea’s move to democracy 40 years ago. But in last month’s National Assembly elections, it didn’t come up.
Perhaps it should have. What if Kim really was giving up on reunification and was appearing belligerent simply to make sure our side didn’t get belligerent with him? That’s not to say we would, just that he thinks we would, because if he were us, he would.
The reason this is hard is that dropping reunification is not what we expected. Unification unites all Koreans. It is the sacred task that keeps them Korean. Giving it up is like the devil declaring he’s an atheist. It’s hard to get your head around it.
What everyone expected outside of war or a coup was a decision to make real peace and engage seriously with the South about a merger. The crucial first indicator in such a case, we expected, would lie in a shift of national strategy from reunification to economic development, with resources moving from defense to economic planning, from treating people like inmates of a prison to people whose lives are worth improving.
There’s evidence of something like this.
In a new five-year plan announced last summer, there was a new emphasis on regional development. The new part is a “20×10 regional development” goal to build manufacturing facilities in 20 cities and counties every year for the next 10 years. At the same time as he was calling for the constitution to be changed to drop the national reunification clause, Kim was giving speeches about regional development and attending groundbreakings.
Could this be North Korea’s version of what Deng Xiaoping did in China?
Behind this new policy direction is an ideological change. Kim’s grandfather’s Juche ideology emphasized independence from foreign power. When Kim’s father took over, he continued to sing from the Juche hymn sheet, but changed the lyrics to emphasize “military first.” In recent years, these lyrics have been changed again. Kim Jong-un appears to be emphasizing “nation” and “people.”
Perhaps he really is trying to improve their lives. If that is true, then reunification is taking a back seat.
There is a certain logic to North Korea opting either to give up or postpone reunification. Given that if it were to happen now, North Korea would be credited with contributing nothing of substance, except perhaps the location of the future capital, and might end up the poor cousin, separation now makes better sense.
If that is what is happening — and it is too early to be sure — then our victory in the competition to be the better Korea takes on a quality of one hand clapping. Our choice then becomes whether to continue to push for our desired reunification or opt for peaceful separation.
Michael Breen (mike.breen@insightcomms.com) is the author of "The New Koreans."
The Korea Times · May 23, 2024
13. 'Trump-proofing' Korea
We should not forget that Trump had a failed deal in South Korea. Does that influence his thinking about Korea?
'Trump-proofing' Korea
The Korea Times · May 22, 2024
Yoon should prepare for biggest foreign policy challenger
By John Burton
When it appears that Donald Trump's favorite Korean is North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un, the government in Seoul has reason to worry about the possible reelection of the former U.S. president in November.
The Yoon Suk Yeol administration should follow the example of many other governments and prepare for this eventuality, a process known as "Trump-proofing."
It is important to understand the reasons for a Trump victory to help guide Seoul in responding to what is likely to happen in a second Trump presidency. Opinion polls in the United States point to one main election issue: the state of the American economy.
On the surface, Americans should be happy about how their economy is performing. It is growing at a faster rate than any other advanced economy, the stock market is hitting record highs and the unemployment rate is low. What's there not to like?
But Americans are worried about high government debt levels, the worst inflation rate in years and illegal immigration. At least 60 percent of households are living from paycheck to paycheck, credit card debt is at record levels, food prices remain stubbornly high and housing prices are no longer affordable for many.
Trump has successfully tapped into this anxiety, and he has offered solutions that are likely to hurt most of America's traditional allies, including Korea.
Trump's proposals to reduce the U.S. trade deficit would hit Korean industry particularly hard. He wants a 10 percent across-the-board tariff on all goods entering the U.S. There is also talk that Trump plans to devalue the U.S. dollar to boost exports while making imports more expensive.
One way to counter this threat is for Korean companies to build more production plants in the U.S. to overcome trade barriers. Korean carmakers Hyundai Motor and Kia have done this for years in response to two decades of auto trade disputes with Washington.
Korean chipmakers are now following suit to take advantage of subsidies being offered by the Biden administration to persuade chipmakers to expand cutting-edge production in the U.S. In April, it was announced that Samsung Electronics would receive $6.4 billion from Washington to build semiconductor fabs in Texas.
But it is uncertain whether a second Trump administration will retain the CHIPS and Science Act, which authorized these subsidies. Even if it does so, analysts suggest that it would require any foreign chipmaker not to invest in China as a condition for receiving U.S. subsidies. This would particularly affect Samsung and SK hynix, which have invested an estimated $35 billion in China since 2020.
If Trump decides to raise tariffs and restrict imports, it could set off an inflationary spiral that would significantly weaken the U.S. economy and make it a less desirable export market for Korea. Last year, the U.S. emerged as Korea's biggest overseas market for the first time in two decades, overtaking China.
Addressing these challenges will require a whole-of-government approach in Seoul when there are deep divisions between the ruling administration and the National Assembly. They must cooperate to identify new export markets and the development of new export industries, such as defense equipment.
Meanwhile, Trump is also focusing on U.S. military allies to pay more for their own defense rather than relying on Washington to shoulder most of the defense burden in an effort to reduce government debt. Already in his first term, Trump wanted Seoul to triple the amount it spends on supporting U.S. troops in Korea to $5 billion, while also suspending joint military exercises.
Korea is hiring consultants and lobbyists in Washington as part of an exercise to determine what will be Trump's policy toward Seoul in a second term by reaching out to his possible foreign policy advisers. The biggest fear is that Trump will pull out some or all of the 28,500 U.S. troops in Korea. That would leave South Korea in a vulnerable position when North Korea is building up its nuclear and missile arsenal.
As he has hinted, Trump could also seek to sign a nuclear arms control deal with North Korea that would leave South Korea without the protection of America's nuclear umbrella. Seoul might respond by pursuing its own nuclear deterrent, an option that enjoys wide public support.
Another way to achieve safety without resorting to nuclear weapons would be for Yoon to stitch together security alliances with other regional powers, including Japan, Australia and the Philippines.
This would be a key test of Yoon's goal of making Korea into a "global pivotal state" that would play a greater role regionally and globally. A Trump presidency might yet prove to be the biggest foreign policy challenger during the three remaining years of Yoon's term.
John Burton (johnburtonft@yahoo.com), a former Korea correspondent for the Financial Times, is a Washington, D.C.-based journalist and consultant. He is a guest editorial writer at The Korea Times.
The Korea Times · May 22, 2024
14. Chongjin intensifies street-level inspections of mobile phones
Communications and information is a threat to the regime.
Chongjin intensifies street-level inspections of mobile phones - Daily NK English
The discovery of a single word or expression of South Korean origin is enough to land anyone in hot water
By Lee Chae Un - May 23, 2024
dailynk.com · by Lee Chae Un · May 23, 2024
FILE PHOTO: A scene from Chongjin, North Hamgyong Province. (Daily NK)
Mobile phone inspections and body searches of young residents of Chongjin have recently become more intense than ever. North Korean authorities appear to be stepping up their campaign to block the influx and adoption of foreign culture, which they see as a threat to the regime.
“Groups of street enforcers organized by the Chongjin branch of the Socialist Patriotic Youth League have been inspecting the mobile phones of young people they see on the streets since May 6. All young people are forced to undergo the inspections, without exception,” a source in North Hamgyong Province told Daily NK on Tuesday, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Whereas the street enforcers used to focus their attention on young people who wore disheveled clothes or forgot to wear Kim family pins on their lapels, they now stop every young person they encounter on the street, the source said.
If nothing problematic is found on their phones, the young people are allowed to pass without incident, but the discovery of a single word or expression of South Korean origin is enough to land the individual in hot water – and possibly legal consequences, depending on the severity of the problem.
“North Koreans have had to sit through a mind-numbing number of lectures on preserving the ‘Pyongyang cultural language’ [the standard North Korean dialect] and not using the language of the ‘puppets’ [in South Korea], and another series of lectures was held in every social organization earlier this month. Anyone caught by the monitors is immediately sent to a labor camp and subjected to all kinds of drudgery,” the source said.
“Young people feel that the current street checks are worse than anything they’ve seen in movies about the Japanese colonial period. Since there is nothing illegal about having a cell phone, they object that the government shouldn’t have sold the phones in the first place if it was going to be so strict with these inspections,” he added.
Young people are also annoyed by the fact that during the mobile phone inspections, the street enforcers question their outfits, hairstyles and lack of lapel pins, and also go overboard in frisking young people, ostensibly to see if they are hiding storage devices with illegal videos.
“During the search for USB sticks, the street enforcers not only run their hands through people’s pockets, but also all over their bodies,” the source said.
Women stopped and frisked at will
As an example, the source cited a pair of young women in their twenties in Chongjin who encountered street enforcers checking cell phones on the afternoon of May 11.
The monitors spent about 15 minutes inspecting the two women’s cell phones, looking for foreign songs or videos and making sure there were no South Korean phrases in the text history.
The enforcers then had the women raise their arms so they could run their hands along the sides of their breasts to see if any SD cards or USB sticks were hidden in their bras. The enforcers also ordered the women to jump as high as they could.
But in the end, nothing was found, so the enforcers let the women go.
“Young people already know more songs from South Korea than from here [in North Korea], and when they hang out they listen to South Korean songs and dance in the South Korean style, despite the intensifying crackdown. If the government continues to tighten the screws to eradicate the foreign culture already being enjoyed by young people, it will just increase their resentment and opposition to the state,” the source said.
Daily NK works with a network of sources living in North Korea, China, and elsewhere. Their identities remain anonymous for security reasons. For more information about Daily NK’s network of reporting partners and information-gathering activities, please visit our FAQ page here.
Please send any comments or questions about this article to dailynkenglish@uni-media.net.
Read in Korean
dailynk.com · by Lee Chae Un · May 23, 2024
15. High-resolution satellite imagery suggests N. Korea is producing fissile materials
High-resolution satellite imagery suggests N. Korea is producing fissile materials - Daily NK English
Coolant discharge at the facility has been continuously detected since the end of April
By Bruce Songhak Chung - May 23, 2024
dailynk.com · by Bruce Songhak Chung · May 23, 2024
An inspection of high-resolution satellite imagery and thermal infrared satellite imagery indicates that North Korea has recently operated key facilities in the Yongbyon Nuclear Complex in North Pyongan Province, which could mean it is producing fissile materials.
In a review of imagery taken by Maxar satellites, the discharge of coolant warmed during the operation of a 5 MWe reactor and a light water reactor at the Yongbyon complex was detected for the 11th time this year. In addition, an analysis of thermal infrared satellite imagery found that the radiochemical laboratory and the uranium enrichment facility (also known as reprocessing facilities) are being operated and that high amounts of energy are being released as a result of those operations.
This evidence suggests that North Korea is producing the fissile materials of plutonium and highly enriched uranium while operating the facilities at Yongbyon.
Interpretation of high-resolution images from Maxar
Coolant and white foam discharged into the Kuryong River during operations of the 5 MWe regular reactor and the light water reactor at the Yongbyon Nuclear Complex are clearly visible at drainage pipes connected to two pumphouses. Imagery=GeoEye-1 (@ 2024 Maxar, U.S.G. Plus)
Viewing the area around the 5 MWe reactor and the light water reactor on Maxar’s GeoEye-1 satellite imagery (with a resolution of 40 centimeters) taken on May 14 clearly shows that white foam and coolant warmed during the operation of the reactors is being discharged into the Kuryong River at two pumphouses. In keeping with a previous Daily NK report, this is the 11th time a coolant discharge has been detected this year.
Based on an analysis of the Maxar satellite images, coolant was first discharged during trial operations of the experimental light water reactor in the second half of 2023, and discharge resumed in January 2024. Coolant discharge was not detected for about a month, from mid-March to the latter half of April, when the two reactors were not in operation. But the coolant discharge has been continuously detected since the end of April.
Thermal infrared satellite images were used to examine indications of facility operation through temperature distribution at the Yongbyon Nuclear Complex. The thermal infrared images in question were taken by Landsat-8, an earth observation satellite that is operated by NASA. These images, which have a resolution of 100 meters, detect heat energy emitted from the service and numerically record the temperatures in question.
Analysis of thermal infrared satellite imagery
This temperature distribution map at the Yongbyon Nuclear Complex is based on an analysis of thermal infrared satellite data. This map shows a high amount of thermal energy being emitted from the radiochemical laboratory and the uranium enrichment facility emitted in apparent evidence of the production of fissile materials. Imagery=GeoEye-1 (background) and Landsat-8 thermal infrared data (semi-transparent layer) (@ 2024 Maxar, U.S.G. Plus)
Thermal infrared images express the level of surface heat (or temperature) in brightness. For a meaningful analysis, those levels need to be converted to surface temperature in Celsius through a formula-driven step-by-step process. ERDAS IMAGINE, an image processing software package, was used to analyze the thermal infrared images, while ArcGIS was used as the geographic information system (GIS) in the analysis.
The image above converted the thermal infrared images taken by Landsat-8 according to the technical formulas and procedures presented in a 2013 research paper by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). The surface temperature distribution at the Yongbyon Nuclear Complex was expressed in colors assigned at 1-2 degree intervals. The background was illustrated by a high-resolution GeoEye-1 image (taken on May 14) in order to aid understanding of the facilities on the surface, superimposed with a semi-transparent layer of temperature distribution expressed in color from the thermal infrared data.
According to the analysis of the thermal infrared images, the temperature distribution at the Yongbyon area ranged from a low of 13 degrees to a high of 28 degrees, for an average of 19 degrees, around 11 AM on May 16.
There may be errors in the surface temperature arrived at through thermal infrared analysis because it was calculated indirectly based on mathematical formulas. The 2013 USGS research paper described a margin of error of ±3 degrees Celsius. More precise temperatures would have to be directly measured with thermometers at the surface.
According to the analysis, the radiochemical laboratory (a nuclear reprocessing facility) had a temperature of 27–28 degrees, which was much higher than the surrounding temperature in Yongbyon (an average of 19 degrees). The uranium enrichment facility also appeared to be emitting high thermal energy at a temperature of 25–26 degrees. It is presumed that spent fuel rods are being reprocessed into plutonium, which is a fissile material, in the radiochemical laboratory, and that highly enriched uranium is being produced by rotating uranium at high speeds in hundreds or thousands of centrifuges at the uranium enrichment facility.
Along with North Korea’s ongoing missile launches, there are indications of vertical engine tests at the Sohae Satellite Launching Station in Tongchang Village. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un also emphasized that North Korea “needs to continue accelerating major activities and production in order to strengthen our nuclear arsenal” during a recent visit to a defense company.
It is during those developments that activities related to the production of key fissile materials have been detected in high-resolution and thermal infrared satellite images of Yongbyon. Security concerns on the Korean Peninsula and in Northeast Asia are unlikely to be laid to rest anytime soon.
Please send any comments or questions about this article to dailynkenglish@uni-media.net.
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dailynk.com · by Bruce Songhak Chung · May 23, 2024
16. Kim's portrait is publicly displayed in North Korea. Here's a look at what it means
Kim's portrait is publicly displayed in North Korea. Here's a look at what it means
AP · by HYUNG-JIN KIM · May 22, 2024
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — The portrait of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un was publicly displayed along with those of his father and grandfather for the first time, sparking speculation about the message it sends.
Portraits of leaders are at the core of North Korea’s state-sponsored cult of personality that has buttressed the Kim family’s rule since the country’s foundation in 1948. Almost all homes and public offices in North Korea must have portraits of Kim’s father Kim Jong Il and grandfather Kim Il Sung, but featuring that of the younger Kim hadn’t yet been a requirement until recently.
Here’s a look at what it means and why now:
WHAT EXACTLY HAPPENED?
On Wednesday, North Korea’s state media released a photo showing Kim Jong Un’s large portrait hung on the wall of a building alongside those of Kim Jong Il and Kim Il Sung, during his recent visit to the Central Cadres Training School of the ruling Workers’ Party.
Another state media photo showed the smaller portraits of the three Kims placed side by side at a classroom, where Kim Jong Un, seated in a chair, talked to officials who took notes of his remarks.
Longtime North Korea watchers say it’s the first time for North Korea to publicize images showing the portrait of Kim Jong Un installed together with those of the two late North Korean rulers since the younger Kim took power in late 2011.
IS KIM BOOSTING HIS PERSONALITY CULT?
Placing his portrait next to those of his father and grandfather would suggest he wants to elevate his status to a level similar to that of the past two leaders, who are the subject of a strong and loyal following and regarded like gods. By doing so, Kim Jong Un wants to announce the start of his own era, according to Kwak Gil Sup, head of One Korea Center, a website specializing in North Korea affairs.
Few foreign experts question Kim’s grip on power. But the 40-year-old has still avoided the same level of personality cult bestowed on his predecessors: they are memorialized in numerous statues and mosaics across North Korea, their birthdays are two of the country’s biggest holidays and pins bearing their likenesses are worn by all North Korean adults.
Kwak said Kim Jong Un’s portrait will now likely be hung on the walls of all households while his birthday could also be designated as an official holiday.
The place where his portrait was recently hung is the highest education facility for ruling party brass. Kwak said it shows that “Kim Jong Un wants to begin a new era with new people.”
Observers say Kim needs stronger domestic support of his leadership as he struggles to navigate his country past economic hardships and protracted tensions with the United States over his nuclear program. In January, Kim announced he will no longer pursue a peaceful unification with South Korea, a decadeslong policy cherished by his father and grandfather.
ANY PROBLEM WITH PROPAGANDA DRIVE?
Prospects for Kim’s push aren’t clear, though he likely thinks he has bolstered his power and built his nuclear and other military programs strong enough to elevate himself in the national mythology.
Kim’s headlong pursuit of a bigger nuclear arsenal has drawn punishing U.S.-led sanctions, which together with border closures during the pandemic were believed to have badly hurt the North’s fragile economy. Kim has subsequently admitted policy failures as his vow that North Koreans would “never have to tighten their belts again” remained unfulfilled.
“For regime propaganda to reach such a stage of personality cult suggests both impressive confidence and insecurity,” said Leif-Eric Easley, professor of international studies at Ewha Womans University in Seoul.
“However, this is also a political gamble, with Kim betting that ideology can buy time to address North Korea’s economic struggles and social divisions,” Easley said.
IS HIS PORTRAIT PRELUDE TO ANOTHER HEREDITARY POWER TRANSFER?
Cheong Seong-Chang, an analyst at the private Sejong Institute in South Korea, said Kim’s portrait is more likely associated with his possible bid to groom his preteen daughter, reportedly named Kim Ju Ae, as his heir.
“By hanging the portraits of all three — Kim Il Sung, Kim Jong Il and Kim Il Sung — I assess that North Korea is underscoring the need to extend the Paektu bloodline to justify another hereditary power transfer for Ju Ae,” Cheong said, referring to the Kim family’s lineage named after the country’s most sacred mountain.
Ju Ae, aged about 10, has been the subject of keen outside attention as she accompanied her father on a series of high-profile events such as missile tests and military parades since late 2022. State media called her Kim Jong Un’s “most beloved” or “respected” child while churring out footage and photos proving her soaring political standing and closeness with her father.
In January, South Korea’s spy agency said it saw Ju Ae as her father’s likely heir apparent.
Some experts say it’s still too premature to determine Ju Ae is Kim’s heir, given her age and North Korea’s male-dominated power hierarchy.
AP · by HYUNG-JIN KIM · May 22, 2024
17. Kim Jong-un was 'desperate to get rid of his nuclear weapons and did not want his daughter's generation to 'live with the burden' of nukes'
It will be interesting to read Moon's memoir.
I was at an event listening to some Korean experts and one of the topics was the failed summit at Hanoi. They provided some excellent analysis that included the relationships among the three leaders, Moon, Kim, and Trump. While the consensus was that Kim Jong un missed an opportunity, their discussion led me to wonder about Moon's role. He was acting as a go between. My question is did He make promises to Kim that Trump could not keep? And vice versa, did he make promises to Trump that Kim could not keep? Is that the real reason for failure at Hanoi?
BUt per the article. I cannot believe that Kim was desperate to get rid of his nuclear weapons. That just does not pass the KFR common sense test.
Kim Jong-un was 'desperate to get rid of his nuclear weapons and did not want his daughter's generation to 'live with the burden' of nukes'
PUBLISHED: 10:46 EDT, 22 May 2024 | UPDATED: 11:29 EDT, 22 May 2024
Daily Mail · by Taryn Pedler · May 22, 2024
Kim Jong-un was reportedly 'desperate to get rid of his nuclear weapons and did not want his daughter's generation to live with the burden' of nukes,' claimed South Korea's former leader.
Moon Jae-in, who facilitated the historic summits between Kim and former US President Donald Trump, revealed in a new memoir that the North Korean leader 'repeatedly' and 'desperately' made clear that Pyongyang did not plan to use its weapons and expressed frustration over the global mistrust.
Moon also added that the tyrant dictator surprisingly 'mentioned that he has a daughter and doesn't want her generation to live with the burden of nuclear weapons.
'He sincerely explained his commitment to denuclearisation,' he added.
Moon's memoir, entitled 'From the Frontier to the Centre,' included the passage - which has now sparked backlash - stating that Kim Jong-un 'repeatedly said that he had no intention of using nuclear capabilities.'
Former South Korean president Moon Jae-in's recently published memoir, titled 'From the Periphery to the Centre' claims North Korean leader Kim Jong-un was 'desperate to get rid of his nuclear weapons'. Pictured: The memoir is displayed at a bookstore in Seoul on May 21, 2024
Kim allegedly said he did not want his daughter's generation to 'live with the burden' of nukes. Pictured: Kim, his 10-year-old daughter Kim Ju Ae daughter and an official watch what it says is an intercontinental ballistic missile launching from an undisclosed location in North Korea last December
A photo released by the official North Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) shows missiles launched during a simulated nuclear counterattack drill last month
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, accompanied by his daughter Kim Ju Ae, visits a military vehicle production plant on January 5, 2024
The memoir sparked outrage and strong criticism from the South Korean Minister of Unification and top official on North Korea Kim Yung-ho, who said Monday that 'trusting completely' in the country's intent to denuclearise rather than develop its nuclear capabilities could result in a 'miscalculation' that could have a 'severely negative security outcome' for South Korea.
Read More
Kim Jong Un bows before the man who made him a god: North Korean leader shows his respect at the funeral of mastermind who created the personality cult surrounding his family's dynasty
If South Korea relies only on North Korea's 'good faith', its people and national security could be at risk, Kin warned.
'Rather than denouncing the previous administration, he should behave more like a Minister of Unification and focus his energies on restoring inter-Korean relations,' he told a press conference.
But Moon's remarks comes just a month after Kim oversaw North Korea's first ever 'nuclear trigger' drills , which involved simulating a nuclear counterattack as a warning to enemies.
The drill took place on April 22 and Seoul's military had earlier announced that the North had fired several short-range ballistic missiles that day, with Tokyo also confirming the launch.
Kim 'guided a combined tactical drill simulating a nuclear counterattack involving super-large multiple rocket artillerymen,' the official Korean Central News Agency reported at the time.
This picture taken on March 15, 2024 and released from North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on March 16 shows North Korean leader Kim Jong Un (centre R) and his daughter Ju Ae (centre L) attending the completion and commissioning ceremony for the Gangdong Comprehensive Greenhouse in Pyongyang
Kim Jong Un and his daughter inspected a missile that North Korea said could reach mainland United States, Seoul and Tokyo, last December
Kim Ju Ae has been pictured alongside her father and North Korea's weapons arsenal on several occasions since she first appeared in November 2022
Kim Jong Un (front 2nd R) and his daughter Ju Ae (R) inspecting a training of the Korean People's Army at an undisclosed location in North Korea on March 15, 2024
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, accompanied by his daughter Kim Ju Ae, visits a military vehicle production plant on January 5, 2024
The rockets 'hit their island target' some 219 miles away, it continued, saying Kim had expressed 'great satisfaction' over the result, which boosted 'the Korean-style tactical nuclear strike' - contradicting his apparent 'desperateness' to 'get rid of his nuclear weapons'.
KCNA said the drills were in response to a US-South Korean joint air drill, which runs from April 12 to April 26.
Read More
The sex life of Kim Jong Un: Virgins hand-picked for his 'pleasure squad', a train packed with strippers, 'porn star' ex-girlfriend and staff meetings with dancers providing sexual services
The US and South Korean air forces said the annual exercises would serve for 'demonstrating lethality in the air domain, and enhancing their ability to deter, defend, and defeat any adversary.'
Pyongyang claimed it is 'seriously threatened by the hostile forces' ceaseless military provocations' KCNA said on April 23.
As a result, the North needs to 'more overwhelmingly and more rapidly bolster up the strongest military muscle,' it added.
Kim's daughter, Ju Ae, has been photographed alongside her father at several key public events which stirred speculation that she could have been chosen as the next leader of the nuclear-armed North, for a third hereditary succession.
In an image released by Pyongyang in March, Ju Ae was seen using binoculars to observe recent paratroop drills, standing beside her father and senior military officials.
And in December last year, Kim brought his young daughter to watch the third test of his country's most advanced missile system that could hit the U.S., Seoul and Tokyo.
But little was known about Ju Ae, believed to be the middle child of three, until she made her first public appearance at the time of a missile launch in November 2022.
Daily Mail · by Taryn Pedler · May 22, 2024
De Oppresso Liber,
David Maxwell
Vice President, Center for Asia Pacific Strategy
Senior Fellow, Global Peace Foundation
Editor, Small Wars Journal
Twitter: @davidmaxwell161
Phone: 202-573-8647
email: david.maxwell161@gmail.com
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