|
Quotes of the Day:
“People have only as much liberty as they have in the intelligence to want, and the courage to take.”
- Emma Goldman
“I will always be on the side of those who have nothing, and who are not even allowed to enjoy the nothing they have in peace.”
- Federico García Lorca
“In this treacherous world
Nothing is the truth nor a lie.
Everything depends on the color
Of the crystal through which one sees it”
― Pedro Calderón de la Barca
1. N.K. leader meets with Chinese delegation after armistice anniv.
2. North Korea's Kim vows to boost cooperation with China to 'new high'
3. [ANALYSIS] NK-Russia ties strengthen swiftly while China remains cautious
4. Seoul speeds up deployment of anti-drone measures against N. Korea's evolving threats
5. 2022 DEFENSE WHITE PAPER (ROK)
6 Ex-president's key aides are masterminds of Yoon's policies
7. Foreigners offset Korea's steep population decline
8. N. Korea slams S. Korea in human rights report
9. S. Korean ambassador says N. Korean threats will only lead to stronger deterrence from S. Korea-US alliance
10. [Wang Son-taek] USS Kentucky and the security dilemma
11. Korea's quest for 'peace'
12. Two traps and Korean grand strategy
13. Activists demand formal peace plan to end 70-year long Korean War
14. 70 Years Later, the Korean War Must End
1. N.K. leader meets with Chinese delegation after armistice anniv.
Is Kim Jong Un two timing Xi and Putin?
(LEAD) N.K. leader meets with Chinese delegation after armistice anniv. | Yonhap News Agency
en.yna.co.kr · by Kim Na-young · July 29, 2023
(ATTN: ADDS more info in last 3 paras)
SEOUL, July 29 (Yonhap) -- North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has met with a Chinese delegation, a day after commemorating the 70th anniversary of the Korean War armistice, the North's state media reported Saturday.
During Friday's meeting, the two sides reaffirmed their commitment to enhancing their bilateral relations, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
The Chinese party-government delegation arrived in Pyongyang on Wednesday to attend anniversary celebrations held the following day.
Led by Li Hongzhong, a member of the Chinese Communist Party Politburo, the delegation was one of the first foreign groups to visit Pyongyang since North Korea implemented border lockdowns due to COVID-19 in early 2020, alongside a Russian delegation.
Kim met with the Russian delegation Wednesday.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un (C) poses for a photo with North Korean officials and a Chinese delegation after their meeting on July 28, 2023, in this photo released by the North's Korean Central News Agency. (For Use Only in the Republic of Korea. No Redistribution) (Yonhap)
On Friday, Kim expressed gratitude to China for its help during the Korean War and said North Korea will always remember the significant contributions made during its "most difficult period," according to the KCNA.
Kim also voiced his appreciation to Chinese leader Xi Jinping for sending a delegation and a personal letter, hailing that China would achieve "the dream of great prosperity" under Xi's leadership, the report added. However, the content of the letter was not disclosed.
According to the Chinese Communist Party's flagship paper, the People's Daily, Xi wrote in the letter that China and North Korea shared a "comradeship written with blood" during the Korean War and that Beijing will strengthen and develop its relationship with Pyongyang "no matter how the international situation changes."
The daily said the letter was delivered to Kim through Li.
The KCNA said Pyongyang and Beijing reaffirmed their commitment to improve bilateral cooperation and strengthen their "strategic and tactical collaboration" to cope with the "complicated international situation" through the meeting.
After the meeting, Kim also held a reception with the Chinese delegation, where his powerful sister Yo-jong and Li made speeches, according to the report. The details of the speeches were not disclosed.
It appears to be the first time Yo-jong has spoken in front of foreign officials.
The KCNA said the reception was held in a "friendly" atmosphere.
nyway@yna.co.kr
(END)
en.yna.co.kr · by Kim Na-young · July 29, 2023
2. North Korea's Kim vows to boost cooperation with China to 'new high'
First Russia, then China. Kim showing a lot of love to both?
North Korea's Kim vows to boost cooperation with China to 'new high'
Reuters · by Reuters
SEOUL, July 29 (Reuters) - North Korean leader Kim Jong Un met the Chinese delegation which visited Pyongyang to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the end of the Korean War and vowed to develop the two countries' relations to a "new high", the North's state media said on Saturday.
Kim hosted a reception for the Chinese officials led by Communist Party Politburo member Li Hongzhong on Friday, the North's KCNA news agency said. The Chinese delegation was the first to visit the reclusive state since the COVID-19 pandemic.
"Reaffirmed at the talk was the stand of the parties and governments of the two countries to cope with the complicated international situation on their own initiative and steadily develop the friendship and comradely cooperation onto a new high stage," KCNA said.
The meeting took place after Chinese and Russian officials stood shoulder to shoulder with Kim on Thursday as they reviewed his newest nuclear-capable missiles and attack drones at a military parade in the capital Pyongyang.
Russia and China have opposed U.S.-led efforts to impose more sanctions on North Korea over its pursuit of ballistic missiles in recent years, blaming U.S. exercises in the region for raising tensions.
The U.S. and South Korean navies held joint anti-submarine exercise in waters off South Korea's southern island of Jeju on Saturday, the latest in a series of military drills by the allies in response to what they call North Korean provocations.
The exercise, involving a U.S. nuclear-powered submarine USS Annapolis which had arrived in South Korea this week, was held to better counter North Korea's evolving missile threats, the South's navy said.
Reporting by Soo-hyang Choi; editing by Sandra Maler and Lincoln Feast
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
Reuters · by Reuters
3. [ANALYSIS] NK-Russia ties strengthen swiftly while China remains cautious
Perhaps there is greater "mutual need" for each other in RUssia and nK? Russia needs help in Ukraine and Kim senses he can make money from that (or get other support).
[ANALYSIS] NK-Russia ties strengthen swiftly while China remains cautious
The Korea Times · July 30, 2023
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un shakes hands with Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu during a "Victory Day" ceremony in Pyongyang, July 27, in this photo carried by the North's official Korean Central News Agency, Friday. Shoigu read Russian President Vladimir Putin's congratulatory message during the event. Yonhap
Kremlin's move seen as attempt to secure Pyongyang's support on Ukraine war
By Nam Hyun-woo
North Korea is highlighting its improved relations with Russia by extensively covering Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu's visit to Pyongyang during the North's July 27 "Victory Day" ceremonies, marking the 70th anniversary of the Korean Armistice Agreement.
At the same time, China, which has been viewed as the closest ally of North Korea, made cautious steps in the "Victory Day" ceremonies by sending delegations of relatively lower-profile officials compared to previous occasions. This move appears to be in line with Beijing's recent efforts to manage the intense rivalry with the United States.
The July 29 edition of the North's propaganda weekly Tongil Sinbo featured a significantly high number of photos and articles of Russian Defense Minister Shoigu, who led the Russian delegation in last week's "Victory Day" ceremonies. In comparison, the weekly paid relatively less attention to Li Hongzhong, a Chinese Communist Party Politburo member who represented the Chinese delegation at the ceremonies.
Similar behavior was observed in the July 27-28 coverage by the North's state-run Rodong Shinmun newspaper, which carried 84 photos of the Russian delegation while only printing 30 photos of the Chinese delegation members.
During Shoigu's visits, North Korea and Russia displayed scenes of their improved ties, with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and Shoigu reaching a consensus on "matters of mutual concern in the field of national defense and security and of the regional and international security environment" during a meeting. The North also expressed "full-fledged support" for Russia's war against Ukraine.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un speaks with a Chinese delegation that visited Pyongyang on the occasion of the "Victory Day" ceremony in Pyongyang, July 28, in this photo carried by the North's official Korean Central News Agency, Saturday. Yonhap
In comparison, the Chinese delegation expressed cordial greetings on the traditional friendship between Beijing and Pyongyang, but refrained from making noteworthy remarks.
"In the reporting on the Russian congratulatory delegation, the North used various expressions such as 'consensus of views,' 'strategic coordination and cooperation,' and 'united front,'" said Hong Min, director of the Korea Institute for National Unification, in his report released Saturday.
"However, in the reporting of the Chinese delegation, there were no expressions indicating the two sides' close ties except for customary expressions of traditional friendship. The difference in reporting appears to be a result of Russia's proactive approach compared to China's more cautious stance, rather than the North's intention."
Hong noted that China's cautious stance also appears in the level of rank of its delegation.
China has sent its delegation to the Kim regime three times, which were led by former Vice President Li Yuanchao in 2013, Communist Party Politburo Standing Committee member Liu Yunshan in 2015 and Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress Li Zhanshu in 2018. Their political status is higher than Li Hongzhong who is one of 250 members of the politburo.
"It can be interpreted that China deliberately selected Li Hongzhong for the purpose of symbolic attendance, rather than showcasing close cooperation with North Korea," Hong said.
"Amid the recent efforts to lower the tensions in the U.S.-China rivalry, Beijing seemed to have considered recent visits by high-ranking U.S. officials and U.S. messages urging China's cooperation on North Korean issues. By sending the delegation, Beijing apparently sought to prevent emphasizing its ties with North Korea overtly, while still demonstrating its engagement with the North."
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un walks with Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu during a banquet for the "Victory Day" ceremony in Pyongyang, July 27, in this photo carried by the North's official Korean Central News Agency, July 28. Yonhap
On the other hand, Russia's moves to strengthen its relations with the North are viewed as an outcome of Moscow's need to secure Pyongyang's diplomatic support on its war against Ukraine and set up a united front against Washington, though it will not result in an immediate military technology transfer between the two sides.
"The North's technological setbacks in its pursuit of intercontinental ballistic missiles, spy satellites and submarine-launched ballistic missiles can be addressed quickly if there is Russian assistance," Hong said.
"This depends on whether Pyongyang has an equivalent that Moscow may want to have despite enduring international criticisms on proliferation. However, except for diplomatic support, wartime supplies and a post-war recovery, there is no great strategic necessity that Russia expects from China. Thus, their military cooperation will likely remain at a limited level."
The Korea Times · July 30, 2023
4. Seoul speeds up deployment of anti-drone measures against N. Korea's evolving threats
Paying attention to the north Korea displays at the parade as well as the Ukraine-Russia drone war that is taking place.
Seoul speeds up deployment of anti-drone measures against N. Korea's evolving threats
The Korea Times · July 30, 2023
This photo, released by Pyongyang's state-run Korean Central News Agency, shows an unmanned surveillance drone during a military exhibition to mark the 70th anniversary of the armistice that halted fighting in the 1950-53 Korean War, which is celebrated as Victory Day in the North. Yonhap
Experts doubt capability of North Korea's newly developed drones
By Lee Hyo-jin
South Korea is seeking to speed up the deployment of anti-drone killers after North Korea unveiled new surveillance and attack drones that appeared to be almost identical to the U.S. Global Hawk and Reaper unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).
Defense analysts agreed on the need for the South Korean military to improve its counter-drone system against North Korea's evolving military threats, but viewed that the capabilities of Pyongyang's drones showcased during its latest military parade are exaggerated and do not pose immediate threats to the South.
South Korea's Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) is expected to hold a briefing session with local defense companies about its portable drone jammer project at the Government Complex in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province, Wednesday.
The state arms procurement agency is expected to share details of its project, which is aimed at equipping helicopters with anti-drone guns that are capable of neutralizing enemy drones.
There are two approaches in neutralizing enemy drones ― the so-called soft kill system and the hard kill system. The soft kill system refers to jamming by releasing specific signals to interfere with an enemy drone's ability to receive and transmit signals. The hard kill system entails the physical incapacitation of a drone by shooting it down.
DAPA said its current project would involve the soft kill system.
North Korea's drone incursions in December last year raised the need for the South Korean military to improve its anti-drone system. The drone incursions revealed the limitations of Seoul's aerial defenses and systems to detection small UAVs.
In this photo released by Pyongyang's state-run Korean Central News Agency, weapons suspected to be Haeil underwater attack drones are displayed during a military parade to mark the 70th anniversary of the armistice that halted fighting in the 1950-53 Korean War, on Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, Thursday. Yonhap
During Thursday's military parade marking the 70th anniversary of the signing of the 1950-53 Korean War armistice, celebrated as "Victory Day" in the North, the reclusive regime carried out demonstration flights of new military drones, according to its state media, Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
The two surveillance and attack drone models, dubbed Saetbyul-4 and Saetbyul-9, resembled U.S. RQ-4 Global Hawk and MQ-9 Reaper drones in their visual appearance, according to observers.
Yang Uk, a senior fellow at the Asan Institute for Policy Studies, said that the newly developed North Korean drones are merely look-alikes to the U.S. ones, and their capabilities would not match the advanced features of their U.S. counterparts.
"The precise capabilities of North Korean drones remain unclear, but I'm pretty sure they do not have the same capabilities of U.S. ones. As we've seen through the North's failed satellite launch, the regime does not have the technology to develop cameras that are capable of conducting military reconnaissance works," Yang told The Korea Times.
Earlier this month, the South Korean government retrieved from the West Sea the wreckage of the North's spy satellite launched in late May. South Korean and U.S. experts who jointly examined them concluded that the satellite was not capable of conducting military reconnaissance works.
But Yang commented that the North may use the replicated drones to confuse the South Korean military, which requires Seoul to be better prepared against such tactics.
Shin Jong-woo, a senior researcher at the Korea Defense and Security Forum, a think tank, also viewed that Pyongyang could not have copied the technologies of American aircraft.
"The North claims that Saetbyul-4 are strategic reconnaissance aircraft, but if you look at the photos, the drones are not equipped with ultra-high frequency (UHF) antennae, which means that they cannot conduct long-range operations," he said.
In this photo released by Pyongyang's Korean Central News Agency, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, right, and Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu attend a military parade to mark the 70th anniversary of the armistice that halted fighting in the 1950-53 Korean War, on Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, Thursday. Yonhap
Other than the drones, the massive military parade featured long-range missiles, including Hwasong-17 and Hwasong-18 intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM), but it did not introduce new types of ICBMs.
Yang said that the North did not introduce any new meaningful hardware during the parade, which seemed to be focused more on showcasing nuclear weapons than conventional ones.
"But other than the weapons display, the parade was aimed at showing off the North's solidarity with Russia and China," he said, noting that Kim Jong-un shared center stage with Russian and Chinese delegates and not his daughter Ju-ae or his wife Ri Sol-ju.
The Korea Times · July 30, 2023
5. 2022 DEFENSE WHITE PAPER (ROK)
This is a few months old but the English version was just released. You can download the entire 408 page report at this link: https://www.mnd.go.kr/user/mndEN/upload/pblictn/PBLICTNEBOOK_202307280406019810.pdf
2022 DEFENSE WHITE PAPER
https://www.mnd.go.kr/cop/pblictn/selectPublicationUser.do?categoryId=0&componentId=51&id=mndEN_031300000000&pageIndex=1&publicationSeq=1057&siteId=mndEN&utm_source=pocket_saves
Date :
Hit :
38
Viewer
2022 Defense White Paper Final PDF
2022 Defense White Paper Body PDF
2022 Defense White Paper Supple PDF
Contents
Chaper 1. Changes and Challenges in the Security Environmnet
Chaper 2. National Security Strategy and Defense Policy
Chaper 3. Establishing a Robust Defense Posture against Omnidirectinal Security Threats
Chaper 4. Building Elite Armed Forces Using Advanced Technology
Chaper 5. Development of the ROK-U.S. Alliance, and Expansion of Defense Exchanges and Cooperation
Chaper 6. Instilling a High-Morale Military Culture Trusted by the People
Chaper 7. Military Assurance for the Establishment of a Peace Regime on the Korean Peninsula
Published
National Defense Strategy Division
Etc.
6. Ex-president's key aides are masterminds of Yoon's policies
Some helpful insights into South Korean domestic politics.
Ex-president's key aides are masterminds of Yoon's policies
The Korea Times · July 30, 2023
Former President Lee Myung-bak, third from left, waves to citizens as he walks along the Cheonggye stream in central Seoul, May 15. Newsis
Opposition denounces practice as refusal to embrace fresh faces
By Nam Hyun-woo
President Yoon Suk Yeol has filled key posts in his administration with those who served under former President Lee Myung-bak, triggering a strong backlash from the opposition party and some civic groups, which argue the move is no more than a return to the past.
While the opposition claims this practice highlights the president's refusal to embrace fresh faces and diverse perspectives, some attribute it to a lack of talent in the conservative spectrum in Korea, which was annihilated after the impeachment of Lee's successor, former President Park Geun-hye.
From left, Kim Dae-ki, Kim Tae-hyo, Kim Eun-hye and Lee Dong-kwan / Korea Times file
The latest figure who is about to join the Yoon administration is Lee Dong-kwan, the former president's spokesperson.
Yoon, Friday, nominated Lee, his special adviser for external relations, as the new chief of the Korea Communications Commission, which oversees and regulates broadcasting and communications services, according to his office. Lee's appointment is subject to parliamentary confirmation scheduled for next month.
Lee is one of the key aides to the former president, who led the country from 2008 to 2013. The special adviser served as the spokesperson for Lee from 2008 to 2009 before being promoted to senior secretary for public relations from 2009 to 2010. Afterward, he served as a special adviser for the president on the media in 2011.
"The current issue revolves around the global fight against fake news, with governments and civil organizations fully committed to addressing the challenge," the nominee said. "As a priority, I will make efforts to restore a fair media ecosystem and create an information dissemination environment that fosters freedom and open communication."
The nomination triggered blatant criticism from the opposition.
"Nominee Lee spearheaded media suppression during the Lee Myung-bak government, by mobilizing the National Intelligence Service (NIS) and the police, and openly interfering in personnel matters of broadcasters," main opposition Democratic Party of Korea spokesperson Rep. Kang Sun-woo said, Saturday.
"That was the very case that President Yoon, who was then a prosecutor, was investigating allegations that the NIS intervened in domestic elections. It is nonsense that the nominee was a problematic figure at the time, but is now the right person for the job."
Earlier this month, Yoon appointed former Culture Minister and actor Yu In-chon as presidential special adviser for cultural affairs and sports, a new position Yoon created for the former minister.
From left are Lee Joo-ho, Kim Yung-ho, Lee Jae-oh and Yu In-chon / Korea Times file
Yu served as the culture minister during the Lee administration from 2008 to 2011, and later became a special adviser to the former president.
These two individuals are the latest among the presidential secretaries, ministers, and other high-ranking government officials who served during the Lee administration and are now working for Yoon.
Within the presidential office, several key positions are now occupied by former aides or ranking government officials from the Lee administration. They include Yoon's Chief of Staff Kim Dae-ki, First Deputy Director of National Security Kim Tae-hyo, senior presidential secretary for public relations Kim Eun-hye, senior secretary for civil and social agenda Kang Seung-kyoo, and secretary for state affairs monitoring Han Oh-seop.
Expanding the scope to the entire political spectrum of Korea, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education Lee Joo-ho and Unification Minister Kim Yung-ho have experience serving the Lee administration. Minister of Patriots and Veterans Affairs Park Min-shik is also known to have been a Lee loyalist when he was a lawmaker.
President Yoon Suk Yeol poses with his special adviser for cultural affairs and sports Yu In-chon during an appointment ceremony at the presidential office in Yongsan District, Seoul, July 7. Korea Times photo by Seo Jae-hoon
Within the ruling People Power Party, there are former Lee administration officials who constitute the party's mainstream. They are Reps. Kweon Seong-dong and Yoon Han-hong, known as Yoon's key allies, who were presidential secretaries under Lee.
The return of former aides to Lee had widely been anticipated even before Yoon took office, because his presidential transition committee and election camp were filled with those who served under the Lee administration.
Restricted talent pool
Experts noted that Yoon's reliance on Lee's former aides is a natural consequence of Korea's recent political history.
"After the impeachment of former President Park Geun-hye, the only remaining political faction among conservatives is those who were loyal to former President Lee, as most of them were politically retired in the wake of the impeachment," said Shin Yul, a political science professor at Myongji University.
Park succeeded Lee in 2013, but could not complete her five-year term, because she was ousted due to a large-scale corruption scandal. Yoon was one of the lead prosecutors who investigated Park's scandal, and later became the prosecutor general of the liberal Moon Jae-in administration that followed.
After taking power, the Moon administration promoted the catchphrase of "draining old swamps" and launched investigations into some of those who served ranking positions during the Park administration. Although Yoon later turned his back on Moon and emerged as the flagbearer of the conservatives, the investigations labeled many of those who served under Park as "failed conservatives," preventing Yoon from hiring Park's aides, pundits said.
"During the Moon administration's campaign against the legacy of Park, many individuals who had served under the former president were marginalized from the country's politics," said Park Sang-byeong, a professor at Inha University's Graduate School of Policy Science.
"Although years have passed since then and some of those who were investigated were found to be innocent from a legal perspective, they are still perceived as politically retired due to the lingering negative public sentiment surrounding the Park presidency."
The professor also noted the difference in the political backgrounds of former Presidents Lee and Park, which is the reason why former aides to Lee are now occupying prominent positions within conservative circles.
"While former President Lee forged his political career together with close aides when he was first elected as Seoul mayor, Park, who is the daughter of former President Park Chung-hee, established her career more independently, benefitting from her father's legacy," Park said.
Shin at Myongji University also pointed out the distinction between those who served under Lee and those close to Park.
He stated that individuals who worked with Lee have earned a reputation as pragmatists, whereas those aligned with Park are considered conservative ideologists. This distinction makes it challenging for Yoon, whose political background is not based on ideology, to rely on talents from the Park administration.
"If Yoon were to position himself as the prodigy of the conservatives, he might opt for people from the Park era," Shin said.
"However, considering Yoon's history with both conservative and liberal blocs, his remaining viable option is to lean towards pragmatism, leading him to seek out individuals from the Lee administration."
Then presidential hopefuls Park Geun-hye, left, and Lee Myung-bak wait for their turn to give speeches during the presidential primary of the Hannara Party, the predecessor of the People Power Party, at a stadium in Anyang, Gyeonggi Province, in this Aug. 13, 2007 photo. Korea Times file
The Korea Times · July 30, 2023
7. Foreigners offset Korea's steep population decline
So I gave a lecture on the alliance and the Armistice last week at Seokyung University to a group of about 40 graduate students from throughout South, Central, and Southeast Asia. They are finishing up their first year in Korean language study and then they will spend their next 4 years on full scholarships getting their PhDs at various universities in technical disciplines, e.g., engineering, IT, etc. The professor was telling me Korea is doing this to be able to attract foreign talent in the future (and enrollment in Korean universities is also down for demographic reasons) . They are hoping these students will come to work for Korean companies and help offset the Korean democratic challenges. This program appears to be a Fulbright Scholarship program but on steroids.
Foreigners offset Korea's steep population decline
The Korea Times · July 30, 2023
International students fill out an application form during a special job fair aimed at hiring foreigners with a student visa at Busan Port International Exhibition & Convention Center (BPEX), July 20. Yonhap
Number of multicultural households jump 25% since 2017
By Yi Whan-woo
More foreigners are settling down in Korea as the number of Korean nationals declines, helping offset a steep fall in the country's total population that otherwise would have dropped below the 50 million mark last year, a study showed on Sunday.
Conducted by Statistics Korea, the study showed the number of foreign nationals who are staying here for three months or longer reached 1.75 million in 2022, up 6.2 percent or 102,379 from a year earlier.
The year-on-year increase comes after the number of foreign nationals dipped by 83,275 year-on-year in 2020 and then by another 45,676 year-on-year in 2021, due to international travel restrictions driven by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The number of Korean nationals went down 0.3 percent or 148,000 year-on-year to 49.94 million in 2022, falling for the second consecutive year.
The country's entire population with Koreans and foreign nationals combined dropped to 51.69 million last year, down 0.1 percent or 46,000 from 2021.
"The data suggests the country's population has a growing chance of staying below the 50 million mark if there is no influx of foreign nationals," Nam Jae-ryang, a senior researcher at Korea Labor Institute (KLI), said, referring to shrinking birth rates and an a rapidly aging society.
In particular, he pointed out that the number of Korean nationals aged four or below slid 7.2 percent or by 110,172 to 1.42 million last year.
During the same time period, foreigners accounted for 3.4 percent of the whole population of Korea as compared to 3.3 percent in 2020 and 3.2 percent in 2021.
"You can see that immigrants are becoming more important assets for Korea in its path to cope with demographic change," Nam said, adding that the government should pay closer attention to its immigration policy.
By nationality, ethnic Koreans from China accounted for the largest proportion of foreign nationals with the number amounting to 527,000 last year.
Those from Vietnam ranked second at 209,000, followed by people from China at 204,000, Thailand at 163,000, Uzbekistan at 69,000 and the United States at 58,000.
Kazakhstan had the fastest year-on-year rate of increase in the number of its nationals in Korea at 28.2 percent, trailed by Indonesia at 27.6 percent, Myanmar at 23.8 percent and Bangladesh at 23.7 percent.
The KLI researcher noted that a greater influx of foreign nationals is associated with an increase in the number of multicultural families.
The number of multicultural households has risen gradually over the past couple of years and reached 399,396 in 2022, up 3.7 percent or 14,177 from a year earlier. It was up 25.2 percent from 318,917 in 2017.
The Korea Times · July 30, 2023
8. N. Korea slams S. Korea in human rights report
Admit nothing, deny everything, make counter accusations. This is why we must take a human rights upfront approach, Kim is reacting to South Korea's focus on human rights. He is threatened by human rights and it puts pressure on him. And when we focus inhuman rights it gives hop to the Korean people in the north,, Human rights are not only a moral imperative but a national security issue too. Kim must deny the human rights of the korean people in the north north in order to remain in power.
N. Korea slams S. Korea in human rights report
koreaherald.com · by Lee Jaeeun · July 30, 2023
North Korea retaliated to a human rights report released by South Korea’s Unification Ministry early this year with its own, criticizing human rights conditions in the South.
Pyongyang Publishing Co., an organ of the North's ruling Workers' Party, published a book that roughly translates to "Barren Land of Human Rights" and is full of disparaging remarks on human rights conditions in South Korea, on July 21.
“We will examine the human rights condition in South Korea, the world’s worst barren field of human rights that completely tramples even the political freedom and basic right to survival of humans,” it reads in its introduction.
Through some cases, North Korea argued that South Korea is a country full of suicide, unemployment difficulties, industrial accidents, discrimination against women and disabled people as well as child abuse.
Pyongyang published the report in response to the "2023 Report on North Korean Human Rights," released by the Ministry of Unification in late March.
The report analyzed the human rights situation in North Korea divided into four themes. North Korea likewise criticized human rights in South Korea by describing the situation in four themes in its book.
The ministry has been compiling an annual report on North Korea's human rights situation since 2018 under the North Korean Human Rights Act. The report had not been made public in the past. But in March, the ministry released the report publicly for the first time, in line with President Yoon Suk Yeol's hard-line policy toward the North.
The report is based on the testimonies of more than 500 North Korean defectors and highlights widespread rights abuses by state authorities, including murder, torture and public executions.
koreaherald.com · by Lee Jaeeun · July 30, 2023
9. S. Korean ambassador says N. Korean threats will only lead to stronger deterrence from S. Korea-US alliance
S. Korean ambassador says N. Korean threats will only lead to stronger deterrence from S. Korea-US alliance
koreaherald.com · by Yonhap · July 28, 2023
South Korea's ambassador to the United States stressed the importance of the South Korea-US alliance Thursday, highlighting the 70th anniversary of the Korean Armistice Agreement that ended the Korean War.
Ambassador Cho Hyun-dong also said that the alliance will continue to strengthen in the face of North Korea's evolving nuclear and missile threats.
"Even as I speak, Pyongyang is raising tensions by launching ballistic missiles and using brazen language threatening the use of nuclear weapons," Cho said during a ceremony marking the 70th anniversary of the Korean armistice.
"History has taught us that we must be strong enough to deter such aggression and to defend ourselves when necessary," he added. "North Korea's intensifying nuclear and missile threats will only invite an overwhelming defense posture from the alliance."
The 1950-53 Korean War ended 70 years ago and was followed by the US-South Korea Mutual Defense Treaty, which was signed on Oct. 1, 1953, forming the bilateral alliance.
Cho underscored the need to continue building a strong deterrence against North Korea's nuclear and missile threats, arguing that Pyongyang continues to seek the reunification of Korea by force.
"Seventy years have passed since the Armistice, but North Korea's ambition to unify Korea under communism remains unchanged. And its nuclear and missile threats continue to grow – seriously undermining peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific," he told the ceremony, held at the Korean War Veterans Memorial in Washington.
"Reflecting this resolve, last week we held the inaugural meeting of the ROK-US Nuclear Consultative Group, a tangible step in implementing the historic Washington Declaration," he added, referring to South Korea by its official name, the Republic of Korea.
The NCG was established under the Washington Declaration issued by South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and US President Joe Biden during their bilateral summit here in late April, and is aimed at bolstering US extended deterrence for South Korea.
Cho said the NCG "represents an upgrade in our alliance from the 1953 Mutual Defense Treaty by significantly enhancing our combined deterrence and response posture against the DPRK's nuclear threats."
DPRK stands for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, North Korea's formal name.
The South Korean ambassador highlighted the sacrifices made by American service members in the Korean War.
"Engraved on the Wall of Remembrance behind me are the names of fallen heroes of the Korean War. More than 36,000 American soldiers and 7,000 Korean KATUSA soldiers, side-by-side," he said, referring to the latest addition to the Korean War Veterans Memorial at the National Mall, which was largely funded by the South Korean government.
"By answering the call of duty, these men and women ensured the survival of a young democracy seventy years ago, which would later become America's closest and most reliable ally," he added. "And I express my deepest and most profound gratitude to all the Korean War veterans and their families. It is their service and sacrifice which created our alliance to begin with." (Yonhap)
koreaherald.com · by Yonhap · July 28, 2023
10. [Wang Son-taek] USS Kentucky and the security dilemma
Interesting analysis from Wang Son-taek. He is not happy with the outcome of the Nuclear Consultative Group. He makes similar criticisms about revealing the USS Kentucky that some US analysts make.
Excerpts:
What about the consequences of exposure of the USS Kentucky to North Korea or China? North Korea has emphasized that it has developed nuclear weapons because the US threatens North Korea with nuclear weapons. The exposure will be used to support North Korea‘s claim. The North will also strongly demand economic support from China, claiming that China has no reason to maintain economic sanctions against the North. If economic sanctions against North Korea can be lifted while making the weapons a fait accompli, North Korea will be able to catch two birds with a single stone. North Korea will think of South Korea and the United States as helpers.
...
The US might think that the USS Kentucky‘s call to Busan could be helpful to quiet the voices in Korea that they need their nuclear bombs. However, it is not a very wise solution. Many forces calling for independent nuclear armament in Seoul think it is a way to get the opposite benefits from the US. The smartest way is to seriously explain the nonproliferation policy of the US. If they understand US foreign policy more accurately, they will likely stop bullying the US. This is because they are not nationalists risking their lives to independent nuclear armament, but are likely to be pro-American vested interests.
[Wang Son-taek] USS Kentucky and the security dilemma
koreaherald.com · by Korea Herald · July 26, 2023
South Korea was hit by torrential rain last week. The flood killed 47 people and left three missing. All the news was focused on flood damage, and other stories were not the matter of attention. However, many headlines significantly impacted the security situation on the Korean Peninsula as much as heavy rain. The inaugural Nuclear Consultative Group meeting, USS Kentucky‘s visit to Busan Port, a US soldier’s defection to North Korea, and North Korea’s missile launches, all took place within a few days.
The NCG is a consultative body in which South Korea and the United States discuss in-depth strategies to respond to North Korea‘s nuclear threats. Expectations were high because North Korean nuclear issue is the biggest threat to South Korea’s security sector. But the results are not very outstanding. South Korea vowed not to arm itself with nuclear weapons, while the United States reiterated that its pledge to protect the South is solid. It is a repetition of the agreement reached between President Yoon Suk Yeol and US President Joe Biden in Washington in April.
It is disappointing that the lack of tangible progress in the talks was forecast. The chief of the South Korean delegation was Kim Tae-hyo, the first deputy national security adviser to the president of the Republic of Korea, and Dr. Kurt Campbell, coordinator for the Indo-Pacific at the US National Security Council, led the US team. Politically appointed officials were the team leaders in discussing on dealing with nuclear weapons. As it is a major military issue, a deputy defense secretary or vice minister of defense would be appropriate. It has been confirmed that the NCG meeting leaned more toward the political arrangement from the beginning.
The most embarrassing part is that the meeting approved a plan to disclose that the USS Kentucky is at the port of Busan. According to the White House, South Korean and US delegations discussed ways to increase the visibility of US strategic assets in Korea. The SSBN, a ballistic missile nuclear-powered submarine such as the USS Kentucky, is able to conduct operations on the premise of secrecy. If the ship is exposed, its strategic value will be significantly reduced. That‘s why it has not mentioned visiting the Korean Peninsula for the past 40 years. Foreign leaders have yet to be invited to observe the inside of the submarine. However, this time, images of President Yoon Suk Yeol and first lady Kim Keon Hee looking at the inside of the submarine, interestingly, were released to the media. USS Kentucky, which gave up its secrecy, is no different from the great Lionel Messi with his legs tied.
What about the consequences of exposure of the USS Kentucky to North Korea or China? North Korea has emphasized that it has developed nuclear weapons because the US threatens North Korea with nuclear weapons. The exposure will be used to support North Korea‘s claim. The North will also strongly demand economic support from China, claiming that China has no reason to maintain economic sanctions against the North. If economic sanctions against North Korea can be lifted while making the weapons a fait accompli, North Korea will be able to catch two birds with a single stone. North Korea will think of South Korea and the United States as helpers.
From the perspective of China, the US is continuously destroying the strategic balance in Northeast Asia. China will likely use the story as a basis for strengthening Chinese military power, supporting North Korea, or criticizing the United States.
The US might think that the USS Kentucky‘s call to Busan could be helpful to quiet the voices in Korea that they need their nuclear bombs. However, it is not a very wise solution. Many forces calling for independent nuclear armament in Seoul think it is a way to get the opposite benefits from the US. The smartest way is to seriously explain the nonproliferation policy of the US. If they understand US foreign policy more accurately, they will likely stop bullying the US. This is because they are not nationalists risking their lives to independent nuclear armament, but are likely to be pro-American vested interests.
The security dilemma in Northeast Asia is worsening due to the misjudgment of South Korea or the United States. If the dilemma continues and grows, the two nations will meet a headwind. North Korea will likely justify its possession of nuclear weapons by utilizing the increased visibility of strategic assets. In that case, South Korea and the US cannot escape the irony of being North Korea‘s helpers. The two countries should adjust their current policy toward North Korea and return to a standard response that adds dialogue and negotiations. Efforts should be made to cool the security situation down first and achieve peaceful coexistence through dialogue and negotiations. To do so, it is necessary to establish a dialogue channel.
Meanwhile, Pvt. Travis King‘s escape to North Korea is drawing attention as it is likely to have a special meaning in the security situation on the Korean Peninsula. The case is sensitive as a US soldier’s life is at stake. However, if the US and North Korea can resume dialogue and negotiations in the wake of the King issue, it could be a blessing in disguise. In that case, it could be an opportunity to change North Korea‘s calculation method. If North Korea and the US resume dialogue, it could create a virtuous cycle of easing the security dilemma on the Korean Peninsula, reducing military spending and easing military tensions. The virtuous cycle of security in Northeast Asia has the advantage of benefiting all related countries. The starting point for all of this is to correct misjudgments such as the SSBN exposure and break the security dilemma link.
Wang Son-taek
Wang Son-taek is a director for the Global Policy Center at Hanpyeong Peace Institute. He was a former diplomatic correspondent at YTN and former research associate at Yeosijae. The views expressed here are his own. -- Ed.
By Korea Herald (khnews@heraldcorp.com)
koreaherald.com · by Korea Herald · July 26, 2023
11. Korea's quest for 'peace'
A review of Victor Cha's and Ramon Pacheco Pardo's new book, "Korea: A New History of South & North."
Conclusion:
Yet the authors are hopeful. While some Koreans "are opposed to unification," they suspect "most Koreans will rally behind the cause" ― and "will succeed, as they have done throughout history."
Whenever I see statements such as the Koreans do not want unification (or the Japanese do not, or the CHinese no not, etc) My thought is always when faced with the post conflict from war or internal instability and regime collapse how are opponents of unification going to prevent it? What lengths will they go to prevent it?
Korea's quest for 'peace'
The Korea Times · July 27, 2023
By Donald Kirk
Anniversaries ending in zero or five are likely to focus special attention on the lessons of history. None is more portentous than the 70th anniversary this week of the signing of the truce that halted the Korean War on July 27, 1953.
The date is an occasion for reminders of the horrors of the war, the danger of a second Korean War and endless debate on whether the truce should morph into a peace treaty or at least an end-of-war declaration. Until then, we're told, the Korean Peninsula is a battleground in a war that's never ended.
This claim is absurd. War means armed forces killing enemies, destroying cities and villages, also wiping out civilians in the crossfire. Since 1953, there have been incidents, such as the mining of the corvette ROKS Cheonan in 2010 with the loss of 46 South Korean sailors, or the downing of an American reconnaissance plane in 1969 with 31 airmen on board or the capture of the spy ship USS Pueblo in 1968 three days after a North Korean recon unit had come within 100 meters of the Blue House. Miraculously, none of these incidents led to a resumption of a large-scale armed conflict.
Peace cannot be defined by a statement saying we are at peace. After the Korean Armistice Agreement was signed at Panmunjeom, Chinese and American troops were seen popping out of their trenches and foxholes, standing up within easy shot of one another, knowing their lives were no longer in danger. Peace had broken out at last.
In a history full of surprises, the preservation of peace for all these years must be counted as miraculous. Countless celebrated peace treaties have fallen apart within a few years after they were signed, none so precipitously as the treaty reached at Versailles in June 1919. Scarcely 20 years later, in September 1939, German troops invaded Poland. World War II, far more terrible than World War I, had begun.
It would be impossible to predict a similar pattern after the signing of a Korean War treaty, but we can be sure the security of South Korea, enabling the rise of the South as not only an economic powerhouse but also a center of culture and artistic creativity, would be in jeopardy.
Victor Cha, who served as Asia director at the National Security Council under President George W. Bush, summarized the problem after introducing his latest book, "Korea: A New History of South & North," co-authored with Ramon Pacheco Pardo, professor at King's College, London.
In answer to my question about what a simple peace declaration would accomplish, Cha, talking at the influential Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, predicted it would "create a false peace on the peninsula" and "open a Pandora's box of issues" surrounding the future of American troops in South Korea and the United Nations Command, which have endured since the early days of the Korean War. Nor could Cha imagine that talks with the North on a full-scale peace treaty would result in changes regarding the North's missiles, weapons of mass destruction or the scale of its armed forces.
Cha and Pardo as co-authors are realistic. For a millennium and more, as their book makes clear, Koreans have battled the odds, surviving on inner grit and guts. As the authors take us through the twists and turns of recent history, however, they are realistically hard on North Korea for obstructing the road to peace.
"North Korea has countered the Sunshine Policy with its own 'Moonshine Policy,'" they write, playing upon the name of Moon Jae-in, President Yoon Suk Yeol's predecessor, who met Kim Jong-un three times in vain pursuit of North-South reconciliation.
"The Moonshine Policy," they write, "particularly exploited the Sunshine Policy's implicit assumption that the nuclear and missile programs of the North were not the main problem." By the time Moonshine had ended, "the North had more nuclear weapons than before, had avoided a near-collapse of the regime, and had $3 billion in cash from the South."
Advocates of a peace declaration or treaty are not going to like this book. It provides a certain understanding, in 268 pages, including index, footnotes and bibliography, of the sweep of Korean history from ancient times to the present as well as a reality check on the fantasies of those who think more rounds of dialogue will bring about North-South unification.
Yet the authors are hopeful. While some Koreans "are opposed to unification," they suspect "most Koreans will rally behind the cause" ― and "will succeed, as they have done throughout history."
Donald Kirk (www.donaldkirk.com) covers the confrontation of forces in Asia from both Seoul and Washington.
The Korea Times · July 27, 2023
12. Two traps and Korean grand strategy
Excerpts:
So what should Korea do about these two traps?
First, Seoul is in a pivotal position in Asian and global affairs and a strong demonstration of confidence in the American alliance system can help to dissuade challenger states from thinking that the U.S.-led order is in decline. Korea’s own deterrence measures on the peninsula are the priority, but the recent military exercises with the United States, Australia, Japan and others in Australia were a sign of real confidence and commitment to the overall alliance system.
Second, Seoul should not fall for the Thucydides trap. During the Park and Moon administration, the governments’ policies appeared predicated on the idea that a U.S.-China power rivalry would be the defining characteristic of Asian international affairs, ignoring the importance of Japan, Australia, India, and other states. This only reinforced Beijing’s confidence that its options were between condominium or war with America. By stepping into the Indo-Pacific strategic game, the Yoon administration reminds China that it is a more complicated game that requires China to take account of middle powers’ strategic interests and not just go through Washington.
Third, Korea can help to blunt Chinese misperceptions that the democratic process, even when flawed, is a sign of strategic weakness or lack of resolve. Korean activism on democracy under Yoon shows that key Asian states see universal norms as a source of strength and dynamism. Korean soft power demonstrates that successful states listen to their consumers.
Finally, Korea can quietly help the United States define competition strategies with Beijing that deter Chinese coercion and protect the democratic world’s most critical technologies, but in ways that do not lead to complete decoupling or other self-defeating measures that would reinforce the idea that conflict is inevitable.
In short, these are only “traps” when we let them become that way.
Sunday
July 30, 2023
dictionary + A - A
Published: 30 Jul. 2023, 19:59
Two traps and Korean grand strategy
https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/2023/07/30/opinion/columns/South-Korea-two-traps-US/20230730195936589.html
Michael Green
The author is CEO of the U.S. Studies Centre at the University of Sydney and Henry A. Kissinger Chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS).
The dynamics of international relations in Asia can be captured in any one era by the buzz words that policymakers and politicians borrow from clever scholars. One great example is Harvard Professor Graham Allison’s popularization of the term “the Thucydides trap” to describe the peril of U.S.-China conflict. Allison’s “trap” leverages the Greek statesman-philosopher Thucydides’ observation that rising powers (like Sparta then and China now) almost inevitably clash with the status quo power (Athens then America now). The tragedy is that the great powers do not know how to escape from that trap.
Allison’s recommendation a decade ago was that the United States and China establish a bipolar condominium as the best escape. This idea appealed so much to Chinese leader Xi Jinping that he had all Communist Party leaders read translations of Allison’s work and then proposed to President Barack Obama a “New Model of Great Power Relations” in 2013 in which the United States would defy history by negotiating a grand bargain to resolve potential triggers of bilateral war. Under Xi’s framework, the United States would make compromises around Beijing’s so-called “core interests” to include Taiwan, Xinjiang, Tibet and later the East and South China Seas and the Yellow Sea. Since this would clearly involve forcing our closest allies to make concessions to China, I opposed the idea. In fact, the U.S. Senate invited me and Allison (who is a friend) to make our cases in public testimony. Eventually the Obama administration abandoned the idea but the structural factors Thucydides and Allison point to have not gone away.
The newer “trap” now making the rounds is the “America trap” introduced by Brookings scholar Robert Kagan. Like Allison, Kagan looks at history to anticipate the geopolitical dynamics that are unfolding. His conclusion is that rising authoritarian powers almost inevitably misunderstand the depth of American power and resolve and make the self-defeating mistake of attacking the United States or its friends. So, for example, in World War One the Germans assumed that an immature and far distant America would never want to become embroiled in the European balance of power and thus made the mistake of unrestricted warfare against American shipping to Britain thereby forcing Woodrow Wilson to declare war. What might have been a stalemate on the Western Front ended up in German defeat because of the surge of fresh American troops in 1918. Japan and Germany then repeated that mistake in 1941. Japan assumed American isolationism indicated a weakness and disinterest in Asia that could be exploited with a decisive attack at Pearl Harbor. Hitler then declared war on the United States because, like the Japanese, he thought American society to consumer-oriented and lazy to rally in response. The result was total war and the unconditional surrender of both regimes. Stalin, Mao and Kim Il Sung fell into the American trap again in June 1950, and while their own regimes did not collapse, they did provoke the Americans to establish the most formidable alliance network in the history of Asia –which later did contribute to the end of Soviet communism and may yet spell the end of the DPRK and CCP (even if active regime change is not current U.S. policy). Putin’s invasion of Ukraine is the most recent example of the American trap.
Why do totalitarian regimes fall for this trap? It is not because the Americans deliberately trick them into attacking, as some right-wing Japanese commentators claim about Pearl Harbor. One cause is the nature of totalitarian states, which come to view American politics and culture through the distorted lenses of their own ideology and therefore perceive diversity, debate, social progress, and political polarization as signs of decay rather than renewal.
A second cause is that totalitarian leaders tend to believe in the inevitability of the Thucydides dilemma even if they never read Thucydides himself. If conflict is inevitable, they conclude, it is better to strike America before it really organizes to compete and defeat their regional hegemonic ambitions.
The third cause of the America trap is the one that Kagan emphasizes most, and that is the American penchant for showing disinterest and lack of resolve vis-à-vis rising hegemonic challengers. Woodrow Wilson, for example, was adamant that the United States would not join the First World War. Franklin Delano Roosevelt was hampered by the America First movement’s isolationism and the public’s ambivalence about helping Britain and France resist Hitler. North Korea attacked because of the famous “Acheson line” which suggested the Truman administration would only respond to communist attacks on the First Island chain but not against Korea.
So what should Korea do about these two traps?
First, Seoul is in a pivotal position in Asian and global affairs and a strong demonstration of confidence in the American alliance system can help to dissuade challenger states from thinking that the U.S.-led order is in decline. Korea’s own deterrence measures on the peninsula are the priority, but the recent military exercises with the United States, Australia, Japan and others in Australia were a sign of real confidence and commitment to the overall alliance system.
Second, Seoul should not fall for the Thucydides trap. During the Park and Moon administration, the governments’ policies appeared predicated on the idea that a U.S.-China power rivalry would be the defining characteristic of Asian international affairs, ignoring the importance of Japan, Australia, India, and other states. This only reinforced Beijing’s confidence that its options were between condominium or war with America. By stepping into the Indo-Pacific strategic game, the Yoon administration reminds China that it is a more complicated game that requires China to take account of middle powers’ strategic interests and not just go through Washington.
Third, Korea can help to blunt Chinese misperceptions that the democratic process, even when flawed, is a sign of strategic weakness or lack of resolve. Korean activism on democracy under Yoon shows that key Asian states see universal norms as a source of strength and dynamism. Korean soft power demonstrates that successful states listen to their consumers.
Finally, Korea can quietly help the United States define competition strategies with Beijing that deter Chinese coercion and protect the democratic world’s most critical technologies, but in ways that do not lead to complete decoupling or other self-defeating measures that would reinforce the idea that conflict is inevitable.
In short, these are only “traps” when we let them become that way.
13. Activists demand formal peace plan to end 70-year long Korean War
It pains me to read these OpEds. Yes we want peace. We want families reunited. But because of these activists' lack of understanding of the nature, objectives, and strategy of the Kim family regime they are actually inviting future conflict sooner rather than later.
Activists demand formal peace plan to end 70-year long Korean War
The Washington Post · by Joe Heim · July 28, 2023
Although fading in memory or forgotten entirely by many Americans, the Korean War has never ended.
That was the message peace activists and protesters wanted to reinforce in Washington this week to mark the 70th anniversary of the armistice that brought a cease fire between North and South Korea, following a bloody three-year war that killed several million Koreans and about 36,000 American troops.
The July 27, 1953, armistice ended hostilities and established a 160-mile demilitarized zone between the two nations, but it never delivered on a promised peace agreement that was to follow. That failure has haunted the peninsula for decades and represents an existential threat, said Christine Ahn, who was born in South Korea but is an American citizen and activist who has long pushed for a formal peace agreement between the countries.
“We are still in a state of war, and as we see in the current growing tensions on the peninsula, with the U.S. sending three nuclear submarines and the massive military exercises and North Korea testing unprecedented numbers of missiles, we are just one step, one accident away from nuclear war,” Ahn said in an interview Wednesday.
Ahn, the founder and executive director of Women Cross DMZ, which in 2015 arranged for 30 female activists, community leaders and scientists from around the world to visit North Korea and then cross the demilitarized zone into South Korea, said that tensions between the two nations “have not been this bad in a very long time.”
Last year North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said the country would never give up its nuclear weapons, and the regime authorized its military to launch preemptive nuclear strikes. Earlier this month, North Korea fired a suspected intercontinental ballistic missile after warning about “resolute” consequences for the U.S. military’s reconnaissance activities in the region. South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol convened an emergency meeting of the National Security Council to discuss the missile launch.
For Ahn, the increased hostilities have resulted from a long-failed process. “We know that the past 30 years of sanctions [against North Korea] and military exercises and isolation have failed,” Ahn said. “What actually works is engagement, diplomacy and a real commitment to building a new, prosperous and hopeful future.”
Women Cross DMZ helped bring several hundred people, including religious leaders, veterans and families with relatives in North Korea, to Washington this week to take part in workshops, hold rallies and meet with lawmakers and policy leaders working on Korean Peninsula issues as part of what it called a National Mobilization to end the Korean War. More than 100,000 American citizens have relatives in North Korea who they are unable to visit because of restrictions imposed six years ago.
At a news conference on the U.S. Capitol grounds Thursday morning, Reps. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.), Judy Chu (D-Calif.) and Delia C. Ramirez (D-Ill.) joined Ahn to reiterate their support for the Peace on the Korean Peninsula Act, legislation introduced earlier this year by Rep. Brad Sherman (D-Calif.) and co-sponsored by 33 members of Congress.
Lee, whose father served in the Korean War, said the proposed legislation calls for “urgent diplomacy” to create a road map for peace. “It’s time that we wake up from our collective amnesia to remember the death and destruction that this war entailed and chart a new path forward, one based on global peace and security and rooted in human security,” Lee said. “We must put an end to the longest standing war in the United States’s history.”
In a meeting at the White House in April, President Biden told Yoon “our mutual defense treaty is ironclad, and that includes our commitment to extended deterrence, and — and that includes the nuclear threat and — the nuclear deterrent.” Biden added, “We continue to seek serious and substantial diplomatic breakthroughs with [North Korea] to bolster stability on the Peninsula, reduce the threat of proliferation, and address our humanitarian and human rights concerns for the people of [North Korea].”
Some more conservative Korean and American groups have criticized Ahn and Women Cross DMZ for not calling out North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s repressive regime and its clampdown on freedoms and human rights, said Andrew Yeo, senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and a professor at Catholic University.
“There are those on the far right who hate this group, who say they’re North Korea sympathizers and communists and so forth,” Yeo said. “I think [Women Cross DMZ] feel that if they raised North Korean rights abuses, they’re just perpetuating the same discourse that makes Americans not think about the humanity of North Korea, the North Korean people.”
The outgoing U.N. special rapporteur for North Korean human rights said last year that he was “gravely concerned about the deteriorating human rights situation under further isolation of the country, in particular the aggravation of the food crisis and stricter control of people’s freedoms.”
Asked about the criticisms, Ahn said she has long advocated for improved human rights and humanitarian conditions in North Korea. “But just condemning North Korea for their human rights violations without trying to actually improve their day-to-day conditions seems to me disingenuous,” she said.
Dan Leaf, a retired Air Force general and former deputy commander of the U.S. Pacific Command, also spoke to the Korea peace groups Thursday and joined in their demand for an official end to the war. In an interview, Leaf said the threat of a nuclear war beginning on the peninsula has driven his call for a peace plan to be pursued.
“We are one bad decision away from nuclear war with North Korea,” Leaf said in his remarks at the news conference. “They have the delivery systems, warheads and stated willingness to preemptively attack South Korea, other neighbors, and the United States. While such an attack may seem irrational, we cannot be so naive as to wish away the possibility that Kim Jong Un, out of premeditation, misunderstanding or desperation, might begin a world-altering war.”
The United States cannot wait for North Korea to make the first step in a peace process, Leaf said.
“Our obstinate refusal to pursue peace only enables Kim Jong Un’s bad behavior,” he said. “It doesn’t impede it.”
Leaf said his objective, “is to complete the work that 36,651 Americans gave their lives for, a final formal peace on the Korean Peninsula.”
For Joy Lee Gebhard, who also spoke to supporters of a peace plan at the Capitol, the push for a permanent peace is not just a question of strategic geopolitics. It’s personal. And it’s urgent.
Gebhard, 88, was born in northern Korea in 1935. She was a promising student with four siblings. As war approached in 1950, her mother sent her with a family friend to study in southern Korea. She never saw her mother again. And it was not until 1988, 38 years later, that she was able to visit North Korea and reconnect with her sisters and brother. None of them recognized her. Nor she them.
Gebhard, who came to the United States in 1956 and now lives in Fauquier County, was able to visit her family members several times over the years in North Korea. Because of travel restrictions imposed in 2017, however, she hasn’t been able to see or communicate with them since.
“As suddenly as I found my family, I have lost them again,” she said. “I believe that we must end the Korean War so that families can be reunited and we can heal from the wounds of war.”
She wants to see her siblings, she said, and to visit her parents’ graves one last time.
The Washington Post · by Joe Heim · July 28, 2023
14. 70 Years Later, the Korean War Must End
The author covers a lot more anti-US military hate than just calling for the end of the Korea War. While she thinks the US military is evil, I would just like to remind us that the root of all problems in Korea is the existence of the most evil mafia- like crime family cult known as the Kim family regime that has the objective of dominating the Korean Peninsula under the rule of the Guerrilla Dynasty and Gulag State.
70 Years Later, the Korean War Must End - FPIF
A fragile ceasefire halted the Korean War 70 years ago. With nuclear tensions rising and the environment under threat, it’s time to end it for good.
By Cathi Choi | July 26, 2023
fpif.org · · July 26, 2023
Originally published in OtherWords.
July 27 marked 70 years since the signing of the armistice that halted — but did not end — the Korean War. Since then, the divided Peninsula has been locked in a perpetual state of war that grows ever more dangerous.
In recent weeks, the U.S. has flown nuclear-capable bombers, launched nuclear war planning talks with South Korean officials, and sent a nuclear-capable submarine to South Korea for the first time in 42 years.
This followed the largest-ever live-fire military drills near the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) that divides Korea. North Korea has responded with missile tests — and recently threatened nuclear retaliation.
As a Korean American with family ties to both sides of the DMZ, I know that as long as this war continues, everyday people — Americans as well as Koreans — pay the steepest price. The Korean War inaugurated the U.S. military industrial complex, quadrupled U.S. defense spending, and set the U.S. on a course to become the world’s military police.
While much attention is paid to North Korea’s nuclear program and aggressive rhetoric, Americans also need to understand how the U.S. government’s actions exacerbate tensions — and why we have a critical role to play in ending this war.
To start, we must remember the central role of the U.S. in the Korean War — and just how destructive the fighting was.
Former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has described the war as an example of what a “successful” U.S. war can “achieve.” Other talking heads have made similar claims, offering the war as a model for how to proceed in Ukraine. This revisionism is dangerous.
The Korean War killed over 4 million people, more than half of them civilians. From 1950 to 1953, the U.S. dropped 32,000 tons of napalm and 635,000 tons of bombs — more than were dropped in the Pacific theater in World War II. The U.S. military showed “next to no concern for civilian casualties,” historian Bruce Cummings notes, burning 80 percent of North Korea’s cities to the ground.
Even after this mass destruction, the Peninsula is still at war today — with ongoing consequences for Koreans on both sides of the DMZ.
The U.S. has evicted families from their homes in South Korea to build military bases, while chemicals leaking from bases have poisoned local environments and contaminated drinking water. The Biden administration continues to enforce a Trump-era travel ban keeping Korean Americans separated from their loved ones in North Korea, while sanctions hinder the delivery of essential aid to the country.
U.S. taxpayers bankroll this devastation, spending $13.4 billion to maintain 28,500 troops in South Korea between 2016 and 2019.
Unless we act, our communities and environment will suffer devastating consequences as our military presence expands across the Pacific.
For example, the Defense Department recently announced a missile-defense system to be built on Guam, comprising up to 20 sites across the island and billed as a response to “perceived threats from potential adversaries like China and North Korea.” This plan, like many in the past, will destroy precious landscapes.
In Hawai’i, leaking jet fuel from Navy storage tanks has contaminated drinking water for thousands of families. And next year, the U.S. will hold the Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC), the largest annual maritime warfare exercise, in the state. Past exercises killed untold scores of marine life.
To avert nuclear war and protect our environment, Americans must demand an end to the growing U.S. military presence around the world and rein in our nearly $900 billion military budget. Our grassroots peace movement continues to grow, leading to the introduction of the Peace on the Korean Peninsula Act (H.R. 1369), which now has nearly 40 co-sponsors.
To end the Korean War, we need individuals with all skillsets — storytellers, community builders, healers, and more — working in concert. We must educate our communities, fight for change, and together build peace in Korea and across the world.
fpif.org · by Peter Certo · July 26, 2023
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
| 
