|
Quotes of the Day:
“It's infinitely easier to be against something than to be for something. It takes bravery to be for something, because then you have to defend your position. Be brave.”
– Heather Cox Richardson.
“The world is full of people who are very clever at seeming much smarter than they really are.”
– Kurt Vonnegut
"I am in this cause with my whole heart and soul. I believe that the Progressive movement is making life a little easier for all our people; a movement to try to take the burdens off the men and especially the women and children of this country. I am absorbed in the success of that movement."
– Theodore Roosevelt
1. Grim Picture of North Korea Is Being Sketched by Latest Diplomat To Defect
2. S. Korea, Japan agree to maintain positive momentum in bilateral ties
3. Military deploying anti-drone system to counter N. Korean drone threats
4. N. Korea media cover Cuba's diplomatic activities for 1st time since Seoul, Havana forge ties
5. Putin and Kim’s Comprehensive Strategic Partnership: Alignment against the West, A Hedge against China
6. Seoul installs anti-drone system to quickly respond to North Korean incursions
7. Kim Jong Un is winning the war for young North Koreans’ hearts and minds
8. North Korean elites ‘tire of Kim Jong-un’s erratic behaviour’
9. S. Korea, US stress commitment to disrupting NK revenue generation through cyber activities
10. Kim Jong-un's 'hostile states' theory still a work in progress, former North Korean envoy-turned-defector says
11. North's latest trash balloon launch suggests multifarious motives at play
12. 'Educational videos' show North Korean teens arrested, shamed for watching South Korean TV shows
13. Would a President Kamala Harris Offer a Fresh Approach to North Korea?
14. South Korean chip executive detained again over alleged technology leak to China
15. N. Korea revs up festive atmosphere for next week's state founding anniv.
1. Grim Picture of North Korea Is Being Sketched by Latest Diplomat To Defect
Change is coming. Are we ready for it?
I still take Mr. Ri's assessments with a grain of salt but I have been hearing similar reports from other high ranking escapees.
Excerpts:
“Perception by the North’s elite group toward the regime has changed a lot,” the South’s Yonhap News quoted him as telling the Forum. “They are disillusioned with Kim’s impromptu behaviors. Even with doing something wrong a little bit, North Korea shoots them to death.”
North Koreans “do not have any expectations for the regime,” he said. “They believe that what enables them to survive is markets” — that is free markets where food and other necessities are bought and sold beyond the control of the failing Communist state system.
Mr. Ri joins a succession of North Korean diplomats who have defected in recent years, most prominently, the deputy ambassador to the United Kingdom, Thae Yong-ho, flew from London to Seoul with his wife and two kids in 2016.
Unlike the others, Mr. Ri has actually sipped tea with Kim Jong-un, who bestowed a medal on him for his success in negotiating with Panama the release in 2013 of a North Korean ship carrying missiles and aircraft parts though the Panama Canal.
Grim Picture of North Korea Is Being Sketched by Latest Diplomat To Defect
Kim Jong-un’s subjects ‘live in poverty’ and see ‘reunification with the South as the only way to secure a better future.’
DONALD KIRK
Thursday, September 5, 2024
13:25:01 pm
https://www.nysun.com/article/grim-picture-of-north-korea-is-being-sketched-by-latest-diplomat-to-defect
nysun.com
The latest North Korean diplomat to defect to South Korea paints a grim picture of hopelessness among North Koreans fed up with the country’s dictatorial Kim dynasty rule as perpetuated by third-generation leader, Kim Jong-un.
In an interview with South Korea’s biggest newspaper, Chosun Ilbo, 52-year-old Ri Il-gyu said bluntly the North “has no hope under Kim Jong-un’s regime” while its citizens “live in poverty” and see “reunification with the South as the only way to secure a better future for their children.”
They think “if South Korean conglomerates were to invest and create jobs, their living conditions would improve significantly,” said Mr. Ri, who was counselor at North Korea’s embassy in Cuba when he flew out of Havana and fled to South Korea with his wife and child.
“The one hour I waited at the airport gate felt like years,” he told Chosun Ilbo. “For the first time, I prayed earnestly for God to protect my family, understanding why people believe in religion.”
Mr. Ri gave a sense of the extreme hardships endured by North Koreans at a session of the Global Korea Forum staged in Seoul by South Korea’s unification ministry, responsible for the South’s relationships with the North.
“Perception by the North’s elite group toward the regime has changed a lot,” the South’s Yonhap News quoted him as telling the Forum. “They are disillusioned with Kim’s impromptu behaviors. Even with doing something wrong a little bit, North Korea shoots them to death.”
North Koreans “do not have any expectations for the regime,” he said. “They believe that what enables them to survive is markets” — that is free markets where food and other necessities are bought and sold beyond the control of the failing Communist state system.
Mr. Ri joins a succession of North Korean diplomats who have defected in recent years, most prominently, the deputy ambassador to the United Kingdom, Thae Yong-ho, flew from London to Seoul with his wife and two kids in 2016.
Unlike the others, Mr. Ri has actually sipped tea with Kim Jong-un, who bestowed a medal on him for his success in negotiating with Panama the release in 2013 of a North Korean ship carrying missiles and aircraft parts though the Panama Canal.
“In person, Kim Jong-un is just an ordinary human,” Mr. Ri told Chosun Ilbo, describing the leader, who weighs upwards of 300 pounds. “Up close, you can’t help but think his blood pressure must be extremely high; his face is always red like he’s been drinking, even redder than on screen. He looks almost like a Native American.”
Mr. Ri also had some pointed observations to make about Mr Kim’s daughter, Ju-ae, about 12 years old, who frequently accompanies him on public appearances, including missile launches.
“They lived in an apartment in Pyongyang’s Second Academy of Natural Sciences, where over 80 percent of residents work on nuclear and missile development,” he said. “According to them, since she was a toddler, whenever Kim Jong-un was in a good mood, he would bring her out, saying, ‘I will show you my princess.’ “
Mr. Ri was not so impressed. Initially, he said, it was intriguing when she was first brought out, “but as she appeared in official state events like military parades, it became increasingly uncomfortable,” Chosun Ilbo quoted him as saying. “After enduring all sorts of humiliation under these people, the thought of my children bowing to that little girl was unbearable. Many North Koreans probably felt the same.”
He doubted, however, that Ju-ae would some day succeed Mr. Kim. “Personally, I find it unlikely,” he said. “Absolute authority and worship require an aura of mystery. With her being so exposed, how can there be any mystery or reverence?”
Most horrifically, Mr. Ri. recalled the execution of a top foreign ministry official, Han Song-ryol, “on charges of being a U.S. spy” two weeks before the failed summit between President Trump and Kim Jong-un at Hanoi in February 2019.
Senior officials “were gathered near Pyongyang Sunan Airport at the Kang Kon Military Academy to witness the execution,” he said. “I could not attend as I was being assigned to Cuba at the time. Those who witnessed the execution reported being unable to eat for several days afterward.”
nysun.com
2. S. Korea, Japan agree to maintain positive momentum in bilateral ties
Hope is not a course of action but I hope they can maintain positive momentum. It is in the mutual national security interests of both countries as well as the US that they do so.
(2nd LD) S. Korea, Japan agree to maintain positive momentum in bilateral ties | Yonhap News Agency
en.yna.co.kr · by Kim Eun-jung · September 6, 2024
(ATTN: UPDATES throughout with latest details, comments; ADDS photo)
By Kim Eun-jung
SEOUL, Sept. 6 (Yonhap) -- President Yoon Suk Yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Friday agreed to maintain the "positive momentum" from improved bilateral ties by overcoming lingering historical issues regardless of leadership change in Japan.
In their summit in Seoul, Yoon and Kishida committed to strengthening coordination between the two nations in response to growing security threats from North Korea, particularly in light of its increasing military ties with Russia.
"It is important to maintain the positive momentum of bilateral cooperation that Prime Minister Kishida and I have built to advance bilateral cooperation, as well as cooperation between Korea, the U.S. and Japan," Yoon said in his opening remarks.
Yoon said the two countries should take a "forward-looking attitude" to address challenging issues, amid lingering historical disputes.
"If we combine our efforts, we can create a turning point next year, marking the 60th anniversary of the normalization of diplomatic relations, and elevate Korea-Japan relations to a new level," Yoon said.
It was their 12th and last summit as Kishida has given up on reelection as prime minister and leader of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party after three years on the job.
President Yoon Suk Yeol (R) shakes hands with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida during their summit at the presidential office in Seoul on Sept. 6, 2024. (Pool photo) (Yonhap)
Kishida underscored the importance of maintaining close coordination and called for efforts to further advance the bilateral ties, reiterating his government upholds the positions of previous administrations, including the 1998 Korea-Japan Joint Declaration.
The declaration, adopted by former President Kim Dae-jung and former Japanese Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi, includes expressions of remorse for the historical suffering caused by Japan's colonial rule.
"I expressed my heartfelt sorrow for the immense hardships and sorrow so many people endured in the difficult circumstances of the past," Kishida said, without going into detail.
Kishida also expressed his support for Yoon's new unification doctrine that pursues peaceful unification with North Korea based on liberal values.
"At the Camp David summit last year, we expressed our support for the free and peaceful reunification of the Korean Peninsula," he said, referring to the trilateral summit with U.S. President Joe Biden. "I understand that President Yoon's doctrine also reflects interest in this goal."
During the summit, a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on cooperation for emergencies in third countries was signed to facilitate joint efforts in evacuating citizens from conflict zones and information sharing between the two nations.
"Amid ongoing global instability, the MOU is expected to serve as an institutional framework to ensure the safety of the citizens of both countries," Kim Tae-hyo, principal deputy national security adviser said, in a briefing.
They also discussed ways to facilitate more convenient travel between their countries, such as simplifying immigration procedures.
Consultations have been underway about adopting a pre-entry inspection system, which would involve sending immigration officials to the other country and setting up a biometric information system to facilitate a streamlined entry process to be completed before departure, a senior presidential official said.
Before Kishida's visit, Japan provided South Korea with part of the passenger list related to the controversial 1945 sinking of the Ukishima Maru, a Japanese vessel that resulted in the deaths of thousands of Koreans, seen as a reconciliatory gesture to address historical issues.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida (L) and his wife, Yuko Kishida (R), head toward a car after arriving at Seoul Air Base in Seongnam, south of Seoul, on Sept. 6, 2024, for a summit with President Yoon Suk Yeol. (Yonhap)
Yoon and Kishida have developed close bonds after Yoon decided last year to resolve the long-running row over Japan's wartime mobilization of Koreans for forced labor by compensating victims without asking Japanese firms for contributions.
The two leaders have since restored the long-suspended "shuttle diplomacy" of visiting each other whenever necessary and held a series of meetings on the sidelines of international conferences.
The restored ties have also significantly bolstered trilateral security cooperation with the U.S. in response to North Korea's nuclear and missile threats.
In August 2023, U.S. President Joe Biden invited Yoon and Kishida to Camp David for a standalone summit, where the three leaders committed to strengthen joint responses to North Korea's threats and other regional security challenges.
ejkim@yna.co.kr
(END)
en.yna.co.kr · by Kim Eun-jung · September 6, 2024
3. Military deploying anti-drone system to counter N. Korean drone threats
Military deploying anti-drone system to counter N. Korean drone threats | Yonhap News Agency
en.yna.co.kr · by Chae Yun-hwan · September 6, 2024
SEOUL, Sept. 6 (Yonhap) -- The defense ministry said Friday the military has been deploying an integrated anti-drone system in multiple locations across the country to counter threats posed by unmanned aerial vehicles from North Korea.
The move comes as South Korea has pushed to bolster its drone response capabilities after five North Korean drones crossed the border in December 2022, with one of them entering Seoul. The military failed to intercept any of them, raising questions over its readiness.
"The anti-drone integrated system is undergoing deployment in major important locations to respond to threats posed by small North Korean unmanned aerial vehicles," a defense ministry official said.
The integrated system consists of various equipment, including radar and drone signal jammers, making it capable of detecting, tracking and taking down the unmanned vehicles.
The military is reportedly planning to initially deploy around 20 systems to units under the Capital Defense Command and others in charge of defending key areas.
North Korea has recently pushed to advance its drone capabilities, with leader Kim Jong-un overseeing a performance test of suicide attack drones last month.
This file photo, taken Jan. 31, 2023, shows South Korea's flag flying at the defense ministry's headquarters in central Seoul. (Pool photo) (Yonhap)
yunhwanchae@yna.co.kr
(END)
en.yna.co.kr · by Chae Yun-hwan · September 6, 2024
4. N. Korea media cover Cuba's diplomatic activities for 1st time since Seoul, Havana forge ties
New moves on the "Go" or "Baduk" board.
N. Korea media cover Cuba's diplomatic activities for 1st time since Seoul, Havana forge ties | Yonhap News Agency
en.yna.co.kr · by Kim Han-joo · September 6, 2024
SEOUL, Sept. 6 (Yonhap) -- North Korea's state media on Friday reported diplomatic activities at the Cuban Embassy in Pyongyang for the first time since Havana established diplomatic ties with South Korea in February.
The Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) carried a report that in celebration of the 76th anniversary of the regime's founding slated for next week, a Cuban military attache delivered a flower basket and a congratulatory letter to the North's leader, Kim Jong-un.
The KCNA has rarely covered news related to Cuba since Cuba forged diplomatic relations with South Korea on Feb. 14.
The move was viewed as dealing a diplomatic blow to the North, which has long maintained brotherly ties with the Caribbean nation.
Aside from the news of the North Korean ambassador to Cuba leaving his post and the mention of Cuba participating in arts festival in Pyongyang along with several other countries in April, there has been no news coverage on Cuba by the North's media.
Aug. 29 marked the 64th anniversary of diplomatic relations between North Korea and Cuba, but unlike previous years, there were no reports of commemorative events or exchanges of congratulatory messages.
However, it is widely believed that North Korea will find it difficult to continue treating Cuba coldly.
Ri Il-gyu, a former counselor of political affairs at the North Korean Embassy in Cuba, said in an interview with Yonhap News Agency that North Korea will "never abandon" Cuba.
Ri defected to South Korea with his family last November.
Last month, North Korea appointed Han Su-chol as a new top envoy to Cuba, nearly five months after its former ambassador left the Caribbean nation
Ri Il-gyu, former counselor of political affairs at the North Korean Embassy in Cuba, speaks about his life as a North Korean diplomat in an interview with Yonhap News Agency on July 23, 2024. Ri defected to South Korea in November last year. (Yonhap)
khj@yna.co.kr
(END)
en.yna.co.kr · by Kim Han-joo · September 6, 2024
5. Putin and Kim’s Comprehensive Strategic Partnership: Alignment against the West, A Hedge against China
But we should keep in mind that this relationship is born out of fear, weakness, desperation, and envy. They fear the alliances (real alliances) of the like minded democracies. They are weak because of their own political contradictions and internal political dissent. They are desperate for help (ammunition, weapons, and high tech capabilities), and they envy those alliances that they fear.
Excerpts:
The alliance encroaches on Chinese interests, but it gives Beijing uncomfortably few options for responding. Pushing back against these moves for now would risk a defiant reaction from North Korea, potentially pushing it even closer to Russia. It could also cause the Kim regime to assert its independence with belligerent and destabilizing actions. This, in turn, could provoke a tightening of the emerging tripartite alliance between America, Japan, and South Korea. Chinese pressure on Russia could similarly cause Russia to lean even more heavily towards its rivals in Vietnam and India, countries Putin happened to visit immediately after his June visit to North Korea.
Russia’s profound shift toward North Korea has allowed Putin to seize the initiative in rearranging the “grand chessboard” of Eurasia for now. But the move has come with great long-term risk. The alliance has made its war in Ukraine increasingly global in scale. It has also wagered Russia’s future on the achievement of a profoundly different international system, one which may face stiff resistance not only from the West, but from China as well.
Putin and Kim’s Comprehensive Strategic Partnership: Alignment against the West, A Hedge against China
By Dan White on September 5, 2024
wilsoncenter.org · by Dan White
For decades, Russia has pursued a policy of “diplomatic equidistance” between South Korea and North Korea. This policy provided Russia with important stakes in the stability of the Korean peninsula. By offering to mediate with North Korea during periods of heightened tension, and enforce sanctions to slow nuclear proliferation, Russia enjoyed access to the thriving South Korean economy and opportunity to influence regional affairs. This long-standing policy came to an abrupt end in June with the signing of a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Treaty, between North Korea and Russia, during Vladimir Putin’s visit to Pyongyang.
The treaty comes on top of months of growing cooperation in times of great need for both countries. North Korea has provided Russia with massive military assistance to sustain its war effort in Ukraine, amid dwindling stockpiles of equipment and worsening labor shortages. Russia in turn has helped to hobble the UN sanctions regime on North Korea and provide it relief from long running economic woes worsened by the COVID-19 pandemic. The treaty formalizes these growing ties and expands cooperation between the two countries into a mutual defense pact.
The new alliance also indicates a reappraisal of Russia’s long-term national interests by Putin in the wake of the 2022 invasion of Ukraine. It demonstrates an acceptance of geopolitical instability as a precondition for breaking the existing international order. This entails a pivot toward deepening military cooperation with fellow pariah states and a willingness to support some nuclear proliferation as a means of establishing alternative poles of geopolitical power that are unassailable by the West. It is also, however less obviously, a strategy for balancing against Chinese power which may rise up to fill any void in global leadership.
A Bulwark against the West
The Comprehensive Strategic Partnership represents an attempt to combine the strengths of each country’s defense industry to exceed those of the United States and its allies in production capacity and to achieve strategic parity by leveraging nuclear weapons. For Russia this has meant secure, long-term support for its war in Ukraine. What North Korea has gotten in return is less clear, but there is mounting circumstantial evidence that Russia has helped North Korea make significant advances in its missile program.
Since Putin's proposal to assist North Korea in developing its “space” and “rocketry” programs during Kim Jong-un’s September 2023 visit to Russia’s Vostochny Cosmodrome, Russia has fired 50 or more North Korean-made ballistic missiles into Ukraine. This has provided a test of North Korea’s new weapons in combat and in the process identified deficiencies in their performance, which may assist future research and development.
Substantial improvements in North Korea’s satellite launch capability have also followed. On November 22, 2023, North Korea successfully launched its first domestically produced satellite. Six months later, the effects of deeper cooperation were visible, when an attempted satellite launch on May 27, 2024, featured engines powered by low-oxygen kerosene propellant, a technology commonly used for launching satellites in Russia that had not been seen before in North Korea. These advances in North Korea’s capability to put a functional satellite in orbit indicate, by proxy, improvements in its ability to launch an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) with a nuclear payload that survives reentry into the atmosphere.
A June 26 missile launched by North Korea featured a test of Multiple Independently Targeted Reentry Vehicles (MIRVs), a development which makes these previous advances in satellite launch even more concerning. MIRVs are a system for delivering numerous miniaturized nuclear warheads to different targets on a single missile. ICBMs armed with MIRVs would allow North Korea to seriously challenge US missile defenses. The rapid and unexpected progress in developing MIRVs—a technology long mastered by Russia—along with its timing, suggest substantial Russian technical assistance, development anticipated in my Russia-File piece from last April.
Finally, recent imagery of Pyongyang’s Sunan International Airport shows the development of an airborne early warning system (AEWS) taking shape. The advanced system of battlefield command and control used to coordinate air and missile strikes is being built atop one of North Korea’s handful of Soviet-era IL-76s, and it strongly resembles an iteration of the Russian A-50 Beriev.
A Hedge Against China
The strengthening of military ties with North Korea has been hailed by the Kremlin as a major step forward in its campaign to create a new, multipolar order free from Western domination. China, which would no longer be challenged in Asia by the United States in this envisioned system, has echoed similar pronouncements by Russia about the need for a multipolar order. Rhetoric aside, it is far from clear that Beijing is actually interested in cultivating a world in which its rising potential as a superpower is constrained by other geopolitical poles.
China’s global ambitions ultimately complicate its long-term commitments to Russia and North Korea. To become the preeminent global power, China needs Russia and North Korea as military partners to challenge the West. It also needs Russia as a stakeholder in an alternative economic system alongside a broad anti-Western coalition, in such organizations as the BRICS and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. This makes cooperation with Russia and North Korea valuable to China, but ultimately less valuable than access to Western markets, upon which China’s economic development has depended. China has an interest in keeping Russia and North Korea powerful only to the extent to which it can instrumentalize their power and keep them in supporting roles.
Being a supporting partner to China is an inherently insecure position. China has shown its willingness to violently split with and harshly discipline its partners. China has used its outsized economic influence as North Korea’s largest trading partner to pressure Pyongyang to conform to its interests. China also previously risked nuclear war with the Soviet Union in 1969 in a violent dispute over a relatively tiny piece of land in the Ussuri river. The claims underlying that conflict are still unresolved. Closer ties between Russia and North Korea therefore provide both with additional leverage to remain independent of Chinese influence.
The alliance encroaches on Chinese interests, but it gives Beijing uncomfortably few options for responding. Pushing back against these moves for now would risk a defiant reaction from North Korea, potentially pushing it even closer to Russia. It could also cause the Kim regime to assert its independence with belligerent and destabilizing actions. This, in turn, could provoke a tightening of the emerging tripartite alliance between America, Japan, and South Korea. Chinese pressure on Russia could similarly cause Russia to lean even more heavily towards its rivals in Vietnam and India, countries Putin happened to visit immediately after his June visit to North Korea.
Russia’s profound shift toward North Korea has allowed Putin to seize the initiative in rearranging the “grand chessboard” of Eurasia for now. But the move has come with great long-term risk. The alliance has made its war in Ukraine increasingly global in scale. It has also wagered Russia’s future on the achievement of a profoundly different international system, one which may face stiff resistance not only from the West, but from China as well.
The opinions expressed in this article are those solely of the author and do not reflect the views of the Kennan Institute.
wilsoncenter.org · by Dan White
6. Seoul installs anti-drone system to quickly respond to North Korean incursions
Seoul installs anti-drone system to quickly respond to North Korean incursions
‘Integrated’ system is much more effective than previous one, says expert, and comes in response to DPRK drone incursion
Jeongmin Kim September 6, 2024
https://www.nknews.org/2024/09/seoul-installs-anti-drone-system-to-quickly-respond-to-north-korean-incursions/
Kim Jong Un inspects small "suicide drone" testing at Panghyon Airbase | Image: Rodong Sinmun (Aug. 26, 2024)
South Korea has begun deploying an advanced anti-drone system to better tackle North Korean unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) incursions, Seoul’s ruling party lawmaker Kang Dae-sik’s office confirmed to NK News on Friday.
A document Kang’s office provided to NK News shows that the South Korean military’s failure to promptly respond to North Korea’s drone incursion into the ROK airspace in Dec. 2022 triggered the emergency procurement of the system from local defense conglomerate Hanhwa Systems.
The installation of the “integrated anti-drone system” at military units has been underway since early last month, Kang’s office told NK News, adding that the project aims to deploy dozens of systems to various units.
Installation is first being carried out at three units, including major Air Force bases and units under the Capital Defense Command (CDC). For key facilities in Seoul city under CDC jurisdiction, the system is undergoing “trial operations” and is expected to be fully deployed by November this year, the office added.
Seoul’s defense ministry confirmed to NK News that the “Integrated Anti-drone System for Critical Areas” is currently being deployed to “address the threat posed by North Korea’s small UAVs.”
“Our military will continue to enhance practical response capabilities against the North’s diverse drone threats,” it added.
THE ‘INTEGRATED’ SYSTEM
A Dec. 2023 press release from Hanwha shows that this system is specifically designed to protect critical military facilities such as air bases and naval ports.
“The system detects and identifies small UAVs that enter airspace and disables them through radio signal disruption, known as jamming,” the release explains.
The integrated system consists of “detection radar, electro-optical and infrared thermal surveillance equipment for identifying and tracking illegal drones, a jammer for neutralizing targets, and an integrated console,” it added.
Shin Seung-ki, a senior analyst from the Korea Institute for Defense Analyses (KIDA), told NK News that the new system is likely much more effective than previous systems, calling it the “first-ever” integrated system dedicated to drone responses.
“In the past, detection, tracking, and firing were all done separately, so this new system integrates them. Response times to drones used to be slow because they weren’t an integrated system, and so there wasn’t a system that allowed the military to communicate and respond effectively,” Shin said.
However, he pointed out that North Korea may respond by upgrading its drones to overcome high-intensity jamming attacks.
“For what it’s worth, this system also serves to send a message that North Korea’s older drones, like the ones they’ve used before, won’t achieve Pyongyang’s intended objectives for provocations,” the expert stated.
Admiral Kim Myung-soo, chairman of the ROK Joint Chiefs of Staff, inspects a model of a KUS-SX attack and reconnaissance UAV at the ROK Drone Operations Command, Feb. 14, 2024 | Image: ROK Joint Chiefs of Staff
QUICK TURNAROUND?
The deployment comes around a year and a half after the ROK government and military declared an urgent need to acquire new anti-drone capabilities following North Korea’s 2022 drone incursion.
Since then, South Korea has taken several steps to improve its drone defenses, such as establishing the Drone Operations Command last year and the president vowing to deliver an “overwhelming response” to future North Korean drone infiltrations.
During the 2022 incursion, five North Korean drones violated South Korean airspace, with four crossing the western border and one crossing the central frontline. The latter drone reached the no-fly zone over Seoul, which includes the presidential office’s compound.
The DPRK drones at the time returned to North Korea without being intercepted, leading to significant public concern about the country’s air defenses and backlash about the failed communications between different military commands.
The incident also garnered criticism as the drone that infiltrated Seoul was detected by a soldier who visually spotted it, not through the military’s advanced radar system.
Following the incursion, South Korean defense and security officials acknowledged delays in detecting the drones and limitations in their response, citing concerns about potential civilian casualties that complicated the decision to engage the drones with ground-based air defense systems or helicopters.
This failure spurred a broader discussion on the need for more effective counter-drone measures, particularly non-kinetic jamming systems that can neutralize drones or drive them to intended locations without harming civilians.
The document Kang’s office provided to NK News on Friday shows that the integrated anti-drone system procurement project was tagged as something that requires a “swift” turnaround.
Following research in March 2023 and procurement testing during the fall, the defense acquisition agency signed a $22 million (29 billion won) contract with Hanwha Systems in December last year, the document shows.
Shin of KIDA told NK News that the time frame from research to deployment is notably quick compared to usual procedures.
Meanwhile, according to the Joongang Ilbo newspaper on Friday, the military has developed a strategy to deploy 10 ROK drones into North Korean airspace for every DPRK drone that enters South Korean airspace, with a focus on targeting key North Korean facilities.
Joon Ha Park contributed to this report. Edited by Alannah Hill
7. Kim Jong Un is winning the war for young North Koreans’ hearts and minds
But it is difficult to measure opinions inside north Korea. On the one hand this must be taken with a grain of salt. But on the other hand it does help with the argument that we still need a lot more information getting into north Korea. e.g., "massive quantities." See below.
- Design an overt ‘public diplomacy”/information campaign targeting the north Korean people based on Information, Knowledge, Facts/Truth, Understanding, and Voices from north Korea:
1. Information involves massive quantities of information from entertainment to news.
2. Knowledge means practical information on how to effect change, best practices for agriculture and market activity, communication techniques to counter regime surveillance operations, and educational lessons without Juche influence.
3. Facts/Truth reflects the reality about the regime and the situation in north Korea as well as the outside world and especially in South Korea
4. Understanding helps the Korean people in the north familiarize themselves with the inalienable and universal rights that belong to all human beings which includes the right to self-determination of government (per Article 21 of the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights).
5. Voices from north Korea demonstrating the success of escapees in the South and around the world.
- Design a counter north Korean propaganda campaign
-
Recognize the Kim family regime’s strategy(s),
-
Understand the strategy(s),
-
EXPOSE the strategy(s) to inoculate the Korean and American publics and the international community, and
-
Attack the strategy(s) with a superior form of political warfare (led by information).
Opinion
Kim Jong Un is winning the war for young North Koreans’ hearts and minds
Data shows perceptions of regime have improved over last decade, underscoring need to increase access to information
https://www.nknews.org/2024/09/kim-jong-un-is-winning-the-war-for-young-north-koreans-hearts-and-minds/
Chelsie Alexandre | Jonathan R. Corrado September 6, 2024
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un with members of the Korean Children's Union at the organization's eighth congress on June 8, 2017 | Image: Rodong Sinmun
Editor’s note: The following article is an opinion piece by Jonathan R. Corrado and Chelsie Alexandre of The Korea Society. Views expressed in opinion articles are exclusively the author’s own and do not represent those of NK News.
In a recent article, we highlighted an alarming trend in defector survey data: Over the past 10 years, North Korean youth has become more positive about the country’s system, juche ideology and Kim Jong Un himself.
A response published on NK News made the case that such fears are largely unfounded, citing human rights experts who argue that Kim’s policies are creating resentment and likely to backfire.
While we do not disagree with the author’s underlying premise that foreign information has a meaningful impact, we do think our main point was lost in the shuffle — namely that Pyongyang’s brutal crackdown on information, coupled with its more positive ideological indoctrination, is having a palpable, measurable impact on the worldview of young North Koreans.
We ourselves were surprised when we saw these findings in the data, and while there are limits to what we can learn from it, the trend underscores just how important it is to counter Kim Jong Un’s crackdowns by disseminating information to the people of North Korea.
North Korean women gathered on the street | Image: NK News (Sept. 2015)
SNU SURVEY
Seoul National University’s (SNU) Institute for Peace and Unification Studies conducts an annual survey of North Korean refugees that we consider the single best open-source resource on the views of ordinary North Koreans on topics ranging from politics and society to unification and culture.
There are problems with representation: The sample skews female, and respondents tend to be from the border areas. Because the number of refugees reaching South Korea has slowed to a crawl since the pandemic, the last survey of this type was conducted in 2020.
Conditions have likely changed in ways these surveys cannot assess. Respondents are also all defectors, another distinguishing factor that sets them apart from the North Korean population.
However, SNU has asked the same questions every year for decades, and each sample includes only refugees who recently left North Korea. The answers of refugees from years past are thus a reliable means for comparison.
Kim Jong Un and his daughter celebrate 75 years of North Korea during a paramilitary parade | Image: Rodong Sinmun (Sept. 9, 2023)
WHAT WE LEARNED
Looking at the historical data, we can see that in 2014 younger North Koreans tended to be more negative about the country’s leader, system and ideology compared to their older peers.
This characterization is consistent with our understanding of the so-called jangmadang generation of North Korean millennials who grew up listening to K-pop and were raised by parents participating in markets (first informal jangmadang and later regulated jonghap sijang).
We were surprised to see that, just five years later, the trend had reversed.
Young people in their teens, 20s and 30s had more pride in juche in 2019-20 versus both their older peers and compared to the same young cohort just six years earlier. Similarly, people in their 20s and 30s became more supportive of socialism versus capitalism in 2020 when compared to both their peers and their same-age cohort in 2014.
In 2020, the younger cohort was less likely to perceive criticism about Kim Jong Un than the older cohort. Three-quarters of 20-somethings thought Kim Jong Un was popular with at least half the country, more so than all other age groups, most of which hovered around 50%.
The finding that young North Koreans have become more positive about the regime is unexpected and significant. What’s even more remarkable is the fact that its defectors, those who’ve voted with their feet by leaving the country, who have become more fond of Kim Jong Un and juche in recent years.
Yet these survey results lack qualitative context. That’s why we’re hoping to conduct a follow-up study with interviews of North Korean refugees.
A North Korean child using a computer | Image: (Oct. 2016)
WHY DID THIS HAPPEN?
For us, the information environment is a crucial piece of the puzzle. We explored other potential reasons in another report, including shifts in economic conditions and Kim Jong Un’s youth loyalty campaign.
But access to information seems to be the crucial factor.
Kim Jong Un’s crackdown on information consumption and distribution has had a dramatic impact on access. Between 2015 and 2020, the number of people who said that they often encountered South Korean media decreased, and the number of those who never encountered it increased.
Over a similar time frame, the portion of people who said they learn about the outside world primarily from foreign media decreased from 25% to 14%.
These findings from the SNU survey are consistent with information from other sources. A large majority of respondents said that it had become more dangerous to consume foreign media after Kim Jong Un came to power (84%) and after the Sino-Korean border was shut during the pandemic (84%), according to a 2022 survey of 50 North Koreans conducted via phone by Unification Media Group (UMG).
After North Korea adopted the strict new “anti-reactionary thought law” in 2020, most respondents (88%) had seen someone get punished for consuming foreign media, while half said they’d bribed authorities to avoid punishment for consuming foreign media.
In perhaps a related development, the SNU survey showed that between 2016 and 2020, North Koreans’ perception of their own state media improved and skepticism declined, albeit not by wide margins.
We should pause to note the complicated and dynamic relationship between the information ecosystem and the political views of North Koreans. The deep causes and consequences of the shift are somewhat obscured.
But this much is clear: Younger North Koreans became more positive about the regime and access to foreign media declined during this time frame.
North Korean man taking a picture with his mobile phone in Pyongyang | Image: Eric Lafforgue (April 2010)
REVERSING THE TREND
We think there is a causal relationship here. Of course, we could be wrong — but if our hypothesis is correct, it logically follows that what we do from the outside and what Kim Jong Un does on the inside both make a difference.
This isn’t an academic digression. There are policy implications. Either we can acknowledge this complexity and design for it, or ignore it and suffer setbacks.
We agree with the experts cited in the NK News article: The answer is more information distribution, not less. And we go further to argue that it’s crucial to constantly experiment with distribution methods and customize content in order to compete with Kim Jong Un.
More North Koreans own digital media devices than in years prior, according to the 2022 UMG study, providing opportunities to experiment with new dissemination methods.
But first we must acknowledge that Kim Jong Un’s policies are purpose-built to defeat the outside world’s information campaign and have even succeeded to some degree. Only then can we hope to design workarounds that overcome these barriers.
8. North Korean elites ‘tire of Kim Jong-un’s erratic behaviour’
North Korean elites ‘tire of Kim Jong-un’s erratic behaviour’
Authoritarian leader has created an ‘atmosphere of anxiety and uncertainty’ among the country’s upper class, says high-level defector
Nicola Smith,
Asia Correspondent
4 September 2024 • 11:23am
The Telegraph · by Nicola Smith, Asia Correspondent
Related Topics
Kim Jong-un's regime punishes minor mistakes with dismissals and even execution, according to a defector Credit: STR/AFP/GETTY IMAGES
North Korea’s elites are becoming “disillusioned” with Kim Jong-un’s erratic behaviour, according to a high-level defector who has called for a greater push to destabilise the authoritarian regime.
Ri Il-gyu, 52, served as a political counsellor at the North Korean embassy in Cuba until he escaped last November, becoming the highest ranking defector since 2016. He is now a well-known media figure in South Korea.
The reclusive country’s upper, or cadre, class had experienced a significant shift in how they perceived the Kim family dynasty, he told the Global Korea Forum in the South’s capital, Seoul, this week.
“They’ve become disillusioned with the regime due to Kim Jong-un’s impulsive behaviour,” Mr Ri said, explaining that the punishment of minor mistakes with dismissals and even execution had created an “atmosphere of anxiety and uncertainty”.
The North Korean leader was seen inspecting the performance of new drones Credit: KCNA/EPA-EFE/SHUTTERSTOCK
Kim reportedly ordered the execution of 20 to 30 regional government officials over their alleged failure to minimise the devastation caused by extensive flooding in July that killed thousands.
The officials were charged with corruption and dereliction of duty, South Korean outlet TV Chosun reported, citing an unnamed North Korean official.
Kim had vowed in late July to “strictly punish” the officials for the “severe neglect” of their duties.
Mr Ri pointed out that citizens were hesitant to rise up against Kim’s reign of terror because of the draconian surveillance system and the brutal repression of any dissent.
Kim’s “war on corruption” had fostered a culture of bribery among North Korean officials, who saw it as a survival tactic, he added.
Mr Ri pointed out that citizens were hesitant to rise up against Kim’s reign of terror because of the draconian surveillance system and the brutal repression of any dissent.
He urged the South Korean government to step up efforts to stoke the North’s collapse from within through targeted information campaigns inside the country and a strategy to win over diplomats stationed abroad to “build a force for change”.
Seoul had to underscore the message that everyone living under the regime was “a slave to the Kim family”, he said.
Vladimir Putin drove Kim Jong-un around the North Korean capital in a luxury limousine in June Credit: KCNA/KNS
Mr Ri has previously recounted – in his first interview with the South Korean newspaper Chosun Ilbo – that his own defection was spurred by disillusionment and frustration that his career had been derailed by his inability to pay large bribes to his superiors.
He made the decision to defect in 2023 after he was denied permission for treatment for a spinal injury, but he only gave his wife and child six hours’ notice that they would be escaping abroad.
The one-hour wait at the airport “felt like years”, he said, adding: “For the first time, I prayed earnestly for God to protect my family, understanding why people believe in religion.”
Mr Ri also revealed in the same interview that he had had tea with Kim Jong-un.
“In person, Kim Jong-un is just an ordinary human,” he said. “Up close, you can’t help but think his blood pressure must be extremely high; his face is always red, like he’s been drinking, even redder than on screen.”
Related Topics
License this content
More stories
The Telegraph · by Nicola Smith, Asia Correspondent
9. S. Korea, US stress commitment to disrupting NK revenue generation through cyber activities
Mathew Ha and I made recommendations to counter north Korea's cyber enabled economic warfare in 2018 here: https://www.fdd.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/REPORT_NorthKorea_CEEW.pdf
Policy Recommendations
China and Russia have conducted (and are conducting on an ongoing basis) a range of cyber operations against the United States – from information operations to cyber-enabled economic warfare. North Korea is no doubt taking notes. The North Korean regime is a “learning organization.” It observes best practices and incorporates them into its arsenal.160 Therefore, Washington’s responses to combat, counter, thwart, and deter other malicious cyber actors will likely have an impact on North Korea’s capabilities and strategies. For that reason, policymakers must adopt optimal cyber defense measures in addition to heeding recommendations specific to the threat from North Korea.
Enhancing U.S. cyber resilience and working cooperatively with the private sector are central to any effective cyber defense strategy. For example, the U.S. Computer Emergency and Readiness Team (US-CERT) issues technical alerts that inform critical infrastructure, financial, and aerospace companies how to address software vulnerabilities.161 Ensuring that American businesses incorporate US-CERT technical recommendations may be one way to turn information sharing into effective resilience.
Create a combined ROK-U.S. Cyber Task Force
Disable the Reconnaissance General Bureau (RGB)’s network of front companies
Pursue preparations for offensive measures to restrict Pyongyang’s cyber capacity
Pressure foreign countries to dismantle North Korean networks in their jurisdictions
Include cyber as part of North-South negotiations and North Korea-U.S. security discussions
Incentivize publication of information about cryptocurrency hacks
S. Korea, US stress commitment to disrupting NK revenue generation through cyber activities
The Korea Times · September 6, 2024
Lee Jun-il, director general for Korean Peninsula policy at Seoul's foreign ministry, center, speaks at the Ministry of Foregin Affairs headquarters in Jongno District, Seoul, June 28, 2023. Newsis
South Korean and U.S. diplomats highlighted close cooperation in preventing North Korea from generating revenue through malicious cyber activities during their talks on cybersecurity Thursday, the State Department said.
Lee Jun-il, director general for Korean Peninsula policy at Seoul's foreign ministry, and U.S. Deputy Special Representative for North Korea Seth Bailey led the seventh meeting of the South Korea-U.S. working group dedicated to countering North Korea's cyberthreats.
"The meeting underscored the continued close collaboration between the U.S. and ROK governments to disrupt the DPRK's ability to generate revenue through malicious cyber activity, which it uses to fund its unlawful WMD and ballistic missile programs," the department said in a media note.
ROK stands for South Korea's official name, the Republic of Korea. WMD is short for weapons of mass destruction.
The department also stressed that Seoul and Washington are pursuing a "wide" range of actions to prevent and disrupt North Korea's cryptocurrency heists, address its cyber espionage against the defense sector, stop third-party facilitators from enabling the North's illicit revenue generation, and dismantle North Korean IT worker infrastructure and networks.
"The Working Group meeting also focused on coordinated diplomatic outreach, information sharing and capacity building for nations vulnerable to the DPRK cyberthreat," it said.
The meeting, which ends Friday, included participants from 15 U.S. and South Korean government departments, ministries and agencies, according to the department. (Yonhap)
The Korea Times · September 6, 2024
10. Kim Jong-un's 'hostile states' theory still a work in progress, former North Korean envoy-turned-defector says
The ROK has the moral high ground.
Excerpt:
"North Korea finds it challenging to counter Yoon's proposal on unification and is not fully prepared to institutionalize their theory internally," Tae explained. "The absence of any detailed plans or supporting documents for overseas shows that the theoretical groundwork remains incomplete."
We should compare the vision of the north and South:
Both North Korea and the ROK have implemented drastically opposing policies in 2024. Kim Jong Un appears to have made a radical policy change in two related statements. He has declared the Republic of Korea (ROK) as the “main enemy.” He also stated that he no longer seeks peaceful unification with the South. The reason for this change is that Kim Jong Un has failed to keep his promise to the people – when the regime developed nuclear weapons it would bring peace and prosperity to the people. Because of this he must do what the regime has always done when faced with internal problems – externalize the threat. He must use the perception of South Korea as the enemy to justify the suffering and sacrifice of the Korean people in the north. However, by discarding the possibility of peaceful unification he has taken away the hope of the Korean people because they believed that unification was the path to a better life. But no one should believe that Kim is seeking co-existence with the South. His objective remains that of his father and grandfather and that is to dominate the Korean peninsula to ensure regime survival. This may be the proverbial “inflection point” for Korean security. Kim appears to have provided the ROK and the US with an opportunity for a new strategy that could exert pressure from within the north on Kim Jong Un to change or face the possibility that change could be forced upon him.
What the Koreas are left with are two competing visions:
"If more North Koreans come to recognize that unification through freedom is the only way to improve their lives... they will emerge as strong allies for a freedom-oriented unification."
– President Yoon Suk Yeol, August 15, 2024
“The party’s comprehensive conclusion after reviewing decades-long inter-Korean relations is that reunification can never be achieved with those ROK riffraffs that defined the ‘unification by absorption’ and ‘unification under liberal democracy’ as their state policy. That is in sharp contradiction with what our line of national reunification was: one nation [minjok], one state with two systems. Reunification is realistically 'impossible' and the two Koreas are separate 'belligerent states' at war."
– Kim Jong Un, January 1, 2024
President Yoon has taken the bold step to implement a new strategy to seek peaceful unification. Most importantly, by seeking peaceful unification, while Kim Jong Un’s quest is only for domination, the ROK is standing on the moral high ground. Although there are many naysayers among pundits in Korea and the international community, no one should argue against freedom for all Korean people. Furthermore, none of the critics have offered any alternative plan for unification. The question before all freedom loving people around the world is how to support the Korean people in achieving unification and reaching their destiny.
The emphasis on liberal democracy and freedom for all is not new for the Yoon Administration. It has been a constant theme as outlined in the 8.15 Unification Doctrine. This illustrates the administration’s evolution to what can be described as a truly revolutionary unification vision that is in accordance with the ROK Constitution and reaches back to the March 1919 Korean Declaration of Independence.
Again, the ROK has the moral high ground.
Kim Jong-un's 'hostile states' theory still a work in progress, former North Korean envoy-turned-defector says
https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/news/2024-09-05/national/northKorea/Kim-Jonguns-hostile-states-theory-still-a-work-in-progress-former-North-Korean-envoyturneddefector-says/2128356
Published: 05 Sep. 2024, 17:45
- SEO JI-EUN
- seo.jieun1@joongang.co.kr
Korea JoongAng Daily
Kim Jong-un's 'hostile states' theory still a work in progress, former North Korean envoy-turned-defector says
3 min
Tae Yong-ho, secretary-general of the Peaceful Unification Advisory Council, speaks during a press briefing on Wednesday at the council's conference room. [PEACEFUL UNIFICATION ADVISORY COUNCIL]
A former North Korean diplomat suggested Pyongyang has yet to institutionalize leader Kim Jong-un's declaration of a hostile relationship between the two Koreas.
"I believe even within North Korea, the 'two hostile states' theory hasn't been completed," Tae Yong-ho, secretary general of the Peaceful Unification Advisory Council — a presidential consultative body on unification — told the press at a briefing held at the council in Seoul on Wednesday. Tae served as a North Korean deputy ambassador to Britain before defecting to South Korea in 2016.
The remark comes as North Korea keeps mum about South's "unification doctrine," a vision for a unified Korean Peninsula mainly through expanding access to outside information for North Koreans, which President Yoon unveiled during his Aug. 15 Liberation Day speech. Earlier this year, Kim redefined inter-Korean relations as those between "two states hostile to each other" and labeled South Korea as his country's "invariably principal enemy."
"North Korea finds it challenging to counter Yoon's proposal on unification and is not fully prepared to institutionalize their theory internally," Tae explained. "The absence of any detailed plans or supporting documents for overseas shows that the theoretical groundwork remains incomplete."
Advertisement: 0:08
Tae further revealed that even senior figures from the pro-Pyongyang group Chongryon, based in Japan, raised concerns after reviewing Pyongyang's "two hostile states" guideline that abandons the concepts of one nation and unification.
"North Korea recently sent a guideline [on the 'two hostile states' theory] to Chongryon," Tae said. "The Chongryon elders asked, 'How can we abandon unification like this?' However, they were told to accept the guideline as it was, as Pyongyang had no policy explanation forthcoming," Tae explained.
Tae also noted that there are North Korean diplomats who have defected yet remain unidentified, residing not only in South Korea but also abroad, such as in the United States and Europe. Tae explained that some diplomats' children had fled to South Korea, leading their parents to return to Pyongyang voluntarily.
"I've heard of cases where a diplomat's child fled to South Korea, leading the parents to go back to Pyongyang on their own," Tae said. "There was also an instance where, after the death of a diplomat husband, the spouse and children refused to return to North Korea and disappeared."
Tae also addressed claims that North Korea's elite deliberately exaggerates the inter-Korean economic gap. Economic reports typically estimate the economic disparity between the two Koreas as 60:1 or 50:1.
"When I was in North Korea and spoke with individuals from economic research institutes, they perceived the gap to be as large as 120:1," Tae recalled.
He emphasized that North Korean authorities have instilled a fear of unification among their citizens, telling them that if the two Koreas were to reunify, "North Korea would become a slave to South Korean capital," suggesting that this was intentionally spread to dampen the North Korean people’s aspirations for unification.
Tae, appointed as the chief of the secretariat of the Peaceful Unification Advisory Council in July, is the first North Korean defector to be named to a vice-ministerial position in South Korea. As the chief of the secretariat, Tae advises the president on policies aimed at achieving peace and unification on the Korean Peninsula.
BY SEO JI-EUN [seo.jieun1@joongang.co.kr]
11. North's latest trash balloon launch suggests multifarious motives at play
But only Kim Jong Un knows for sure.
North's latest trash balloon launch suggests multifarious motives at play
https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/news/2024-09-05/national/northKorea/Norths-latest-trash-balloon-launch-suggests-multifarious-motives-at-play/2128399
Published: 05 Sep. 2024, 14:52
- LIM JEONG-WON
- lim.jeongwon@joongang.co.kr
Residue from trash-laden balloons are seen scattered around a park near the National Assembly building in Yeouido, western Seoul, on Thursday. [NEWS1]
North Korea launched another round of trash-laden balloons Thursday morning after sending around 420 trash balloons Wednesday night, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) announced Thursday.
The JCS confirmed that 20 trash balloons launched Wednesday night fell in Seoul and northern Gyeonggi. It also added that North Korea resumed launches of trash balloons at around 9 a.m. Thursday.
“The contents of the balloons were confirmed to be trash such as paper and plastic bottles, and analysis results showed that there were no hazardous substances,” the JCS said. “Citizens should be careful of falling balloons, and we urge citizens not to touch them and report them to the nearest military unit or police.”
North Korea usually launches balloons from its western regions, including Hwanghae Province, targeting Seoul, and the winds on Thursday were mainly in the eastern direction. During the last launch on Aug. 10 to 11, only 4 percent of around 240 balloons fell on South Korean territory due to strong winds.
Advertisement: 0:14
Related Article
“The wind direction changes depending on the altitude, so we cannot conclude that weather conditions will make it impossible for North Korea to launch additional balloons,” said a JCS official.
Wednesday’s launch was the 12th round of trash balloons sent by North Korea, while Thursday morning’s was the 13th, according to the JCS’s count.
North Korea has been sending trash balloons to the South since late May to protest activists in South Korea who distribute anti-Pyongyang leaflets across the border.
“We regret that North Korea has repeatedly engaged in such unconscionable behavior" even as the country recovers from severe damage from recent flooding, a Unification Ministry official said. “Pyongyang is using the leaflets from our civic organizations as an excuse for its trash balloon provocations, but the voluntary actions of civic organizations to deliver information can never be a reason for the actions carried out by North Korea.”
Trash-laden balloons are seen flying over from North Korea into Gyeonggi on Thursday morning. [YONHAP]
Some experts point out that South Korean civic organizations had recently halted their leaflet campaigns and that North Korea’s latest launch of trash balloons could signify other motives.
“The launch of North Korea’s trash balloons despite the absence of leafleting shows a multipurpose intention,” said Yang Moo-jin, president of the University of North Korean Studies. “They could be aiming to strengthen regime cohesion by raising anti-South Korean sentiment ahead of North Korea’s national day on Sept. 9, and could also be aiming to create anxiety ahead of Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s visit and Chuseok.”
Kishida is set to visit South Korea on Friday and Saturday for a summit with President Yoon Suk Yeol, while the extended Chuseok holiday begins on Sept. 16 and lasts until Sept. 18.
North Korea has so far shown no signs of preparations for a military parade to mark its national day on Sept. 9, South Korea's Unification Ministry said Thursday. North Korea will commemorate the 76th anniversary of the regime's foundation this year.
BY LIM JEONG-WON [lim.jeongwon@joongang.co.kr]
12. 'Educational videos' show North Korean teens arrested, shamed for watching South Korean TV shows
Control of information is paramount for the survival of the regime.
'Educational videos' show North Korean teens arrested, shamed for watching South Korean TV shows
https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/news/2024-09-05/national/northKorea/Educational-videos-show-North-Korean-teens-arrested-shamed-for-watching-South-Korean-TV-shows/2128500
Published: 05 Sep. 2024, 17:22
- LIM JEONG-WON
- lim.jeongwon@joongang.co.kr
A video obtained by South Korean broadcaster KBS shows North Korean authorities handcuffing teenage girls for watching South Korean drams. [SCREEN CAPTURE]
Videos apparently depicting North Korean authorities handcuffing teenagers for watching South Korean dramas and publicly shaming their family members were released by a local public broadcaster on Wednesday.
South Korean broadcaster KBS obtained these videos and revealed them through a report on the broadcaster's 9 o'clock daily news program showing that North Korean teenagers were arrested, handcuffed and filmed for an “educational” video warning other North Koreans against watching South Korean content.
In the video, young girls are seen sitting in a row in front of authorities with their heads bowed. A 16-year-old girl then stands in front of a microphone with her mask removed and bursts into tears.
North Korean authorities disclosed the girl’s name, her school, age and her parents’ identities and declared that “we have severely punished several students who watched and distributed subversive propaganda material, including television dramas from the South Korean puppet state.”
Related Article
Advertisement: 0:09
Authorities in Pyongyang also publicly criticized the teens’ family members.
KBS reported that these videos contain about 10 hours of footage in total, are divided into 10 episodes, and were mostly produced after May 2021.
“As the economic crisis worsened after the suspension of trade with China during the Covid-19 pandemic, the human rights situation in North Korea has worsened as authorities strengthened control to prevent unrest among people,” reported KBS.
KBS also said that North Korean authorities are cracking down hard on the spread of South Korean content, defining it as a matter of life and death.
In one of the videos, a North Korean soldier in his 20s confessed to watching South Korean content, saying, “I watched 15 American films, 17 South Korean films and listened to more than 160 songs on my mobile phone.”
The mother of another soldier was filmed in one of the videos denouncing her own son, saying that he was arrested for watching South Korean videos in the military, saying, “I gave birth to a traitor.”
“There is a phenomenon in which impure recordings are purchased, viewed, stored and distributed using mobile phones, and in the process, even text messages are exchanged in the South Korean dialect,” said North Korean authorities in the videos. “We must consider the fight against this malignant tumor as a matter of life and death.”
BY HYEON YE-SEUL, LIM JEONG-WON [lim.jeongwon@joongang.co.kr]
13. Would a President Kamala Harris Offer a Fresh Approach to North Korea?
We need a fresh approach.
Here is an excerpt from the introduction to my proposal for the next administration's north Korea policy (regardless of which candidate wins the election):. Needless to say it is counter to the maximum engagement policy advocated by the author in the article below.
Strategy for U.S. Support to the Republic of Korea's 8.15 Unification Doctrine
Overview: This strategic plan is modeled after Ronald Reagan's National Security Decision Directive 32, National Security Strategy (NSDD-32), emphasizing a human-rights-centered approach, the role of information and public diplomacy, and the overall objective of supporting the Republic of Korea's (ROK) 8.15 Unification Doctrine. The U.S. will assist in shaping the environment for a unified Korean Peninsula through trilateral cooperation, leveraging U.S.-ROK-Japan relations, and fostering conditions that advance the doctrine's goals.
I. Purpose
This plan outlines U.S. strategy in support of the Republic of Korea's (ROK) 8.15 Unification Doctrine, with the objective of promoting the peaceful and democratic unification of the Korean Peninsula. The plan aligns with U.S. national security interests, the advancement of human rights, and regional stability. It reflects key principles from Ronald Reagan’s NSDD-32 and incorporates a comprehensive approach based on analysis of 8.15 Unification Doctrine and the need for a robust information and human rights strategy.
II. Policy Objectives
...
Would a President Kamala Harris Offer a Fresh Approach to North Korea?
nationalinterest.org
Would a President Kamala Harris Offer a Fresh Approach to North Korea? | The National Interest
September 5, 2024 Topic: Security Region: Asia Blog Brand: Korea Watch
The Korean peninsula will certainly not be Harris’s highest priority if she assumes the presidency. Resolving the conflicts between Israel and Hamas, aiding Ukraine, and managing competition with China will take precedence. Yet, lurking somewhere in the background is the problem that Biden ignores.
by Gregg Brazinsky
When newly inaugurated presidents come from the same political party as their predecessors, they inevitably aim to show that their policies will be more than old wine in new bottles. If Vice President Harris manages to defeat Donald Trump in November, she will no doubt seek to create her legacy and distinguish herself from President Biden on some issues. No foreign policy issue more urgently demands a fresh approach than North Korea and its nuclear program.
Kamala Harris and the North Korea Challenge
The Korean peninsula will certainly not be Harris’s highest priority if she assumes the presidency. Resolving the conflicts between Israel and Hamas, aiding Ukraine, and managing competition with China will take precedence. Yet, lurking somewhere in the background is the problem that Biden ignores.
The Biden administration’s disinclination to pursue diplomacy with Pyongyang was likely a reaction to former President Trump’s sometimes audacious bromance with its mercurial leader. One of the main Democratic criticisms of the Trump administration had been its seeming preference for dictators over democratic leaders. Biden immediately set himself apart from his election opponent by restoring America’s relationships with its allies and building coalitions against authoritarian rivals.
Yet, in its eagerness to make a 180-degree turn away from Trump’s policies, the Biden administration never asked itself whether anything could still be gained by talking to Pyongyang. Negotiations might not have brought about a diplomatic triumph, but they certainly would not have made things worse than they are now. During the last few year years, the Kim regime has stepped up its missile tests while cozying up to Putin and improving ties with Beijing.
The Shoulds and Should Nots
Fortunately, while Harris isn’t likely to fall in love with Kim Jong Un, her foreign policy team should make a more honest assessment of the ups and downs of Trump’s summitry with North Korea. Trump’s instinct to pursue diplomacy with North Korea was not a bad one, but the execution of the policy was a disaster. The problem was that Trump’s foreign policy team included too many traditional neo-conservatives such as National Security Advisor (NSA) John Bolton, whose hardline views pulled the administration away from meaningful negotiation. A real opportunity to improve relations was lost.
As a potential president, Harris would face a more challenging international environment than Trump’s in 2018. During the last six years, there has been a sharpening global divide between rival democratic and authoritarian forces, with the United States, NATO, and allies such as South Korea and Israel on one side and authoritarian regimes such as China, Russia, Iran, and its proxies on the other. North Korea’s natural tendency will be to move closer to other authoritarian governments, which can prevent its demise.
In such a world, asking whether engagement is even worth trying is not unreasonable. A Harris administration probably won’t be able to accomplish anything quickly with North Korea. Yet, continuing to neglect the problem will only ensure that we stay on the dangerous trajectory that we are currently on. Harris should keep in mind that past Sino-Russian alignments have not been very durable and that patience may be rewarded despite the growing polarization of international politics.
If elected, Harris should strategically seek opportunities to engage with North Korea. She must be more attentive to the issue than Biden and less grandiloquent about it than Trump. She should also remain in close consultation with Tokyo and Seoul about the process, even if it sometimes requires bilateral meetings between Washington and Pyongyang.
What A Kamala Harris/North Korea Deal Could Look Like
Her administration could start by seeking a modest deal that achieves limited objectives but serves as a basis for building trust. For instance, she might offer to lift some sanctions that primarily impact civilian economic activity and cancel some military exercises in exchange for a halt to North Korean missile launches.
If the deal is carried out faithfully for a specified period, it could be expanded to include objectives that are more significant to both sides. For the United States, this would mean taking steps toward the dismantlement of North Korea’s nuclear program while for the DPRK this would likely mean normalizing relations and officially ending the Korean War.
Through a measured and realistic approach to engagement with Pyongyang, America’s potential first female president could ultimately tackle a problematic situation that her male predecessors have repeatedly fumbeled or punted on.
About the Author
Gregg Brazinsky is Professor of History and International Affairs at The George Washington University.
Image Credit: Creative Commons and/or Shutterstock.
nationalinterest.org
14. South Korean chip executive detained again over alleged technology leak to China
Uh oh.
South Korean chip executive detained again over alleged technology leak to China
finance.yahoo.com · by Ju-min ParkThu, Sep 5, 2024, 9:26 PM1 min readLink Copied0
By Ju-min Park
SEOUL (Reuters) - A South Korean executive accused of stealing semiconductor information developed by Samsung Electronics has been detained again on fresh allegations related to the theft of chip processing technology, a court official and his lawyer said on Friday.
The Seoul Central District Court issued a warrant to detain Choi Jinseog on Thursday due to concerns he was a flight risk, said a court official, who declined to provide further details.
Choi, a former Samsung executive who ran a chipmaking venture in China, has already been the subject of a high-profile industrial espionage trial since July 2023 and was arrested and released on bail last November. He has rejected those charges.
He now faces new allegations of being involved in stealing information related to 20-nanometre DRAM chip processing from Samsung, Kim Pilsung, Choi's lawyer, told Reuters.
Kim said his client denied any wrongdoing and the information he is accused of stealing is publicly available.
Choi has not been indicted over the new allegations, his lawyer said.
Samsung declined to comment.
In a case that underscores South Korea's efforts to crack down on industrial espionage and slow China's progress in chip manufacturing, Choi was indicted in June 2023, accused of seeking to build a copycat chip factory in China with sensitive information developed by Samsung.
The award-winning engineer was once seen as a star in South Korea's chip industry.
After being freed on bail, Choi told Reuters in April that police were investigating him and one of his former employees, an ex-Samsung worker, over fresh allegations related to Samsung's chip processing technology.
(Reporting by Ju-min Park; Editing by Ed Davies and Jamie Freed)
finance.yahoo.com · by Ju-min ParkThu, Sep 5, 2024, 9:26 PM1 min readLink Copied0
15. N. Korea revs up festive atmosphere for next week's state founding anniv.
Is there anything to be festive about?
As SGT Pugh used to say from the PT platform when I was at Ranger School: "False motivation will get you nowhere." (But in north Korea it will probably save your life).
On a serious note, will there be any significant policy pronouncements or some kind of what we would interpret as a provocative act?
N. Korea revs up festive atmosphere for next week's state founding anniv. | Yonhap News Agency
en.yna.co.kr · by Kim Han-joo · September 6, 2024
SEOUL, Sept. 6 (Yonhap) -- North Korea has organized various cultural events marking the 76th anniversary of the regime's founding slated for next week, state media reported Friday.
The National Art Exhibition and the Stamp Exhibition opened Thursday ahead of the anniversary of the regime's establishment scheduled for Monday, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
The KCNA also reported that a public speaking event for young university students was held at the outdoor theater of Pyongyang Youth Park to commemorate the day.
A group of Koreans living in Japan also arrived in Pyongyang on Thursday, the KCNA said in a separate dispatch.
The congratulatory group, led by Ko Tok-u, chairperson of the Tokyo office of the General Association of Korean Residents in Japan, is likely to attend anniversary events.
It is the delegation's first visit in five years since 2019, a year before North Korea shut down its border over the COVID-19 pandemic.
Last year, North Korea marked the 75th anniversary of its founding with a paramilitary parade featuring reserve forces. Similarly, on Sept. 9, 2021, the regime held a civil-paramilitary parade to celebrate the 73rd anniversary of its founding.
The Tokyo Metropolitan Headquarters of the General Association of Korean Residents in Japan arrives in Pyongyang on Sept. 5, 2024, in this image provided by the North's official Korean Central News Agency. (For Use Only in the Republic of Korea. No Redistribution) (Yonhap)
khj@yna.co.k
(END)
en.yna.co.kr · by Kim Han-joo · September 6, 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
| 
