07/29/2020 News & Commentary – Korea
News & commentary by Dave Maxwell. Edited and published by Ahyoung Shin
1. Kim Jong Un is the patron saint of hilarious photos
2. Kim Jong Un says N. Korea is a nuclear state
3. N. Korea's nuclear state drive will just lead to self-destruction
4. Defector may be used in regime promotion
5. Gov't to review whether to request repatriation of defector accused of sexual assault
6. Cheong Wa Dae says no document exists on alleged money deal with N. Korea in 2000
7. Moon urges continued efforts for 'complete missile sovereignty'
8. Is North Korea's COVID-19 vaccine program a dangerous ruse?
9. North Korea tells foreigners in capital to follow rules amid coronavirus crackdown
10. North Korea ramps up preventive measures after first possible coronavirus infection
11. 'Unforgivable': Japan decries wartime sex slave statue likened to PM Shinzo Abe
12. FDD | Report Shows North Korean Cybercriminals Now Target Online Shoppers
13. From scandal to accusations of disloyalty, South Korea's new point men on North have dramatic past
14. North Korea's Yongbyon Nuclear Complex: Activity Around the UEP Suggests Ongoing Operations
15. Thousands of North Koreans ignore distancing at Kim celebration despite coronavirus case
16. South Korean lawsuit against Kim Jong-un's sister could spell doom for strained relation between two countries
17. The Transpartisan Case for Peace on the Korean Peninsula
18. Lazarus Group Shifts Gears with Custom Ransomware
19. Unification ministry to brief U.N. rapporteur on decision to probe activist groups over anti-N.K. leafleting
20. Using Cultural Diplomacy to Decouple North Korea from China
21. South Korea - Military guardhouse system to be abolished after 124 years
22. Long way to go for Yongsan Park
1. Kim Jong Un is the patron saint of hilarious photos
militarytimes · by J.D. Simkins
Here is something lighter to start the day because the rest of the news will be so depressing. Perhaps KIm Jong-un will start trending on twitter. You have to access each of the 10 photos individually at the bottom of the page but some are of course hilarious.
2. Kim Jong Un says N. Korea is a nuclear state
donga.com · July 29, 2020
This is nothing new. The North's constitution says so as well. I am reminded of Dr. Bruce Bennett's characterization of North Korea: A non-compliant (NPT), unsafe, nuclear experimenter.
3. N. Korea's nuclear state drive will just lead to self-destruction
donga.com · July 29, 2020
I just hope it does not destroy the South along with itself. Again as noted this is not new and the Editorial board recognizes this is in the North's constitution. Interesting they speculate this is aimed at the November election targeting both Trump and Biden. What I think Kim needs to know is that this and his actions will have no influence over voters. No American is going to change their vote based on what he says or does (except perhaps if he launches a war).
4. Defector may be used in regime promotion
The Korea Times · by Kang Seung-woo · July 29, 2020
Promotion? I think they mean propaganda. If he is treated and cured of coronavirus, we can be pretty sure he never was infected. And while he will be used and exploited for a period of time for propaganda purposes, this poor soul will likely never return to his family or friends and at best will be exiled to some far off county in the North and at worst he and his family (perhaps three generations) will spend the rest of their lives in a gulag.
5. Gov't to review whether to request repatriation of defector accused of sexual assault
en.yna.co.kr · by 이원주 · July 29, 2020
Does the rule of law exist in North Korea? I think not. Rule by law, yes. But I doubt the regime will allow extradition of this person.
6. Cheong Wa Dae says no document exists on alleged money deal with N. Korea in 2000
en.yna.co.kr · by 이원주 · July 29, 2020
They doth protest too much. I am pretty sure there is strong intelligence information that confirms what happened. Even the Nobel Peace Prize Committee was pissed after giving Kim Dae Jung the Nobel Peace Prize for the summit.
7. Moon urges continued efforts for 'complete missile sovereignty'
en.yna.co.kr · by 이치동 · July 29, 2020
"Missile sovereignty?" I could not find that in my international relations reference book. But it is obvious what he means. But the irony is even if all restrictions were lifted the South would not develop a potent ballistic missile that could target all of North Korea) despite its kill chain concept and its massive punishment and retaliation plans) for fear of upsetting the regime and damaging the South's peace strategy. If we really wanted a maximum pressure campaign on the North we would help the South build a fully stock ballistic missile arsenal full of "sovereign missiles." That would show north Korea.
8. Is North Korea's COVID-19 vaccine program a dangerous ruse?
Politico · by Elizabeth Ralph · July 29, 2020
Very interesting analysis. This could be more than propaganda. We should not laugh this off. Certainly the regime wants to develop biological weapons and I believe intelligence assessments estimate they have a program (p.21 HERE) And from a human rights perspective I worry about all the human testing that will be done on the prisoners in the gulags. The North does not need to use lab rats when it has a segment of the population that it considers less than human.
9. North Korea tells foreigners in capital to follow rules amid coronavirus crackdown
Reuters · July 29, 2020
Another indicator that there is likely an outbreak in the North.
10. North Korea ramps up preventive measures after first possible coronavirus infection
businesstoday.in · July 29, 2020
Yep. Human trials for a vaccine. Please remember those suffering in the gulags.
11. 'Unforgivable': Japan decries wartime sex slave statue likened to PM Shinzo Abe
The Guardian · by Justin McCurry · July 29, 2020
What is "unforgivable?" The stature or what happened to Korean women during WWII? This is quite a statue. But this will not be helpful in trying to move forward. It is obviously designed for the reaction it is having in Japan.
12. FDD | Report Shows North Korean Cybercriminals Now Target Online Shoppers
fdd.org · by Mathew Ha · July 28, 2020
Important analysis from my colleague Mathew Ha.
13. From scandal to accusations of disloyalty, South Korea's new point men on North have dramatic past
in.reuters.com · by Hyonhee Shin
This will not go quietly into the night for the Moon administration. The opposition will exploit this. And of course actual democracy advocates worry about the real harm pro-North views will have on the South's democracy. Many look at the crackdowns on individuals and news organizations (and the use of "libel laws") as based on pro-North views and are attacks on freedom of speech and freedom of the press and threats to democracy.
14. North Korea's Yongbyon Nuclear Complex: Activity Around the UEP Suggests Ongoing Operations
38north.org · by Peter Makowsky · July 28, 2020
Possibly enriching more uranium? I wonder what for?
15. Thousands of North Koreans ignore distancing at Kim celebration despite coronavirus case
Mirror · by Dave Burke · July 28, 2020
I am sure the all powerful Kim Jong-un blessed the participants and with his god-like power prevented them from being infected with the virus.
16. South Korean lawsuit against Kim Jong-un's sister could spell doom for strained relation between two countries
I doubt it. Of course the regime will use this for propaganda purposes but it will not doom the relationship (of course it is not on very good terms at the moment either). This should not dissuade the South from filing the suit. I think a public trial in absentia would be a great thing as they could lay out all the crimes of the Kim family regime. But I do not think that will be in the cards as long as the Moon administration is in office.
17. The Transpartisan Case for Peace on the Korean Peninsula
The American Conservative · by Jessica Lee
Let me be frank: The bottom line is thinking along the lines of Congressman Khanna and those who are influencing him demonstrates a lack of understanding of the true nature of the Kim family regime, its strategy and objectives, and the history of North-South and North-US relations.
First let me preface this with the following which is my standard caveat:
I support peace on the Korean peninsula
I support a diplomatic solution to the North Korean nuclear threat
I support ROK engagement with the North
I do not support a weakening of the ROK and ROK/US defensive capabilities
I believe there cannot be success for US, ROK, and Japanese interests without strong ROK/US and Japan/US alliances.
Despite the above I think we have to accept that North Korea does have a continued hostile strategy and therefore while we prioritize diplomacy we have to remain prepared for the worst cases. I hope I am wrong here and that Kim Jong-un will dismantle his nuclear weapons and seek peaceful co-existence.
There are many issues to address. First is a peace treaty should be between the two belligerents: the North and South. The US did not declare war on the North. It fought under the UN authorizations which declared the North the aggressor and called on member nations to defend freedom in the South, per UN Security Council Resolutions 82 ,83, 84, and 85.
Second, a declaration of the end of the war or any kind of "peace mechanism" or "peace regime" that does not resolve the "Korea question" (para. 60 of the Armistice) will not bring peace and stability to the peninsula.
Third, the objective of North Korea is to dominate the entire Korean Peninsula. The regime strategy is based on subversion, coercion, extortion, and use of force to achieve unification on its terms to ensure regime survival. It is a zero sum situation for the North and it is not going to capitulate or peacefully co-exist with the South.
Fourth, those who advocate for a peace regime are actually "carrying the water" for Kim Jong-un because he is playing the long con and executing a political warfare strategy with Juche characteristics to achieve his objective to dominate the South. A peace regime is the first step in his plan to get US forces off the Korean Peninsula. This will also include disestablishing the UN Command as well.
We should never forget that the strongest deterrent of an attack by the North is the presence of US forces. If we go down the path the Congressman and others advocate we will have conflict on the Korean Peninsula with a scale of loss of blood and treasure and suffering we have not seen since the Armistice was signed in 1953.
Lastly I think people should be cautious when dealing with organizations such as Women Cross DMZ due to connections to north Korean intelligence handlers in New York, e.g., Pak Chol and the United Front Department. https://freekorea.us/2019/11/christine-ahn-pak-chol-and-the-united-front-department/
18. Lazarus Group Shifts Gears with Custom Ransomware
This is North Korea's "All-purpose Sword." (as opposed to its "treasured sword" of nuclear weapons).
19. Unification ministry to brief U.N. rapporteur on decision to probe activist groups over anti-N.K. leafleting
en.yna.co.kr · by 고병준 · July 29, 2020
I wonder if the Minister will get an earful from the UN.
20. Using Cultural Diplomacy to Decouple North Korea from China
HRNK · by Junsoung “Steve” Kim · July 28, 2020
21. South Korea - Military guardhouse system to be abolished after 124 years
The Korea Times · July 28, 2020
Hmmm.... 124 years? That means it existed through the colonial occupation period?
22. Long way to go for Yongsan Park
The Korea Times · July 28, 2020
I recall when we were going to leave Yongsan in the 1980s and early 1990s and we gave up the 8th Army Golf Course that became first the Yongsan Family Park and then later grounds for the National Museum (which forced the relocation of the H-128 helipad on Yongsan). The buildings in the photo look like our quarters in Blackhawk village where we lived for a number of years in the 1990s.
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"In one way we think a great deal too much of the atomic bomb. "How are we to live in an atomic age?" I am tempted to reply: "Why, as you would have lived in the sixteenth century when the plague visited London almost every year, or as you would have lived in a Viking age when raiders from Scandinavia might land and cut your throat any night; or indeed, as you are already living in an age of cancer, an age of syphilis, an age of paralysis, an age of air raids, an age of railway accidents, an age of motor accidents."
In other words, do not let us begin by exaggerating the novelty of our situation. Believe me, dear sir or madam, you and all whom you love were already sentenced to death before the atomic bomb was invented: and quite a high percentage of us were going to die in unpleasant ways. We had, indeed, one very great advantage over our ancestors-anesthetics; but we have that still. It is perfectly ridiculous to go about whimpering and drawing long faces because the scientists have added one more chance of painful and premature death to a world which already bristled with such chances and in which death itself was not a chance at all, but a certainty.