Thread: North Korea ready to walk away from Trump summit.

^
As I have mentioned before, when watching often the SK's TV Arirang I never see anything reported negatively towards NK regime. In contrary, repeatedly showing the summit footages when the SK/NK leaders walked and droved in an open car along hundred thousands of NK people with a number of SK people mixed in. (when have we ever seen a western leader in an open car?)

Beside the summit events, the SKorean are airing footages from NK TV. There is not one hour without a mentioning of the long-for unification.

Unlike, the contributions of RFA as we get often presented, e.g.:
https://teakdoor.com/thailand-and-asi...ml#post3837123 (North Korean Crackdown on Cellphone Use Causes Spike in Corruption)

Those will surely not help that cause, like the RFE, (VoA) did not help to unification of Germany. That what they are reporting is a fruit of the long isolation, who wouldn't wonder that is not so easy to maintain in a view of the current ongoing hostile situation (despite the "beautiful love letters" of the Fat Boy).

Train project linking North and South Korea stopped in its tracks by US
The US military has refused to allow a field study to test the feasibility of a rail project meant to link North and South Korea
31 Aug 2018

A rail project meant to connect North and South Korea has been blocked by US military officials, highlighting divisions between Washington and Seoul on how to deal with the nuclear armed North.

The two Koreas planned to begin a joint field study last week by sending a train from Seoul across the length of North Korea to Sinuiju, on the Chinese border, but their application was denied by the US-led United Nations Command. The multinational military body is a remnant of the 1950-53 Korean war and controls all movement across the heavily fortified demilitarised zone that bisects the peninsula.

The denial underscores a growing split between South Korea, which favours engagement with North Korea, and the US, where officials have demanded denuclearisation as a prerequisite to any economic cooperation.

Read more
https://www.theguardian.com/world/20...ject-halted-us

^updated

North, South Korea agree to reconnect roads, rail amid U.S. concern over easing sanctions
15 Oct 2018



SEOUL (Reuters) - North and South Korea agreed on Monday to begin reconnecting rail and road links, another step in an improving relationship that has raised U.S. concern about the possible undermining of its bid to press the North to give up its nuclear program.

The agreement on transport links came during talks in the border village of Panmunjom aimed at following up on the third summit this year between South Korea’s President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, last month.

“The South and North reached the agreement after sincerely discussing action plans to develop inter-Korean relations to a new, higher stage,” said a joint statement released by the South’s Unification Ministry.

They agreed to hold ceremonies in late November or early December to inaugurate work on reconnecting the railways and roads that have been cut since the 1950-53 Korean War.

The two sides will carry out joint field studies on the transport plans from late this month, according to the statement.

They also agreed to discuss late this month a plan to pursue a bid to co-host the 2032 Olympic Games, and to explore in November ways to restart webcam reunions and video exchanges for families separated by the Korean War.

Military officials from both sides are to meet “in the near future” to craft follow-on steps to a military pact struck at last month’s summit.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-n...-idUSKCN1MP0D0

One hopes it's the ROK soldiers who push the ametistsni "border guards" aside rather than the DPRK soldiers

Originally Posted by OhOh

One hopes it's the ROK soldiers who push the ametistsni "border guards" aside rather than the DPRK soldiers

Fucking hell you started on the Chang early didn't you?

Koreas remove guns from truce village

"The two Koreas were removing the last remaining firearms and guard posts on Thursday from a Cold War era truce village where armed soldiers have stared each other down for decades, Seoul's defense ministry said.

The Joint Security Area - also known as the truce village of Panmunjom - has historically been both a flashpoint and a key location for diplomacy between the two Koreas ever since their split in 1953.

It is the only spot along the tense, 250-kilometer frontier where soldiers from North Korea and the US-led United Nations Command stand face to face.

By Friday, all guards will be disarmed, ministry spokesperson Choi Hyun-soo said, part of a diplomatic thaw between the two foes that has gathered pace.

"I am aware that it is going according to plan," Choi told reporters.

Panmunjom was where the armistice that ended the Korean War was signed. It was a designated neutral zone until the "ax murder incident" in 1976, when North Korean soldiers attacked a work party trying to chop down a tree inside the Demilitarized Zone.

Once demilitarized, the JSA will be guarded by 35 unarmed personnel from each side and "freedom of movement" will be allowed for visitors and tourists, according to a military pact signed between the two Koreas last month.

South and North Korea - which are technically still at war - agreed to take measures to ease military tensions on their border at a meeting in Pyongyang last month between President Moon Jae-in and Kim Jong-un.

The two sides finished removing land mines at the JSA - which has been increasingly used for talks between the two Koreas - last week as part of the deal.

The September summit was the third this year between the leaders, as a remarkable rapprochement takes hold on the peninsula. Moon has advocated engagement with the isolated North to nudge it toward denuclearization.

The two Koreas and the UN Command, included as it retains jurisdiction over the southern half of the JSA, will conduct joint verification until Saturday.

US general Vincent Brooks told reporters in August that as UN commander he supported initiatives to reduce military tensions.

But he added that as commander of the combined US-South Korean forces, he felt there was a "reasonable degree of risk" in Seoul's plans."


Koreas remove guns from truce village - Global Times

Originally Posted by OhOh

freedom of movement

Wonder what this means?

Originally Posted by Norton

Wonder what this means?

in Korean means ya don't die of lead poisoning

Originally Posted by Norton

Wonder what this means?

Families can rendezvous and hug.

Originally Posted by Norton

Wonder what this means?

Small but important steps.

I suspect many photos of both sides happy and crying citizens stepping over that very small wall and hugging their relatives.

Yes, that's what I figure as well. A meeting place but not an open border.

Koreas halt all ‘hostile acts’ as part of declaration

"North Korea and South Korea halted all "hostile acts" on land, sea, and air beginning Thursday in accordance with the Pyongyang joint declaration signed between North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and South Korean President Moon Jae-in in September.

Kim and Moon made the pledge on ending military tension and denuclearizing the peninsula at a joint press conference on September 19, following a second round of talks during Moon's three-day visit to Pyongyang.

The two sides are prohibited from conducting live-fire artillery drills and regiment-level field maneuvering exercises or those by bigger units within five kilometers of the Military Demarcation Line (MDL).

North Korea closed its coastal artillery to alleviate military tensions, while the South sealed its ship-borne artillery and coastal artillery close to the border areas, the Xinhua News Agency reported.

In line with the joint declaration, the two Koreas will create a 20 kilometer-wide no-fly zone along the western part of the MDL and a 40 kilometer-wide no-fly zone along the eastern side, South Korean TV station KBS reported.

The South has adopted different restrictions on helicopters, drones and balloons, and exceptions will be made in the event of an emergency such as forest fires and rescue operations, KBS reported.

South Korea also strengthened regulations and education of border guards to avoid occasional military conflicts, South Korea's Ministry of National Defense said, Xinhua reported.

"We will thoroughly verify the North side's implementation of the agreement, including its movement on military exercises around the MDL and whether it complies with the no-fly zone," the South's defense ministry said in a statement.

"The South and the North completely removed dangers of military clashes through the military agreement," Moon told parliament on Thursday, according to the Reuters.

South Korea noted the alleviation of military tensions help build mutual trust, which will promote the denuclearization of the peninsula and the establishment of a peace mechanism.

Denuclearization, however, will be a long-term process that goes along with increasing exchanges in a wide range of fields and the building-up of mutual trust, Cui Zhiying, director of Tongji University's Korean Peninsula Research Center in Shanghai, told the Global Times on Sunday.

Reuters on Wednesday reported that North Korea is preparing its Punggye-ri nuclear test site for international inspectors, the first time foreign experts would be allowed to examine the facilities.

When the site was officially closed in May, a handful of journalists were invited to observe the sealed tunnels where nuclear tests were conducted. But observers were not allowed to use radiation monitoring equipment, the Reuters reported.

North Korea agreed to permanently destroy the Tongchang-ri engine test site and missile launch pads in the presence of experts from the countries concerned. It also expressed willingness to take further steps, such as closing its main Yongbyon nuclear complex, in return for reciprocal measures by the US, according to the joint declaration.

The cessation of military hostility is an obvious sign that the peninsula is shifting to a more peaceful and stable situation that benefits the two Koreas, Cui said, noting that the US has been using economic sanctions on North Korea as a tool to interfere in regional affairs and urge the North to denuclearize."

Koreas halt all ?hostile acts? as part of declaration - Global Times
News View | The World On Arirang

Keep these small steps coming.

UNSC Grants Sanctions Waiver for Inter-Korean Railway Survey - Reports



"MOSCOW (Sputnik) – The UN Security Council has granted a sanctions waiver to a joint survey by North and South Koreas on the reconnection of their railways, media reported on Saturday.


The sanctions exemption had been backed by a consensus of the UN Security Council Sanctions Committee on North Korea, the South Korean Yonhap news agency reported, citing a diplomatic source.

The waiver had been requested by South Korea that cited the need to ensure the deliveries of fuel and other materials as part of the project, the reports added.

"Our government has stood by the principle of honoring the sanctions regime and working closely with the international community as we conduct key inter-Korean projects … Our government's consultations with the committee regarding the inter-Korean railway survey have now wrapped up," an official from the South Korean Foreign Ministry told the agency on the condition of anonymity.

The US State Department, in its turn, told the outlet that it was committed to close coordination with South Korea on their joint response to the North Korean issue.

In mid-October, North and South Korean authorities agreed to hold a ceremony for the launch of work on interconnecting roads and railways through the buffer zone that separates the two countries and scheduled the event for late November – early December.

North Korea has for years been under UNSC sanctions that followed nuclear and ballistic missile tests conducted by Pyongyang in violation of the international organization’s resolutions."

https://sputniknews.com/asia/2018112...mption-survey/

^ I am searching, however, cannot find another source announcing that - on Google...


Now I search with the same wording "Waiver for Inter-Korean Railway Survey" on Duckduckgo.com, there are plenty:

UN grants sanctions exemption for inter-Korean railway survey

UN grants sanctions exemption for inter-Korean railway survey - Times of News South-Korea

https://www.usnews.com/news/world/ar...an-rail-survey

https://huffington-global.com/south-...ailway-survey/

I wonder why there are no links on the ameristani regime, funded site, strange or deliberate?

Originally Posted by Klondyke

cannot find another source announcing that - on Google...

It seems that Google is not our friend - and neither a friend of Koreas... (anybody would know why?)

Originally Posted by OhOh

I wonder why there are no links on the ameristani regime, funded site, strange or deliberate?

The what?

Troops cross North-South Korea Demilitarized Zone in peace for 1st time ever
12.12.2018

INSIDE THE DEMILITARIZED ZONE -- Dozens of North and South Korean soldiers crossed over the world's most heavily armed border Wednesday as they inspected the sites of their rival's front-line guard posts to verify they'd been removed, part of inter-Korean engagement efforts that come amid stalled U.S.-North Korea nuclear disarmament talks.

It was the first time since the Demilitarized Zone was created in 1948 to divide the two Koreas that troops from either side crossed the demarcation line peacefully, South Korea's Ministry of Defense noted.

The inspections Wednesday were mostly symbolic -- the removals will leave South Korea with about 50 other DMZ posts and North Korea with 150, according to defense experts in South Korea, but they mark an extraordinary change in ties from last year, when North Korea tested a series of increasingly powerful weapons and threatened Seoul and Washington with war.

Soldiers from the two Koreas exchanged cigarettes and chatted as they inspected the dismantlement or disarmament of 22 guard posts -- 11 from each country -- inside the Demilitarized Zone that forms 155-mile-long, 2.5-mile-wide border.

A small group of journalists was allowed to enter the zone to watch a South Korean team leave for a North Korean guard post Wednesday morning and a North Korean team come to a South Korean guard post later in the day.

UN atomic watchdog calls on N. Korea to readmit international inspectors

Seven helmeted South Korean soldiers wearing backpacks, one carrying a camera and another a camcorder, approached the line separating the northern and southern sides of the DMZ. North Korean troops then walked in a row down a hill to meet them. The soldiers from the rival Koreas exchanged handshakes before moving up the hill together to go to the dismantled North Korean guard post.
Read morehttps://www.cbsnews.com/news/north-korea-south-korea-troops-cross-demilitarized-zone-in-peace-first-time/

It's been very quiet here in the US regarding the Korean situation. Guess there's too many other plates to spin...

Originally Posted by SKkin

It's been very quiet here in the US regarding the Korean situation. Guess there's too many other plates to spin...

What Korean situation?

Last I heard they were best buddies and about to start running trains between the two countries.

National independence gains ground in S. Korea

"South Koreans’ enthusiasm for national independence has bubbled up to an unprecedented level this year.

Their will to reject foreign interference and put an end to national division in the spirit of “By Our Nation Itself” stood out conspicuously after the adoption of the historic September Pyongyang Joint Declaration.

The South Headquarters of the Pan-National Alliance for Korea’s Reunification, headquarters of the movement for conclusion of peace agreement, youth and students headquarters of the South Committee for the Implementation of the June 15 Joint Declaration (June 15 South Committee), students’ alliance for progress and other social organizations and people conducted various activities such as rally, demonstration, distribution of handouts and signature-collecting campaign as they denounced the US for placing an obstacle to the internal affairs of the Korean nation in every way while clamouring for “speed control” in north-south relations.

South Koreans from all walks of life said that there is no justification for outside forces to interfere in the internal affairs of the nation, strongly urging them to work for durable peace in the Korean peninsula, rather than hampering the development of inter-Korean relations and national reunification.

They underscored the need to cooperate with the north on the principle of national independence and unity even though foreign intervention and meddling get more intensive. A south Korean news agency recently called for holding north-south dialogue and cooperation independently, saying inter-Korean relations should not fall prey to the “alliance” with foreign forces.

The June 15 South Committee, the students’ alliance for progress and other reunification-oriented and students’ organizations launched a pan-national signature campaign in demand of the US lifting of anti-DPRK sanctions and adoption of a declaration of termination of war, saying the relinking of north-south railway is the symbol and start of peace on the Korean peninsula and it is a precious dream of students to go to Pyongyang aboard a “reunification” train.

The Confederation of Democratic Trade Unions, the solidarity for people’s sovereignty and other civil society organizations said in comments and interviews that a new era of peace and prosperity is being ushered in thanks to the publication of the Panmunjom Declaration and the DPRK-US Joint Statement, there will be no reason for US troops to remain in south Korea when the declaration of termination of war is adopted, and September 8 when the US occupied south Korea must be the day of GI withdrawal.

It is quite natural that the south Korean people want to go along the road of national independence, rather than depending on and following outside forces.

As the issues of inter-Korean relations and national reunification are the internal affairs of the Korean nation at all points, there is no justification for outside forces to interfere in them.

The path ahead of the Korean nation was, is and will be the road of “By Our Nation Itself” in which all compatriots share the same intention and join efforts."

https://kcnawatch.co/newstream/1545297639-191951294/national-independence-gains-ground-in-s-korea/

https://www.ilna.ir/Section-world-8/631756-by-our-nation-itself-principle-of-reunification-north-korea

https://eurasiafuture.com/2018/12/20...ant-editorial/

Originally Posted by OhOh

there is no justification for outside forces to interfere in the internal affairs of the nation

Originally Posted by OhOh

even though foreign intervention and meddling get more intensive.

Originally Posted by OhOh

in demand of the US lifting of anti-DPRK sanctions and adoption of a declaration of termination of war

But we're the shining city on the hill, God's gift to the world, in existence to show everyone else how things should be done. The world's business is US business. Anyone who advocates any other way is xenophobic and obstructionist.

With Nukes Built, North Korea Shifts Focus to Economic Development




"North Korean leader Kim Jong Un gave an important speech to start the New Year, and while US media has latched on to his mention of more nuclear talks with the US, an activist tells Sputnik the real message is that Pyongyang is ready to go “full speed ahead” in developing its economy ‒ including through its warming relationship with South Korea.

During his address, Kim said that while he was willing to meet with US President Donald Trump, he would also explore a "new way" to develop the country if the US maintains economic sanctions against Pyongyang. For his part, Trump said in a tweet that he also looks forward "to meeting with Chairman Kim who realizes so well that North Korea possesses great economic potential!"

Hyun Lee, a member of the Solidarity Committee for Democracy and Peace in Korea, joined Loud & Clear on Radio Sputnik to discuss the latest developments.

"The most striking thing is that the US media is focusing exclusively on what Kim Jong Un said about the nuclear talks with the US. But when you look at the actual speech, that part was just maybe one to two paragraphs of the entire speech. The majority of the speech was about building a self-reliant economy and continuing to improve North-South relations. He, Kim Jong Un, proposed two slogans to the people of North Korea, which is like the banner that will guide the entire society this year. One of them was, ‘Let us open a new road of advance for socialist construction under the uplifted banner of self-reliance.' The second one was, ‘Let us usher in a heyday of peace, prosperity and reunification of the Korean Peninsula by thoroughly implementing the historic North-South declarations,'" said Lee.

"It's clear from Kim Jong Un's speech that the economy and Korean relations will be priorities for North Korea this year," Lee noted.

Meanwhile, US-centric publication the New York Times published a news analysis with the headline, "Kim and Trump Back at Square 1: If US Keeps Sanctions, North Korea Will Keep Nuclear Program." The "essential message" of Kim's address was that "Trump finds himself essentially back where he was at the beginning in achieving the ambitious goal of getting Mr. Kim to relinquish his nuclear arsenal," the New York Times declared.

But North Korean policy doesn't revolve around how Washington will respond, according to Lee. To better understand the thinking of Kim and North Korea, look to historical patterns, she said.

"Just a little historical background: former leader Kim Jong Il was facing a world where the Soviet Union had collapsed. There was no more socialist trading block. The country was facing an economic crisis, especially in light of intensified US sanctions as well. And so, at that time, North Korea felt that building up its defense was the number one priority. For North Korea, when they said ‘military first,' it was building up national defense as a priority, but it also meant that the army played a very significant role in the construction of its economy. So it was the military in North Korea that rebuilt factories, built the dams, irrigated canals for agriculture. So ‘military first' has a deeper meaning than just ‘defense first,'" said Lee.

"And then we come to last year's New Year speech by the new leader, Kim Jong Un. North Korea was feeling confident that it had completed some very successful nuclear and missile test launches. They determined their nuclear weapons program was successful enough as a deterrent for their country against mainly US nuclear threats. Having completed their nuclear weapons program, North Korea felt they were confident to shift their national focus to building their economy," Lee told Sputnik.

"This is something not necessarily new. Since the economic crisis of the mid-1990s to early 2000s, they have been pursuing what's called the ‘byungjin' line, which is two parallel tracts: [one] pursuing its nuclear weapons program for deterrence, and then also [one] pursuing a self-reliant economic development model. Now, I think they're signaling that they're ready to go full speed ahead in focusing on their economy," said Lee."

https://sputniknews.com/asia/2019010...c-development/

I like the fact that Kim is wearing a zoot suit.