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It looks like the restarting of Mt. Kumgang Tours and the relaxing of coal sanctions could be concessions made by the U.S. towards North Korea in upcoming talks:
The United States has “unofficially” promised North Korea to offer “low-level” sanctions relief including a partial resumption of tourism at Mount Geumgang in North Korea, two sources familiar with the issue said Thursday.
Korea Times
“Washington’s nuclear negotiating team plans to offer low-level sanctions relief at working-level talks which will take place Oct. 5,” one said asking not to be identified as he wasn’t authorized to officially speak to the media.
The diplomatic source said U.S. negotiators would use this as a “starting point,” adding that the fine details would be worked out as the talks progressed. “No major announcements will come at the working-level talks as the United States is hoping to narrow additional conditions and demands through follow-up discussions. The upcoming U.S.-North Korea talks will directly touch on sanctions relief that Pyongyang will receive,” he told The Korea Times.
Here is the latest on the Submarine Launched Ballistic Missile (SLBM) test the North Koreans recently conducted:
The U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff said Thursday that North Korea’s latest missile launch appeared to have come from a sea-based platform, not a submarine.
The comments come after North Korea said it successfully tested a new submarine-launched ballistic missile off its east coast Wednesday.
“We assess that it was a short- to medium-range ballistic missile,” JCS spokesman Air Force Col. Patrick Ryder told reporters, adding that it flew some 280 miles (450 kilometers) into the East Sea.
“I would say that we have no indication that it was launched from a submarine but rather a sea-based platform,” he said.
Yonhap
You can read more at the link, but out of all of North Korea’s missiles this is the most dangerous and a game changer because it can defeat missile defenses. That is because submarines can fire without notice from any direction which prevents missile defense units from knowing in which direction to point their radars towards.
With that said this appears to be a test of missile from an underwater barge, but as we have seen with other North Korean systems, the more they test the better they get.
Considering how close Prime Minister Abe is with President Trump, this could be a sign that the U.S. has a deal in the works that the Japanese want to be part of:
Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Friday he wants to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un even though he keeps testing missiles. At the same time, Abe gave a cold shoulder to South Korea amid tensions over wartime history.
In a policy speech opening the parliamentary session, Abe said he will take any chance to meet Kim.
“I’m determined to face Chairman Kim Jong Un, without attaching any preconditions,” Abe said, after changing his policy earlier this year. “Based on a level-headed analysis, I will act decisively so that I won’t miss any chance.”
Abe used to say he would meet Kim only when there is progress on denuclearization and the decades-old issue of Japanese citizens abducted to North Korea. But he changed his tune after other regional leaders, including those in China, South Korea and Russia, choose to meet Kim.
Associated Press
You can read more at the link.
Here is the latest on the denuclearization talks this weekend in Stockholm:
U.S. and North Korean negotiators were set to hold low-level denuclearization talks in Sweden over the weekend, with both sides signaling cautious optimism despite Pyongyang’s testing of a new submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) on Wednesday.
This marks the first official resumption of denuclearization negotiations in some 220 days since the second summit between North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and U.S. President Donald Trump ended abruptly without a deal in Hanoi, Vietnam, on Feb. 28.
Kim Myong-gil, North Korea’s new top nuclear negotiator, and his delegation arrived at Stockholm Arlanda Airport around 5:40 p.m. Thursday from Beijing. Kim’s delegation was greeted by Swedish officials in the V.I.P. hall for around half an hour. The team left the airport through a V.I.P. exit, avoiding reporters. Black BMW SUVs provided by the Swedish government were spotted parked outside the airport awaiting the delegation and were used to transport it to the North Korean Embassy.
Joong Ang Ilbo
You can read more at the link.
This rally was so big that even the left leaning Korean media could not ignore it:
Hundreds of thousands of mostly elderly citizens gathered in Gwanghwamun Square and streets near City Hall and Seoul Station, Thursday, to vent their discontent at the Moon Jae-in administration, calling on Justice Minister Cho Kuk to resign over corruption allegations leveled against him and his family.
Korea Times
Conservative civic groups and political parties ― including the main opposition Liberty Korea Party (LKP) and minor ultra-rightist Our Republican Party ― set up side-by-side rallies along Sejong Street. The protesters waving Korean and American flags marched from Seoul Station to Gwanghwamun Square blocking traffic at certain locations.
The huge turnout ― on a national holiday ― was sparked partly by a rally in southern Seoul last Saturday, where more than 1 million people, according to the organizers, condemned the prosecution for its “politically charged” investigation of Cho’s family.
You can read more at the link.
