A country with active gulags is lecturing Israel on human rights abuses:
The son of Salam Rabaa, the Palestinian owner of Rabaa restaurant, gestures with his right hand imitating a poster of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, at the gate of the venue premises in the Jabalia refugee camp in the northern Gaza strip on December 17, 2017. The sign at the entrance of the restaurant reads in Arabic: “Special discounts reaching up to 80 percent for Korean patrons, in appraisal of the role of the Korean leader towards our Palestinian cause.” MOHAMMED ABED/AFP/Getty Images
North Korea has condemned the U.S. and its alliance with Israel, which continued to experience deadly clashes between security forces and Palestinian protestors.
On Friday, the official Korean Central News Agency called the U.S. out for repeatedly defending Israel from criticism at the United Nations Human Rights Council, which U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley once called “a haven for dictators” and has threatened to pull the U.S. out of. Palestinians have threatened to lodge a complaint with the international body over rising casualties as Israeli forces reportedly opened fire on Palestinian demonstrators near the Gaza border, where dozens have been killed and thousands injured since violent protests erupted over Israel’s historic and ongoing seizure of land.
“Israel’s wild act of destroying Mid-east peace and mercilessly killing Palestinians is a hideous crime that deserves denunciations thousands of times,” the state-run agency said of a commentary by North Korean Cabinet paper Minju Joson. [Newsweek]
Kim Jong-un announcement of suspending nuclear tests is making big news internationally:
North Korea says its quest for nuclear weapons is “complete” and it “no longer needs” to test its weapons capability, a significant development ahead of diplomatic engagement with both South Korea and the United States.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said Saturday that “under the proven condition of complete nuclear weapons, we no longer need any nuclear tests, mid-range and intercontinental ballistic rocket tests, and that the nuclear test site in northern area has also completed its mission,” as quoted by the state-run KCNA news agency.
The announcement appears to signify a remarkable change in policy for Kim, following a relentless pursuit of nuclear and ballistic weapons as a means to ensure his regime’s survival — although some analysts remain skeptical, pointing out that Kim hasn’t tested a missile since last November. [CNN]
You can read much more at the link, but remember we have been down this road before with Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il. Both of them suspended nuclear programs for international aid and look where we are at today. Also notice the rhetoric Kim Jong-un is using, he is saying the testing is “complete” and no longer needed; not that he is doing this out of the goodness of his heart for North-South cooperation.
Oleg Shcheka takes a look at the risks involved with the civilian side of the #DPRK nuclear program, and whether sacrificing safety for construction speed may lead to unintended disasterhttps://t.co/xJTPom5tGq
South Korean and U.S. soldiers stand guard at the inter-Korean truce village of Panmunjom, north of Seoul, on April 19, 2018, ahead of the historic inter-Korean summit talks at the village on April 27. (Yonhap)
Via a reader tip comes news that the ROK military may finally be the ones to end the ridiculous blockade of the THAAD site in Seongju:
South Korea’s defense ministry said Thursday it is mulling an alternative to dialogue with activists and residents near the U.S. military’s new missile defense base on the peninsula.
They have been blocking the transport of construction materials and equipment into the THAAD site in Seongju, North Gyeongsang Province, for months.
They are concerned that the military will expand helipads and other facilities associated with military operations in the compound.
The Ministry of National Defense stressed that it’s urgent to improve the living conditions of hundreds of American and South Korean troops there with no adequate amenities.
“In connection with the deployment of the THAAD system, we have tried to respect residents’ opinion as much as possible, abide by democratic procedures and maintain transparency,” the ministry’s spokeswoman Choi Hyun-soo said at a press briefing.
However, it’s believed to be difficult to resolve the issue through dialogue, she said, adding that the military plans to seek a “necessary measure.”
The statement was a de facto ultimatum, although no deadline has been set publicly.
It heralds a police operation to disperse the protesters and clear the way for the delivery. A fierce physical clash is expected. [Yonhap]
Maybe the Vietnamese should put statues up in front of the ROK embassy protesting South Korean killing of civilians during the Vietnam War like they Koreans have done with a comfort woman statue in front of the Japanese embassy:
Nguyen Titan, a Vietnamese victim of a massacre during the Vietnam War, speaks during a press conference at the National Assembly in Seoul on April 19, 2018. (Yonhap)
Two Vietnamese victims of South Korea’s wartime misdeeds have called on the Seoul government to apologize and take steps to verify the truth behind the alleged mass killings during the 1960-75 war in their country.
They claimed that they are still haunted by the harrowing memories of their families being killed by South Korean troops deployed to fight in support of the United States during the Vietnam War.
They came here to testify before the “People’s Tribunal” slated to convene in Seoul on Saturday and Sunday. The tribunal, a mock trial designed to look into the incidents, is led by the local progressive civic group, called MINBYUN-Lawyers for a Democratic Society.
“I want to ask … Why did South Korean troops fire guns and threw grenades at our family, then just women and children. Why did you set even our house on fire and bulldozed through dead bodies,” Nguyen Titan, a 58-year-old woman, said during a press conference at the National Assembly. [Yonhap]
You can read more at the link, but the Minbyun group of lawyers are hard core leftists. In the past they have attacked the USFK base relocation, tried to bring back the US beef issue, and tried to have North Korean defectors forcibly returned to North Korea. So why would hard core leftists be bringing up this issue now with a left wing government in power? They are likely going to use this issue to attack and blame conservative ROK politicians for since former South Korean strongman Park Chung-hee was in power at the time.
Pyongyang’s goal might be to negotiate away our missile defenses, air power & nuclear umbrella while keeping plenty of American targets in range as hostages. It wd give S Koreans a false sense of security as their gov't gives in to NK’s political demands. https://t.co/WLLlno5U8L
