This is why whenever the Chinese claim about historical revisionism in Japan I have to roll my eyes because they are just as bad at making up history to suit their political purposes:

The Chinese intervention in the 1950-53 Korean War had safeguarded peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula, according to China’s ambassador to North Korea on Thursday, echoing controversial views from China that the war was waged out of U.S. aggression.

Ambassador Li Jinjun made the remarks on Wednesday when he paid his tribute to the Chinese troops killed during the war. Wednesday marked China’s Martyrs’ Day on the eve of the country’s National Day.

The Korean War broke out on June 25, 1950, when tank-led North Korean troops invaded South Korea. The United States and 20 other allied countries fought on the side of South Korea under the United Nations flag, while Chinese soldiers came to help North Korea. The conflict ended in a cease-fire on July 27, 1953.

During his visit to a cemetery of Chinese war dead in North Korea, Li praised the role of the Chinese intervention in the Korean War.

“You fought with the North Korean army and people to defeat the imperialist aggressors,” Li said, according to his remarks posted on the Chinese Embassy’s website.

The Chinese intervention in the Korean War “revived the cold breeze of China, safeguarded peace and stability in the region and around the world,” Li said.

Despite warming ties between South Korea and China, the Chinese view of how the Korean War started also remains controversial.

China’s school textbooks stop short of mentioning that North Korea’s invasion sparked the Korean War, and the Chinese Communist Party officially refers to the three-year conflict as “The War to Resist the U.S. and Aid North Korea.”  [Yonhap]

If you are traveling to Korea for work, the government has now implemented a three month waiting period to qualify for health insurance:

Foreigners entering Korea for employment purposes will have to wait three months to get health insurance, as will overseas Koreans.

In the past, foreigners and overseas Koreans could register for health insurance on the first day they entered the country, but from Oct. 1 they will have to wait.

The Health Ministry says the relevant law has been amended to prevent people from entering country under false pretenses to enjoy health insurance benefits and leave soon afterward.   [Chosun Ilbo]

You can read more at the link.

I can understand Changdeok Palace and touring the DMZ making this Top 500 list, but Seoul Tower?  I was completely underwhelmed when visiting Seoul Tower, especially considering the cost:

Korea’s Changdeok Palace, the demilitarized zone and the N Seoul Tower have made it among the world’s top 500 places chosen by Lonely Planet, the world’s largest travel guide.

Lonely Planet rated the sights based on evaluations by its own guidebook writers and reader preferences. They were included in the Ultimate Travelist 2015, which can be ordered online.  [Chosun Ilbo]

You can read the rest at the link, but did anyone enjoy their visit to Seoul Tower?

https://twitter.com/freekorea_us/status/649411361383038976

Orit Kopel (R), CEO of the Jimmy Wales Foundation, speaks during a press conference, held by the American Human Rights Foundation, in Seoul on Sept. 30, 2015, to urge South Korea’s parliament to approve a bill to promote human rights conditions in North Korea. (Yonhap)

This is why the Kim regime agrees to family reunions, not because they actually care about reuniting their citizens with southern family members, but because they get money from it and it is an additional bargaining chip for them to use.  They are now using that bargaining chip in an effort to silence President Park’s criticism of their expected rocket launch:

North Korea lashed out against President Park Geun-hye’s speech at the UN General Assembly on Monday and threatened to cancel planned cross-border family reunions.

South Korea’s “reckless” and “confrontational” behavior means that “the rare reunions of separated families are at stake like being on a thin ice,” a spokesman for the North’s Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland said in a statement.

In her UN speech, Park urged Pyongyang not to go ahead with what it claims will be a satellite launch but is widely seen as an attempt to test long-range missile technology.  [Chosun Ilbo]

You can read more at the link.

Your eyes have not been deceiving you, Kim Jong-un has been growing fatter every year according to this report:

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un gained around 30 kg over the last five years and now weighs apparently close to 130 kg.

A government official said Friday, “By analyzing Kim Jong-un’s body shape and gait, we estimated he weighed less than 100 kg when he first appeared in public in September of 2010 but then rapidly put on weight.”

He said the clearest signs are his belly and double chin. “When he’s standing while holding his hands behind his back, you can see his abdomen protruding, and his chin folds when he is spotted giving orders.”  [Chosun Ilbo]

You can read the rest at the link, but at this rate Kim Jong-un will not need to worry about a palace coup to replace him because he will eat himself to death before then.

Fans of Apple products in Korea will soon be able to purchase the company’s newest product the iPhone 6S:

Korean consumers waiting for Apple’s new iPhone 6S and 6S Plus will not be able to get hold of them until the end of next month at the earliest.

Apple on Monday said the new iPhone series will hit the market on Oct. 9 and 10 in 40 countries including Belgium, Denmark, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Russia, Spain, and Taiwan but not in Korea.  [Chosun Ilbo]

You can read the rest at the link.

Yonhap: U.S. imposes sanctions on 2 N. Korea firms for missile technology proliferation: WASHINGTON… http://t.co/QNRBrex3wX #KoreaNews

— Korea News Summary (@ROKreport) September 30, 2015

This aerial photo shows an expressway running parallel to fields of ripe rice in the southwestern city of Jeongeup on Sept. 29, 2015, the last day of the Chuseok holiday that started on Sept. 26. Chuseok, which fell on Sept. 27 this year, is the season for family reunions, with Koreans traditionally offering a ritual feast to their ancestors on Aug. 15 of the lunar calendar. (Yonhap)