Here is rare type of defection if these four were in fact planning to defect:

A South Korean vessel tows a wooden boat that crossed the inter-Korean border to a port in the coastal county of Yangyang, 150 kilometers northeast of Seoul, on Oct. 24, 2023. (Yonhap)

 A group of four unidentified individuals from North Korea crossed the eastern maritime inter-Korean border on a wooden boat early Tuesday, officials said, in an apparent attempt to defect to South Korea.

The Coast Guard and military officials secured the 7.5-meter-long boat carrying the North Koreans in waters east of Sokcho, 151 kilometers northeast of Seoul, a military official said, after South Korean fishermen at the scene reported seeing an “unusual” boat at around 7:10 a.m.

The group consists of one man and three women, according to Coast Guard officials. Details of their identities have not been made known.

Lim Jae-kil, one of the fishermen who were at the scene, recalled seeing a man who appeared to be in his 30s wearing boots and oil-stained clothing, and two women, presumably in their 30s and 50s, respectively.

The individuals did not express their intent to defect to the South but asked where they were and remarked on how “nice” Lim’s boat was, he said.

Lim said he had never seen such a boat in his more than 40 years of life as a fisherman, adding it appeared to have the engine of a cultivator.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link, but the last maritime defection from North Korea was back in 2019 according to the article.

It looks like Halloween will not be cancelled in Seoul due to last year’s Itaewon crushing tragedy. Instead they will just deploy more police for crowd control:

People pass by an alley that was the site of a deadly crowd crush in central Seoul’s Itaewon, Sunday. The tragic event claimed at least 158 lives, including 26 foreign nationals from 14 countries, during Halloween celebrations on Oct. 29, 2022. Yonhap

Police will deploy over 1,000 personnel for crowd control in Itaewon and 15 other areas in Seoul that expect to attract a large number of people celebrating the Halloween weekend, a year after the deadly Itaewon crowd crush that claimed at least 158 lives.

The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency (SMPA) announced during a regular press briefing, Monday, a set of enhanced crowd control and security measures for 16 areas of the capital that are anticipated to see huge crowds from Friday to next Tuesday.

“The agency selected high-risk alleys after holding several meetings and conducting field studies with local governments,” a police official said, explaining that the agency expects people to flock to Mapo and Gangnam districts instead of Itaewon and its neighboring area in Yongsan District this year.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

It looks like South Korea has found another customer for their ever growing defense industry exports:

South Korea and Saudi Arabia are in the final stage of talks over large-scale defense industry cooperation in areas including antiaircraft defense systems and firearms, a South Korean presidential official said Sunday.

Principal Deputy National Security Adviser Kim Tae-hyo made the revelation to reporters while accompanying South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol on a four-day state visit to Saudi Arabia.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

President Yoon’s approval rating is now down to 30 points:

President Yoon Suk Yeol’s approval rating fell to a six-month low, raising alarms over his ability to handle state affairs.

A sense of crisis is spreading within the ruling People Power Party (PPP), forcing Yoon and the ruling bloc to focus on addressing rising living costs and other economic difficulties, which will affect the PPP’s campaign in the crucial general elections in April next year.

According to a Gallup Korea poll released on Friday, Yoon’s approval rating plunged to 30 percent, down 3 percentage points from a week earlier. His disapproval rating stood at 61 percent, also up 3 percentage points during the same period.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

This is how an unanticipated conflict wtih China could occur due to escalation in the South China Sea:

In this image from a video released by the Armed Forces of the Philippines, Filipino sailors, bottom, look after a Chinese coast guard ship with bow number 5203 bumps their supply boat as they approach Second Thomas Shoal, locally called Ayungin Shoal, at the disputed South China Sea on Sunday Oct. 22, 2023. (Armed Forces of the Philippines via AP)

A Chinese coast guard ship and an accompanying vessel rammed a Philippine coast guard ship and a military-run supply boat Sunday off a contested shoal, Philippine officials said, in an encounter that heightened fears of an armed conflict in the disputed South China Sea.

A top Philippine security official told The Associated Press there were no injuries among the Filipino crew members and an assessment of the damage to both vessels was underway.

The official said that the two incidents near Second Thomas Shoal, where China has repeatedly tried to isolate a Philippine marine outpost, could have been worse if the vessels were not able to maneuver rapidly away from the Chinese ships. The official spoke on condition of anonymity due to a lack of authority to publicly discuss the matter.

China’s sweeping territorial claims in the South China Sea, including over islands closer to Philippine shore, have raised tensions and brought the United States, a longtime treaty ally of the Philippines, into the fray.

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link.

It looks like MBS is no longer all that radioactive on the world scene anymore as more national leaders are doing business with him to include South Korea:

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol (L) and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman hold summit talks at the Al Yamamah Palace in Riyadh on Oct. 22, 2023. (Pool photo) (Yonhap)

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman agreed to deepen and develop the strategic partnership between the two countries as they held a summit in Riyadh on Sunday, Yoon’s office said.

The two leaders held talks at the Al Yamamah Palace on the second day of Yoon’s four-day state visit to Saudi Arabia, which came as the two sides explore new areas of economic cooperation beyond the traditional sectors of construction and energy.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.