Another capability to disguise and quickly launch ballistic missiles has been confirmed by North Korea. This will just make it more challenging for intelligence analysts to track North Korea’s ballistic missiles:

North Korea said Thursday that a railway-borne missile regiment held a firing drill a day earlier, confirming the launches, apparently from a train, of two short-range ballistic missiles into the East Sea.

“The railway-borne missile regiment took part in the drill with a mission to strike the target area 800 kilometers away from its location after moving to the central mountainous area at dawn on September 15,” the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said.

The KCNA said the North accurately struck the target in the East Sea.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

It appears the Chinese Foreign Minister has made it clear to South Korea to not join the U.S. led Five Eyes intelligence sharing agreement:

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi dismissed the U.S.-led Five Eyes intelligence-sharing alliance as an “outdated” byproduct of the Cold War era, speaking to reporters in Seoul after talks with his South Korean counterpart Wednesday.  
   
Wang, also a Chinese state councilor, held bilateral talks Wednesday with Korean Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong to discuss the situation on the Korean Peninsula and other bilateral, regional and global issues, and later paid a courtesy call on President Moon Jae-in.  
   
His two-day visit comes amid intensifying Sino-U.S. rivalry and concerns over North Korea’s latest missile provocations as Seoul has been trying to bring Pyongyang back to the dialogue table.  
   
Addressing speculation that South Korea may be asked to join the Five Eyes mechanism involving the United States, Britain, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, Wang told reporters, “I think that is completely a byproduct of the Cold War era. It is already outdated.”  
   
The Five Eyes program dates back to U.S. and British intelligence cooperation during World War II and evolved during the Cold War era as a mechanism for monitoring the Soviet Union. A recent U.S. House bill seeks to expand the U.S.-led intelligence-sharing program to include South Korea, Japan, India and Germany. An expansion of the exclusive Five Eyes network could be reflective of U.S. efforts to unite its allies to counter China’s growing dominance in the Indo-Pacific region. 

Joong Ang Ilbo

You can read more at the link.

If these teleworkers have work from home syndrome than the entire U.S. military needs to get diagnosed with this disorder because even when you are off duty you are still on duty. Maybe servicemembers can get an extra VA rating for this 😉 :

Three out of every 10 employees who telecommute are experiencing “work-from-home (WFH) syndrome” as the pandemic rolls on and the boundary between work and life blurs. 

According to a survey of 910 remote workers conducted by recruiting platform Job Korea from Sept. 3 to 10, 32.1 percent of the respondents said they have experienced the WFH syndrome, experienced as physical and emotional stress.

Where multiple answers were allowed, 54.8 percent said they experienced the feeling that they were still working even after work hours, similar to 46.2 percent who answered they felt a nervous and stressed all day. 

“In a from-home working environment, the physical distinction between work and home life is pretty vague. I think that’s why I can’t get my mind off of work even when my computer is turned off and feel like I’m working all day,” said a 28-year-old employee in Seoul who asked to be identified only by her surname Kim. 

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

The fish in the waters around Korea were under extra attack yesterday from both North and South Korean missile launches:

The Korean Peninsula was the site of dueling launches on Wednesday as North Korea fired two tactical ballistic missiles around mid-day, followed by South Korea testing a new submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) later in the afternoon.  
   
The North fired first on Wednesday, sending two ballistic missiles into the waters east of the Korean Peninsula around 12:38 p.m. and 12:43 p.m., according to the South’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS).  
   
The JCS said the missiles flew a distance of approximately 800 kilometers (500 miles) while reaching an altitude of 60 kilometers (37 miles).  
   
Less than three hours later, in the afternoon, South Korea followed with a scheduled submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) test, according to the Defense Ministry.  
   
In addition to the SLBM, the South tested two different types of missiles on Wednesday: a long-range air-to-surface missile and a supersonic anti-ship missile, according to military authorities. 

Joong Ang Ilbo

You can read more at the link, but I think it is likely the North Koreans are just making a statement that if the ROK’s are allowed to fire ballistic missiles then we are going to as well. Additionally the Kim regime is probably trying to take away headlines from the ROK for successfully testing their SLBM which is a feat the North Koreans have not been able to master yet.

Here is the latest on Korea’s vaccination efforts:

Debate is arising over the government’s plan to allow COVID-19 vaccinations for children aged 12 to 17 starting next month. 

Some parents say the inoculations will ensure their children’s safety and allow them to be more active, while others say they are concerned about potential side effects

The health authorities said, Monday, they plan to start offering vaccinations for children in that age group in the fourth quarter and will announce details within this month after consulting with the education ministry.

They are considering providing the Pfizer vaccine as recommended by the Korea Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, adding the vaccine has been proven safe for use for the age group in various countries including Japan and the United States.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

This CNBC article says Google makes $426k a minute. So it will take Google about 7 hours today to make enough money to pay this fine:

 South Korea’s antitrust regulator said Tuesday it has decided to fine global tech giant Google 207.4 billion won (US$176.8 million) for pressing smartphone makers into only using its Android mobile operating system.

Since 2016, the Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) has been looking into Google over allegations it obstructed local smartphone makers, such as Samsung Electronics Co. and LG Electronics Inc., from using operating systems developed by rivals.

Google has hampered market competition by requiring smartphone makers to clinch an “anti-fragmentation agreement (AFA)” when they sign key contracts with Google over app store licenses and early access to OS, according to the regulator.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.