Like other places in the world there has been a spring time surge in the coronavirus in Japan that has effected the US military troops as well:

U.S. bases in Japan reported another 26 people had contracted the coronavirus between April 7 and 6 p.m. Tuesday.

The Marine Corps announced 16 new cases on Okinawa and one at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni near Hiroshima. Kadena Air Base reported another eight patients between April 7 and Monday. Yokota Air Base in western Tokyo said one person tested positive sometime between Saturday and Tuesday.

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link.

It seems that if a major provocation was coming there would be more a of a build up towards it than what we have seen lately. I guess we will see soon enough what the Kim regime decides to do:

In what could be a pivotal week on the Korean Peninsula, there is interest whether North Korea’s leader Kim Jong-un would opt for any provocation as the country marks the birthday of Kim Il Sung Thursday and Washington finalizes its Pyongyang policy review.  
   
The U.S. Congress is also set to hold a rare hearing Thursday on Seoul’s controversial law banning sending anti-Pyongyang leaflets across the border, a move seen by observers as the United States pressuring both Koreas on human rights, an issue prioritized by the Joe Biden administration.  
   
The Day of the Sun, which takes place on April 15 each year, is North Korea’s biggest national holiday, and this year marks the 109th birthday of the country’s founder Kim Il Sung, the grandfather of the current leader.  
   
Pyongyang has also often marked the occasion with flashy military parades, such as one in 2017 showcasing its new intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) at a parade to mark the 105th birthday of Kim Il Sung. 

Joong Ang Ilbo

You can read more at the link.

If the Biden administration did ask South Korea to join the Quad forum I think it shows how little they understand the geopolitical dynamics in the region:

South Korea’s presidential office on Sunday denied as “incorrect” a Japanese report that the United States asked Seoul to join the US-led Quad forum.

The Yomiuri Shimbun, a major Japanese daily, reported earlier in the day that US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan had strongly requested Seoul join the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue group, also known as Quad, during a meeting with his South Korean counterpart Suh Hoon early this month.

Korea Herald

You can read more at the link.

So basically what the Korean government is saying is that the vaccine is more dangerous than COVID for those under 30:

AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine will not be given to anyone under the age of 30 in South Korea, as growing evidence points to possible associations with a rare but serious blood-clotting disorder.

The government’s advisory committee on immunization practices said in a news briefing Sunday that AstraZeneca vaccinations will resume Monday after a partial suspension for the last four days.

Korea Herald

You can read more at the link.

Bloomberg has a long, in-depth read on how a Korean-American immigrant turned billionaire, lost $20 billion dollars in just two days last month:

Before he lost it all—all $20 billion—Bill Hwang was the greatest trader you’d never heard of.

Starting in 2013, he parlayed more than $200 million left over from his shuttered hedge fund into a mind-boggling fortune by betting on stocks. Had he folded his hand in early March and cashed in, Hwang, 57, would have stood out among the world’s billionaires. There are richer men and women, of course, but their money is mostly tied up in businesses, real estate, complex investments, sports teams, and artwork. Hwang’s $20 billion net worth was almost as liquid as a government stimulus check. And then, in two short days, it was gone.

Bloomberg

You can read more at the link, but Hwang was also a large donor to the human rights group Liberty in North Korea (LiNK):

Hwang is closely involved with a group called Liberty in North Korea, or Link, that has helped about 1,300 North Koreans escaping the regime. “He doesn’t use God as a cover,” says Jensen Ko, a colleague at Archegos. “He lives that out.”

Please leave anything you want to discuss in the comments section.