Tag: North Korea

It looks like Kim Jong-un really wants to get the Kumgang Resort cash cow reopened considering the North Koreans are holding talks again with the ROK in regards to another possible round of family reunions.  ROK Heads may remember the Kumgang Resort was closed to South Korean tourists when a 53 year old grandma was shot dead on the beach by a North Korean soldier:

North and South Korea held high-level talks at a North Korean border town on Friday, a small step meant to improve ties battered by a military standoff in August and decades of acrimony and bloodshed.

No major breakthrough was reached in the meeting of vice-ministerial officials in Kaesong, and the two sides decided to extend the talks for another day.

Analysts see the talks as meaningful because they seek to carry out previously agreed reconciliation efforts — something the rivals have often failed to do in the past.

South Korean officials want to discuss more reunions between aging family members separated by the 1950-53 Korean War. Analysts have said cash-strapped North Korea might seek the South’s commitment to restart joint tours to its scenic Diamond Mountain resort, which were suspended by Seoul in 2008 following the shooting death of a South Korean tourist there by a North Korean soldier.   [Associated Press]

You can read more at the link.

#DPRK anyone got any idea's what this site could be? 39°54'23.51"N 124°25'1.84"E #Geoint #osint #googleearth pic.twitter.com/M6TYINAoDh

— Nathan J Hunt (@ISNJH) December 7, 2015

It looks like the North Koreans are again exaggerating their capabilities.  His comments though are probably more for domestic consumption than something that people internationally are supposed to take seriously:

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un appeared on Thursday to claim his country has developed a hydrogen bomb, a step up from the less powerful atomic bomb, but outside experts were skeptical.

Kim made the comments as he toured the Phyongchon Revolutionary Site, which marks the feats of his father who died in 2011 and his grandfather, state founder and eternal president, Kim Il Sung, the official KCNA news agency said.

The work of Kim Il Sung “turned the DPRK into a powerful nuclear weapons state ready to detonate a self-reliant A-bomb and H-bomb to reliably defend its sovereignty and the dignity of the nation,” KCNA quoted Kim Jong Un as saying.

DPRK are the initials of the isolated North’s official name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. A hydrogen bomb, also known as a thermonuclear bomb, uses more advanced technology to produce a significantly more powerful blast than an atomic bomb.

North Korea conducted underground tests to set off nuclear devices in 2006, 2009 and 2013, for which it has been subject to U.N. Security Council sanctions banning trade and financing activities that aid its weapons program.

An official at South Korea’s intelligence agency told Yonhap news agency there was no evidence that the North had hydrogen bomb capacity, and believed Kim was speaking rhetorically.  [Reuters]

You can read the rest at the link.

Inside the Hermit Kingdom: A Virtual Reality Journey Through North Korea – ABC News – https://t.co/eUZSpYzZZk via @ABC

— NorthKoreaRealTime (@BuckTurgidson79) December 9, 2015

I would think that as long as the Kim regime is making money off of this they would ensure the quality of the water is high.  However, regardless of the quality no one should buy this water which only provides more foreign currency to sustain the Kim regime:

Of all the options for bottled water in the world, South Korea accepted a shipment from North Korea.

Not just one, but ten full cargo containers arrived at the southeastern port city of Busan on Sunday.

Keep in mind that the two countries are technically still in a state of war that dates back to the 1950s.

But besides those minor details, the South and North agreed to team up with Russia to develop a reliable transportation system.

The end goal?

To move 120,000 tons of Eastern European coal down through the peninsula and into the possession of South Korea. Russia successfully moved 40,500 tons of the projected goal back in November of 2014.

The bottled water acts as merely a symbol rather than a burgeoning industry for the North.  [The Korea Times]

You can read more at the link.

North Korea 'declares war' on deforestation at Paris climate talks https://t.co/cIp6vQ6BEE

— NorthKoreaRealTime (@BuckTurgidson79) December 7, 2015

A documentary aired on Dec. 3, 2015, by the North’s Korean Central Broadcast TV shows Kim Rak-gyom (circled), commander of strategic forces, bearing a shoulder insignia with four stars, indicating he has been promoted to general. The strategic forces, upgraded at the end of 2013 from the strategic rocket forces, commands and controls missile units. Kim was promoted to colonel general, equivalent to lieutenant general, in February last year, and his fast rise suggests he was rewarded for his achievements in rocket development. (Yonhap)

Senior North Korean official missing for three weeks shows up at Kim Jong Un’s visit to tree nursery. pic.twitter.com/5yF9WGZ3xE

— Alastair Gale (@AlastairGale) December 2, 2015

When it comes to these anonymous sources from North Korea it is best to keep some skepticism of what is claimed:

Explosives found at North Korea’s refurbished Kalma International Airport at Wonsan in October caused the cancellation of leader Kim Jong-un’s planned inspection of the site, according to a U.S.-based nonprofit international broadcaster, Friday.

Citing a source in Pyongyang, Radio Free Asia (RFA) reported that 100 devices, each weighing 200 grams, were found in the ceiling of an interior counter of the airport on Oct. 6 by security staff, one day ahead of Kim’s visit. The explosives are normally used to create tunnels.

At the time, Kim was conducting a series of inspections of buildings and sites constructed to mark the 70th anniversary of the founding of the North’s ruling Workers’ Party that fell on Oct. 10.

Citing another source, the report said that security staff are still investigating the case. [Korea Times]

You can read the rest at the link.

It seems like every few months we hear a report of the North Koreans getting ready for a nuclear test so no one really knows for sure:

North Korea is believed to be excavating a new tunnel at its nuclear test site located in Punggye-ri, according to a U.S. research center that specializes in North Korea affairs, Wednesday.

The conclusions reached by the center’s analysis have prompted speculation that Pyongyang is preparing for a forth nuclear test.

Citing satellite imagery taken from October to November, 38 North have said that Pyongyang is excavating a new tunnel in a new area of the site in addition to the three others where the repressive state has either conducted nuclear tests or excavated tunnels in the past.

“While there are no indications that a nuclear test is imminent, the new tunnel adds to North Korea’s ability to conduct additional detonations at Punggye-ri in the coming years if it chooses to do so,” said the institute. [Korea Times]

You can read more at the link.