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July 31, 2009

Marcus Noland on Sanctioning North Korea

First, a note of congratulations to Mr. Noland on being named Deputy Director of the Peterson Institute. Noland also has a paper out on the prospects for disarming North Korea though sanctions. Here’s a teaser, and I’ll let you read the rest on your own: Given the extremely high priority the North Korean regime places on its military capacity, it is unlikely that the pressure the world can bring to bear on North Korea will be sufficient to induce the...

China & Korea/NK Economics/Sanctions

July 31, 2009

Ban Ki-moon to Save the Day?

Last night the Facebook page for Laura Ling and Euna Lee posted an an Agence France-Presse article stating that U.N. head Ban Ki-moon has “launched an initiative to secure the release of two US journalists detained in North Korea but would not disclose details.” Call me cynical, but if he can actually free these two reporters, it will somewhat restore my lost faith in the ability of Ban – and the U.N. for that matter. Although I must admit, crazier...

"United" Nations/Ling/Lee Incident

July 29, 2009

Breaking: N. Korea Seizes S. Korean Fishing Boat

Sounds like the boat, which carried a crew of four, strayed across the NLL when its GPS system malfunctioned: The fishing boat, skippered by a man only identified by his last name, Park, departed from the port of Geojin on the eastern coast at 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday and sailed past the Northern Limit Line (NLL), the de facto inter-Korean maritime border, as far as 20 miles off the port of Jejin, he said. Geojin is about 150km northeast of...

North-South

July 29, 2009

Being Irrational and Ill-Informed Still No Barrier to Getting a Global Audience

No one in the Obama Administration sounds terribly interested in North Korea’s offer of a bilateral dialogue about what concessions America is prepared to grant North Korea this year, but at the Christian Science Monitor, Professor Zhiqun Zhu of Bucknell University in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania (you remember it from the matchbook covers, right?) calls North Korea’s statement “a rare opportunity” and writes one of the most scary-stupid things I’ve read all year: Frankly, it is unrealistic for the US to ask...

Fiskings

July 29, 2009

If You’re Reading This From North Korea, Please Don’t Risk Your Life for “Typhoon”

Here’s an interesting report on North Korea’s black market in videotapes, and the regime’s efforts to deny the people what Kim Jong Il collects.

Deprogramming/Subversion

July 29, 2009

Chosun Ilbo Profiles Hannah Kim

Miss Kim is the very young woman I wrote about the other day who single-handedly obtained a presidential proclamation thanking Korean War vets for their service and honoring the sacrifices of those who died in the war. The picture accompanying the Chosun’s article confirms that the creator of the proclamation is the same woman I briefly met at a function in Washington about a year ago (also the only time I’ve met Jodi in person). Kim established a group called...

Korean War

July 29, 2009

At “The New Ledger:” Smart Policy, Dumb Diplomacy

Sorry about yesterday. Sometimes, work just doesn’t leave enough time for me to post, but I did manage to edit a few of this week’s post into something with a (hopefully!) coherent theme. Enjoy.

Diplomacy/Sanctions

July 27, 2009

Yachting the River Styx and the Lies of Christine Ahn

Several of you e-mailed me about the story of the luxury yachts that North Korea had attempted to purchase from the Italian manufacturer Azimuth-Benetti. I started a post and didn’t finish it, partially because that post became something long-winded, disjointed, and unpublishable. Meanwhile, a few more details have trickled in about the boats and the purchase. Contrary to doubts expressed in earlier reports, Italian authorities have concluded that the boats were indeed for His Withering Majesty, although you have to...

"United" Nations/Famine & Food Aid/Sanctions

July 27, 2009

President Obama Issues Proclamation Thanking Korean War Vets

About a year ago, a young Korean-American woman, Hannah Kim, set out to have Congress and the President to recognize Korean War vets in time for this year’s anniversary of the Korean War armistice. I’m happy to report that Ms. Kim, having spearheaded a bill through Congress, has now obtained this presidential proclamation. What a nice thing of her to do.

Korean War

July 26, 2009

Non-Story of the Week

Minced beef with bread is now available in Pyongyang, leading North Korea watchers everywhere to whether full nuclear disarmament and freedom of the press can be far behind. Seriously … why is this news? Update: Here’s a more practical response to the protein shortage in the North Korean diet. Why, they say it tastes exactly like beef! So do you want fries with your burger?

Media Criticism

July 25, 2009

Give to Them As They Do, Not as They Say

In our second great WTF moment of this week, the Republican Party just called me asking for money to buy ad space to condemn Barack Obama’s weak Jimmy Carter-style foreign policy. Set aside the fact that the major premise of the pitch just doesn’t square with the truth. How the hell can anyone make that claim with a straight face in light of George W. Bush’s North Korea legacy? Did these people, in the name of a strong foreign policy,...

U.S. Politics

July 25, 2009

Ex-N. Korean Special Forces Soldier Alleges Biowar Experiments on Handicapped Kids; North Korea’s Jihad Against Christians

The accuser, Im Chun-Yong, escaped from North Korea with several comrades in his unit a decade ago. That alone should tell you something about the state of morale in North Korea’s most elite forces even then. Im claims that he kept this story to himself until now: “If you are born mentally or physically deficient, says Im, the government says your best contribution to society”¦ is as a guinea pig for biological and chemical weapons testing.” [….] The former military...

Human Rights/Religion/The Camps

July 24, 2009

Take a Drink!

Curtis reminds me: Recalling that the Korean war of aggression ignited by the U.S. imperialists 59 years ago was the most brutal and brigandish war in the history of world wars, the statement continued [….] Should the U.S. imperialists ignite another war, oblivious of the lesson drawn from their past defeat, the heroic Korean People’s Army will fully display its invincible might of the powerful revolutionary army of Mt. Paektu which has grown under the care of the great Songun...

Propaganda/Unintended Humor

July 24, 2009

Why My Diplomacy Is Smarter Than Your Diplomacy

You remember what diplomacy was like in the days before it was smart, right? When diplomats let slip undiplomatic truths about Kim Jong Il being a “tyrannical dictator” who subjected his people to a “hellish nightmare?” When Presidents “loathed” their adversaries instead of sitting down and sharing a bong with them? Thank goodness change has come! It says a lot about the North Koreans that they can’t just rise above this and hold the high ground. So does this mean...

Appeasement/Diplomacy

July 24, 2009

WTF? Michael Jackson Wanted to Ask Kim Jong Il to Free Laura Ling and Euna Lee?

If this doesn’t win “WTF of the Decade,” it’s an honorable mention: The last time I spoke to my friend Michael Jackson was about a month ago, 3 weeks before his shocking death. He had called me late one night to ask about another of my close friends who he had read about in the news. Laura Ling, a former colleague and friend, was detained originally by North Korean border guards along with her colleague Euna Lee on March 17th....

Ling/Lee Incident/WTF?

July 23, 2009

Wanted: Korea Bar Association Report on North Korean Concentration Camps (Update: Thank you)

Blaine Harden’s Washington Post article on Monday cited a report by the Korean Bar Association that contains an extensive collection of interviews of North Korean concentration camp survivors and witnesses. If I had a copy of that report, I would undertake a detailed examination of those witness’s statements for consistency with each other, with previous reports, and with satellite imagery of the camps. If possible, I would use that report to greatly expand my Google Earth posts about the camps. ...

Human Rights

July 22, 2009

John Kerry Tries, Fails to Stop Amendment Calling for N. Korea to be Re-Listed as Terror Sponsor (Update: Dems Defeat Amendment, 54-43)

Progress on ending North Korea’s nuclear weapons program is always tenuous and remains incomplete. But the regime’s nuclear declaration is the latest reminder that, despite President Bush’s once bellicose rhetoric, engaging our enemies can pay dividends…. Now the president must not prematurely close the books on North Korea’s alleged uranium enrichment activities and nuclear exports. We must ensure there are credible verification and monitoring procedures to ensure North Korea is out of the nuclear business for the long term. —...

Appeasement/Ling/Lee Incident/Sanctions/Terrorism (NK)/U.S. Politics

July 21, 2009

An Inside Look at Hanawon

It is rare to be granted a look inside Hanawon, the first stop for North Korean defectors arriving in the South, but this summer the center opened its doors to international media in recognition of its 10 year anniversary, allowing journalists (and readers/viewers) a rare glimpse into the facility. As a result of the media invite, the L.A. Times ran a story about the rehabilitation center earlier this month and just recently VOA released a video story about Hanawon and...

Defectors/Refugees