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Kim Jong Un Urges Intensification of Military Drills

The visit came two days after South Korea and the US began their annual Freedom Shield exercise Monday to strengthen deterrence against North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats…reports Asian Lite News

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un called for intensifying “practical actual war drills” during a visit to a military training base, state media said on Thursday, as a joint military exercise between South Korea and the US was underway.

During the visit to the base in the country’s western region on Wednesday, Kim inspected training facilities and guided the actual manoeuvres of military units, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said.

“He set forth the important tasks for intensifying the practical actual-war drills ensuring the victory in a war,” the KCNA said.

Kim also instructed the military to beef up drills to improve its combat capabilities to contain enemies with “overwhelming force” and their “slightest attempt to ignite a war,” the KCNA said in an English-language dispatch.

The visit came two days after South Korea and the US began their annual Freedom Shield exercise Monday to strengthen deterrence against North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats.

North Korea has condemned the joint exercise, warning the countries will pay a “dear price”, Yonhap news agency reported.

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Almost Full Turnout in North Korea’s Local Elections

North Korea’s local elections are held every four years, and the number of seats is determined by the population of each area…reports Asian Lite News

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un cast his ballot in local elections held over the weekend to pick new deputies for local assemblies of provinces, cities and counties across the nation, with voter turnout recorded at almost 100 per cent, state media reported Monday.

Kim visited a polling station set up in South Hamgyong Province on Sunday and voted for candidates who ran in the elections in the region, according to the North’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

North Korea’s local elections are held every four years, and the number of seats is determined by the population of each area.

But the elections are widely viewed as a formality, as the candidates are hand-picked by the North’s ruling Workers’ Party of Korea (WPK) and rubber-stamped into office, reports Yonhap News Agency.

The KCNA said Kim met with the candidates and encouraged them to become “genuine representatives and true servants for the people who strive to defend and realize their rights, interests and requirements”.

He was accompanied by Premier Kim Tok-hun and key party officials, including his younger sister Kim Yo-jong and Hyon Song-wol, vice director of the propaganda and agitation department, it added.

According to the KCNA, the voter turnout for Sunday’s elections was 99.63 per cent. Those who are in foreign countries or working at sea did not take part in the elections.

North Korea has revised an election law in a way that allows two candidates to be recommended in some constituencies for local elections and holds a preliminary election to decide on a final candidate.

At polling stations, North Korea set up two separate ballot boxes of different colours — one for approval and the other for disapproval — a move that hampers the principle of secret voting as it is easy to see whether people vote for or against, Seoul’s Unification Ministry said.

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Kim Jong-un Impressed by Russian Aerospace Tech During Visit

Kim expressed “sincere regard” for Russia’s aviation technology undergoing rapid development and “outpacing the outside potential threats”, it added…reports Asian Lite News

North Korea leader Kim Jong-un said he was “deeply impressed” with the advanced state of Russian aerospace and aviation technology as he visited an aircraft plant during his ongoing visit to Russia this week, Pyongyang’s state media said on Saturday.

Following his summit meeting with President Vladimir Putin, Kim visited the Yuri Gagarin Aviation Plant that produces advanced fighter jets including the Sukhoi Su-35 in the far eastern region of Komsomolsk-on-Amur on Friday, reports Yonhap News Agency.

“Saying that he was deeply impressed by the rich independent potential and modernity of the Russian aircraft manufacturing industry and its ceaseless enterprising efforts toward new goals, he sincerely hoped that the plant would make sustained development by achieving higher production growth in the future,” the North’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said.

Kim expressed “sincere regard” for Russia’s aviation technology undergoing rapid development and “outpacing the outside potential threats”, it added.

He also “highly appreciated the officials, scientists, technicians and workers of the plant for making a great contribution to the development of the country’s air industry by achieving excellent successes in production with highly advanced technology and strong mental power”.

Founded in 1934, the aviation plant made a “great contribution to defeating fascism” during the Soviet Union’s Great Patriotic War by producing various kinds of aircraft, including long-range bombers.

Today it is the largest Su-type fighter jet manufacturer in Russia, according to KCNA.

KCNA said Kim departed for his next destination Friday afternoon.

He is expected to travel to Vladivostok and meet Russia’s Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu and have a tour of the Navy’s Pacific fleet.

ALSO READ-Kim Visits Aircraft Plant During Russia Trip

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Kim Jong-un’s Possible Meeting with Vladimir Putin in Vladivostok

This file photo, carried by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency, shows North Korean leader Kim Jong-un (L) and Russian President Vladimir Putin shaking hands for a summit in Vladivostok on April 26, 2019.(Yonhap/IANS)

North Korea earlier said it will hold a militia parade to mark the anniversary, which falls on Saturday, reports Yonhap News Agency…reports Asian Lite News

A Chinese delegation will visit Pyongyang to attend events to celebrate the 75th founding anniversary of the North Korean regime, state media said on Thursday.

A party and government Chinese delegation, headed by Liu Guozhong, vice premier of the State Council of China, will visit North Korea to participate in celebrations for the 75th founding anniversary, according to the North’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

North Korea earlier said it will hold a militia parade to mark the anniversary, which falls on Saturday, reports Yonhap News Agency.

In late July, China sent a delegation, led by Li Hongzhong, a politburo member of the Chinese Communist Party, to North Korea to attend events to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the signing of the Korean War armistice, called Victory Day in the North.

Flanked by Russia’s visiting Defence Minister and Li, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un watched a military parade on July 27, displaying Pyongyang’s solidarity with Beijing and Moscow.

There is growing speculation that Kim may visit Vladivostok for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin next week amid suspected arms transactions between Pyongyang and Moscow.

ALSO READ-North Korea warns US of Nuclear war

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Kim Jong-un Eyes Talks with Putin in Russia

Seoul :North Korean leader Kim Jong-un toasts Russian President Vladimir Putin during a post-summit dinner at the Far Eastern Federal University in Vladivostok, Russia.(Yonhap/IANS)

The White House National Security Council (NSC) declined to confirm the report when asked, but said Kim may be expecting high-level dialogue in Russia…reports Asian Lite News

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un may soon travel to Russia to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin and discuss a possible arms deal, according to a news report.

In its report published on Monday, The New York Times, citing unidentified “American and allied officials”, said that Kim may travel to Vladivostok next week, Yonhap News Agency reported.

“In a rare foray from his country, Mr. Kim would travel from Pyongyang, North Korea’s capital, probably by armoured train, to Vladivostok, on the Pacific Coast of Russia, where he would meet with Mr. Putin,” the report said

“Both leaders would be on the campus of Far Eastern Federal University in Vladivostok to attend the Eastern Economic Forum, which is scheduled to run September 10 to 13,” it added.

The White House National Security Council (NSC) declined to confirm the report when asked, but said Kim may be expecting high-level dialogue in Russia.

“As we have warned publicly, arms negotiations between Russia and the DPRK (North Korea’s official name) are actively advancing,” NSC spokesperson Adrienne Watson told Yonhap News Agency, citing Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu’s trip to Pyongyang in July that she said sought to “convince Pyongyang to sell artillery ammunition to Russia”.

“We have information that Kim Jong-un expects these discussions to continue, to include leader-level diplomatic engagement in Russia,” the NSC spokesperson added.

John Kirby, NSC coordinator for strategic communications, earlier warned that Pyongyang may be considering providing additional weapons and military equipment to Russia for use in the latter’s ongoing war in Ukraine, also noting that the leaders of North Korea and Russia may have discussed such deals in letters they have exchanged since Shoigu’s trip to Pyongyang.

A State Department spokesperson said a second group of Russian officials had traveled to North Korea following Shoigu’s visit there for “follow-on discussions about potential arms deals”.

“Any arms deal between the DPRK and Russia would directly violate a number of UN Security Council resolutions,” the spokesperson told Yonhap News Agency.

“We urge the DPRK to cease its arms negotiations with Russia. And we are taking action directly by exposing and sanctioning individuals and entities working to facilitate arms deals between Russia and the DPRK,” the official added, referring to North Korea by its official name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.

Shoigu was earlier reported to have said that Russia and North Korea are considering holding a joint military exercise with China.

The New York Times report said a delegation of some 20 North Korean officials, “including some who oversee security protocols for the leadership”, traveled to Vladivostok in late August, indicating an upcoming trip by Kim.

“One potential stop for Mr. Kim after Vladivostok, an official said, is Vostochny Cosmodrome, a space launch center,” said the report, noting North Korea may be seeking to secure advanced technology for satellites and nuclear-powered submarines from Russia in exchange of its weapons.

Pyongyang unsuccessfully fired two space launch vehicles each carrying a military reconnaissance satellite in late May and August.

The reclusive regime has said that it will attempt another launch in October.

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North Korea’s human rights abuses and missile program under scrutiny at UN

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un inspects a ground test of a "high-thrust solid-fuel motor" at Sohae Satellite Launching Ground in Cholsan, North Pyongan Province, on Dec. 15, 2022.(Yonhap/IANS)

Russia and China often argue that the Security Council is not the correct UN venue to discuss human rights issues…reports Asian Lite News

The United States has requested a public UN Security Council meeting on August 17 to review North Korea’s human rights record and how it relates to global peace and security, Voice of America (VOA) reported.
North Korea launched numerous intercontinental ballistic missiles as well as a large number of ballistic missiles this year, according to Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield. North Korea frequently claims that the joint military drills between the United States and South Korea are to blame for the tense situation on the Korean Peninsula and claims that its missile programme is designed to intimidate and “strike fear” into its adversaries, VOA reported.

“We know the government’s human rights abuses and violations facilitate the advancement of its unlawful weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missiles program,” Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield told reporters in a joint interaction with the ambassadors of South Korea, Japan and Albania.

“The Security Council must address the horrors, the abuses and the crimes being perpetrated daily by the Kim regime against its own citizens, and people from other member states, including Japan and the Republic of Korea,” the US envoy said about the systemic human rights abuses, VOA reported.

The United States holds the 15-nation Security Council’s rotating presidency this month and Thomas-Greenfield has said that human rights would be the core theme. It is the first time the council will hold a public session on the rights issue in the North Korea since 2017 and the US envoy said it is “long overdue.”

Russia and China often argue that the Security Council is not the correct UN venue to discuss human rights issues. But a senior US official who briefed reporters Thursday said none of the other forums focuses on the links between North Korea’s WMD (Weapon of mass destruction) and ballistic missile advancements, which is why the Security Council must be briefed on the issue, VOA reported.

Moscow and Beijing could call for a procedural vote in a bid to block the meeting. Nine of the 15 council members would then have to vote in favour of holding it for the meeting to happen. The senior US official said Washington is “in a comfortable place” in terms of having sufficient council support. The council will be briefed by UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk and the UN Special Rapporteur for the situation of human rights in North Korea Elizabeth Salmón, as well as a civil society representative, VOA reported. “Protecting people around the world is an integral part of the UN Charter and an important responsibility of the Security Council,” the ambassador said.“And that means holding the DPRK regime accountable for its human rights abuses and violations,” the ambassador added.

DPRK is the abbreviation for North Korea’s official name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. The senior US official said that Pyongyang’s use of forced labour to fund its illicit weapons programs would also be highlighted at the session.

The Kim government’s human rights abuses are well known. The UN Commission of Inquiry (COI) and other independent human rights experts have documented testimony from hundreds of defectors.
In 2014, the COI found that North Korea’s violations had risen to the level of crimes against humanity. Among them, the report found, “extermination, murder, enslavement, torture, imprisonment, rape, forced abortions and other sexual violence, persecution on political, religious, racial and gender grounds, the forcible transfer of populations, the enforced disappearance of persons and the inhumane act of knowingly causing prolonged starvation.”

According to VOA, the last time the council discussed North Korea’s human rights was at an informal, “Arria” style meeting in March. China objected to it, saying it was not constructive and would not ease tensions on the Korean Peninsula and blocked the consensus necessary to broadcast it on the United Nations website. (ANI)

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