Tag: Kim Jong-un

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Is North Korea gearing up for a nuclear test?

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, wearing a white marshal uniform, waves to soldiers during a photo session on April 27, 2022.(Yonhap/IANS)

The United States said it is aware of reports that North Korea is ready to conduct a nuclear test and deems it a violation of international law, reports Asian Lite News

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un stressed the need to bolster the country’s military power to “pre-emptively and thoroughly contain” nuclear threats from hostile forces, Pyongyang’s state media reported on Saturday.

He met top military commanders who organised a massive street parade in Pyongyang earlier this week, the North’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said in a report.

Kim was quoted as calling on his military commanders to maintain the “absolute superiority” of the armed forces and constantly develop in order to “pre-emptively and thoroughly contain and frustrate all dangerous attempts and threatening moves, including ever-escalating nuclear threats from hostile forces, if necessary”, Yonhap News Agency cited the KCNA report as saying.

He emphasised that the “tremendous offensive power and the overwhelming military muscle” that can’t be beaten is the “lifeline” for security guarantee in the current world where a force clashes with another fiercely and strength is needed to preserve “dignity, rights and interests”, the report added.

Kim also called on the military leaders to “boldly open up a new stage of development” of the armed forces during the meeting held at the office building of the Workers’ Party of Korea (WPK) Central Committee in Pyongyang.

The KCNA did not specify the date of the event.

The parade was held in the North’s capital Monday to celebrate the 90th founding anniversary of the Korean People’s Revolutionary Army (KPRA), during which strategic weapons including the Hwangsong-17 intercontinental ballistic missile and a new submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) were showcased.

North Korean soldiers unfold a North Korean flag during a military parade at Kim Il-sung Square in Pyongyang on Sept. 9, 2021, to celebrate the 73rd anniversary of the country’s founding, in this photo released by the North’s official Korean Central News Agency.(Yonhap/IANS)

At the parade, Kim vowed to further strengthen his regime’s nuclear capabilities and warned any forces that seek to violate the “fundamental interests” of the North will be met with the country’s nuclear forces.

US warns Pyongyang

The United States is aware of reports that North Korea is ready to conduct a nuclear test and deems it a violation of international law, State Department deputy spokeswoman Jalina Porter said on Friday.

“We are aware of reports that the DPRK [the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea] is ready to conduct a nuclear test, it is a violation of the international law. We urge the DPRK to refrain from destabilizing activities,” she said.

Over 10 years in power, the North Korean leader has conducted more than 100 missile launches, including intercontinental launches, and four nuclear tests. During his 10-year tenure, his farther Kim Jong Il carried out 16 missile launches and two nuclear tests.

ALSO READ: US, S. Korea vow ‘decisive response’ to N. Korea’s actions

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Kim inspects weapons test to enhance nuke capabilities

The test-fire was carried out successfully,” it added without giving other details of the tested weapon, including its type..reports Asian Lite News

 North Korean leader Kim Jong-un oversaw the successful test-firing of a new tactical guided weapon meaningful in improving the efficiency of tactical nuclear operations, Pyongyang’s state media announced Sunday.

The new weapon system is “of great significance in drastically improving the firepower of the frontline long-range artillery units and enhancing the efficiency in the operation of tactical nukes of the DPRK and diversification of their firepower missions,” the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said. The DPRK is the acronym for the North’s official name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.

“The test-fire was carried out successfully,” it added without giving other details of the tested weapon, including its type, Yonhap news agency reported.

South Korea’s military said later that it detected the North’s launch of two projectiles into the East Sea at 6 p.m. Saturday (local time). They flew 110 km at an apogee of around 25 km and a top speed of Mach 4, it added.

Immediately after the launch, the presidential National Security Office, military and intelligence agencies held an emergency meeting to discuss it, according to the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Observers here say the North seems to have tested a newly developed heavy artillery system or upgraded KN-23 missiles — its own version of the US’ Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS).

Photos released by the KCNA show that the transporter erector launcher (TEL) has two tubes, while the tactical weapon itself bears an external resemblance to the KN-23 missile, modeled after Russia’s Iskander ballistic missile. The North might have modified the missile to be fit for multiple TEL tubes.

The KN-23 is known to have a flight range of 400 to 600 km that can target South Korea. Rather than following a general parabolic trajectory, the missile shows a more complicated path by doing a so-called pull-up maneuver over the course of its flight.

Inspecting the latest launch, Kim gave important instructions on “further building up the defense capabilities and nuclear combat forces of the country,” the KCNA reported.

Kim highly praised the national defense scientific research sector for its “continuous successes in attaining the core goals of securing the war deterrent” set forth at the eighth party congress last year.

He then clarified that the long-term plan for the ruling party’s central committee is to bolster up the defense capabilities of the country.

During the Workers’ Party congress in January last year, the North laid out plans to advance its weapons, including developing tactical nuclear weapons, hypersonic gliding flight warheads, nuclear-powered submarines and reconnaissance satellites, among others.

The North’s latest test-launch comes as South Korea and the United States prepare to kick off their major springtime combined training on Monday. Concerns have grown that Pyongyang may conduct another nuclear test in the near future.

It marks the country’s 13th known flight test of projectiles this year, and the first since Pyongyang fired what it claims to be a Hwasong-17 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) last month.

On Friday, the North also commemorated the 110th birth anniversary of its founder Kim Il-sung with massive celebratory events, but there has been no report of a military parade.

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Kim congratulates Xi on Olympics with a jibe at US

Kim made the remarks in a verbal message to Chinese President Xi Jinping, congratulating him on the successful completion of the Beijing Olympics…reports Asian Lite News

North Korea’s Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un has pledged to boost cooperation with China and together “crush” threats and hostile policies from the United States and its allies, state media reported on Tuesday.

Kim made the remarks in a verbal message to Chinese President Xi Jinping, congratulating him on the successful completion of the Beijing Olympics, state news agency KCNA said.

Meanwhile, after an Olympics spokeswoman used a news event for remarks on Taiwan and Xinjiang, Taipei rebuked Chinese ‘propaganda’ at Beijing Winter Olympics.

Yan Jiarong, a spokeswoman for the Beijing Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games (BOCOG), on Thursday, spoke of China’s position regarding Taiwan at a news conference attended by International Olympic Committee (IOC) spokesman Mark Adams, reported Taipei Times.

“What I want to say is that there is only one China in the world. Taiwan is an inalienable part of China. This is a widely recognized principle of international relations and a consensus in international society,” the former UN envoy said.

Chinese President Xi Jinping

Yan also responded similarly to questions concerning Xinjiang, calling reports about forced labour camps in the region “a lie” told by “some groups with malicious intentions,” reported Taipei Times.

Rebuking China, the Taiwan government said that Beijing is for using Winter Olympics to assert its claims of sovereignty over Taiwan, saying that China had “cast a shadow” over the peaceful spirit of the event to spread propaganda.

The Ministry also criticized China for spreading “inappropriate” political propaganda at the Olympics, saying that Beijing had breached the rule of political neutrality enshrined in the Olympic Charter.

“No kind of demonstration or political, religious or racial propaganda is permitted in any Olympic sites, venues or other areas,” the charter says.

Mainland Affairs Council said that “the people of Taiwan firmly oppose” Beijing’s “one China” principle, reported Taipei Times.

“The Republic of China is a sovereign state, and Taiwan has never been part of the People’s Republic of China,” the council said, adding that it condemned China for interfering with international sports activities by asserting its politics.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs also rejected Yan’s claims as untrue and said that the remarks “undermined the integrity of Taiwan’s sovereignty,” reported Taipei Times.

Yan’s comments have also caused concern for IOC president Thomas Bach, who sidestepped questions about Xinjiang at the Games’ opening ceremony, citing political neutrality, reported Taipei Times.

“We were in touch with BOCOG immediately after this press conference,” the New York Times cited Bach as saying on Thursday.

“Both organizations, BOCOG and the IOC, have restated the unequivocal commitment to remain politically neutral, as it is required by the Olympic Charter,” said IOC president, reported Taipei Times. (with inputs from ANI)

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Kim Jong-un visits mausoleum of grandfather, father to mark New Year

Kim Jong-un visits mausoleum of grandfather, father to mark New Year

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un visited the mausoleum of his late grandfather and father in his first reported public activity this year…reports Asian Lite News

Kim paid tribute at the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun, where the bodies of state founder and his grandfather Kim Il-sung and his father, Kim Jong-il, are enshrined, on the occasion of the start of the new year, according to Pyongyang’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

The visit to the mausoleum came after he unveiled this year’s policy priorities on developing the national economy and bolstering anti-virus efforts during a rare five-day meeting of the ruling Workers’ Party held until the last day of 2021, reports Yonhap News Agency.

The leader’s influential sister, Kim Yo-jong, was spotted paying tribute to the statues of the late leaders.

ALSO READ: Kim Jong-un urges US to end hostile policy

Senior party and military officials accompanied Kim Jong-un on his visit to the mausoleum, including Choe Ryong-hae, the country’s de facto No. 2 leader, and Jo Yong-won, the leader’s close aide, according to the KCNA.

Kim Jong-un has paid tribute to the palace on New Year’s Day since taking office in late 2011, except in 2018.

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Biden is the most searched politician online

Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel ranked fourth with 1.4 million searches, reports Yonhap News Agency…reports Asian Lite News.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un ranked the third most searched politician by internet users worldwide this year, data showed on Tuesday.

Online searches for Kim totalled a monthly average of 1.9 million, behind US President Joe Biden, who topped the list with 7 million searches, and UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson with 2 million, according to German data analytics firm Statista.

Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel ranked fourth with 1.4 million searches, reports Yonhap News Agency.

The most searched keyword related to the North Korean leader this year was “weight loss”, separate analysis by Google Trends found.

In June, the 37-year-old Kim appeared at a politburo session appearing to have lost a significant amount of weight, raising speculation about his health and sparking keen public interest.

South Korea’s state intelligence agency told lawmakers in October that Kim has lost around 20 kg from a weight of about 140 kg but appears to have no major health problem.

ALSO READ-Kim Jong-un urges US to end hostile policy