Tag: N. Korea

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S. Korea Stages Air Drills Near N. Korea

Seoul :The F35-A radar-evading fighters of the South Korean and U.S. air forces make a joint sortie during an allied air drill that ran from July 11 to July 14, in this undated photo released by the South Korean Air Force..(Photo:Yonhap/IANS)

About 20 fighter jets, including F-35A stealth fighters, drilled near the inter-Korean border…reports Asian Lite news

South Korea’s military on Monday staged an air exercise near the border with North Korea in response to the latter’s planned launch of what it claims to be a military spy satellite.

Around 20 fighter jets, including F-35A stealth fighters, conducted the drills in a central region south of a no-fly-zone near the inter-Korean border, the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said, hours after North Korea notified Japan of its plan to launch a space rocket carrying a satellite between Monday and midnight of June 3, Yonhap news agency reported.

“This strike package exercise was conducted to demonstrate the resolve and capabilities to punish immediately, strongly, and until the end, if the enemy undertakes a provocation,” the JCS said.

North Korea’s notice came before South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, Chinese Premier Li Qiang, and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida held a trilateral meeting in Seoul on Monday.

Yoon and Kishida have called on North Korea to cease its launch plan.

According to Kyodo News, North Korea designated three areas where debris will fall — two west of the Korean Peninsula and the other east of the Philippines’ island of Luzon.

Pyongyang has made public a plan to launch three more satellites this year following its first military reconnaissance satellite launch in November.

The launch plan comes despite international criticism that any launch using ballistic missile technology violates UN Security Council resolutions.

“North Korea’s purported military spy satellite launch is a provocative act that breaches the UN Security Council resolutions, and our military will implement measures that demonstrate our powerful capability and determination,” JCS spokesperson Col. Lee Sung-jun said in a press statement.

Last week, the South Korean military said it had detected apparent signs of Pyongyang preparing for a military spy satellite launch at a launch site on its west coast.

Observers said that North Korea appears intent on securing intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) assets as it is far behind the allies in ISR capabilities despite its focus on developing an array of formidable weapons systems, including submarine-launched ballistic missiles and tactical nuclear arms.

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 N. Korea tests underwater nuclear weapons system

The KCNA did not disclose details, including the weapons’s specifications and the test date…reports Asian Lite News

North Korea on Friday said it has tested an underwater nuclear weapons system under development in response to the latest maritime trilateral drills involving South Korea, the US and Japan.

According to Pyongyang’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), North Korean Defence Ministry said the country conducted an important test of the Haeil-5-23 in the East Sea, denouncing this week’s naval drills involving a US nuclear aircraft carrier as “reckless confrontation hysteria”.

The KCNA did not disclose details, including the weapons’s specifications and the test date, reports Yonhap News Agency.

“Our army’s underwater nuke-based countering posture is being further rounded off, and its various maritime and underwater responsive actions will continue to deter the hostile military maneuvers of the navies of the US and its allies,” a spokesman of the Ministry said in a statement carried by the KCNA.

The official condemned the three nations for “seriously threatening the security” of North Korea and sternly warned of “catastrophic consequences” for their acts, the report said.

South Korea, the US and Japan jointly conducted naval drills involving the USS Carl Vinson nuclear-powered aircraft carrier from Monday to Wednesday, following Pyongyang’s latest launch of a hypersonic missile.

Pyongyang has long denounced joint military drills between Seoul and Washington as a rehearsal for an invasion.

In March last year, North Korea first made public a test of its underwater attack drone, the Haeil-1, claiming the “secret weapon” is capable of generating a “radioactive tsunami” and stealthily attacking enemies.

In April, the country carried out a test of the Haeil-2 attack drone.

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Austin concerned over US soldier ‘detained’ by N. Korea

The service member is a junior enlisted soldier who was assigned to US Forces Korea and had been on the Joint Security Area (JSA) tour as a civilian…reports Asian Lite News

United States Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin expressed concern over the US soldier who is believed to be detained by North Korea after “willfully and without authorization” crossing the military border.

“What I can confirm is…we are very early in this event and there’s a lot we are still trying to learn. What we do know is that one of our service members who was on a tour, wilfully and without authorisation crossed into the military demarcation line. We believe that he is in the PRK custody,” the Secretary of Defence said during the briefing. He added, “So we are closely monitoring and investigating the situation, and working to notify the soldier’s next of kin and engaging to address the situation…I am absolutely foremost concerned about the welfare of our troops. So, we will remain focussed on this”.

Earlier, CNN reported citing an official that the soldier had been facing disciplinary action by the US military and was set to be sent back to the United States.

The service member is a junior enlisted soldier who was assigned to US Forces Korea and had been on the Joint Security Area (JSA) tour as a civilian.

There was no indication the soldier was trying to defect, a separate US official said, as per CNN.

Earlier, North Korea accused the US of illegally flying over the economic zone eight times and warned of counter-action, state media Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported.

Kim Yo Jong, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s sister and a key ruling party official, in a press statement said, “In case of repeated illegal intrusion, the US forces will experience a very critical flight.”

She also claimed that South Korea had again impudently taken the lead in denying the encroachment on North Korea’s sovereignty and still the nation assert that it was a “normal flight of the ‘ROK’ and the US”.

“The strategic reconnaissance plane of the US Air Force illegally intruded into the economic water zone of the DPRK side in the East Sea of Korea eight times in the sky above the sea of 435 km east of Thongchon of Kangwon Province~276 km southeast of Uljin of North Kyongsang Province from 5:15 to 13:10 on July 10, to commit an aerial espionage act,” Kim Yo Jong said.

However, the Pentagon earlier brushed aside Pyongyang’s accusations of airspace violations and said the US military had adhered to international law.

“The United States, as always, remains committed to safely and responsibly flying, sailing, and operating anywhere that international law allows and alongside our allies and partners,” Sabrina Singh, Deputy Pentagon Press Secretary said in a media briefing.

The US, from time to time, had condemned North Korea’s ballistic missile launch. Us said that they condemned the destabilizing ballistic missile launches of North Korea, which violate relevant UN Security Council resolutions and pose a grave threat to international peace and security. (ANI)

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N. Korea threatens to down US spy planes

North Korea condemned the planned deployment of US strategic nuclear assets, considering it blatant nuclear blackmail that poses a serious threat to regional and global security….reports Asian Lite News

North Korea issued a strong warning, threatening to shoot down any US spy planes that violate its airspace and condemning the planned deployment of a nuclear missile submarine near the Korean peninsula.

The North Korean Ministry of National Defence accused the United States of “intensifying espionage activities beyond the wartime level” and engaging in “provocative” flights with spy aircraft. They cited past incidents and cautioned that accidents could occur if such actions continue.

Additionally, North Korea condemned the planned deployment of US strategic nuclear assets, considering it blatant nuclear blackmail that poses a serious threat to regional and global security. The statement emphasised that the situation on the Korean peninsula is approaching the brink of nuclear conflict due to perceived US military actions.

Meanwhile, South Korea’s President Yoon Suk Yeol has strengthened defence cooperation with the US, conducting joint military exercises and involving advanced stealth jets and strategic assets.

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US calls for UN meet on N. Korea

This photo provided by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency on June 1, 2023, shows the launch of the North's new "Chollima-1" rocket carrying a military reconnaissance satellite, "Malligyong-1," from Tongchang-ri on the North's west coast the previous day.(Yonhap/IANS)

Washington strongly condemned the launch, asserting that it employed ballistic missile technology, thereby violating numerous U.N. Security Council resolutions….reports Asian Lite News

The United States has urgently requested a U.N. Security Council meeting on Friday to address the recent attempted satellite launch by North Korea, according to a spokesperson for the U.S. mission to the United Nations.

The North fired what it claims to be a “space launch vehicle” southward on Wednesday, but it fell into the Yellow Sea after an “abnormal flight”, according to Seoul’s military.

Washington strongly condemned the launch, asserting that it employed ballistic missile technology, thereby violating numerous U.N. Security Council resolutions. US said the action not only poses a risk of destabilising the security situation in the region but also beyond.

Nate Evans, spokesperson for the U.S. mission to the United Nations, disclosed that the United States has specifically called for an open meeting regarding the launch. This arrangement ensures that the proceedings will be streamed live for broader transparency.

Additionally, it has been revealed that Albania, Ecuador, France, Japan, Malta, and Britain jointly supported the United States’ request.

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)

Meanwhile, North Korea on Friday slammed the chiefs of the UN and the NATO, painting their criticism of Pyongyang’s spy satellite launch as interference in internal affairs.

The North’s criticism came in response to remarks by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg that condemned its launch attempt as a grave violation of Security Council resolutions, reports Yonhap News Agency.

The North’s botched attempt to launch the satellite on Wednesday goes against the resolutions banning its nuclear and missile programs, as the satellite launch shares the same technology used in ballistic missiles.

Jo Chol-su, director general of the international organization department at Pyongyang’s Foreign Ministry, claimed the UN chief’s statement breached the “sovereign rights” of a member state in an “unfair” act that interferes in domestic affairs, according to Pyongyang’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

Jo said that the North will continue to exercise its sovereign rights, including the launch of a military spy satellite, to show that the UN does not belong to the US.

In a separate statement also carried by the KCNA, Jong Kyong-chol, an international affairs analyst, slammed the NATO chief’s “provocative” remark as interfering in domestic affairs.

Jong warned that “autonomous” countries in the Asia-Pacific will exercise their “powerful force” to deter war threats unless NATO ceases to interfere in the region.

The North has vowed to “correctly” place a military reconnaissance satellite into orbit soon.

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N. Korea to launch first military spy satellite

A military reconnaissance satellite is among the high-tech weapons systems that the North’s leader vowed to develop at a key party congress in 2021…reports Asian Lite News

North Korea on Tuesday said it will launch its first military spy satellite in June in a bid to monitor “dangerous military activity” by the US and South Korea in real time.

The North disclosed the timing of its planned launch through state media, a day after it notified Japan of its plan to launch a satellite between May 31 and June 11, reports Yonhap News Agency.

In a statement carried by Pyongyang’s Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), Ri Pyong-chol, vice chairman of the Central Military Commission of the ruling Worker’s Party of Korea, said the North’s satellite reconnaissance is an “indispensable” act to bolster its self-defence capabilities against the enemies’ “reckless military exercises”.

The North’s spy satellite to be launched in June and various reconnaissance means to be newly tested are “indispensable to tracking, monitoring, discriminating, controlling and coping with in advance in real time the dangerous military acts” of the US and South Korea, Ri said in the statement.

He also vowed to “expand reconnaissance and information means and improve various defensive and offensive weapons and have the timetables for carrying out their development plans”, without elaborating on details.

Earlier this month, North Korea announced the completion of preparations to mount its first military spy satellite on a rocket, with leader Kim Jong-un approving the “future action plan”.

A military reconnaissance satellite is among the high-tech weapons systems that the North’s leader vowed to develop at a key party congress in 2021, along with a solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) and a nuclear-powered submarine.

South Korea “strongly” warned against North Korea’s planned satellite launch on Monday, vowing to make Pyongyang pay “due prices” if it goes ahead with the launch.

The North’s proposed satellite launch would violate a series of UN Security Council (UNSC) resolutions banning its nuclear and missile programs, as it uses the same technology used in ballistic missiles.

In December last year, the North conducted an “important, final-stage” test for the development of a spy satellite and released black-and-white photos of South Korean cities that were shot by its “test satellite” from space.

The North last launched the “Kwangmyongsong-4”, an Earth-observation satellite, in February 2016, claiming it has the right to develop “peaceful” space programs.

In April, North Korea fired a solid-fuel ICBM for the first time, after launching more than 70 ballistic missiles last year alone, the most in a single year.

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Kishida wants to initiate talks with N. Korea to release abductees

The Japanese government has publicly identified 17 of its citizens as being abducted by North Korea, and it suspects Pyongyang is involved in a number of other disappearances….reports Asian Lite News

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Saturday said that he wants to initiate senior-level conversations between Japan and North Korea in order to schedule a meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on the return of Japanese abductees as soon as possible, Kyodo News reported.

In remarks at a meeting in Tokyo seeking the return of Japanese people abducted by North Korea in the 1970s and 1980s, Kishida reiterated his commitment to holding unconditional discussions with Kim “at the earliest opportunity.” “His government will seek to arrange dialogue with Pyongyang “at a high level under my direct control” in order to pave the road for talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, Kishida said, as per Kyodo News.

Kyodo News is Japan’s new agency that emphasises on Japanese and Asian viewpoints, our coverage ranges from political, economic and societal developments to sports, arts and culture.

The Japanese government has publicly identified 17 of its citizens as being abducted by North Korea, and it suspects Pyongyang is involved in a number of other disappearances. Although five persons were returned in 2002, the remaining 12 are still missing.

Kishida also told the public that building constructive relations with Pyongyang would “be to the benefit of both sides, and would be an enormous contribution to regional stability and peace.”

According to a government source, as quoted by Kyodo News, the prime minister has demonstrated that “he is ready to speak with North Korea.”

With many missing people’s families ageing, the issue has become increasingly pressing under Kishida’s leadership, which began in 2021.

The National Association for the Rescue of Japanese Kidnapped by North Korea stated in February that it would not oppose humanitarian help to the country if it meant the abductees would be returned, indicating a willingness to compromise in order to achieve their goals, Kyodo News reported. (ANI)

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US sanctions N. Korea over ‘malicious cyber & illicit IT workforce’

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken testifies before the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington. (Photo by Ting Shen/Xinhua/IANS)

Secretary of State Antony Blinken stated that the targeted organisations generate revenue by illicitly acquiring funds from global financial institutions and other entities….reports Asian Lite News

The US government has announced the imposition of new sanctions on North Korean groups involved in raising funds for Pyongyang’s weapons programs through hacking.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken stated that the targeted organisations generate revenue by illicitly acquiring funds from global financial institutions and other entities.

The Treasury Department also revealed that North Korea dispatches numerous tech workers abroad to engage in malicious cyber activities supporting the government.

The sanctions primarily focus on four organizations, including the Pyongyang University of Automation and the Chinyong Information Technology Cooperation Company.

Additionally, the Technical Reconnaissance Bureau and the 110th Research Centre, responsible for cyber tactics and targeting media and defence companies, were also subjected to sanctions.

Kim Sang Man, identified as a paymaster based in Vladivostok, Russia, was also sanctioned.

“Furthermore, Kim has been involved in the sale and transfer of IT equipment for the DPRK and, as recently as 2021, received cryptocurrency funds transfers from IT teams located in China and Russia that were valued at more than $2 million USD,” the Treasury Department said in a statement.

“Kim maintained awareness of cryptocurrency payments from a company under his leadership that were being sent to the DPRK. Kim has been affiliated with the U.S.-designated Korea Computer Centre and worked as an IT developer in the DPRK prior to being selected as an agent of the UN- and U.S.-designated RGB, in order to earn foreign currency,” the statement added.

The US actions were taken in coordination with South Korea to address North Korea’s persistent efforts to illegally acquire funds and combat cyber theft.

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