by WorldTribune Staff, August 28, 2018 Three South Korean firms imported North Korean coal from Russia in apparent violations of UN sanctions, according to South Korea’s spy chief. Suh Hoon, the chief of South Korea’s National Intelligence Service (NIS), told lawmakers at a closed-door meeting on Aug. 28 that the NIS reported the coal shipments […]
by WorldTribune Staff, July 19, 2018 Two ships transporting North Korean coal have entered South Korean ports several times since October of last year, including in the last two months, Voice of America (VOA) reported on July 19. Under UN Resolution 2371, North Korea is banned from exporting minerals, including coal. South Korea’s government said […]
by WorldTribune Staff, July 10, 2018 South Korea has approved rare screenings of nine North Korean films during the upcoming Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival (BIFAN) near Seoul. The cultural breakthrough is in the spirit of relaxed tensions following the summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and Kim Jong-Un, inheritor of the communist dynasty launched […]
by WorldTribune Staff, June 28, 2018 The UN’s special rapporteur on human rights will travel to South Korea next week in an effort to engage in talks on human rights in the North. Tomas Ojea Quintana, who will begin an eight-day visit on July 2, also called for the issue of human rights in North […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk The U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) is going through agonizing changes. Cancellation of joint U.S.-South Korean war games is not the only sign of the shifting U.S. military role. The USFK and the United Nations Command have just staged a colorful ceremony at Camp Humphreys, an expanding base that now […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk The most obvious lesson of the Singapore summit is that “complete denuclearization” is mission impossible. The North Koreans since then haven’t used the “n” word ― “n” for nuclear ― while talking in generalities about the need to respect everyone’s “sovereignty” along with the statement signed by President Donald […]
Special to WorldTribune By Miles Maochun Yu, Hoover Institution In the ancient Chinese military strategy classic, Questions and Replies between Tang Taizong and Li Weigong, the great Tang Dynasty Emperor Taizong of the 7th century famously ruminated that, “In war, we prefer the position of the host to that of the guest.” In essence, Emperor […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk The Pentagon has reluctantly followed the orders of President Donald Trump and cancelled the next set of military exercises that U.S. and South Korea forces were to have staged jointly in August. U.S. Defense Department in Washington announced the decision simultaneously with South Korea’s ministry of national defense after […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By John J. Metzler UNITED NATIONS — The road from Singapore becomes a longer process as substance and specifics must follow the highly stylistic Summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean Chairman Kim Jong-Un. Nonetheless given the state of U.S./North Korean relations just six moths ago, the historic meeting between an […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk SINGAPORE – U.S. and South Korean military people are deeply concerned about the prospect of giving up joint military exercises while the presidents of both their countries remain convinced that North Korea’s leader Kim Jong-Un is really going to get rid of his nuclear program. Senior members of the […]