Articles by Jo He-rim
Jo He-rim
herim@heraldcorp.com-
North Korea again designated as food-deficit nation by FAO
The Food and Agriculture Organization has once again designated North Korea as a food-deficit country in need of external aid. The UN agency also announced a weak outlook for food security in North Korea. In its latest report released Wednesday, FAO included North Korea on its list of 42 countries that need external assistance in food resources, according to Voice of America, a US-based news outlet, on Friday. North Korea is expected to experience food shortages and an economic slump, said
North Korea Dec. 6, 2019
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[Newsmaker] 2 military intelligence officers investigated for alleged rape of N. Korean defector
Two Defense Intelligence Command officers are being investigated by the military prosecution for allegedly raping a North Korean defector multiple times, the Defense Ministry confirmed Thursday. The North Korean defector brought charges against a first sergeant surnamed Kim and a lieutenant colonel surnamed Sung, both working for the DIC, for repeated offences that took place over a period of more than a year. The Defense Ministry’s Criminal Investigation Command in late November ref
Defense Dec. 5, 2019
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Pyongyang to hold party meeting ahead of year-end deadline
North Korea will hold a plenary meeting around the end of December to decide on “crucial issues,” its state-run news agency said Wednesday.On the same day, the Korean Central News Agency reported that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un rode up Paektusan on a white horse accompanied by military commanders, raising speculation that the communist regime may take more provocative military actions as the year-end deadline it set for denuclearization talks with the US quickly approaches.North
North Korea Dec. 4, 2019
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US cyber commander in Seoul for ‘important, timely’ discussion
Paul Nakasone, US director of the National Security Agency, has arrived in South Korea to discuss the two countries’ alliance and cyber cooperation, government officials here confirmed Tuesday. On Tuesday morning, Nakasone, who is also the commander of the US Cyber Command, met with Chun Jung-soo, commander for Korea’s Cyber Operations Command, to discuss reinforcing cooperation in the area of cybersecurity, a military official said. Earlier in the day, US Ambassador to South Korea H
Defense Dec. 3, 2019
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North Korea warns US year-end deadline is approaching
North Korea’s Foreign Ministry once again pressed the US for a decision on their denuclearization talks on Tuesday, ahead of the year-end deadline given by the regime. In a statement issued by Ri Thae-song, North Korea’s vice minister of foreign affairs in charge of US affairs, Pyongyang criticized the US for using their denuclearization negotiations to influence domestic politics.“The US is keen on earning time needed for it, talking about the ‘sustained and substantial
North Korea Dec. 3, 2019
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NK defectors caught in Vietnam face risk of deportation
Seoul’s Foreign Ministry has come under fire for its handling of a case involving North Korean defectors who were caught while attempting to flee to South Korea via Vietnam and who possibly face deportation to North Korea. A human rights group has accused the Foreign Ministry of lack of action, but the ministry said it has been working on the case since it was reported.On Friday, about 10 North Korean defectors were caught for the second time by Vietnamese guards in Lang Son at the border
North Korea Dec. 2, 2019
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[Herald Interview] ‘We will support conscientious objectors in fulfilling alternative service’
Ki Chan-soo, the commissioner for the Military Manpower Administration, vowed support for conscientious objectors, highlighting the MMA’s change of role with the upcoming introduction of an alternative form of service.The chief of the military recruitment agency also asserted that a corruption-free draft system must be maintained, touching on the controversies surrounding the enlistment of K-pop stars and celebrities, such as Big Bang’s Seungri and the members of boy group BTS.&ldquo
Defense Dec. 2, 2019
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Exiled uncle of Kim Jong-un back in N. Korea: NIS
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s exiled uncle has been recalled to his home country after having spent decades as an envoy in Europe, according to reports Sunday. Lawmakers of South Korea’s parliamentary intelligence committee and National Intelligence Service chief Suh Hoon reportedly confirmed that Kim Pyong-il, North Korea’s top envoy to the Czech Republic, has returned to Pyongyang. The NIS had said early last month that Pyong-il would be replaced and return to North Korea
North Korea Dec. 1, 2019
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Opposition floor leader takes flak over remarks on US-N. Korea summit made on US trip
The floor leader of the main opposition Liberty Korea Party came under fire Thursday after it was reported that she had expressed concerns to the US that holding a US-North Korea summit before South Korea’s general elections might have a negative impact. On Wednesday, a local broadcaster reported that Rep. Na Kyung-won had asked US officials not to hold a US-North Korea summit before April 15, when South Korea’s general elections will take place. The US officials reportedly included
Politics Nov. 28, 2019
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[Newsmaker] North Korean merchant vessel accidentally crosses maritime border: JCS
A North Korean merchant vessel crossed the de facto maritime border into South Korean waters in the Yellow Sea on Wednesday and was headed northward and expected to fully cross the de facto maritime border into the north around midnight, Seoul’s military said. According to the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the military detected an unidentified ship that crossed the Northern Limit Line and entered South Korean waters on the northwestern side of Baengnyeong Island at 6:40 a.m. At around 12:30 p.m.,
North Korea Nov. 27, 2019
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Seoul lodges complaint against Pyongyang for live firing drill near maritime border
South Korea has lodged an official complaint against Pyongyang for conducting a live firing drill on an island inside the buffer zone near the de facto maritime border, Seoul’s Defense Ministry said Tuesday. North Korea’s state-operated Korean Central News Agency reported Monday that its leader Kim Jong-un had ordered a firing drill involving coastal artilleries on the Changrin Islets, just north of the Northern Limit Line in the Yellow Sea. As the live firing exercise took place ins
North Korea Nov. 26, 2019
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Pyongyang’s artillery drill near sea border violates inter-Korean agreement: Seoul
South Korea on Monday denounced Pyongyang’s artillery drill conducted on an islet near the de facto maritime border, saying it violated an inter-Korean military agreement. North Korea’s Korean Central News Agency reported earlier in the day that its leader Kim Jong-un had ordered a firing drill involving coastal artilleries on Changrin Islets, just north of the Northern Limit Line in the Yellow Sea.Kim conducted field guidance for a military unit there, to highlight the importance of
North Korea Nov. 25, 2019
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Groundwork laid for negotiation on Tokyo’s trade curbs, GSOMIA: Kang
South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha said Friday the “groundwork” has been laid for South Korea to persuade Japan to withdraw its trade curbs against Seoul, after the two agreed on measures that delayed the final decision on the ongoing row over a military intelligence-sharing pact.Speaking to reporters just before departing to Nagoya, Japan to attend a foreign ministerial meeting of Group of 20 nations, Kang also said Seoul’s position has not changed much. “
Foreign Affairs Nov. 22, 2019
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No military exemption for BTS under new government proposal
K-pop group BTS will not be exempted from military duty, the government said Thursday, announcing a new amendment to the military service law.All able-bodied young Korean men are required to serve in the military for about two years, with limited exemptions offered for those with outstanding achievements in sports and arts that “raise the national profile,” under the Military Service Act.There have been criticisms that the exemption system is unfair in excluding pop musicians, such a
Defense Nov. 21, 2019
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Security cooperation still possible even after GSOMIA ends, says Moon
As an intelligence-sharing pact with Japan is set to expire at midnight Friday, South Korean President Moon Jae-in underscored that Tokyo has given Seoul just cause to terminate the agreement. Speaking at a televised question-and-answer session Tuesday, Moon also said he would work until the last minute with Japan to avoid the termination of the 2016 General Security of Military Information Agreement -- but that Tokyo still has to act first to normalize trade.In August, Korea announced its decis
Foreign Affairs Nov. 20, 2019
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