Category Archive: North Korea

South Korean president Lee Myung-bak has dropped the requirement that North Korea apologize for the torpedo attack that sank the Cheonan warship this past March, killing 47 sailors. The apology has frequently been cited as mandatory to the resumption of Six Party Talks between the divided Koreas, China, USA, Japan and Russia. North Korea has maintained a hard stance, denying responsibility despite damning evidence from an international panel reviewing the Cheonan wreckage. Many times the North Koreans have walked out on discussions after an apology was demanded, and the DPRK has even offered to help with their own investigation and offering evidence to prove their innocence. Myung-bak declined to comment on whether the apology was still a requirement, but an aide close to the president states that it was “not a precondition to resuming the talks.”

Source: The New York Times

The Cheong Wa Dae, otherwise known as the Blue House, South Korea’s parallel to the USA’s White House, is apparently being data scraped by North Korean sources for information regarding the G20 summit beginning November 11th in Seoul. While nothing sensitive has yet been compromised, authorities are keeping a close eye on the attempts. Fears of North Korean provocation are mounting as the world’s eyes are on the South during the meeting of world leaders. No mention of actual security breaches are made, causing me to speculate that this is simply an incidence of North Korean sources accessing publicly accessible materials… a loose application of the “hacking” phrase commonly invoked by media organizations. UPDATE: I’m not concentrating enough today, apparently the home computers of Blue House officials have even been targeted by North Koreans. Employees are having their work computers replaced on bi-annual basis just to prevent longterm infiltration from North Korean data snoopers.

Source: The Chosun Ilbo

As the G20 summit in Seoul prepares for a November 11th kick-off, heightened security and tensions exist on the Korea peninsula. As a result, South Korean authorities are being diligent in preventing North Korean provocations during the meeting of world leaders. A North Korean fishing boat trespassing across the Northern Limit Line was met with warning shots from the SK Navy, after which the boat returned to its own side without event. DailyNK has an interesting opinion piece on whether or not North Korea will act to disrupt the G20 meeting, which can be summarized in the following quote: “Experts say that Kim Jong Il thinks being ignored is politically worse than being punished, and this is why North Korea continues to provoke the outside world despite the fact that it does not appear to be a profitable course of action.”

Source: Korea JoongAng Daily and DailyNK

In a statement likely to rile up conspiracy theorists, KCNA state-run media reports that it is ready to provide Seoul with a sample of its torpedos as proof that it did not sink the Cheonan in March of this year. The argument from the North is that their torpedoes are made from a steel alloy, whereas most torpedoes throughout the world are made from aluminum. The North described the multi-national investigative report on the cause of the sinking as the “most hideous conspiratorial farce in history”. Here is a link to the full report from KCNA (very long!).

Source: Yahoo! News via AFP / KCNA