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☆ North Korea's new missile sub looks kind of shoddy, but the US and its allies can't afford to ignore it
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-13 | by ( Chris Panella | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

On Friday, North Korea's state media announced the launch of its new "Korean-style" ballistic missile submarine. It's possibly the same Romeo sub that was being reworked when Kim visited the shipyard in July 2019. North Korea acquired some of them from China but also built some of its own. It also shows that North Korea is actively prioritizing new nuclear capabilities for its Navy. Although work would go slowly, it'll give North Korea another way to add to its nuclear strike power.

Persons: Kim Kun, Kim Jong, Kim, Bryan Clark, Tom Shugart, submariner, it's, it'll, Clark Organizations: Service, North, Sinpho, Shipyard, US Navy, Hudson Institute, Reuters, Korean, Navy Locations: Korea, North Korea, Wall, Silicon, South Korea, Japan, Koreans, Soviet Union, China, Korean

☆ Explainer-Inside North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un's Armoured Train
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-12 | by ( Sept. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +3 min

It is unclear how many trains North Korean leaders have used over the years, but Ahn Byung-min, a South Korean expert on North Korean transportation, said multiple trains were needed for security reasons. "Even if it is slow, train is safer and more comfortable than anything else for a North Korean leader," Ahn said. In the 2002 book "Orient Express", Russian official Konstantin Pulikovsky described a three-week journey to Moscow by Kim Jong Il, Kim Jong Un's father and predecessor. The wheels of Kim Jong Un's train must be changed in Russia or a North Korean station bordering Russia, because the two countries use different rail gauges, Ahn said. The train was "a sweet home and an office," for Kim Jong Il, state television has said.

Persons: Kim Jong, Kim, Putin, Ahn Byung, Ahn, " Ahn, Konstantin Pulikovsky, Kim Jong Il, Georgy Toloraya, Toloraya, Kim Il Sung, Kim's, Kim family's, Josh Smith, Gerry Doyle Organizations: North, NK News, WHO, THE Locations: SEOUL, Russia, China, Vietnam, Korean, North Korean, Moscow, Bordeaux, Beaujolais, Paris, Russian, North Korea, Koreans

☆ Inside North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's armoured train
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-12 | by ( Ju-Min Park | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un waves from a private train as he departs Pyongyang, North Korea, to visit Russia, September 10, 2023, in this image released by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency on September 12, 2023. It is unclear how many trains North Korean leaders have used over the years, but Ahn Byung-min, a South Korean expert on North Korean transportation, said multiple trains were needed for security reasons. "Even if it is slow, train is safer and more comfortable than anything else for a North Korean leader," Ahn said. In the 2002 book "Orient Express", Russian official Konstantin Pulikovsky described a three-week journey to Moscow by Kim Jong Il, Kim Jong Un's father and predecessor. The wheels of Kim Jong Un's train must be changed in Russia or a North Korean station bordering Russia, because the two countries use different rail gauges, Ahn said.

Persons: Kim Jong, Kim, Putin, Ahn Byung, Ahn, " Ahn, Konstantin Pulikovsky, Kim Jong Il, Georgy Toloraya, Toloraya, Kim Il Sung, Kim's, Kim family's, Josh Smith, Gerry Doyle Organizations: North, Korean Central News Agency, KCNA, REUTERS Acquire, Rights, NK News, WHO, THE, Thomson Locations: Pyongyang, North Korea, Russia, Rights SEOUL, China, Vietnam, Korean, North Korean, Moscow, Bordeaux, Beaujolais, Paris, Russian, Koreans

While China has sent a delegation led by Vice Premier Liu Guozhong to the North Korea's anniversary celebrations, Russia sent a military song and dance group. KCNA said Kim received letters from Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping on the anniversary, where both leaders said that their countries’ strengthening ties with North Korea would contribute to the region’s peace and stability. State media did not mention whether Kim made a speech during the parade, indicating that he likely didn't. A day before the parade, Kim took Shoigu on a tour of a domestic arms exhibition, which demonstrated North Korea’s support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and added to suspicions the North was willing to supply arms to Russia. In exchange for providing Russia with artillery shells and other ammunition, North Korea could seek badly needed energy and food aid and advanced weapons technologies, analysts say.

Persons: Kim Jong, Kim, Vladimir Putin, Liu Guozhong, Putin, KCNA, Xi Jinping, Kim Il, —, Liu, United States ’, Sergei Shoigu, Li Hongzhong Organizations: North, Washington, Guards, Red Guards, Analysts, United, Russian Defense, Communist Party Locations: SEOUL, South Korea, North Korea, Moscow, Beijing, Washington, Pyongyang, Russia, Ukraine, China, Kim, Vladivostok, Korea, Koreans, United States, Japan, Seoul, Tokyo

“But in terms of the logic of North Korea, they make sense." Worrisome possible outcomes include Russia helping North Korea beef up “its pretty antiquated ... museum-ready” conventional forces or its weapons of mass destruction, Seiler said. “North Korea was clearly developing capabilities that would enhance its position vis-à-vis South Korea. ‘I WAS BROUGHT TO TEARS'Among his experiences in North Korea that stood out, Seiler pointed to watching a landmark 1983 Korean television show. Unscripted, the show turned into an emotional, marathon, 453-hour live broadcast that reunited Korean families divided under Japanese colonization or during World War II and the Korean War.

Persons: Kim Il Sung, Syd Seiler, Seiler, Kim, Don’t, “, Kim Jong, —, Nicolae Ceausescu, Kim Jong Un, Vladimir Putin, Kim “, ” Seiler, ”, Putin, China's, ‘, it's Organizations: WASHINGTON, Associated Press, U.S, Korean, KOREA Locations: U.S, North Korea, South Korea, Romanian, Korea, RUSSIA, Russia, Ukraine, United States, Taiwan, Korean

☆ US warns North Korea would ‘pay a price’ for any arms deal with Russia
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-05 | by ( Jessie Yeung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —US officials have warned North Korea it will “pay a price” if it strikes an arms deal with Russia, after saying that negotiations were “advancing” between the two nations. Sullivan did not elaborate on the potential repercussions for North Korea, which is already under United Nations and US sanctions imposed over Pyongyang’s weapons of mass destruction program. Kirby added that any potential new deals could include “multiple types of munitions” and raw materials from North Korea. The US and its allies are also concerned about the technology North Korea is seeking from Russia in return for weaponry, according to two US officials. North Korea is seeking technology that could advance its satellite and nuclear-powered submarine capabilities, officials said, which could significantly advance Pyongyang’s capabilities in areas the rogue regime has not fully developed.

Persons: Jake Sullivan, Sullivan, North Koreans –, they’re, ” Sullivan, Sergei Shoigu, Adrienne Watson, Kim Jong Un, Kim, Vladimir Putin, “, Putin, Jacquelyn Martin, ”, ’, Wagner, John Kirby, Kirby Organizations: CNN, House, United Nations, North Koreans, National Security Council, ”, North, New York Times, White House, AP, National Security, Korean Locations: North Korea, Russia, Pyongyang, Moscow, Ukraine, North Korean, Russian, Washington, Korea, ”, Iran, South Korea, Japan

☆ North Korea hints at tourism reopening, but doubts remain
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-02 | by ( Lilit Marcus | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

When North Korea slammed its already tight borders closed in 2020, he was one of many travel industry professionals left out in the proverbial cold. One of Cockerell’s business concerns, he says, is that a lack of search engine interest in North Korea trips could hurt his website’s visibility on Google. In 2017, the United States banned its passport holders from traveling to North Korea and has renewed this ban through at least 2024. The 2017 ban on American travel to North Korea came shortly after the death of Otto Warmbier, a recent college graduate from Ohio who participated in a Young Pioneer Tours group trip to North Korea. Warmbier was detained in North Korea in 2016 for allegedly stealing a propaganda poster and held for 17 months.

Persons: Simon Cockerell, ” Cockerell, ”, Cockerell, Kim, Otto Warmbier, Warmbier, CNN’s Paula Hancocks, Irene Nasser, Kate Springer, Yoonjung Seo Organizations: CNN, Air Koryo, of Tourism, United, DPRK, Tours, North Koreans, North Korean Locations: North Korea, North, Pyongyang, Beijing, China, Vladivostok, Russia, Koryo, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Tourism, United States, Ohio

☆ North Korea approves return of its citizens from abroad after COVID lockdown
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A North Korean flag flutters at the propaganda village of Gijungdong in North Korea, in this picture taken near the truce village of Panmunjom inside the demilitarized zone (DMZ) separating the two Koreas, South Korea, July 19, 2022. REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji/Pool Acquire Licensing RightsSEOUL, Aug 27 (Reuters) - North Korea has approved the return of its citizens who were abroad after years of strict border restrictions during the COVID pandemic, state media reported on Sunday as the isolated country cracks open its border to passenger travel. "Those returned will be put under proper medical observation at quarantine wards for a week," the statement said. Cargo train and ship traffic has slowly increased over the past year, but North Korea has only just begun to allow some international passenger travel. Many foreign delegations closed their embassies in Pyongyang because they were unable to rotate staff or ship in supplies for much of the pandemic.

Persons: Kim Hong, lockdowns, Soo, hyang Choi, Daniel Wallis Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Epidemic, Koryo, North, Thomson Locations: Gijungdong, North Korea, Panmunjom, South Korea, Rights SEOUL, Pyongyang, Beijing, China, Russian, Kazakhstan

BEIJING/SEOUL, Aug 22 (Reuters) - An Air Koryo flight from Pyongyang landed in Beijing early on Tuesday for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns began in 2020, as North Korea cracks open its border to some passenger travel. Cargo train and ship traffic has slowly increased over the past year, but North Korea has only just begun to allow some international passenger travel. Since the end of 2019, U.N. Security Council resolutions have required that all countries deport North Korean workers. The current Chinese ambassador to North Korea, Wang Yajun, had to wait 15 months after being named for the job before he could enter the country this March to take up his role. The Chinese foreign ministry said on Monday that Beijing had approved North Korea's state carrier Air Koryo resuming flights to China.

Persons: lockdowns, Koryo, Simon Cockerell, Kim Jong, Wang Yajun, Sophie Yu, Brenda Goh, Laurie Chen, Tian, Josh Smith, Jacqueline Wong, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: North, Association of Asian Studies, Air Koryo, Civil Aviation Administration, China, Air China, Thomson Locations: BEIJING, SEOUL, Pyongyang, Beijing, North Korea, China, Russian, Kazakhstan, Vladivostok, Russia, U.N, Korea's, Koryo, Seoul

☆ North Koreans Under ‘Reign of Fear,’ Starved and Forced to Work, U.N. Hears
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-17 | by ( Amanda E. Newman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

The United Nations Security Council on Thursday took up North Korea’s human rights record for the first time in six years, with officials painting a grim picture of extreme hunger, forced labor and medicine shortages in the country. The United States, which holds the rotating monthly presidency of the council, had sought the meeting along with Albania and Japan. In addition to reports from U.N. officials, delegates at the meeting heard testimony from Ilhyeok Kim, a North Korean who had fled with his family to South Korea. He described being forced to work as a child and growing up under a “reign of fear.”“The government turns our blood and sweat into a luxurious life for the leadership and missiles that blast our hard work into the sky,” he said.

Persons: Ilhyeok Kim Organizations: United Nations Security, North Locations: United States, Albania, Japan, U.N, North Korean, South Korea

CNN —North Korea on Wednesday confirmed publicly for the first time that US Army Private Travis King crossed into its territory. A statement from the country’s government-controlled Korean Central News Agency claimed King had expressed “his willingness to seek refugee” in North Korea or a third country. King, a junior enlisted soldier assigned to US Forces Korea, had faced assault charges in South Korea and was due to return to Fort Bliss, Texas and be removed from the military just one day before he crossed into North Korea, CNN has reported. KCNA added that he had admitted of “illegally” intruding into the territory of North Korea and said that the investigation is ongoing. Defense officials have said publicly that King “willfully and without authorization” crossed into North Korea while taking a civilian tour of the DMZ.

Persons: Travis King, King, “, ” King, Fort, KCNA, Private King, King “, ”, Christine Wormuth, he’d, ” Wormuth, Jaqueda Gates, King’s, Biden Organizations: CNN, Wednesday, US, Korean Central News Agency, U.S . Army, Joint Security, US Forces Korea, Defense, Private, North, Army, Aspen Security, US Army, South Korean, Geneva Convention Locations: North Korea, South Korea, Fort Bliss , Texas, North Koreans, United States, Geneva

CNN —The Biden administration is debating whether to designate Travis King, the US Army soldier who crossed into North Korea last month, as a prisoner of war, defense officials told CNN. But VanLandingham said it’s unclear that North Korea would even acknowledge POW status or afford King the protections it bestows. A former senior Air Force lawyer said it’s unlikely King would receive POW status because there was no active fighting when he entered North Korea. In addition, King wasn’t forced into North Korea or captured by their forces, instead entering the country of his own free will. “He chose to go to North Korea,” the lawyer said, pointing out that King’s entry into North Korea was not related to the conflict in any way.

Persons: CNN —, Biden, Travis King, King, King “, ”, I’m, Private King, Fort, Rachel VanLandingham, VanLandingham, “, ” VanLandingham, wasn’t, King wasn’t Organizations: CNN, US Army, Geneva Convention, North, Defense, Private, US Forces Korea, Reuters, Southwestern Law School, Korean, Air Force Locations: North Korea, Geneva, South Korea, Fort Bliss , Texas, United States, Korea

☆ Kim Jong Un has plastered his walls with bizarre, giant portraits of Putin, images from North Korean state media reveal
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-29 | by ( Nathan Rennolds | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Photos released by North Korean state media show Kim Jong Un's huge portraits of Vladimir Putin. The images show the leader giving Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu a personal tour. The portraits were visible as the North Korean leader gave a personal tour to Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu. In the bizarre images, Kim and Shoigu can be seen walking down a corridor while huge portraits of Putin and Kim loom over them from either side. Russia's Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu attends a reception for the Russian military delegation hosted by North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on July 27, 2023.

Persons: Kim Jong, Vladimir Putin, Sergei Shoigu, Shoigu, Kim Jong Un, Kim, Putin, Simon Miles, Miles, Biden Organizations: North, Russian, Service, North Korean, Russian Defense, Central Committee of, Workers ' Party, Daily, Russia's, Reuters, Mail, Korean Central News Agency, Associated Press, Duke University's Sanford School of Public, Soviet Union, AP Locations: North Korean, Wall, Silicon, Pyongyang, Vladivostok, Russia, North Korea, Soviet, North Koreans, Ukraine, Moscow, Russian

☆ The Korean War ended 70 years ago. Here's how the 'forgotten war' started.
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-28 | by ( Stephen Carlson | Task | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

This began the deployment of Task Force Smith, the first American combat troops to arrive and fight in the Korean War. It was Soviet leader Josef Stalin himself who reluctantly gave the go ahead to North Korean dictator Kim Il-Sung to invade. Task Force Smith suffered its heaviest casualties during the retreat, with enemy machine gun positions hitting them from close range. Crew members give first aid to wounded soldier, during action in the Korean War. After American and UN reinforcements arrived, a counteroffensive drove the North Korean military to the brink of collapse.

Persons: Charles B, Smith, Force Smith, Josef Stalin, Kim Il, Task Force Smith, Gordon Sullivan, Stalin, Mao Zedong, Sung, Adolf Hitler, Dean Acheson, Christmas, Dwight D, Eisenhower Organizations: North Koreans, South, Service, North, Soviet Union, 국군 Republic of Korea Armed Forces, Wikimedia Commons Bombers, US Far East Air Force Command, Royal Australian Air Force, Suwon, KA, Korean Army, US Army, North Korean Communist, Wikimedia, Task Force, Artillery, Army, Wikimedia Commons, Crew, National Archives, Records Administration, Staff, Force, Communist, National Press Club, Armored Forces, Arlington National Cemetery, American, UN, North Korean, Public Locations: Wall, Silicon, Camp Woods, Kumamoto, Japan, Soviet, Korean, 국군 Republic, Pusan, South Korea, Republic of Korea, Osan, Korea, Saipan, United States, Arlington, Tim1965, Pacific, China, Kaesong, U.S, Soviet Union, North Korea, North

☆ The Korean War in Photos, 70 Years After the Truce
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-27 | by ( Choe Sang-Hun | More About Choe Sang-Hun | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The Korean War broke out when a Soviet-backed, Communist North invaded the pro-American southern territory of the Korean Peninsula in 1950, leading to one of the most harrowing conflicts of the 20th century and setting the tone of the Cold War in Asia. Despite American officials who initially described the Communist invaders as little more than “bandits,” the war dragged on for three disastrous years. The American-led United Nations forces suffered a crushing defeat when the North Koreans swept down the peninsula in 1950, occupying Seoul, the South Korean capital, before they were pushed back to the north. Between 2 million and 3 million people — including 36,500 American troops — were estimated to have been killed. But with no formal peace treaty ever established, the two Koreas technically remain at war.

Persons: Kim Jong Organizations: Korean, Troops, United Nations, North Locations: Soviet, Communist North, American, Asia, Seoul, South

☆ The Fading Dream of Korean Reunification - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-26 | by ( Haeryun Kang | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

For a brief time after, my dream career was to lead South Korea’s Ministry of Unification, which deals with inter-Korean affairs. The first time I actually met a North Korean was in 2010, in Vienna of all places. A museum was hosting an exhibition of North Korean art, and I went three times. During my last visit, a man who identified himself as a bureaucrat from North Korea’s culture ministry approached me. The South Korea government blocks many North Korean websites.

Persons: Kang, ” We’re, Koreas, “ Organizations: North, South Korean, Sydney Olympics, South Korea’s Ministry of Unification, Korea’s National Security, South Locations: South Korea, North, Korea, Korean, Vienna, South, “

King, an active-duty U.S. Army soldier serving in South Korea, sprinted into North Korea while on a civilian tour of the Demilitarized Zone on the border between the two Koreas. Washington is fully mobilized in trying to contact Pyongyang about him, U.S. Army Secretary Christine Wormuth said on Thursday, but North Korea had yet to respond. At that time, U.S. officials had just concluded an initial nuclear agreement with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's father, Kim Jong Il. Warmbier was eventually returned to the United States in a coma in 2017, but died days later. "Here's the response we got: one missile launch after another," referring to repeated North Korean missile tests.

Persons: Travis King, Christine Wormuth, Joe Biden, Trump, It's, Thomas Hubbard, Bobby Hall, Kim Jong Un's, Kim Jong Il, Hubbard, King, Mickey Bergman, Bill Richardson, Bergman, Jenny Town, Charles Robert Jenkins, ‘, Tae Yong, Otto Warmbier, Warmbier, Otto’s, Fred, He’s, Antony Blinken, Biden, Blinken, Simon Lewis, David Brunnstrom, Idrees Ali, Don Durfee, Stephen Coates Organizations: Army, U.S . Army, U.S, North, Koreans, United Nations Command, Richardson, . Army, Reuters, Aspen Security, Korean, Thomson Locations: United States, North Korea, South Korea, . Washington, Pyongyang, U.S, Washington, North, Korea, Koreans, Sweden, New York, Jenny, Korean, Korea's

☆ Travis King disappeared into a North Korea more isolated than ever
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-21 | by ( Josh Smith | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

SEOUL, July 21 (Reuters) - When U.S. soldier Travis King sprinted across the border into North Korea from the South this week, he disappeared into a North Korea where lingering COVID-19 concerns and restrictions have made the already secretive country more isolated than ever. Officials in Washington said North Korea had yet to give any response through a number of channels, including at the United Nations. North Korean border guards fatally shot and burned the body of a South Korean fisheries official near their disputed maritime border in 2020. North Korean guards at the site still shelter inside buildings, apparently to avoid the risk of catching COVID. But North Korea often seeks meetings with high-level American officials before any releases, and that could be complicated by their worries over COVID, he added.

Persons: Travis King, King, Andrei Lankov, Lankov, Isaac Taylor, Kim Jong Un, Steve Tharp, COVID, Tharp, Bobby Hall, Josh Smith, Lincoln Organizations: Korea Risk, U.S, United Nations Command, United Nations, Security, U.S . Army, North, Thomson Locations: SEOUL, North Korea, Korea, Pyongyang, Seoul, U.S, United States, Washington, North Korean, Korean, South . Sweden, North

☆ Opinion: The time North Korea entrapped an 85-year-old American tourist
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-20 | by ( Opinion Mike Chinoy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +13 min

CNN —In October 2013, an 85-year-old American tourist, Korean War veteran Merrill Newman, was taken off his Air Koryo plane as he waited to leave Pyongyang after a week-long tourist trip to North Korea and detained. No one — his family, the State Department, the media — had any idea why, and the North Koreans initially said nothing. North Korea has so far said nothing about the incident, which comes amid a spike in tensions between Pyongyang, Washington and Seoul. American tourist and Korean War veteran Merrill Newman arrives at Beijing airport on December 7, 2013, after being released by North Korea. Over the decades, a handful of serving American soldiers have defected and been allowed to live in North Korea.

Persons: Mike Chinoy, Read, CNN —, Merrill Newman, —, Mike Chinoy Mike Chinoy, Newman, Travis King, darted, ” —, “, ” Newman, ”, “ I’ll, …, Mike Chinoy “, ‘, ’, It’s, Merrill Newman “ I’d, They’ve, Karl, Olof Andersson, Merrill, Andersson, Kim Jong, ” Merrill Newman, Lee Organizations: University of Southern, China Institute, Beijing Bureau, Senior Asia, CNN, Koryo, State Department, North, Communist Korean, Palo, Joint Security Area, Kyodo, DPRK, Korean People’s, Socialist DPRK, ”, Korean, North Koreans, Koreans, Twitter, Facebook Locations: University of Southern California’s US, Beijing, North Korea, Pyongyang, Kuwol, Korean, Palo Alto California, North, South Korea, Korea, Washington, Seoul, American, Korean People’s Army, DPRK, USA, North Koreans, Merrill, North Korea's, KCNA, North Korean, Swedish

[1/2] Miniatures of people with computers are seen in front of North Korea flag in this illustration taken July 19, 2023. North Korea has previously denied organizing digital currency heists, despite voluminous evidence - including U.N. reports - to the contrary. “North Korea in my opinion is really stepping up their game,” said Hegel, who works for U.S. firm SentinelOne. The cybersecurity-focused podcast Risky Business earlier this week cited two sources as saying that North Korea was a suspect in the intrusion. "I don't think this is the last we'll see of North Korean supply chain attacks this year," he said.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, ”, JumpCloud, CrowdStrike, Adam Meyers, Tom Hegel, wasn't, Hegel, cryptocurrency, Chainalysis, CrowdStrike's Meyers, Christopher Bing, Raphael Satter, James Pearson, Michelle Nichols, Anna Driver, Bernadette Baum Organizations: REUTERS, WASHINGTON, American IT, Reuters, CrowdStrike Holdings, North, United Nations, U.S, FBI, Thomson Locations: North Korea, Korean, American, Louisville , Colorado, North Korean, New York, Korea, “ North Korea, The U.S, Washington, London

North Korea's state media has made no mention of the incident. North Korea has been testing increasingly powerful missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads, including a new solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile last week. Forces Korea, said the military was "working with our KPA counterparts to resolve this incident," referring to North Korea's People's Army. NORTH KOREA FIRES MISSILESThe soldier was on a tour of the Panmunjom truce village with other visitors when he crossed a Military Demarcation Line, U.S. officials say. The launch came hours after the South Korea and the United States held the first round of talks on Tuesday on upgrading coordination in the event of a nuclear war with North Korea.

Persons: Travis T, King, Lloyd Austin, Austin, Isaac Taylor, Taylor, Kim Hong, Panmunjom, Tae Yong, Josh Smith, Hyonhee Shin, hyang Choi, David Brunnstrom, Phil Stewart, Idrees Ali, Kiyoshi Takenaka, Nobuhiro Kubo, Jack Kim, Lincoln Organizations: U.S, The U.S . Army, Security Area, U.S . Defence, United Nations, U.S . Forces, Korea's People's Army, Command, UNC, North Koreans, KOREA, REUTERS, Ji, U.S ., Korea's Unification Ministry, South, United, Thomson Locations: North North Korea, Pyongyang, U.S, South Korea, WASHINGTON, American, North Korea, Washington, The, New York, U.S . Forces Korea, Paju, Ji U.S, United States, Korean, Korea's, Seoul, Tokyo

But while he cleared customs, he did not get on the plane as scheduled on Monday, US officials told CNN. Picture of Travis King, the US soldier who ran across the military demarcation line into North Korea on Tuesday July 18th. She said the administration was working with the government of South Korea, along with Sweden, on the matter. Sweden generally represents US interests in North Korea because the US and North Korea have no diplomatic ties. King’s mother, Claudine Gates, told ABC on Tuesday that she was “shocked” by the fact that King had crossed into North Korea.

Persons: Travis King, Fort, King, “, Sarah Leslie, ” Leslie, Travis T, Karine Jean, Pierre said, ”, King “, we’ve, Adm, John Aquilino, we’re, I’ve, Claudine Gates, Travis, ” Gates, Bryce Dubee Organizations: CNN, Airport, US Forces Korea, Joint Security, Facebook, Panmungak, Joint Security Area, North, Fort Bliss, Security Area, Reuters, Pacific Command, Aspen Security, Court, South, ABC, 6th Squadron, 1st Cavalry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat, Armored Division, National Defense Service, Korean Defense, Overseas Service Locations: North Korea, Seoul, South Korea, Fort Bliss , Texas, North, North Korean, Fort, Panmunjom, Sweden, Mapo, Fort Bliss

☆ For North Korea, US defectors can be a propaganda win, but a logistical pain
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-19 | by ( Josh Smith | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Analysts said discussions over the soldier's fate could see some of the first diplomatic engagement between North Korea and the United States in years. "I do not think North Korea views the latest incident as strong leverage or an opportunity to engage the U.S.," she said. "North Korea knows that the U.S. government is unlikely to change its North Korea policy or its commitment to U.S. extended deterrence because of one U.S. soldier who reportedly faced disciplinary action and wilfully crossed into North Korea." "Their conditions are better not only than the average North Korean prisoner, but of the average North Korean citizen." North Korean border guards fatally shot and burned the body of a South Korean fisheries official in 2020, and later leader Kim Jong Un ordered an entire city into lockdown when a North Korean crossed back into the country from the South.

Persons: Travis King, King, Andrei Lankov, Rachel Minyoung Lee, Tae Yong, Tae, Lankov, Otto Warmbier, Kim Jong Un, Josh Smith, David Brunnstrom, Hyonhee, Angus MacSwan Organizations: U.S, Army, Security Area, North, Korea Risk, Stimson, Korean, Thomson Locations: SEOUL, North Korea, U.S, North Korean, Pyongyang, ., United States, Seoul, Korea, Korea's, American, Korean, Washington

An army official told CNN the private was set to be administratively separated from the US Army. Details about how exactly King ended up on the North Korean side of the border remain unclear. King’s mother, Claudine Gates, told ABC she was “shocked” after being told by the US Army that her son had crossed into North Korea. Travis King, the US soldier who ran across the military demarcation line into North Korea on Tuesday, July 18 Travis King/FacebookThe US has been actively reaching out to North Korea to resolve the situation, but it has not yet heard back, a defense official said Wednesday. South Korean police told CNN that King was transferred to US military police after an investigation into an assault last September.

Persons: hasn’t, Travis King, King, Claudine Gates, ”, Travis, ” Gates, he’d, John Aquilino, Aquilino, King “, we’ve, ” Aquilino, CNN King, Jeon Heon Organizations: Seoul CNN, CNN, US Army, ABC, Pacific Command, Aspen Security, Joint Security, North, Defense Department, Korean, Reuters, King . Locations: Seoul, North Korea, Fort Bliss, South Korea, Mapo, Korea

☆ A US tourist crossed the border into North Korea, UN says. South Korean media reports he's a US soldier.
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-18 | by ( Joshua Zitser | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

A US national crossed the border from South Korea into North Korea on Tuesday, the UN said. South Korean media is reporting that he was a US soldier. South Korean media has described it as a defection, though it is currently unclear if this is the case. Cases of Americans or South Koreans defecting to North Korea are extremely rare, while North Koreans crossing into South Korea are more common. More than 30,000 North Koreans have fled south since the 1950-1953 Korean War, according to the Associated Press.

Persons: Travis King Organizations: UN, Service, United Nations, The United Nations Command, Security Area, — United Nations Command, The Korea Herald, Ilbo, US Army, South, US Department of State, Associated Press Locations: South Korea, North Korea, US, North, Wall, Silicon, Seoul, South Korea's

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