U.S. Calls for Cooperation Between North, South Korea
The United States strongly supports cooperation between North Korea and South Korea, Deputy Secretary of State Stephen Biegun said during a visit to Seoul (Yonhap)
Biegun also said the United States is ready to resume nuclear talks with North Korea, though Pyongyang has signaled that it is not interested (Wall Street Journal)
U.S., South Korea Urge Peace on Seventieth Anniversary of Korean War
The United States and South Korea urged North Korea to abide by its peace agreements with them today, the seventieth anniversary of the outbreak of the Korean War. Their statement came amid heightened tensions between Pyongyang and Seoul (Korea Times)
North Korea Pivots on Anti-Seoul Rhetoric
North Korea suspended military plans, removed propaganda loudspeakers from the border, and scrubbed anti-Seoul articles in an abrupt end to weeks of increased hostility toward South Korea. Pyongyang had been incensed by anti–North Korea leaflets sent across the border and destroyed the countries’ joint liaison office last week (Yonhap)
North Korea to Reinstall Loudspeakers Along Border
Pyongyang is reinstalling propaganda loudspeakers removed from the country’s border with South Korea in 2018 and has threatened to circulate anti–South Korea leaflets. Seoul is considering bringing back its own speakers in response (Yonhap)
Pyongyang Rejects Seoul’s Overture, Will Redeploy Troops Near Border
Pyongyang rejected Seoul’s offer for a meeting between special envoys and said it will deploy troops near the countries’ border as it continues to escalate a dispute over anti–North Korea leaflets. South Korea’s defense ministry warned of consequences if North Korea takes military action (Yonhap)
North Korea Blows Up Office for Liaisons With South Korea
North Korea destroyed a joint liaison office in the North Korean border town of Kaesong today in a dramatic escalation in tensions with Seoul over anti-North messages sent from South Korea. North Korean defectors and others have used balloons to send the leaflets across the border, prompting Pyongyang to threaten military action, such as moving troops into demilitarized zones (New York Times)
North Korean state media called the destruction of the liaison office, which served as the de facto embassy between the countries since 2018, an act of “enraged people” retaliating against “human scum.” No officials were working in the office, which had been closed due to the coronavirus pandemic (Washington Post).
North Korea Vows to Strengthen Its Military Capabilities
Pyongyang pledged to bolster its military capabilities to counter U.S. threats two years after a summit between U.S. President Donald J. Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. North Korea’s foreign minister said the country would never again agree to high-profile meetings with Trump that could be used for political gain (Associated Press)
North Korean Official Threatens U.S. Elections
A North Korean official issued a veiled threat to interfere in the U.S. presidential election if Washington “pokes its nose” into Pyongyang’s dispute with Seoul over anti-North Korea leaflets sent across the border (Korea Times)
Pyongyang Cuts Communications With Seoul
North Korea has refused to answer routine calls from South Korean officials after threatening to sever all communication channels (Yonhap)
Pyongyang has been incensed by anti-North leaflets sent using balloons from South Korea. While announcing the move to cut phone lines, North Korean state media referred to Seoul as the “enemy” and said there is no need for discussions (Associated Press)
Relations between Pyongyang and Seoul have deteriorated since a summit last year between North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and U.S. President Donald J. Trump ended without an agreement (New York Times)
Seoul to End Anti-North Leafleting After Threat From Pyongyang
South Korea is planning to ban sending balloons carrying anti-Pyongyang messages into North Korea after Kim Yo-jong, sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, threatened to scrap an agreement on reducing military tensions unless the leaflets are stopped (Yonhap)
U.S. Alleges Money Laundering Scheme Aiding North Korean Nuclear Program
Washington has charged twenty-eight North Koreans and five Chinese citizens with laundering more than $2.5 billion to support Pyongyang’s nuclear program, according to an indictment unsealed yesterday (New York Times)
In what U.S. officials called the largest sanctions violations case brought against North Korea, the Justice Department said the accused acted as agents of the country’s Foreign Trade Bank, setting up a network of front companies and clandestine bank branches to hide illegal payments, some for Chinese telecommunications equipment (Washington Post)
The case is one of the few in the United States targeting North Korean citizens and might be the first targeting senior government officials (Wall Street Journal)
Report: Washington Calls for Seoul to Up Military Cost Sharing
Washington called for Seoul to contribute $1.3 billion annually to a military cost-sharing deal keeping U.S. forces on the peninsula, an increase of nearly 50 percent, a senior U.S. official said (Yonhap)
Report Details North Korean Missile Facility Near Pyongyang
A new facility near Pyongyang International Airport “is almost certainly related to North Korea’s expanding ballistic missile program,” according to a new report (Center for Strategic and International Studies)
South Korea Protests North Korean Gunfire in DMZ
Seoul said Pyongyang has yet to respond to its call for an explanation of four bullets that hit a South Korean guard post in the demilitarized zone (DMZ) between the two countries. It was the nations’ first gunfire exchange in years. South Korea responded to the North’s gunfire with twenty rounds of warning shots and called for de-escalation via a hotline (Yonhap)
The shots came a day after North Korean leader Kim Jong-un made his first public appearance in three weeks, according to North Korean media. A South Korean presidential official said that contrary to rumors, Kim did not appear to have undergone surgery (Yonhap)
Report: U.S. Monitoring North Korean Leader’s Declining Health
Washington is monitoring intelligence that suggests North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s health is in danger after a surgery, according to a new report (CNN)
South Korean officials said they saw no signs that Kim is ill (Yonhap)
North Korea Denies Trump’s Claim of Recent Letter
North Korean state media said that leader Kim Jong-un did not recently send a letter to U.S. President Donald J. Trump, despite Trump’s claim on Saturday to have received one (Yonhap)
New U.S. Government Report Highlights North Korean Cyber Operations
North Korean hackers have expanded their arsenal of cyber offensives that obtain money for state weapons programs and are now offering their services for hire, according to a new U.S. government report. The report concludes that the threat of cyberattacks from Pyongyang has accelerated despite U.S. President Donald J. Trump’s efforts at diplomacy (New York Times)
North Korea Conducts Missile Tests
North Korea launched what appeared to be multiple cruise and air-to-ground missiles off its east coast (Yonhap)
North Korea Reshuffles Top Leadership Commission
North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong-un, replaced more than a third of the country’s State Affairs Commission, according to state media (Al Jazeera)
His sister Kim Yo-jong was reinstated to a position in the Politburo (Bloomberg)
U.S. Furloughs South Korean Military Partners
Thousands of South Koreans working for the U.S. military were placed on indefinite unpaid leave after cost-sharing talks between the two countries stalled (Yonhap)
South Korea Ready to Facilitate U.S.-North Korea Nuclear Talks
A South Korean Unification Ministry official stated that the country was prepared to help the United States and North Korea reenter negotiations on Pyongyang’s nuclear program. The announcement came after North Korea rejected any further talks in response to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s insistence that countries maintain sanctions against Pyongyang (Yonhap)
North Korea Test-Fires Rocket System
North Korea test-fired a rocket system on Sunday that appeared to be similar to a system unveiled in August, South Korea’s military said (Yonhap)
Trump Writes Letter to North Korea’s Kim
U.S. President Donald J. Trump sent a letter to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un offering to help fight the coronavirus. North Korea has not reported any cases, though experts fear Pyongyang is hiding an outbreak (New York Times)
North Korea Launches Projectiles
North Korea launched three projectiles into the Sea of Japan as part of an apparent military exercise, South Korea’s military said (Yonhap)
China’s foreign ministry called for denuclearization and dialogue (Reuters)
North Korea’s Kim Gives Condolences to Virus-Stricken South
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un sent a personal letter to South Korean President Moon Jae-in to wish South Korea a swift recovery from the coronavirus outbreak. Relations between the two countries have chilled in recent months due to South Korean military drills and a deadlock in nuclear diplomacy (Yonhap)