The Korea Herald

U.S. warns N. Korea missile aimed south

Mar 24, 2012

SYDNEY (AFP) - A senior US official has warned North Korea's upcoming missile launch would be aimed south for the first time and impact in an area "roughly between Australia, Indonesia and the Philippines.”Kurt Campbell, the assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, delivered
China ups border control amid criticism for repatriations

Mar 23, 2012

China appears to be tightening border security against North Korean defectors in the face of growing international pressure to end repatriations to the repressive state.Multiple sources informed of Beijing’s border control efforts told local media that China recently installed a police alert system in each household of a border town on a trial basis.Chinese residents there can push a button to inform security officers of any encounter with North Korean defectors, they said. Defectors who do not
North Korea's planned rocket test: why it matters

Mar 23, 2012

North Korea may have the bomb, but it hasn't perfected ways to put one onto a missile that could strike faraway enemies like the United States.This is why Pyongyang's announcement that it will launch a satellite on a long-range rocket next month is drawing so much attention: Washington says North Ko
U.N. chief to raise N.K. rocket launch at Seoul summit

Mar 22, 2012

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Thursday he would raise North Korea’s planned rocket launch at the upcoming Seoul Nuclear Security Summit on March 26-27, expressing “deep concern” about the issue.“I am going to discuss the issue with the president of the Republic of (South Korea) in Seoul and I will also engage with other leaders attending the nuclear summit,” Ban told a press conference during a visit to Malaysia.Regarding the issue, Foreign Minister Kim Sung-hwan said the North Korean
N. Korean orchestra plans to visit U.S.: nonprofit

Mar 22, 2012

ATLANTA (AP) ― An Atlanta-based nonprofit is planning to bring North Korea’s national orchestra to the U.S. for a tour that would start in Atlanta, according to the group’s president.The North Korean National Symphony Orchestra would bring 164 musicians and journalists for an 18-day visit that would also include stops in Oxford, Mississippi, and New York, said Robert Springs, the president of Global Resource Services, a humanitarian group that works in North Korea.He said he hopes the visit will
U.N. chief to raise N. Korean rocket launch at Seoul summit

Mar 22, 2012

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Thursday he would raise North Korea‘s planned rocket launch at the upcoming Seoul Nuclear Security Summit on March 26-27, expressing “deep concern” over the issue.“I am going to discuss the issue with the president of the Republic of (South Korea) in Seoul and I will also engage with other leaders attending the nuclear summit,“ Ban told a press conference during a visit to Malaysia.Regarding the issue, Foreign Minister Kim Sung-hwan said the North Korean i
Lee says S. Korea, U.S. expected to reach agreement on extending missile range: report

Mar 22, 2012

South Korea expects to reach agreement with the United States in the near future to allow Seoul to possess or develop ballistic missiles that can reach deeper into North Korea, President Lee Myung-bak was quoted Thursday as saying.Under a pact with the U.S., first signed in 1979 and revised in 2001,
N. Korea warns against discussing it in summit

Mar 21, 2012

North Korea on Wednesday strongly warned against the upcoming Seoul Nuclear Security Summit, saying any attempt to raise the issue of North Korean nuclear programs during the summit will be deemed “a declaration of war.”The North’s state-run Korea Central News Agency said South Korea’s Lee Myung-bak administration is trying to take advantage of its status as a host of the summit to make the international community hostile towards the North.“If there is any provocative act such as the issuance of
S. Korea to push tourism near border with North

Mar 21, 2012

Gun-toting soldiers patrol guard posts overlooking North Korean territory beyond a barbed-wire fence. Hundreds of red flags with a skull motif dot roadsides, warning of mines. This is the area which South Korea hopes to turn into a major eco-tourism attraction. Untouched by developers for six decades due to the military standoff, the scenic areas surrounding the world’s last Cold War frontier have paradoxically become a peaceful haven for wildlife.The 155-mile-long (248-kilometer) borderline whi
N.K. rights bill in limbo amid partisan bickering

Mar 21, 2012

Opponents argue it will provoke Pyongyang and hurt inter-Korean tiesEfforts to enact a law aimed at improving human rights conditions in North Korea have made little headway due to ideological confrontation and political bickering since the first legislative move began nearly seven years ago.The issue of human rights violations in the communist state has been back into the spotlight as rallies have recently taken place online and offline to drum up international support to block China’s forcible
Congressmen submit resolution on North Korean defectors in China

Mar 21, 2012

The U.S. Congress has proposed a resolution aimed at stopping China from forcibly repatriating North Korean defectors who face harsh punishment in their home country, Radio Free Asia reported.Rep. Christopher Smith, chairman of the subcommittee on Africa, global health, and human rights under the U.S. House committee on foreign affairs, submitted the resolution jointly with Rep. Edward Royce, chairman of the subcommittee on terrorism, non-proliferation and trade, it said.The resolution urges Chi
‘N.K. told U.S. about satellite plan last year’

Mar 21, 2012

Expert says North’s inconsistency shows Kim Jong-un’s immature diplomacyNorth Korea had notified the U.S. about its plan to launch a satellite using long-range missile technology last year, days before the death of its leader Kim Jong-il, multiple news reports from Washington said Wednesday.Pyongyang had contacted Washington through civilian channels three days before Kim died on Dec. 17 and said it would launch a satellite in commemoration of the 100th year of its late founder Kim Il-sung’s bir
North Korea sharpens criticism of upcoming nuclear summit

Mar 21, 2012

North Korea Wednesday sharpened its criticism of an upcoming Seoul summit, saying any attempt by South Korea to address its nuclear programme at the meeting would be seen as a declaration of war.The official KCNA news agency accused the South's conservative government of trying to use the nuclear se
Seoul considering ‘all options’ to stop N.K. rocket launch

Mar 20, 2012

Measures could include referring the issue to U.N. Security Council: reportThe Foreign Ministry said the government is considering “all possible options” to pressure North Korea to abandon its plan to launch a satellite using a long-range missile in April.The government is likely to seek the cooperation of the U.N. Security Council members to refer the North’s missile issue to the U.N. Security Council, if the North goes ahead with its plan, a Korean news report said Tuesday.“All options are ope
IAEA receives invitation to return to N.K.

Mar 20, 2012

VIENNA (AP) ― North Korea has invited the International Atomic Energy Agency to return, three years after expelling its nuclear monitors, the agency said. The U.S. said such a move would be welcome but remained critical of the North’s missile test plans.Without disclosing the North’s terms, IAEA spokeswoman Gill Tudor said Monday that it received the invitation on Friday. That was the same day that Pyongyang announced it plans to test a missile by launching a satellite, a move that Washington ha