Traitors!

For as long as I have been in Korea I've heard about how the country is over-run by North Korean spies. I took this with a grain of salt and figured, that while possible, for the most part it was probably just a result of too many conspiracy movies.

Well, it seems that there are at least a few and they are all working with the Democratic Labor Party. This comes as no major surprise to most people, the DLP is known to be radically pro-labor, but the headlines are catching the tail of the Nuclear tensions and driving public opinion even further right.

As it stands, Democratic Labor Party leader Lee Jung-hoon and two others are being held on accusations of spying. Apparently they (after being protesters in the 80s) were approached by a Korean-American businessman and introduced to the wonderful world of espionage. They had a safe house in Beijing and from they they received their instructions - among them they were to keep track on a parliamentary resolution to sack then-Defense Minister Yoon Kwang-ung;
Intervene on Pyongyang's behalf in the May 31 regional elections, including having the DLP throw its votes behind Uri Party candidate Kang Kum-sil in an ultimately unsuccessful bid to defeat Grand National Party candidate Oh Se-hoon in the Seoul mayoral race; Use environmental issues to bring civic groups into the anti-American struggle. Keep dossiers on South Koreans in various fields (politicians, civic group figures, etc.) in order to keep track of trends in South Korean society following North Koreas recent nuclear test. These dossiers were supposedly given to Mr. Chang.

I am not convinced oftheir guilt. In this day and age of open-arms (no pun) policy to the North, I suspect that they could almost get away with claiming they did it for unification. However, if the current trend continues (and I hope it does), I think that there is the distinct possibility that this may lead to a wider net being cast and a pruning of the leftist shrub.

It's about time someone chopped down that weed a little.

Dropping like flies

Unification Minister Lee Jong-seok (L), Foreign Minister Ban Ki-moon (C) and Defense Minister Yoon Kwang-ung have all submitted their resignation this week. Although each had different reason, it seems to me that the rats are jumping from the ship. Nohs government is in shambles and everyone is trying to distance themselves from it.

As well, Kim Seung Gyu (The head of South Korea's National Intelligence Service) offered his resignation to President Roh Moo Hyun at his office at the Blue House. Man, can it get any worse?

Yup! With this bone-headed move, I gurantee that The Minister of Construction/Development is not far behind. You have to wonder, did he do this intentionally?



So, with everyone leaving, who does Noh have at his side? Apparently, not North Korea. The DPRK issued a statement saying:if South Korea joins U.S.-led sanctions against the Stalinist country, it will regard it as “a declaration of confrontation.”

Wow, where have all of Nohs friends gone? Maybe they're getting ready for next year's elections.

KORUS FTA TKO

Apparently several protesters were injured while protesting outside the KORUS FTA talks in Jeju yesterday. Prior to the negotiations, it was reported that over 10,000 police were being readied to combat any violence. Apparently though they handed out a little of their own.

Honestly, I'm fine with it. For the most part these protesters are not workers scared of loosing their jobs, nor farmers worried about falling prices, but rather professionals that are always spoiling for a fight. They all too often mix in their own agendas and bring other issues into the foray (Anti-US sentiment, foreign policy, the price of rice in China).

Personally, I worry about the young men who have to serve in the police service and who routinely get their butts handed to them by organized thugs. For too long protested have gotten away with too much, I wonder when the public will fully sway against them.

US Presidential Contender : Obama Speaks!

Apparently US Sen. Barack Obama has said that the US will eventually have to talk to North Korea. He is quoted as saying "But I think that, in time, it would make sense for us to initiate some bilateral conversations in parallel with the six-party talks... partly because it would strengthen, I think, the commitment of China and South Korea to really put some pressure on North Korea."

I have also heard that one the same program he did not rule out running for the Presidential office. He seemed to say something about his supporters wanting him to do it, and him thinking it over, but not giving it as much thought as he should.

Honestly, he sounds like a great speaker. And he seems to know how to capture the imagination of many Americans, but I highly doubt the US is ready for a black president (did I just say that?). I could however see him being more successful on a Edwards/Obama ticket - man, those two would just love campaign time.

We agree to disagree

It appears that the US - ROK Defense relationship is similar to that of me and my wife. In principle they should be getting along soundly, but when it comes to issuing a public statement, sometimes signals get crossed.

A senior U.S. defense official squarely denied an announcement by a senior Korean military officer that a strategic order was given to specify that Washington will provide a nuclear umbrella for South Korea in response to North Korea's atomic weapons.

It took another seven-and-a-half hours after the meeting ended for the joint communique to come out, with officials working overtime after their superiors had left to hammer out the wording. Some say this was the worst-ever SCM due to a series of diplomatically rare events.

This tug ofwar is nothing new to Korea watchers. Since Noh Moo-hyun took office, the current administration has done its best to set itself on a different course than the US. The problem is though, in recent weeks the ROK has found out that it might be exposed to some Nuclear Rain and that an Umbrella might just come in handy.

So which is it?

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice says that North Korea is getting ready for another round of tests. That North Korea is escalating the situation and that "Tang (Chinese diplomat just returning from The DPRK) did not tell me (Rice) that Kim Jong-il either apologised for the test or said that he would not ever test again." While Korean sources are still clinging to the hope that the situation will just roll over and die.

The truth is, no matter what was said to Tang, North Korea will do what is in its best interest. It will decide, on its own, when and where it'll take its Nuclear Program. That seems to be what this is all about no? The fact that the DPRK doesn't want an outside source telling it what to do. It makes me wonder why it'd listen to China instead of the US in this regard (yeah, I know you're shouting "but what about China's aid!?" - Honestly, I think the North is bull-headed enough to go without... for how long I do not know though).

The North wants to talk... about something.

I heard tell from some friends in the Chinese/North Korean circles that Chinese State Councilor Tang Jiaxuan was sent to visit The Dear General Kim to convey a message of displeasure regarding the recent test. Apparently, there has been a fair bit of discord in China (yes, even the people are divided- but it's not like the Chinese Gov. will listen) and China is trying to assert it's power to avoid a Nightmare Scenario.

Basically, the Chinese are not keen with anything that destabilizes the region, and Nukes on the Peninsula do exactly that. The problem is, if they push too hard (with for example, restrictions on fuel exports to the DPRK) they run the risk of having the North collapse and being inundated with refugees. Although, there are a few bright projections coming out of Hawkish circles regarding a DPRK collapse (a Unified Korea, Democracy touching the PRC, cheap labor) few truly factor in the Social ramifications of a sudden collapse. If they think that the "fall of the Soviet Empire" did wonders for WMD proliferation, wait till the get a load of this.

In my opinion, the best senario is an insider Coup that leads North Korea in the direction of the South in the 60s.


So, now it seems that the North just might have something to say. With the Chinese envoys on their way back, I'm guessing they have a message from the North- "We'll come back to the talks now that we have Nuclear capabilities". I guess I'll find out soon enough if I'm right. Either way though, it spells bad news for an immediate solution. I know that any rounds of talks will lead to... more rounds of talks. Hmmm, maybe that's just what the parties want?

*FYI, just watched the live press conf with the Chinese FM and he said China will "Break the stalemate". With headlines ofChina pressuring the North, maybe something is in the wind?

The Chinese/DPRK Border

For years now the border region between China and North Korea has been a hive of activity. With both legal and illegal trade flowing between the two nations (ok, mainly just into the North), cities like Dandong (China) have become trading hubs - so to speak.

For the most part, China send fuel, building supplies and food stuffs into the North, while the DPRK sends out a trickle of workers to fill low paying jobs in NE China (and "low" in China translates into "very low" or "pleasepayme2centsanhour low"). The legal North Korean workers find themselves in either the service industry (restaurants for women) or labor (mining and such for me).

No one really profits from this trade. Sure, there is the occasional businessman that pockets a few dollars smuggling people across, but for the most part the trade might as well be with a black hole. Anything you put into it will simply be sucked into another dimension.

If you have plans to visit the North on a trip to Dandong, prepare to be dissapointed. Apparently the North cancelled tour groups of of China in August. Said a Chinese tour guide:

she found it a restrictive and depressing experience to take Chinese tour groups to Pyongyang.
"They watch your every move and every word," Liu says. "Every tour group gets two Korean guides. One explains about North Korea. The other is a national security agent."

So, if you're really determined to see amazing sights like this one>

Make sure you bring your "I love Kim" badge and a lot of booze to bribe the officials. Who knows, if you're lucky, you just might get to see the profile of a Nuclear blast (unlike my head-on view).

North Korea goes Nuclear

Threats have flown from the DPRK for years now. How they are going to turn the South into a ball of fire, how they can fight off any American attack, how Kim Jong-il can shoot 20 under par. So when they said that a Nuclear test was imminent, I (along with the international community) had doubts. Sure the US said that they had evidence of a suspected build up... But we all know where that brought the world last time *cough* Iraq *cough*

I held off writing because simply, even after official word from the DPRK, I didn't believe they had actually pulled off a test. For some reason, I thought they just might have dropped a 100 tons of explosives down a shaft and called it a day. It seems I am wrong. Apparently, those little noses attached to US surveillance aircraft have noticed the distinct smell of Nuclear fission.

Director of National Intelligence John Negroponte said the findings came after analysis of radioactive debris detected at the site of the test. This the first official US confirmation that a nuclear detonation took place.

Rice is now on here way to Seoul after a stop over in Japan to meet with Prime Minister Abe. She had some strong words of support for Japan and it's protection under the US Nuclear Umbrella. with her heading to Seoul tomorrow, I wonder if she'll get as warm of a reception.