South Korea claims the right to both protect its citizens in other countries as well as to prosecute them from breaking domestic laws while overseas (rather uncommon). It also states that, “by law” and “without a doubt,” those from the DPRK are accepted as ROK citizens, but hypocritically offers no protections to them:
The National […]
This is not a current topic in the news, or something on the surface related directly to the Six-Party Talks, but being reminded of the fact that none of the nations involved in the talks want Korean reunification any time soon can be useful in understanding the big picture. Reunification is certainly considered in […]
Reuters: North Korea slightly tones down nuclear talks rhetoric
World Peace Herald: Korea in Crisis: The undermining of the U.S.-Korea alliance
NYT: How to Listen for the Sound of Plutonium
Kyodo News: Japan promises to ask N. Korea about suspected Thai abductee
Korea Times: Korean Candidate for UN Chief ‘Viable’
Korea Herald: [A READER’S VIEW]South Korea and the […]
The time for talks may quickly be coming to an end, although a military option is not really viable at this point. If the track record of UN resolutions with Iraq is any indication, besides the more recent and continuing lack of success with either North Korea or Iran, words alone are clearly not […]
The Asianist has discovered how Taiwan will carry out its final defense!
This should stop military corruption in China:
China plans to audit more than 4,000 military officers for the efficient use of its military expenses in the 11th Five-Year (2006-2010) Program, a senior military officer said.
Among the 4,000-plus military officers, more than 100 will be army commanders or above, said Liao Xilong, member of the Central […]
Taiwan is unwilling to spend money on its defense. Who needs high-tech weapons, when they’ve got the Kindersturmkorps!
For those who can’t figure it out, Kindersturmkorps is a play on Volksturm units that Germany created as last ditch defense out of old men and young boys. Kinder, of course, means children in German (that’s whence […]
Maybe too many Japanese saw the film “The Beach” one time too many.
Behold, the phenomenon of lazy Japanese bums in Southeast Asia:
Sotokomori are almost exclusively in their 20s or 30s, making quick cash through high-paying jobs, then head off to live in cheap haunts overseas. But instead of broadening their horizons and learning more […]
Japan’s economy is now the second most advanced in the world. Yet its transparency still leaves something to be desired. Tied to this is the issue of unfair competition Japanese companies maintain in the domestic market by means other than tariffs on foreign competitors (known as NTBs or non-tariff barriers).
In essence, by erecting a […]
Yahoo: Two Koreas agree to resume stalled military talks
Yahoo: Kin express joy after film on abductee wins prize
Daily Iowan: Leach seeks to ease N. Korean tensions (opinion)
Epoch Times: Book Review: Gordon Chang’s New Book on North Korea
Dong-a Ilbo: Corruption Rapidly Spreading in North Korea
YONHAP: N. Korea says U.S. poses threat to world […]
Via the Times: "The exhibition features 400 hand-painted posters dating from the peak of the Dear Leader Kim Sung Il's power in the 1950s to the present regime led by his son, Kim Jong Il." The article has only one image, but has several interesting propaganda quotes.
- #Young Korean Herrenvolk engaging in their version of Agoge, at least according to the New York Times. The two Korean schools mentioned in the article are similar to Exeter or Andover in the United States in someways (they are private academies that serve children of affluent parents). But my guess is that the studious atmosphere and intense regimen compare more to the likes of Stuyvesant (my alma mater) in NYC or T.J. in Virginia (both highly selective, but publicly-funded high schools).
- #North Korea claims that on 25 April 1932 the Korean People’s Army (KPA, 조선인민군/ Chosŏn inmin'gun) was formed. However, the more likely accurate date is 08 February 1948. It is celebrated as “Military Foundation Day” in Kimland.
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