US Navy intercepted North Korean ship sending missile material to Myanmar

The guided-missile destroyer USS McCampbell transits the western Pacific Ocean during combat system ship qualification trials in this US Navy handout photo dated May 26, 2010.

The US Navy intercepted a North Korean ship suspected of carrying missile parts to Myanmar two weeks ago, media reports and a US official said yesterday.

The New York Times reported late on Sunday, citing senior American officials, that a North Korean cargo ship was forced to return home after a standoff at sea and several days of diplomatic pressure from Washington and Asian nations.

State Department spokesman Mark Toner confirmed the interception, but declined to comment on the cargo or destination of the North Korean vessel.

“We talked directly with the North Koreans to stress the importance of not engaging in proliferation-related transfers,” he said.

“We learned that the ship, the vessel, changed course at sea, and we believe it returned to North Korea,” said Toner.

UN sanctions imposed on North Korea after it conducted nuclear tests in 2006 and 2009 include a ban on trade in nuclear and missile technology with North Korea. A UN resolution adopted last year authorised UN member states to inspect North Korean sea, air and land cargo.

According to the Times, the destroyer USS McCampbell caught up with the cargo ship M/V Light south of Shanghai on May 26 after American officials began tracking the vessel, which was believed to have been involved in previous illegal shipments.

The destroyer asked to board the vessel under authority given by Belize, but the North Koreans refused, Toner said.

“The ship’s master refusing us permission to board it, as well as the fact that it turned around and headed back to North Korea, speaks to ... some of our concerns about its cargo,” he said.

North Korea leader’s armoured train arrives in Chinese capital

 North Korean leader Kim Jong-il (right) and his youngest son Kim Jong-un (left) gesture next to a military official during a gala evening to commemorate the 65th anniversary of the Workers’ Party of Korea in Pyongyang on October 10, 2010.

North Korean ruler Kim Jong-il’s armoured train arrived in Beijing today, setting the stage for a summit with Chinese leaders that he will want to underscore the bond between his isolated state and Asia’s biggest economy.

A motorcade later swept down central Beijing’s Chang’an Avenue under unusually tight police guard, suggesting the secretive Kim was in the Chinese capital.

South Korea’s Yonhap news agency said Kim was there “apparently for a summit meeting with Chinese President Hu Jintao”.

Neither China nor North Korea has confirmed the visit.

Iran denies missile technology exchange with N.Korea

 

An undated handout picture shows the Iranian supersonic ballistic missile, Persian Gulf, launching during a war-game in an unknown location in Iran.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry denied today a UN report that Tehran had exchanged missile technology with North Korea, a move which could be a violation of Security Council sanctions.

Iran and North Korea are both under UN sanctions over their nuclear ambitions. Iran says its nuclear programme is aimed at peaceful purposes mainly to generate electricity.

The report, obtained by Reuters over the weekend, said North Korea appeared to have been exchanging ballistic missile technology and expertise with Iran in violation of Security Council sanctions.

Iran has announced a string of achievements in its missile technology in the past years.

North Korea again calls for end to confrontation with South

South Korean Army soldiers patrol along a seashore at sunset during a photo opportunity in Dangjin, southwest of Seoul.

North Korea called for end to confrontation and emphasised the need for dialogue with the South in a joint editorial published today by official newspapers, repeating the line from a year ago in the wake of clashes in 2010.

“Confrontation between north and south should be defused as early as possible,” said the joint editorial by three main official newspapers, carried by the KCNA news agency.

“Active efforts should be made to create an atmosphere of dialogue and cooperation between north and south by placing the common interests of the nation above anything else.”

But North Korea failed to make any detailed offer for talks and the rhetoric was largely along the line from a year ago, when the editorial said: “National reconciliation and cooperation should be promoted actively.”

Train with gifts for N.Korea heir derails

A train packed with birthday gifts for North Korea’s leader-in-waiting Kim Jong-un derailed this month in a possible act of sabotage, a Seoul-based radio station which broadcasts across the border reported today.

Open Radio for North Korea, a non-profit station which often cites sources in the reclusive, impoverished North, said the train laden with gifts, including televisions and watches, came off the rails on December 11 near North Korea’s border with China.

“The security service has been in an emergency situation because a train departing Sinuiju and headed for Pyongyang derailed on December 11,” the radio station quoted a source in the security service in North Phyongan province as saying.

North Korea nuclear test ‘possible’ in new year

A North Korean Scud-B missile (centre) and South Korean Hawk surface-to-air missiles are seen at the Korean War Memorial Museum in Seoul, on December 24, 2010

North Korea could carry out a third nuclear test next year to strengthen the credentials of its young leader-in-waiting, Kim Jong-un, a research report from a South Korean Foreign Ministry institute said yesterday.

The report came a day after Pyongyang vowed a nuclear “sacred war,” using its nuclear deterrent, after the South vowed to be “merciless” if attacked again and held a major military drill near the border.

The North, which carried out nuclear tests in 2006 and 2009, has yet to show it has a deliverable weapon as part of its plutonium arms programme, but a third test would raise tensions further on the divided peninsula and rattle global markets.

China urges North Korea to accept nuclear inspectors

North Korean soldiers stand guard yesterday on the banks of Yalu River near the North Korean town of Sinuiju, opposite the Chinese border city of Dandong


China yesterday urged North Korea to follow through on its offer to allow United Nations nuclear monitors into the country as a way to alleviate international tensions during a standoff with South Korea.

China, North Korea’s only major ally, has continually urged dialogue to resolve the crisis and has been reluctant to blame its neighbour for the shelling of a South Korean island last month, in which two Marines and two civilians were killed.

South Korea held further live-fire drills on the island on Monday, raising fears of all-out war, but the North did not retaliate. Instead, it offered to accept nuclear inspectors it has kicked out of the country previously.

“North Korea has the right to use nuclear power for peaceful purposes, but also at the same time must allow IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) inspectors in,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu said in Beijing.

South Korea army to hold huge drill, North silent

A South Korean Army soldier walks up steps of a guard post near the demilitarised zone separating the two Koreas in Paju, north of Seoul, on December 22, 2010.


South Korea announced land and sea military exercises yesterday including its largest-ever live-fire drill near North Korea just as tension on the peninsula was beginning to ease after Pyongyang’s attack on a southern island.

The land drill, involving three dozen mobile artillery guns, six fighter jets, multiple launch rocket systems and 800 troops, the largest number of personnel in a single peace-time exercise, will take place on Thursday and is likely irritate the North.

The scale of the drill and the timing, coming right after the tensely staged a live-fire exercise on Monday, indicate South Korea’s conservative President Lee Myung-bak sees more political mileage in taking a tough military stance rather than reverting to dialogue, despite overtures from Pyongyang.

North Korea backs down over South Korean drill

Policemen and a soldier lead people to an air raid bunker on Yeonpyeong Island on December 20, 2010. South Korean marines have ordered residents of Yeonpyeong island to move to air raid bunkers in anticipation of a live-fire drill yesterday.


North Korea stepped back from confrontation over “reckless” military drills by the South yesterday and reportedly issued a new offer on nuclear inspections, drawing a cautious response from Seoul and Washington.

Air-raid bunkers on the South Korean island of Yeonpyeong shook during South Korea’s live-fire artillery exercise, which went on for more than 90 minutes.

But the North Korean guns that had shelled the island after a similar drill last month stayed silent, bringing a measure of relief in a crisis that raised fears of war along one of the world’s most heavily fortified frontiers.

“The revolutionary armed forces of the DPRK did not feel any need to retaliate against every despicable military provocation,” the official KCNA news agency said, quoting a communique from the North’s Korean People’s Army Supreme Command that called the drills a “childish play with fire.”

North Korea threatens to launch two retaliatory strikes over further planned artillery drills on disputed island

Tense: South Korean marines patrol on Yeongpyeong Island as the country announced it would stage further artillery drills over the weekend

Stand off: South Korean Navy vessels lie off the disputed island. North Korea has threatened to launch two retaliatory strikes if the drills go ahead

North Korea has again warned its southern neighbour to stop planned artillery drills on disputed islands and said it would launch two retaliatory strikes if it failed to comply.

South Korea has said it plans to carry out a 24-hour live-fire drill on Yeonpyeong Island sometime between Saturday and Tuesday, depending on weather.

Pyongyang, which claims ownership of nearby waters and has said it considers the drills an infringement of its territory, responded to similar firing exercises last month by shelling the tiny island.

Kim Jong Il's eldest son attacks choice of his younger brother as North Korea's next leader

Kim Jong Il's eldest son has hit out at his father's choice of successor as his younger brother Kim Jong Un is prepared to take over as ruler of North Korea.

Kim Jong Un - said to be his father's favourite - has become the front-runner to inherit the mantle of leadership, despite his youth and inexperience.

Kim Jong Nam was once considered likely to succeed his ailing father but reportedly fell out of favor after being caught trying to enter Japan on a false passport in 2001.

And it was a Japanese TV programme - TV Asahi - which broadcast footage of Kim Jong Nam making the remarks in Beijing, in which he said he opposes a hereditary transfer of power to a third generation of his family.
 

Passed over: Kim Jong-Nam attacked his father's choice of successor

The chosen one: North Korea leader Kim Jong Il, left, and his son Kim Jong Un observe the huge military parade at the weekend

North Korea confirms for the first time that Kim Jong Un will succeed his father as leader

A North Korean official has confirmed today for the first time that Kim Jong Il's youngest son will succeed him as the communist nation's next leader.

Yang Hyong Sop, a top official in North Korea's ruling party, referred to Kim Jong Un as 'the young general' during an interview with APTN.

He said the nation's people would be honoured to serve him as their leader.

Kim Jong Un would be the third successive generation of his family to lead North Korea, which has a population of 24 million.

His grandfather Kim Il Sung founded the nation in 1948 on a policy of self-reliance called 'juche'.

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Family tradition: Grandfather Kim Il Sung founded North Korea in 1948 and was succeeded by his son Kim Jong Il in 1994. Right, Kim Jong Un will be the next leader

On ceremony: Kim Jong Un standing with other North Korean Army figures. He was promoted to a four-star general last month

South Korea warns of problems when NK power shifts

The United States and South Korea should be prepared for a crisis in North Korea when dictator Kim Jong Il leaves power, South Korea's defense chief said Friday.

The expected transfer of power to Kim's youngest son could have unpredictable consequences in the isolated nation, South Korean Defense Minister Kim Tae-young said during a visit to the Pentagon.

"When Kim Jong Il's health may deteriorate, or if there's a movement of public opinion in North Korea, we cannot eliminate the possibility of there being an instability situation in North Korea" that would affect the security of the whole peninsula, Kim said through an interpreter.


Defense Secretary Robert Gates, left, and South Korean Defense Minister Kim Tae-young hold a joint news conference at the Pentagon, Friday, Oct. 8, 2010.


Defense Secretary Robert Gates, left, looks toward South Korean Defense Minister Kim Tae-young at the end of a joint news conference at the Pentagon, Friday, Oct. 8, 2010.

North Korea nuclear threat ‘alarming’, says South

Mercurial North Korea’s nuclear threat has reached an “alarming level” and it is now trying to miniaturise weapons to improve their mobility and impact, a South Korean government official said.

A US think-tank has also said satellite images taken last week showed that construction or excavation activity was taking place at the North’s main Yongbyon nuclear complex.

News that the North was pushing ahead with its nuclear plans in defiance of international pressure comes as Pyongyang, which has just recently set in motion a father-to-son power transition, has said it wants to return to stalled nuclear talks.

North Korea Supreme Leader Kim Jong-il is starting to hand the reins over to his son.

Spot the family resemblance: Has Kim Jong-Un undergone plastic surgery to look more like his grandfather Kim Il-Sung?

Most people look to plastic surgery as a way of turning back time.

But Kim Jong-un, the 27-year-old heir to the North Korean regime, has reportedly taken the opposite tack by going under the knife to look more like his grandfather.

Speculation is rife in North and South Korea over the striking similarity between Kim Jong-un and Kim Il-sung, the founder of the family dynasty.

Gone is the slender youth shown in earlier pictures of the youngest son of ailing North Korean leader Kim Jong-il.

Doppelgangers: North Korea's founder and former leader Kim Il-sung (left), his son and current leader Kim Jong-il (centre) and the person believed to be the latter's youngest son, Kim Jong-un (right)

Kim Jong Il youngest son Kim Jong Un promoted to 4 star general set to take over North Korea Presidential.

Many North Korean defectors living in South Korea said they are not surprised that a son of leader Kim Jong Il has been appointed to prominent party posts, a move thought to signal the start of a leadership succession.

Propagandists tell North Koreans that supreme leader's son is a successor in ...

Kim Jong Il promotes son, several others to general - Kim Jong Un, and Kim Kyong Hui

The top leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) Monday issued an order promoting his son Kim Jong Un and several commanding officers to the rank of general, the official KCNA reported early Tuesday.

Top leader Kim Jong Il's son Kim Jong Un, and Kim Kyong Hui, Choe Ryong Hae and three others from the ruling Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) were promoted to general, said the order.

The order also give the rank of colonel general to Ryu Kyong, lieutenant general to Ro Hung Se, Ri Tu Song and four others, and the rank of major general to Jo Kyong Jun, Jang To Yong and Mun Jong Chol and 24 others.

Youngest of Kim Jong Il's three sons set to replace him next week as leader's health worsens

North Korea will hold its biggest political meeting in three decades next week amid speculation leader Kim Jong Il will give his son an important post, paving the way for his possible succession.

Two years after suffering a stroke and reportedly in poor health, the 68-year-old is believed to be bolstering his plan to take the Kim dynasty into a third generation - appointing his heir to a senior position at the Workers' Party conference.

But the succession process is shrouded in secrecy.

Kim Jong Il (L) and the man believed to be his son Kim Jong Un (R) in 1992. North Korea will hold its biggest political meeting for three decades on September 28

South Korea sends aid to North, talks start on reunions

A convoy of South Korean trucks carrying the first rice aid to North Korea in three years crossed the peninsula’s heavily armed border on Friday in the latest of a series of conciliatory moves between the rivals.

At the same time, officials from both countries met in the North Korean border town of Kaesung to discuss the resumption of reunions of families split by the Korean War which were halted after the sinking of a South Korean warship earlier this year.