North Korea names hawkish general new military chief
North Korea has appointed as its new military chief a hawkish general, widely believed to have directed the 2010 shelling of a South Korean border island, state media confirmed Wednesday.
North Korea has appointed as its new military chief a hawkish general, widely believed to have directed the 2010 shelling of a South Korean border island, state media confirmed Wednesday.
Gunmen wearing North Korean military uniforms beat up the captain of a seized Chinese fishing boat and stole its fuel during two weeks of captivity, but eventually released the boat and crew Tuesday without the ransom they had demanded, the boat owner said.
North Korea has released 16 Chinese fishermen and their boat, Chinese state-run media said Tuesday, after reports that armed assailants had taken the sailors hostage and demanded a ransom.
South Korea on Monday predicted further missile tests by North Korea which fired four short-range missiles into the Sea of Japan at the weekend, drawing criticism from Seoul and UN chief Ban Ki-moon.
China says it is urging North Korea to release a Chinese fishing boat whose owner publicized the plight of its 16 crew in an online account saying they were seized by gun-wielding North Koreans earlier this month and held for ransom.
South Korean President Park Geun-Hye personally apologized Monday for an “unsavory” incident during her US summit visit that led to the dismissal of her chief spokesman.
North Korea has criticised the arrival of the US aircraft carrier USS Nimitz in the South for a joint drill as an “extremely reckless” provocation and a rehearsal for war against the communist state.
Former NBA star Dennis Rodman is tapping his friendship with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to ask for the release of a Korean-American man sentenced to 15 years of hard labor in the North.
North Korea is threatening the US and South Korea over joint naval drills taking place this week in tense Yellow Sea waters ahead of a Washington summit by the allies’ leaders.
President Barack Obama and South Korea’s new leader Park Geun-hye will seek to present a strong front against North Korea’s nuclear threats when they meet at the White House Tuesday. But they also want to leave the door open to talks with Pyongyang.
South Korea on Monday dismissed an “incomprehensible” list of North Korean demands for reviving suspended operations at a jointly-run industrial park.
North Korea said Sunday it would not invite any leading US figure to seek the release of a jailed American, adding he would not be a “political bargaining chip” in any negotiations with the United States.
South Korea says its last remaining nationals are about to leave a jointly run factory park in North Korea.
