China (and others) on North Korea

[Randy W]

Reuters

 

China announces restrictions on trade with North Korea

 

China on Tuesday banned imports of gold and rare earths from North Korea as well as exports to the country of jet fuel and other oil products used to make rocket fuel, a move in line with new United Nations sanctions on Pyongyang.

 

. . .

 

The mining sector is a key part of North Korea's economy, which is already largely cut off from the rest of the world. Experts believe revenue from the sector helps underwrite North Korea's military expenditures.

 

. . .

 

Independent experts have frequently questioned China's resolve to enforce sanctions against North Korea, whose economy is heavily dependent on its neighbor. China has said it will enforce the measures "conscientiously".

 

[Randy W]

China implements tough restrictions on trade with North Korea

 

While in the past China has sat on the sidelines while the international community tried to limit North Korea's ability to develop nuclear weapons, apparently Beijing didn't respond very well to being threatened with a "nuclear storm" by its unpredictable neighbor.

Last month Japanese media carried reports that China's largest banks, had stopped all yuan and dollar transfers to North Korea. The state-owned banks include Bank of China (BoC), China Construction Bank (CCB), Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) and Agricultural Bank of China (ABC).

 

[Randy W]

in the SCMP. His caretaker while in Switzerland. It looks like a very interesting article - I'll have to read more of it later on.

 

The secret life of North Korea’s Kim Jong-un’s aunt, a US resident since 1998

For the past 18 years, since defecting from North Korea into the waiting arms of the CIA, Ko Yong-suk has been living an anonymous life here in the United States, with her husband and three children

 

 

But she’s not just any immigrant. She’s an aunt to Kim Jong-un, the young North Korean leader who has threatened to wipe out New York with a hydrogen bomb.

And for the past 18 years, since defecting from North Korea into the waiting arms of the CIA, she has been living an anonymous life here in the United States, with her husband and three children.

. . .

Breaking their silence in the United States, Ko and Ri spent almost 20 hours talking to two Washington Post reporters in New York City and then at their home several hours’ drive away. They were nervous about emerging from their anonymity; after all, there are Americans who analyse North Korea for a living and do not even know that the couple are here.

 

. . .

 

“He wasn’t a troublemaker but he was short-tempered and had a lack of tolerance,” Ko recalled. “When his mother tried to tell him off for playing with these things too much and not studying enough, he wouldn’t talk back but he would protest in other ways, like going on a hunger strike.”

 

[Randy W]

from the Washington Post

 

Satellite imagery suggests China is secretly punishing North Korea

 

Cha’s conclusion, that Beijing decided to punish North Korea after the nuclear test but didn’t disclose that to the world, is backed up by anecdotal reports of Chinese officials telling Western interlocutors that President Xi Jinping had decided to “take action” against the Kim regime, behind the scenes, out of anger over the nuke test.

“It shows that China pursues things in their own way when it comes to North Korea, not because the U.S. or the U.N. tells them to,” said Cha. “The good news is that they are squeezing them more than we were led to expect.”

CSIS worked with imagery analysts at the commercial satellite firm DigitalGlobe to collect and examine satellite photos of several key trade-related areas on both sides of the China-North Korea border, including the Sinuiju railroad station and customs area on the North Korean side, the Dandong railroad station and customs area on the Chinese side, and the Sino-Korean Friendship Bridge that links the two countries.

 

 

 

The conclusions are based on images such as these

 

 

 

 

 

See the reports earlier in this thread - it looks like China is following through - http://candleforlove.com/forums/topic/46367-china-on-north-korea/?p=627649

[Randy W]

North Koreans usually don't defect through Hong Kong, but when they do . . .

 

in the SCMP

 

Top South Korean diplomat keeps mum on status of teenage North Korean defector in face of Hong Kong media pack

Beefed-up security at South Korean consulate keeps reporters and photographers at bay

 

The defector is reportedly a male teenage member of a North Korean delegation that attended an academic competition at a local university two weeks ago. Uniformed officers and members of the force’s counter-terrorism division have been deployed to strengthen security.

 

. . .

 

Lau Kwun-hang, founder of the North Korean Concern Group in Hong Kong, said the case was rare and that it might well be the first since the handover, although there had been an unconfirmed case that was handled in a low-key fashion in 2005.

The city is not a common destination for North Korean defectors, he said, because there was no clear-cut detail as to how Hong Kong would differ from Beijing in handling them.

. . .

The diplomatic deadlock could leave the defector in limbo inside the embassy for years, Lau estimated, as with many other past cases when diplomacy was involved.

The last reported episode of North Koreans escaping to Hong Kong dated back to 1996, when a family of 16 and another defector fled to the city to seek help.

 

 

[Randy W]

An update on that case in the SCMP -

 

North Korean defector has left Hong Kong and ‘arrived safely’ in an undisclosed country, sources say

 

 

A North Korean defector who sought refuge in Hong Kong for about a month “has safely arrived at a third country”, a South Korean broadcaster has reported.

 

. . .

 

“The defector stayed in the consulate for weeks, it was likely that he has filled in documents to apply for South Korean citizenship,” Lau said.

“So I think he will return to South Korea eventually to finish the process, which could last for months.

“If he wanted to stay in a foreign country as a refugee, the process could take even longer,” he added.

 

[Allon]

Just finished reading

A Kim Jong-Il Production: The Extraordinary True Story of a Kidnapped Filmmaker, His Star Actress, and a Young Dictator's Rise to Power

 

It puts a lot of the characters in place. A lot of links on this but here is one from BBC. http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-31628415

 

Disgusting, frankly. I hope we don't get to a war there because the NK people are wholly brain washed and many will probably fight to the end. Slow starvation is what is happening already. Meanwhile Jong-un drinks champagne.

Edited August 24, 2016 by Allon (see edit history)

[Randy W]

28 sites - don't visit them all at once! Some are still accessible - see https://www.reddit.com/r/technology/comments/53mr05/north_korea_accidentally_leaks_dns_for_kp_only_28/ for links

 

North Korea just accidentally revealed it only has 28 websites

 

 

The error reportedly occurred on 19 September 2016, when one of North Korea's top level nameservers was accidentally configured to allow global DNS zone transfers.

"This allows anyone who performs an AXFR (zone transfer) request to the country's ns2.kptc.kp nameserver to get a copy of the nation's top level DNS data," the site reports.

"This was detected by the TLDR Project - an effort to attempt zone transfers against all top level domain (TLD) nameservers every 2 hours and keep a running Github repo with the resulting data. This data gives us a better picture of North Korea's domains and top level DNS."

 

[Randy W]

in the SCMP - there is a link to a video of the actual killing in the article

 

http://cdn4.i-scmp.com/sites/default/files/images/methode/2017/02/20/60c39bd2-f70b-11e6-bcc4-de1d4609fc98_1320x770.jpg

 

In a flash, the next scene shows two women approaching Kim, one in a whitetop appearing to lunge as she places her hand over Kim’s face. There is a flurry of movement, then after a matter of two or three seconds, the three break apart.

The woman in white - whose hair and dress resembles a woman dressed in a top with an “LOL” slogan who Malaysian police said was connected to the killing - walks briskly away.

The other woman cannot be seen.

 

 

North Korean ambassador condemns ‘political’ investigation into assassination of Kim Jong-nam by Malaysian authorities

Spat has escalated after Malaysia rejected demands from North Korean diplomats to hand over the body of Jong-nam

 

“The Ministry emphasised that as the death occurred on Malaysian soil under mysterious circumstances, it is the responsibility of the Malaysian Government to conduct an investigation to identify the cause of death,” a foreign ministry statement said of the meeting with the North Korean ambassador.

 

[Allon]

Looks like the NK messed up. China is now refusing coal at thee border from North Korea. China demanded NK break up and stop its nuclear activities. ---CNN today

[Randy W]

The news about the coal imports from North Korea from NPR

 

China Suspends Coal Imports From North Korea, Dealing A Blow To Pyongyang

 

In a surprising move, China's commerce ministry has announced that the country would be suspending its coal imports from North Korea. China released a statement Saturday saying that the freeze in imports will begin Sunday and will be in place through the end of the year.

The move marks a dramatic blow to North Korea. The country, which conducts an estimated 90 percent of its trade with China, relies on coal as its No. 1 export. In fact, as NPR's Elise Hu has reported, many analysts say coal makes for some 35 percent of North Korea's economy.

China did not immediately state a reason for the coal freeze, though it comes at a turbulent time: Last week, Pyongyang test-fired a missile into the Sea of Japan, drawing international rebuke, and just days ago, North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un's older half brother died mysteriously in Malaysia — a death that has sparked speculation of assassination.

. . .

As a matter of fact, the shift to have have already begun: Citing South Korea's Yonhap news agency, Reuters reports a North Korean coal shipment — valued around $1 million — was rejected by China last week.

It's "sign that Beijing's patience was running out" after the missile test and the death of Kim's half-brother Kim Jong Nam, according to The Washington Post. "If North Korea were responsible, it would be seen as an affront to Beijing, which had played host to and protected the half brother of the North Korean leader for many years."

 

[danb]

Here is a response from N.Korea on China's not buying anymore coal from her for the rest of the year:

 

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/video/north-korea-assails-china-for-dancing-to-us-tune/vi-AAnhh93

 

Seems like N. Korea is going to do what it what it want to do. And say what it wants to say. Talk about biting the hand that helps to feed you. Danb

[danb]

Can you believe this? :

 

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/video/vx-the-poison-that-killed-kim-jong-nam/vi-AAni9jX

 

I wonder what is next in the North Korean story/drama.

[Randy W]

Can you believe this? :

 

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/video/vx-the-poison-that-killed-kim-jong-nam/vi-AAni9jX

 

I wonder what is next in the North Korean story/drama.

 

 

An article in Scientific American about the VX nerve agent, reprinted from ChemistryWorld on February 24, 2017

 

VX Nerve Agent in North Korean's Murder: How Does It Work?

 

 

Ten milligrams is enough to kill a person through skin contact although it can also kill through inhalation. One of the women involved in the attack subsequently fell ill too.

‘This nerve agent can penetrate the skin and it acts very quickly,’ explains chemistJohn Emsley, author of The elements of murder: a history of poison. ‘The toxic dose via the skin is 0.1mg per kg of body weight, although it’s only 5μg when inhaled, so I suspect the woman sprayed him in the face as well and had the antidote to hand.’

However, a more sophisticated attack may have taken place. ‘I would be looking closely at, why two women?’ says John Robertson, a poisons expert who runs The poison gardenwebsite. ‘Is it possible that each had a different substance on their cloth and the two reacted on his face to produce the fatal toxin? That would explain how they could have handled the cloths with impunity.’ Now that we know the agent was VX, Robertson points out that this poison can be employed as a binary weapon. VX can be made by mixing O-(2-diisopropylaminoethyl) O′-ethyl methylphosphonite (Agent QL) with elemental sulfur (Agent NE) or a liquid dimethyl polysulfide mixture (Agent NM).

 

 

[Randy W]

This article provides pretty good coverage of the present situation, if you want to read up on that, In the SCMP

 

WHY SOUTH KOREANS ARE UNMOVED EVEN THOUGH ALL SIGNS POINT TO WAR

Sabre-rattling is a way of life on the Korean Peninsula, but as big players put weapons of war into position, some are starting to think the alarm bells may be getting too loud to be false

 

http://cdn2.i-scmp.com/sites/default/files/styles/landscape/public/images/methode/2017/04/15/15e89908-20d4-11e7-ba38-4217a96bb749_1280x720_114618.jpg?itok=J7OUGUBr

 

Last week, the US sent a fleet of warships to Korea, Japan also sent several ships to join the fleet, China moved 120,000 troops and medical supplies to the border, and North Korea reportedly evacuated one-quarter of its capital.

But after decades of provocations by the North, South Koreans have become accustomed to the threat of war – a sharp contrast to the concerns of many foreign residents.