Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk SEOUL — Whenever experts talk about “confederation” or “reunification” between North and South Korea, they overlook the fate of tens of thousands of people confined to prison camps in the North for offenses that might threaten the regime. Examples of such “crimes” include Christian worship, possession of a bible […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk PYEONGCHANG ― Now I know firsthand what they’re talking about when they say the Russians are tricky. Yes, they’ve gotten into American and other websites, tried to sway the U.S. presidential election and are not to be trusted, but those were media reports. In an era of fake news, […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk U.S. officials remain deeply skeptical of North Korea’s intentions while South Korea’s President Moon Jae-In seeks to build on the momentum toward negotiations in the aftermath of the Winter Olympics. The White House is awaiting a firm signal directly from Pyongyang about the prospects for talks while wondering about […]
by WorldTribune Staff, February 28, 2018 Lawyers representing impeached South Korean President Park Geun-Hye are asking the UN to help secure her release after prosecutors called for a 30-year sentence and a court in Seoul extended her detention by six months. “The UN is looking at our application urgently and the South Korean authorities need […]
by WorldTribune Staff, February 25, 2018 Following Vice President Mike Pence’s lead from the opening ceremony, Ivanka Trump did not acknowledge the North Korean delegation at the closing ceremony of the 2018 Winter Olympics Sunday. The body language is seen by some analysts as signalling Washington’s anger at Seoul’s appeasement moves blasted by South Korean […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk PYEONGCHANG, South Korea — Ivanka Trump’s upcoming weekend in South Korea is sure to set off another round of intense speculation while the vice chairman of North Korea’s ruling Workers’ Party leads a delegation south at just about the same time. The big question is whether the presidential daughter […]
by WorldTribune Staff, February 22, 2018 South Korea’s main opposition party is furious that the Moon Jae-In administration agreed to host a top North Korean official at the Winter Olympics closing ceremony. Moon’s government announced that Kim Yong-Chol, a vice chairman of the Central Committee of North Korea’s ruling Workers’ Party, will head an eight-member […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk The strange case of NBC sports commentator Joshua Cooper Ramo touched the sensitive nerves of millions of Koreans. Thousands responded with indignation, aggrieved feelings, even outrage to his on-air remark at the Winter Olympics to the effect that “every Korean will tell you that Japan as a cultural and […]
by WorldTribune Staff, February 15, 2018 Kim Jong-Un has put on a charm offensive at the Winter Games while extracting money from South Korea under the guise of reunification, the leader of U.S. Pacific Command said. But the North Korean leader’s goal goes beyond preventing regime change, he said. Rather, he is focused on the […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk American policy-makers appear highly uncertain and divided among themselves as to moves toward negotiation between North and South Korea in the wake of the Winter Olympics. The view from the White House, is that President Donald Trump has succeeded in forcing the hand of Kim Jong-Un, compelling him to […]
