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I. United States1. Inter-Korean Relations The Associated Press ("N KOREA ACCUSES S KOREA OF INCREASING ARMS AT BORDER," Seoul, 11/22/01) reported that unidentified military sources said that the DPRK accused the ROK on November 22 of deploying a howitzer inside its portion of the DMZ and keeping "it ready to fire at the North." ROK ministry spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Chung Sung-yup responded that it is virtually impossible to haul a howitzer to the mine-laden DMZ. The DPRK's foreign news outlet, Korean Central News Agency, said, "The South Korean military authorities will be held wholly responsible for the grave consequences of their military provocation against the North." 2. DPRK Food Aid The Associated Press ("S KOREA HAS NO IMMEDIATE FOOD AID FOR N KOREA - OFFICIAL," Seoul, 11/23/01) reported that ROK Unification Ministry official Kim Hoon-ah on November 23 said that the ROK has no immediate plan to contribute to an expected UN appeal for emergency food aid to the DPRK. UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan is expected to issue a new appeal on Monday for US$2.5 billion worth of aid to help famine-ravaged countries, including the DPRK, Somalia, Angola and Afghanistan. Kim said that the ROK cannot make any donations right now given the stall in exchanges with the DPRK. 3. US-PRC Missile Talks Reuters (Jeremy Page, "US, CHINA TO LOCK HORNS ON MISSILE PROLIFERATION," Beijing, 11/23/01) reported that the US is hoping that the September 11 attacks on the US will encourage the PRC to abide by a deal not to transfer missile technology to nations the US calls "rogue states." One US official said, "In our view, the ball's in their court. It's up to them to do what's necessary to resume full implementation of the arrangement on their side. They can see the new kind of world we're all in, and the new kind of relationship they can have with the US. The ability of that relationship to reach its full extent is going to be limited by this missile problem if it's not resolved." PRC Vice Foreign Minister Wang Guangya will meet US Undersecretary of State John Bolton in Washington on November 30 to try to resolve the impasse. US officials have been urging the PRC to draw up a list of materials covered by the agreement to avoid future ambiguities. Unnamed Beijing- based diplomats say that the PRC had originally planned to produce such a list during US President Bush's meeting with PRC President Jiang Zemin in Shanghai, but the PRC decided otherwise when the US imposed sanctions on the PRC for suspected sales to Pakistan. 4. US-PRC Military Relations Agence France Presse ("US CARRIER'S PORT CALL SIGNALS CHINA'S SUPPORT FOR TERRORIST WAR," 11/24/01) reported that the PRC has given approval for a US aircraft carrier to make a port call in Hong Kong on its way to the Arabian Sea. Defense analysts and diplomats view the PRC's approval of the visit as the strongest sign yet of PRC support for the Afghanistan war. The USS John C. Stennis, a nuclear-powered vessel believed to be on its way to joining other US aircraft carriers in the Arabian Sea to launch bombing missions, is scheduled to arrive in Hong Kong on November 29 for a five-day stay. The South China Morning Post reported that it will be accompanied by its battle group comprised of seven ships, including cruisers, destroyers and support vessels. One foreign diplomat told SCMP, "What China has been doing thus far is just giving verbal support to the United States. If China approves American ships stopping over in Hong Kong, that could be a very significant step which could be interpreted as giving logistical support to the American activities." 5. Japanese Military Support in Afghanistan CNN.com ("JAPANESE WAR EFFORT SETS SAIL," 11/25/01) reported that two ships from the Maritime Self-Defence Force set sail from Yokosuka naval base just south of Tokyo and Kure, in southwestern Japan. Another ship was due to leave in the afternoon from Sasebo, also in southwestern Japan. The ships are heading into the Indian Ocean on a mission to provide logistical support for the US-led war in Afghanistan. The three vessels will join another three ships that left Japan earlier this month on an information-gathering mission. Japanese media reported last week that the mission is scheduled to end on March 31, but could be extended if necessary. 1. Inter-Korean Relations The Korea Herald (Kim Ji-ho, "N.K. STEPS UP CRITICISM OF SOUTH'S UNIFICATION MINISTER," Seoul, 11/26/01) reported that in a statement broadcast on the DPRK's official Korean Central Broadcasting Station, the DPRK ruling party's Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland attributed the breakdown of the ministerial talks to ROK Unification Minister Hong Soon-young's "imprudent anti-North attitude." The committee said, "His behavior demonstrated that he was focusing only on his political survival, rather than the nation's future, the June 15 North-South Joint Declaration and inter-Korean dialogue." ROK opposition parties praised Minister Hong for having rebuffed the DPRK's "unreasonable" demands. However, the DPRK committee said in its statement, "Hong Soon-young made it difficult to tell whether he is the unification minister of the South's government or that of the opposition party." 2. Inter-Korean Trade The Korea Herald ("INTER-KOREAN TRADE DROPS 10% THIS YEAR," 11/23/01) reported that the ROK Unification Ministry said on November 22 that inter-Korean trade during the first 10 months of this year is down 9.9 percent from the last year's number. According to the ministry, the figure accounts for 623 items traded by 351 businesses. Ministry officials further said that the downward trend is expected to continue for the foreseeable future. 3. Trilateral Talks on DPRK The Korea Herald ("KOREA, U.S., JAPAN DISCUSS N.K. POLICY," Seoul, 11/26/01) reported that senior officials from the ROK, the US and Japan were to open a two-day tripartite meeting in San Francisco on Monday to coordinate their policies on the DPRK. ROK officials said that participants in the Trilateral Coordination and Oversight Group (TCOG) session are expected to discuss the current deadlock in inter-Korean relations, their future strategies in dealing with the DPRK, and possible humanitarian aid for the DPRK. 4. ROK Defense Policy Joongang Ilbo (Kim Hee-sung, "DEFENSE WHITE PAPER HELD BACK; NORTH REMAINS SEOUL'S 'MAIN ENEMY'," Seoul, 11/23/01) reported that the ROK Defense Ministry announced on November 22 that it would begin releasing Defense White Papers every two years, starting 2002. Cha Young-gu, the ministry's policy adviser said, "This also indicates that the ministry still considers North Korea its main enemy, as stated in the White Paper released in 2000. If there are no clear signs of mutual confidence building between the two Koreas by May of next year the main enemy tag will remain unchanged." The statement led many observers to speculate that the Defense Ministry, by not releasing a White Paper this year, is avoiding further debate on deleting the term "main enemy." The DPRK has repeatedly criticized the ROK for continuing to brand the DPRK as the ROK's main enemy, despite recent efforts to improve bilateral relations. [Ed. note: This article appeared in the US Department of Defense's Early Bird news service for November 26, 2001.] 5. ROK Missile Test Chosun Ilbo (Yu Yong-won, "DEFENSE MINISTRY CONFIRMS MISSILE TEST," Seoul, 11/23/01) reported that the ROK Ministry of National Defense confirmed on November 22 that its Agency for Defense Development test- fired a 100 kilometer-range missile over the West Sea. The Ministry's spokesman Hwang Eui-don said that the missile was fired from a test range on the west coast at a simulated target 50 kilometers west of Byeonsan Peninsula around 4:00pm on November 22. He said that the missile was confirmed to have landed on the target, adding that the US government was notified of the test in accordance with the ROK-US Missile Guidelines and that the test was carried out under MTCR regulations. Commenting on the Kyodo News Agency's report that an ROK missile warhead landed on the East China Sea 600 kilometer from the launch site, a high-ranking Defense Ministry official said it must be the result of miscalculation based on wrong data supplied by the US's NORAD. He said that the Ministry also provided detailed information to the Japanese government. [Ed. note: This article appeared in the US Department of Defense's Early Bird news service for November 26, 2001.] 6. DPRK-Japan Relations Joongang Ilbo (Kim Hee-sung, "NORTH, JAPAN MEET TO THAW RELATIONS," Seoul, 11/26/01) reported that the DPRK and Japan reportedly resumed working-level contacts aimed at normalizing diplomatic relations between the two countries. An ROK government official said that the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs informed the ROK of the meeting, the first by the Koizumi administration. Diplomatic sources said that the DPRK is trying to solve its economic and food crisis through better relations with Japan, especially since DPRK-ROK and DPRK-US ties have been frozen of late. 1. Japan-ROK Relation Yomiuri Shinbun (Yoshiharu, Asano, "THE ROK MISSILE FELL IN THE YELLOW SEA," Seoul, 11/22/01) and the Asahi Shinbun ("THE ROK TEST-FIRING OF MISSILE," 11/22/01) reported that the ROK military conducted a test- firing of a missile on 22 November. According to the ROK Ministry of Defense, the launched missile landed right on its target. In response to the test-firing, Japan initially grew tense, suspecting that the missile was launched by the DPRK. 2. Japan's Role in Afghan Reconstruction The Asahi Shinbun ("EU CONFIRMED COOPERATION WITH JAPAN IN AFGHAN RECONSTRUCTION," 11/23/01) reported that Japan and the European Union (EU) confirmed their cooperation in the Afghan rehabilitation issue in a meeting held in Tokyo on November 22. Japan and the EU agreed to make the Afghan rehabilitation issue a main agenda in the coming Japan-EU Summit in December. Yomiuri Shinbun (Fumiya Akagi, "PAKISTAN DECIDES TO ATTEND THE MINISTERIAL MEETING FOR AFGHAN RECONSTRUCTION," Islamabad, 11/26/01, 02) reported that Japanese Foreign Minister Makiko Tanaka and her Pakistani counterpart, Abdus Sattar, on November 24 exchanged opinions on post- conflict reconstruction assistance to Afghanistan, in which Japan is to play a leading role. Tanaka asked Sattar for cooperation at the ministerial meeting, which will be hosted by Japan, to discuss restoration efforts in Afghanistan. Sattar responded to Tanaka's request favorably, expressing that Pakistan will attend the ministerial meeting.
1. ROK-DPRK Relations China Daily ("BOAT DRIFTS INTO ROK WATERS," Seoul, 11/19/01, P11) reported that the ROK navy seized a motorless barge with two crewmembers that drifted into its territorial waters early November 18. A military spokesman from the ROK said that the barge belonged to the DPRK. The 20 meter long log-carrying barge was found drifting 40 kilometers east of the ROK's northeastern coast. ROK navy tugboats towed the DPRK boat to Kojin port, 160 kilometers northeast of Seoul. According to the ROK report, an investigation is underway. 2. PRC-US Relations China Daily (Jiang Zhuqing, "UN CAN SETTLE AFGHAN QUESTION," 11/21/01, P2) reported that PRC Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue said at a press conference on November 20 that the PRC has always made clear its opposition to US weapons sales to Taiwan. She was commenting in reference to reports that seven US manufacturers are planning to bid on the construction of diesel-powered submarines for Taiwan. She urged the US to strictly abide by the commitments of the three Sino-US communiques. 3. PRC-Japanese Relations People's Daily ("19TH SESSION OF CHINA-JAPAN REGULAR CONSULTATIONS HELD," Beijing, 11/22/01, P3) reported that PRC Vice Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Japanese Vice Foreign Minister of Japan Takano Toshiyuki held the 19th session of regular consultations between the foreign ministries of the two countries on November 21. The two sides exchanged views on Sino-Japanese relations, and other regional and international issues of common interest. Following the consultations, PRC Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan met with Takano Toshiyuki and his party. People's Daily (Yu Qing, Liu Chang and Cao Pengcheng, "9TH SINO-JAPANESE ECONOMIC SYMPOSIUM OPENS," Tianjin, 11/20/01, P1) reported that the 9th Sino-Japanese Economic Symposium co-sponsored by the People's Daily and Nihon Keizai Shimbun of Japan opens on November 19 at the Economic- Technological Development Area in Tianjin. The main theme of the symposium is the PRC's Entry into the World Trade Organization and Sino- Japanese economic cooperation in the 21st century. PRC representatives attending the symposium were Yu Xiaosong, president of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade; Liu Mingkang, chairman and president of the Bank of China; Zhu Yanfeng, general manager of China FAW (First Automobile Works) Group and Li Shenglin, mayor of Tianjin. Japanese representatives were Noboru Hatakeyama, chairman of JETRO (Japan External Trade Organization) Council; Fujio Cho, president of TOYOTA Motor Corporation, and Tadashi Sekizawa, chairman of Fujitsu Limited. 4. PRC Position on Nuclear Reduction China Daily (Hu Qihua, "REDUCTION IN NUCLEAR ARSENALS URGED," 11/16/01, P1) reported that PRC Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue said on November 15 that the PRC is calling on the US and Russia to make their pledge to reduce nuclear weapons legally binding. Zhang said, "The United States and Russia, the largest nuclear arsenals in the world, have a special responsibility to help maintain global peace and stability." People's Liberation Army Daily (Yan Guoqun, "WHY US AND RUSSIA LARGELY REDUCE STRATEGIC WEAPONS?" 11/17/01, P3) carried an article analyzing the reasons that the US and Russia announced a large reduction of strategic nuclear weapons. The article said that during the Cold War era, the US and the former Soviet Union both pumped enormous funding into the expansion of their nuclear arsenals. Furthermore, to maintain these missile forces demands more than just the cost of production. This undoubtedly poses a great economic burden on the military expenditure of the two countries, especially when the world is facing an economic slowdown and the US is pooling its main resources to fight terrorism. It pointed out that dismantled nuclear warheads have great economic value, as they can be reused to build nuclear power stations and to produce nuclear powered ships, which will bring these two countries big economic benefits.
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