Articles by Choi Si-young
Choi Si-young
siyoungchoi@heraldcorp.com-
N. Korean captured after crossing into South
A North Korean man was captured and taken into custody by South Korea’s military after he crossed the inter-Korean border on foot along the east coast, the Joint Chiefs of Staff said Wednesday. Late Monday night, military surveillance first picked up the man approaching the northern side of the fortified military demarcation line separating the two Koreas in Goseong County. At around 7:25 p.m. Tuesday, the man triggered the highest alert here, when he was spotted climbing over barb
North Korea Nov. 4, 2020
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N. Korea repeats zero COVID claims: WHO
North Korea has yet to report a single infection case of the noble coronavirus as of Oct. 29, the World Health Organization said in its latest report released Friday. The country has tested 10,462 people, it added. The WHO said in August it had been informed of zero infections in the North. Only about 3,000 North Koreans had been tested until September, according to Edwin Salvador, WHO representative to Pyongyang. All the rest took the test in October alone, but the WHO report did not offer
North Korea Nov. 3, 2020
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S. Korea does not need extra missile defense: ex-US commander
South Korea would need no extra American anti-missile defense against North Korea because the existing ones would work in tandem with other missile networks in place, former US Forces Korea Commander Gen. Vincent Brooks told Radio Free Asia on Monday. The retired general referred to the latest simulation test the US Missile Defense Agency conducted on Oct. 1, where a Patriot missile took down incoming fire using the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense radars. Seoul maintains a missile defense
Defense Nov. 3, 2020
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[News Focus] Steve Yoo starts 2nd legal battle over entry ban
Korean American singer Steve Seung Jun Yoo, known here as Yoo Seung-jun, is waging yet another legal battle to win his way back into South Korea, his birth country. The Korean-born singer has repeatedly appealed to the Korean government to lift the entry ban imposed on him in 2002 after he obtained US citizenship, an action viewed by officials here as an attempt to dodge mandatory military duty required of all capable Korean men. And things still look gloomy for Yoo. In March this year, th
Defense Nov. 2, 2020
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End-of-war declaration invites nuclear-free Korea: Moon adviser
Signing a declaration to end the 1950-53 Korean War is the first step toward denuclearization and peace on the Korean Peninsula, Moon Chung-in, President Moon Jae-in’s special security adviser, said Tuesday. “With the end-of-war declaration as a steppingstone for denuclearization, we must play our part to bring about a peace regime here,” security adviser Moon told a forum hosted by the National Unification Advisory Council, a state body offering counsel to the president on in
North Korea Oct. 28, 2020
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Paraguay airport adopts S. Korean military lab-made COVID-19 test kit
Silvio Pettirossi International Airport in Paraguay will use a coronavirus test kit developed by a South Korean military lab, South Korea’s Armed Forces Medical Command said Wednesday. The command’s medical research lab came up with the technology called the Face Infection Control System in May, and a local firm has commercialized it. The kit is faster and cheaper in screening for the coronavirus than the popular polymerase chain reaction test, which amplifies a small sample of DNA
Defense Oct. 28, 2020
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Korean American singer appeals to foreign minister to lift entry ban
Korean American singer Steve Seung Jun Yoo, widely known here as Yoo Seung-jun, appealed to South Korea’s foreign minister on Tuesday to lift his entry ban, saying Seoul’s repeated refusal to allow him into his birth country violates his rights. The plea came a day after Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha told the parliamentary foreign affairs committee that the ministry was not considering issuing Yoo a visa to let him back to the country. The South Korean-born singer has been banne
Social Affairs Oct. 27, 2020
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[Newsmaker] N. Korea slams S. Korea for ‘serving’ US
A North Korean propaganda outlet slammed South Korea on Monday for “serving” the US in a display of servility, saying Washington is returning only complications on ongoing disputes with Seoul. “Ranking officials in Seoul have paid numerous visits to Washington since October. … Their alliance is a combination of subjugation and subordination where Seoul is held hostage,” the propaganda outlet Maeari said, referring to the prolonged disputes over defense costs-shar
North Korea Oct. 26, 2020
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Conscientious objectors begin alternative service at Daejeon jail
The first group of conscientious objectors began their 36-month alternative service at a Daejeon jail on Monday, following a landmark court ruling two years ago that obliged the parliament to roll out such a program. South Korea conscripts all able-bodied men for about two years to maintain defense readiness against North Korea. A total of 63 objectors entered the correctional institution on Monday for three weeks of nonmilitary training. Upon completion of the program, they will be assigned t
Defense Oct. 26, 2020
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N. Koreans upset by shoddy typhoon recovery: RFA
Displaced North Koreans hit by this year’s typhoons said new homes built by the government were still uninhabitable, Radio Free Asia said Wednesday, citing anonymous sources in North Korea. “Except the ones Kim personally directed recovery for, most homes were barely inhabitable because it was a job half done,” one anonymous source said, referring to leader Kim Jong-un’s personal inspection of the August recovery effort in the hardest-hit North Hwanghae Province. The so
North Korea Oct. 23, 2020
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NK cyberattacks mainly target bank raids: US official
North Korea engages in cyberattacks to primarily steal money from banks, a senior US Justice Department official said Thursday. “They’ve used it really to steal banks and money. That’s not really the behavior we see from China or Russia or even Iran despite the Iran sanctions,” John Demers, assistant attorney general for national security, told a webinar hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies. He added China supports the cash-strapped North th
North Korea Oct. 23, 2020
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Slain S. Korean official tried to defect to NK: Coast Guard
The South Korean fisheries official who was shot dead by North Korea in the West Sea near the maritime border in late September was making defection, the Korea Coast Guard reaffirmed Thursday. “The missing official was a heavy gambler. We judge that he may have been mentally disturbed and attempted defection to the North to escape reality,” the Coast Guard told a press briefing, concluding its investigation into the case. The Coast Guard said, the official, who was in his 40s, mad
North Korea Oct. 22, 2020
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[Herald Interview] With KF-X, S. Korea eyes foothold in global fighter jet market
SACHEON, South Gyeongsang Province -- As South Korea gears up to reveal a prototype of its next-generation fighter jet in early 2021, Korea Aerospace Industries is pursuing a broader initiative to carve out its presence in the aerospace market, which is dominated by established players in Europe and the US. Mass production of the Korean fighter jet, known by the project name KF-X, is expected to begin as early as 2026. “From 2030 onwards, rival European jets will need replacement due to
Defense Oct. 22, 2020
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[Newsmaker] N. Korea denuclearization a step toward end-of-war declaration: Pompeo
North Korea’s denuclearization would ultimately lead to the declaration of an official end to the Korean War, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Wednesday. The two Koreas are still at war, having signed no peace treaty to end the 1950-53 conflict. Pompeo was addressing questions about whether ending the war would be feasible without the North’s disarmament. President Moon Jae-in has repeatedly called for an end-of-war declaration. The top US diplomat again urged Pyongyang to c
North Korea Oct. 22, 2020
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Of 26 Asia-Pacific countries, NK at No. 17 for power
North Korea was ranked 17th out of 26 countries in the Asia-Pacific region in terms of national power, dropping by one place largely due to its waning diplomatic influence, the Australian think tank Lowy Institute said in this year’s power index released Monday. The nuclear talks between the US and the North helped Pyongyang little, according to the index, which assesses a country’s power based on its overall performance in areas such as diplomatic and cultural influence as well as
North Korea Oct. 20, 2020
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