| Due to the South Korean Presidential election (see below), a special North Korea Report covering it will go out on as soon as a winner is declared � most likely Thursday afternoon U.S. Eastern Standard Time. THE NORTH KOREA REPORT: DECEMBER 16, 2002 Our statement on why North Korea must be liberated, and how it can happen, can be found here. STALINISTS THREATEN SOUTH KOREAN WITH NUCLEAR WAR IF LEE WINS In a dramatic attempt to influence Thursday�s South Korean election for President, Stalinist North Korea threatened a nuclear war if anti-Stalinist Lee Hoi-Chang, candidate of the opposition Grand National Party, won the election. Lee is running against Roh Moo-huyn, nominee of the Millennium Democrats, the party of outgoing President and �sunshine� policy author Kim Dae-jung (Cybercast News). Of course, the Stalinists said the U.S. would start the war through Lee, who they called a �traitor.� Lee was ahead in the polls until a third-party candidate entered the race, then backed out in Roh�s favor. The race is now considered very close. Roh supports President Kim�s dovish �sunshine� policy towards the North, while Lee takes a much more hawkish stance towards the Stalinists. Also reporting: BBC For more on the South Korean election, see Commentary/Analysis. NORTH KOREAN SCUD MISSILES BOUND FOR YEMEN SEIZED, THEN LET GO The Spanish Navy seized a North Korean vessel carrying over a dozen Scud missiles and numerous other unnamed chemicals headed for Yemen, according to Bill Gertz, Washington Times. The ship, flying under a Cambodian flag for cover (BBC 12/11/02-1), tried to flee from Spain�s naval deployment, which fired warning shots to slow it down (CNN). The vessel was then handed over to the U.S. Then things went downhill. Yemen demanded the U.S. hand the ship over, insisting the Scuds were for self-defense, and that they would never go to a third party. Citing �no authority� (BBC 12/11/02-2) to permanently stop the North Korean vessel, the U.S. allowed it to resume its course to Yemen (Washington Post, Washington Times). U.S. APOLOGIZES TO SPAIN FOR RELEASING SHIP; SPANISH CALL RELEASE �STRANGE� Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz �apologized for the result of this operation� (CNN). Spain called the decision to release the ship �strange,� winning the prize for the most intelligent assessment of the American action, especially given that the U.S. had been tracking the missile shipment, first noted in the 12/2/02 NK Report, for quite some time. An unnamed Spanish source was harsher on the subject, �the Spanish military forces risked their lives, and so far we don't know why� (BBC). Meanwhile, Japan also warned Yemen about buying the Scuds from the Stalinist regime. One U.S. official told the Washington Post that the main reason Yemen got the missiles was because it �is not a threat.� Excuse me, but how about North Korea?! YEMEN HAD DENIED MISSILES WERE THEIRS; NORTH KOREA CALLS U.S. ACTION �PIRACY� Part of the problem was that Yemen had initially denied that it was the destination for the Scuds, and had hinted they were willing to keep quiet on it at first (Washington Times). Meanwhile, Stalinist North Korea blasted the temporary interception as �piracy� (BBC, CNN). NORTH KOREA SENT GUNSHIPS TO IRAN ONE DAY BEFORE SCUDS WERE SEIZED One day before the Yemen-Scud fiasco, a shipment of gunship from North Korea made it to Iran unscathed, despite being tracked by U.S. intelligence. Bill Gertz, Washington Times reported this rather odd American non-action given the Scud seizure �the weapons deal itself, sadly, is quite normal � and its dangerous consequences. NORTH KOREA TO RESTART PRE-1994 NUCLEAR PLANTS STOPPED UNDER NUKE DEAL The Stalinist regime announced that it would bring back on line nuclear power plants that were frozen under the 1994 nuclear power deal with the U.S. The North admitted violating the 1994 deal with a ling-running program to develop uranium-based nuclear weapons in October (see 10/21/02 NK report). At the time, they declared the deal �nullified.� Reports: BBC, Fox News, Cybercast News, Washington Times NORTH COULD BE BACK IN WEAPONS-GRADE PLUTONIUM BUSINESS IN LESS THAN A YEAR With the plants up and running again, the North can add plutonium-based weapons to its future nuclear arsenal in less than a year, according to the BBC. It would also make clear once and for all, that the 1994 deal is dead. Also reporting: Jonathan Marcus-BBC, Paul Reynolds-BBC, Washington Post SOUTH KOREA �STUNNED� BY NORTH�S DECISION The North�s announcement that it would restart the nuclear power plants shut down in the 1994 deal �stunned� South Korea, and lead one newspaper to declare that President Kim Dae-jung�s �sunshine� policy had come to a �dramatic end� (Chosun Ilbo as cited in Cybercast News). What effect this would have on Thursday�s election (see above, Commentary/Analysis) is unclear. KIM AND BUSH CALL MOVE �REGRETTABLE,� U.S. SAYS IT WON�T RESPOND TO �THREATS� Meanwhile, outgoing South Korean President Kim Dae-jung and President Bush called the action �regrettable� (CNN). White House spokesperson Ari Fleischer said talks between Washington and the Stalinists �in response to threats or broken commitments� (Cybercast News) were not in the offing. Also reporting: Washington Post, Washington Times Stop the North Korean Nuclear Power Plants: North Korea announced that it would restart the pre-1994 plutonium power plants. Despite this, talk of negotiations continues, and building the two nuclear power plants that were part of the deal has still not been ruled out. Use this China e-Lobby fact sheet and tell the President to stand firm against the Stalinist regime, and not to build the power plants. SENATORS LUGAR, LIEBERMAN WANT TALKS WITH NORTH KOREA Some of us are missing Jesse Helms already. The incoming Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Indiana Republican Richard Lugar, is calling on the Administration to start talks with North Korea on ending its nuclear weapons program. Connecticut Democrat Joseph Lieberman joined him in that call. How the Stalinists can be trusted given its violations of the 1994 deal was not discussed (CNN). NORTH KOREA DEMANDS NON-AGGRESSION TREATY Stalinist North Korea demanded a non-aggression treaty with the U.S. this morning as �the only way to prevent war� (CNN), one they accuse the U.S. of wanting to start, despite repeated statements to the otherwise from American officials. NORTH KOREA ACCUSES U.S. OF �POLITICIZING� FOOD AID North Korea demanded the United States stop �politicizing� (CNN) food aid to the Stalinist regime, insisting the aid was stopped due to the nuclear weapons issue. Of course, the North never mentioned the fact that its own willingness to steal the food aid for itself and its armed forces had a lot more to do with American reluctance to hand over the aid (see March 6 China e-Lobby Update). Also reporting: BBC CLINTON HAD PLANS TO ATTACK NORTH KOREA Former President Bill Clinton said his Administration �actually drew up plans to attack North Korea and to destroy their reactors and we told them we would attack unless they ended their nuclear program� (Cybercast News). Of course, the result was the then-hailed and now derided 1994 Agreed Framework. Also reporting: BBC U.S. STILL LOOKING TO COMMUNIST CHINA TO HELP ISOLATE NORTH KOREA The United States is still hoping Communist China can be helpful in isolating Stalinist North Korea, according to Agence France Presse (via the Washington Times). Why the Communist regime would be so willing to turn its back on a fifty-year ally and partner in crime on many arms deals was not addressed. COMMENTARY/ANALYSIS WHICH WAY ON NORTH KOREA? Jim Hoagland, Washington Post, warns against going soft on North Korea as Iraq remains in the crosshairs � �Effective, punishing action must be targeted on the suppliers as well as the users. The pushers cannot be let off the hook through neglect or expediency.� The editors of the Post call for some form of diplomacy, but given the North�s track record, they have trouble being specific. Meanwhile, Mike Chinoy, CNN, sees an Administration whose internal division and indecision hampers its policy, such as it is, on the North. THE SCUD SHIPMENT TO YEMEN: WHAT WERE THE STALINISTS THINKING? A number of analysts, including those who were hoping North Korea was starting to clean up its act � have they not been reading the North Korea Reports? � are �scratching their heads� at the Scud missile shipment to Yemen, according to Andrew Demaria, CNN. For more on North Korea�s Scud missile program � which also has found buyers in Iraq, Iran, and Syria, check out this unbylined CNN report. LETTING THE SCUDS GO TO YEMEN: WHAT WAS THE U.S. THINKING? The editors of the Washington Post were a little miffed at the Administration�s decision to let the Scuds go to Yemen. Henry Sokolski, a leading critic of North Korea and Executive Director of the Nonproliferation Policy Education Center, is more damning, and rightly so, in the Weekly Standard. NORTH KOREA MAJOR ISSUE IN SOUTH KOREAN ELECTIONS Caroline Gluck, BBC, finds the Stalinist regime a major issue in the presidential election in South Korea this Thursday. David Sands of the Washington Times did profiles on Lee and Roh. Sign the petition for an American boycott of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. Miss an Update, Weekly Links, or a North Korea Report? Find it on our web site. Check out the latest on Communist China and the Terrorist War. Feel free to forward this to anyone you think might be interested in receiving it. Anyone who wishes to join can send his/her name and e-mail address to [email protected]. Please feel free to send any news on Communist China or North Korea that you happen to find to the same address. |