News & commentary by Dave Maxwell. Edited and published by Daniel Riggs.
1. Washington, Seoul reach consensus on new '6-year' special measures agreement for US Forces Korea: US
2. State Dept.: U.S. did not 'make demands' on South Korea in cost-sharing negotiations
3. S. Korea considers joining Quad Plus to steer U.S. toward talks with N. Korea: policy adviser
4. S. Korea, U.S. supposed to stage joint outdoor drills throughout year: defense ministry
5. N.K. economic officials blame themselves for lack of progress in development plans
6. North Korean in Malaysia loses final appeal against US extradition
7. International Women’s Day Causes North Korean Women to Question Society
8. N.Korean Cracks Down on 'Degenerate' S.Korean Pop Imports
9. US foreign policy: implications for the two Koreas
10. How Do You Solve a Problem Like Korea?
11. Samjiyon again put under lockdown over COVID-19 fears
12. Sinuiju City: Big Plans, Little Progress
13. Alleged human trafficker arrested a year after her arrest warrant issued
14. South Korea finds no link found between deaths and coronavirus vaccine
15. I Took Part in the US-South Korean War Drills. They Make All of Us Less Safe.
1. Washington, Seoul reach consensus on new '6-year' special measures agreement for US Forces Korea: US
The Korea Times · March 9, 2021
A six year agreement would be historic and better than I had hoped for.
2. State Dept.: U.S. did not 'make demands' on South Korea in cost-sharing negotiations
upi.com · by Thomas Maresca · March 9, 2021
I am not sure about this. Perhaps we only had "asks" and not demands. But historically the SMA negotiations have been pretty contentious with hard bargaining on both sides. And both sides must negotiate to protect their own national interests.
3. S. Korea considers joining Quad Plus to steer U.S. toward talks with N. Korea: policy adviser
en.yna.co.kr · by 변덕근 · March 9, 2021
South Korea must join the Quad because it is in its national security interests to do. Simply to influence US policy toward north Korea is not a sufficient reason to do so.
4. S. Korea, U.S. supposed to stage joint outdoor drills throughout year: defense ministry
en.yna.co.kr · by 오석민 · March 9, 2021
We need to conduct multi-echelon training with the right type of training for the right echelon of force (e.g, headquarters versus tactical maneuver forces) all year around (as we always have).
5. N.K. economic officials blame themselves for lack of progress in development plans
en.yna.co.kr · by 이원주 · March 9, 2021
Inminban self-criticism sessions on a national scale?
6. North Korean in Malaysia loses final appeal against US extradition
malaymail.com · by March 9, 2021
Small victories. Hopefully we will be able to try him and expose north Korea's illicit activities in court.
7. International Women’s Day Causes North Korean Women to Question Society
rfa.org· by Hyemin Son
I think if change comes in north Korea it may be because of women. It was women who really developed the necessary resilience for families to survive the Arduous March of the great famine. It was women who pioneered the market activity that has provided a certain level of resilience in the decades since the great famine though Kim Jong-un appears to be working hard to undo all of that using the excuse of COVID mitigation measures to crack down on market activity.
Focusing on an information and influence activities campaign on women could be very powerful and put further pressure on the regime. And it could possibly lead to significant change in north Korea.
8. N.Korean Cracks Down on 'Degenerate' S.Korean Pop Imports
english.chosun.com · March 8, 2021
Just another indication of how much of a threat is information from the South. And the north's actions will only make the Korean people in the north desire that information more.
9. US foreign policy: implications for the two Koreas
asiatimes.com · by Stephan Haggard · March 9, 2021
Excerpts:
“Although everyone is waiting for the completion of the review, we actually know more about where the Biden administration is likely to go on North Korea than is thought.
Biden made clear in his first foreign-policy speech his willingness to engage: “By leading with diplomacy, we must also mean engaging our adversaries and our competitors diplomatically, where it’s in our interest….”
And his acceptance of a bottom-up approach will mean a return – if the North Koreans can be induced to show up – to a step-by-step or incremental approach that Stephen Biegun, the last US special representative for North Korea under Trump, consistently emphasized in his thoughtful comments on the process.
The speed with which the Biden administration has moved with respect to Iran, however, could be read as a signal of where it sees the lower-lying fruit. As daunting as the Iranian problem is, the fact that the country has not openly broken out and the existence of an extant framework make it the easier of the two nuclear challengers to deal with in the short run.
If this is read by North Korea as neglect, we are in a period of higher risk than may be recognized. North Korea has good reasons not to test in a way that the United States cannot ignore. But we know from the sad history of former president Barack Obama’s first year in office that North Korea could well miscalculate and choose to take its chances on a more confrontational posture.
One way of mitigating this risk would be to establish a channel as quickly as possible. The long history of US channels is not without controversy. But moving toward a workable bargaining framework is not going to be easy. Signaling the intent to negotiate concretely is a lot easier than writing down roadmaps that are almost certain to be upset by the realities of actual negotiations.”
10. How Do You Solve a Problem Like Korea?
WSJ · by Walter Russell Mead · March 9, 2021
Although I do not see any real solutions proposed, Walter Russell Mead makes some important points about the nature of the Kim family regime:
“The Kims, it seems clear, do not want a flourishing civilian economy. The militarization of the economy and the permanent scarcity of resources concentrate power at the center. The nuclear-weapons program keeps the dynasty safe from foreign military pressure, and a world-class system of repression insulates the rulers from domestic discontent. The nuclear arsenal leads anxious foreigners to court the Kims, elevating the dynasty’s importance in its own eyes and those of its servants. And in efforts to limit further progress in the weapons program, foreigners offer resources that enhance the regime’s power to reward its supporters.
The human costs are appalling, but if your goals are to maintain the Kim dynasty’s total control over the country and the total independence of North Korea as a state, the model demonstrably works.
The Kim dynasty’s strategy to maintain the status quo at home is deeply destabilizing internationally. Between enhancing its nuclear arsenal, improving its missile delivery systems and experimenting with unconventional weapons ranging from cyber to bio, North Korea becomes a steadily greater concern. And as the situation in the Indo-Pacific becomes more volatile, the danger that North Korean actions could launch a wider war can only grow.
For all these reasons, the Biden administration would like to persuade or constrain North Korea to change course. But unless it can shake Kim Jong Un’s conviction that his strategy is a brilliant success, the Biden administration, like its predecessors, has no winning cards in its hand.”
11. Samjiyon again put under lockdown over COVID-19 fears
dailynk.com· by Lee Chae Un · March 8, 2021
Are there indications of a real outbreak? Or is this KJU simply using the threat of COVID to further crack down on market activity and impose draconian population and resources control measures to repress and oppress the people.
12. Sinuiju City: Big Plans, Little Progress
38north.org · by Martyn Williams · March 8, 2021
Excerpt: "But more than two years later, little has changed in one of North Korea’s most important border cities. So, what happened?"
13. Alleged human trafficker arrested a year after her arrest warrant issued
dailynk.com · by Kim Yoo Jin · March 9, 2021
This is terrible on multiple levels.
14. South Korea finds no link found between deaths and coronavirus vaccine
Reuters · by Hyonhee Shin and Josh Smith · March 8, 2021
15. I Took Part in the US-South Korean War Drills. They Make All of Us Less Safe.
truthout.org · by Jovanni Reyes · March 8, 2021
Ughhh....Needless to say I disagree with this spin. But I admire the author's ability to write propaganda.
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