News & commentary by Dave Maxwell. Edited and published by Daniel Riggs
1. U.S. committed to keeping appropriate troop level in S. Korea: Pentagon
2. Kim Jong Un’s Recent Weight Loss: A Medical Assessment
3. North Korean officials were 'schooled' at Politburo meeting, state media says
4. N. Korea resumes trading with China in more than a year
5. N. Koreans overtake S. Koreans in TOEFL score in 2020: report
6. UN agency upgrades Korea to developed economy
7. North Korea Shows No Vaccine Urgency, Despite New Virus Woes
8. What China Wants From North Korea
9. What Happens if Kim Jong-un Dies?
10. COVID crisis in North Korea: What do we know?
11. ‘Quiet warrior’ takes reins of US Forces Korea as Abrams ends 39-year Army career
1. U.S. committed to keeping appropriate troop level in S. Korea: Pentagon
en.yna.co.kr · by 변덕근 · July 3, 2021
Good news but we should not have to keep restating this. We need to continue demonstrating strategic reassurance and strategic resolve. And the Biden administration is showing a consistent commitment to our alliances.
That said, the operative word is "appropriate." We have to make necessary adjustments based on a wide range of factors. Troop levels never have been and never will be static. If there is a change that by no means will mean a reduced commitment.
2. Kim Jong Un’s Recent Weight Loss: A Medical Assessment
38north.org · by Kenneth B. Dekleva · July 2, 2021
Yes, we all want to know the assessment of KJU's health. But still no definitive answers of course. And the concluding paragraph is important.
Excerpt: "Kim may have begun to appreciate that HIS longevity and health—not merely possessing nuclear weapons—is what ensures the survival of the DPRK and his legacy. In this sense, Kim’s weight loss may not be a bad thing. It also sends signals to the US and others that a healthier Kim will have more time to wait for the optimal conditions to negotiate. Presidents Joseph Biden, Xi, Moon and Putin should take note."
3. North Korean officials were 'schooled' at Politburo meeting, state media says
UPI · by Elizabeth Shim · July 3, 2021
If the Propaganda and Agitation Department is reporting this in "state media" KJU must really want to reinforce these lessons and send a message not only to other elites but to the Korean people in the north.
4. N. Korea resumes trading with China in more than a year
donga.com · July 3, 2021
An important development. But will KJU allow the markets to return to "normal" (relatively) and function as markets? Will he lift the other draconian population control measures (communications, internal movement, use of foreign currency, etc)?
5. N. Koreans overtake S. Koreans in TOEFL score in 2020: report
en.yna.co.kr · by 유청모 · July 3, 2021
An interesting data point. But how should we interpret this? Are these really statistically significant differences?
6. UN agency upgrades Korea to developed economy
The Korea Times · July 3, 2021
I would have thought this would have come along sooner. But we should remember that South Korea is the first nation to go from a major aid recipient to a major donor nation that has the 10th largest economy in the world.
7. North Korea Shows No Vaccine Urgency, Despite New Virus Woes
voanews.com · William Gallo · July 3, 2021
Useful assessment here.
A key point (of many): “Another problem is North Korea’s severe lockdown, which has prevented virtually any foreigners from entering the country.
According to the source who spoke with VOA, North Korea is refusing to allow international aid workers into the country to help facilitate the shipment, ostensibly because of fears about outsiders bringing COVID-19 into the country.
However, Gavi procedures require that international staff must be present, the source said. Gavi “won’t just ship it,” the source said.
United Nations agencies’ employees, who might have been able to help with the vaccine shipment, have left North Korea amid worsening lockdown conditions.
8. What China Wants From North Korea
The National Interest · by Andrei Lankov · July 2, 2021
Three "no's" - No war - no instability and regime collapse, and no nukes. (except for nukes) Simply maintain the status quo indefinitely (and it can live with the nukes as long as there is no war or instability.)
And north Korea will be a spoiler in great power competition.
Excerpt: "For the time being, however, we should reconcile ourselves with the idea that China will be quietly sabotaging sanctions, and, while talking much about the grave need for a negotiated solution, will not be in a hurry to forge some mutually acceptable deal."
9. What Happens if Kim Jong-un Dies?
The National Interest · by Eli Fuhrman · July 2, 2021
Or more precisely, what would we do if today we learned that Kim Jong-un had died?
10. COVID crisis in North Korea: What do we know?
DW · · July 2, 2021
Excerpts: “For the last 18 months, Pyongyang has consistently insisted that no cases of the virus were detected within its borders and that drastic preventive measures — including sealing the nation's borders — have proved effective in keeping the coronavirus at bay.
That has been virtually impossible to confirm, particularly since there are no longer any international aid or public health organizations in the country.
Experts say, however, it is extremely unlikely that the North has escaped completely unscathed; particularly given its geographical location bordering China, the original source of the outbreak, and its previous heavy reliance on China for both exports and imports.
11. ‘Quiet warrior’ takes reins of US Forces Korea as Abrams ends 39-year Army career
Stars and Stripes · by David Choi · July 2, 2021
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"I never allow myself to have an opinion on anything that I don’t know the other side’s argument better than they do."
- Charlie Munger
"One of the most important reasons for studying history is that virtually every stupid idea that is in vogue today has been tried before and provides disastrous before, time and again".
- Thomas Sowell
"Age does not bring wisdom. Often it merely changes simple stupidity into arrogant conceit. Its only advantage, so far as I have been able to see, is that it spans change. A young person sees the world as a still picture, immutable. An old person has had his nose rubbed in changes and more changes and still more changes so many times that he knows it is a moving picture, forever changing. he may not like it – probably doesn't; I don't – but he knows it's so, and knowing it is the first step in coping with it."
- Robert Heinlein - Time Enough for Love