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By GORDON G. CHANG From today's Wall Street Journal Asia. At this moment the Kang Nam, a North Korea tramp freighter, is on the high seas tailed by a team of American destroyers and submarines and watched by reconnaissance satellites and aircraft. On board, its cargo could be plutonium pellets, missile parts or semi-ripe melons. In any event, Washington wants to know what is in the rusty ship's hold. Why the interest in this particular vessel? The Kang Nam is a "repeat offender" and known to carry "proliferation materials." As an unnamed American official told Fox News this month, "This...

Go to the page HEREHit the little orange box with the arrow, right below this photo, and the video will stream very shortly:From Japanese national TV just a few hours ago, the NNN network--prime time.The Japanese news says this is unprecedented.Getting hot, folks.

Left top: Oct. 2007. Platform shoes Left middle: Nov., 2008. Low-heeled ordinary shoes Left bottom: May., 2009. Sneaker shoes(?) Right: Jun., 2009. Athletic shoes (most comfortable?)

DPRK is really rubbing it in the US's face with seeming impunity. Hmmmmm....I WONDER why THAT would be....There was a mass demonstration yesterday in North Korea by the Korean Workers Party in front of the 1967-seized USS Pueblo, docked in Pyongyang on a main river.I share HERE the link to the streaming video of this event. Hit the orange box with the arrow right below the Pueblo photo and the 1 minute video will stream. Stand it if you can.

N.Korea 'Helping Burma with WMD'North Korea is helping Burma with the acquisition of so-called weapons of mass destruction, with the U.S. claiming that the North Korean ship Kangnam is headed for the Southeast Asian country. The Burmese junta "has bought technologies on the open market that are potentially usable in a nuclear program, and North Korean arms companies involved in the nuclear trade have become active" in Burma, the Wall Street Journal on Tuesday said quoting speculation by U.S., Asian and UN officials. "North Korea has used [Burmese] ports and airstrips to transfer arms and contraband to third countries, including...

(AP) North Korea accused Washington of seeking to "provoke a second Korean War" as the regime prepared to hold maritime military exercises off the eastern coast. U.S. and regional authorities were watching closely for signs that North Korea might fire short- or mid-range missiles during the June 25 to July 10 timeframe cited in a no-sail ban for military drills sent to Japan's Coast Guard. North Korea had warned previously it would fire a long-range missile as a response to U.N. Security Council condemnation of an April rocket launch seen as a cover for its ballistic missile technology. An underground...

This link is just to the Japanese report, but it is emerging that since March a) Kim Jong Un, the 26-year-old heir apparant/son of Kim Jong il, has essentially been given administrative control of the North Korean Secret Police (국가안전보위부); b) that this also soon puts him in de-facto control of the 10,000 man strong border forces which will be put under control of the DPRK Secret Police next month. Further, Dong-A Ilbo daily newspaper in South Korea (from which the JIJI Japanese report (link) is based) says for all intents and purposes, c) the fates and current handling...

The latest United Nations Security Council resolution sanctioning North Korea for its May 25 nuclear test has driven Pyongyang to fresh paroxysms of faux fury. The rhetoric is already at fever pitch. On June 9, Minju Joson, the government daily, warned, "Our nuclear deterrent will be ... a merciless offensive means to deal a just retaliatory strike to those who touch the country's dignity and sovereignty even a bit." You diss us "even a bit", we nuke you. That's so over the top, it's positively operatic. But what of the maestro orchestrating these threats?

Kim Jong-un 'Acting as Proxy for Kim Jong-il' North Korean heir apparent Kim Jong-un works as acting chairman of the National Defense Commission to support his ailing father Kim Jong-il, the Mainichi Shimbun said Saturday. Quoting sources close to the North Korean regime, the Japanese daily said the leader's youngest son (26) is assisting his father although the position is not an official title. The paper quoted an official close to the North Korean leadership as saying this means Kim junior would immediately assume the commission chairmanship, effectively the most powerful post in the land, if Kim dies, although he...

TOKYO (AFP) — Kim Jong-Il's third son, the likely successor to the North Korean leader, has been appointed acting defence chief under his ailing father, a Japanese newspaper reported on Saturday. Kim Jong-Un started supporting his father as acting chairman of North Korea's National Defence Commission, the evening edition of the Mainichi Shimbun said, quoting unnamed sources close to North Korean leadership.

Kim Jong-il's Health 'Getting Rapidly Worse' The health of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il is rapidly deteriorating, prompting the hasty decision to name his third son Jong-un as heir apparent, sources told the Chinese press. The Global News, a sister paper of the official People’s Daily, on Thursday quoted a foreign ambassador in Pyongyang as saying that Kim Jong-il's fragile health made the situation in North Korea "very complicated." The envoy told the Global News that authorities in Pyongyang are keeping tight lid on information about Kim's health. A North Korean source in Beijing said Beijing-based North Korean officials from...

What will it take to get President Obama's attention? Potbelly, porn-addicted dictator, Kim Jong Il, has already tested two nukes, with no real reaction from the President. What's it going to take? Hawaiian fireworks on the 4th of July?

Such a provocative act if taken should be met with one of these 5 miles off the North Korean shore within sight of Kim Jung Il's back porch, which resides a couple miles inland off the east North Korean coast.. (pic) This here is a Crossroads Baker shot. That dark spot on the right side of the mushroom stem? It's the USS Arkansas. A little smaller than Jong Il's N Korean Compound where he works and sleeps (pic)

/begin my translation Diplomat Stationed in Pyongyang, "Kim Jong-il's Health Got Worse" It prompted the decision of Kim Jong-un's designation as a successor (Beijing = Yonhap News) Cho Sung-dae = The health of N. Korean leader Kim Jong-il has markedly deteriorated recently, but Pyongyang is relatively calm with no unusual movements, according to Huanqiu Shibao, a sister newspaper of People's Daily, quoting an ambassador of a certain country to N. Korea on June 18. The ambassador, who wants to remain anonymous, said that marked deterioration of Kim's health created complications in N. Korea's domestic situation, and this sped up the...

Close aides of Kim Jong-un, the 26-year-old third son and heir apparent of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, last week attempted to assassinate the leader's first son Jong-nam, KBS reported Monday citing Chinese government sources. Aides to Kim Jong-un planned to assassinate Jong-nam, who lives in Macau, after first eliminating his close aides in North Korea. The sources said, "It seems they tried to assassinate Kim Jong-nam without telling Kim Jong-il." The plan was foiled when the Chinese government found out about it early last week. "The Chinese government warned North Korea to stop the assassination attempt, and sent intelligence...

06-14-2009 16:55 Photo of Kim Jong-il’s Heir Apparent at Age of 16 Unveiled A new photo of Kim Jeong-un, 26, who has emerged as the heir apparent to North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, has been unveiled in a Japanese newspaper. On the front page of Monday edition, the Mainichi Shimbun said that the photo shows him in his 16 years, when he attended a public school as seventh grader in Berne, Switzerland. He is one of his classmates in a group photo, which is confirmed to have been taken in June, 1999, the news paper said. He wears a black...

A little-noted fact about the second nuclear test conducted on May 25 by the Kim Jong-il administration of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) is that it was a highly successful fission trigger test for multi-megaton warheads. These types of warheads can be detonated in outer space, far above the United States, evaporating its key targets. This is a significant indication of the supreme leader's game plan for

Former Vice President Al Gore is reportedly being dispatched to Pyongyang to appeal for the release of American journalists Euna Lee and Laura Ling, who report for Mr. Gore's Current TV media company. Meanwhile, South Korean Defense Minister Lee Sang-hee said in a June 8 letter to the South Korean military that the reason for North Korea's recent behavior is the unfolding succession drama. The two issues are closely related.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-il (2nd R) visits a factory in Danchon, North Korea in this undated picture released by North Korea's KCNA news agency on June 6, 2009. KCNA did not state the date the picture was taken. North Korean leader Kim Jong-il (R) visits an orchard in Gosan, North Korea, in this undated picture released by the North's KCNA news agency on June 8, 2009. KCNA did not state the date the picture was taken. North Korea, facing U.N. sanctions for last month's nuclear test, on Monday raised the stakes in its growing confrontation with Washington by sentencing...

/begin my translation Shedding Tears for Nothing... Kim Jong-il Suffering from Depression? According to online newsletter by 'Open N. Korea Dispatch(Yolin Bukkan Tongshin,)' N. Korean leader Kim Jong-il is showing tears for no particular reason even in the presence of his bodyguards, making people suspect that he is suffering complication from stroke. In its dispatch on June 8, it reported, "During last two years of his life(before his death in '94,) the late leader Kim Il-sung(Kim Jong-il's father) was frequently waxing nostalgic and seen shedding tears alone while tending to a plot of field (360 sq ft.) in front of...

Should the West be fearful of Kim Jong Il? is the subject of today's A Daily Poll.

Dear Leader Kim Jong Il’s successor Kim Jong Un is a Schwarzenegger fan Roger Boyes in Berlin The man who may one day have his finger on the North Korean nuclear button was taught basketball by an Israeli and is a fan of Japanese cartoons and Arnold Schwarzenegger, aka the Terminator, a former schoolmate revealed yesterday. Kim Jong Un, the son of the Dear Leader and grandson of the Great Leader, was a bright outgoing pupil when he entered his teenage years at the International School of Berne, according to the former fellow pupil. Mystery surrounding the health of the...

Seoul, Washington Focus on N.Korean Spymaster Gen. O Kuk-ryol, the vice chairman of North Korea's National Defense Commission, has emerged as a common target for both U.S. and South Korean authorities. Citing U.S. intelligence officials, the Washington Times on Tuesday said the general and several of his family members play key roles in the production and distribution of so-called "supernotes," which are high-quality counterfeit US$100 bills. South Korean intelligence officials, meanwhile, point to O as the chief of the recently overhauled North Korean apparatus in charge of spying on the South. A South Korean official said O is therefore being...

Kim Jong-il looks set to be the last North Korean leader to enjoy a semi-divine status and rule the nation single-handedly. No matter how well he purges internal opposition, his youngest son will have to rely on a politburo of party and army officials if he takes power, amplifying the risks of infighting in the nuclear-armed state. South Korean spies this week said the communist nation’s parliament and army had pledged allegiance to Kim Jong-woon, the dictator’s Swiss-educated youngest son, who is said to be in his mid-20s. It is unlikely he can even become a “Dear Leader” like his...

/begin my excerpts Speculation Mounts on Worsening Kim's Health N. Korea's provocation may be due to (hurrying up) succession (Beijing = Yonhap News) Kwon Young-suk = Speculation spreads rapidly among Beijing's diplomatic circles that the health of N. Korean leader Kim Jong-il, who suffered a stroke last August is deteriorating again. Diplomatic sources in Beijing said on June 4, "S. Korea, U.S., China, and Japan are lately paying close attention to health of Kim Jong-il." This is because analysis of the escalating tension including the second nuclear test lent credence to the argument that Kim Jong-il want to hurry up...

Why three Ps mean end of an era in N Korea By Christian Oliver and Song Jung-a in Seoul and Demetri Sevastopulo in Hong Kong Published: June 3 2009 19:39 | Last updated: June 3 2009 19:39 Kim Jong-il looks set to be the last North Korean leader to enjoy a semi-divine status and rule the nation single-handedly. No matter how well he purges internal opposition, his youngest son will have to rely on a politburo of party and army officials if he takes power, amplifying the risks of infighting in the nuclear-armed state. /snip It is unlikely he can...

Current Actions for Jong Woon's Gain By Yang Jung A [2009-06-03 17:06 ] Member of the Intelligence Committee of the National Assembly and Grand National Party member Lee Cheol Woo said on Wednesday, “North Korea’s consecutive hard line actions have all been in order to manufacture achievements for the successor. When North Korea publicizes the choice of successor, they can attribute such achievements to him.” Lee explained on a radio program, “After Kim Jong Il was designated the successor to Kim Il Sung, the authorities propagated the idea that he was behind the success of the Pueblo Incident in 1968...

Tough Succession Road Awaits N. Korea`s Heir Apparent JUNE 03, 2009 07:37 The selection of Kim Jong Un as the heir apparent to his father and North Korean leader Kim Jong Il is expected to accelerate preparation for the power transfer in the Stalinist country. Yet the junior Kim will face a difficult road in the process of succession. â—‹ Different start from Kim Jong Il The power succession situation in the North is similar to that of 1974, when Kim Jong Il was unofficially named to succeed his father and the countryÂ’s founder Kim Il Sung. The designation process...

Kim Jong-il, the North Korean leader, eats live fish, according to his former chef. The 68-year-old enjoys raw fish so fresh "that it is still moving" washed down with fine French wines and brandies, Kenji Fujimoto said. "He particularly enjoyed raw fish so fresh that he could start eating as its mouth is still gasping and the tail is still thrashing," he said. "I sliced the fish so as not to puncture any of the vital organs, so of course it was still moving. Kim Jong-il was delighted. He would eat with gusto." The 56-year-old chef, who is in hiding...

Kim Jong-il's third son, Kim Jong-un, will become North Korea's next leader, according to unconfirmed South Korean media reports. The BBC profiles this elusive young man. South Korean protester shouts slogans while holding a picture of a boy believed to be the third son of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, Kim Yong-un, February 19, 2009 The only known image of Kim Jong-un shows him as a young boy Kim Jong-un is youngest son of Kim Jong-il and his late third wife Ko Yong-hui. Born in 1983 or early 1984, the young Kim was initially not thought to be in the...

Kim Jong-il has formally named his third son, Kim Jong-un, as his successor as he prepares to stand down as North Korea's leader. Kim Jong-il, 67, who is known as North Korea's "Dear Leader", suffered a stroke at the end of last year and has been incapacitated ever since. South Korea's National Intelligence Service has now confirmed that the Korean People's Army, the Presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly and the ministerial cabinet have been asked to pledge their allegiance to Kim Jong-un, 25, the youngest member of the world's only Communist ruling dynasty. "I was notified by the South...

SEOUL (Reuters) – North Korean leader Kim Jong-il has asked his country's overseas missions to pledge loyalty to his youngest son, signaling he has been anointed as next leader of the communist dynasty, a newspaper report said on Tuesday. Kim, 67, is thought to have suffered a stroke in August. Analysts have said the North's recent military actions, including a nuclear test last week, may be aimed at helping him solidify power so that he can name a successor. "It has been confirmed through various channels that North Korea sent emails to legations overseas, asking them to pledge their loyalty...

N.K. notifies institutions of nomination of leader's 3rd son as successor SEOUL, June 1 (Yonhap) -- North Korean authorities have notified the country's key institutions that leader Kim Jong-il has designated his third son, Kim Jong-un, as his successor, a source on North Korean affairs said Monday. "The authorities made the notification to the Workers' Party of Korea, the Korean People's Army, the Presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly and the Cabinet shortly after its latest nuclear test on May 25," the source said on condition of anonimity.

Kim Jong Il, North Korea ’s psychotic “Dear Leader,” specializes in “guerrilla diplomacy.” He backs it up with a half-dozen or so nuclear weapons squirreled away deep inside mountain storage facilities that cannot be reached by our bunker-buster bombs, and an army roughly the size of South Korean and U.S. ground forces combined. Kim’s diplomatic record also shows that he doesn’t care. His response to China—his nation’s biggest supporter and only ally—plus to Russia, Japan, and the United States, has been, “Get lost! We’re producing nuclear weapons whether you like it or not.” North Korea has done just that. Within...

What does a nuclear madman have to do to get America's attention? On Memorial Day, the North Koreans detonated "an underground atomic device many times more powerful than the bombs that destroyed Hiroshima and Nagasaki," as my old colleagues at The Irish Times put it. You'd think that'd rate something higher than "World News In Brief," see foot of page 37. But instead Washington was consumed by the Supreme Court nomination of Sonia Sotomayor, who apparently has a "compelling personal story." Doesn't Kim Jong-il have a compelling personal story? Like Sonia, he grew up in a poor neighborhood (North Korea),...

Speak Softly and Carry a Big Teleprompter We are on the brink of ‘man-caused disaster.’ By Mark Steyn What does a nuclear madman have to do to get America’s attention? On Memorial Day, the North Koreans detonated “an underground atomic device many times more powerful than the bombs that destroyed Hiroshima and Nagasaki,” as my old colleagues at the Irish Times put it. You’d think that’d rate something higher than “World News In Brief,” see foot of page 37. But instead Washington was consumed by the Supreme Court nomination of Sonia Sotomayor, who apparently has a “compelling personal story.” Doesn’t...

N.Korea's Kim too selfish to start war -defectors Thu May 28, 2009 2:20am EDT (For full coverage of the North Korean crisis, click [nN25330519]) By Jack Kim ANSEONG, South Korea, May 28 (Reuters) - North Korean leader Kim Jong-il is likely basking in the patriotic fervour whipped up by his nuclear test but is too worried about his own well-being to start a war, North Korean defectors said on Thursday. Poverty, famine and political oppression have driven tens of thousands of North Koreans over the border to seek a better life. "Why did they have to do it again? If...

Because you can never have enough Lil' Kim Jong Il, especially with him thumbing his nose our way every day now. Previously posted 4/18/2009. I would say this is just wrong...but it's too friggin' funny:

(News Focus) N. Korea moving fast in timetable of provocative steps By Lee Chi-dong SEOUL, May 25 (Yonhap) -- North Korea's second nuclear test came as no surprise to South Korean officials on Monday, but they said the unpredictable communist nation pulled out its trump card earlier than expected. "North Korea seems to want a speedy game," a senior South Korean government official handling the nuclear issue said. "It seems to be seeking to create a condition favorable to itself as early as possible, rather than dragging its feet." The North, infuriated by the U.N. Security Council's condemnation of its...

Pyongyang Kids Learn the New Song By Shin Joo Hyun [2009-05-21 16:15 ] In Pyongyang elementary schools, teachers have been teaching their students “The Song of General Kim Jong Woon.” A Japanese source released a rumor to Daily NK on Thursday, “On the 6th, in a few elementary schools in Pyongyang, students learned ‘The Song of General Kim Jong Woon.’ The lyrics contain such mainstays of idolization as ‘gallant steps’ and ‘the General of Mt. Baekdu.’ The source reported, “Students said that they had to memorize the song, otherwise teachers wouldn’t let them go home. In Pyongyang schools, the authorities...

Internal political instability led to recent provocations by N. Korea: CIA chief By Hwang Doo-hyong WASHINGTON, May 19 (Yonhap) -- North Korea's recent provocations have come from political instability following the alleged health problems of its leader Kim Jong-il late last year, a top U.S. intelligence official said. "There also are legitimate questions being raised about the internal stability of North Korea, given Kim Jong-Il's health problems, uncertainty about succession, the weak economy, and the persistent food shortages," Leon Panetta, director of the Central Intelligence Agency, told a forum in Los Angeles Monday. "The result is that North Korea remains...

/begin my excerpt Attending 'Gun-salute Event' ... Lone Astray on Kim Jong-il's Table N. Korean leader Kim Jong-il attended 'Gun-salute event' at Daedong River in Pyongyang, as part of 97th birthday celebration for Kim Il-sung on Apr. 14. He was watching it from viewing stand, and an astray is placed only on his table. /end my excerpt

Power Struggle Looms in N.Korea The North Korean elite lead insecure lives nowadays. Some members of the Unification and Propaganda Department of the Workers Party, accused of having bungled their South Korea policy, have recently been sent to the Yoduk concentration camp. All North Korean intelligence officers assigned overseas were called back home early this year to undergo questioning by the State Security Department. About 30 percent of them have yet to return to their overseas posts, and those who have returned were emaciated from harsh interrogations, according to sources. Asked what the food situation is like in North Korea,...

North Korea is likely to carry out another nuclear experiment before it sits down on the next-round of multinational nuclear negotiation, a senior U.S. government official said. Gary Samore, a veteran arms control negotiator in the Clinton administration and now serving as Obama's advisor on non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, said in response to a question, posed at a forum Friday, on whether North Korea will carry out an additional nuclear test: "I think they are likely to do it," Yonhap reported Saturday. This is the first time that an incumbent U.S. official has mentioned such a possibility publicly...

Power struggle rages in North over Kim's heir By ALEX MARTIN Staff writer As succession speculation abounds amid reports of North Korean leader Kim Jong Il's deteriorating health, a recently obtained confidential report has shed new light on a power struggle taking place in the reclusive state. The report, obtained by Kansai University economics professor Lee Young Hwa, cites Chinese analysts as questioning the loyalty of two veteran generals of the Korean People's Army who are considered to be rivals of Jang Song Taek — Kim's brother-in-law, who was recently named to the powerful National Defense Commission and is widely...

The third son of North Korean leader Kim Jong Il has been assigned to the country's all-powerful National Defense Commission, a possible sign that he is being groomed as his father's successor, a news report said Sunday. Kim, who has ruled the nuclear-armed North with absolute authority since his father's death in 1994, has three known sons by two women but has not publicly anointed any of them as his successor. Speculation on who is to succeed the 67-year-old leader has grown since Kim reportedly suffered a stroke in August. On Sunday, Yonhap news agency reported Kim's youngest son, 26-year-old...

N. Korean leader's son appointed to post in top military body: source SEOUL, April 26 (Yonhap) -- The third son of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il has been assigned to a post in the communist nation's top military organization headed by Kim, apparently a sign of being groomed as the North's next leader, multiple sources privy to North Korean affairs said Sunday. "Kim Jong-un had been appointed to a low-level post, called 'instructor' at the National Defense Commission days before the first session of the 12th Supreme People's Assembly meeting was held" on April 9, the source said. Another source...

North Korea said Saturday it has begun harvesting plutonium from spent fuel rods at its main nuclear plant to build up its atomic arsenal. The move, in defiance of tightening U.N. sanctions, threatened to further damage efforts to dismantle the communist nation's rogue program. "This will contribute to bolstering the nuclear deterrence for self-defense in every way to cope with the increasing military threats from hostile forces," the official Korean Central News Agency quoted a North Korean Foreign Ministry spokesman as saying Saturday.

General's Headache Due To Sons' Conflicts By Lee Sung Jin [2009-04-17 18:34 ] Changchun, China -- After Kim Jong Il conducted an onsite inspection in Yangkang Province, rumors that “the General (Kim Jong Il) looked extremely unwell” began to circulate among cadres of the provincial Party committee and they have spread fast across the whole country in just a month. It is no longer a great shock for North Korean residents to learn that Kim Jong Il is ill. A source from Yangkang Province reported on the 14th in a telephone conversation with Daily NK, “When the General visited Samjiyeon...