Malaysia frees N. Korean detained in Kim Jong-nam's murder

Malaysia on Friday released a North Korean man detained over the killing of the North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's half brother, citing lack of sufficient evidence, foreign media reported.Ri Jong-chol, 46, was the only one taken into custody out of eight North Korean suspects in connection to the murder of Kim Jong-nam at a Kuala Lumpur airport on Feb. 13. Four were said to have fled Malaysia to Pyongyang on the day of the killing. He was released from a police station where he was questioned.(Yo

March 3, 2017

US Carl Vinson to arrive in S. Korea in mid-March for joint drills

The USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier will arrive in South Korean waters in mid-March to take part in an annual joint military exercise, the US Forces Korea said Friday. "The USS Carl Vinson is expected to arrive in Busan around March 15 to participate in the Foal Eagle exercise," a USFK spokesman told reporters.  This file photo shows the USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier during military drills in the South China Sea in May 2015. (Yonhap)The South Korean and US militaries on Wednesday kicked off

March 3, 2017

Russel to step down as assistant secretary of state to join Asia Society

Daniel Russel, the top American diplomat handling Asian issues who is known as a key architect of former President Barack Obama's "rebalance to Asia" policy, will step down as assistant secretary of state next week, the department announced Thursday."Having served for over three and a half years as Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, Danny Russel will depart his position on March 8," acting spokesman Mark Toner said in a statement.Russel will begin a one-year State D

March 3, 2017

Ex-US Secretary of State Kerry joins Carnegie think tank

Former US Secretary of State John Kerry has joined the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace as its inaugural visiting distinguished statesman, the think tank announced Thursday.(Yonhap)"John Kerry's lifelong commitment to international peace and understanding embodies the mission and purpose of the Carnegie Endowment, "said Carnegie President William J. Burns in a statement. "His experience, wisdom, and belief in the power of diplomacy are needed now more than ever."Kerry will focus on con

March 3, 2017

White House likely to finalize N. Korea policy this month

The administration of US President Donald Trump is expected to finalize its North Korea policy by the end of this month, diplomatic sources said Thursday, amid reports that the new policy could include the possibility of military force.The White House has been conducting a review of North Korea policy in an effort to determine what the new administration could do differently to address Pyongyang's nuclear and missile threats. US President Donald Trump (Yonhap)The Wall Street Journal reported Wed

March 3, 2017

Malaysia cancels visa waiver arrangement with N. Korea: report

Malaysia has canceled its visa waiver arrangement with North Korea amid a diplomatic spat over the assassination of the half brother of the North's leader, a news report said Thursday.The cancellation will take effect on March 6, after which North Koreans entering Malaysia will be required to obtain a visa, Malaysian news agency Bernama quoted the country's deputy prime minister, Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, as saying. He cited national security as the reason. Malaysia's deputy prime minister Ahmad Zahid

March 2, 2017

Former UN inquiry chief warns of revival of NK terror tactics

Michael Kirby, former chief of the UN inquiry into North Korean human rights abuses, said on Thursday the assassination of its leader's half brother indicates the revival of its past terror tactics. (Yonhap)During a conference held at the National Assembly in Seoul, the former head of the UN Commission of Inquiry said North Korea sent spies overseas to engage in illegal activities, including the abduction of Japanese nationals in the 1970s and 1980sKim Jong-nam was killed on Feb. 13 at a Kuala L

March 2, 2017

Trump calls N. Korea 'world menace' that should be dealt with 'soon'

US President Donald Trump called North Korea "a world menace" and "a world problem" that must be dealt with "soon" on the eve of his first speech to a joint session of Congress, even though he made no mention of the problem during the address, a report said.Trump made the remark when he had dinner at the White House Monday evening with a group of 18 reporters from regional TV affiliates around the country, according to WCPO-TV, an ABC-affiliated television station in Cincinnati, Ohio. US Preside

March 2, 2017

FM Yun urges int'l cooperation to punish N. Korean leader

South Korea's foreign minister on Monday appealed to the international community for close cooperation to punish North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, citing a recent murder case highlighted by the use of toxic agents.It represents "not only the breach of intentional human rights norms but also a brazen challenge to international order based on rules," Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se said in a keynote speech at the UN Human Rights Council meeting and the Conference on Disarmament underway in Geneva. So

Feb. 28, 2017

Czech Republic has no info on threats against Kim Jong-un's uncle: report

The Czech government has no information on threats to the safety of Kim Pyong-il, both North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's uncle and the reclusive nation's ambassador in Prague, a US news report said Tuesday.It has not taken any additional measures to toughen the security of the North Korean Embassy in Prague where Kim Pyong-il works, according to Radio Free Asia. This combined photo shows North Korea's founder Kim Il-sung (L) and his son and the North's top envoy to the Czech Republic Kim Pyong-i

Feb. 28, 2017

Global anti-chemical weapons watchdog denounces use of VX in Kim Jong-nam's killing

The global anti-chemical weapons watchdog has denounced as "deeply disturbing" the use of a banned chemical weapons agent in the killing of the half brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons issued the statement after Malaysian police determined that the nerve agent VX was used in the killing of Kim Jong-nam, the North Korean leader's estranged brother, at Kuala Lumpur International Airport on Feb. 13. (Yonhap)"The Malaysian authorities s

Feb. 28, 2017

It's impossible to hold negotiations with 'completely unhinged' NK: US lawmaker

North Korea is "completely unhinged" and it's impossible to hold negotiations with the communist nation, the US House Intelligence Committee chairman said Monday."The North Korean regime is completely unhinged. They've long been unhinged. And the closer they get to ability to not only detonate a nuclear weapon, but also deliver that nuclear weapon, we have to take that seriously," Rep. Devin Nunes (R-CA) told reporters."This is not a regime that ... by any stretch of the imagination, you can hav

Feb. 28, 2017

Malaysia requests NK Embassy cooperate with probe into Kim's death: source

Malaysia has requested the North Korean Embassy in Kuala Lumpur allow a diplomat and an airline employee to submit to a probe into the death of Kim Jong-nam, the half brother the North's incumbent leader, a source said Monday.Malaysian police said last week that Hyon Kwang-song, the second secretary at the embassy, and Kim Uk-il, an employee at Air Koryo, the country's flag carrier, are suspected of being involved in the killing of Kim on Feb. 13.Kim was killed at an airport in Malaysia after tw

Feb. 27, 2017

No trace of nerve agent that killed Kim Jong-nam found at airport: Malay gov't

No trace of the nerve agent that killed the estranged half brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has been found at the capital city's airport, Malay authorities said Sunday.The country's police said they thoroughly swept through Kuala Lumpur International Airport's second terminal, and found the site free of contamination and hazardous material. The screening was conducted in the early hours of the day as the Southeast Asian country confirmed that the autopsy of Kim Jong-nam found traces of

Feb. 26, 2017

NK-Malaysia's diplomatic row deepening over Kim's death

A diplomatic row between North Korea and Malaysia is deepening as Pyongyang blamed the Southeast Asian country for its probe into the death of the half brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, experts said Thursday.In its first official response, North Korea said that Malaysia colluded with South Korea in its investigation into the killing of Kim Jong-nam, claiming that Seoul is masterminding an anti-North Korea conspiracy.Pyongyang and Kuala Lumpur have maintained diplomatic ties for more th

Feb. 23, 2017

Murder in Malaysia likely to bolster move to place NK on terrorism list

The recent murder of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's half brother will likely bolster the ongoing move in the United States to add the North to the list of states sponsoring terrorism if Pyongyang is proved to have been involved in the death, a senior foreign ministry official in Seoul said Thursday.Kim Jong-nam, the eldest son of late former leader Kim Jong-il, died on Feb. 13 at an airport in Kuala Lumpur after apparently being poisoned by two Asian women. He was waiting for a flight to Maca

Feb. 23, 2017

UN sanctions fail to stop NK weapons exports: VOA

A series of UN Security Council sanctions appear to have failed to stop North Korea's weapons exports, a US media outlet said Thursday.In an email interview with Voice of America, Peter Wezeman, a researcher at the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, said the studies found that the North Korean regime continues to violate the UN sanctions and export small-size weapons and traditional weapons technologies to six or seven countries. (Yonhap)Iran and Syria have been mentioned as regul

Feb. 23, 2017

Malaysia to send police to collect DNA sample of Kim Jong-nam's son in Macao: reports

Malaysia will send its police officers to Macao Thursday to collect DNA samples of the son of Kim Jong-nam, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's half brother who was assassinated in Kuala Lumpur last week, media reports said.Chinese-language newspapers in Malaysia, China Press and Sin Chew Daily reported that the Malaysian police will send three officers to Macao on Thursday morning to gather DNA samples from 22-year-old Kim Han-sol.(Yonhap)The Malaysian officers will collaborate with Interpol in M

Feb. 23, 2017

Korea to deliver 48 K9 self-propelled howitzers to Finland

South Korea will deliver 48 of its K9 self-propelled howitzers to Finland, the country's defense procurement agency said Tuesday.The Finnish government has recently approved the purchase of the 155mm howitzer systems from South Korea citing price competitiveness and overall capabilities, a spokesman for the Defense Acquisition Program Administration said. The contract is estimated to be worth 178 billion won ($155 million). This photo taken on Jan. 2, 2017, shows the K9 self-propelled howitzers

Feb. 21, 2017