korean unification studies

I recently had a conversation with a fellow that had worked for the WFP in North Korea. She made an interesting point. Apparently, in North Korea there is a trend in the use of ‘organic’ agriculture in smaller, individual plots – and this was supported by state propaganda! As of yet I haven’t seen any North [...]

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The ROK Defense Ministry has stated in a report to the National Assembly that North Korea has deployed a large number of troops and arms near Pyongyang. According to the Chosun Ilbo: South Korea’s defense ministry said in a report to Parliament Tuesday that the large numbers of soldiers, armored vehicles and artillery have been [...]

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…a lot of these exchanges are beginning to incorporate more and more North Koreans into the experience. For instance, these twenty-one thousand workers at Kaesong who are North Koreans, eventually are going to go home and tell their families and friends what they experienced. At this point what we’re seeing is very initial steps on [...]

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Before I go into all of my Japanese tabloid theories on the successor to Kim Jong-Il, I’ll let you guys read it yourself. From Reuters: TOKYO (Reuters) – North Korean leader Kim Jong-il has named his second eldest son to a major post, making him the top candidate to eventually take over as head of [...]

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South Korea abstained from a vote to adopt a draft resolution at the United Nations General Assembly Third Committee, which condemned human rights abuses in North Korea. A draft resolution entitled Situation of human rights in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (document n0760137.pdf) would have the Assembly express its very serious concern at continuing reports of systematic, widespread and [...]

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I can’t wait to read this new magazine! According to AFP, Asia Press has sent North Koreans trained in journalism in China back to North Korea to report undercover in the country. The result, a Korean language magazine called “Rimjingang“. From AFP: A North Korean defector Tuesday announced the launch of a magazine carrying undercover reporting [...]

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Seems like everyone is making predictions on the future of North Korea at the moment. The end of December is after all a decisive point when we will have a slightly better idea as to whether North Korea has really made a political and strategic decision to give up its nuclear weapons program.  According to a colleague [...]

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  In all seriousness though, the meeting between Roh Moo-Hyun and Nong Duc Manh, Secretary-General of the Vietnamese Communist Party, after the latter’s visit to North Korea is quite significant. Vietnam could be held up as a model for North Korea. Although the fundamental economic conditions are very different between Vietnam and North Korea (in [...]

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