Month: February 2015

South Korean BMD Architecture To Be Interoperable with the US

| February 22, 2015

The US may want an interoperable BMD architecture with the ROK, but they continue to maintain they are going to develop their own BMD system:

 

Building an interoperable missile defense system is a key focus the United States places on trilateral cooperation with its two key Asian allies, South Korea and Japan, a senior American diplomat said.

Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Anita Friedt made the remark at the Japan Institute of International Affairs in Tokyo earlier Friday, echoing what Assistant Secretary Frank Rose said during a recent trip to Seoul, according to the State Department.

“With regards to trilateral cooperation among the United States, Japan, and the ROK … Developing an interoperable regional missile defense architecture is an important future area of focus in light of the increasing nuclear and missile threats posed by North Korea,” she said.

“We believe that future trilateral cooperation between the United States, the ROK, and Japan can positively impact our deterrence efforts against North Korean aggression and send a powerful message of deterrence to the DPRK (North Korea),” she added.

The U.S. wants to build a regional missile defense with South Korea and Japan in a move that critics say is aimed not only at countering North Korean threats, but also keeping China in check. Seoul has said it will build its own Korean Air and Missile Defense System (KAMD) in a way that is interoperable with the U.S. system.  [Yonhap]

You can read more at the link, but the ROK is trying to take the middle road on this to balance their relationship with China and the US.  China doesn’t want an interoperable architecture so the ROK has maintained they will build their own missile defense system.  However, as the article states the ROK’s KAMD system can be developed to be interoperable with the US if needed.

Kim Jong-un Inspects Island Seizing Exercise

| February 22, 2015

Let’s hope the Kim regime thugs up in North Korea are not stupid enough to actually try and do this as one of their provocations:

http://img.yonhapnews.co.kr/etc/inner/EN/2015/02/21/AEN20150221000552315_01_i.jpg

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has inspected an artillery and landing exercise by front-line units deployed near the Yellow Sea, Pyongyang’s media reported Saturday.

The drill, joined by artillery forces of the 4th Corp. and island defense units, focused on training for “striking and seizing an island,” said the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). The 4th Corp. led the North’s shelling of a South Korean border island, Yeonpyeong, in November 2010, which killed four South Korean marines and civilians and wounded more than a dozen others.

Conducted at the direct instruction of Kim, the main aim of the latest training was to prepare for a fight against the United States, it added.

“The entire army should make their training more intense, as the anti-Japanese guerrillas did in Mount Paektu, to prepare all soldiers as stalwart combatants and turn all units into an iron-willed guards unit and thus bring the anti-U.S. confrontation to the final conclusion by crushing the enemies promptly in case they pounce upon the DPRK,” Kim was quoted as saying. The DPRK is the acronym for the North’s formal name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.  [Yonhap]

You can read more at the link.

Samsung Acquires LoopPay In Effort to Counter Apple Pay

| February 21, 2015

It looks like Samsung is developing their answer to Apple Pay:

samsung image

South Korea’s tech giant Samsung Electronics Co. said Thursday that it has bought U.S. mobile technology firm LoopPay Inc., a move apparently aimed at making inroads into the mobile payment technology market against its rival Apple Inc.

“Samsung has made efforts to provide safe and convenient mobile payment service,” said Shin Jong-kyun who heads the mobile division at the Seoul-based company. “The acquisition will spur up the company to lead the world mobile commerce market.”

LoopPay has patent rights related to magnetic secure transmission, a payments solution that works with the existing magnetic stripe readers.  [Yonhap]

You can read more at the link.

CFR: North Korean Nuclear Brinkmanship Strategy Showing Modest Results

| February 20, 2015

Here is what the wonks over at the Council for Foreign Relations have to say about North Korea nuclear brinkmanship strategy:

nk flag

North Korea’s food situation and its overall economy appear to be stable despite increased sanctions on the communist regime — an indication that Pyongyang’s policy of simultaneously pursuing nuclear and economic development is working, a U.S. expert said Wednesday.

Scott Snyder, a senior researcher on Korea at the Council Foreign Relations, cited the U.N. Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) saying in its latest assessment that the North’s food production is estimated at 5.94 million tons in 2014, compared to the 5.93 million tons in 2013-2014.

That represents the highest level since the North’s economic collapse in the mid-1990s.

Experts on North Korea’s agricultural sector have said that the increase in the country’s food production is attributable to agricultural reform measures that center on allowing farmers to keep at least one third of their harvests.

“The FAO assessment of North Korean food production is consistent with anecdotal reports that North Korea has made productivity improvements in recent years and that the North Korean economy is stable if not growing slowly,” Snyder said in an article on the CFR’s website.

“This means that North Korea’s two-pronged policy of simultaneous economic and nuclear development is showing some modest results on the economic side. The problem is that the nuclear priority remains in place and North Korea’s efforts to develop missile and nuclear programs continue to proceed unchecked,” he said.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has made the so-called “Byeongjin” policy one of the country’s biggest goals, pledging to rebuild the moribund economy while forging ahead with its nuclear program.  [Yonhap]

You can read more at the link, but remember this assessment the next time you hear someone claim North Korea has a food shortage and thus need free money from the international community.