North Korea Newsletter 324 (July 31, 2014)

Foreign Tips

N. Korea's grain imports from China halve in H1

SEOUL (Yonhap) -- North Korea's grain imports from China tumbled more than 50 percent on-year in the first half of this year, data showed on July 30, amid speculation that relations between the communist allies are not like before.

North Korea imported 58,387 tons of cereal crops from China in the January-June period, down 53 percent from 124,228 tons recorded a year earlier, according to the data by the Korea International Trade Association (KITA).

By type, flour topped the list with 40,142 tons, or 68.8 percent, followed by rice and corn with 13,831 tons and 3,420 tons, respectively, added the Seoul-based agency.

Analysts say the remarkable decrease may be attributable to reportedly strained ties between the two sides in recent months.

"Of late, North Korea has appeared to move to reduce its economic dependence on China and diversify its foreign economic partners," said Lim Eul-chul, professor at the Institute for Far Eastern Studies at Kyungnam University.

Kwon Tae-jin, researcher at private think tank GS&J, said it might have been more affected by Pyongyang's increased crop yield.

"North Korea's stockpile of crops seems to have grown due to a good harvest last year.

Meanwhile, China's fertilizer exports to North Korea also plunged 21.3 percent to 109,531 tons during the January-June period this year from a year earlier, said KITA.

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N. Korea to send six reporters to Incheon Asiad: ABU

SEOUL (Yonhap) -- North Korea plans to send a six-member media team to the South Korean city of Incheon in August for the coverage of the Asian Games, a news report said on July 30.

The previous week, Pyongyang sent a letter to the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union (ABU) requesting cooperation on its plan, according to Radio Free Asia (RFA), a Washington-based network.

"North Korea requested a letter of invitation (for its reporters) and a schedule (for games)," the RFA quoted an ABU official as saying. The ABU is headquartered in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

The North's move would mark another clear sign that it is determined to take part in the Incheon Asian Games to open on Sept. 19 for a two-week run.

The reclusive communist nation's leader, Kim Jong-un, openly said its participation in the games would help improve inter-Korean relations.

The South agrees that it could contribute to efforts not only to break the ice on the peninsula but also to draw more international attention to the Incheon Asian Games.

The North said it would dispatch 350 athletes and coaches, along with the same number of cheerleaders.

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N. Korea steps up efforts to expand rocket launch site

WASHINGTON (Yonhap) -- North Korea is stepping up efforts to expand a long-range rocket launch site on the country's west coast to enable it to handle bigger rockets with heavier payloads, and the project could be complete by next year, a U.S. think tank said on July 29.

The website 38 North, run by the U.S.-Korea Institute at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, made the analysis in a report, based on satellite imagery of the Sohae Satellite Launching Station, where the North successfully launched a long-range rocket in December 2012.

"As of July 2014, North Korea had increased the gantry height to over 50 meters, completed construction of a new wider road onto the pad to carry larger rockets, and was building a rail spur from the existing siding that would also carry larger rockets directly to the launch pad," the report said.

"These modifications could be completed by 2015," it added.

The report also said that the North carried out a series of tests this year on the first stage rocket motor of the KN-08 road-mobile intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM). Satellite imagery shows the presence of first stage rocket motors and distressed vegetation along the edges of the flame path, it said.

"The rocket engine test program may wind down by the end of this year although a key consideration will be how successful the tests have been," the report said. "If the engine tests are concluded, the next stage in the development of the KN-08 road-mobile ICBM may be full-scale flight tests of the missile."

   Satellite images also show "building activity in the hills in the northwest area of the test center," it said, adding that two domed structures were seen in the photos, though their purpose remains unclear.

The internal layout of the larger structure indicates that it may be an auditorium intended for use as a training center, an area for displaying satellite launch vehicle or missile hardware or a launch control center that might accommodate VIPs, clients or the media, it said.

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China bans exhibition by 'faceless' artist from N. Korea

BEIJING (Yonhap) -- A North Korean defector known for his satirical paintings on North Korean society was forbidden from holding a rare exhibition in Beijing on July 27, with Chinese police officials removing his artwork shortly before the exhibition began.

The painter from North Korea with the pseudonym Sun Mu, who fled the North in 1998 and resettled in South Korea in 2001, has been called a "faceless" artist as he does not allow himself to be photographed out of fears that his family left behind could suffer retribution.

Sun Mu had been scheduled to hold a month-long exhibition at an art museum in Beijing starting on July 27, but Chinese police blocked people from entering the museum earlier in the day and removed his paintings and ad banners hung around the museum.

The Chinese police did not give a reason why they banned the exhibition, but it was believed that the exhibition may irritate North Korea.

Some North Korean people who are believed to work at the North Korean Embassy in Beijing were witnessed at the scene.

Sun Mu, who was trained to paint propaganda pictures and other artworks for the North's government, was the first North Korean defector to study painting in South Korea.

Among the most famous paintings by the artist are those from the "Happy Children" series showing North Korean children with apparently forced smiles.

The planned exhibition was funded by South Korean nationals living in China.

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N. Korea exports US$1.8 mln worth of rare earth to China in May-June

SEOUL (Yonhap) -- North Korea exported rare-earth elements worth $1.87 million to China from May to June, resuming outbound shipments of the crucial industrial minerals to its key ally and economic benefactor in 15 months, data showed on July 27.

North Korea shipped rare-earth minerals worth $550,000 and $1.32 million to China in May and June, respectively, which amounted to a total of 62,662 kilograms, according to the Korea International Trade Association based in Seoul.

The communist regime first exported rare-earth metals worth $24,700 to China in January 2013 and had stopped selling them until recently.

Separately, Pyongyang has sold carbonate-containing rare-earth compounds to China since 2011, but the size of outbound shipments is small, with the total amount is estimated at about $170,000 over a period of three and a half years.

The impoverished nation is known to have large reserves of rare-earth minerals, which are crucial ingredients used in many tech products as well as the military and medical sectors.

The latest move comes as the North has stepped up developing rare-earth deposits to support its moribund economy.

Last year, the North's state-owned Korea Natural Resources Trading Corporation signed a 25-year deal with British Islands-based private equity firm SRE Minerals Limited to mine deposits in Jongju, northwest of the capital, Pyongyang.

Experts said the recent surge in North Korea's rare-earth shipments may be part of its attempts to diversify sources of mineral exports, which account about half of its total exports.

The North's export of anthracite coal fell 23 percent in the first half of this year to $571.2 million from a year ago, while ironstone declined 5 percent to $120 million in the cited period, according to trade data.

"The rare-earth minerals sold to China were valued at $30 per kilogram, and they were considered to be processed iron concentrates or oxidized substances," said Choi Kyung-soo, chief of the Seoul-based North Korea Resource Institute. "It could be seen as an attempt to diversify items of mineral resource exports, but it remains to be seen whether the North will start exporting large volumes of rare-earth minerals."

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UNSC urged to discuss N. Korea's human rights violations: report

SEOUL (Yonhap) -- The United States, France and Australia called for the United Nations Security Council to deal with North Korea's human rights violations, a news report said on July 26.

Ambassadors from the three countries to the U.N. sent a joint letter to the president of the Security Council on July 17, which called on the U.N. body to formally discuss a report by the U.N. Commission of Inquiry (COI) on human rights violations in the North, according to the Voice of America (VOA).

Following a year-long probe, the COI published a report in March, accusing North Korea of "systematic, widespread and grave violations of human rights." It added that North Korean leaders' crimes against humanity should be dealt with by the International Criminal Court.

They also urged the Security Council to take proper actions against the North's appalling track record on human rights, the VOA added.

The U.N. plans to set up a field office in South Korea this year in a bid to monitor human rights violations in North Korea and raise public awareness about the issue.

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U.S. NGO ships US$800,000 worth of medical aid to N. Korea

SEOUL (Yonhap) -- A U.S. humanitarian group has sent US$800,000 worth of medical aid to North Korea as part of its continued effort to help the impoverished communist nation, a news report said on July 25.

AmeriCares, a nonprofit organization based in Connecticut, shipped a package of medicine, sanitary goods and other medical aid in June, the Voice of America (VOA) reported.

The shipment will arrive at the end of July, the aid group's communication director, Donna Porstner, told the VOA.

The supplies will be distributed to six hospitals and clinics in Pyongyang, Pyongan Province, and North Hwanghae Province, it added.

AmeriCares said it delivered $1.8 million in medical assistance to North Korea earlier this year.

"Despite the challenging political context, AmeriCares -- in its mission to help people in need irrespective of their race, creed or political persuasion -- is committed to helping the people of North Korea, who have suffered from acute food shortages, natural disasters and isolation," it said on its website, www.americares.org.

"A limited number of economic, political and social ties often means that the country faces shortages of key medical supplies," it added.

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