Cambodia clears man over N. Korean's disappearance

Sep 11, 2012
Excerpt

SEOUL (AFP) - Cambodia has released a South Korean man arrested in April on charges relating to the disappearance of a female North Korean restaurant employee, a government official said on Tuesday.

The 35-year-old, surnamed Kim, arrived in Seoul earlier in the day after Cambodian authorities decided to release him for lack of evidence, the official said on condition of anonymity.

According to the Yonhap news agency, Kim was arrested on April 25 at Phnom Penh airport on suspicion of human trafficking and sexual exploitation.

A former North Korean refugee who became a South Korean national, he had been sought by Cambodian police after a 25-year-old North Korean woman, who was last seen leaving a hotel room with Kim, went missing in June last year.

North Korea leader's wife can teach him about the enemy

In the hermit Kingdom...

North Korean leader Kim and his wife Ri attend opening ceremony of Rungna People's Pleasure Ground in Pyongyang (KCNA, REUTERS / July 26, 2012)

...Meanwhile in the Banana Kingdom

July 26, 2012

SEOUL (Reuters) - When North Korea's new leader needs to know something about his arch enemy, he can ask his wife. In contrast to the family dynasty of dictators she has married into, Ri Sol-ju has actually been to South Korea.

North Korean television on Wednesday put to rest weeks of speculation by announcing that the young, mystery woman recently seen accompanying leader Kim Jong-un was indeed his wife.

Ri was a part of a youth supporters group for the Asian Athletics Championships in South Korea in 2005, a lawmaker who attended a meeting with the intelligence service told Reuters on Thursday.

N. Korea military move spurs Seoul speculation

Saturday Jul 21, 2012
By Foster Klug and Sam Kim - The Associated Press

SEOUL, South Korea — The surprise news set off a predictable wildfire of speculation and rumors south of the border.

Almost as soon as North Korea announced this week that its army chief had been dismissed due to “illness,” the aggressive South Korean media went into hyperdrive. By Friday a newspaper, citing “unconfirmed intelligence reports,” said Ri Yong Ho may have been wounded or killed in a blaze of gunfire when soldiers loyal to him resisted an armed attempt to detain him.

So which is it — illness or a gun battle? Perhaps neither. North Korea watchers are skeptical of the illness claim, but even an unnamed government official cited in the South Korean account said the firefight “has still not been 100 percent confirmed.”

This is what happens when insatiably curious journalists in Seoul are starved for information about their tight-lipped, isolated rival to the north.

North Korea ready to resume nuclear talks: Cambodia

14 July 2012
AFP

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia — North Korea told Cambodia Saturday it was ready to rejoin six-party denuclearisation talks, Phnom Penh said, without outlining any conditions to a potential return to the negotiating table.

North Korean Foreign Minister Pak Ui-Chun met with his Cambodian counterpart in Phnom Penh and "clearly stated that the Democratic People's Republic of Korea is ready to participate in the six-party talks", Cambodian foreign ministry spokesman Koy Kuong told reporters.

"Cambodia welcomes the positive step," he said, adding that Pak "did not talk about conditions during the meeting".

Tensions are high on the Korean peninsula after the North's failed rocket launch in April, seen by the United States and its allies as an attempted ballistic missile test.

N. Korea's top diplomat arrives in Cambodia for ASEAN forum

By Kim Deok-hyun

PHNOM PENH/SEOUL, July 11 (Yonhap) -- North Korean Foreign Minister Pak Ui-chun arrived here early Wednesday to attend an annual security meeting of Southeast Asian nations and regional powers, Seoul diplomats said.

Pak's visit to the two-day Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Regional Forum, hosted by the 10-member bloc starting Thursday, comes amid persistent tensions on the Korean Peninsula over the North's nuclear and missile programs.

Pak arrived in Phnom Penh without responding to a barrage of questions by reporters on whether he would meet the South Korean foreign minister this week.

Earlier in the day, a senior Seoul diplomat confirmed Pak's attendance.

Mysterious disappearance to North Korean restaurant in Cambodia explained?

North Korean waitresses (Photo: The New York Times)

Jun 16, 2012
By Nathan Schwartzman
Asian Correspondent

Original article in Korean is at this link.

A man who defected from North Korea and now has South Korean citizenship has been arrested on charges stemming from the kidnapping of a female worker from a North Korean restaurant in Cambodia last year. However, the woman is shown in a video to have been not kidnapped but rather asking the South Korean man who has been arrested to take her to the border. The video is expected to free the man, who is currently detained by Cambodian authorities. Below is a TV Chosun report.

[Anchor]

Last year a female worker in a North Korean restaurant in Cambodia disappeared. A Korean man has been arrested by Cambodian police on charges of kidnapping the woman, and is currently detained. Appearing to have vanished, the woman was mistakenly thought to have been kidnapped.

[Report]

The Korean man, Mr. Kim visited Cambodia last month and was arrested by police at the airport.

One year ago, the woman, Ms. Mun, disappeared while working in the North Korean restaurant in Cambodia, apparently because of Mr. Kim. A North Korean official residence released the security camera evidence from the restaurant which led to Mr. Kim being accused of kidnapping and murder.

However, Ms. Mun has reappeared after one year — on video.

ANALYSIS: North Korea nuke fears spare China on U.N. resolution violations

June 13, 2012
By YOSHIHIRO MAKINO/ Staff Writer
Asahi Shimbun (Japan)

Security experts suspect that Cambodian-registered ships operated mainly by Chinese crews have been used to provide underground support to such nations as North Korea, Myanmar and Laos.

When North Korea held an elaborate parade to show off its military might, it inadvertently provided further damning evidence against its only ally.

Images of the April 15 parade in Pyongyang, held to commemorate the centennial of the birth of North Korea founder Kim Il Sung, featured large 16-wheeler transport vehicles carrying ballistic missiles.

The vehicles were believed to have come from China, the same ones mentioned in a shipping report obtained by the Japanese government.

Japan, the United States and South Korea had solid evidence to prove that China, despite its repeated denials, had violated a U.N. Security Council resolution banning weapons exports to North Korea.

But the three countries decided not to pursue the matter in the Security Council, underscoring the complexities in international horse trading.

Ship flying Cambodian flag of convenience used to transport missile vehicles from China to North Korea

In this April 15, 2012, file photo, a North Korean vehicle carrying a missile passes by during a mass military parade in Pyongyang's Kim Il Sung Square. The enormous 16-wheel truck used to carry the missile was found to be exported from China. (AP photo)

Document confirms Chinese firm sold missile transport vehicles to N. Korea

June 13, 2012
THE ASAHI SHIMBUN (Japan)

Japanese government sources have confirmed that a Chinese company exported four large vehicles capable of transporting and launching ballistic missiles to North Korea last August, which would be a violation of a United Nations Security Council resolution.

While the Security Council mandate prohibits the sale of major weapons systems to Pyongyang, the official Chinese government position continues to be that it has never broken such a resolution.

Because the United States, Japan and South Korea need Chinese pressure on North Korea to prevent it testing a nuclear weapon for the third time, the three governments have not pressed Beijing on the issue, sources said.

On the urging of the United States, the three governments also decided not to publicize the shipment of the vehicles to avoid publicly embarrassing China.

The Japanese government obtained a document last October that recorded the export of the vehicles from China to North Korea.

The four vehicles believed to have been exported were likely the same ones that were prominently displayed by North Korea at a military parade in April commemorating the centennial of the birth of Kim Il Sung, North Korea's founder.

According to several Japanese government sources, the four vehicles were transported aboard the 1,999-ton Harmony Wish, a cargo ship registered with Cambodia.

North Korea increasing South East Asia ties [-Does Sihanouk have to anything to do with this deal?]

Cambodia's Foreign Minister Hor Namhong speaks at the ASEAN summit in Phnom Penh in April 2012.[Reuters]

Tue, 5 Jun 2012
ABC Radio Australia

Cambodia's Foreign Minister, Hor Namhong is believed to have extended an invitation to the North Korean Foreign Minister Pak Ui Chun to attend the ASEAN Regional Forum in Phnom Penh next month.

The two have met in Pyongyang.

Hor Namhong, whose country currently chairs the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is also thought to have offered to facilitate talks between North and South Korea on the sidelines of the regional security meeting.

It is believed this will involve examining ways to resume six party talks on ending Pyongyang's nuclear ambitions.

Cambodian foreign minister to raise six-party talks in rare visit to North Korea

Sunday, June 3, 2012
Associated Press

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia — Cambodia’s foreign minister will urge North Korean leaders to resume six-party talks on nuclear disarmament during a rare official visit this week.

Hor Namhong told reporters before leaving for a four-day visit Sunday that Cambodia has always supported the talks that Pyongyang halted in 2009. His spokesman said last month the minister would press North Korea to restart the negotiations.

Comrade Hor 5 Hong to visit Hermit Kingdom next week

Cambodian Foreign Minister to Visit N. Korea Next Week

JUN 01, 2012
Arirang.co.kr (South Korea)

Cambodian Foreign Minister Hor Namhong is scheduled to visit North Korea for three days next week for talks on regional security.

Kyodo News reports that the diplomat will meet with the head of North Korea's Supreme People’s Assembly Presidium Kim Yong-nam and his North Korean counterpart Pak Ui-chun during the visit that starts on Monday.

However, no meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is expected to take place.

Speculation is growing about whether Cambodia, set to host this year's ASEAN Regional Forum in July, could help member countries of the six-party talks resume dialogue and ease tensions on the Korean Peninsula after Pyeongyang's recent failed rocket launch.

Politiktoons No. 189: The Kim

Cartoon by Sacrava (on the web at http://politiktoons.blogspot.com and also at http://sacrava.blogspot.com)

North Korean launches long-range missile; launch fails

A North Korean long-range missile launch has failed, U.S. officials confirm (AP Photo)

13 April 2012
By Eric Pfeiffer
The Upshot

UPDATE: [8:20pm ET]: This story will be updated as events unfold.

• U.S. officials say they believe the launch failed.
• U.N. Security Council is meeting Friday to discuss a response.
• This is the third failed attempt at an orbital launch since 1998.

Defying international pressure, North Korea launched a long-range missile Friday morning. However, U.S. officials say they believe the attempted launch failed before the missile was able to leave the Earth's atmosphere.

U.S. officials confirm that a North Korean long-range missile appears to have broken apart midair after launch. Officials say they believe the missile fell apart within the Earth's atmosphere before crashing into the sea.

Japan's Defense Minister Naoki Tanaka has backed U.S. reports that the launch failed. "We have confirmed that a certain flying object has been launched and fell after flying for just over a minute," Tanaka said.

Hun Sen: we won’t be bought [...'cause we are already paid in full by China!!!]

Prime Minister Hun Sen delivers a speech to the ASEAN delegates during a press conference yesterday afternoon. (Photo by Meng Kimlong)

Thursday, 05 April 2012
Shane Worrell with additional reporting by Cheang Sokha
The Phnom Penh Post

After a week of global media reports dissecting Cambodia’s relationship with China, Prime Minister Hun Sen had apparently had enough yesterday – lashing out at the media and analysts he termed “crazy” in what proved an unexpected conclusion to the 20th ASEAN Summit.

The premier spent a good part of the concluding press conference defending his government from claims that China was buying its support.

“Cambodia is not [being] bought by anyone (sic!),” he said, referring to the millions of dollars in loans and aid Chinese President Hu Jintao pledged on Saturday.

Hun Sen went on to praise China at length for “saving” the ASEAN economy in 1997 and showing generosity to Europe during the 2008 economic crisis, but insisted he had never felt pressure from Chinese leaders to “do this or do that”.

That, of course, was precisely the suggestion of some analysts, who posited that last weekend’s visit by Hu had been made with the intention of enlisting Cambodia’s aid in squelching debate on the controversial South China Sea issue.

20th ASEAN summit opens in Cambodia’s capital

ASEAN foreign ministers sign documents during a ceremony on the sidelines of the 20th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit in Phnom Penh on April 2, 2012.

Tue Apr 3, 2012
PressTV.com

The 20th Summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has opened in Cambodia's capital, Phnom Penh, with the participation of leaders from Asian countries.

Dubbed "ASEAN: One Community, One Destiny", this year's summit brings together heads of state from 10 member states and is chaired by Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen.

The summit's main focus is to turn the 10 disparate nations and their combined population of 600 million people into a European Union-like community by 2015.

The two-day summit is expected to discuss a wide range of issues including the South China Sea dispute, North Korea's rocket launch plans and Myanmar's by-elections.

Aquino to push Spratlys issue in summit

Thursday, 29 March 2012
Recto Mercene / Reporter
Business Mirror (Philippines)

Asked whether Cambodia, this year’s Asean chairman, might discourage the discussion since that country is allied with China, Barsana said no.

President Aquino is expected to raise the issue of the Code of Conduct governing the South China Sea when he attends the 20th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) summit in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, from April 2 to 4.

The summit coincides with the 45th anniversary of Asean.

The President may raise the issue of North Korea’s planned rocket launch during the Asean Leaders’ Retreat. The retreat is a meeting of all the leaders in a very informal environment and where they can have a freewheeling discussion on issues of common 
interest and of pressing issues of the day. He will also join three of his counterparts in the 8th Brunei-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East Asean Growth Area (BIMP-Eaga) summit after the concluding session of the Asean summit.

Comrade "Great King" receives Int'l Kim Il Sun Prize from Greatest Commie Country on earth: North Korea

Comrade "Great King" and Great Leader (Photo: AFP)

International Kim Il Sung Prize Awarded to Great King of Cambodia

Pyongyang, March 15 (KCNA) — The International Kim Il Sung Prize Council on January 15 decided to award International Kim Il Sung Prize to Cambodian Great King Norodom Sihanouk on the centenary of birth of President Kim Il Sung (the Day of the Sun).

Norodom Sihanouk greatly contributed to defending the sovereignty of the nation, achieving the prosperity of the Cambodian people and the world peace and strengthening friendship and solidarity among the peoples.

Koreans, North and South, Train Cambodian Olympic Hopefuls

Cambodian Wrestler Chov Sotheara trains with another wrestler while a North Korean Coach watches, Phenom Penh, Cambodia, February 2012. (Photo: VOA - Daniel Schearf)

http://www.voanews.com/templates/widgetDisplay.html?id=142400805&player=article

March 12, 2012
Daniel Schearf | Phnom Penh
Voice of America

Cambodia has never won an Olympic medal, but at this year’s games in London, the country will try to break the streak with some Korean help.

Two of Cambodia’s Olympic hopefuls have Korean coaches - one from the South and one from the North.

Chov Sotheara is one of only a few Cambodian athletes who could qualify for the London Olympics. Driven to win in a sport dominated by men, she says her strict North Korean coach, Pak So Nam, gives her an edge, despite the language barrier.

“We use sign language," Chov said. "In this sport there are hand signals and grabbing. So, he shows us each movement and then all of us just follow him. And, if we make mistakes he corrects us.”

Cambodia To Persuade North Korea On Nuclear Talks

HANOI, March 8 (Bernama) -- Cambodia will make an effort to persuade North Korea to return to the six-party talks, in order to end North's nuclear programme, Long Visalo, the Secretary of State of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Cambodia said.

He made the statement after meeting with Park Hae-yun, Director-General of the South Asian and Pacific Affairs Bureau of the Foreign Ministry of South Korea recently in Phnom Penh.

During the meeting Park encouraged Cambodia, in its capacity as Asean Chair, to act as intermediary to solve the nuclear crisis in North Korea, according to Vietnam news agency.

He said that Cambodia's efforts will contribute to ensuring security, peace and stability in the region.

Popular but secretive, North Korean restaurant keeps the "North" part low-key

The red wooden gates of Pyeongyang Restaurant (Courtesy of Curtis File) 

Song and dance performance during dinner at Pyeongyang Restaurant

By Curtis File
Contributing writer

PHNOM PEHN, Feb. 20 (Yonhap) -- The red wooden gates of 400 Monivong Boulevard are difficult to find if you are not looking for them. Only a sun-bleached sign overhead marks them as the entrance to the compound of Pyeongyang Restaurant, a North Korean chain and one of Phnom Penh's most famous dining destinations. It's also the place that Lee Un-Yong and her fellow waitresses call home.

Like many of the women who have worked here, Lee is a transitional employee. Now eight months into her three-year commitment to the restaurant, in many ways her new home is just as secretive and oppressive as the regime from which it originates.

Assumed, but not acknowledged, to be owned by the North Korean government in an effort to raise money for the regime, official statements about the political significance of the establishment are hard to come by. An interview with the management of the restaurant came to an abrupt end when questions about politics arose.