NORTH KOREA AGAIN PROPOSES TALKS WITH SOUTH KOREA

South Korea North Korea reiterated Saturday a suggestion for unconditional talks with South Korea to ease tension on the separated peninsula. The latest offer comes days after South Korea dismissed earlier calls by the North for negotiations.

 

Tensions between the two sides escalate after a North Korean artillery torrent on a South Korean-held island near their disputed maritime border killed four South Koreans in November. The attack the first on a inhabitant area since the 1950-53 Korean War occurred in waters not far from where a North Korean torpedo allegedly brought down a South Korean warship eight months before That attack killed 46 sailors. North Korea has denied responsibility.

Cilk to Continue

NORTH KOREA MAY HAVE NEW ATOM TEST TO BOOST HEIR: SOUTH

North Korea could carry out a third atomic test next year to make stronger the credentials of its young leader-in-waiting Kim Jong-un, a examine report from a South Korean foreign ministry institute said on Friday.

The regular report was in print a day after Pyongyang vowed a nuclear "sacred war" after the South vowed to be "merciless" if attacked, and held a major military drill near the border.The North, which approved out nuclear tests in 2006 and 2009, has yet to show it has a deliverable weapon as part of its plutonium arms program, but a third test would raise tensions further on the divided peninsula and rattle overall markets.

Read More

NORTH KOREA RESPONSE MUTED TO SOUTH'S PLANNED DRILLS

North Korea criticized major land and sea military drills to be staged by the South on Thursday, but stopped short of threatening a retaliatory strike as pressure remained high on the divided peninsula.In a show of military force South Korea will hold a major

land drill in the Pocheon region, among Seoul and the heavily armed demilitarized zone (DMZ) separating the two Koreas. It will also continue naval live-fire training 100 km (60 miles) south of the maritime border with North Korea.The drill, involving a larger scale of firepower and personnel than the usual exercise at the army training ground, is an indication that unadventurous President Lee Myung-bak wants to underscore renewed determination to stand tough with the North.

Read More

MULLEN: CHINA MUST DO MORE TO END NORTH KOREA'S 'RECKLESS BEHAVIOR'

China's call for a return to talks is an inadequate response to the threat posed by North Korea, America's top military officer said Wednesday.China reacted to the increased tensions after the artillery shelling of a South Korean island killed four people by urging a return to the six-party talks that include North Korea, South Korea, China, the United States, Japan and Russia.

"Beijing's call for consultations will not be a substitute for action,"said Adm.Mike Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.He called on China to take action against North Korea because it has the best leverage to stop the rogue nation's "reckless behavior." So the potential for instability has increased. And I also believe that China's leadership has more influence in Pyongyang than any other country, period.

Full Story

NKOREA WARNS REGION IS ON BRINK OF WAR

YEONPYEONG ISLAND, South Korea – North Korea warned Friday that U.S.-South Korean plans for military maneuvers put the peninsula on the brink of war, and appeared to launch its own artillery drills within sight of an island it showered with a deadly barrage this week.

The fresh artillery blasts were especially defiant because they came as the U.S. commander in South Korea, Gen. Walter Sharp , toured the South Korean island to survey damage from Tuesday's hail of North Korean artillery fire that killed four people.

Full Story

EXCLUSIVE: OBAMA ON KOREA 'THREAT'

After N. Korea opens fire, President Obama tells ABC's Barbara Walters China must take stand on a "serious and ongoing threat that needs to be dealt with."

"This is a -- just one more provocative incident in a series that we've seen over the last several months, and I'm going to be talking to the president of Korea -- South Korea this evening and we'll be consulting closely with them in terms of the appropriate response," the president said. "We've strongly condemned the attack...We are rallying the international community once again to put pressure on North Korea." 

Full Story »

TWO KOREA'S EXCHANGE FIRE NEAR WESTERN MARITIME BORDER

North Korea fired artillery shells toward Yeonpyeong Island. Tensions escalated on the Korean peninsula today as the two Koreas exchanged fire for the fourth time in recent years near the western maritime border.

North Korea fired artillery shells at Yeonpyeong Island, some landing in sea but some landing on the island's residential area, said Col. Lee Bung-Woo, a spokesman for South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff. The South responded with its own artillery fire. South Korean media is reporting that 60 to 70 houses in the fishing village and areas in the mountains are on fire, engulfed in thick smoke..

Full Story »