April 6, 2007:
North Korean officials have
been telling their people that, because North Korea is now a nuclear power,
foreign countries are sending food and other "gifts", this
month. The food shortage is getting worse throughout North Korea, and
everyone knows it. But the one thing the North Koreans are good at is running a
police state. So, despite an increase in grumbling, no one is talking, or even
thinking, of challenging the government.
April 5, 2007: South Korea and China will set
up a military hot line, so that any South Korean actions against Chinese
fishing boats operating illegally in the Yellow Sea (a growing problem), will
not lead any fatal misunderstanding by Chinese and South Korean military
forces. The hot line also provides a channel for dealing with any crises
involving North Korea. China and South Korea are now major trading
partners, and are building more military relationships.
April 4, 2007: U.S. government analysts have
concluded that the North Korean nuclear test last Fall was, well, not exactly a
failure, but not a success, either. The detonation was only a fraction of what
it should have been (less than a kiloton equivalent in high explosives), and is
called in the trade, a "fizzle." Thus North Korea needs more tests to
perfect their bomb design and is years away from a useful nuclear weapon.
April 3, 2007: South Korea has been shutting down
pro-North Korean web sites, believing them to be major sources of fund raising
and recruiting for North Korea. Such has been the case in Japan for decades,
where millions of dollars a year in donations is raised for North Korea. Such
propaganda also recruits hundreds of idealistic leftists to become agents for
North Korea.
April 2, 2007: The nuclear fuel facility that North
Korea has a greed to decommission is obsolete and in poor repair. It turns out
that the North Koreans are simply offering to close a plant that is on its last
legs, in return for food and energy aid.
March 30, 2007: Japan has moved Patriot
anti-missile missiles into its capital, and will put these missiles in over a
dozen other locations.