Open Sources

China’s best efforts notwithstanding, North Korea’s total foreign trade fell by 10% between 2008 and 2009. It gives some cause for hope that China can’t completely undermine the effect of international and U.S. Treasury sanctions, although those only really came into force in 2009 and 2010, respectively. My best guess is that this drop can mostly be attributed to reduced trade with South Korea. Hat tip: James again.

North Korean missiles a direct threat to the United States? Well, I guess, sort of. It makes me glad we did decide to deploy missile defenses. But in the grander scheme of all of the perfectly good reasons to worry about North Korea, a small number of Taepodongs worries me much less than the very real possibility of North Korea selling a nuke to Iran or Syria, or directly to a terrorist organization. What, exactly, would stop North Korea from doing that, since they probably think they’d get away with it?

Japan and South Korea are both taking skeptical approaches to North Korea’s latest offer of talks. South Korea says that the North must first take responsibility for its attacks in 2010, and Japan says the North must first take “concrete actions” to lower tensions.

For me to agree with any prosecution under the National Security Law, I need to see evidence of actual collusion with North Korea. Otherwise, it’s just more stupid, counterproductive censorship that makes heroes out of imbeciles.

Another influential South Korean says the country should have its own nukes, and under the circumstances, I’d want them, too.

North Korean hackers have struck back at DCinside, the South Korean website that claimed responsibility for hacking North Korea’s Twitter and YouTube accounts. This certainly is a better way to fight a war than shelling fishing villages, and it’s a far more commendable effort than, say, VANK.