NK weekly-domestic news
Summary of domestic news in North Korea this week
SEOUL, Aug. 18 (Yonhap) -- The following is a summary of domestic news in North Korea this week.
------------
N. Korean leader calls for efforts to minimize typhoon damage to crops
SEOUL -- North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has called for efforts to minimize damage to crops by the recent Typhoon Khanun, while mobilizing choppers and aircraft for recovery work in flood-hit regions, state media reported Friday.
Kim visited farms in Anbyon County in the eastern Kangwon Province, where farmlands were flooded due to heavy rains brought by the typhoon that swept through the Korean Peninsula last week, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
------------
(3rd LD) N. Korea claims U.S. Pvt. Travis King wants refuge in North or third country
SEOUL -- North Korea said Wednesday an American soldier who ran across the inter-Korean border into the North last month admitted that he "illegally intruded" due to "inhuman maltreatment and racial discrimination within the U.S. Army," claiming that he has expressed a willingness to seek refuge there or in a third country.
It marked the North's first public confirmation of the status of Pvt. Travis King, who made an unauthorized crossing of the Military Demarcation Line (MDL) into the North during a tour to the Joint Security Area (JSA) in the Demilitarized Zone separating the two Koreas on July 18.
------------
(LEAD) Two buses detected crossing into China from N. Korea
DANDONG, China -- A pair of buses were detected crossing from the North Korean border city of Sinuiju into China on Wednesday, in a rare move that was apparently made to transport its athletes to an upcoming taekwondo match.
The buses were spotted crossing a railway bridge over the Amnok River from the Chinese border city of Dandong into the North at around 10:15 a.m. (local time) and returning at around 11:20 a.m.
------------
Pyongyang opposes UNSC meeting on N. Korea's human rights
SEOUL -- Pyongyang on Tuesday opposed the United States' request for a United Nations Security Council (UNSC) meeting to address human rights abuses in North Korea, calling the move "a violent infringement upon its dignity and sovereignty."
The U.S., which holds the 15-nation UNSC's rotating presidency this month, requested a formal meeting on human rights abuses in North Korea along with Japan and Albania. If held on Thursday, it will be the first such meeting since December 2017.
------------
(2nd LD) N. Korea's Kim calls for 'drastic boost' of missile production capacity: state media
SEOUL -- North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has called for a "drastic boost" of the country's missile production capacity, the North's state media said Monday, ahead of a key joint military exercise between South Korea and the United States next week.
Kim made the remarks during a two-day visit to major factories that produce tactical missiles and rocket launchers Friday and Saturday, according to the North's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
------------
N. Korea's Kim slams officials as 'irresponsible' over typhoon damage
SEOUL -- North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has berated local officials as being "irresponsible" and "insensitive" over their failure to prevent damage from Typhoon Khanun that recently swept through the Korean Peninsula, state media said Monday.
Kim made the remarks during a visit to Anbyon County, Kangwon Province, in the North, where river banks were toppled and some 200 hectares of farmland were flooded due to heavy rains brought by last week's typhoon, according to the North's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
(END)
(C) Yonhap News Agency. All Rights Reserved
