NK weekly-external news
Summary of external news of North Korea this week
SEOUL, Oct. 13 (Yonhap) -- The following is a summary of external news of North Korea this week.
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(LEAD) Unification ministry says many N. Koreans in China believed to have been repatriated
SEOUL -- Many North Koreans appear to have been repatriated from China, the unification ministry said Friday after a recent news report that about 600 North Koreans have forcibly been sent back home.
"It appears to be true that many North Korean residents in three northeastern Chinese provinces have been repatriated," Koo Byoung-sam, the spokesperson for the ministry, said in a press briefing. "We cannot accurately confirm how many defectors, patients and criminals were included among them."
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N. Korea 'on pace' to field enough nuclear-tipped ICBMs to break U.S. missile defense: congressional report
WASHINGTON -- North Korea is "on pace" to deploy sufficient nuclear-tipped intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) to overcome the U.S. missile defense and may be preparing for a nuclear test to enable tactical nuclear operations, a congressional report showed Thursday.
The Congressional Commission on the Strategic Posture of the United States issued the final report. It was launched by the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2022 to examine America's long-term strategic posture.
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S. Korea to hold annual Hoguk defense exercise next week
SEOUL -- South Korea will kick off an annual large-scale military exercise next week to strengthen defense readiness, the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said Friday.
The Hoguk field training exercise, which involves the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps., will run from Monday to Nov. 22 to enhance interoperability, according to the JCS.
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USS Ronald Reagan aircraft carrier arrives in Busan
SEOUL -- The nuclear-powered USS Ronald Reagan aircraft carrier arrived at the southeastern port of Busan following trilateral naval drills involving the United States, South Korea and Japan in a show of force against North Korea.
Carrier Strike Group 5, which includes the aircraft carrier, the Aegis-equipped USS Shoup destroyer and other warships, docked at the naval base in Busan, 320 kilometers southeast of Seoul, for a five-day visit.
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(LEAD) China forcibly repatriates some 600 N. Korean defectors this week: civic group
SEOUL -- China sent back around 600 North Korean defectors earlier this week right after the end of the Asian Games in Hangzhou, a local human rights group claimed Wednesday, despite Seoul's repeated calls against forced repatriation.
Justice For North Korea said hundreds of North Korean defectors detained in China's Jilin and Liaoning provinces were deported Monday night to their reclusive home country against their will through cities near the border with North Korea, such as Dandong and Hunchun.
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(LEAD) N. Korea may conduct nuclear test to divert internal attention from food crisis: Seoul ministry
SEOUL -- North Korea may stage various provocations, including a nuclear test, to divert its public's attention from the country's ongoing food crisis, South Korea's defense ministry said Tuesday.
The ministry made the assessment in a policy report for a parliamentary audit amid growing tensions after North Korea revised its constitution late last month to stipulate the policy of strengthening its nuclear force.
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(LEAD) S. Korea, U.S., Japan stage trilateral maritime interdiction drills for 1st time in 7 years
SEOUL -- South Korea, the United States and Japan staged a trilateral maritime interdiction exercise in waters south of the Korean Peninsula this week for the first time in seven years, the South Korean Navy said Tuesday, amid efforts to strengthen security coordination against North Korean threats.
The two-day exercise, which began Monday in international waters southeast of the southern resort island of Jeju along with anti-piracy drills, came after the three countries' defense chiefs agreed to resume the trilateral exercises during their meeting in Singapore in June.
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