NAPSNet Daily Report 11 October, 2010
Contents in this Issue:
1. DPRK Leadership
The Associated Press (Jean H. Lee, “NKOREA’S KIM, HEIR APPARENT SON AT LAVISH PARADE”, Pyongyang, 2010/10/11) reported that clapping, waving and even cracking a smile, Kim Jong Il’s heir apparent joined his father Sunday at a massive military parade in his most public appearance since being unveiled as the DPRK’s next leader. Kim Jong Un, dressed in a dark blue civilian suit, sat next to his father on an observatory platform at Kim Il Sung Plaza as tanks carrying rocket-propelled grenades and long-range missiles rolled by as part of celebrations marking the 65th anniversary of the reclusive state’s ruling Workers’ Party. “The parade served as a sign that the military has loyalty to the successor,” said Kim Yong-hyun, an expert on North Korea at Seoul’s Dongguk University. Japanese public broadcaster NHK reported Sunday that the parade included three never-before-shown types of missiles and launching devices.
2. Sino-DPRK Relations
Agence France-Presse (“CHINA SENDS INVITE TO N.KOREAN LEADERSHIP”, Beijing, 2010/10/11) reported that PRC President Hu Jintao has invited DPRK leader Kim Jong-Il and the country’s new ruling line-up to visit the PRC, state media said. The invitation was extended on Hu’s behalf by a senior PRC official who attended a massive military parade in Pyongyang. Hu invited “General Secretary Kim Jong-Il and the comrades of the new central leadership of the DPRK (North Korea) to visit China at a convenient time,” PRC official Zhou Yongkang was quoted as telling Kim. The invitation indicates the transition has received Beijing’s blessing, said Shi Yinhong, an expert on the PRC’s foreign relations at Renmin University in Beijing.
3. US Extended Deterrence and the ROK
Xinhua News (“U.S., ROK CREATE JOINT MILITARY BODY AIMED AGAINST PYONGYANG”, Washington, 2010/10/11) reported that the United States set up a joint military body with the ROK, aimed against the DPRK, the two countries’ defense chiefs announced in Washington. The body, extended deterrence policy committee, was set up during talks between US Defense Secretary Robert Gates and visiting ROK National Defense Minister Kim Tae Young. During a news briefing after the talks, Gates reaffirmed US security assurance to Seoul, saying Washington is “committed to providing extended deterrence using the full range of American military might: from our nuclear umbrella to conventional strike and ballistic missile defense.”
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/world/2010-10/09/c_13547914.htm
4. Japan Satellite Capabilities
The Yomiuri Shimbun (“GOVT TO BUILD BACKUP INTEL SATELLITE”, 2010/10/10) reported that the government will build a backup satellite that could substitute for two new radar satellites to be constructed to keep watch on military and other facilities in the DPRK, government sources said. The backup satellite will be launched into orbit probably in fiscal 2014. The plan means three Japanese radar satellites will be in operation. The intelligence satellites are used for military reconnaissance, a government move in the wake of the DPRK’s test-firing of a ballistic missile that flew over Japan to splash down in the Pacific Ocean in 1998.
http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/T101009002352.htm
5. Russian Far East Energy Exports
The Moscow Times (“GAZPROM MAY FORM HUB IN FAR EAST TO SUPPLY ASIA”, 2010/10/11) reported that may build plants to liquefy and compress natural gas on Russia’s Pacific Coast, Primorye region Governor Sergei Darkin said, in an effort to turn the area into an energy hub and compete with Middle East producers to supply Asia. Gazprom may build a liquefied natural gas facility to process 26 billion cubic meters a year of gas, according to materials on the region’s investment plans. “The Primorye region’s advantage is we are closest to all of the 21st century’s economic growth centers: China, Korea and Japan,” Darkin said.