Anonymous sources
The Chosun Ilbo
N.Korea 'Spent Enough on Nukes to Buy Food for 8 Years' - The Chosun Ilbo
The expert, who requested anonymity, said the money would have been enough to buy 1940 tons of corn from China or eight year's worth of rations for the North Korean people. Since the 1980s, North Korea spent $2.01 billion on building nuclear facilities ...
Seoul Says N.Korean Rocket Launch a 'Grave Provocation' - The Chosun Ilbo
The only difference is that one would deliver a nuclear payload and the latter a satellite module," a government official said. "North Korea apparently wants to develop a rocket capable of carrying a nuclear warhead." The North launched a similar ...
Korea to Keep Farm Produce Out of FTA with China - The Chosun Ilbo
"This time, sensitive items shouldn't be subject to tariff negotiations," a senior government official said. "We can't conduct the talks unless China accepts that." According to the finance and agriculture ministries, Korean chilli pepper, ...
S.Korea 'a Step Closer to Electromagnetic Pulse Bomb' - The Chosun Ilbo
A military officer who asked to remain anonymous on Sunday claimed South Korea has developed basic technology that will one day allow it to produce a so-called electromagnetic pulse bomb capable of paralyzing all electronic equipment.
Hopes Fade for N.Korea Human Rights Bill - The Chosun Ilbo
"The chances of the North Korean human rights bill being dealt with during the current National Assembly are now slim as the [ruling] Saenuri Party has no interest in the pending bill," a government official said Monday.
Boost for Coast Guard to Deal with Chinese Fishermen - The Chosun Ilbo
"All 342 coast guard officers in charge of cracking down on illegal fishing boats will be replaced with special warfare troops," a government official said. "First the Coast Guard will be reinforced with 102 special troops next year. ...
Military, NIS Agree Kim Jong-il's Train Never Moved - The Chosun Ilbo
"Maybe the military and NIS formed different opinions in the course of analyzing data," a government official said. "And when media reports made the difference of opinion appear to be a conflict, the military seems to have decided to clarify the matter ...
US Wants to Maintain Limits on S.Korean Missiles - The Chosun Ilbo
Washington is reportedly worried that extending the range would provoke North Korea and weigh on its relations with China. "The US is worried because extending the range to 1000 km would bring Beijing within reach as well," a government official said. ...
SOFA Under Review After Spate of Crimes by US Soldiers - The Chosun Ilbo
... of the Foreign Ministry's North American Affairs Bureau, and Jeffrey Remington, the deputy commander of the USFK, discussed the matter at the 189th session of the joint SOFA committee at the ministry building, a government official said. ...
US Worries About Growing Korean Arms Exports - The Chosun Ilbo
... agents have arrived and are investigating the Defense Acquisition Program Administration and defense firms to find out whether Korea has developed and exported weapons based on stolen US military technologies," a government official said Thursday. ...
Korea, Japan to Boost Currency Swap - The Chosun Ilbo
Korea and Japan will drastically bolster their mutual currency defenses in case of another economic crisis after Japan proposed an unlimited currency swap line, a senior government official said on Tuesday. A meeting between President Lee Myung-bak and ...
S.Korea to Fix N.Korean Road - The Chosun Ilbo
"We're in preliminary talks with the North," a government official said. "The road repair will begin soon, since the North has told us several times that it needs to be fixed." The project will cost about W1 billion (US$1=W1,180). ...
Korea Could Abandon Planes to Buy US Drones - The Chosun Ilbo
But the US wants about W940 billion (US$1=W1,170), a senior government official said on Sunday. "We can't afford to buy the drones unless it drastically cuts the price," he added. The US nearly doubled the price it first quoted. ...
Kim Jong-un Unleashes Reign of Terror - The Chosun Ilbo
"Kim Jong-un is implementing a reign of terror using military and public security agencies," a source said on Wednesday. "The elite is becoming agitated as he has gone all out to purge senior officials who pose a hurdle to his succession. ...
N.Korea Launches Int'l Tours to Mt. Kumgang - The Chosun Ilbo
A special team from the unification and foreign ministries is discussing how to deal with this matter, a government official said. "If North Korea tries to operate tours using South Korean properties, we can urge countries around the world to refrain ...
Korean Builders Upbeat as Gov't Pledges $1 Million to Libya - The Chosun Ilbo
Unpaid bills amount to W300 billion, but a government official said the advance payments Korean builders as a whole received from Libya "are larger than the outstanding amount." The government and industry are preparing to participate in Libyan ...
N.Korea 'Wanted to Shoot Down S.Korean Defense Chief's Chopper' - The Chosun Ilbo
... communication between North Korean military units, which exchanged messages about their plan to shoot down the helicopter carrying Kim on July 1, when he visited the 15th Army Division on the eastern frontline," a government official said. ...
N.Korea Nuclear Envoy to Meet US Officials - The Chosun Ilbo
... Navy corvette Cheonan and Yeonpyeong Island last year are also major bones of contention. "As long as a chance for progress in talks with North Korea has been created, there will be continued efforts to keep them going," a government official said.
Japan Boycotts Korean Air Over Dokdo Flight - The Chosun Ilbo
... usually fly Japan Airlines or All Nippon Airways, so Korean Air won't be affected much, but we have to take seriously any measure by a government sanctioning a private business due to the symbolic significance," a government official said. ...
N.Korean Defectors Flock to UK - The Chosun Ilbo
... North Korean defectors to seek asylum in foreign countries without going through South Korea, and although there are no statistics we believe that quite a lot of defectors living abroad hold South Korean citizenship," a government official said. ...
N.Korean Military's Morale 'Weakening' - The Chosun Ilbo
Ano officer was arrested for letting soldiers watch South Korean films or soap operas that he had recorded at home, the source said. And a group of officers and soldiers at a frontline Army unit were caught watching South Korean TV and listening to ...
Korea to Export Military Vessels to India, Indonesia - The Chosun Ilbo
Korea is expected to sell minesweepers worth US$500 million to India and submarines worth $1-1.2 billion to Indonesia, a government official said on Thursday. They are the country's biggest arms exports so far, exceeding even the $400 million sale of ...
Gov't to Investigate Military Involvement in Pro-N.Korean Websites - The Chosun Ilbo
The government is investigating whether some 70 military officers and servicemen who were active on a pro-North Korean Internet forum were just the tip of the iceberg, a government official said Monday. "An investigation of similar websites will give ...
N.Korea Keeps Sending More Workers to Kaesong Complex - The Chosun Ilbo
It may seem odd that the North is sending more workers to the complex despite its belligerent behavior, but it "has no other alternatives at the moment," a government official said. Since all other inter-Korean trade has been suspended, ...
Exports Climb to Record High in April - The Chosun Ilbo
"We're beginning to see the results of efforts by shipbuilders over the past few years to win more orders for vessels with much added value such as large oil tankers and floating production storage and offloading facilities," a government official said ...