U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis praised Vietnam on Wednesday for adhering to sanctions against North Korea, saying at the start of a two-day visit to Hanoi that its leadership on the issue came despite the costs associated with lost trade. “I have to pay my respects there and thank them for their support on the (North Korea) issue. They have been supporting the United Nations sanctions, at some cost to them,” Mattis told reporters before landing in Hanoi. “And so we appreciate their leadership on that, leading by example and stepping up.” North Korea’s development of nuclear weapons and missiles capable of hitting the United States has spurred deepening U.N. sanctions and stoked fears of a military conflict. U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said last week that the United States was getting evidence that sanctions were “really starting to hurt” North Korea, although there are no signs yet that they have altered Pyongyang’s military calculus. Vietnam and North Korea, at one time both within the influence of the former Soviet Union, maintain traditional diplomatic and political ties. But those relations have been tested in recent years, particularly following the alleged involvement of a Vietnamese citizen in the murder of Kim Jong Un’s half brother in 2017. In a report to the U.N. Security Council in April 2017, Vietnam said it had taken measures to implement U.N. sanctions on North Korea. Mattis said Vietnam was adhering to those sanctions and noted that cutting off trade with a country so close… [Read full story]
Vietnam hold North Korea in goalless draw in T&T Cup By Vu Duc - The Saigon Times Daily HCMC - The Vietnamese national men's football squad held North Korea in a goalless draw at the international friendly T&T Football Cup 2008 in Hanoi's My Dinh National Stadium on Thursday. The game got off to a wet start because of heavy rains. The visiting team put more pressure on their opponents in the first minutes, aiming to gain victory while underdogs Vietnam played defensively and relied on rare counter attacks. With good ball possession, North Korean forwarders dominated the game but…... [read more]
China's top diplomat has praised the leadership of North Korea and vowed closer ties despite an international outcry over the isolated state's recent missile launch. Dai Bingguo, who is China's most senior official on foreign policy, made the comments Sunday in a meeting in Beijing with Kim Yong-Il, a visiting top official with North Korea's ruling Korean Workers' Party. The meeting follows the April 13 launch of what Pyongyang says was a communications satellite, but which the United States has called a disguised ballistic missile test. It said the rocket disintegrated minutes after launch. The United States and other critics…... [read more]
The UN Security Council will vote Saturday on a US-drafted resolution toughening sanctions on North Korea, diplomats said Friday, a proposed ban on certain exports that could deprive Pyongyang of $1 billion in annual revenue. US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley After a month of negotiations, the United States reached a deal with China, North Korea's main trading partner and ally, on the measures aimed at ratcheting up pressure on Pyongyang to halt its missile and nuclear tests.The Security Council was scheduled to vote at 3 pm (1900 GMT) Saturday on the new raft of sanctions, diplomats confirmed.The…... [read more]
BRUSSELS, March 3 – The European Union is considering additional measures against North Korea following the approval of harsh new sanctions by the U.N. Security Council in order to show solidarity with South Korea and Japan, both major trade partners, diplomats said. EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini has welcomed Wednesday's U.N. unanimous vote to expand existing sanctions following North Korea's latest nuclear test and rocket launch, saying the bloc would update its sanctions regime. "There is scope for the European Union to adopt additional autonomous restrictive measures to complement and reinforce the new U.N. measures," said a diplomatic note…... [read more]
The text - drafted in agreement with China, traditionally Pyongyang's sole diplomatic and military ally - was expected to be submitted to a Council vote on Friday.The text of the draft, a copy of which AFP obtained, again condemns "in the strongest terms" Pyongyang's series of nuclear and ballistic missile tests.The Council calls on the North to "abandon all nuclear weapons and existing nuclear programs in a complete, verifiable and irreversible manner," and end all ballistic missile test launches.An annex to the resolution adds to an already lengthy blacklist another 14 individuals and four entities accused of contributing to the…... [read more]
