Topic: Korean Armed Forces

Visiting Russia, Kim Jong-il casts nervous eye on Tripoli

North Korea's Kim Jong-il is visiting Russia to bolster diplomatic support. A key issue is the ability of Kim's son and heir to rule with an iron hand – an issue getting renewed attention as Libyan rebels advance into Tripoli.

Former President Jimmy Carter arrived in North Korea amid hope for six-party talks

Former President Jimmy Carter arrived in North Korea on Tuesday for talks aimed at reducing tensions with North Korea. This trip looks similar to his first visit in 1994.

South Korea set to try captured Somali pirates

Five Somali pirates flown Sunday to South Korea are blaming the hijacking of the Samho Jewelry tanker on eight other pirates who were killed when South Korean navy seals rescued the vessel and its 21 crew members on Jan. 21.

Somali pirates lose battle to South Korean commandos, but who's winning war?

South Korean commandos rescued a 21-man crew from Somali pirates. The renegade gangs captured more hostages in 2010 than in any other year on record, and 22 incidents have already taken place in 2011.

North Korea tests limits of South Korea, Japan cooperation

US envoy Stephen Bosworth arrives in Tokyo Thursday after visiting Seoul and Beijing. Implicit in his talks is a push for Japan and South Korea to cooperate for mutual defense against North Korea.

North Korea’s ‘military first’ politics are behind recent attacks

If China wants less American influence in the region, it must rein in the North Korean regime.

North Korea says on 'brink of war' as US, South Korea prepare for military exercises

North Korea kept up its harsh rhetoric Friday, indicating that it saw upcoming military exercises as fresh provocation. US Gen. Walter Sharp toured the island area attacked by the North on Tuesday.

USS George Washington: What message does it send to North Korea?

USS George Washington is being sent to the Yellow Sea after North Korea attacked South Korea's Yeonpyeong island. By dispatching the USS George Washington, Obama is telling North Korea and its ally China that belligerent behavior will bring consequences.

After North Korea attacks, South Koreans seem unfazed - mostly

North Korea's attack, one of the worst since the Korean War, didn't jar most Seoul residents as they listened to Jingle Bells or tuned into the Asian Games. But men of military age are concerned.

South Korea's G20 summit security test: protesters and a volatile North Korea

As Seoul prepares to host the G20 summit Nov. 11, it is keeping a close eye on activists' protest plans as well as the possibility that North Korea could provoke a well-timed incident.

North Korea unveils first photo of Kim Jong-un as heir apparent

North Korea ended years of speculation by releasing its first photo of a chubby-cheeked Kim Jong-un, now a four-star general and the presumptive heir to his father, Kim Jong-il.

5 key people to watch in North Korea

The struggle to name a successor to North Korea’s leader Kim Jong-il appears likely to climax in a historic conference next week.

The conference, the first in 44 years, is slated for Sept. 28. Debate among North Korea’s leaders over anointment of Mr. Kim’s third son, Kim Jong-un, is widely believed to have delayed the meeting.

Just because delegates will be gathering for the conference is no guarantee that it will end in announcement of a leadership lineup. Whatever the outcome, it is certain to provide fodder for speculation about the future of North Korea after Kim leaves the scene.

As North Korea heads into this meeting, here is a good idea of who might be in positions of power after Kim Jong-il steps down:

Jimmy Carter's North Korea visit may trigger cooling-off period

Jimmy Carter was greeted Wednesday by North Korea’s nuclear envoy, Kim Kye-gwan, which analysts say is a signal North Korea wants the visit to be about much more than the release of US prisoner Aijalon Mahli Gomes.

Why South Korea is proposing a reunification tax

A reunification tax proposed Sunday by President Lee Myung-bak would help South Korea's economy recover from the more than $1 trillion cost of merging with economically-stunted North Korea.

South Korea OKs humanitarian aid trip to North Korea

A South Korean doctor and two drivers are headed just across the line bearing antimalaria drugs next week, a move that may signal a slight shift in policy toward North Korea.

North Korea fires rounds into Yellow Sea as South Korean demands return of fishing boat

South Korean forces have 'heightened their readiness posture' after North Korean gunners fired 110 artillery rounds in the the Yellow Sea on Monday.

North Korea seizes South Korean fishing boat. How long will it hold the crew?

North Korea has seized numerous South Korean vessels over the years, but this incident comes during South Korean naval exercises in the Yellow Sea that North Korea has denounced as a 'provocation.'

North Korea's threats over US-South Korea war games: Another bluff?

US-South Korea war games got under way in the Sea of Japan today as a flotilla of 20 US and South Korean ships conducted the first of four days of military exercises as North Korea threatened nuclear deterrence.

USS George Washington, S. Korea military drills send mixed signals to North Korea

The United States is getting tough on North Korea by conducting military drills using the USS George Washington with South Korea next week.