Topic: North Korea

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2013 Pulitzer Prize winners: 4 excellent books

Months before the Pulitzer Prize committee got there, the Monitor's book critics had already let readers know that these four books were something special. Here's why.
Bestselling books the week of 4/8/13, according to IndieBound*

What's selling best in independent bookstores across America.
15 promising nonfiction books for spring 2013

April showers bring May flowers. Here's some fresh non-fiction to check out this spring while you enjoy the new greenery.
Top 3 threats to the United States: the good and bad news

The annual Worldwide Threat Assessment of the US Intelligence Community is out this week, a widely-anticipated report compiled by the nation’s intelligence agencies. Here is the good and bad news about the top three threats facing the United States, according to an unclassified version of the report.
North Korea abandons armistice: 4 key questions answered

Tensions on the Korean peninsula are ratcheting up. The US has started its annual war games with South Korean forces, and North Korea has used that fact to declare that it is invalidating the armistice agreement that ended the Korean War in 1953. What really has North Korea upset, though, is the tough, new sanctions passed by the United Nations in response to the North's nuclear test last month.Here are the top four questions analysts are wrestling with on the heels of these developments.

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China agrees to sanction North Korea, but how far will it go?

Though the mood in Beijing toward Pyongyang has gradually worsened since North Korea went ahead with recent missile tests, China is unlikely to come down too hard.
Why North Korea threat to abandon armistice rings hollow

North Korea has already claimed to abandon its armistice with the South once – in 2009, when, like today, it was facing a new round of sanctions for a nuclear test.
Global News Blog Did Kim Jong-un and his wife have a baby?

Speculation over the possibility of North Korea's first couple having a child hit a high point in January, when South Korean media closely analyzed photos of Ri.
Focus Will China's new leaders really take on North Korea?

Making real sanctions bite would threaten the North Korean regime's stability, and an imploding North Korea could mean refugees flooding across the border, say Chinese scholars.
North Korea threatens to end 1953 armistice over US-S. Korea war games

The armistice between North and South Korea has been in place for nearly 60 years. The government of Kim Jong-un is upset over upcoming military manuevers by the US and South Korea.
Focus Will China, Japan, and South Korea hit the 'reset' button for Asia?

In a historic moment of coincidence, new leaders are taking the helm in China, Japan, and South Korea, providing an unprecedented moment for the region to refresh relations.
Kim Jong Un baby: Is there a new Lil' Kim?

Kim Jong Un and his wife reportedly have a new baby, possibly a girl. The is no official confirmation from North Korea yet. But Dennis Rodman has a message from Kim Jong Un for President Obama.
Global News Blog North Korea's special guests: First a Google executive, then Dennis Rodman (+video)

The fact that North Korea is getting to host well-known personalities from abroad is a PR plus for the regime, say analysts.
Global News Blog Friends forever: Rodman warms to North Korean dictator (+video)

Former NBA bad boy Dennis Rodman declared North Korean leader Kim Jong-un his 'friend for life' after watching the Harlem Globetrotters in the isolated country today.
North Korea sends its first tweet over 3G service

North Korea's 3G cellular network is up and running, as proven by a warm "hello" sent out through Twitter. 3G service is new to North Korea, but its own citizens cannot use it.
Marco Rubio sounds a lot like Obama in big foreign-policy speech

Sen. Marco Rubio, seen as being on the Republican presidential short list in 2016, delivered a foreign policy speech Wednesday that included a lot of common ground with President Obama.
Terrorism & Security Can Dennis Rodman's 'basketball diplomacy' make a difference in North Korea? (+video)

Rodman's visit to North Korea comes just weeks after the country's third nuclear weapons test. Some say such trips, like that of Google chief Eric Schmidt, boost the North's positioning.
The 'Argo' effect: Film could stoke suspicions about Americans abroad (+video)

The Oscar-winning film 'Argo' tells of how CIA operatives posed as a film crew to free hostages in Iran in 1979. The film could reinforce impressions in some countries that Americans are government agents.
Iceland porn ban: Can a wired country go porn-free?

Iceland's proposed ban on pornography has sparked a debate about the feasibility of such a ban, as well as how a porn ban fits the ideals of the liberal island nation.
South Korea's first female president inaugurated today. Will she bring change? (+video)

South Korea’s new president, Park Geun-hye, was sworn into office today, taking the helm at a tumultuous time.
North Korea warns US commander in South Korea, threatens 'miserable destruction'

On Saturday, a top North Korean military official warned that if the US and South Korea continued with routine joint drills, which North Korea views as hostile, South Korea would face 'miserable destruction.'
US-Japan leaders discuss trade, China, and North Korea

President Obama met with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe Friday. Major topics included Japan's joining a regional trade pact, North Korea's recent nuclear test, and a Japan-China territorial dispute.
Russia meteor triggered nuclear warning system

The infrasonic waves from the detonation of a meteor over the Ural Mountains earlier this month was detected by 17 nuclear monitoring stations around the globe.
What Japan's hawkish Prime Minister Abe wants from Obama

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is in Washington today to discuss regional security and economic issues with President Obama. His overriding concern is confirmation of the strength of US-Japan ties.
Global News Blog Good Reads: Ideas for Obama, the creep of capitalism, millionaire count, work at the top

This week's round-up of Good Reads include foreign policy advice for President Obama, how entrepreneurs are slowly revitalizing North Korea, a look at what makes a millionaire in the United States, and a dizzying visit to the window washers who clean the nation's highest buildings.
So many nyets: Why the chasm between US, Russia is so hard to bridge

Many in the West see a perplexing obstructionism in Russia's stands on everything from Syria to adoption. But Russia is working from a fundamentally different understanding of the post-cold war world.
Will rising tensions in Asia push Japan toward a full-fledged military?

Prime Minister Abe is proposing small steps, such as renaming the Self-Defense Forces, with an eye toward moving away from the legal restrictions that have governed Japan's military since World War II.
Briefing Why did North Korea explode a nuclear device?

Despite - or perhaps because of - strong international pressure, North Korea conducted its most powerful nuclear test to date. Now analysts say that hopes for improved relations are on hold.
Opinion: US leadership needed to prevent nuclear testing by North Korea

North Korea’s nuclear weapons test explosion underscores the need for stronger US leadership to prevent the testing, spread, and use of the world’s most dangerous weapons. US ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty would set a clear international standard.
N. Korea threatens 'final destruction' for South at UN

The comments drew quick criticism from other nations, including South Korea, France, Germany and Britain, whose ambassador Joanne Adamson said such language was 'completely inappropriate' and the discussion with North Korea was heading in the wrong direction.