SEOUL: South Korea said on Tuesday an agreement with the US to scrap a weight limit on its warheads would help it respond to North Korea’s nuclear and missile threat after it conducted its sixth and largest nuclear test two days ago.
South Korean officials believe more weapons tests by the reclusive state are possible, despite international outrage over Sunday’s nuclear test and calls for more sanctions against it.
South Korea’s Asia Business Daily, citing an unidentified source, reported that North Korea had been observed moving a rocket that appeared to be an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) toward its west coast.
The rocket started moving on Monday and was spotted moving only at night to avoid surveillance, the newspaper said.
South Korea’s Defense Ministry, which warned on Monday that North Korea was ready to launch an ICBM at any time, said it was not able to confirm the report.
Analysts and South Korean policymakers believe North Korea may test another weapon on or around Sept. 9, when it celebrates its founding day.
North Korea’s fifth nuclear test fell on that date last year, reflecting its tendency to conduct weapons tests on significant dates.
North Korea says it needs to develop its weapons to defend itself against what it sees as US aggression.
South Korea, after weeks of rising tension, is talking to the US about deploying aircraft carriers and strategic bombers to the Korean peninsula, and has been ramping up its own defenses.
US President Donald Trump and his South Korean counterpart, Moon Jae-in, agreed on Monday to scrap a warhead weight limit on South Korea’s missiles, South Korea’s presidential office said, enabling it to strike North Korea with greater force in the event of war.
The White House said Trump gave “in-principle approval” to the move.
The US and South Korea signed a pact in 1979, a year after the South successfully tested a ballistic missile, with Washington expressing the need for limits on ballistic missile capability over concern that tests could undermine regional security.
South Korea and the US are technically still at war with North Korea after the 1950-53 Korean conflict ended with a truce, not a peace treaty.
Both sides have thousands of rockets and artillery pieces aimed at each other across the world’s most heavily armed border, but the North’s rapid development of nuclear weapons and missiles has altered the balance, requiring a stronger response from South Korea, officials say.
“We believe the unlimited warhead payload will be useful in responding to North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats,” South Korean Defense Ministry spokesman Moon Sang-gyun told a briefing.
Under current guidelines, last changed in 2012, South Korea can develop missiles up to a range of 800 km (500 miles) with a maximum payload of 500 kg (1,102 lb).
Most of North Korea’s missiles are designed to carry payloads of 100-1,000 kg (220-2,205 lb), according to Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI), a US-based think thank.
South Korea’s navy held more exercises on Tuesday, a naval officer told a Defense Ministry briefing. .
“Today’s training is being held to prepare for maritime North Korean provocations, inspect our navy’s readiness and to reaffirm our will to punish the enemy,” the official said.
US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley said on Monday North Korean leader Kim Jong Un was “begging for war” and urged the 15-member Security Council to impose the “strongest possible” sanctions to deter him and shut down his trading partners.
Haley said the US would circulate a new Security Council resolution on North Korea this week and wanted a vote on it on Monday.
Trump has repeatedly warned that “all options were on the table” regarding North Korea, including military options.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said threats of military action were counterproductive.
“Russia condemns North Korea’s exercises, we consider that they are a provocation,” Putin told reporters after a summit of the BRICS countries in China.
“(But) ramping up military hysteria will lead to nothing good. It could lead to a global catastrophe.
While referring to more sanctions as a “road to nowhere,” Putin said Russia was prepared to discuss “some details” around the issue. He did not elaborate.
South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha said she believed her Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, was open to more sanctions.
“I cannot tell you exact details as the minister asked me not to disclose the content of our discussion, but I could sense that China could be open to more sanctions,” Kang told lawmakers in parliament, referring to a phone call with Wang on Monday.
China’s Foreign Ministry said it would take part in security council discussions in “a responsible and constructive manner.”
Diplomats have said the Security Council could consider banning North Korean textile exports, banish its national airline and stopping supplies of oil to the government and military.
Other measures could include preventing North Koreans from working abroad and adding top officials to a blacklist aiming at imposing asset freezes and travel bans.
Sanctions imposed after missile tests in July were aimed at slashing North Korea’s $3 billion annual export revenue by a third by banning exports of coal, iron, lead and seafood.
China accounted for 92 percent of North Korea’s trade in 2016, according to South Korea’s government trade promotion agency.
S. Korea seeks bigger warheads, N. Korean ICBM reportedly on the move
S. Korea seeks bigger warheads, N. Korean ICBM reportedly on the move
US and Ukraine reach consensus on key issues aimed at ending the war but territorial disputes remain
US and Ukraine reach consensus on key issues aimed at ending the war but territorial disputes remain
- Russia continues to assert maximalist demands, insisting that Ukraine relinquish the remaining territory in Donbas that it has not captured, an ultimatum that Ukraine has rejected
KYIV: The United States and Ukraine have reached a consensus on several critical issues aimed at bringing an end to the nearly four-year conflict, but sensitive issues around territorial control in Ukraine’s eastern industrial heartland, along with the management of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, remain unresolved, Ukraine’s president said.
Volodymyr Zelensky spoke as the US showed the 20-point plan, hammered out after marathon talks in Florida in recent days, to Russian negotiators. A response is expected from Moscow on Wednesday, Zelensky said.
The Ukrainian president briefed journalists on each point of the plan on Tuesday. His comments were embargoed until Wednesday morning. The draft proposal, which reflects Ukraine’s wishes, intertwines political and commercial interests to safeguard security while boosting economic potential.
At the heart of the negotiations lies the contentious territorial dispute concerning the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, known as the Donbas. This is “the most difficult point,” Zelensky said. He said these matters will be discussed at the leaders level.
Russia continues to assert maximalist demands, insisting that Ukraine relinquish the remaining territory in Donbas that it has not captured — an ultimatum that Ukraine has rejected. Russia has captured most of Luhansk and about 70 percent of Donetsk.
In a bid to facilitate compromise, the United States has proposed transforming these areas into free economic zones. Ukraine insists that any arrangement must be contingent upon a referendum, allowing the Ukrainian people to determine their own fate. Ukraine is demanding the demilitarization of the area and the presence of an international force to ensure stability, Zelensky said.
How the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, the largest plant in Europe which is under Russian occupation, will be managed is another contentious issue. The US is proposing a consortium with Ukraine and Russia, with each party having an equal stake in the enterprise.
But Zelensky countered with a joint venture proposal between the US and Ukraine, in which the Americans are able to decide how to distribute their share, presuming it would go to Russia.
“We did not reach a consensus with the American side on the territory of the Donetsk region and on the ZNPP,” Zelensky said, referring to the power plant in Zaporizhzhia. “But we have significantly brought most of the positions closer together. In principle, all other consensus in this agreement has been found between us and them.”
A free economic zone compromise
Point 14, which covers territories that cut across the eastern front line, and Point 12, which discusses management of the Zaporizhzhia plant, will likely be major sticking points in the talks.
Zelensky said: “We are in a situation where the Russians want us to leave the Donetsk region, and the Americans are trying to find a way so that it is ‘not a way out’ — because we are against leaving — they want to find a demilitarized zone or a free economic zone in this, that is, a format that can provide for the views of both sides.”
The draft states that the contact line, which cuts across five Ukrainian regions, be frozen once the agreement is signed.
Ukraine’s stance is that any attempt to create a free economic zone must be ratified by a referendum, affirming that the Ukrainian people ultimately hold the decision-making power, Zelensky said. This process will require 60 days, he added, during which time hostilities should stop to allow the process to happen.
More difficult discussions would require hammering out how far troops would be required to move back, per Ukraine’s proposal, and where international forces would be s tationed. Zelensky said ultimately “people can choose: this ending suits us or not,” he said.
The draft also proposes that Russian forces withdraw from Dnipropetrovsk, Mykolaiv, Sumy, Kharkiv regions, and that international forces be located along the contact line to monitor the implementation of the agreement.
“Since there is no faith in the Russians, and they have repeatedly broken their promises, today’s contact line is turning into a line of a de facto free economic zone, and international forces should be there to guarantee that no one will enter there under any guise — neither ‘little green men’ nor Russian military disguised as civilians,” Zelensky said.
Managing Zaporizhzhia power plant
Ukraine is also proposing that the occupied city of Enerhodar, which is connected to the Zaporizhzhia power plant, be a demilitarized free economic zone, Zelensky said. This point required 15 hours of discussions with the US, he said.
For now, the US proposes that the plant be jointly operated by Ukraine, the US and Russia, with each side receiving dividends from the enterprise.
“The USA is offering 33 percent for 33 percent for 33 percent, and the Americans are the main manager of this joint venture,” he said. “It is clear that for Ukraine this sounds very unsuccessful and not entirely realistic. How can you have joint commerce with the Russians after everything?”
Ukraine offered an alternative proposal, that the plant be operated by a joint venture with the US in which the Americans can determine independently how to distribute their 50 percent share.
Zelensky said billions in investments are needed to make the plant run again, including restoring the adjacent dam.
“There were about 15 hours of conversations about the plant. These are all very complex things.”
A separate annex for security guarantees
The document ensures that Ukraine will be provided with “strong” security guarantees that mirror NATO’s Article 5, which would obligate Ukraine’s partners to act in the event of renewed Russian aggression.
Zelensky said that a separate bilateral document with the US will outline these guarantees. This agreement will detail the conditions under which security will be provided, particularly in the event of a renewed Russian assault, and will establish a mechanism to monitor the ceasefire.
This mechanism will utilize satellite technology and early warning systems to ensure effective oversight and rapid response capabilities.
“The mood of the United States of America is that this is an unprecedented step toward Ukraine on their part. They believe that they are giving strong security guarantees,” he said.
The draft contains other elements including keeping Ukraine’s army at 800,000 during peace time, and by nailing down a specific date for ascension to the European Union.
Elections and boosting the economy
The document proposes accelerating a free trade agreement between Ukraine and the US once the agreement is signed. The US wants the same deal with Russia, said Zelensky.
Ukraine would like to receive short-term privileged access to the European market and a robust global development package, that will cover a wide-range of economic interests, including a development fund to invest in industries including technology, data centers and artificial intelligence, as well as gas.
Also included are funds for the reconstruction of territories destroyed in the war.
“Ukraine will have the opportunity to determine the priorities for distributing its share of funds in the territories under the control of Ukraine. And this is a very important point, on which we spent a lot of time,” Zelensky said.
The goal will be to attract $800 billion through equity, grants, loans and private sector contributions.
The draft proposal also requires Ukraine to hold elections after the signing of the agreement. “This is the partners’ vision,” Zelensky said.
Ukraine is also asking that all prisoners since 2014 be released at once, and that civilian detainees, political prisoners and children be returned to Ukraine.
