The US-Korea Institute at SAIS and Voice of America announces the release of its latest report, “Cell Phones in North Korea: Has North Korea Entered the Telecommunications Revolution?” by Yonho Kim.

In this USKI-VOA report, Kim takes a closer look at the trends and implications of the cell phone boom in North Korea. His research examines such questions as: Who owns North Korean cell phones? How are cell phones obtained? How are subscriber plans set up? How are North Koreans using their cell phones? How have cell phones changed social norms?

Kim also delves deeper into the business side of the equation, examining Koryolink’s business structure in greater detail and what this really means for the Egyptian partner, Orascom, in terms of profitability and sustainability in North Korea.

Download the USKI-VOA report, “Cell Phones in North Korea: Has North Korea Entered the Telecommunications Revolution?” by Yonho Kim.

Find video archive of the report launch and panel discussion on Telecommunications and Technology in North Korea, featuring Yonho Kim, Alexandre Mansourov (US-Korea Institute at SAIS) and Sascha Meinrath (Open Technology Institute), moderated by Jae Ku (Director, US-Korea Institute at SAIS) here.

On Thursday, March 6, the US-Korea Institute at SAIS and Voice of America will launch the report, “Cell Phones in North Korea: Has North Korea Entered the Telecommunications Revolution?” by Voice of America reporter, Yonho Kim. Mr. Kim will present key findings from his research, which includes the influence of cell phones on social trends and economy in North Korea.

The panel also features two distinguished discussants, Alexandre Mansourov (US-Korea Institute at SAIS) and Sascha Meinrath (New America Foundation, Open Technology Institute), who will provide further insights into technical and regional uses of telecommunications and information technology.

This event is free and open to the public. Seating is limited, RSVP is required.

Live webcast of this event can be viewed at http://webcast.jhu.edu/Mediasite/Play/c63e47afe50f400eb9bce84a5896e58e1d.

Thursday, March 6, 2014
9:00 am – 10:30 am
Bernstein-Offit Building, Room 500
1717 Massachusetts Ave., NW
Washington, DC 20036
RSVP HERE

The U.S.-Korea Institute at SAIS announces the release of its latest report, “Nuclear Security: Seoul, the Netherlands, and Beyond,” by Kenneth N. Luongo and Michelle Cann. This report is based on discussions from a workshop under the same name that was held in September 2012 and sponsored by the U.S.-Korea Institute at SAIS, the Partnership for Global Security, and the International Institute for Strategic Studies as part of an ongoing dialogue on nuclear security governance.

The report draws on major strands of the discussions put forward at that workshop and provides recommendations in key issue areas: the NSS process; technical and policy initiatives within the NSS; emerging economies and the Non-Aligned Movement; building cooperation between industry, experts and government; the nuclear security/safety interface; innovating global nuclear security governance; and maintaining political momentum. It examines the accomplishments and shortcomings of the NSS process to date and looks ahead to the challenges and opportunities facing the 2014 and 2016 summits and beyond.

This report was made possible with generous support from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. For more information or to download the Executive Summary and full report, click here.

“An August 1, 2013 editorial in the Yomiuri Shimbun, Japan’s largest circulation daily, carried the title “Comfort Women Allegations Distort Japanese History.” The greatest distortion here is the amnesia of an influential portion of Japanese society in addressing World War II history.” ~ Dennis P. Halpin 

 

The Yomiuri Shimbun recently published a controversial editorial that challenged the characterization of comfort women as “sex slaves,” and suggested that such labels were historically inaccurate. It noted that the Japanese government could not find official documents proving that the women were recruited by force.

Dennis P. Halpin, former House Foreign Relations Committee staff member and current Visiting Scholar at the US-Korea Institute at SAIS, examines the 1945 report, “Amenities in the Japanese Armed Forces,” published by command of General MacArthur (declassified in 1992) and compiled by the Allied Translator and Interpreter Section (ATIS) of the Supreme Commander for the Allied Forces (SCAP), which refutes the Japanese government’s claims.

Download USKI Policy Brief “MacArthur Document Reports Imperial Japanese Military’s “Sanction” of Comfort Women Brothels,” by Dennis P. Halpin.

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“Father Kapaun has been called a shepherd in combat boots…Today we bestow another title on him—recipient of our nation’s highest military decoration.” ~ President Barack Obama at the Medal of Honor ceremony for Father Emil J. Kapaun (April 11, 2013)

On the 60th anniversary of the end of the Korean War, Dennis P. Halpin, former House Foreign Relations Committee staff member and current Visiting Scholar at the US-Korea Institute at SAIS, takes a moment to remember the work of Father Emil J. Kapaun, a U.S. Army chaplain who was captured during the Korean War and whose ministry to his fellow POWs has been characterized as “saintly.” He also reflects on the estimated 500 POWs believed to remain alive inside North Korea, in violation of the Armistice-linked exchange agreements: Big Switch and Little Switch.

Download USKI Policy Brief “The Forgotten War’s POW Saint” by Dennis P. Halpin.

Dennis P. Halpin is currently a visiting scholar at the U.S.-Korea Institute at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). He served as a Peace Corps volunteer in South Korea, U.S. consul in Pusan, and a House Foreign Affairs Committee staff member for over twelve years. 

For Immediate Release

Media Contacts: Michelle Cann, Senior Budget and Policy Analyst, PGS (+1 609 668-2930); Kelsey Davenport, Nonproliferation Analyst, ACA (+1-317-460-8806); Sarah Williams, Nuclear Policy Analyst, PGS, (+1 202-332-1412).

July 1, 2013: A new report released today by the Arms Control Association (ACA) and Partnership for Global Security (PGS), sponsored by the U.S.-Korea Institute at SAIS and the Fissile Materials Working Group, finds that the Nuclear Security Summit (NSS) process has catalyzed action to secure nuclear weapons-usable materials, but the largely nationally-focused efforts to date are inadequate, and leading governments must begin building the framework for a cohesive international nuclear security governance system.

In the lead up to the Seoul Nuclear Security Summit in 2012, USKI published a paper reporting on the implementation of the national commitments pledged at the 2010 NSS in Washington. The 2013 edition of The Nuclear Security Summit: Progress Report provides a comprehensive overview of the progress states have made to improve nuclear security since the NSS process began in April 2010.

“The 2010 Washington summit and the 2012 Seoul summit focused primarily on accelerating incremental efforts at the national level, rather than building consensus for bold new actions,” said Michelle Cann, senior budget and policy analyst at PGS and co-author the report.

“Ahead of the 2014 summit in The Netherlands, states must begin outlining a global strategy to address the structural deficiencies of the current nuclear security regime,” she added.

“Although all 53 participating countries have taken steps since the 2012 summit to strengthen nuclear security, the current system lacks universal reporting requirements and standards, making it difficult to assess the overall progress of the summit process,” said Kelsey Davenport, nonproliferation analyst for ACA and co-author of the report. read more …

“The recently released 2012 Country Report on Terrorism repeats the U.S. State Department’s assertion, “The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) is not known to have sponsored any terrorist acts since the bombing of a Korean Airlines flight in 1987.” Perhaps the report’s drafters should have checked with the President before they made this indefensible claim. In 2005, then-Senator Barack Obama expressed a decidedly different view of Pyongyang’s terrorist activities.” ~ Dennis P. Halpin

In response to the recently released 2012 Country Report on Terrorism, Dennis P. Halpin, former House Foreign Relations Committee staff member and current Visiting Scholar at the US-Korea Institute at SAIS, challenges the report’s characterization of North Korea’s record on terrorism and the sponsorship of terrorism. In this policy brief, Halpin offers eight examples that could be construed as contradictory to the report’s findings, including a high-profile case endorsed by President Obama himself (then Illinois Senator) as recently as 2005.

Download USKI Policy Brief “Obama Letter Contradicts State Department’s North Korean Terrorism Timeline” by Dennis P. Halpin.

Dennis P. Halpin is currently a visiting scholar at the U.S.-Korea Institute at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). He served as a Peace Corps volunteer in South Korea, U.S. consul in Pusan, and a House Foreign Affairs Committee staff member for over twelve years.