South Korea To End Intelligence-Sharing Agreement with Japan, Citing 'National Interest' - NPR

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South Korea has announced it will withdraw from a 2016 military intelligence-sharing pact with Japan. Here, South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha, center, and Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono, trailing at left, walk in Beijing's Great Hall of the People on Thursday. HOW Hwee Young/AFP/Getty Images hide caption

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HOW Hwee Young/AFP/Getty Images

Updated at 11:35 a.m. ET

South Korea plans to terminate a military intelligence-sharing agreement with Japan, prompting concerns about security cooperation between Seoul, Tokyo and Washington as North Korea's nuclear and missile threat looms over the Korean Peninsula.

It's the latest breakdown between Seoul and Tokyo: Earlier this month, Japan removed South Korea from its "whitelist" of favored trade partners, prompting a retaliation in kind.

The Blue House, South Korea's presidential residence in Seoul, announced Thursday that it will end the General Security of Military Information Agreement – a pact pushed by the Obama administration and signed in 2016 as a way for the two countries to exchange valuable information on potential threats posed by North Korea, China and Russia.

"The government of the Republic of Korea decided that maintaining this Agreement, which was signed to facilitate the exchange of sensitive military information, does not serve our national interest," Kim You-geun, deputy director of the country's National Security Office, said in a statement.

Seoul's decision was made public before a Saturday deadline that would have automatically renewed the agreement for another year. South Korea appeared to be preparing for an extension, but that changed after Japan abruptly dropped the country from its list of preferred trade partners.

On Thursday, Kim blamed Tokyo for altering their relationship through the downgrade, providing "no concrete evidence" for the decision. Japan has also imposed export controls on products that are essential to South Korea's booming technology industry.

Tokyo said the move was made on national security grounds. But the two countries' disputes also trace back to Japan's colonial occupation of Korea between 1910 and 1945. A South Korean Supreme Court ruling last year allowed Korean victims of forced labor during World War II to seek compensation from Japanese firms. South Korea also shut down a Japanese-funded foundation that supported Korean comfort women who were forced into sexual slavery during the war. Both actions incensed the Japanese government.

Japan's downgrading of trade ties with South Korea escalated tensions between the countries and triggered protests outside the Japanese Embassy in Seoul. South Korean President Moon Jae-in vowed that "we will never again lose to Japan." And the prospect of pulling out of the military intelligence-sharing agreement began.

According to South Korea's Joongang Daily newspaper, Seoul and Tokyo have communicated about military intelligence matters at least seven times this year. That includes exchanges on the North's recent spate of short-range missile tests, even after Tokyo's decision to downgrade its trade relationship with Seoul.

Last month, Japan's Foreign Minister Taro Kono said Tokyo would prefer to continue sharing intelligence, especially on North Korea. On Thursday, Taro said Seoul's decision "completely misreads the security situation in Northeast Asia," according to the Kyodo news agency.

South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha told reporters on Thursday that the decision amounted to a "trust issue." She said Seoul is preparing to explain the decision to both Japan and Washington — and that the decision is "a separate issue from the South Korea-U.S. alliance."

Washington has long sought to build accord between Seoul and Tokyo as another mechanism to confront North Korea and a burgeoning China.

Pentagon spokesman Lt. Col. Dave Eastburn told NPR that the Department of Defense encourages Japan and South Korea to work together to resolve their differences, and he said he hoped it could be done "quickly."

"We are all stronger — and Northeast Asia is safer — when the United States, Japan, and Korea work together in solidarity and friendship," Eastburn said. "Intel sharing is key to developing our common defense policy and strategy."

Both Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and special envoy on North Korea Steve Biegun have reportedly nudged America's allies to patch up their differences. But critics accuse Washington of letting the bad blood boil between Tokyo and Seoul for too long before intervening.

Foreign policy experts also note that the U.S. faces a challenge in countering the deep veins of nationalism that both Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and South Korean President Moon Jae-in have mined for their own political gains.

Whether or not there is an immediate response from North Korea, China or Russia, those countries are likely pleased with the growing rift inside the U.S. web of alliances.

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2019-08-22 15:11:00Z
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British consulate employee detained for 'solicitation of prostitution,' Chinese state-run newspaper reports - CNN

Simon Cheng Man-kit, 28, was detained in the border city of Shenzhen, the report said.

China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed Wednesday that Cheng had been detained by police for 15 days under a sweeping security law, but did not specify a reason -- the law cited for his detention applies to numerous broad offenses.

Police in Shenzen's Luohu district said Cheng had violated article 66 of the law on administrative penalties for public security, according to Global Times.

The law stipulates that people who engage in prostitution or visit prostitutes shall be detained for no less than 10 days but no more than 15 days, and may also be fined 5,000 yuan ($705).

Cheng has not been heard from since August 8, when he told his girlfriend he had boarded a high-speed train, traveling from the Chinese city of Shenzhen to Hong Kong. "Pray for me," he texted her as he approached Chinese immigration, according to screenshots seen by CNN.

The train between the two cities only passes through one immigration checkpoint: West Kowloon station, shared by both China and Hong Kong on the tip of the territory's northern peninsula.

Annie Li, Cheng's girlfriend, declined to comment on the charges Thursday.

Responding to the new details on Cheng's detention, a British Foreign and Commonwealth Office spokesperson told CNN: "We continue to urgently seek further information about Simon's case. Neither we nor Simon's family have been able to speak to him since his detention.

"That is our priority and we continue to raise Simon's case repeatedly in China, Hong Kong and London and have sought to make contact with Simon himself," the foreign office spokesperson added.

Friends of Cheng fear his detention could have been linked to recent pro-democracy protests, noting that he had shared pro-democracy images on social media and had voiced support for the city's ongoing protest movement.

His detention comes amid reports Chinese immigration officials are regularly searching travelers' phones and bags as they cross the border for evidence they have taken part in protests.

CNN has reached out to Shenzhen police and is awaiting comment.

Global Times, which is published in both Chinese and English, is known for its nationalistic coverage. Like all state media outlets in China, it operates within a heavily censored environment that is tightly controlled by Communist authorities.

CNN's James Griffiths contributed to this report.

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2019-08-22 13:12:00Z
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Donald Trump proclaims himself 'the chosen one' - The Sun

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2019-08-22 09:18:16Z
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Boris Johnson to find Irish border solution in 30 days - The Sun

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2019-08-21 17:04:36Z
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Hong Kong protesters mark one month since mob attack with sit-in demo - CNN

On July 21, after a demonstration in downtown Hong Kong against a now-shelved extradition bill was broken up by police, protesters returning to Yuen Long were attacked by a mob wielding iron bars and bamboo sticks.

Footage of the attack posted on social media showed the marauding masked gang, wearing white T-shirts, attacking crowds on the platform and inside train carriages at Yuen Long MTR station, located in the far northwest of the semi-autonomous Chinese city.

Protesters were reportedly at the mercy of the mob for almost an hour before police arrived and at least 45 people were injured, some seriously.

Hong Kong police confirmed at a news conference on Tuesday that while there have been 28 arrests made stemming from the July 21 violence, none have yet been charged.

On Wednesday evening the Hong Kong government said in a statement that activists had blocked roads outside the station and that after "repeated warnings to the protesters went futile, police are now conducting a dispersal operation, using minimum force."

Hong Kong has been beset by a major political crisis, with last weekend marking the 11th consecutive weekend of mass demonstrations, first sparked by widespread opposition to a controversial bill that would enable China to extradite fugitives from the city.

While that bill isn't currently on the table, the demonstrations have since grown, with protesters expanding their demands for full democracy and police accountability.

While the demonstrations began fairly peacefully in March, clashes between police and demonstrators have marred recent demonstrations with tear gas, alleged police brutality, and angry confrontations at the fore of the protests.

CNN's AnneClaire Stapleton, Julia Hollingsworth and Tara John contributed to this report.

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2019-08-21 16:51:00Z
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US military drone shot down over Yemen - New York Post

A US military drone has been shot down over Yemen by a surface-to-air missile — the second downing of an American unmanned aerial vehicle in the country in recent months.

The MQ-9 Reaper drone was downed in Yemen’s Dhamar governate, southeast of the Houthi-controlled capital, Sanaa, on Tuesday night, two US officials told Reuters on Wednesday.

Washington believes the missile was provided to Houthi rebels by Iran, a US official told CNN, adding that it was not immediately clear if the drone was being operated by the US military or the intelligence community.

Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saria said the rocket that downed the drone “was developed locally.”

“Our skies are no longer open to violations as they once were and the coming days will see great surprises,” he added.

This is not the first time an American drone has been shot down in Yemen. In June, the US military said Houthi rebels had downed a US government-operated Reaper drone with help from Iran.

And Tehran also acknowledged earlier this year that the Revolutionary Guard Corps had shot down an American RQ-4A Global Hawk drone, insisting that it was shot down over Iranian territory. The US said the drone was in international airspace when it was brought down.

President Trump said he called off a counterstrike against Iran due to what he said would have been a high death toll.

US forces have occasionally launched airstrikes and drone attacks against Yemen’s al Qaeda branch, which has taken advantage of a four-year-old war between the Houthi movement and President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi’s Saudi-backed government to try to strengthen its position in the poor country.

Tuesday’s shoot-down comes as tensions between Iran and the US have mounted since the Trump administration last year quit an international deal to curb Iran’s nuclear ambitions and began to ratchet up sanctions.

Iranian officials denounced the new penalties as “economic warfare.”

On Wednesday, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said Tehran may act “unpredictably” in response to the United States‘ “unpredictable” policies under Trump.

Also on Wednesday, Human Rights Watch said the Saudi-led coalition carried out at least five deadly attacks on Yemeni fishing boats last year, killing at least 47 Yemeni fishermen, including seven children.

The New York-based group added that more than 100 Yemeni fishermen are being held in Saudi Arabia, some of whom have been tortured in custody.

There was no immediate response by the coalition to the allegations by the group, which said it interviewed “survivors, witnesses, and knowledgeable sources about seven fishing boat attacks: six in 2018 and one in 2016.”

Civilians died in five attacks carried out with small arms and heavy weapons.

It said the fishermen waved white cloths, raised their hands, or otherwise showed they posed no threat. In three attacks, coalition forces did not try to rescue survivors, many of whom drowned.

The group said the Saudi-led coalition officials who ordered or carried out the attacks or tortured detainees “are most likely responsible for war crimes.”

“The naval attacks on Yemeni fishing boats make it clear that the Saudi-led coalition is not only killing civilians through countless illegal airstrikes, but also while conducting operations at sea,” said Priyanka Motaparthy, HRW’s acting emergencies director.

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2019-08-21 15:13:00Z
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US drone shot down over Yemen - CNN

The US believes the missile was provided to Houthi rebels by Iran, said the official, who added that it was not immediately clear if the drone was being operated by the US military or the intelligence community.

The official said the Trump administration will publicly call out Iran for the incident, which was first reported by Reuters.

Houthi rebels claimed its air defenses shot down the drone south of Yemen's capital, Sanaa. A Houthi spokesman said the missile was "developed locally" and will be revealed at a press conference.

The downing of a US drone by Iran in June nearly led to a US military strike, with President Donald Trump calling off the attack minutes before it was to take place due to what he said would have been a high death toll. The US claimed the drone was in international airspace over the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world's most vital shipping routes, while Iran said the drone was over its territory.

Tensions between Washington and Tehran have run high as the Trump administration has taken a hard stance against the longtime US foe. Since the decision by Trump in 2018 to abandon the Iran nuclear deal, Washington has attempted to use what it calls "maximum pressure" to change Iran's behavior and limit its nuclear ambitions.

On Tuesday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo warned against ending an arms embargo amid increasing efforts by Washington to restrict Iran's oil exports. The arms embargo was put in place by the UN and is set to be lifted five years after the adoption of the nuclear deal.

This story is breaking and will be updated.

CNN's Hamdi Alkshali contributed to this report.

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2019-08-21 12:21:00Z
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