NK weekly-inter-Korean news

Summary of inter-Korean news this week

SEOUL, Sept. 26 (Yonhap) -- The following is a summary of inter-Korean news this week.

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N. Korea appears to be preparing for military parade marking key party anniv.

SEOUL, Sept. 21 (Yonhap) -- North Korea appears to be preparing for a large-scale military parade next month to commemorate the 80th founding anniversary of its ruling Workers' Party of Korea, a government source said Sunday, amid speculation that Chinese leader Xi Jinping may visit Pyongyang for the upcoming event.

The North celebrates the party founding anniversary on Oct. 10, marking the date with large-scale military parades and gymnastic performances every five and 10 years.

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Presidential office backs N. Korea-U.S. talks but holds firm on denuclearization goal

SEOUL -- The presidential office said Monday that South Korea is willing to support nuclear talks between North Korea and the United States if they resume, yet reaffirming its goal of denuclearization despite Pyongyang's call for Washington to take that objective off the table.

The comments came after North Korean leader Kim Jong-un said at a parliamentary meeting that he is open to talks with Washington if it gives up on its demand for the North's denuclearization, recalling a "good memory" of U.S. President Donald Trump from their past meetings in 2018 and 2019.

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Lee outlines new dialogue initiative for peace on Korean Peninsula

NEW YORK -- South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on Tuesday put forward a dialogue initiative centering on "exchange," "normalization" and "denuclearization" to end confrontation and open a new era of peace on the Korean Peninsula, the world's last remaining Cold War frontier.

Lee presented the "END" initiative at the U.N. General Assembly, reiterating his administration's push for "pragmatic" and "rational" solutions to North Korea's long-running nuclear quandary, while pointing to the stark reality that Pyongyang's denuclearization cannot be achieved "in the short term."

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Lee's N. Korea dialogue initiative seeks mutually reinforcing approach: security adviser

NEW YORK --President Lee Jae Myung's "END" initiative on dialogue with North Korea -- exchange, normalization, and denuclearization -- will be pursued as a mutually reinforcing structure, with progress in one area helping to advance the others, National Security Adviser Wi Sung-lac said Tuesday.

Wi explained the vision Lee presented during his address to the U.N. General Assembly earlier in the day, describing it as an integrated approach to end confrontation and hostilities on the Korean Peninsula, amid Pyongyang's rejection of Seoul's peace overtures.

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N. Korea presumed to possess up to 2,000 kg of highly enriched uranium: unification minister

SEOUL -- North Korea is presumed to possess up to 2,000 kilograms of highly enriched uranium as the country has sought to dramatically expand its nuclear weapons capabilities in recent years, Unification Minister Chung Dong-young said Thursday.

The minister disclosed the assessment during a press conference, citing publicly released estimates by experts.

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S. Korea fires warning shots after N. Korean merchant ship crosses NLL: JCS

SEOUL -- South Korea fired warning shots Friday after a North Korean merchant ship briefly crossed the Northern Limit Line (NLL) in the Yellow Sea, the de facto maritime border between the Koreas, the military said.

The North Korean vessel breached the NLL near South Korea's border island of Baengnyeong at around 5 a.m., according to the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS).

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