English
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Does North Korean diplomacy always clearly reflect Kim’s intention?
With the much-anticipated Trump-Kim summit abruptly called off, many project their analysis in every possible angle. Some say opposite pressure from the Washington establishment was so strong while others say Kim Jong Un had no sincere intention for diplomacy at the first place. A senior White House official is reported to have said North Koreans…
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What defected North Korean diplomat Thae said of the BBC
Thae Yong Ho has released The Code of the Three-storey Secretary Office, a memoir of his diplomatic service days last week. Since I am working for the BBC, I was interested what he has written on the BBC and there are several paragraphs in which he remembers things, especially about the Korean service: [quote cite=”태영호, 3층…
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Ruins of Seoul: Gangnam Apartment
[note note_color=”#f3f3ef”]A refined version (with a proper edit) of the article appeared on The Dissolve[/note] It’s still the ruin porn when it comes to hippest places in South Korea. Ask hipsters who like to insta-hunt cool cafes in, like Seongsu. Cos we’ve seen too much glowingly shining skyscrapers armored by mirrors. Cos we feel there…
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North Korea to join Seoul Standard Time: why it’s so important?
When I refer to something as symbolic regarding North Korea issue, I usually mean that it is devoid of things tangible. For example, Kim Jong Un’s recent announcement that North Korea is going to shut down the nuclear test site in Punggye-ri is more symbolic than tangible in terms of denuclearization because it was decided…
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British urinals
After spending weeks in London, I need to speak about British urinals. Brit urinals. Or, in the recent popular style, Burinals. They are small. Small as the bikinis of the Instagram ladies I follow. Being minimalist may look cool but whether its cool would last even in practice is a whole different matter. For example:…