Everything Before August 2008 Is Copy and Pasted. the Links Are to STRATFOR Pieces
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Notes: Everything before August 2008 is copy and pasted. The links are to STRATFOR pieces.
Timeline: 1993-2010 December 1992: Kim Young Sam is elected president. Takes power in Feb. 1993.
Jan 93:Clinton comes into office with policy of using economic leverage to promote democracy in China. He insists that Most Favored Nation trading status for China be linked to specific improvements in human rights conditions.
February 9, 1993: North Korea refuses the IAEA’s request to inspect two sites.
February 1993
March 12, 1993: North Korea announces its intention to withdraw from the NPT in three months.
June 11, 1993: Following talks with the United States in New York, North Korea suspends its decision to pull out of the NPT.
July 19, 1993: After a second round of talks with the United States, North Korea says it is ready to negotiate IAEA inspections of its nuclear facilities. Pyongyang might consider a deal to replace its graphite nuclear reactors with light-water reactors (LWRs).
Sep 93: Clinton launches a policy of "constructive engagement" with China, according to a White House document.
Nov. 20, 1993: Jiang Zemin to Seattle for APEC and meets Clinton on the sidelines. Clinton demands progress on human rights but indicated willingness to remove some sanctions. Chinese officials mocked idea of linking trade with human rights.
January 1994: The director of the CIA estimates that North Korea may have produced one or two nuclear weapons.
February 15, 1994: North Korea finalizes an agreement with the IAEA to allow inspections of all seven of its declared nuclear facilities, averting sanctions by the UNSC.
March 1, 1994: IAEA inspectors arrive in North Korea for the first inspections since 1993.
March 21, 1994: North Korea’s refusal to allow inspection of a plutonium reprocessing plant at Yongbyon.
May 19, 1994: The IAEA confirms that North Korea has begun removing spent fuel from its 5-megawatt nuclear research reactor even though international monitors were not present.
May 94: President Clinton drops policy of linking human rights reform to China's annual renewal of Most Favored Nation trading status.
June 13, 1994: North Korea announces its withdrawal from the IAEA. June 15, 1994: Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter negotiates a deal with North Korea in which Pyongyang confirms its willingness to “freeze” its nuclear weapons program and resume high-level talks with the United States. July 1994: Death of Kim Il-sung. Kim Jong-il suceeds him as leader.
August 12, 1994: An “agreed statement” is signed that establishes a three-stage process for the elimination of North Korea’s nuclear weapons program. In return, the United States promises to move toward normalized economic and diplomatic relations and assures North Korea that it will provide assistance with the construction of proliferation-resistant LWRs to replace North Korea’s graphite- moderated reactors. October 21, 1994: The United States and North Korea conclude four months of negotiations by adopting the “Agreed Framework” in Geneva. March 9, 1995:KEDO is formed in New York with the United States, South Korea, and Japan.
May 22, 1995: Taiwans president receives us visa to attend class reunion. China protests.
1996 - Severe famine follows widespread floods.
January 1996: North Korea contends that the United States would have to ease economic sanctions before it could agree on a date and venue for further talks.
Mar 96: China holds missile tests off Taiwan to intimidate voters against Lee Teng-hui. The US sends two aircraft-carrier battle groups to the area.
April 5-6: DPRK moves into demilitarized zone in several incursions. It announced it no longer held to the armistice.
April 21-22, 1996: The United States and North Korea meet in Berlin for their first round of bilateral missile talks. North Korea allegedly demands that the United States provide compensation for lost missile-related revenue.
May 24, 1996: The United States imposes sanctions on North Korea and Iran for missile technology- related transfers.
September 1996: North Korean submarine runs aground in South.
October 16, 1996: After detecting North Korean preparations for a test of its medium-range Nodong missile, the United States deploys a reconnaissance ship and aircraft to Japan. Following several meetings in New York between U.S. and North Korean diplomats, the State Department confirms on November 8 that the missile test has been canceled. Nov 96: Clinton and Jiang meet at APEC forum in Manila, agree to exchanges of officials leading to presidential visits.
June 11-13, 1997: The second round of U.S.-North Korean missile talks takes place in New York. The parties reach no agreement but reportedly lay the foundation for future talks. July 97: China regains control of Hong Kong from the UK. It improves relations between China and the US.
August 6, 1997: The United States imposes new sanctions on two additional North Korean entities for unspecified missile-proliferation activities.
October 29, 1997: Jiang Zemin is the first Chinese president in the us in 12 years.
Nov 97: Clinton and Jiang meet in Vancouver, Canada before the start of APEC forum. China releases prominent dissident Wei Jingsheng from prison and forces him into exile in the US.
Nov. 1997: South Korea’s Kim Dae-jung elected president and pursues "sunshine policy" of offering unconditional economic and humanitarian aid to North Korea.
Jan 98: US Defence Secretary William Cohen visits China to discuss closer military ties, visits secret air base in Beijing.
April 17, 1998: The United States imposes sanctions on North Korea and Pakistan.
Jun 98: Washington and Beijing jointly propose meeting of UNSC to discuss nuclear tests by India and Pakistan after Clinton and Jiang talk on new telephone "hotline".
Jun 98: US Senate Republicans investigate allegations that China gained sensitive missile technology by launching a US satellite, and that the Chinese military illegally contributed to the Democrats' 1996 election campaign. China denies allegations.
June 23, 1998: South Korea captures North Korean mini-submarine in its waters. Crew inside found dead.
June 25, 1998: Clinton goes to China. He criticizes the violent crushing of the 1989 demonstrations. Reiterates three no’s regarding Taiwan.
July 15, 1998: The Rumsfeld Commission concludes that the United States may have “little or no warning” before facing a long-range ballistic missile threat from “rogue states,” such as North Korea and Iran.
August 31, 1998: North Korea fires a multistage Taepodong-1 missile over Japan and into the Pacific Ocean.
May 8 1999: NATO planes bomb the Chinese embassy in Belgrade and protests occur throughout China.
June 1999: The First Battle of Yeonpyeong
Nov 99: US and China agree terms for China's entry to the World Trade Organisation (WTO).
Mar 2000: Pro-independence politician Chen Shui-bian wins Taiwan's presidential election. Beijing threatens to attack the island if it attempts to secede. May 2000: US House of Representatives votes to normalize trade relations with China, and to set up a commission to monitor China's human rights record.
June 2000: Summit in Pyongyang between Kim Jong-il and South Korean President Kim Dae-jung. North stops propaganda broadcasts against the South.
June 2000: US secretary of state Madeleine Albright meets senior Chinese leaders in Beijing, the first by such a senior official since the Belgrade embassy bombing in 1999.
July 2000: North Korea threatens to restart nuclear program if Washington does not compensate for loss of electricity due to delays in building nuclear power plants.
August 2000: Tawainese President Chen Shui-bian stops over briefly in the United States before starting a two-week tour of Central America and Africa. He gets no official welcome.
August 2000: Reopening of border liaison offices at the truce village of Panmunjom, in the no-man's- land between the heavily fortified borders of the two countries. Some relatives are allowed to see loved-ones.
Sep 2000: US Senate passes Permanent Normal Trade Relations (PNTR) bill, which guarantees Chinese goods the same low-tariff access to the US market as products from most other nations.
Sep 2000: China welcomes Clinton's decision to delay the development of an anti-missile defence shield.
Jan 2001: New US President George W Bush makes it clear he does not regard China as a "strategic partner". China fears his support for a National Missile Defence system.
March, 19 2001: US drops Clinton's "three Nos policy" on Taiwan.
May 3, 2001: At a press conference in Pyongyang, a European Union delegation headed by Swedish Prime Minister Göran Persson reports that Kim Jong Il pledged that he will extend Pyongyang’s moratorium on missile testing until 2003 and that Kim was “committed” to a second inter-Korean summit.
April 3, 2001: China and US planes collide over China. Tensions are high over the plane and its crew.
April 24, 2001: US says it will go ahead with sales to Taiwan of submarines, warships and anti-submarine aircraft, but not the requested naval combat radar system Aegis. China protests and President George W Bush pledges to help Taiwan should China invade.
June 2001: North Korea warns it will reconsider missile test moratorium if Washington doesn't resume contacts aimed at normalizing relations.
June 26, 2001: The State Department announces sanctions under the Iran Nonproliferation Act of 2000 on North Korea.
June 2001: Taiwan test-fires Patriot anti-missile defense system bought from US, as China carries out military exercises simulating invasion of island. June 2001: North Korea says it is grappling with the worst spring drought of its history.
August 2001: Kim Jong Il arrives for his first visit to Moscow.
October 17, 2001: Bush goes to China foe the APEC summit and meets with Jiang. Jiang backs US war on terrorism and says China is willing to work to develop a "constructive relationship" with the US.
January 2002: US President George W Bush says North Korea is part of an "axis of evil.”
February 21, 2002: Bus travels to China to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Nixon’s trip.
March 2002 - Group of 25 North Koreans defect to South Korea through Spanish embassy in Beijing, highlighting plight of tens of thousands hiding in China after fleeing famine, repression in North.
Mar 4, 2002: The US State Department's annual human rights report accuses China of religious repression.
March 15, 2002: Following reports that the U.S. nuclear posture review discusses the use of nuclear weapons against North Korea, Pyongyang's state-run press organ announces that, if the United States "tries to use nuclear weapons" against North Korea, it will be compelled to "examine all the agreements" reached with the United States. The report says that, "if the U.S. inflicts nuclear holocaust upon [North Korea], the former's mainland will not be safe either."
Apr 2002: Angry over US dealings with Taiwan, China refuses a request by the USS Curtis Wilbur to make a port call at Hong Kong.
May 1, 2002: President Bush welcomes China's presumed future leader Hu Jintao to the White House for talks. The meeting is broadly deemed a success, but Mr Hu's low-key approach, while avoiding any new conflicts, disappoints some analysts.
June 2002: The Second Battle of Yeonpyeong was a confrontation at sea between North Korean and South Korean patrol boats along a disputed maritime boundary near Yeonpyeong Island in the Yellow Sea in 2002. Some 30 North Korean and four South Korean sailors are killed.
July 2, 2002: The United States cancels a planned delegation visit to North Korea, citing Pyongyang’s failure to respond to a proposed July 10 meeting date, as well as a June 29 naval skirmish between North and South Korea.
July 12, 2002: A new Pentagon report to Congress questions China's commitment to a peaceful settlement of its differences with Taiwan. It also highlights the threat China poses to neighbouring countries. July 31, 2002: Powell meets briefly with Foreign Minister Paek Nam Sun during the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Regional Forum meeting in Brunei, generating speculation that a U.S. envoy will visit North Korea. It is the highest-level exchange between the two countries since the Bush administration took office. August 7, 2002: KEDO holds a ceremony to mark the pouring of the concrete foundation for the first LWR that the United States agreed to provide North Korea under the Agreed Framework. Jack Pritchard, the U.S. representative to KEDO and State Department special envoy for negotiations with North Korea, attends the ceremony. Pritchard is the most senior U.S. official to visit North Korea since former Secretary of State Albright in October 2000.
August 16, 2002: The United States imposes sanctions on Changgwang Sinyong Corporation of North Korea and on the North Korean government itself for transferring missile technology to Yemen. White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer states August 23 that the sanctions were a “pro forma requirement under the law for the State Department” and that Washington remains willing to “talk with North Korea any time, any place.” September 2002: Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi visits, the first Japanese leader to do so. He meets Kim Jong-il who apologises for the abductions of Japanese citizens in the 1970s and 1980s.
September 17, 2002: North Korea announces that it will indefinitely extend its moratorium on missile testing as part of the North Korea-Japan Pyongyang Declaration signed during a meeting between Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and North Korean leader Kim Jong Il.
Oct. 4, 2002: North Korea tells visiting U.S. delegation it has second covert nuclear weapons program.
October 16, 2002: The United States announces that North Korea admitted to having a clandestine program to enrich uranium for nuclear weapons after James Kelly, assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, confronted representatives from Pyongyang during an October 3-5 visit. Kelly later explained that the North Korean admission came the day after he informed them that the United States was aware of the program. North Korea has denied several times that it admitted to having this program.
November 5, 2002: North Korea threatens to end its moratorium on ballistic missile tests if North Korea- Japan normalization talks do not achieve progress.
October 25, 2002: Jiang visits Bush at his ranch in Texas. They agree to work together to solve the crisis created by North Korea's admission that it has nuclear weapons.
The US decides to halt oil shipments to Pyongyang. In December North Korea begins to reactivate its Yongbyon reactor. International inspectors are thrown out.
December 2002: Roh Moo-hyun, from governing Millennium Democratic Party, wins closely-fought presidential elections.
December 9, 2002: Spanish and U.S. forces intercept and search a ship carrying a shipment of North Korean Scud missiles and related cargo to Yemen. The United States allows the shipment to be delivered because it lacks the necessary legal authority to seize the cargo. White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer says that Washington had intelligence that the ship was carrying missiles to the Middle East and was concerned that its ultimate destination might have been Iraq.
December 12, 2002: North Korea sends a letter to the IAEA announcing that it is restarting its one functional reactor and is reopening the other nuclear facilities frozen under the Agreed Framework.
December 27, 2002: North Korea orders IAEA inspectors out of the country. They leave on December 31. January 10, 2003: North Korea says it will withdraw from Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty.
March 24, 2003: The United States imposes sanctions on the Changgwang Sinyong Corporation of North Korea for transferring missile technology to Khan Research Laboratories in Pakistan. The laboratory was sanctioned for receiving the items. Philip Reeker, deputy State Department spokesman, said April 1 that the sanctions were imposed only for a “missile-related transfer” and not the transfer of nuclear technology from Pakistan to North Korea.
April 23-25, 2003: The United States, North Korea, and China hold trilateral talks in Beijing. North Korea says it has nuclear weapons and may test, export or use them depending on U.S. actions. This constitutes the first time that Pyongyang has made such an admission.
August 2003- Six-nation talks in Beijing on North Korea's nuclear programme fail to bridge gap between Washington and Pyongyang.
October 2003 :Pyongyang says it has reprocessed 8,000 nuclear fuel rods, obtaining enough material to make up to six nuclear bombs.
December 9, 2003: Wen visits the US. Bush rebukes Taiwan for provoking China.
2003 October - Biggest mass crossing of demilitarised zone since Korean War: Hundreds of South Koreans travel to Pyongyang for opening of gymnasium funded by South's Hyundai conglomerate.
August 27-29, 2003: The first round of six-party talks is held in Beijing. The talks achieve no significant breakthroughs. Pyongyang states that, in return for a long list of demands, it will dismantle its “nuclear facility,” as well as end missile testing and export of missiles and related components. North Korea issues an explicit denial for the first time that it has a uranium-enrichment program. Threatens nuclear test.
June 2004 - Third round of six-nation talks on nuclear programme ends inconclusively. North Korea pulls out of scheduled September round. US proposes to cut by a third its troop presence. Opposition raises security fears over the plan.
September 14, 2003: President George W. Bush agrees to waive the restrictions on U.S. funding to KEDO but only pledges to provide $3.72 million solely for administrative expenses. The United States does not provide any further funding for KEDO after 2003. October 16, 2003: A statement from a North Korean Foreign Ministry official reported by KCNA suggests that Pyongyang may test nuclear weapons, stating that it will “take a measure to open its nuclear deterrent to the public as a physical force” if the United States refuses to change its negotiating stance. October 19, 2003 President George W. Bush states during a trip to Asia that the United States is willing to provide a written, multilateral guarantee that the United States will not attack North Korea, but makes it clear that a formal nonaggression pact is “off the table.” Powell made a similar statement August 1. November 6, 2003: North Korean ambassador to the United Kingdom, Ri Yong Ho, tells Reuters that North Korea possesses a workable nuclear device September 2004: North Korea refuses to attend fourth-round talks, accusing U.S. of "hostile" policies. December 2004: Row with Japan over fate of Japanese citizens kidnapped and trained as spies by North Korea in 70s, 80s. Tokyo says eight victims, said by Pyongyang to be dead, are alive.
May 2005: North Korea fires a short-range missile into the Sea of Japan.
Feb. 10, 2005: North Korea announces it has nuclear weapons.
September 2005: Fourth round of six-nation talks on nuclear programme concludes. North Korea agrees to give up its weapons in return for aid and security guarantees. But it later demands a civilian nuclear reactor.
February 2006: High-level talks with Japan, the first since 2003, fail to yield agreement on key issues, including the fate of Japanese citizens abducted by North Korea.
February 2006- South Korea and the US launch talks on a free trade agreement, potentially the largest free trade deal involving the US in Asia.
March 8, 2006: North Korea fires two short-range missiles.
July 5, 2006: North Korea launches seven missiles into the Sea of Japan, including a Taepodong-2. May 24, 2006: The U.S. Defense Department has released its annual report on China. From the American point of view, China is threatening U.S. naval hegemony as well as threatening to become more dangerous with its nuclear force. June 2006: U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice announced the resignation of Deputy Secretary of State Robert Zoellick at a press conference. The Zoellick approach was, rather than try to contain China, to give it incentives to play on U.S. terms internationally. But the U.S. administration no longer seems content to leave its China policy so open-ended, and is moving back into a mode of confrontation to shape Chinese behavior.
August 2006: North Korean leader Kim Jong Il might be heading to China around Aug. 30 to meet Chinese President Hu Jintao and other leaders amid concerns Pyongyang may be preparing an underground nuclear test. Relations between the two neighbors remain strained, and the meeting will be contentious if it takes place. It could also help North Korea decide whether to carry out the nuclear test.
September 14: U.S.: Backtracking to a More Moderate China Stance
Oct. 9, 2006: North Korea declares to have conducted its first nuclear test, drawing a unanimous condemnation from the 16 members of the U.N. Security Council.
November 10: Geopolitical Diary: New Realities in East Asia The Chinese breathed a sigh of relief this week as Democrats were voted into power in the U.S. House and Senate. Beijing sees the next two years — in which the executive and legislative branches of the U.S. government can be expected to get in each other’s way quite a bit — as a window of opportunity to push forward its own domestic and regional agendas more aggressively, without fear of U.S. meddling. 2006 December - Prosecutors charge five people with spying for North Korea in the largest such case since the political reconciliation of the two Koreas in 2000.
February 2007: Six-nation talks on nuclear programme resume in Beijing. In a last-minute deal, North Korea agrees to close its main nuclear reactor in exchange for fuel aid. South Korea agrees with US to assume operational control of its own military forces, in the event of war, from 2012.
June 2007: International inspectors visit the Yongbyon nuclear complex for the first time since being expelled from the country in 2002.
July 2007: International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors verify shutdown of the Yongbyon reactor.
August 2007: North Korea appeals for aid after devastating floods.
October 2007: Pyongyang commits to disable three nuclear facilities and declare all its nuclear programmes by year-end.
The presidents of North and South Korea pledge at a Pyongyang summit to seek talks to formally end the Korean war.
November 2007: North and South Korea's prime ministers meet for the first time in 15 years.
December 2007: Lee Myung-bak wins landslide victory in presidential election.
2008: Lee ends sunshine policy with north
January 2008: US says North Korea has failed to meet end-of-2007 deadline on declaring nuclear activities. China urges North Korea to honour its commitments.
February 2008: The New York Philharmonic performs a groundbreaking concert in Pyongyang - a move seen as an act of cultural diplomacy.
February 2008: South Korea's new conservative President Lee Myung-bak says aid to North conditional on nuclear disarmament and human rights progress.
March-April 2008: North-South relations deteriorate sharply. North Korea expels Southern managers from joint industrial base, test-fires short-range missiles and accuses President Lee Myung-bak of sending a warship into Northern waters.
April 2008: North Korea hits out at new South Korean President Lee Myung-bak, warning that his tough stance could lead to "catastrophic consequences".
June 2008 - In what is seen as a key step in the denuclearisation process, North Korea makes its long- awaited declaration of its nuclear assets.
July 2008: Soldier shoots South Korean woman in the Mount Kumgang special tourism area of North Korea, prompting further tensions. Foreign Minister Pak Ui-chun and US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice hold talks on Pyongyang's nuclear disarmament, the first such meeting for four years.
August 2008 26: North Korea protests US failure to remove the country from its list of state sponsors of terrorism by declaring that it will no longer agree to rendering its nuclear facilities inactive.
September 2008 24: The IAEA reports that the DPRK has removed seals that would otherwise prevent the country from using its Yongbyon facility. The IAEA officials are banned from accessing the facility and others like it.
Kim Jong-il does not appear at a significant military parade and many speculate that he is unwell.
October 2008 Oct. 4: Japan’s diet extends sanctions (regularly scheduled) and calls for tightened sanctions against DPRK over the issue of abduction.
9: IAEA inspectors are barred from entering the North Korean Yongbyon facility.
11: The US removes North Korea from its list of state sponsors of terrorism in exchange for full access to the country’s nuclear facilities.
November 2008 DATE: The DPRK says it will sever all overland transportation between it and the ROK starting in December. North Korea blames the South Koreans for being too confrontational.
December 2008 7-13: The US and Japan hold the yearly Yama Sakura exercise which includes the 94th Army Air Missile Defense Command.
8: The US decides to suspend its energy assistance to the country after international talks break down. North Korea threatens to slow work in dismantling its nuclear facilities.
10: The last round of six-party talks are held.
January 2009 8: Kim Jong Il apparently made the strategic decision to back his third son, Kim Jong Un, as his successor, purportedly notifying officials of his decision on this day.
30: The DPRK claims that the ROK has “hostile intent” and that it is therefore abandoning its political and military agreements.
February 2009 February 9: Why Clinton Has Decided on Asian Circuit
24: North Korea claims that it will launch a satellite, called the Kwangmyongsong-2. 25: Obama hosts Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso. This was his first Oval Office meeting with a foreign dignitary.
March 2009 8: Elections of delegates to North Korea’s Supreme People’s Assembly are held as members of North Korea’s elite attempt to position themselves behind the candidate they think will succeed Kim.
March 10: China, U.S.: A Naval Incident and Wider Maritime Competition
19: The DPRK detains two US journalists.
24: Four DPRK Sang-O “Shark” Class submarines leave the east coast naval facility in Chaho while the ROK attempts to track them.
25: Both the ROK and DPRK declare a total freeze of inter-Korean relations that included the expulsion of South Korean workers from Kaesong.
27 Japan announces that it is moving two destroyers with a SM-3 ship-to-air missile defense system to protect against the DPRK April missile launch.
April 2009 April 1: China and the G-20 Summit China will have a position of perceived strength at the G-20 summit, and will attempt to use the meeting to gain greater global influence.
5: The rocket purportedly carrying Kwangmyongsong-2 is launched using a satellite launch vehicle (SLV) version of the Taepodong-2, Pyongyang’s longest-range ballistic missile. The SLV and its payload ultimately lands in the Pacific Ocean after passing over Japan. The launch demonstrated advanced capabilities.
8: Japan extends sanctions for one year and calls for tighter restrictions in light of the April 4 launch.
9: A parliamentary vote is held to reelect Kim Jong-il. It is his first public appearance after his 2008 stroke.
14: The DPRK announces that it will no longer take part in six-party talks and it ejects all IAEA personnel from the country.
May 2009 10: The DPRK launches a 150-day economic campaign to rally the nation behind a construction and production boom.
15: North Korea declares the “nullification” of all current contracts and regulations governing the operation of South Korean companies in the joint economic development zone in Kaesong.
25: North Korea carries out its second nuclear test. The test occurs underground and is believed to be a much more powerful device than the first. 26: The UN Security Council responds to the nuclear test with strong disapproval. Hours later, North Korea fires two short-range missiles. U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates tells the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Strategic Forces that he is confident in the U.S. ballistic missile defense system’s capability to intercept a North Korean missile launched at the United States.
27: North Korea has declared it is no longer bound by the Armistice Agreement that ended the Korean War now that South Korea has joined the U.S.-led Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI). It also warned that its military would respond with “prompt and strong military strikes” to any attempts by Seoul or Washington to intercept North Korean vessels under the PSI.
27: Japan places new sanctions on DPRK including the further restriction of remittances.
28: the Panmunjom Mission of the (North) Korean People’s Army issued a statement warning it would no longer guarantee the legal status of five islands under United Nations and South Korean control along the southern side of the NLL, nor could Pyongyang ensure the safety of South Korean commercial or military vessels in the area.
29-30: Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao attends a trilateral summit with South Korea and Japan.
June 2009 12: Another round of sanctions is voted on by the UN Security Council. As a result, North Korea states that it will start enriching uranium.
June 15: China: The South China Sea and Submarine Warfare An incident between a U.S. warship and a Chinese submarine is another sign that the South China Sea is becoming a competitive naval arena.
16: U.S. President Barack Obama and South Korean President Lee Myung Bak hold talks.
June 23: U.S., China: Defense Talks and the South China Sea
30: South Korea publicly states that the North has begun to enrich uranium.
July 2009 2-4: The DPRK carries out a series of missile tests.
August 2009 5: Bill Clinton visits Pyongyang and meets with North Korean leader Kim Jong Il to help free the two detained journalists.
Kim Dea-jung, former ROK president, dies. The DPRK sends a delegation out of respect and talks restart.
September 2009 3: In a letter sent to the U.N. Security Council, North Korea announced it is close to completing experimental uranium extraction, with ongoing weaponization of plutonium at its Yongbyon nuclear reactor. The message comes at the same time as an Asian visit by U.S. nuclear envoy Stephen Bosworth.
October 2009: Early October: DPRK begins calling for the Armistice Agreement to be replaced as a prerequisite to resuming the long-stalled nuclear talks. This was in line with the Sept. 19 Agreement, reached in 2005, that included the replacement of the Armistice Agreement as a major element of the overall negotiation process.
6: The DPRK lets China know that six-party talks are still an option if bilateral talks with the US are considered.
10: The DPRK’s 150 day economic and nationalistic campaign ends.
26-27: Ri Gun, one of Pyongyang’s chief nuclear negotiators, visits California and holds talks on the sideline of a seminar.
The DPRK apologizes for the accidental death of 6 campers from flooding after it released water from its dams in September. The two sides hold talks on how to prevent future occurances.
November 2009 2: North Korea calls on the United States to negotiate bilaterally with Pyongyang ahead of six-party talks.
2: South Korean officials say North Korea appears to have rebuilt processing facilities at the Yongbyon nuclear site and could be reprocessing plutonium again.
10: North Korean and South Korean vessels exchange gunfire in the disputed border area of the West Sea. North Korea demands an apology from South Korea, claiming that a patrol boat was performing routine tasks. The South Koreans claim the event was an accident rather than a deliberate provocation by Pyongyang, as was implied when the first reports broke.
12: Obama visits China. More?
December 2009 7-10: U.S. Special Envoy for North Korea Stephen Bosworth visits Pyongyang.
30: The North Korean government announced it was simultaneously changing and revaluing the country’s currency.
January 2010 1: Pyongyang has emphasizes the importance of replacing the Armistice Agreement with a formal peace accord as both a prerequisite and facilitator to resolving the nuclear issue. Although North Korea has called for such a replacement several times before, a change in the tenor of the calls suggests both a stronger initiative from Pyongyang to reshape relations and a possible window of opportunity for the United States.
11: The DPRK Foreign Ministry issued a statement saying it was “essential to conclude a peace treaty for terminating the state of war, a root cause of hostile relations.” Within days, the North Korean embassies in China and Russia held press conferences on the initiative, urging backing from those countries. January 14: Google's Rocky Relationship With China As Google considers leaving China, it reveals uncomfortable truths about the plight of foreign business there.
21: North Korea warns that the lack of a peace accord meant that the situation on the Korean Peninsula could erupt into war at any moment.
25: North Korea declares the disputed area in the Yellow Sea a “no-sail” zone
26-29: DPRK shore batteries carried out a series of artillery exercises near the North Limit Line. The first salvo triggers a live-fire response from the ROK. At the conclusion of the exercises, North Korean official media again urged the United States to swiftly enter into negotiations to replace the Armistice Accord
The US allows the sale of $6.7 billion worth of arms to Taiwan. China suspends military contacts with the US and imposes sanctions on the US companies that were involved.
February 2010
February 2: Video Dispatch: China Up in Arms Over U.S.-Taiwan Deal For the first time, China has threatened to sanction U.S. arms manufacturers linked to a $6.4 billion defense deal for Taiwan.
February 4: Brief: Cooperation Between The U.S. NSA And Google The U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) is working with Internet company Google Inc. to analyze cyberattacks, allegedly from China, that struck over 30 American companies in December 2009, the Washington Post reported Feb. 4.
February 5: Brief: Chinese Anti-Dumping Duties A Response To U.S. Tire Tariffs China will impose preliminary anti-dumping duties of up to 105.4 percent on the importation of American broiler chicken products, the Chinese Commerce Ministry announced on Feb. 5.
9-12: North Korea’s chief nuclear talks envoy, Kim Kye Gwan visits Beijing. Several other visits by high ranking officials from the six-party grouping occur.
February 16: China: The Sale of U.S. T-Bills China's U.S. T-bill holdings have dropped, but Beijing has a vested interest in holding on to U.S. government debt.
February 18: U.S., China: Rising Tensions Amid Iran Sanctions Push Sino-American relations have been under stress during the past year, but the U.S. drive to impose sanctions on Iran is the most urgent and potentially disruptive disagreement.
February 18: China's Territorial Tensions The Dalai Lama, the exiled spiritual leader of Tibet, met with U.S. President Barack Obama on Feb. 18 at the White House. The meeting was treated as a low-key event due to U.S. concerns about angering China.
23: The director of the North Korean Worker’s Party International Affairs Department, Kim Yong Il, meets with Chinese President Hu Jintao in Beijing. In addition to the North Korean visitors, South Korea’s chief nuclear negotiator, Wi Sung Lac, also visits Beijing. 24: U.S. Special Envoy on North Korea Stephen Bosworth held talks with Chinese officials in Beijing before departing for Seoul and Tokyo to talk to his counterparts there.
February 25: Brief: Another U.S.-China Trade Spat China's Ministry of Commerce accused the United States of "abusing its own trade relief measures" on Feb. 25, in response to a U.S. Department of Commerce's decision on Feb. 24 to impose preliminary countervailing duties ranging from 11-13 percent on carbon and alloy pipes.
March 2010: March 11: Brief: Obama Asks China For 'Market-Oriented' Exchange Rate U.S. President Barack Obama on March 11 called for China to institute a "more market-oriented" exchange rate. Obama was referring to the Chinese government's de facto practice of pegging its currency to the U.S. dollar in order to boost Chinese household consumption and reduce the trade surplus with the United States. China has come under increasing criticism for maintaining a fixed exchange rate. March 14: Brief: China's Harsher Tone On Currency At a news conference following the conclusion of China's National People's Congress (NPC), Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao discussed tense relations with the United States over economic disputes. In particular he said the Chinese currency would remain "basically stable," rejecting calls from the United States to allow it to appreciate, and saying that U.S. pressure made it more difficult for China to move toward revaluing the yuan. He called on the United States to "take concrete steps to reassure investors" in the value of dollar-denominated assets, at a time when the dollar has weakened due to high budget deficits, diminishing the value of Chinese holdings of U.S. Treasury debt. March 15: Brief: U.S. Congress Wants Economic Pressure On ChinaUnited States congressmen addressed a petition to Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and Commerce Secretary Gary Locke on March 15 calling on the Obama administration to launch a concerted effort to pressure China on the exchange rate of its currency. The letter, which follows similar congressional petitions, included signatures of 130 members of the House of Representatives asking for "all available resources" to go towards pressuring China to free up its exchange rate, which they claim is deliberately undervalued in relation to the U.S. dollar to benefit Chinese exports unfairly.
March 16: Brief: U.S., China Discussing Diplomatic Deal? Former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger met with Chinese State Councilor Dai Bingguo on March 15, according to a Chinese Foreign Ministry press release on March 16. According to the release, Kissinger and Dai exchanged views on Sino-U.S. relations and "issues of common concern." Exact details are not available. Kissinger's presence in Beijing suggests that the United States and China are navigating intense diplomatic and political issues, likely revolving around Iran. March 17: Brief: China 'Would Consider' Iran Sanctions While China does not want new sanctions against Iran, it would "consider them" if it were certain that the other powers had tried every means to arrive at a diplomatic resolution, Chinese Ambassador to the United Nations He Yafei said March 17. March 22: Brief: China To Increase Imports From U.S. Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao told the 2010 China Development Forum that China would increase imports of American goods, according to Sina.com on March 22. Referring to the rising trade and economic disagreements between the countries, Wen said he was aware that the United States was suffering from high unemployment, but called attention to China's own unemployment problems. He also said that China does not "blindly" pursue trade surpluses but rather seeks balance with international partners.
March 24: Brief: U.S. To Label China A Currency Manipulator? Former U.S. Trade Representative Susan Schwab said the United States is very likely to accuse China formally of currency manipulation when the U.S. Treasury Department releases a report April 15. Schwab said Washington resorting to the label would be driven by pressures from high unemployment and political considerations heading into the mid-term election season. She also said the effect of the label would be "symbolic," requiring only "consultations" between the United States and China.
March 25: Brief: China's Call For Dialogue With The U.S. On Trade Tensions China on March 25 called for bilateral discussions with the United States over trade tensions, according to Foreign Ministry Spokesman Qin Gang. Qin said that China sees the "problems and frictions in the Sino-U.S. economic and trade relations" as needing to be resolved. He called attention to discussions between U.S. officials and Vice Minister of Commerce Zhong Shan, as well as Vice Foreign Minister Cui Tiankai, who both visited the United States in recent days to discuss disagreements.
26: South Korean Corvette ChonAn sinks near Baekryongdo. ROK ultimately blames a DPRK torpedo for the sinking. DPRK denies. China refuses to back ROK stance. South Korea resumes propaganda broadcasts into North Korean
April 2010 Date Unknown: Japan completes the deployment of PAC-3 (Patriot) missile defense.
4-8: Japan invited Hwang Jang-yop, a high-ranking DPRK defector, to speak at a Diet session.
May 2010 3-7 - Kim Jong Il visits China. Confirmation came later that Kim Jong Un went with him.
12: DPRK claims to have conducted a successful nuclear experiment involving a fusion reaction, though many are skeptical of the claim.
20 - ROK and joint investigative group releases summary report on the sinking of the ChonAn
25: North Korea claims that all relations with South Korea will end.
27: The ROK navy holds anti-submarine drills in the Yellow Sea that includes 10 warships.
28: Japan passes a bill that allows inspection of vessels docking in the DPRK. It also calls for tighter sanctions, but I see nothing saying that these were passed.
28: The UN issues a report claiming that North Korea continues to share missile and nuclear advances with Iran, Syria, and Burma. The UN placed a ban on such activities.
June 2010 1: Japan agrees to back ROK’s call in the UN for financial sanctions against DPRK.
4: Four Chinese citizens are shot along the DPRK-China border. The DPRK accused the Chinese citizens of smuggling.
7: North Korea’s Supreme People’s Assembly is held, during which time a reshuffle of DPRK government officials occurs. Jang Song Thaek, Kim Jong Il’s brother-in-law, was promoted to vice chairman of the country’s National Defense Commission, the most powerful state committee in North Korea. Choe Yong Rim, was named to lead the country’s Cabinet, a position widely viewed as responsible for the country’s economic performance. Choe replaced Kim Yong Il. Foodstuffs and light industry ministers were also replaced.
8-9: South Korea’s Vice Foreign Minister Chun Yung-woo meets with his Chinese counterpart, Cui Tiankai in Beijing. The trip aims to convince China to support the ROK in its claim against DPRK regarding the ChonAn. The meeting fails to produce this result.
8-11: The US and ROK hold a large-scale naval exercise in the Yellow Sea.
19-27: North Korea set up a no-sail zone in the Yellow Sea.
24: 60th anniversary of the start of the Korean War.
28: South Korea-U.S. joint anti-submarine warfare exercise in the Yellow Sea is held.
30-July 5: China’s People’s Liberation Army-Navy (PLAN) holds a naval exercise in the East China Sea.
29-July 8: The Russian Navy holds drills in the Sea of Japan as part of the Vostok-2010 drills.
2010 June - Ruling Grand National Party suffers major defeat in local elections. (country? More?)
July 2010 3: Japan’s Coast Guard holds a drill that simulates inspective cargo ships suspected of carrying cargo that may be violating UN sanctions against North Korea. The drills are in preparation for the law to be enacted July 5.
20: China holds naval drills in the Yellow Sea called "Warfare 2010."
21: The first ever “2+2” round of talks are held between United States Defense Secretary Robert Gates, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and their ROK counterparts. On the same day, the US imposes new sanctions on North Korea that specifically target arms and luxury items.
25-28: Naval drills called “Invincible Spirit,” held in the East Sea. The exercises include the USS George Washington Carrier Strike Group and four F-22 Raptors among a host of other American and South Korean ships and aircraft.
26: The People’s Liberation Army-Navy conducts live-fire naval exercises in the South China Sea on July 26.
August 2010 3: China holds a major air defense exercise on the east coast along the Yellow Sea.
4-9: South Korea conducts a five day naval drill. Five minutes after its conclusion, the DPRK fires 110 artillery rounds, only 10 of which land south of the Northern Limit Line. The ROK responds by calling the firing a violation of the cease-fire and threatening a stern response to future provocations.
July 8: China: U.S. Eases Currency Pressure 8 - North Korea seizes a South Korean fishing boat in the East Sea/Sea of Japan
August 11: New Points of Friction in U.S.-China Relations News that an expected visit to the United States by Chinese President Hu Jintao likely will not happen points to the widening rifts between the world's two largest economies.
16-26: An annual joint military drill is held with US and ROK forces called Ulchi Freedom Guardian. The drills included a simulated rescue of Kaesong Industrial Complex workers.
17 - A North Korean MiG 21 crashes in Liaoning Province
25 - Former US President Jimmy Carter visits Pyongyang to gain release of American Aijalon Gomes.
26-30 - Kim Jong Il tours northern China. Kim's making a second visit in one year was rare.
August 27: North Korea's Unpredictable Behavior
30: A new round of sanctions is placed on DPRK by the US. These specifically aim to curtail arms, luxury items, and drugs sales.
September 2010 1-4: The PLAN holds a live fire drill of the Beihai fleet in the Yellow Sea.
September 8: Dispatch: Temporary Thaw in U.S.-China Relations
8: North Korea releases a South Korean fishing boat that it had been holding.
September 9: U.S.-Chinese Thaw Before Midterm Elections?
September 9: A Temporary Easing of U.S.-Chinese Tensions
12-16: Stephen Bosworth, Sung Kim, and Daniel Russell – key members of the US negotiating team on DPRK issues – visit the ROK, Japan, and China to discuss the DPRK.
13 - ROK releases full version of report on sinking of the ChonAn to the public
September 16: The U.S. and China Buy More Time in the Yuan Controversy Though short-term U.S. economic action against China is unlikely, the underlying economic difficulties between the two countries remain
23 - North Korea shuffles positions, appointing Kang Sok Ju as Vice Premier, Kim Kye Gwan as First Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Ri Yong Ho as Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs.
27 - Kim Jong Un, along with five others, promoted to General
28: First full Workers’ Party of Korea (WPK) meeting is held since the 1960s. Kim Jong Un becomes general secretary of the WPK and vice chairman of the WPK’s Central Military Commission, after rising to the rank of general in the Korean People’s Army. Kim Kyong Hui is promoted to the rank of general and was placed on the WPK Central Committee. The meeting effectively solidifies Kim Jong Un’s role as heir apparent.
29 - Vice Foreign Minister Pak Kil Yon tells United Nations DPRK will strengthen its nuclear deterrent
30 - DPRK and ROK hold military talks, without result.
30 - Choe Thae Bok leads a WPK delegation to China
DATE: US and ROK anti-submarine drills are held in the Yellow Sea. No US aircraft carriers are involved.
Unknown date: “The U.S. Air Force moved a WC-135 Constant Phoenix reconnaissance jet from the U.S. mainland to the Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, in September in preparation for another nuclear test by North Korea, the Sankei Shimbun reported Tuesday.”
October 2010
1 - DPRK and ROK agree on a timetable for family reunions
5 - ROK notes DPRK is building new buildings at the Yongbyon nuclear facility
8: A Security Consultative Meeting between the US and ROK is held.
9-10: Zhou Yongkang, a member of the powerful Politburo Standing Committee of China, leada delegation on a visit to North Korea.
10 - Kim Jong Il and Kim Jong Un appear at the parade marking the 65th anniversary of the WPK October 6: The Yuan and U.S. Midterm Elections The United States is pressuring China over the yuan ahead of U.S. midterm elections, and while the situation will intensify, no drastic moves are expected October 10: The First ASEAN Defense Ministers Meeting-Plus 8
October 11: Dispatch: U.S.-China Relations Dominate ASEAN Defense Meeting
11-14: Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Alexei Borodavkin travels to the ROK to meet with the countries lead nuclear negotiator Wi So'ng-rak. Both sides agreed that the DPRK would need to change its "attitude and behaviour" in order for nuclear talks to be revived.
12: First Vice Foreign Minister Kim Kye-gwan travels to China to speak with China's nuclear envoy.
13: The US, Japan, Australia, and Singapore hold a maritime interdiction exercise. It falls under the Proliferation Security Initiative.
October 15: Another U.S. Delay in the Treasury Report on China's Currency
16 - DPRK says ROK hosting a PSI drill is like an open declaration of war
18 - ROK and DPRK re-establish a military hotline 20 - ROK hints that it no longer needs an apology on the ChonAn to restart six-party talks MG: from what i saw, the hints started earlier, in late August or September, when officials started emphasizing return to 2005 declaration as precondition (rather than apology) – MT: You guys can hash this one out.
21 - Reports that activity has been spotted around North Korea’s nuclear test site near Kilju
23 - Chinese CMC Vice Chairman Guo Boxiong visits DPRK to mark 60th anniversary of Chinese volunteers entering the Korean War.
24 - DPRK replaces Ambassador to China Choe Pyong Gwan with Ji Jae Ryong. Choe only held the position for six months.
28: Japan tests its missile defense systems near Hawaii with the US.
29 - Two shots are fired from the North Korean side of the DMZ near Hwacheon. ROK briefly returned fire. ROK later says the incident was an accident by the DPRK.
29 - ROK rejects additional military talks with North unless North recognizes its role in ChonAn sinking. DPRK warns the refusal means confrontation and war.
November 2010 3 - ROK fires warning shots at a North Korean fishing vessel that crosses the NLL.
3 - North Korean Cabinet Premier Choe Yong Rim visits Northeast China
November 5: Obama's Asia Tour and U.S.-China Relations
12 - Sigfried Hecker visits Yongbyon, is shown DPRK Uranium enrichment facility
November 12: No Grand Economic Breakthroughs at the G-20 Summit Little meaningful action occurred during the G-20 summit in Seoul, South Korea, which concluded Nov. 12, but the United States still has the most leverage and has not abandoned its demands.
17 - ROK notes it is monitoring continued reports of activity at the North Korean nuclear test facility
17 - North Korean media warns that U.S. and ROK have blocked the resumption of the six-party nuclear talks. Pyongang says it is prepared for dialogue or confrontation
18 - Korea Times reports that the United States Marines and Navy will not participate in the amphibious military drills with South Korea, citing a statement on Nov. 17 by Col. Jonathan Withington, chief of the US Forces Korea public affairs office. 18 - ROK Unification Ministry releases report saying Sunshine Policy is a failure
19 - ROK reports that North Korean Red Cross delegates will travel to South Korea for talks November 25, the first time time in more than a year for a Red Cross dialogue 20 - Sigfried Hecker releases a report of his recent visit to DPRK, saying DPRK showed him an active Uranium Enrichment facility. Reports follow that DPRK told visiting American scholars that Pyongyang would give up one of its nuclear programs if the US pledged non-aggression toward DPRK
Nov. 22: South Korea announces that it is considering the reintroduction of tactical nukes to the Korean peninsula. Officials later back off this statement.
Nov. 22: South Korean top nuclear negotiator Wi Sung-lac visits China regarding North Korea’s recently discovered nuclear enrichment facility.
Nov. 23: Kim Jong-il and Kim Jong-un visit the artillery site that fired on Yeonpyeong Island hours later, according to reports.
Nov. 23: North Korea begins 122mm MLRS time-on-target attack against South positions on Yeonpyeongdo. The MLRS systems are not part of the coastal artillery units, but were instead brought in from the Fourth Army Corps, responsible for the West Sea area, to Kaemori for the attack. The Fourth Army Corps is believed to have 36 122mm MLRS vehicles. 2 ROK Marines and two civilians are killed in the shelling. According to ROK reports, the civilians are the first killed by a DPRK military attack since the end of the Korean War. According to ROK military reports, DPRK used a fuel-air explosive (thermobaric) shell, designed to start fires. DPRK fired approximately 170 shells [150 in the initial barrage, and the other 20 intermittently], of which 80 landed on Yeonpyeongdo. Of those 80, some 20 failed to explode. DPRK shells struck oil storage tanks and a military base on the southwest side of the island, but also struck near the Maritime police Guard post, the Yeonpyeong Police Station, the Township Office, and the Health Center. Given the location of targeted strikes, ROK defense officials later suggest DPRK is working off of an older map of where ROK military -vs- civilian facilities are located.
Nov. 23: The ROK suspends Red Cross talks. The next day, aid is suspended as well.
Nov. 23: Might be worth including here the initial Russian response from FM Lavrov, which was to condemn the "colossal danger" posed by the attack. The statement was counteracted the next day by statement from Vladimir Nazarov, deputy secretary of the Russian Security Council, who called it result of increased South Korean and allies military activity in region.
Nov. 24: Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi notifies ROK he is postponing a visit planned for November 26, citing scheduling reasons.
Nov. 25: ROK President Lee Myung Bak holds a press briefing announcing he is accepting the resignation of ROK Defense Minister Kim Tae Young.
Nov. 25: Japan’s Sankei Shimbun says DPRK is preparing to test launch the 3000km range Musudan missile in a matter of months. The next day, South Korean Blue house announces President Lee Myung Bak appoints Kim Kwan Jin, former chairman of the ROK Joint Chiefs of Staff, as the new Defense Minister.
Nov. 26: The DPRK holds trainings that include artillery firing, frightening South Korean residents. Nov. 26: Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi met with Chi Jae Ryong, Ambassador of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) to China. He also had phone conversations with U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and ROK Foreign Minister Kim Sung-hwan. Nov. 26: ROK Defense Ministry holds a press briefing at night to show DPRK artillery rounds with hand- scribed numbers on them, saying this removes doubt about similar notations on torpedo fragments from the ChonAn sinking.
Nov. 27: Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi spoke with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov and Japanese foreign minister Seiji Maehara over the phone about the peninsula.
Nov. 27: Chinese State Councilor Dai Bingguo flies to Seoul to meet with ROK President Lee Myung Bak.
Nov. 28: Chinese State Councilor Dai Bingguo (who is higehr ranked than the CHinese Foreign Minister, who postponed his scheduled visit to Seoul) and China’s chief representative to the six-party talks Wu Dawei meet with ROK President Lee Myuing Bak. The Blue House notes that China brought up the potential for convening the six-party talks, but ROK did not consider this an appropriate time to discuss that.
Nov. 28-Dec.1: The United States and South Korea will continue naval exercises, which will include the USS George Washington carrier strike group.
Nov. 28: Just a few hours after the start of US-ROK drills in the West/Yellow Sea, DPRK fires 30 artillery shells from the Kaemori area opposite Yeonpyeongdo into the West/Yellow Sea. DPRK also moves additional 122mm MLRS systems forward and camouflages them, moves SA-2 Surface-to-air missile systems to within 30km of the coast, and places anti-ship missiles on launch pads along the west coast. DPRK also places MiG-23 fighters on standby at Hwangju airbase.
Nov. 28: WikiLeaks papers are released, showing the U.S. tried unsuccessfully to pursuade China to refrain from allowing DPRK to deliver missile parts to Iran via Chinese territory.
Nov. 28: ROK lifts partial ban on transportation to and from the joint economic zone of Kaesong in North Korea.
Nov. 29: ROK President Lee Myung Bak addressed the nation on the DPRK attack. He claimed personal responsibility, said that the North Korean attack was an unprecedented direct attack on Southern territory that committed a war crime by killing civilians, said that the South Korean public was more unified now than after the ChonAn incident, and realizes "unequivocally" that tolerance will only bring further provocations, and that the North will pay a "dear price" for provocations in the future. He stressed that ROK would defend the islands and would continue with ongoing military reforms.
Nov. 29-30: South Korea will continue its annual military drill, the “Hoguk Exercise,” on the Korean Peninsula’s western shores.
Nov. 30-Dec. 4: The DPRK’s secretary of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party, Choe Tae-bok visits China.
December 2010
Dec. 1: The US and South Korea reject calls for renewed 6-party talks from China. Dec. 1: China’s Chen Zhili, vice chairperson of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, meets with a DPRK delegation in Beijing. Dec. 2: The US states that it believes additional uranium enrichment sites exist.
Dec. 1-3: Russian deputy nuclear envoy Grigory Logvinov meets with his South Korean counterpart Cho Hyun-dong in the ROK to discuss the shelling.
Dec. 3-10: The US and Japan hold joint defense drills in the Sea of Japan. South Korea is an observer for the first time.
Dec. 4: Hu Jintao and Barack Obama speak via phone and discuss escalation of tension between the Koreas.
Dec. 6: The ICC announces that the prosecutor’s office is looking into the possibility that the DPRK committed war crimes in shelling Yeonpyeong.
Dec. 6: U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, South Korean Foreign Minister Kim Sung Hwan and Japanese Foreign Minister Seiji Maehara will meet in Washington regarding recent tensions on the Korean peninsula.
6: The United States and South Korea hold a joint military exercise near the Northern Limit Line. In addition, South Korea will hold large-scale artillery firing drills in varies locations, including Yeonpyeong Island.
6-17: South Korea holds artillery drills in 29 areas around its coast.
9: Japanese chief nuclear envoy Akitaka Saiki goes to Russia to meet with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexei Borodavkin to discuss the peninsula.
9-10: Chinese envoy Dai Bingguo and North Korean leader Kim Jong-il meet in Pyongyang. Reports say that little was accomplished. 10: Two South Koreans are detained in Nepal. They are suspected of having something to do with the disappearance of a North Korean spy in the country.
10: South Korean Vice Defense Minister Lee Yong-gul met with his counterpart in Japan to discuss the November shelling.
11: Japanese chief nuclear envoy Akitaka Saiki goes to China to discuss the peninsula with Wu Dawei, China's special representative for Korean Peninsula affairs.
11: Japan announces a plan to deploy more Patriot PAC-3 systems to counter North Korea in its draft White Paper on defense.
11-16: North Korean Foreign Minister Pak Ui Chun’s visit to Russia to discuss bilateral issues and security on the Korean Peninsula with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov will continue.
13: The ROK and the US announce the creation of a joint committee called the Extended Deterrence Policy Committee. The announcement came after the 27th meeting of the Security Policy Initiative (SPI) forum in Seoul.
13: The US and ROK announce that they suspect yet another uranium enrichment site. Report says, “South Korea and the U.S. apparently have their eye on a research institute in downtown Pyongyang and a missile base in Yongjori, Yanggang Province, as well as a cave complex in Kumchangri 160 km north of Pyongyang, as sites suspected of being secret uranium enrichment facilities.”
14: U.S. Deputy Secretary of State James Steinberg and his delegation will meet with Chinese officials.
14: DPRK calls for unconditional 6-party talks.
14-15: ROK chief nuclear envoy Wi Sung-lac to Russia to meet with Deputy Foreign Minister Alexei Borodavkin.
16-20: New Mexico’s governor, Bill Richardson, will visit North Korea as a “private citizen” to ease tensions on the Korean Peninsula.
18-19: South Korean President Lee Myung Bak travels to Japan to meet with Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan to discuss bilateral cooperation and to facilitate the return of historic Korean artifacts.
January 11, 2011: Military Dialogue Between China and the United States U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates has started his trip to China, resuming dialogue between the countries' militaries. January 12, 2011: A Chinese Flight Test and U.S. Demands The first test flight of a Chinese fifth- generation fighter jet occurred Monday before Chinese President Hu Jintao met with U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates in Beijing. China’s display of military progress may be a call for more respect, but it may also lead Washington to demand more of Beijing. January 18, 2011: The Friendly Facade at U.S.-China Talks Chinese President Hu Jintao's visit to the United States will see both sides make cooperative gestures, though no significant progress is expected during the visit on the long-term challenges in the relationship.
6/2011 Kim visits china again