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world news Dialuna 29 Maart 2021

North Korea snaps back at Biden over criticism of launches

(AP) — North Korea on Workers’ Party’s Central respond to the U.S. policy
Saturday snapped back Committee and vice chair- review with more tests,” said
at President Joe Biden’s man of the party’s Central Leif-Eric Easley, a professor
criticism of its ballistic Military Commission, is a of international studies at
missile tests, calling his former air force commander Seoul’s Ewha Womans Uni-
comments a provocation who has been seen as a key versity.
and encroachment on figure in the development of “Pyongyang is implement-
the North’s right to self- the North’s missile program. ing a premeditated strategy of
defense and vowing to Thursday’s launches fol- advancing military capabili-
continuously expand its lowed a statement by North ties and raising tensions. Ri
“most thoroughgoing and Korean leader Kim’s power- Pyong Chol has larger tests
overwhelming military ful sister last week, who be- in the works and is trying
power.” rated the latest U.S.-South to maximize political bang
Korean military exercises that for his missile development
The statement issued by se- ended earlier this month and buck.”
nior official Ri Pyong Chol warned Washington to “re-
came after the North on frain from causing a stink” The United States has down-
Thursday tested-fired two the launches, which were a logic” for the United States if it wants to “sleep in peace” sized its drills with South
short-range missiles off its violation of U.N. sanctions to criticize the North’s tac- for the next four years. Korea and stopped sending
eastern coast in the first bal- against the North. tical weapons tests when the nuclear-capable bombers and
listic launches since Biden Americans are freely test- The North has so far ignored aircraft carriers since Presi-
took office. “We’re consulting with our ing intercontinental ballistic the Biden administration’s dent Donald Trump’s first
Experts say the flight data re- allies and partners,” Biden missiles and could send their efforts to reach out, saying it summit with Kim in 2018,
leased by South Korea’s mili- said at the first news con- strategic military assets to the won’t engage in meaningful where they issued vague
tary and North Korea’s own ference of his presidency on region surrounding the Ko- talks while Washington per- statements on a nuclear-free
description of the tests in- Thursday. “And there will be rean Peninsula at any time. sists with “hostile” policies. Korean Peninsula without
dicted that the North tested responses if they choose to He said the North doesn’t While Pyongyang has a his- describing when and how it
a new solid-fuel weapon that escalate. We will respond ac- have options other than tory of testing new U.S. ad- would occur.
is designed to evade missile cordingly. But I’m also pre- building “invincible physical ministrations with weapons
defense systems and is poten- pared for some form of di- power” to defend itself be- demonstrations aimed at But the talks stalled after the
tially nuclear capable. plomacy, but it has to be con- cause the United States and forcing Washington back to second Kim-Trump meeting
The launches showed how ditioned upon the end result South Korea “constantly pose negotiations, Ri said that the in February 2019 collapsed
the North continues to ex- of denuclearization.” military threats” and con- North Koreans are “by no over disagreements in ex-
pand its military capabilities In comments carried by tinue with their combined means developing weapons changing the relief of crip-
while nuclear negotiations Pyongyang’s official Ko- military exercises, which the to draw someone’s attention pling U.S. sanctions for the
with the United States re- rean Central News Agency, North claims are an invasion or influence his policy.” North’s disarmament steps.
main stalled. They also un- Ri said the North expresses rehearsal. It’s unclear how the Biden Some experts say the allies
derscored the growing threat “deep apprehension” over “I think that the new U.S. ad- administration will respond should restore the normal
such short-range weapons Biden’s remarks that were ministration obviously took before it completes its policy scale and scope of their exer-
pose to U.S. allies South Ko- “openly revealing his deep- its first step wrong,” Ri said. review on North Korea in cises to develop a response to
rea and Japan, which host a seated hostility toward the “If the U.S. continues with coming weeks. the growing threat of North
combined 80,000 U.S. troops DPRK.” DPRK refers to its thoughtless remarks with- “For Kim Jong Un’s missiles Korea’s short-range weapons,
as the core of America’s mili- North Korea’s official name, out thinking of the conse- man, Ri Pyong Chol, to la- which it continued to test
tary presence in the region. the Democratic People’s Re- quences, it may be faced with bel Biden’s press conference even as it suspended nuclear
Biden was restrained as he public of Korea. something that is not good.” a provocation is essentially a and intercontinental ballistic
admonished North Korea for Ri said it was “gangster-like Ri, secretary of the ruling threat that North Korea will missile tests.

China sanctions US, Canadian officials over Xinjiang

(AP) — China announced accusations of human rights sites over their opposition to U.S. Secretary of State Ant- Justin Trudeau said China’s
new sanctions against U.S. abuses in Xinjiang and has buying cotton from Xinjiang. ony Blinken called the sanc- decision to sanction an oppo-
and Canadian officials in launched calls for boycotts The ruling Communist Par- tions “baseless” retaliation for sition Conservative lawmak-
a growing political and and other punishments ty’s Youth League launched U.S. measures against Chi- er as well as a parliamentary
economic feud over its against foreign firms includ- attacks on H&M following nese officials. subcommittee is an attack on
policies in the tradition- ing retailer H&M and Nike, the European Union’s deci- “Beijing’s attempts to intimi- freedom of speech regarding
ally Muslim region of Xin- along with sanctions against sion to join the United States, date and silence those speak- human rights abuses in Xin-
jiang. foreign government officials Britain and Canada in impos- ing out for human rights and jiang.
and activists whom it says are ing sanctions on Chinese of- fundamental freedoms only “China’s sanctions are an at-
A statement from the Foreign spreading false information ficials blamed for abuses in contribute to the growing tack on transparency and
Ministry on Saturday said the about its policies toward Uy- Xinjiang. international scrutiny of the freedom of expression —
head of the U.S. Commis- ghurs and members of other More than 1 million mem- ongoing genocide and crimes values at the heart of our de-
sion on International Reli- Muslim minority groups in bers of the Uyghur and against humanity in Xinji- mocracy,” Trudeau said on
gious Freedom, Gayle Man- Xinjiang. other predominantly Mus- ang,” he said. Twitter.
chin, will be barred from vis- “They must stop political lim ethnic minorities have “We stand in solidarity with
iting mainland China, Hong manipulation on Xinjiang- been confined to detention Canada, the U.K., the EU, Michael Chong, the oppo-
Kong or Macao, and having related issues, stop interfer- camps in Xinjiang, accord- and other partners and allies sition Conservative foreign
any dealings with Chinese fi- ing in China’s internal af- ing to foreign governments around the world in calling affairs critic who has been
nancial entities. fairs in any form and refrain and researchers. Authorities on the PRC to end the hu- sanctioned, said he has a duty
The commission’s vice chair, from going further down the there are accused of impos- man rights violations and to call out China’s “geno-
Tony Perkins, was also in- wrong path. Otherwise, they ing forced labor and coercive abuses against predominantly cide” of Uyghur Muslims.
cluded on the sanctions list, will get their fingers burnt,” birth control measures. Muslim Uyghurs and mem- “We who live freely in de-
along with Canadian Mem- the Foreign Ministry state- The Chinese government bers of other ethnic and re- mocracies under the rule of
ber of Parliament Michael ment said. rejects complaints of abuses ligious minority groups in law must speak for the voice-
Chong and the body’s Sub- China announced sanctions and says the camps are for job Xinjiang and to release those less,” Chong said on Twit-
committee on International Friday against British officials training to support economic arbitrarily detained,” Blinken ter. “If that means China
Human Rights. and H&M products were development and combat Is- said in a statement. sanctions me, I’ll wear it as a
China has strongly rejected dropped from Chinese web- lamic radicalism. Canadian Prime Minister badge of honor.”