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A6 WORLD NEWS
Thursday 29 december 2022
North Korea’s Kim lays out key goals to boost military power

By HYUNG-JIN KIM retaliate against any prov-
Associated Press ocation by North Korea,
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — saying that will be the most
North Korean leader Kim powerful means to deter
Jong Un presented new the North. Yoon also said
plans to further bolster his South Korea must not be in-
military power next year at timidated by North Korea’s
a meeting of top political nuclear weapons, accord-
officials, state media re- ing to his spokesperson, Kim
ported Wednesday, in an Eun-hye.
indication he’ll continue his Some experts say the North
provocative run of weap- Korean drone flights might
ons displays. have been designed to
Kim’s statement came as test South Korean and U.S.
animosities with rival South readiness and nullify a pre-
Korea rose sharply this week vious inter-Korean agree-
with the South accusing the ment to reduce tensions at
North of flying drones across front-line areas.
the border for the first time They say North Korea likely
in five years. This year, North assessed its drones as a
Korea already performed cheap yet effective meth-
a record number of missile od to cause security jitters
tests in what experts call an In this photo provided by the North Korean government, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un speaks and a domestic divide in
during a plenary meeting of the Workers’ Party of Korea at the party headquarters in Pyongyang,
attempt to modernize its ar- North Korea Tuesday, Dec. 27, 2022. South Korea.
senal and increase its lever- Associated Press Yoon, a conservative who
age in future dealings with took office in May, said
the United States. Kim “set forth new key goals drones. They say Kim would space. South Korea also Tuesday that South Korea
During the Tuesday session for bolstering the self-reli- eventually aim to use his flew three drones across has had little anti-drone
at the ongoing plenary ant defense capability to boosted nuclear power to the border in response, De- training since 2017, a year
meeting of the ruling Work- be pushed ahead in 2023 force his rivals to accept fense Minister Lee Jong-Sup when his liberal predeces-
ers’ Party, Kim analyzed under the multilaterally the North as a legitimate told lawmakers Wednes- sor Moon Jae-in was inau-
new security challenges in changing situation,” KCNA nuclear state, a status he day. gurated.
international politics and said, without elaborating. thinks is essential in getting The military apologized for In an apparent effort to
on the Korean Peninsula Some observers say the international sanctions lift- failing to shoot down the blame the allegedly lax air
and clarified principles and new goals could be related ed. drones and President Yoon defenses on Moon’s en-
directions to take in ex- to Kim’s drive to expand his On Monday, South Korea’s Suk Yeol called for stronger gagement policy toward
ternal relations and fights nuclear arsenal and ac- military fired warning shots air defenses and high-tech North Korea, Yoon said, “I
against enemies to pro- quire high-tech weapons and launched fighter jets stealth drones to better think our people must have
tect national interests and systems such as multi-war- and helicopters, after de- monitor North Korea. seen well how dangerous a
sovereignty, according to head missiles, a more ag- tecting what it called five In a meeting with his advis- policy relying on the North’s
the official Korean Central ile long-range weapon, a North Korean drones that ers Wednesday, Yoon said good faith and (peace)
News Agency. spy satellite and advanced violated the South’s air- South Korea must resolutely agreements would be.” q

Chechens in Bosnia seek to dodge Russian draft, reach EU

SARAJEVO, Bosnia-Herze- mitted to stay in the coun- visa-free travel zone, the vac border crossing, in the dia, the Chechens arrived
govina (AP) — A group of try for a maximum of 90 Schengen Area, on Jan. 1, northwest Bosnia’s Krajina in Bosnia from Turkey and
ethnic Chechens fleeing days within a 180-day pe- they must hold a valid visa. region include families with Serbia, the only two coun-
Russia arrived in Bosnia this riod. But to enter Croatia, The ethnic Chechens children. tries in Europe with direct
week, hoping to use the which is set to join Europe’s gathered near the Malje- Many of the people wait- flights from Russia during
Balkan country as a launch- ing said they hoped to the war.
pad to reach the European be allowed into Croatia. The Security Ministry said it
Union and avoid getting However, Croatian border would “continue to monitor
sent to fight in Ukraine. guards mostly appeared to the situation on the ground
The group of some 50 peo- be turning them back. and gather detailed infor-
ple, predominantly from One of the young men mation from law enforce-
Russia’s Chechnya region, in the group, who identi- ment agencies … to pro-
congregated near Bosnia’s fied himself only by his first pose appropriate mea-
northwestern border with name, Hadis, said he was sures to maintain a secure
EU-member Croatia, the traveling with his children situation.”
Bosnian Security Ministry and wanted to enter Croa- Bosnia became a bottle-
said Wednesday. tia because the situation neck for Europe-bound
“They want to reach the in Chechnya, amid Rus- migrants from the Middle
European Union because, sia’s war in Ukraine, was a East, Central Asia and
in their own words, they “big problem.” Hadis said North Africa in 2015, when
are fleeing military draft” in his family first stopped in Is- other nations in the Balkans
Russia, the ministry said in a tanbul after departing Rus- and central Europe closed
statement. People wait in line on the border crossing Maljevac, between sia and then traveled on to off previously established
Russians can enter Bosnia Bosnia and Croatia, Tuesday, Dec. 27, 2022. Associated Press Bosnia. migration paths in the
without a visa and are per- According to Bosnian me- region.q