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A30 world news
Diasabra 23 aPriL 2022

Leaders of 2 Koreas exchange letters of hope amid tensions

in his letter to Kim acknowl- tive strike capabilities and North Korea also severed
edged setbacks in inter-Kore- anti-missile systems to deter all cooperation with Moon’s
an relations but insisted that North Korean attacks. government while expressing
their aspirational vows for anger over the continuation
peace during their summits Tensions on the Korean Pen- of U.S.-South Korea mili-
in 2018 and an accompanying insula have risen since a series tary exercises, which were
military agreement aimed at of North Korean weapons curtailed in recent years to
defusing border area clashes tests this year, including its promote diplomacy with the
remain relevant as a founda- first flight-test of an intercon- North, and Seoul’s inability
tion for future cooperation. tinental ballistic missile since to wrest concessions from
2017 in March, reviving the Washington on its behalf.
Moon also expressed hope nuclear brinkmanship aimed
for a resumption of nuclear at forcing the U.S. to accept Analysts say North Korea is
talks between Washington it as a nuclear power and to likely to escalate its weapons
and Pyongyang and for Kim remove crippling sanctions. demonstrations in coming
to pursue cooperation with weeks or months to force a
Seoul’s next government led South Korea’s military has reaction from the Biden ad-
by conservative President- also detected signs that North ministration, which has been
(AP) — The leaders of the elect Yoon Suk Yeol, Moon’s Korea is rebuilding tunnels focused on Russia’s war on
rival Koreas exchanged KCNA said Moon told Kim spokesperson Park Kyung- at a nuclear testing ground Ukraine and a rivalry with
letters expressing hope for he would continue to cam- mee said. it partially dismantled weeks China.
improved bilateral rela- paign for Korean reunifica- before Kim’s first meeting
tions, which plummeted tion even after he leaves of- While sending a letter to the with then-President Donald Biden’s special envoy for
in the past three years fice next month, basing his North’s leader is a courtesy as Trump in June 2018, a pos- North Korea, Sung Kim,
amid a freeze in nuclear efforts on their joint decla- the South’s leaves office, ana- sible indicator that the coun- traveled to Seoul this week
negotiations and North rations for peace issued after lyst Cheong Seong-Chang try is preparing to resume for meetings with senior
Korea’s accelerating their summit meetings in at the South’s private Sejong nuclear explosive tests. South Korean officials and
weapons development. 2018. Institute said, the North pub- said they agreed on the need
licized the personal exchange Staking his single presiden- for a strong response to
North Korea’s state media Kim and Moon shared views with an aim to create division tial term on inter-Korean counter North Korea’s “de-
said leader Kim Jong Un that “inter-Korean relations in South Korea ahead of a rapprochement, Moon met stabilizing behavior.”
on Wednesday received a would improve and develop government change. Kim three times in 2018 and
personal letter from outgo- as desired and anticipated by lobbied hard to help set up After maintaining a concilia-
ing South Korean President the (Korean) nation if the “Considering indications that Kim’s meetings with Trump. tory tone for years, Moon’s
Moon Jae-in and replied (North and the South) make North Korea is preparing But the diplomacy never re- government objected more
on Thursday with his own tireless efforts with hope,” for its seventh nuclear test, covered from the collapse strongly to North Korea’s
letter appreciating Moon’s KCNA said. it’s questionable whether it of the second Kim-Trump weapons tests this year, criti-
peace efforts during his term. was appropriate for Presi- meeting in 2019 in Vietnam, cizing Kim’s government for
Pyongyang’s official Korean Moon’s office confirmed the dent Moon to send a letter where the Americans reject- ending its self-imposed sus-
Central News Agency said exchange of letters shortly to Chairman Kim to express ed North Korea’s demands pension of long-range missile
Friday their exchange of after KCNA’s report, but his warm greetings,” Cheong for major sanctions relief in testing and urging a return to
letters showed their “deep spent hours before releas- said. exchange for dismantling an diplomacy.
trust.” ing its version of what was aging nuclear facility, which
said, which indicated that Yoon, who takes office on would have amounted to a Seoul has also accused North
Experts say North Korea’s the North didn’t coordinate May 10, has harshly de- partial surrender of its nucle- Korea of destroying South
announcement of the letters, with Seoul before announc- scribed Moon’s foreign pol- ar capabilities. Korean-owned facilities at the
which came as Kim possibly ing the exchange. KCNA’s icy for being “subservient” North’s Diamond Mountain
prepares for a nuclear test report wasn’t published on toward North Korea and said Kim has since vowed to bol- resort where they ran tours
and other major provoca- the North’s official Rodong he wouldn’t pursue “talks for ster his nuclear deterrent to together until 2008. Kim in
tions, is aimed at dividing Sinmun newspaper, read by talks’ sake.” He has vowed counter “gangster-like” U.S. 2019 called the South Ko-
public opinion in South Ko- its domestic audience, show- to strengthen South Korea’s pressure and sped up his rean facilities there “shabby”
rea and discouraging Seoul’s ing that the message was in- defense in conjunction with weapons development de- and ordered them destroyed,
new government from taking tended for the South. its alliance with the United spite limited resources and though the work was delayed
a hard line toward Pyongyang States, which he says would pandemic-related difficulties. by the coronavirus pandemic.
after its inauguration in May. According to Seoul, Moon include enhancing preemp-

French accuse Russian mercenaries of staging burials in Mali

(AP) — The French mili- Malian bodies with sand 4 of the bodies have been post- control of the Gossi base to patched to Gossi to investi-
tary has released videos kilometers (2.5 miles) east ed on accounts that support Malian soldiers on Tuesday, gate, adding “it is still early
appearing to show Rus- of the Gossi military base in Russia or fake accounts cre- in what the French said was for us to react on this case.”
sian mercenaries burying the country’s north, accord- ated by Wagner, the officer a safe, orderly and transpar-
bodies near an army base ing to a French military offi- said. The tweets blame the ent manner. Later that day The French military said the
in northern Mali, which cer who spoke on condition French for the killings and a “French sensor observed a move to discredit the French
it says is part of a smear of anonymity because he was the burials, according to the dozen Caucasian individu- forces operating in north-
campaign against the not authorized to speak to the French officer. als, most likely belonging to ern Mali is part of a coordi-
French who handed the press on the matter. the Wagner Group,” and a nated campaign of multiple
base to Malian forces ear- One tweet from an account detachment from the Malian information attacks on them
lier this week. In the video one of the sol- called Dia Diarra, alleged- army arrive at the Gossi site that has been going on for
diers appears to be filming ly created by Wagner, said: and unload equipment, said months.
Aerial surveillance images the scene. The Caucasian sol- “This is what the French left the French military in a con-
taken by the French military diers in the video are believed behind when they left base at fidential report that was seen
on Thursday morning and to be members of the Wagner #Gossi. These are excerpts by AP.
provided to The Associated Group, a Russian mercenary from a video that was taken
Press show what appear to be force, the officer said. after they left! We cannot Mali’s army spokesman Col.
10 Caucasian soldiers cover- keep silent about this!” Souleymane Dembele said
ing approximately a dozen Several tweets with pictures The French army transferred that a team has been dis-