In case some of you want to try and stay current on current events in the ROK -


• Roh Ups Ante On NK; Opposition fears Widening Fissure With US
 President Roh's recent message toward NK implied a sweeping change in the ROK's policy toward NK
 Not only did he directly comment on how he wished to meet NK leader Kim Jong-il, but also said the ROK was now ready to yield more to NK
• Activists to Stage Large-Scale Protest Over US Base Plan
 Tension mounted as activist groups plan to stage large-scale protests this weekend against a US base expansion plan
 About 10,000 to 20,000 people will participate in the rally to mark the 1980 massacre of Gwangju and criticize the base project
 "We are working on a plan to prevent their protests by clarifying the size …," a ROK official said.
 About 8,000 riot police have been stationed near the site along with 3,000 soldiers to guard the area
• ROK to Play More Actively to Break Nuclear Stalemate
 President Roh’s pledge to "grant plenty of concessions to NK" reflect the ROK's commitment to play a more aggressive role in breaking the impasse over NK's nuclear weapons program
 Some hard-line US officials are increasing their criticism of the ROKs aid to NK, which they claim lacks adequate oversight to ensure the assistance is not abused
 The ruling Uri Party said that Roh's remarks are the reiteration of his position to resolve the current stalemate by building up trust between the two Koreas
• Main Opposition Leader Edges Toward Start of Presidential Bid
 The chairwoman of the ROK's main opposition party (Grand National Party) on Wednesday hinted at the possibility of her running in the country's next presidential election in 2007
 "I am open to the possibility of running for president," Park Geun-hye, daughter of the ROK's former president Park Chung-hee, told reporters
 Park would have to resign by June 18 as the regulation states that presidential aspirants must vacate leadership posts at least a year and six months ahead of the presidential election
• Uri Party Pushes Dokdo as Economic Boundary Line
 The governing Uri Party's special committee on Dokdo Wednesday proposed the government declare the ROK’s islets in the East Sea as the starting point for the country's economic waters
 ``The ROK should attend the negotiations with Japan with a clear principle that Dokdo is ours.’’
 In May 1996, Japan announced it would set the EEZ borderline between Ullung Island and Dokdo, using Dokdo as the starting point of Japan's EEZ
 In 1997, the ROK proposed to mark the sea border from Ullung Island with the idea that Dokdo is still included within the 200-nautical-mile EEZ boundary. But ROK scholars such as Shin Yong-ha have strongly criticized the 1997 proposal, arguing that a country uses a part of its territory as the starting point of its EEZ
• ROK Boat Released After Brief Detention by Japan
 A ROK fishing boat was released this week after brief detention by Japanese authorities on suspicions of rigging its fishing log while operating in Japanese waters
• Koreas Begin Talks on Cross-Border Railway Links
 The ROK and NK will open the 12th working-level meeting on linking inter-Korean railways and roads Thursday at the office for inter-Korean economic cooperation in Kaesong, the ROK announced Wednesday
 The two-day meeting comes ahead of former president Kim Dae-jung’s planned visit to NK next month
 While the inter-Korean railways are technically ready for a test-run, NK authorities have still been reluctant to link them across the inter-Korean border, apparently due to military concerns
• ‘Weakening ROK-US Alliance Can Benefit China’
 The deteriorating ROK-US Alliance may help Beijing build a pro-China government in NK and aid in annexing the communist regime, in the event of internal turmoil in NK, a scholar said Wednesday
 In a forum on reunification held in Seoul, Professor Lee Jung-hoon of Yonsei University said the ROK could become increasingly marginal over NK issues without a solid military alliance with the US
• ROK Miffed at US Asylum for Former ROK Citizen
 The ROK is taking news that a NK defector who had settled in the ROK was granted US asylum “seriously”