There’s a lot … and we mean a lot … of blue checks angry at this tweet from President Donald Trump where he says a New York Times report on “North Korea developing missile bases is inaccurate” and that “we fully know about the sites being discussed, nothing new”:
The story in the New York Times concerning North Korea developing missile bases is inaccurate. We fully know about the sites being discussed, nothing new – and nothing happening out of the normal. Just more Fake News. I will be the first to let you know if things go bad!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 13, 2018
And do you know who agrees with the president that this report from CSIS Beyond Parallel is “nothing new”? South Korea, that’s who:
South Korea's Blue House: "North Korea has never promised to shut down this missile base. It has never signed any agreement, any negotiation that makes shutting down missile bases mandatory… There is no agreement, no negotiation that makes it necessary for it to be declared." https://t.co/6hhdpw0CXX
— Josh Smith (@joshjonsmith) November 13, 2018
South Korea’s Blue House responds to @BeyondCSISKorea report on the North’s missile bases https://t.co/gzkcxc4LDT
— Laura Bicker (@BBCLBicker) November 13, 2018
From Yonhap:
South Korea’s presidential office on Tuesday played down a new report on North Korea’s “undisclosed” missile sites, saying the state intelligence communities of South Korea and the United States earlier acquired relevant information.
Cheong Wa Dae added that it’s going too far to call the North’s continued activity a “great deception” given that it has no specific agreement to dismantle or disclose the facilities mentioned in the report issued by Beyond Parallel, a group at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS).
Recommended
And:
Speaking about the report, Cheong Wa Dae spokesman Kim Eui-kyeom pointed out that the source of the analysis of the Sakkanmol base is a commercial satellite.
“The intelligence authorities of South Korea and the U.S. have far more detailed information from military satellites and are closely monitoring (it),” Kim said.
He said the facilities have nothing to do with intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) or intermediate-range ballistic missiles (IRBMs).
He took issue with a related New York Times report headlined, “In North Korea, Missile Bases Suggest a Great Deception.”
The North has not promised to shut down the base, and there has been no accord or negotiations in connection with it, he stressed.
Rather, Kim said, the existence of such a missile site shows the need for talks with North Korea to get rid of its military threats.
FWIW, here’s the actual report the NYT based its reporting on:
This report from @BeyondCSISKorea focuses on the missile base at Sakkanmol, one of the closest missile sites to the demilitarized zone and to Seoul, South Korea.
Read their finds here: https://t.co/KZAPVSfqtj pic.twitter.com/WlCTF0gUIj
— CSIS (@CSIS) November 13, 2018
***
Related:
Peace indication? North Korea reportedly scrapping all anti-American propaganda https://t.co/MbI0PRAQD6
— Twitchy Team (@TwitchyTeam) June 24, 2018
Don't look now, but the world leader most crucial to the success of a deal between North Korea and the U.S. called the summit a 'historic feat' https://t.co/BerVHOQySs
— Twitchy Team (@TwitchyTeam) June 14, 2018
WATCH: North Korea airs footage of Trump saluting a general during awkward handshake moment https://t.co/ku8moi9Q5y
— Twitchy Team (@TwitchyTeam) June 14, 2018
Join the conversation as a VIP Member