EXERCISE FOAL EAGLE IN S. KOREA SHOWS U.S. AND KOREAN FORCES READINESS

FROM:  AMERICAN FORCES PRESS SERVICE
Korea Exercise Lets Battalion Stretch Its Wings
By Jim Garamone
WASHINGTON, April 19, 2012 - Exercise Foal Eagle – an annual training exercise in South Korea – has given a Hawaii-based battalion an opportunity to spread its wings.
The exercise, which ends April 30, allows U.S. and South Korean service members to work together in defense of the Korean peninsula.

The exercise has added impetus this year, as North Korea launched a missile in defiance of United Nations agreements, said Army Lt. Col. Tim Hayden, commander of the 1st Battalion, 25th Infantry. His unit traveled to South Korea from its base in Hawaii to be part of the exercise.

"[The launch] did serve a strong point to remind us of our responsibility to maintain our readiness and our partnership with our Korean allies," he added.
The battalion focused on both the training mission and the combined mission with South Korean partners. The unit worked closely with South Korean army units as the exercise unfolded. It is a type of mission the unit, which has deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan, has not practiced for years, Hayden said.

The battalion started preparing for movement last year and deployed in March. The unit has been able to train on everything from individual skills up through platoon and company level, the colonel said, and conducted combined training with the South Koreans.

"One of the events I'd like to highlight was a combined defensive live-fire shot here on Rodriguez Range," Hayden said from South Korea. "It was a great event, because we partnered with a Korean tank platoon."

The South Korean tankers partnered with the battalion's mobile gun systems – a 105 mm main gun on a Stryker vehicle variant. This allowed the troops of both nations to fight a defensive live-fire battle together.

"What we found was through our troops leading procedures and our rehearsals was both the Korean army and our Army have a lot in common – we have high-caliber leaders, we have well-trained soldiers, we have very good equipment," he said. "We can communicate and fight on the battlefield today as allies and partners."

Many of the American soldiers are veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan, Hayden noted.
"What this has been able to do for us is focus on a higher-intensity fight, more of a decisive action, and fight in the terrain that we would have to fight here on the peninsula should a contingency arise," he said. "The change of terrain has forced my leaders to think beyond the standard mission set they are used to in Iraq or Afghanistan."

The colonel said his unit is ready for the type of combat that could happen in Korea. "We are ready," he said. "We've mastered the basics, and we're focused on our core competencies and our fundamental warfighting skills, and we remain disciplined in what we do."

UN PRESIDENTIAL STATEMENT ON NORTH KOREAN MISSILE LAUNCH

FROM:  U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Fact Sheet: UN Security Council Presidential Statement on North Korea Launch
New York, NY April 16, 2012

The UN Security Council has swiftly and unanimously adopted a Presidential Statement (PRST) to "strongly condemn" North Korea's recent attempt to launch a satellite.

The Security Council underscored that any such launch -- no matter whether it's called a satellite or space launch -- is a "serious violation" of Security Council resolutions. The Council also deplored that this launch has caused grave security concerns in the region.

The Security Council demanded that North Korea not proceed with any further launches using ballistic missile technology and that North Korea comply with its obligations under previous Security Council resolutions by suspending all activities related to its ballistic missile program and reestablish a moratorium on missile launches.

To ensure that there are consequences for North Korea's actions, the Council also provided for new sanctions:
· The Security Council directed its North Korea Sanctions Committee to designate new, additional North Korean companies that will be subject to an asset freeze.
· The Committee will also identify additional sensitive nuclear and ballistic missile technology that will be banned for transfer to and from North Korea.

· To tighten enforcement of existing UN sanctions, the Security Council also directed the Sanctions Committee to update public information about already-designated individuals and entities (e.g., new aliases or front companies), as well as to update control lists of technology already banned for transfer to and from North Korea.

· The Committee will also update an annual work plan that will enhance its ability to monitor and improve sanctions implementation.

If the Committee does not complete these actions within fifteen days, then the Security Council will do so within an additional five days.

This Council also demanded that North Korea comply immediately with its obligations under previous Security Council resolutions, including that it abandon its nuclear programs, cease all related activities and not conduct any further launch, nuclear test or any further provocations.

Critically, the Security Council made clear that there will be consequences to future North Korean launches or nuclear tests. If North Korea chooses to again defy the international community, then the Council has expressed its determination to take action accordingly.

This PRST is a stronger response than the Council's reaction to North Korea's last such launch in April 2009. It includes a stronger condemnation of the launch as a violation and explicitly includes sanctions (as in 2009), tightens further existing sanctions (which 2009 did not) and threatens additional action should the North Korea conduct another launch or nuclear test. This PRST was also adopted with unprecedented speed.

U.N. SECURITY COUNCIL DISCUSSIONS ON NORTH KOREA AND GUINEA-BISSAU

 FROM:  U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Remarks by Ambassador Susan E. Rice, U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations, at the Security Council Stakeout on North Korea and Guinea-Bissau, April 13, 2012
Susan E. Rice
U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations
U.S. Mission to the United Nations New York, NY April 13, 2012
AS DELIVERED
Good afternoon. The Council has discussed this morning both the situation with respect to DPRK and Guinea-Bissau, and I will brief you on both.
With respect to the first issue, the Council has just concluded consultations about the launch conducted yesterday by North Korea. The Council received a briefing from UN Assistant Secretary-General Oscar Fernandez-Taranco regarding the launch. Assistant Secretary-General Fernandez-Taranco reported that North Korea apparently launched a multi-stage rocket at 6:39 p.m. yesterday, Eastern Daylight Time. The launch was a failure.

He noted that the Secretary-General had released a statement regarding the launch in which the Secretary-General called the launch "deplorable as it defies the firm and unanimous stance of the international community" and noted that the "launch is in direct violation of Security Council Resolution 1874 and threatens regional stability." The Secretary-General also renewed his call on North Korean authorities to work towards building confidence with neighboring countries and improving the lives of its people.
Following our discussion, Council members have asked me to say the following on their behalf:

The Security Council held consultations to address the serious situation and listen to the concerns arising from the launch by North Korea. Members of the Security Council deplored this launch, which is in violation of Security Council Resolutions 1718 and 1874.
Members of the Security Council agreed to continue consultations on an appropriate response, in accordance with its responsibilities, given the urgency of the matter.
Now I’ll turn to Guinea-Bissau. The Council received a briefing on the situation in Guinea-Bissau from Assistant-Secretary-General Zerihoun. He noted that the situation is evolving rapidly and that it is not easy to confirm information at this time.

The military has arrested the Prime Minister, as well as Acting President Herrera. Their whereabouts cannot be confirmed at this time. The Secretariat urged the international community to address the cycle of violence and impunity in Guinea-Bissau. The members of the Security Council condemned the military action and urged the immediate restoration of civilian authority.

Council members are now discussing a press statement.
I’m happy to take a few questions.

Reporter: Ambassador Rice, do you expect the US to be pushing for sanctions or interested in sanctions on North Korea? And do you expect a presidential statement, press statement or anything like that in the near future?

Ambassador Rice: I’m not going to characterize the form of the response. This is the subject of early stage discussions among Council members.

Reporter: Ambassador, though, with an appropriate response, you have an opinion in terms of your national capacity. Can you speak to that, perhaps?

Ambassador Rice: I--the United States’ view of this is quite clear. We have condemned the launch. We view it as a direct violation of Resolutions 1718 and 1874. We think it’s important that the Council respond credibly. And we will be working in that direction.
Reporter: Will that be a sanctions resolution?

Ambassador Rice: As I said, I think it’s premature, both in my national capacity and as president of the Security Council, to predict or characterize the form of the reaction. We think a credible reaction is important.

Reporter: Ambassador, will you be discussing DPRK later on today? (Inaudible.)
Ambassador Rice: We have a very full agenda, many issues are brewing simultaneously and we’re working them simultaneously.

Reporter: How soon do you want to reach an agreement on the next appropriate measure? I mean, you are discussing other urgent matters but North Korea is also very urgent, so how –

Ambassador Rice: It is, and we’re working on it. And we will let you know when we have more to say. Thank you very much.

G-8 FOREIGN MINISTERS CONDEMN NORTH KOREAN MISSILE LAUNCH

FROM:  U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
G8 Foreign Ministers Statement
Media Note Office of the Spokesperson Washington, DC
April 12, 2012
Following is the text of a statement released on behalf of the G8 Foreign Ministers:
Begin text:
We, the G-8 Foreign Ministers, condemn the launch by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), which is a violation of UN Security Council Resolutions 1695, 1718, and 1874. Sharing the view that the launch undermines regional peace and stability, we call on the DPRK to abstain from further launches using ballistic missile technology or other actions which aggravate the situation on the Korean Peninsula. We are ready to consider, with others, taking measures responding to all activities of the DPRK that violate UN Security Council Resolutions, and calling for appropriate response by the United Nations Security Council. We urge the DPRK to meet its international commitments including those under the 2005 Joint Statement of the Six-Party Talks; comply with its obligations under all relevant UN Security Council resolutions, in particular by abandoning all its nuclear weapons and its existing nuclear and ballistic missile programs in a complete, verifiable, and irreversible manner; cease its uranium enrichment activities, which violate UN Security Council Resolutions 1718 and 1874; and take concrete and irreversible steps toward denuclearization.

NORTH KOREAN MISSILE LAUNCH A FAILURE ACCORDING TO NORTHERN COMMAND

FROM:  AMERICAN FORCES PRESS SERVICE

Northcom Acknowledges North Korean Missile Launch, Failure

By Cheryl Pellerin

WASHINGTON, April 12, 2012 - North American Aerospace Defense Command and U.S. Northern Command officials acknowledged today that U.S. systems detected and tracked a launch of a North Korean TaepoDong-2 missile at 6:39 p.m. EDT.

The missile was tracked on a southerly launch over the Yellow Sea, according to a statement issued from Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado.

Initial indications are that the missile's first stage fell into the sea 102.5 miles west of Seoul, South Korea, the statement says. The other two stages were assessed to have failed and no debris fell on land, it says.

"At no time were the missile or resulting debris a threat," it says.

"Despite the failure of its attempted missile launch," White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said in a statement tonight, "North Korea's provocative action threatens regional security, violates international law and contravenes its own recent commitments."

The action is not surprising given North Korea's pattern of aggressive behavior, he added, but any missile activity by North Korea is of concern to the international community.

"The United States remains vigilant in the face of North Korean provocations, and is fully committed to the security of our allies in the region," Carney said.

President Barack Obama "has been clear that he is prepared to engage constructively with North Korea," the press secretary said, adding that the president "has also insisted that North Korea live up to its own commitments, adhere to its international obligations and deal peacefully with its neighbors."

North Korea will only show strength and find security, Carney added, "by abiding by international law, living up to its obligations, and by working to feed its citizens, to educate its children, and to win the trust of its neighbors."

A spokesman for the Korean Committee for Space Technology announced March 16 that North Korea would launch a long-range Unha-3 rocket between April 12 and 16.

He said the rocket would carry a North Korean-made Kwangmyongsong-3 polar-orbiting observation satellite to mark the 100th birthday of the late President Kim Il Sung on April 15.

U.S-REPUBLIC OF KOREA DISCUSS BY PHONE NORTH KOREAN MISSILE LAUNCH .

FROM:  U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
Presenter: Secretary of Defense Leon E. Panetta and Republic of Korea Defense Minister Kim Kwan Jin April 09, 2012
Secretary Panetta and Defense Minister Jin
 Secretary Panetta and Korean Defense Minister Kim Kwan Jin spoke by phone this evening to discuss the announced North Korean missile launch.  Both leaders would regard a missile launch by North Korea as a serious provocation and a violation of North Korea's international obligations and standing UN Security Council Resolutions.
 Secretary Panetta and Minister Kim reaffirmed their shared commitment to closely monitor North Korea's efforts and to ensure the defense of the Republic of Korea.