North Korea to Free US Missionary

Unofficial envoy fears 'crisis'

(NEWSER) - Despite global fears of a violent confrontation, South Korea launched fighter jets and fired live artillery in a military exercise close to the North Korea border. But the two-hour operation ended without incident, and Pyongyang officials promised not to retaliate, reversing earlier threats of a "deadly" response. Residents of Yeonpyeong and other "front-line" islands had been ordered to move into air-raid shelters for the operation, but many fled the island attacked last month by North Korea. More»

Meanwhile, president vows to boost defenses

(NEWSER) - South Korea promised today to boost defenses on the island North Korea attacked, as the country’s defense minister resigned and China offered an official response to the incident. South Korean President Lee Myung-bak held a security meeting today to draft new defense strategies and rules of engagement including increasing and upgrading weapons and sending more troops. Meanwhile, Defense Minister Kim Tae-young resigned, but will retain his post until a new chief is announced tomorrow, the AP reports. More»

Displaced 'at the crossroads of life and death'

(NEWSER) - Torrential rain has flooded the Yalu River that lies along the China/North Korea border, forcing thousands to evacuate, the LA Times reports. In North Korea, Kim Jong-Il deployed air force and navy units to aid in the evacuation of roughly 5,000 people, as flash-floods submerged houses, farms, and roads. State-run media described the displaced as “at the crossroads of life and death.” More»

Both are isolated except for a superpower

(NEWSER) - Be careful, Israel, you're starting to look like "gulp—North Korea," writes Daniel W. Drezner. Israel may not be in similarly dire financial straits, but the parallels are "pretty eerie" beyond that, writes Drezner in Foreign Policy . Let us count the ways:

• "Both countries are diplomatically isolated except for their ties to a great power benefactor."

Robert Park arrives in Beijing pale, silent

(AP) - Looking pale and drawn, his eyes almost closed, American missionary Robert Park headed home today after six weeks in detention in North Korea. Park, who crossed the border from China to North Vietnam on Christmas Day to protest religious suppression, made no comment as US consular officials met him in Beijing's airport on his morning arrival from North Korea. More»