[I. <<North Korea has accepted South Korea's proposal for official talks, in what will be the first high-level contact to take place between the two countries in more than two years. South Korean Unification Ministry spokesman Baik Tae-hyun told reporters Friday North Korea informed its southern neighbor by fax at 10:16 a.m. local time (8:16 p.m Thursday ET) that they have accepted the South's offer to initiate talks. The person-to-person talks will be held January 9th -- one day after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's birthday -- at the Peace House, located on the South Korean side of the so-called truce village of Panmunjom, located in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) between the two nations, Baik said. ... "With all of the failed 'experts' weighing in, does anybody really believe that talks and dialogue would be going on between North and South Korea right now if I wasn't firm, strong and willing to commit our total 'might' against the North," Trump tweeted Thursday morning. "Fools, but talks are a good thing!" he added.>>
(Excerpted from the report at sl. no. I below.) II. <<Meanwhile, some national security experts worried aloud about Trump’s state of mind. Peter Wehner, a senior fellow at Washington’s Ethics & Public Policy Center and veteran of three Republican presidential administrations, said Trump’s recent behavior is “more evidence we’re watching an American president psychologically, emotionally and cognitively decompose.”>> (Excerpted from the report at sl. no. I below.) ***One'd only hope that Trump with his mega sized ego and (much) below par IQ and EQ is nevertheless unable to spike the scheduled talks between the two neighbours, once constituents of the same country.***] I/II. http://edition.cnn.com/2018/01/04/asia/north-korea-south-korea-talks-intl/index.html North Korea accepts offer from South to meet for peace talks By Taehoon Lee and Euan McKirdy, CNN Updated 0558 GMT (1358 HKT) January 5, 2018 This photo from North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) taken on December 23, 2017 and released on December 24, 2017 shows North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un during the 5th Conference of the Workers' Party of Korea Cell Chairpersons. Play Current Time 0:16 Duration Time 1:18 Loaded: 0%Progress: 0%0:16Fullscreen Configuration Subtitles Now Playing South Korea: North... Source: CNN South Korea: North Korea agrees to talks 01:18 Story highlights Pyongyang agrees to resume long-neglected talks with neighbor and rival Seoul Face-to-face talks will take place January 9 in the Panmunjeon truce village Seoul, South Korea (CNN)North Korea has accepted South Korea's proposal for official talks, in what will be the first high-level contact to take place between the two countries in more than two years. South Korean Unification Ministry spokesman Baik Tae-hyun told reporters Friday North Korea informed its southern neighbor by fax at 10:16 a.m. local time (8:16 p.m Thursday ET) that they have accepted the South's offer to initiate talks. The person-to-person talks will be held January 9th -- one day after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's birthday -- at the Peace House, located on the South Korean side of the so-called truce village of Panmunjom, located in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) between the two nations, Baik said. The spokesman said the two sides agreed to work on the details of the talks "through the exchange of documents," and added the agenda items of the talks will be "issues related to improving inter-Korean relationships including the Pyeongchang (Winter) Olympic Games." The faxed message accepting the long-standing offer of talks was from Ri Son Kwon, chairman of the North Korean Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland. It was addressed to his de facto counterpart, South Korea's Unification Minister Cho Myoung-gyon, Baik added. The last high level inter-Korea talks were a deputy ministerial meeting between South and North Korea that took place in December 2015, at the jointly-run Kaesong industrial zone in North Korea. The industrial park, which opened in 2004 in a rare show of cooperation between the two Koreas, was shuttered in 2016 in response to Pyongyang's ramping-up of missile and nuclear testing. The hotline linking North and South Korea 01:43 Thaw The announcement comes on the heels of other signs of nascent rapprochement between the two rivals. In recent days a hotline between Seoul and Pyongyang, which had remained unused for two years, rang once again, in what has been widely regarded as a major diplomatic breakthrough. At least five calls have been placed through the cross-border channel since. Contact between the two Koreas was initiated after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un expressed hope during his annual New Year's day address that a North Korean delegation might participate in next month's Winter Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea. Two phones, two years: How North and South Korea reconnected Two phones, two years: How North and South Korea reconnected Two North Korea athletes, the figure skaters Ryom Tae-Ok and Kim Ju-sik, have qualified for the Games. While Pyongyang has missed a registration deadline for the two, it is understood that the IOC could allow an exception to be made. During the annual address, Kim also expressed a desire for a peaceful resolution to the decades-old conflict with South Korea. The Korean War ended in an armistice in 1953, meaning that the two nations have technically been at war since. Last year, South Korea's President Moon Jae-in told CNN that North Korean participation in Pyeongchang will "provide a very good opportunity for inter-Korean peace and reconciliation." White House defends Trump's nuclear taunting 01:58 Differing reaction A similar sense of optimism has yet to extend beyond the Korean peninsula. On Thursday, Japan's Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe, called North Korea's nuclearization "absolutely unacceptable" and said the security situation facing his country is the severest since World War II. US officials have so far maintained a similarly skeptical stance regarding Kim's sincerity in soothing tensions. Speaking Tuesday, US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley issued a stern warning to North Korea, saying the US "will never accept a nuclear North Korea." Trump, South Korea's Moon agree to no military drills during Olympics Trump, South Korea's Moon agree to no military drills during Olympics However, signs suggest the US' hardline stance may be softening in light of recent developments. In a phone call between US President Donald Trump and South Korean President Moon Thursday, the two leaders agreed not to host joint military drills during the period of Pyeongchang Olympics, according to a South Korean government statement. A senior US military official also confirmed to CNN that there would be no joint exercises during the Games. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has long criticized the US-South Korean drills, declaring them a direct threat to Pyongyang, and a possible barrier to the resumption of diplomatic talks. The decision to hold off on military drills is a diplomatic response from the US President, who earlier this week bragged in a tweet that his nuclear button was "much bigger & more powerful" than Kim's. Trump has since sought to take credit for the resumption of communications between Pyongyang and Seoul. "With all of the failed 'experts' weighing in, does anybody really believe that talks and dialogue would be going on between North and South Korea right now if I wasn't firm, strong and willing to commit our total 'might' against the North," Trump tweeted Thursday morning. "Fools, but talks are a good thing!" he added. CNN's Stella Ko, Angela Dewan and Barbara Starr contributed to this report. II. https://www.yahoo.com/news/dangerous-trumps-north-korea-tweet-alarms-democratic-lawmakers-145343894.html?.tsrc=daily_mail&uh_test=2_07 'This is dangerous': Trump's North Korea tweet alarms Democratic lawmakers Dylan StablefordSenior Editor,Yahoo News•January 3, 2018 0:16 1:32 'This is dangerous': Trump's North Korea tweet alarms Democratic lawmakers Members of Congress returning to Washington were quick to condemn President Trump’s Tuesday-night tweet taunting North Korea’s Kim Jong Un about the sizes of their so-called nuclear buttons. “North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un just stated that the ‘Nuclear Button is on his desk at all times,’” Trump wrote. “Will someone from his depleted and food starved regime please inform him that I too have a Nuclear Button, but it is a much bigger & more powerful one than his, and my Button works!” Donald J. Trump ✔ @realDonaldTrump North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un just stated that the “Nuclear Button is on his desk at all times.” Will someone from his depleted and food starved regime please inform him that I too have a Nuclear Button, but it is a much bigger & more powerful one than his, and my Button works! 6:19 AM - Jan 3, 2018 156,016 156,016 Replies 188,552 188,552 Retweets 479,176 479,176 likes Twitter Ads info and privacy Democratic lawmakers tore into Trump for casually invoking the specter of a nuclear war. Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., wrote on Twitter that the tweet “borders on presidential malpractice.” Ed Markey ✔ @SenMarkey Imagine being a servicemember or the family of a servicemember stationed in Korea and reading this. This borders on presidential malpractice. https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/948355557022420992 … 8:49 AM - Jan 3, 2018 254 254 Replies 596 596 Retweets 1,320 1,320 likes Twitter Ads info and privacy Ed Markey ✔ @SenMarkey Worried that @realDonaldTrump could launch a #nuclear war? My bill w/ @RepTedLieu would prevent Trump from launching a nuclear first strike. No one person should have the power to decide when the U.S. will be the first to use nuclear weapons. RT if you agree. 9:38 AM - Jan 3, 2018 500 500 Replies 8,643 8,643 Retweets 11,277 11,277 likes Twitter Ads info and privacy Jeff Merkley ✔ @JeffMerkley This is dangerous and exactly why I’m fighting to ensure nuclear strikes require Congressional approval. https://twitter.com/realdonaldtrump/status/948355557022420992 … 8:06 AM - Jan 3, 2018 279 279 Replies 2,193 2,193 Retweets 7,684 7,684 likes Twitter Ads info and privacy Tammy Duckworth ✔ @SenDuckworth Cadet Bone Spurs should worry more about the 35K US troops stationed in ROK who could be killed in a #NorthKorea nuclear strike&ensuing artillery duel than the relative size of his "nuclear button" https://www.buzzfeed.com/blakemontgomery/trump-button … 11:56 AM - Jan 3, 2018 Trump Boasted About The Size Of His "Nuclear Button" And People Couldn't Deal "Will someone from his depleted and food starved regime please inform him that I too have a Nuclear Button, but it is a much bigger &more powerful one than his, and my Button works!" buzzfeed.com 226 226 Replies 1,676 1,676 Retweets 4,442 4,442 likes Twitter Ads info and privacy Related Searches Trump Tweet North KoreaTrump Tweet ButtonTrump North Korea Kim Jong Un “I guess the president regards this as a show of strength,” Rep. Jim Himes, D-Conn., said on CNN. “But as everybody who’s ever been in a, you know, first-grade playground recognizes, it’s usually the person who’s most aggressively pounding their chest that is in fact the weak one on the playground.” Meanwhile, some national security experts worried aloud about Trump’s state of mind. Peter Wehner, a senior fellow at Washington’s Ethics & Public Policy Center and veteran of three Republican presidential administrations, said Trump’s recent behavior is “more evidence we’re watching an American president psychologically, emotionally and cognitively decompose.” Peter Wehner @Peter_Wehner Mr. Trump's recent twitter storm/interviews are more evidence we're watching an American president psychologically, emotionally and cognitively decompose. It's rather alarming to watch, and the president is not well. But at least he's cutting regulations. 8:24 AM - Jan 3, 2018 532 532 Replies 3,341 3,341 Retweets 10,324 10,324 likes Twitter Ads info and privacy Eliot A Cohen @EliotACohen Spoken like a petulant ten year old. But one with nuclear weapons - for real - at his disposal. How responsible people around him, or supporting him, can dismiss this or laugh it off is beyond me. https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/948355557022420992 … 7:14 AM - Jan 3, 2018 177 177 Replies 1,078 1,078 Retweets 3,009 3,009 likes Twitter Ads info and privacy Robert Reich ✔ @RBReich This madman is still the single most powerful person on the planet, with the ability to order the destruction of the world in just over four minutes. https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/948355557022420992 … 8:10 AM - Jan 3, 2018 383 383 Replies 2,569 2,569 Retweets 5,433 5,433 likes Twitter Ads info and privacy Laurence Tribe ✔ @tribelaw Having a president like Trump who brags “Mine is bigger than yours” to overcome an apparent fear of impotence and emasculation would be merely pathetic if it didn’t risk nuclear war. Hate to say it, but @realDonaldTrump is a danger to civilization. https://twitter.com/realdonaldtrump/status/948355557022420992 … 6:29 AM - Jan 3, 2018 408 408 Replies 3,508 3,508 Retweets 8,135 8,135 likes Twitter Ads info and privacy Joe Cirincione ✔ @Cirincione This is not a game. This is not a reality show. This is a clear and present danger. We should all be deeply worried by this new tweet. https://twitter.com/realdonaldtrump/status/948355557022420992 … 6:28 AM - Jan 3, 2018 80 80 Replies 679 679 Retweets 1,585 1,585 likes Twitter Ads info and privacy Others wondered whether the provocative tweet violated Twitter’s terms of service. will.i.am ✔ @iamwill .@jack you can save the world by not allowing threats that will end up killing millions of people's lives... This is scary & ridiculous... Publishing global death threats on twitter isn't "freedom of speech" You can help ease the worlds anxiety by placing new twitter rules. https://twitter.com/realdonaldtrump/status/948355557022420992 … 6:14 PM - Jan 3, 2018 81 81 Replies 382 382 Retweets 1,576 1,576 likes Twitter Ads info and privacy Ziwe ✔ @ziwe did you know uploading beatles music videos is against twitter rules but threatening nuclear war is not??? 7:54 AM - Jan 3, 2018 104 104 Replies 6,275 6,275 Retweets 24,837 24,837 likes Twitter Ads info and privacy Dan Scavino, the White House social media director, mocked the concern. Dan Scavino Jr. ✔ @Scavino45 Carry on w/your night @BrianStelter. While you would love nothing more than to see a Twitter ToS Violation for handle: @realDonaldTrump, you and all of your liberal friends have NOTHING. Keep calling Twitter😭Stop trying to be the NEWS. Just report the NEWS & try keeping it REAL! 7:49 AM - Jan 3, 2018 1,405 1,405 Replies 2,869 2,869 Retweets 10,253 10,253 likes Twitter Ads info and privacy To the president’s core supporters, the “nuclear button” tweet was just Trump being Trump. And to Michael Flynn Jr., who served on Trump’s transition team and is the son of former national security adviser Michael Flynn, it was “why Trump was elected.” 🇺🇸MFLYNNJR🇺🇸 @mflynnJR Ok this is just awesome....😁#NorthKorea https://twitter.com/realdonaldtrump/status/948355557022420992 … 7:05 AM - Jan 3, 2018 199 199 Replies 184 184 Retweets 798 798 likes Twitter Ads info and privacy 3 Jan 🇺🇸MFLYNNJR🇺🇸 @mflynnJR Ok this is just awesome....😁#NorthKorea https://twitter.com/realdonaldtrump/status/948355557022420992 … 🇺🇸MFLYNNJR🇺🇸 @mflynnJR This is why Trump was elected. A no bullsh#t leader not afraid to stand up for his country...#Trump2020 #MAGA2018 7:18 AM - Jan 3, 2018 266 266 Replies 100 100 Retweets 423 423 likes Twitter Ads info and privacy Vice President Mike Pence defended Trump’s tweet in an interview with Voice of America’s Greta Van Susteren. “President Trump made it clear,” Pence said. “America will not be bullied. America will not be threatened. And that the United States of America has, by being clear, managed to marshal an unprecedented amount of economic and diplomatic pressure on North Korea.” Pence’s predecessor, former Vice President Joe Biden, said that Trump’s tweets taunting North Korea show “really poor judgment.” “The only war that’s worse than one intended is one that’s unintended,” Biden told CNN. “This is not a game. This is not about, ‘Can I puff by chest out bigger than your chest?’ It’s just not, it’s not presidential.” Trump’s latest display of social media saber-rattling caps a months-long war of words with Kim and the rogue nuclear nation. In a September speech to the United Nations, Trump warned that the United States may be forced to “totally destroy North Korea” if it proceeds with its nuclear and intercontinental ballistic missile programs. The next month, Trump referred to Kim as “short and fat.” Donald J. Trump ✔ @realDonaldTrump Why would Kim Jong-un insult me by calling me "old," when I would NEVER call him "short and fat?" Oh well, I try so hard to be his friend - and maybe someday that will happen! 6:18 AM - Nov 12, 2017 · Vietnam 130,509 130,509 Replies 272,099 272,099 Retweets 617,803 617,803 likes Twitter Ads info and privacy On Tuesday, the president reiterated his preferred nickname for the North Korean dictator. Donald J. Trump ✔ @realDonaldTrump Sanctions and “other” pressures are beginning to have a big impact on North Korea. Soldiers are dangerously fleeing to South Korea. Rocket man now wants to talk to South Korea for first time. Perhaps that is good news, perhaps not - we will see! 7:38 PM - Jan 2, 2018 8,479 8,479 Replies 17,238 17,238 Retweets 75,454 75,454 likes Twitter Ads info and privacy “Sanctions and ‘other’ pressures are beginning to have a big impact on North Korea,” Trump tweeted. “Soldiers are dangerously fleeing to South Korea. Rocket man now wants to talk to South Korea for first time. Perhaps that is good news, perhaps not — we will see!” Cover tile photo: Yahoo News photo illustration; photos: Mike Theiler/Pool via Bloomberg, KCNA VIA KNS/AFP/Getty Images -- Peace Is Doable -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Green Youth Movement" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. 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