Below The Beltway

It looks like North Korea is already grooming one of Kim Jong Il’s sons to take over when his father dies:
SUNGNAM, South Korea — The black-and-white photographs that were published last month in a North Korean newspaper appear no different from other propaganda coming from North Korea: they show the supreme leader, Kim Jong-il, touring [...]

Nearly a month ago, a South Korean warship sunk in disputed waters and suspicion immediately turned to the ROK’s neighbors. to the north.
Now, the South Korean military is specifically alleging that the North Koreans were behind the incident:
SEOUL (Reuters) – South Korea’s military believes a torpedo fired from a North Korean submarine sank its navy [...]

Well, this just what we need right now:
SEOUL, South Korea — South Korea’s military scrambled naval vessels to the western waters near the disputed maritime border with North Korea late Friday after an explosion ripped a hole in the bottom of a military ship, officials and news reports said.
The ship – reported to have 104 [...]

In a move apparently related to Bill Clinton’s arrival there today, North Korea has released the two American journalists convicted of spying earlier this year
SEOUL, South Korea — The North Korean leader, Kim Jong-il, pardoned two jailed American journalists, the official KCNA news agency has reported, according to Reuters. The report came after former President [...]

It must be nuclear Monday, because, in addition to a new report about Iran, we’ve got reports of a secret nuclear program in one of the world’s most reclusive nations:
Two of Asia’s most oppressive regimes may have joined forces to develop a nuclear arsenal, according to strategic experts who have analysed information supplied by a [...]