Summary of external news of North Korea this week

SEOUL, March 31 (Yonhap) -- The following is a summary of external news of North Korea this week.

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(2nd LD) N. Korea plans to send weapons, munitions to Russia in exchange for food: NSC

WASHINGTON -- North Korea is working to send dozens of kinds of weapons and munitions to Russia to be used in the ongoing Russian war against Ukraine, a National Security Council (NSC) official said Thursday.

John Kirby, NSC coordinator for strategic communications, said North Korea seeks to secure food supplies in exchange and that the potential arms deal is being arranged through a Slovakian arms dealer, identified as Ashot Mkrtychev.

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(3rd LD) S. Korea, U.S. stage 'decisive action' phase of major amphibious landing exercise

SEOUL -- South Korea and the United States conducted major amphibious assault drills mobilizing their high-spirited forces, landing ships, stealth fighters and choppers under the rallying cry of "decisive action' in a southern city on Wednesday.

The South's Marine Corps revealed to the media part of the drills that proceeded in and around Pohang, 272 kilometers southeast of Seoul. They marked a highlight of the allies' large-scale Ssangyong (double dragon) landing exercise, which runs through next Monday.

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(2nd LD) Yoon vows not to give single won to N. Korea if it continues nuclear pursuit

SEOUL -- President Yoon Suk Yeol said Tuesday that not a single won should be given to North Korea as long as it continues to develop nuclear weapons, according to his spokesperson.

Yoon made the remark during a Cabinet meeting after being briefed by Unification Minister Kwon Young-se on the government's first public release of a North Korean human rights report this Friday.

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S. Korea, U.S., Japan to hold joint exercise involving USS Nimitz: U.S. official

SEOUL -- South Korea, the United States and Japan will soon hold a trilateral maritime exercise, involving an American nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, a U.S. Navy official said Tuesday.

Rear Adm. Christopher Sweeney, the commander of Carrier Strike Group 11, unveiled the plan during a press meeting aboard the USS Nimitz carrier, which arrived in the southeastern city of Busan earlier in the day, in a show of the U.S.' naval might against North Korean threats.

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(2nd LD) USS Nimitz carrier in S. Korea amid N. Korea's saber-rattling

SEOUL -- A nuclear-powered U.S. aircraft carrier arrived in the southeastern port city of Busan on Tuesday, in yet another show of America's military might against growing North Korean threats.

The USS Nimitz carrier docked at ROK Fleet Command in the city, 325 kilometers southeast of Seoul, after its strike group trained with the South Korean Navy in the international waters south of the southern island of Jeju the previous day.
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