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Friday, May 23, 2025

POLITICO Nightly: The North Korea-Russia alliance gets tighter

People watch a news program in Seoul, South Korea, showing North Korean soldiers undergoing combat training in Russia on April 30, 2025. | Ahn Young-joon/AP

TIT FOR TAT — After months of sending troops and weapons to help Russia in its fight against Ukraine, North Korea may finally be getting something crucial in return.

On Tuesday, South Korean military officials announced that North Korea likely received help from Russia to develop a new air-to-air missile — a missile fired from an aircraft to destroy another aircraft — which is the kind of advanced weaponry that South Korea is attempting to build by 2032.

Just weeks before that, North Korea unveiled suicide attack drones, which the state media claims have been equipped with artificial intelligence. This, too, was likely assisted by Russian technology, according to Lee Sung-joon , spokesperson for the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff, who said, “Russia may have had something to do with the internal systems and parts.”

While the details of these weapon developments cannot be 100 percent verified due to the lack of international access to North Korean operations, the apparent advancements are enough to raise real concern about Russia beginning to provide advanced military technology to North Korea. A supercharged North Korea could spell trouble for the U.S., which had relied on a strategy of deterrence — the idea that North Korea kept peace because it knew it would be overmatched in war — to keep Pyongyang away from American allies.

North Korea has been a crucial partner in Russia’s war against Ukraine, supplying a range of weapons from artillery shells to ballistic missiles. One of those missiles was likely used last month to kill 12 people in Kyiv. In addition, North Korea also sent 11,000 of its soldiers to the field last year, bolstering Russia’s dwindling manpower as the war dragged on. About 4,700 of those troops have either been killed or injured, and yet North Korea has sent at least an additional 3,000 soldiers to the battlefield early this year.

Despite multiple reports from South Korea, Ukraine and the U.S. about North Korea’s involvement in the war, neither North Korea nor Russia formally acknowledged the partnership until last month, when North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un announced he had sent troops to “annihilate and wipe out the Ukrainian neo-Nazi occupiers and liberate the Kursk area in cooperation with the Russian armed forces.” That marks the first formal acknowledgment of a military cooperation between the two countries under Kim Jong Un’s reign.

When North Korea’s support for Russia’s war was first detected, the U.S. and its allies were concerned about how that partnership could destabilize Asia. But the one silver lining was that the relationship was not yet reciprocal where it really mattered: It hadn’t seemed like Russia’s state-of-the-art military technology was being shared with North Korea.

But South Korean officials believe that may no longer be the case — which is a revelation that could not only shatter stability in East Asia but also directly threaten the U.S.

“Let's say Kim goes to the extreme,” said Bruce Bennett, a senior defense analyst at RAND, “and at some point uses a nuclear weapon. The natural tendency of the U.S. doctrine is if they do that, we will eliminate the regime.” But what North Korea is trying to do, he said, is to “have enough nuclear forces such that if we go after the regime, he goes after the U.S. and allied population centers, and that's going to deter us.”

“[Kim Jong Un] is trying to build a military capability where he can actually use some of his military for coercive purposes, for some other things he wants, like economic assistance, because he's doing such a miserable job in economic areas. It's his one potential way of trying to solve some of those problems,” Bennett added.

The dangers of the North Korea-Russian alliance has been on the U.S. radar for a while: “The DPRK is already receiving Russian military equipment and training. Now, we have reason to believe that Moscow intends to share advanced space and satellite technology with Pyongyang,” then-Secretary of State Antony Blinken during a January visit to Seoul.

The recent developments prove that we’re one step closer to those concerns, if not already there.

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What'd I Miss?

— Two Israeli Embassy staffers killed in shooting outside Capital Jewish Museum: Two staff members at the Israeli Embassy were shot and killed Wednesday outside the Capital Jewish Museum by an assailant who police say shouted “free, free Palestine” after he was arrested. The attack outside an event at the Jewish Museum in Washington drew widespread condemnation, including from President Donald Trump. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said federal authorities were investigating the attack.

excerpts:

Pamela A. Smith, chief of police for the DC Metropolitan Police Department, said in a press conference that a single suspect approached a group of four people exiting the museum and fired his handgun, striking two of them. He then entered the museum, where he was detained by event security. The suspect, tentatively identified as 30-year-old Elias Rodriguez, chanted “free, free Palestine,” while in custody, she said.

The two victims in the shooting were identified as Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Lynn Milgrim by the state of Israel’s X account, adding that both were staff members to the embassy in Washington. Israeli ambassador to the U.S. Yechiel Leiter said at a news conference that the couple was about to be engaged.

In April, a suspect set fire to the residence of Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro while the governor and his family were inside. The alleged arsonist later said Shapiro “needs to know that he ‘will not take part in his plans for what he wants to do to the Palestinian people.’”

“This sickening shooting seems to be another horrific instance of antisemitism which as we know is all too rampant in our society,” said Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, one of the most prominent American Jews in the federal government. “I’m praying for those who were killed, all those affected, and their families.”

****THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION HAS MADE SIGNIFIICANT PROGRESS IN EDUCATING CHILDREN ACROSS THE NATION, ASSESSING TEACHING METHODS FOR SUCCESS, PROVIDE GRANT FUNDING TO UPGRADE EDUCATION & MUCH ELSE....TRUMP ET AL IS ANTI-EDUCATION - CLEARLY DEFINED BY PUTTING AN INCOMPETENT LACKEY IN CHARGE!****

— Judge blocks Trump bid to dismantle Department of Education: A federal judge has blocked the Trump administration from firing thousands of workers at the Department of Education, ruling that the announced terminations were a thinly veiled effort to dismantle the entire department without congressional approval. U.S. District Judge Myong Joun rejected the administration’s claim that the thousands of terminations announced in March were a bid for “efficiency.” In fact, they had deeply disrupted services for students, families and states, making processes less efficient, the judge said.

excerpts:

Joun said the massive reductions were more clearly aimed at carrying out President Donald Trump’s campaign-trail promise to eliminate the department altogether — something the judge said would be illegal without congressional approval. Joun noted that Trump issued an executive order in March directing the Secretary of Education to “take all necessary steps to facilitate the closure of the Department.”

“The record abundantly reveals that Defendants’ true intention is to effectively dismantle the Department without an authorizing statute,” Joun, a Biden appointee, wrote in an 88-page opinion. “The idea that Defendants’ actions are merely a ‘reorganization’ is plainly not true.”

In addition to blocking the firings, the judge’s order bars the Department of Education from transferring its functions to other agencies and from carrying out Trump’s executive order to close the department altogether. Joun’s order also requires the department to reinstate employees terminated since Trump’s inauguration to “restore the Department to the status quo such that it is able to carry out its statutory functions.”

SEE VIDEO! INCOMPETENT POLITICAL HACK LINDA MCMAHON ADMITS DOE CLOSURE WOULD REQUIRE CONGRESSIONAL APPROVAL!

A spokesperson for the Department of Education attacked Joun as an “unelected judge with a political axe to grind,” calling the mass termination “obviously lawful.” The administration on Thursday took initial steps to appeal Joun’s ruling.

“This ruling is not in the best interest of American students or families,” spokesperson Madi Biedermann said.

Joun’s order is the latest bid by the courts to stave off some of the most extensive and abrupt efforts by the Trump administration to unilaterally slash and remake federal agencies. And it’s also the latest in a flurry of rulings aimed specifically at the Department of Education and its contractors, state-level affiliates and related programs.

U.S. District Judge Paul Friedman on Wednesday ordered the department to restore grant funding that had been awarded to the Southern Education Foundation, a nonprofit that receives federal funds to help schools further desegregation efforts dating back to the 1960s. The Trump administration slashed that program as part of its efforts to eliminate “DEI” programs.

Friedman, a Clinton appointee, also on Wednesday ruled against a nonprofit representing students and parents in a lawsuit challenging the department’s moves to deplete or shutter its Office for Civil Rights.

***OKLAHOMA RANKS 48TH IN EDUCATION. TEACHING THE TRUMP MADE IN CHINA BIBLES TO SCHOOL CHILDREN DEFINES OKLAHOMA'S FAILURES! ****

US NEWS OKLAHOMA

Oklahoma Supreme Court blocks Bible purchases for use in public schools

GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY

— Deadlocked Supreme Court won’t allow nation’s first public religious charter school: The Supreme Court deadlocked today on whether openly religious schools are entitled under the Constitution to receive public money through state charter-school programs. By splitting 4-4 on the question, the justices left in place a lower-court ruling in Oklahoma denying public funding to what would have been the nation’s first religious public charter school. But the deadlock sets no precedent on the issue to guide officials in the rest of the country — and supporters of religious charter schools promised they would try to bring additional litigation to the high court.

excerpts:

The case centered on St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School, an online-only institution that wanted to launch as a state-funded charter school. Opponents argued that state funding for the school would violate the Constitution’s ban on government-established religion.

But during oral arguments last month, Chief Justice John Roberts suggested that allowing the day-to-day operations of a religious school to be part of a state-run program could create greater entanglement between church and state.

“Those involved fairly discrete state involvement,” Roberts said, referring to the earlier cases involving private schools. “This does strike me as a much more comprehensive involvement.”

Opponents of St. Isidore said allowing a religious, publicly funded school would create thorny questions related to potential discrimination in hiring and admissions, as well as how the school would deal with teachers, parents and students who might disagree with Catholic religious teachings.

St. Isidore said it would conform to the state’s curriculum guidelines, but critics said that if the school were approved, other religious groups would request their own schools and some would seek deviations from the public curriculum.

Americans United for Separation of Church and State applauded the outcome. “The Supreme Court’s stalemate safeguards public education and upholds the separation of church and state,” the group’s president and CEO, Rachel Laser, said in a statement. “We will continue our efforts to protect inclusive public education. We call on this nation to recommit to church-state separation before this safeguard of democracy and freedom is further attacked.”

Conservative groups from around the country had weighed in to defend St. Isidore with the hope of creating a test case that would change the U.S. Supreme Court’s interpretation of the First Amendment’s establishment clause — and clear the way for a new form of public education that supporters argued would advance religious freedom and school choice.

****INTIMIDATION, FALSE ACCUSATIONS, THREATS TO HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS FROM THE ANTI-EDUCATION LACKEYS LIKE DOG KILLER KRISTI NOEM!***

— Trump administration ends Harvard’s ability to enroll foreign students: The Trump administration is halting Harvard University’s eligibility to enroll international students — the latest move in the growing pressure campaign for the university to align itself with the administration. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem notified the university today that their certification for the Student and Exchange Visitor Program is revoked, following an extensive records request from the Department of Homeland Security that Noem alleges Harvard has not complied with. The certification program is what allows institutions to enroll foreign students.

excerpts:

Homeland Security Secretary DOG KILLER Kristi Noem notified the university on Thursday that their certification for the Student and Exchange Visitor Program is revoked, following an extensive records request from the Department of Homeland Security that Noem alleges Harvard has not complied with. The certification program is what allows institutions to enroll foreign students.

Thousands of international students and scholars are now in limbo as Noem says they must transfer out of the university to maintain their visa statuses since Harvard is ineligible to enroll anyone with an F- or J- nonimmigrant status for the 2025-2026 academic school year.

International students make up about 27 percent of Harvard’s total enrollment with more than 6,700 international students enrolled at the university as of fall 2024.

A Harvard spokesperson called the move “unlawful” and emphasized that the institution is committed to maintaining its ability to host international students and scholars.

“We are working quickly to provide guidance and support to members of our community,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “This retaliatory action threatens serious harm to the Harvard community and our country, and undermines Harvard’s academic and research mission.”

The ban marks an escalation of the Trump administration’s attacks on Harvard and higher education institutions across the country, which have manifested in investigations and thousands of foreign visa revocations for students accused of being “pro-Hamas.”

“This should be a warning to every other university to get your act together,” Noem told Fox News shortly after the announcement, saying that DHS will “absolutely” consider similar moves against other universities.

“Get your act together because we are coming to make sure that these programs, that you are facilitating an environment where students can learn, where they are safe and that they are not discriminated against based on their race or religion,” Noem told Fox’s Martha MacCallum.

“Our international students are vital members of our community who must meet the standards of performance and conduct we expect of our US students,” Harvard President Alan Garber said earlier this month in a letter to Education Secretary Linda McMahon, which has since been pulled from Harvard’s website. “We are aware of no evidence for the allegation that they are collectively more prone to disruption, violence, or other misconduct than any other students. They come to this country and to Harvard to learn and achieve at the highest levels, just as our US students do.”

***NOTICE THAT COMMENTS ARE MADE ABOUT THE ACCURACY OF PREDICTIONS IN 2024 - PRIOR TO SLASHING EXPERIENCED PERSONNEL & CLOSING OFFICES. NWS FAILURES TO WARN OF TORNADOES WERE BLAMED ON LACK OF 24/7 PERSONNEL - PEOPLE DIED FROM LACK OF WARNINGS & FEMA NO LONGER RESPONDS!****

— NOAA projects above-normal Atlantic hurricane season: Federal forecasters today predicted the United States would most likely experience an above-normal Atlantic hurricane season that could yield up to 19 named storms and five major hurricanes. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration projected a 60 percent chance of exceeding the average 14 named storms for the season that runs June 1 through Nov. 30. NOAA officials said reduced trade winds and higher ocean temperatures that provide more fuel for cyclones will boost the likelihood of storms this season. Climate change also has contributed to heavier rainfall events that make hurricanes more destructive, National Weather Service Director Ken Graham said.

excerpts:

The forecast comes as the Trump administration faces questions from disaster experts and Democrats about the nation’s readiness for hurricane season amid the president’s efforts to purge the federal workforce. The National Weather Service, which is responsible for informing local communities of approaching storms, is trying to fill 155 vacancies. NOAA has cut staff and will likely lose more through the Trump administration’s reduction in force. The Federal Emergency Management Agency has slashed employees and programs that some worry will imperil disaster preparedness and response.

NOAA officials downplayed those concerns at a Wednesday event in Louisiana.

“The hurricane center is fully staffed up and we’re ready to go,” acting NOAA chief Laura Grimm said. “Weather prediction, forecasting, modeling is a top priority of ours.”

NWS’ Graham said modeling improvements have bolstered its ability to track storm intensity by 45 percent compared with 10 years ago. Rapidly intensifying cyclones are the most damaging, he noted.

Of the six to 10 hurricanes NOAA projected for this year, three to five of them could evolve into major hurricanes, according to the agency. NOAA forecast between 13 and 19 named storms for the season.

Grimm urged people to take the forecast seriously and noted the 2024 outlook in the end “was right on the money.”

Still, Graham implored people to keep checking for updated forecasts as the season progresses. NOAA forecasters projected an exceptionally active Atlantic hurricane season for 2024, which got off to a fast start as Hurricane Beryl became the earliest-ever Category 5 storm to form in the Atlantic basin. Activity cooled until the fall when Hurricane Milton and Hurricane Helene hit the Southeast, causing tens of billions of dollars in damage.

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AROUND THE WORLD

French President Emmanuel Macron arrives to address the audience at an award ceremony at the Elysee Palace in Paris on May 21, 2025. | Pool photo by Christophe Petit Tesson

FURY IN FRANCE — A visibly angry Emmanuel Macron blasted his ministers during a defense cabinet meeting Wednesday after a botched release of a report into the influence of the Muslim Brotherhood in France , according to a high-ranking government official.

A second official, who, like others quoted here, was granted anonymity to speak candidly, said the French president accused his ministers generally for not coming up with adequate solutions to counter the threat posed by the Islamist group. But the dressing down — first reported by French daily Le Parisien — appears to be a shot across the bow to Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau.

The report into the influence of the Muslim Brotherhood was expected to be published on Wednesday, but its release was delayed by Macron’s office after the document was leaked to conservative media. An early version of the report seen by POLITICO said that the Muslim Brotherhood had gone to great lengths to push its fundamentalist agenda across France and Europe.

INTERPRETATION QUESTIONS — Nine European leaders are calling for the European Convention on Human Rights to be reinterpreted to allow migrants who commit crimes to be expelled more easily .

The European Court of Human Rights has extended the scope of the Convention too far, argue the signatories of a written statement spearheaded by Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Danish PM Mette Frederiksen.

Italy and Denmark want to “open a political debate on some European conventions to which we are bound and on the capacity of those conventions, a few decades after they were written, to address the great issues of our time, starting precisely with the issue of the migration phenomenon,” Meloni said this evening.

Leaders from Austria, Belgium, Czechia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland also signed the document.

Nightly Number

$56 million

The amount of money that the Mint expects it will immediately save annually by phasing out the penny , a plan of President Donald Trump’s that the Treasury Department said today it expects to move forward with. A Treasury spokesperson said that the agency had placed its final order of penny blanks this month and that the U.S. Mint would continue manufacturing pennies until that supply runs out.

RADAR SWEEP

SPREADING AROUND — When indigenous people from Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador migrate to the United States, many don’t bring more than the clothes on their backs and their native tongues, which derived from ancient Mayan civilizations. Now, Mayan languages are spreading across the country through immigration and being kept alive in immigrant communities. California cities like Oakland have become hubs for Mayan language speakers, some of which host radio programs and teach children in Mam, one of 30-plus Mayan languages spoken around the world. Juan Pablo Pérez-Burgos reports for BBC.

Parting Image

On this date in 1979: Demonstrators smash glass out of the front doors of the San Francisco City Hall, protesting the voluntary manslaughter (and not murder) conviction of Dan White in the fatal shootings of Mayor George Moscone and Supervisor Harvey Milk. | Paul Sakuma/AP

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Monday, January 17, 2022

Trump slams DeSantis as Republican feud festers

Family of MLK Jr. to lead Washington march for voting rights today

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Trump administration exerted "unprecedented" census engagement in bid for political gain
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Prince Harry seeks right to pay for UK police protection when in Britain
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