I saw this in my morning paper today. Remember the summit between North and South Korea a couple years ago, the one that Kim Dae-jung won the Nobel Peace Prize for? Well, it seems there's more to the story. From CNN: Payoff scandal over inter-Korean summit

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) -- South Korean President Kim Dae-jung's policy of seeking closer ties with North Korea has been dealt a blow after government auditors disclosed that a business conglomerate had used U.S.$186 million from a government bank for North Korea-related projects shortly before a historic inter-Korean summit.



The opposition Grand National Party has long claimed that Kim and the Hyundai conglomerate used the money as a payoff to "buy" the 2000 summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Il.

Sohn Seung-tae, deputy director of the government's audit agency, could not provide details of how the money was spent, and it was unclear whether it might have been a normal business transaction.

But opposition leaders quickly insisted that the disclosure backed their claim of a payoff to the North's communist government.

"This proves that this government's biggest achievement, the June 15 South-North summit, was bought with money," opposition party spokesman Park Jong-hee said.



Oh, and now there's this: U.S. Satellites See N. Korea Activity

Throughout January, U.S. intelligence has detected substantial activity at North Korea's once shuttered nuclear facility, a possible sign it is getting ready to produce nuclear weapons, officials said Friday.



American spy satellites have detected covered trucks apparently taking on cargo at the nuclear storage facility at Yongbyon, where spent nuclear fuel rods are stored, said U.S. officials, speaking on condition of anonymity. When processed, enough plutonium can be extracted from the 8,000 rods to make four or five nuclear weapons, U.S. officials have said.



Of course, North Korea says 'Nuke crisis not our fault'

Sure, it's our fault that we caught them lying and cheating on the 1994 agreement. Shame on us.