ZeroFox Physical Security Intelligence Daily Brief - November 14, 2024

ZeroFox Physical Security Intelligence Daily Brief - November 14, 2024

ZeroFox physical security experts collect, curate, and analyze information derived from open and proprietary sources for comprehensive context of the circumstances surrounding global events. Here is today’s daily roundup of major developments.

Brief Highlights

• South Korea and Multiple Countries, Including those in NATO, Discusses on Response Measures Against North Korean Soldiers in Ukraine
• China Holds Combat Drills in Disputed Shoal amid Rising Tension with Philippines
• Senegalese PM Calls for "Retaliation" Ahead of Key Legislative Elections

South Korea and Multiple Countries, Including those in NATO, Discusses on Response Measures Against North Korean Soldiers in Ukraine

On November 13, 2024, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Secretary General Mark Rutte discussed coordinated responses to North Korea's troop deployment to Russia in support of its war in Ukraine. During the call, Yoon said Seoul is arranging for a Ukrainian special envoy's visit to South Korea to share information and coordinate joint responses, vowing to maintain close communication with NATO over the issue. Additionally, 10 countries including South Korea, the United States, the United Kingdom, and France criticized North Korea's dispatch of troops to Russia, saying, "North Korea's direct support of Russia's war of aggression in Ukraine means a dangerous expansion of the conflict that will have serious consequences for peace and security in Europe and the Indo-Pacific." Most leaders are concerned about the potential transfer of nuclear or ballistic missile technology from Russia to North Korea.

China Holds Combat Drills in Disputed Shoal amid Rising Tension with Philippines

On November 13, 2024, China’s Southern Theater Command of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) held sea and air combat readiness patrols around the contested Scarborough Shoal (Huangyan Island) just days after China published baselines for the shoal including geographic coordinates. The latest drills come after Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. signed into law the Philippine Maritime Zones Act and Philippine Archipelagic Sea Lanes Act, reaffirming its maritime territories and right to resources, a move that angered China. China and the Philippines summoned ambassadors condemning each other for violating territorial sovereignty and maritime rights. Tensions between China and the Philippines continue to build up over their competing claims to Scarborough Shoal and other outcrops in the South China Sea.

Senegalese PM Calls for "Retaliation" Ahead of Key Legislative Elections

Senegalese Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko has called for retaliation in response to incidents of violence he attributes to Dakar mayor and electoral rival Barthélémy Dias. Senegal will hold legislative elections on November 17, 2024, which will determine how much of their ambitious agenda Sonko and aligned President Bassirou Diomaye Faye can put into action. The importance of the contest has raised tensions in the country, which has a strong but often aggressive democracy.