Pope to Koreas: Avoid 'fruitless' shows of force

Pope Francis called today for renewed efforts to forge peace on the war-divided Korean Peninsula and for both sides to avoid "fruitless" criticisms and shows of force, opening a five-day visit to South Korea with a message of reconciliation as Seoul's rival, North Korea, fired five projectiles into the sea.
North Korea has a long history of making sure it is not forgotten during high-profile events in the South, and Thursday's apparent test firing off its eastern coast made its presence felt.
In the first speech of his first trip to Asia, Francis told South Korean President Park Geun-hye and government officials that peace required forgiveness, cooperation and mutual respect. He said diplomacy must be encouraged so that listening and dialogue replace "mutual recriminations, fruitless criticisms and displays of force."

The Argentine pope spoke in English, the first English speech of his pontificate. Usually he speaks in Italian or his native Spanish, but the Vatican said he would deliver at least four speeches in English on the trip to accommodate his Asian audiences.
North Korea's apparent test firing was conducted from Wonsan on its east coast and the initial three short-range projectiles flew about 220 kilometers (135 miles), according to a South Korean Defense Ministry official who spoke on condition of anonymity, citing office rules.
It wasn't immediately clear what the projectiles were. After an initial three firings an hour before Francis arrived, North Korea followed up with two others a short time after he landed.

North Korea has conducted an unusually large number of short-range missile and artillery test firings this year. It has expressed anger over annual military drills between the United States and South Korea, which it says are invasion preparations.

A new round of drills, which Seoul and Washington call routine and defensive, is expected to start in coming days.
Neither Francis nor Park referred to the firings in their public remarks.
Organizers of the pope's trip had invited a delegation of North Korean Catholics to attend his August 18 Mass for peace and reconciliation at Seoul's main cathedral. But late last month, North Korean authorities told the organizers that they wouldn't participate for various reasons, a Vatican spokesman said.

North Korea's constitution guarantees freedom of religion, but in practice only sanctioned services are tolerated by the government.