N. Korea's trade volume drops to practically zero amid coronavirus pandemic: official

North Korea's trade with the outside world has dropped to practically zero due to the country's tightened border controls amid the global coronavirus pandemic, the unification ministry said Wednesday. In January and February, the trade volume between the North and China stood at around $3.27 million, a ministry official said, citing Chinese customs data. "This figure includes the trade volume of electricity exported last year so there were no actual physical exchanges," a ministry of

March 31, 2021

NK people's access to information should be expanded without hurting rights of other people: ministry

North Korean people's access to outside information should be expanded but not at the expense of the safety of people living in border regions in South Korea, the unification ministry said Wednesday. A ministry official made the remarks after the US State Department stressed the importance of free flows of information to the reclusive North, referring to South Korea's recently enforced law banning the sending of anti-Pyongyang leaflets in its annual human rights report. "Our government al

March 31, 2021

Latest NK missile nuclear-tipped, hard to intercept: report

The two ballistic missiles North Korea tested a week ago could carry nuclear warheads and would be hard to intercept with South Korea’s missile defense systems, a local security think tank said Tuesday in its latest report. “They could put a nuclear warhead on each KN-23,” the Sejong Institute said, referring to the missiles. The report cited experts including Jefferey Lewis of the California-based Middlebury Institute of International Studies. He said the North could mount nu

March 31, 2021

Steam indicates activity at Yongbyon nuke center: think tank

A US think tank suggested possible activity at North Korea’s key nuclear facility in Yongbyon, pointing to a satellite image showing steam coming out of its radiochemistry lab and thermal plant. The Center for Strategic and International Studies published its analysis based on a satellite image dated Tuesday as the US government is wrapping up a comprehensive review of its North Korea policy. In an article published on “Beyond Parellel,” a website run by the CSIS Korea Chair,

March 31, 2021

Steam detected at N. Korea's plutonium reprocessing plant: US think tank

Recent satellite imagery showed steam from the plutonium reprocessing plant at North Korea's Yongbyon nuclear complex, a US think tank said Wednesday, an indication of activity at the facility used to extract the key nuclear weapon ingredient. The imagery taken on Tuesday shows a plume of steam or smoke emanating from a small support building in the center of the reprocessing plant, known as the Radiochemical Laboratory, according to Beyond Parallel, a project of the Center for Strategic and In

March 31, 2021

N. Korea's paper urges better water management to prevent flooding

North Korea's official newspaper on Wednesday urged stepped-up efforts for effective water management to prevent the recurrence of flooding that caused heavy damage to the country last summer. "Without well organizing rivers and streams, we could be faced with tremendous damage as our homes, public buildings, roads and railways could be inundated or destructed and our farmland could be lost," the Rodong Sinmun, the organ of the ruling Workers' Party, said. "Natural disasters w

March 31, 2021

UN Security Council meets on NK missile launches, but no action

The UN Security Council convened a closed-door session Tuesday to discuss North Korea's recent missile launches but took no immediate action, a report said. On Thursday, the North test-fired two short-range ballistic missiles into the East Sea, the first such provocative move in about a year. The launches came just days after it fired two cruise missiles into the Yellow Sea. The Security Council held the half-hour meeting, but it released no statement, according to AFP. A diplomat was quoted a

March 31, 2021

US will hold N. Korea accountable for 'egregious' human rights violations: official

The United States will hold North Korea accountable for its "egregious" human rights violations, a State Department official said Tuesday, as it released an annual human rights report. Lisa Peterson, acting assistant secretary of state in the bureau of democracy, human rights and labor, made the remarks, reaffirming human rights will be an "indispensable" element of the Joe Biden administration's policy toward Pyongyang. The State Department published the 2020 Country Repor

March 31, 2021

Biden does not intend to meet with NK leader: White House

US President Joe Biden does not intend to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un as his approach to Pyongyang will be "quite different," the White House said Monday. During a press conference on Thursday, Biden said that the United States would respond accordingly if the North escalates tensions in the wake of its recent missile tests and that he is also prepared for some form of diplomacy. "I think his approach would be quite different, and that is not his intention," W

March 30, 2021

NK leader's sister slams Moon as 'parrot' repeating

The sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on Tuesday criticized South Korean President Moon Jae-in for his speech on the North's recent missile launches, mocking him as a "parrot" that repeats the United States' "gangster-like logic." Kim Yo-jong made the criticism in a statement after Moon said on Friday in a speech that any action that could undercut the mood for dialogue is "undesirable," hours after Pyongyang confirmed its test-firing of short-range ballist

March 30, 2021

Minister urges N. Korea to respond to calls for humanitarian cooperation

Unification Minister Lee In-young said Monday that inter-Korean cooperation in the humanitarian area can be a good starting point for the resumption of talks between the two sides, urging North Korea to show a "flexible" response to offers for exchanges. Lee made the remarks at a seminar in Seoul to discuss the possibility of running trains to send cheering squads of the two Koreas to the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, adding that Seoul will do its best to create the momentum needed to

March 29, 2021

NK blasts UN ‘double standard’ on missile tests

North Korea on Monday denounced the United Nations for applying a “double standard” in criticizing Pyongyang’s recent missile test, accusing the international organization of infringing on the North’s sovereignty.   　 Jo Chol-su, director general of the department of international organizations within North Korea’s Foreign Ministry, issued a statement via the state-run Korea Central News Agency on Monday, after Pyongyang test-fired two short-range ballistic m

March 29, 2021

Law banning leaflets into N. Korea to take effect this week

A law banning the sending of anti-Pyongyang leaflets into North Korea will take effect this week, the unification ministry said Monday. The amendment to the Development of Inter-Korean Relations Act, set to go into effect Tuesday, has raised concerns that it could hurt freedom of expression and undercut efforts to send information into the reclusive North. "In the process of enforcing the ban, we will strive to do so in a way in line with the government's goal of improving the human right

March 29, 2021

N. Korea to hold large sports competition to mark birth anniv. of state founder

North Korea will hold a large sports competition next month to mark the birth anniversary of state founder Kim Il-sung, state media reported Monday. The sports competition among athletes, students and workers from each province will kick off April 5 in Pyongyang and run through April 15, the birth anniversary of the late grandfather of current leader Kim Jong-un, according to the Korean Central News Agency. The founder's birthday, referred to in the North as the Day of the Sun, is the country'

March 29, 2021

N. Korea accuses UN of 'double standard' for criticizing recent missile test

North Korea on Monday accused the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) of violating its sovereignty and applying a "double standard" as it is set to hold a meeting this week to discuss Pyongyang's recent missile launches. Jo Chol-su, director-general of the Department of International Organizations of North Korea's foreign ministry, made the criticism in a statement, as the UNSC is to hold a closed-door meeting Tuesday after the North test-fired two short-range ballistic missiles la

March 29, 2021

NK paper stresses local economy as 'cornerstone' of national development

North Korea's official newspaper on Sunday called for local economic development to achieve self-reliance in securing food and other key necessities, saying cities and counties are a "cornerstone" of the national economy. "Development of cities and counties are a major requirement for an improvement in livelihood of people," the Rodong Sinmun, the organ of the ruling Workers' Party, said. "To significantly improve the livelihoods of people, resolving the food problem, a

March 28, 2021

Consultation with allies important part of N. Korea policy review: White House

WASHINGTON -- US efforts to develop a new approach toward North Korea are in their final stages that include consultations with US allies, a White House spokeswoman said Friday, calling consultations an important part of the process. "We are in the final stages of our intensive, multi-stakeholder North Korea policy review," Jen Psaki told a daily press briefing. "And we're, of course, discussing our review with national security advisers of South Korea and Japan and our trilateral

March 28, 2021

N. Korea to hold conference of 'cell secretaries' in early April: state media

North Korea will hold a conference early next month of the secretaries of "party cells," the grassroots units of the ruling Workers Party, state media reported Sunday, as the country tries to achieve goals laid out in a party congress earlier this year. "The Secretariat of the Central Committee of the ruling party decided to convene the sixth conference of cell Secretaries to discuss and guide the affairs in prioritizing the position and role of the Party cells", the Korean

March 28, 2021

S. Korea, US. express deep concerns about NK missile launches

Senior defense officials of South Korea and the United States have expressed deep concerns over North Korea's recent missile launches and vowed to closely cooperate to counter threats from Pyongyang, Seoul's defense ministry said Saturday. Cho Yong-geun, director of North Korea policy at the defense ministry, and David Helvey, acting assistant secretary of defense for Indo-Pacific affairs, held telephone talks Friday, a day after the North fired two short-range ballistic missiles in a first s

March 27, 2021

N.Korea accuses Biden of 'provocation' for criticizing missile launches

North Korea on Saturday accused US President Joe Biden of making a "provocation" for criticizing its recent missile launches, claiming the firings are an exercise of its self-defense right and warning the United States will face "something that is not good" if such "thoughtless remarks" continue. Ri Pyong-chol, vice chairman of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party, made the statement, a day after Biden said the North's launch of two short-range ballistic m

March 27, 2021