All eyes on party meeting as North’s Kim pens New Year’s letter

Speculation is mounting over North Korea’s key party congress opening early this week, following leader Kim Jong-un writing the public a rare New Year’s letter carried by state media on Friday. In the letter, Kim thanked North Koreans for their enduring trust and support in difficult times and vowed to bring closer a period when they see their ideals and desires realized. The Korean Central News Agency said the letter was penned by Kim, who has given a televised New Year’s sp

Jan. 3, 2021

UNC says 86 messages delivered to N. Korea through Panmunjom

  The United Nations Command said Friday it has delivered a total of 86 messages to North Korea through a direct telephone line at the truce village of Panmunjom last year. "UNC maintained its line-of-communication with #KPA counterparts throughout the year," the UNC said in a Facebook post, referring to the Korean People's Army of the North.  "We passed 86 messages and conducted twice-daily line checks for timely and effective information exchange," it added. No

Jan. 1, 2021

NK leader sends handwritten New Year greetings to people

  North Korean leader Kim Jong-un extended New Year's greetings in a short letter to the people Friday, apparently skipping his trademark address on the first day of the year ahead of a rare party congress expected to take place soon. "I sincerely wish all the families across the country greater happiness and beloved people, good health. In the new year, too, I will work hard to bring earlier the new era in which the ideals and desires of our people will come true," Kim said in t

Jan. 1, 2021

Ex-UN chief Ban calls for rectification of ban on sending anti-N. Korea leaflets

Former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called Thursday for the government to "rectify" a recently legislated ban on sending anti-Pyongyang leaflets into North Korea, saying the law made South Korea a target of international human rights criticism. Ban made the call in his pre-released New Year's speech posted on his foundation's website, as US politicians and other critics voiced concerns that the ban could hurt freedom of expression and efforts to deliver outside information into th

Dec. 31, 2020

Unification ministry to scale up financial support for N. Korea aid groups

The unification ministry said Thursday it will allow North Korea aid groups to receive state financial support multiple times a year in an effort to facilitate humanitarian assistance to the impoverished nation. Currently, local nongovernmental organizations providing aid to the North can each receive financial support from the ministry once a year. The aid groups are also required to self-finance at least 50 percent of the costs for projects subject to state support. The ministry said it has

Dec. 31, 2020

N. Korea's rare party congress appears imminent as delegates arrive in Pyongyang

North Korean delegates participating in an upcoming congress of the ruling Workers' Party have gathered in Pyongyang and were awarded certificates, state media said Thursday, raising the possibility that the meeting could take place as early as this week. The upcoming session, which will be the first party congress in four years, has drawn keen attention as the North is expected to unveil a new economic development plan and could announce its new policy line on the United States and South Korea

Dec. 31, 2020

[Newsmaker] N. Korea to set new policies at key party meeting soon

North Korea said Wednesday it will open a party congress in early January where leader Kim Jong-un is expected to set fresh economic and foreign policies. “At a politburo meeting Kim chaired Tuesday, matters that will top the agenda at the congress were discussed,” the Korean Central News Agency said, without revealing exactly what the agenda will be or when the congress will convene. North Korea watchers speculate Kim will launch new economic plans in the face of worsening food

Dec. 30, 2020

5 NK defectors face forcible repatriation after arrest in China: UN human rights office

Five North Korean defectors, including a teenager and a pregnant woman, are facing forcible repatriation after they were arrested in China in September, Five North Korean defectors, including a teenager and a pregnant woman, are facing forcible repatriation after they were arrested in China in September, according to a letter released by the UN human rights agency. The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) disclosed a letter that the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention

Dec. 30, 2020

6 countries provide $10m in food aid to N. Korea this year: UN data

Russia, Switzerland and four other countries have provided about $10 million in food assistance to North Korea this year to help its choric food shortages, UN data showed Wednesday. According to the data provided by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the countries, also including Sweden, Norway, Canada and Bulgaria, have provided food assistance worth $10.5 million this year through the World Food Programme (WFP). Switzerland offered $5.22 million in food aid to

Dec. 30, 2020

NK leader helms politburo meeting to prepare for party congress in early January

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un presided over a politburo meeting of the Workers' Party and decided to hold a party congress early next month, state media reported Wednesday. The politburo meeting, held Tuesday, "examined and made confirmation as to the qualifications of the delegates" and "proposals for forming the presidium, members of the platform and secretariat of the 8th Congress of the Party," according to the Korean Central News Agency. It also adopted a decision on

Dec. 30, 2020

US flies reconnaissance plane over Korea amid report of military parade preparations in Pyongyang

A US reconnaissance plane flew over central South Korea on Tuesday, an aviation tracker showed, as North Korea appeared to be gearing up for a ruling party congress. The US Air Force's RC-135W Rivet Joint was spotted flying over the southern coast and then the central regions Tuesday morning, according to the tracker, No callsign. The aircraft, which specializes in detecting telemetry signals before missile launches, took off from Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, Japan. The RC-135W Rivet Joint als

Dec. 29, 2020

N. Korea could conduct ICBM test early next year: think tank

North Korea could test-fire an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) in the early months of the incoming US administration of Joe Biden if nuclear talks between the two countries remain stalled, a local think tank said Tuesday. The North has undertaken military provocations in the past to test Washington's approach or grab its attention when a new US administration took office. President-elect Joe Biden is set to be inaugurated on Jan. 20. Biden has called for "principled diplomacy&qu

Dec. 29, 2020

S. Korea's new top nuclear envoy holds phones talks with Chinese counterpart

South Korea's new chief nuclear envoy, Noh Kyu-duk, spoke by phone with his Chinese counterpart on Tuesday in their first talks since his appointment last week, the foreign ministry said. His talks with Wu Jianghao came as Seoul seeks to ensure international support for its ongoing efforts to resume dialogue with North Korea that has been stalled amid a deadlock in nuclear negotiations between Washington and Pyongyang. "The two sides shared their assessments of the recent situation on the

Dec. 29, 2020

NK urges vigilance against COVID-19 variant

North Korea’s main newspaper on Tuesday urged vigilance against the new COVID-19 variant, as a more contagious strain of the coronavirus spreads around the world, including in South Korea. 　 The Rodong Sinmun, the official newspaper of the ruling Workers’ Party, said the coronavirus is spreading at a faster pace and the global public health situation continues to worsen. The emergence of a new strain of the virus with a much higher transmission rate, which has been detected in seve

Dec. 29, 2020

Human rights groups file constitutional complaint over leafleting ban

Nearly 30 human rights groups in South Korea filed a constitutional complaint Tuesday over a recently legislated ban on sending anti-Pyongyang propaganda leaflets into North Korea and requested an injunction against the law. The organizations, including Transitional Justice Working Group and Keunsaem led by North Korean defectors, claimed that the leafleting ban infringes on the human rights of North Koreans and supports the autocratic regime in Pyongyang. "By using the safety of people i

Dec. 29, 2020

NK official paper urges heightened alert against coronavirus variant

North Korea's official newspaper called Tuesday for heightened alert against the coronavirus pandemic, warning that a more contagious variant of the virus is spreading in many countries around the world. "With the vicious transmissible disease spreading at a faster pace, global public health situation is getting worse," the Rodong Sinmun, the official newspaper of the North's ruling party, said. "More problematic is that a new vicious variant has appeared and been spreading in se

Dec. 29, 2020

NK leader could skip New Year's Day speech ahead of party congress: experts

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un could skip a New Year's Day address later this week because he could unveil policy directions at a Workers' Party congress expected to convene in the coming weeks, experts said Monday. Kim has delivered a televised speech on Jan. 1 almost every year since he took power following the death of his father in 2011 to put forth his annual policy plans and directions. The speech has been closely watched for signs of where the reclusive country could be headed for the f

Dec. 28, 2020

Thousands spotted in Pyongyang for party congress: 38 North

North Korea appears to be gearing up for its party congress next month, a US-based North Korea monitoring website said, with thousands of people mobilized in the main square in the capital, Pyongyang, to rehearse for an event. 　 Satellite images captured Saturday revealed thousands of people gathered at Kim Il-sung Square, “apparently practicing for an upcoming event” by standing in a formation spelling out “kyeolsaongwi” in Korean, which means to “defend with one

Dec. 28, 2020

[Graphic News] Malaria infections in N. Korea halve in 2019: WHO

　The number of malaria infections in North Korea nearly halved in 2019 from a year earlier, a UN agency’s report showed, as global aid organizations have worked to help with the impoverished country’s fight against the contagious disease. 　According to the report by the World Health Organization, North Korea reported a total of 1,869 malaria cases last year, compared with 3,698 tallied a year earlier. 　The North had reported over 10,000 malaria cases annually from 2008-2014, b

Dec. 28, 2020

Thousands of people seen in Pyongyang practicing for party congress: 38 North

Thousands of people in North Korea were seen at a square in central Pyongyang apparently practicing for an event believed to be related to a Workers' Party congress expected to be held next month, a US monitoring website has said. Satellite imagery taken Saturday showed thousands of people gathering in Kim Il-sung Square "apparently practicing for an upcoming event" by making a formation and spelling out "kyeolsaongwi" in Korean, which means to "defend with one's life,&

Dec. 28, 2020