Russian lawmakers quell speculation about NK leader Kim's health

Two Russian lawmakers have dismissed persistent speculation over North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's health, citing their talks with diplomats from Pyongyang, according to Russian media reports. Kim's absence from the public eye since his attendance at a ruling party politburo meeting on April 11 has spawned rumors of his failing health despite Seoul's assessment that there was "nothing unusual" in the communist state. Kazbek Taysayev, who heads the Russian State Duma group on ties wi

April 29, 2020

Trump says he wishes NK leader well, refuses further comment

WASHINGTON -- US President Donald Trump said Tuesday that he wishes North Korean leader Kim Jong-un well amid reports he may be gravely ill, but refused to comment further. Trump has offered varying assessments since reports on the North Korean leader's alleged health issues began emerging last week. "I just don't want to comment on it. I don't want to comment on it. I just wish him well," he told reporters at the White House when asked if Kim is still in control of his country. Tr

April 29, 2020

[Newsmaker] Seoul confident ‘nothing is unusual’ in North

Amid mounting speculation about the health status of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, Seoul officials expressed confidence that “nothing is unusual” in the reclusive regime, labeling the rampant rumors as an “infodemic.”   　 “(The government) has enough information-gathering capabilities to say confidently that there are no unusual signs (in North Korea),” Unification Minister Kim Yeon-chul told a plenary session of the National Assembly’s foreign

April 28, 2020

Quarantine cooperation with NK not subject to sanctions: presidential official

Potential cooperation between the two Koreas in fighting the coronavirus pandemic is not subject to the international sanctions on Pyongyang, a senior presidential official said Tuesday. South Korean President Moon Jae-in on Monday vowed to move ahead with "realistic and practical" cooperation with the North, including a joint response to COVID-19 and border-area disasters, as he marked the second anniversary of the historic summit with his northern counterpart, Kim Jong-un. "T

April 28, 2020

Top nuclear envoys of S. Korea, US assess peninsula situation amid rumors about NK leader's health

The top nuclear envoys of South Korea and the United States exchanged their assessments of the situation on the Korean Peninsula in a phone call Tuesday, the foreign ministry said, amid speculation about North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's health. The phone talks between Lee Do-hoon and his US counterpart, Stephen Biegun, came as media reports about Kim's weekslong absence from the public eye spawned rumors about his health conditions despite Seoul's assessment that there was "nothing unusu

April 28, 2020

Unification minister rejects reports of NK leader's illness as 'fake news,' 'infodemic'

Unification Minister Kim Yeon-chul on Tuesday rejected unconfirmed reports of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's illness as "fake news" and "infodemic," insisting he can say confidently there have been no unusual signs in the communist state. Speculation about Kim's health spiked after he skipped an annual visit to the mausoleum of his grandfather Kim Il-sung on the late national founder's April 15 birth anniversary, the North's most important national holiday. Media report

April 28, 2020

Trump says he has good idea how North Korea's Kim is doing; 'I hope he's fine'

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -- US President Donald Trump said on Monday he has a good idea how Kim Jong-un is doing and hopes he is fine, after days of speculation over the North Korean leader’s health. Kim’s whereabouts and whether he had a heart procedure have been a subject of intense speculation in recent weeks. Daily NK, a Seoul-based website, reported last week that Kim was recovering after undergoing a cardiovascular procedure on April 12, citing one unnamed source in North Korea.

April 28, 2020

What would happen to North Korea if Kim Jong-un died

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has not been seen in public for more than two weeks, missing commemorations for a key political anniversary, and reports he underwent a cardiovascular procedure have spiralled into speculation he could be incapacitated or even dead. Both Seoul and Washington have played them down, but there has been no concrete proof of life in Pyongyang's state media, beyond reports of messages sent in his name. AFP looks at some questions and answers on what could happen if Ki

April 27, 2020

Moon vows to expand inter-Korean cooperation on summit anniversary

President Moon Jae-in on Monday vowed to seek ways to increase cooperation with North Korea within the boundaries of international constraints. Speaking at a meeting with senior aides on Monday, the second anniversary of this first summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, Moon said that Seoul must continue to take “even small steps” to continue the peace process. Moon and Kim held their first summit on April 27, 2018 on the South’s side of Panmunjom. The two met again

April 27, 2020

Pyongyang keeps mum on Kim Jong-un’s health

Despite intensifying speculation outside the country about leader Kim Jong-un’s health, North Korea’s state media has continued routine coverage of Kim, this time saying he thanked workers in the elite tourism area where he is believed to be staying.   　 The North’s official Rodong Sinmun reported Monday that Kim had sent a message of gratitude to workers building a tourist zone in the Wonsan-Kalma region on the east coast, without indicating when or offering other detai

April 27, 2020

Inter-Korean military hotlines in normal operation: defense ministry

Military communication lines between South and North Korea are operating normally, Seoul's defense ministry said Monday, as the two Koreas quietly marked the second anniversary of the first summit between President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. The military authorities of the two Koreas have regular telephone calls twice a day at 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. via their eastern and western communication lines. The hotlines, which had been cut off for years, were restored in 2018 in line

April 27, 2020

NK leader sends gratitude to workers at tourist zone amid health rumors

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un expressed his gratitude to workers building a tourist zone in the east coast region of Wonsan, state media said Monday, amid reports his special train is parked at the area amid persisting speculation about his health. "Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un has sent his appreciation to the workers who devoted themselves to building the Wonsan-Kalma tourist zone," the Rodong Sinmun, the North's main newspaper, said. The Korean Central Broadcasting Station carried

April 27, 2020

Tensions rise on unconfirmed reports of Kim Jong-un’s death

With North Korean leader Kim Jong-un missing from public view for two weeks, conflicting, unconfirmed accounts about his health, some even indicating his death or near-death, are raising tensions here. 　 Speculations swirled Sunday that Kim may be incapacitated, following a media report citing Shijian Xingzou, a vice director of Hong Kong Satellite Television, based on a “very solid source.” 　 Separately, Japanese magazine Shukan Gendai reported the 36-year old leader was in a &ld

April 26, 2020

N. Korea's state media stays mum on Kim's public activities for 2 weeks

North Korea's state media reported on leader Kim Jong-un expressing his "appreciation" for people working to build facilities in a northern border town Sunday but continued to stay silent about his public activities for two weeks amid growing rumors about his health. "Comrade Kim Jong-un sent appreciation to workers earnestly and wholeheartedly supporting in furnishing Samjiyon," the state radio said. "Workers are in burning passion to earnestly contribute to the const

April 26, 2020

Kim's special train spotted in Wonsan amid rumors over his health: US monitor

A train presumed to belong to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has been spotted at a station in the communist state's eastern coastal town of Wonsan amid speculation about Kim's health, a US monitor said Sunday, citing commercial satellite imagery on the region. According to 38 North, the imagery showed a train "probably belonging to Kim Jong-un has been parked at the Leadership Railway Station servicing his Wonsan compound since at least April 21." "The approximately 250-meter

April 26, 2020

NK leader still out of public eye, Pyongyang’s media focus on army anniversary

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un stayed out of public sight Saturday, as the reclusive nation's tightly controlled media focused their coverage on the founding anniversary of its armed forces. They have carried no report of Kim's public activity since April 11, sparking speculation that the 36-year-old might be critically ill. Pyongyang's propaganda outlets instead hyped the 88th anniversary of the birth of the Korean People's Revolutionary Army (KPRA) that falls on April 25. The official Ko

April 25, 2020

UN airs coronavirus concerns over NK prisons

The UN Human Rights Office in Seoul said Thursday it was concerned about coronavirus protection for prisoners in North Korea due to a “lack of transparency and information” on its prison camps. The office said prisoners were vulnerable to the coronavirus because they were locked up in cramped conditions. United Nations human rights chief Michelle Bachelet said several countries had already made efforts to curb coronavirus infections in prison, in a report submitted to the UN

April 24, 2020

S. Korea pursues inter-Korean event to mark 20th summit anniversary

South Korea is seeking to hold a joint event with North Korea to mark the 20th anniversary of the first-ever inter-Korean summit despite coronavirus fears, the unification ministry said Friday. On Friday, South Korea released a midterm plan for developing inter-Korean relations as part of the government's master plan on inter-Korean relations for 2018-2022. Under the plan, South Korea said it will cooperate with nongovernmental organizations to organize a joint commemorative event and inter-K

April 24, 2020

Trump says CNN report on Kim’s health was ‘incorrect’

US President Donald Trump said Thursday the CNN report that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un was in grave danger after a surgery was “incorrect,” but declined to say if he heard anything from Pyongyang. “I think the report was incorrect, let me just put it that way,” Trump told reporters in a daily briefing on the COVID-19 pandemic at the White House. “I think the report was done by a network that was incorrect. I’m hearing they used old documents. Well I ho

April 24, 2020

NK media stay mum on leader's whereabouts amid rumors on his health

North Korean media outlets have stayed mum on leader Kim Jong-un's whereabouts without putting out any reports on his public activity amid persisting speculation over his health. Speculation about Kim's health problems spiked after CNN reported earlier this week, citing a US official, that Washington is looking into intelligence that Kim is in "grave danger" after a surgery. North Korea's state media have recently put out reports on Kim sending diplomatic letters and conveying gifts

April 24, 2020