Sanctions caused power shift among NK’s elites: scholar

 International sanctions on North Korea have brought changes to the power structure among the country’s governing elite, prompting the reclusive regime to offer an olive branch to South Korea and participate in the PyeongChang Winter Olympics, a Seoul-based scholar said. During a closed seminar organized by the Hankuk University of Foreign Studies and Keio University, he noted there was growing anxiety among North Korean elites about securing foreign currency to consolidate Kim Jong-un’s power a

Feb. 8, 2018

Moon expresses hopes for US-NK talks in meeting with top US, Chinese officials

President Moon Jae-in on Thursday met top US and Chinese officials and called for close collaboration on the North Korean nuclear issue. In the meeting with US Vice President Mike Pence Thursday evening that went on longer than scheduled, Moon said that his presence is a reaffirmation of the strength of the South Korea-US alliance, and said that Washington’s unwavering position on North Korea contributed to inter-Korean talks.  President Moon Jae-in and US Vice President Mike Pence shake hands a

Feb. 8, 2018

N. Korea displays ICBMs during low-key military parade

North Korea showed off its latest long-range missile during a military parade in Pyongyang on Thursday, a day before the opening of the Winter Olympics in South Korea.A trailer carrying the Hwasong-15 intercontinental ballistic missile, which the North claims is capable of reaching the mainland United States, rolled through Kim Il-sung Square in front of leader Kim Jong-un, who was saluting back to goose-stepping troops and sometimes beaming a smile, film footage released by Korean Central Telev

Feb. 8, 2018

Moon urges for Beijing’s support in facilitating US-North Korea talks

President Moon Jae-in on Thursday urged China to lend a hand in facilitating Washington-Pyongyang talks, saying that Seoul and Beijing share the goal of a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula. In his meeting with China’s Politburo Standing Committee member Han Zheng in Seoul, Moon called for China’s support in the matter.  President Moon Jae-in meets China’s Politburo Standing Committee member Han Zheng (left) at Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul on Thursday. Yonhap“North Korea is actively engaging in inter-Korea

Feb. 8, 2018

Will visit by NK leader’s sister pave way for inter-Korean summit?

With North Korea’s decision to dispatch Kim Jong-un’s sister to an international event hosted in South Korea, experts here are interpreting her visit as a diplomatic breakthrough that could lay the foundations for a possible inter-Korean summit. Kim Yo-jong (right) is seen with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un at an event in Pyongyang on Dec. 30, 2017. (Yonhap)North Korea informed the South on Wednesday that its leader Kim Jong-un’s younger sister Kim Yo-jong, first vice director of the Central C

Feb. 8, 2018

Moon to meet NK delegates to PyeongChang on Saturday

South Korean President Moon Jae-in will meet North Korean government delegates to the PyeongChang Olympic Games this week, his office Cheong Wa Dae said Thursday, highlighting the recent rapprochement between the two Koreas facilitated by the North's participation in the Winter Olympic Games.The meeting will be held Saturday, according to Cheong Wa Dae spokesman Kim Eui-kyeom."President Moon plans to hold a meeting and have lunch with the North Korean delegation on Feb. 10," the spokesman told a

Feb. 8, 2018

[Photo News] Gangneung security tightened ahead of NK Samjiyon performance

On the eve of the Winter Olympics a stronger police presence surrounded the Gangneung Arts Center in Gangneung, Gangwon Province, where the Samjiyon art troupe is to perform. Performancegoers will be required to park their vehicles at nearby parking lots and walk or take a shuttle bus to the venue. The 140-member Samjiyon art troupe arrived to South Korea via the North’s ferry Mangyongbong-92 on Tuesday at 5 p.m. The Samjiyon art troupe consists of an orchestra, dancers and singers. The troupe w

Feb. 8, 2018

ICBM shown at NK military parade

A day before the opening ceremony of the PyeongChang Winter Olympics, North Korea held a military parade in Pyongyang on Thursday, with intercontinental ballistic missiles displayed in the presence of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. ICBM-class Hwasong-14 and -15 missiles – which were successfully test-fired last year – were shown alongside Hwasong-12 intermediate-range ballistic missiles and Pukkuksong-2, solid-fuel medium-range ballistic missiles, according to footage of the parade, which the

Feb. 8, 2018

UN chief Guterres: NK-US talks 'absolutely necessary, urgent'

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Thursday dialogue between North Korea and the United States is "absolutely necessary" and "urgent" to fend off any possibility of tensions escalating into a sudden crisis on the Korean Peninsula.He also said a negotiated solution with North Korea is possible if there is a security guarantee for the communist country and other parties involved."I think it's not a question of possibility. This kind of dialogue is absolutely necessary, and it's

Feb. 8, 2018

Cheong Wa Dae hails Pope Francis' remarks on PyeongChang rapprochement

South Korea's presidential office Cheong Wa Dae on Thursday welcomed Pope Francis' remarks praising the recent resumption of inter-Korean dialogue to discuss North Korea's participation in the PyeongChang Winter Olympics, saying the country will continue to make peace."We deeply appreciate it. The remarks that a unified team of South and North Korea represents hope for peace will bring great joy to the unified team, as if they will become warriors of peace," Cheong Wa Dae spokesman Kim Eui-kyeom

Feb. 8, 2018

NK high-level delegation to fly to S. Korea

North Korea said its high-level delegation to the PyeongChang Winter Olympics will fly to South Korea, while Seoul is working with the United Nations to temporarily lift a travel ban on a sanctioned North Korean official planning to attend the Winter Games. North Korea told South Korea that it plans to send its high-level delegation by plane to Incheon Airport this week, Seoul’s Unification Ministry said Thursday.The delegation led by the country’s nominal head of state Kim Yong-nam will arrive

Feb. 8, 2018

N. Korea's welcome ceremony becomes festive event

GANGNEUNG, South Korea -- On the eve of the official opening of the PyeongChang Olympics, the Gangneung athletes' village was filled with hundreds of journalists, photographers, sports officials and even volunteers.In the center of the large human circle, North Korea's Olympic contingent was welcomed to the village in a flag-raising ceremony, with the morning sun rising and the temperature going up.During the official procedures of the ceremony like the village mayor's welcome speech and the exc

Feb. 8, 2018

NK art troupe expected to perform popular S. Korean songs

GANGNEUNG, South Korea -- Popular South Korean songs are said to be included in the repertoire of North Korea's Samjiyon Orchestra, which is set to perform in the seaside city of Gangneung later Thursday. The 140 member-strong art troupe led by Hyon Song-wol, head of the all-female Moranbong Band, arrived in the South on Tuesday by ferry. Since yesterday, it has been holding rehearsals at the Gangneung Arts Center for its upcoming concert in the sub-host city of the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Games

Feb. 8, 2018

[PyeongChang 2018] North Korea’s female cheering squad: who are they?

PYEONGCHANG, Gangwon Province -- North Korea’s 229-woman cheerleading squad arrived in South Korea on Wednesday as part of the country’s delegation to the PyeongChang Olympic Games, sparking interest in the group’s activities for the next few weeks.　Referred to as Kim Jong-un’s “army of beauties,” the cheering squad is expected to root for its own national athletes, and possibly the South Korean national team. And it seems very likely the North’s cheerleaders will garner more attention than its

Feb. 8, 2018

2.7-magnitude quake occurs in N. Korea in aftermath of September nuke test

A 2.7-magnitude earthquake occurred near North Korea's nuclear test site, apparently caused by the communist nation's last nuclear explosion in September, South Korea's state weather agency said Thursday.The quake happened about 2 km northeast of the Punggye-ri test site in the country's northeast at 6:46 a.m., according to the Korea Meteorological Administration. It was the ninth natural quake caused by the North's sixth nuclear test in September. (Yonhap)Last such quake occurred Tuesday.North

Feb. 8, 2018

N. Korea set to hold military parade on eve of PyeongChang Olympics' opening

North Korea is set to hold a military parade to mark the 70th anniversary of its armed forces' foundation Thursday, one day before the PyeongChang Winter Olympics' opening.North Korea has recently designated Feb. 8 as its armed forces' day, sparking concerns that the event may dampen a rare reconciliatory mood created by its participation in the Feb. 9-25 Olympics in the South.The North has used military parades on important national days to flex its military muscle by displaying newly developed

Feb. 8, 2018

Mattis: N. Korea efforts remain 'firmly in diplomatic lane'

WASHINGTON -- US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said Wednesday that efforts to denuclearize North Korea remain "firmly in the diplomatic lane," with military options as a backup.Talk of a limited military strike on North Korea gained traction last week after it was reported that US President Donald Trump's initial pick for ambassador to Seoul was dropped over his objections to the so-called "bloody nose" strategy.Mattis was asked during a White House press briefing whether he thinks the chances of

Feb. 8, 2018

NK says no willingness to meet with US at Olympics

North Korea's high-level delegation for the PyeongChang Winter Olympics has no willingness to meet with its US counterpart when it travels to South Korea this week, the North's state media said Thursday.North Korea said Wednesday it would send Kim Yo-jong, the younger sister of the North's leader Kim Jong-un, as a member of the high-level delegation led by the nominal head of state Kim Yong-nam to South Korea for a three-day visit starting Friday."We have never begged for dialogue with the US an

Feb. 8, 2018

NK asks S. Korea to provide fuel for ship that transported art troupe

North Korea has requested South Korea provide additional fuel for its vessel currently docked in the South, as it serves as accommodation for its art troupe visiting the South, Seoul‘s Ministry of Unification said Wednesday, in a move likely to present the South with complications linked to international sanctions.  North Korea’s Mangyongbong-92 (Yonhap)North Korea’s Mangyongbong-92, serving as both means of transportation and accommodation for the 140-member Samjiyon art troupe has been docked

Feb. 7, 2018

US soon to unveil toughest-yet sanctions on N. Korea: Pence

The US Vice President Mike Pence said Wednesday that the United States will soon unveil its toughest-ever economic sanctions on North Korea in a bid to spur the country's denuclearization.Washington will soon announce the "toughest and most aggressive round of economic sanctions on North Korea ever," Pence told reporters after talks with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Tokyo, according to reports."Let the world know this: We will continue to intensify our maximum pressure campaign until No

Feb. 7, 2018