No saber-rattling for N.Korea ‘Victory Day,’ but US repeats warning over nuke test

North Korea held a politically charged event to mark its “Victory Day” in the Korean War, though its celebrations were notably absent of saber rattling and bellicose rhetoric from the country’s leader. But the United States said concerns still remain over a seventh nuclear test, warning that it would incur “tremendous costs” to North Korea. North Korea held an eighth national conference of war veterans in the capital city of Pyongyang on Tuesday on the occasion

July 27, 2022

N. Korea's new suspected COVID-19 cases fall below 20: state media

North Korea's new suspected COVID-19 cases dropped below 20, according to its state media Wednesday. More than 18 people showed symptoms of fever over a 24-hour period until 6 p.m. the previous day, the official Korean Central News Agency said, citing data from the state emergency epidemic prevention headquarters. It did not provide information on whether additional deaths have been reported. As of July 5, the death toll had stood at 74, with the fatality rate at 0.002 percent. The total nu

July 27, 2022

N. Korea holds national conference of war veterans without leader Kim's attendance

North Korea held a national conference of war veterans earlier this week to celebrate the 69th anniversary of what it claims to be victory in the three-year conflict against South Korea and the US-led UN troops, according to state media Wednesday. The 8th National Conference of War Veterans took place in Pyongyang the previous day, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported. It made no mention of the country's leader Kim Jong-un, suggesting he has skipped this year's confe

July 27, 2022

N. Korea may conduct nuke test to mark 'Victory Day': minister

South Korea's unification minister did not rule out the possibility of North Korea carrying out a nuclear test on the occasion of what it calls "Victory Day" this week, speaking publicly Tuesday. "I think there is such a possibility," Kwon Young-se said, when asked about the issue during a radio interview here. The North is marking the 69th anniversary on Wednesday of the 1953 armistice, which effectively ended the Korean War. Pyongyang calls the national holiday the Day

July 26, 2022

N. Korea's new suspected COVID-19 cases fall below 50: state media

North Korea's new suspected COVID-19 cases dropped below 50, according to its state media Tuesday. More than 30 people showed symptoms of fever over a 24-hour period until 6 p.m. the previous day, the official Korean Central News Agency said, citing data from the state emergency epidemic prevention headquarters. It did not provide information on whether additional deaths have been reported. As of July 5, the death toll had stood at 74, with the fatality rate at 0.002 percent. The total numb

July 26, 2022

N. Korea's new suspected COVID-19 cases fall below 100: state media

North Korea's new suspected COVID-19 cases dropped below 100, according to its state media Monday. More than 50 people showed symptoms of fever over a 24-hour period until 6 p.m. the previous day, the official Korean Central News Agency said, citing data from the state emergency epidemic prevention headquarters. It did not provide information on whether additional deaths have been reported. The total number of fever cases since late April came to over 4.77 million as of 6 p.m. Sunday, of wh

July 25, 2022

S. Korea, US set to hold high-level talks this week as N.Korea marks Korean war ‘victory’

North Korea will hold a nationwide politically charged event for its “War Victory Day” to mark the anniversary of the 1953 armistice agreement that ended the Korean War. High-ranking US and South Korean officials will have in-person meetings in Seoul and Washington this week to discuss mounting threats from North Korea.　 The eighth national conference of war veterans will be held in the capital city of Pyongyang to mark the “great war victory day, which is the great pride and

July 24, 2022

N. Korea's new suspected COVID-19 cases under 200 for 4th day: state media

North Korea's new suspected COVID-19 cases remained below 200 for the fourth consecutive day, according to its state media Sunday. More than 120 people showed symptoms of fever over a 24-hour period until 6 p.m. the previous day, the official Korean Central News Agency said, citing data from the state emergency epidemic prevention headquarters. It did not provide information on whether additional deaths have been reported. The total number of fever cases since late April came to over 4.77 m

July 24, 2022

S. Korea maps out ‘audacious plan’ to provide security guarantees for N. Korea

South Korea’s Unification Ministry said its focus is on mapping out an “audacious plan” to provide economic compensation and security guarantees in return for North Korea’s “substantial measures for denuclearization.” Unification Minister Kwon Young-se on Friday briefed President Yoon Suk-yeol on the vision of North Korea and unification policy as well as three principles and five core tasks to implement the policy, the Unification Ministry said in a press s

July 22, 2022

N. Korea's new suspected COVID-19 cases under 200 for 2nd day: state media

North Korea's new suspected COVID-19 cases remained below 200 for the second consecutive day, according to its state media Friday. More than 140 people showed symptoms of fever over a 24-hour period until 6 p.m. the previous day, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said, citing data from the state emergency epidemic prevention headquarters. It did not provide information on whether additional deaths have been reported. As of July 5, the death toll stood at 74, with the fatality r

July 22, 2022

N. Korea's new suspected COVID-19 cases fall below 200: state media

North Korea's new suspected COVID-19 cases dropped below 200, according to its state media Thursday. More than 170 people showed symptoms of fever over a 24-hour period until 6 p.m. the previous day, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said, citing data from the state emergency epidemic prevention headquarters. It did not provide information on whether additional deaths have been reported. As of July 5, the death toll had stood at 74, with the fatality rate at 0.002 percent. The

July 21, 2022

Public human rights watchdog to probe 2019 North Korean repatriations

The National Human Rights Commission of Korea has launched an investigation into the controversial repatriation of two North Korean fishermen in 2019. The Commission assigned the case to its human rights violation investigator on Tuesday, according to a screen capture of the petition processing page provided by Lee Jong-bae, a Seoul city councilmember. Lee, who filed the petition Monday, called for the public human rights watchdog “to determine whether human rights violations occurred,

July 20, 2022

N. Korea's new suspected COVID-19 cases below 300 for 2nd day: state media

North Korea's new suspected COVID-19 cases remained below 300 for the second consecutive day, according to its state media Wednesday. More than 250 people showed symptoms of fever over a 24-hour period until 6 p.m. the previous day, the official Korean Central News Agency said, citing data from the state emergency epidemic prevention headquarters. It did not provide information on whether additional deaths have been reported. As of July 5, the death toll had stood at 74, with the fatality r

July 20, 2022

Korea University professor tapped as ambassador-at-large on North Korean human rights

The government named Lee Shin-wha, an international relations professor at Korea University, as ambassador-at-large on North Korean human rights issues on Tuesday, filling in the post that has been vacant for the past five years. The Foreign Ministry said it is appointing Lee as the ambassador to support the government’s diplomatic efforts to promote North Korean human rights, on bilateral and multilateral levels. Lee, of the university’s department of political science and inte

July 19, 2022

N. Korea's new suspected COVID-19 cases fall below 300: state media

North Korea's new suspected COVID-19 cases dropped below 300, according to its state media Tuesday. More than 250 people showed symptoms of fever over a 24-hour period until 6 p.m. the previous day, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said, citing data from the state emergency epidemic prevention headquarters. It did not provide information on whether additional deaths have been reported. As of July 5, the death toll had stood at 74, with the fatality rate at 0.002 percent. The t

July 19, 2022

Are North Koreans...South Koreans?

South Korea’s decision in 2019 to forcibly repatriate two North Korean fishermen suspected of murder is spurring debate over whether North Koreans can be treated as people of South Korea, and under what circumstances. President Yoon Suk-yeol, vowing to reopen the case of two North Koreans deported by his predecessor, has said the Constitution “dictates that defectors are our people.” The administration of then-President Moon Jae-in had described the men as “violent cri

July 18, 2022

N. Korea vows to reinforce military in renewed anti-US propaganda

North Korea should further reinforce its military strength against mounting threats and pressure from the US, the state-run media said Monday, in line with North Korea’s recent move to step up anti-American propaganda. The Rodong Sinmun, an organ of the ruling Workers’ Party of Korea, said that “a series of fierce confrontations with enemies has continued” for 70 years after the 1950-53 Korean War in a front-page political essay. The political essay, which in North Kor

July 18, 2022

N. Korea's new suspected COVID-19 cases fall below 400: state media

North Korea's new suspected COVID-19 cases dropped below 400, according to its state media Monday. More than 310 people showed symptoms of fever over a 24-hour period until 6 p.m. the previous day, the official Korean Central News Agency said, citing data from the state emergency epidemic prevention headquarters. It did not provide information on whether additional deaths have been reported. As of July 5, the death toll had stood at 74, with the fatality rate at 0.002 percent. The total num

July 18, 2022

Presidential office accuses Moon administration of pushing NK fishermen to death

The former administration pushed North Korean fishermen to their deaths by repatriating them to the North, the presidential office said in a press briefing on Sunday, hitting back at a former national security adviser’s claim that the fishermen were “heinous killers.” “What is at the core of this issue is that (the former Moon Jae-in administration) pushed the North Korean fishermen to their deaths when they should have been taken into the South in accordance with the l

July 18, 2022

N. Korea's new suspected COVID-19 cases under 500 for 2nd day: state media

North Korea's new suspected COVID-19 cases stayed below 500 for the second consecutive day, according to its state media Sunday. More than 430 people showed symptoms of fever over a 24-hour period until 6 p.m. the previous day, the official Korean Central News Agency said, citing data from the state emergency epidemic prevention headquarters. It did not provide information on whether additional deaths have been reported. The total number of fever cases since late April came to over 4.77 mil

July 17, 2022