N. Korea condemns NATO statement as 'illegal document'

North Korea on Saturday vehemently objected to the declaration adopted by the leaders of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization last week, labeling it an "illegal document." The declaration "violates the legitimate rights of independent sovereign states and a confrontational program that incites new Cold War and military confrontation on a global scale," according to a statement released by North Korea's foreign ministry through the Korean Central News Agency. On Wedne

July 13, 2024

60% of N. Korean defectors advocate for changing official term: survey

Nearly 60 percent of North Korean defectors believed it necessary to change the official terminology labeling them as "North Korean defectors," according to a survey released Friday by the government-funded Korea Institute for National Unification. The KINU reported that 58.9 percent of 505 North Korean defectors aged 18 and above, who were surveyed online, believed the term "should be changed," while 28.9 percent felt it "doesn't need to be changed." The remai

July 12, 2024

N. Korea expands inter-Korean railway demolition to Gyeongui line: Seoul

Signs that North Korea has been dismantling part of a western inter-Korean railway have been detected, Seoul's defense ministry said Thursday, the latest in Pyongyang's apparent move to eliminate routes once seen as symbols of inter-Korean exchange and cooperation. The military has detected the North removing ties and rails on the northern side of the Gyeongui line that connects the military demarcation line to the North Korean border city of Kaesong since late June, according to the

July 11, 2024

Seoul Forum spotlights roles of China, Russia in NK human rights

The inaugural Seoul Forum on North Korean Human Rights 2024 was held Thursday to illuminate egregious human rights violations in North Korea and seek ways for improvement particularly in coordination with all UN member states, including China and Russia. The event notably coincided with the 10th anniversary of the UN Commission of Inquiry report on North Korean human rights, which highlighted the "systematic, widespread and gross human rights violations" by the North Korean regime, dra

July 11, 2024

US top envoy for NK steps down without successor

Jung Pak, who served as the United States' top diplomat for North Korea issues, has recently resigned, leaving the position vacant again amid stalled talks between Washington and Pyongyang since the Biden administration's inauguration in January 2021. Pak's resignation is noteworthy in light of the Biden administration's trend of downgrading similar positions. The trend led to the US special representative for North Korea position within the State Department remaining unfille

July 10, 2024

N. Korea-Russia relationship will end when Ukraine war is over: ex-Trump official

The growing alignment between Russia and North Korea will end when the war in Ukraine is over, and bringing the conflict to a stop will be a priority if ex-U.S. President Donald Trump returns to the White House, a former U.S. official said Tuesday. Fred Fleitz, a former chief of staff of the National Security Council under the previous Trump administration, also said it will be a "bad precedent" for South Korea if it were to acquire its own nuclear weapons. "This relationship show

July 9, 2024

NK military delegation in Russia after Putin-Kim pact

North Korea has dispatched a military training delegation to Russia, marking the first military exchange since the two countries signed a mutual defense treaty in mid-June. The move has drawn warnings from Seoul that any action aiding North Korea's military buildup contravenes UN sanctions. The delegation, comprising military training officials from the Korean People's Army and led by Kim Kum-chol who serves as the president of Kim Il Sung Military University, departed Pyongyang for Ru

July 9, 2024

NK leader's sister slams S. Korea's resumption of live-fire drills as 'suicidal hysteria'

The powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on Monday denounced South Korea's resumption of live-fire artillery drills near the border as "suicidal hysteria" and warned of possible military actions against such acts. The South has conducted live-fire artillery exercises near the land and sea borders in recent weeks after fully suspending an inter-Korean 2018 military tension reduction agreement that bans such maneuvers and other acts deemed hostile against each other. K

July 8, 2024

N. Korea call for loyalty to leader ahead of late founder's death anniversary

North Korea's state media on Sunday called for loyalty to its leader Kim Jong-un ahead of the death anniversary of the founder of the country, Kim Il-sung, later this week, amid tensions over the North's weapons testing and defense pact with Russia. The North's main newspaper, Rodong Sinmun, made the call as the nation is set to mark the 30th anniversary of the death of Kim Il-sung, who ruled the country from 1948 to 1994 and is the grandfather of the current ruler, Kim Jong-un, o

July 7, 2024

Top nuclear envoy discusses NK-Russia threats with foreign diplomats in Seoul

South Korea's top nuclear envoy discussed the deepening military cooperation between North Korea and Russia in meetings on Korean Peninsula issues with foreign diplomats in Seoul, the Foreign Ministry said Wednesday. Lee Jun-il, director general for Korean Peninsula policy, invited ambassadors and diplomats from 30 countries to two separate roundtable sessions on North Korean issues on Monday and Wednesday, the ministry said. The participating countries either have a diplomatic presence in

July 3, 2024

NK leader inspects munitions factory after key party meeting

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has visited major munitions and machinery factories, calling for efforts to expand production in the overall economic sector, according to state media Wednesday. The inspection took place Tuesday, a day after North Korea wrapped up four days of a plenary meeting of the 8th Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea, according to the Korean Central News Agency. Accompanied by party officials, Kim visited a defense industrial enterprise, which the North s

July 3, 2024

N. Korea's sending of trash-filled balloons is 'form of soft terrorism': CSIS report

North Korea's obnoxious sending of trash-filled balloons to South Korea is a "form of soft terrorism," a US think tank report said Tuesday, stressing it should not be taken lightly though it reflects the recalcitrant regime's "weakness" and "insecurity." Victor Cha, senior vice president for Asia and Korea chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, and Andy Lim, an associate fellow with the CSIS Korea Chair, released the report that analy

July 3, 2024

Vietnam PM voices support for denuclearization of Korean Peninsula

Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on Tuesday reaffirmed his country’s stance backing the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, stressing its consistent support for peace and stability. “It is Vietnam’s consistent stance to support the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, alongside peace, stability and cooperation,” Chinh said in an opening speech ahead of a closed-door meeting with his counterpart, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, at the Government Complex Se

July 2, 2024

N. Korea says it test-fired new tactical ballistic missile capable of carrying super-large warhead

North Korea has test-fired a new tactical ballistic missile capable of carrying a super-large warhead, state media reported Tuesday, a day after South Korea said the North fired two missiles and one of them could have failed. North Korea successfully launched the Hwasong-11Da-4.5 missile capable of carrying a 4.5 ton-class super-large warhead on Monday, according to the Korean Central News Agency. "The test-fire was conducted with a missile tipped with a simulated heavy warhead to verify fl

July 2, 2024

N. Korea fires more missiles as Kim Jong-un strategizes policies

North Korea launched two ballistic missiles Monday, with the South Korean military presuming that at least one of them could be the KN-23 short-range ballistic missile supplied to Russia for use against Ukraine on the battlefield. The missile launches notably coincided with a key party meeting, presided over by North Korean leader Kim Jong-un since Friday, where crucial domestic and foreign policies are being deliberated, around a week after Russian President Vladimir Putin's rare visit to

July 1, 2024

N. Korea condemns joint military exercise by S. Korea, US, Japan

North Korea vowed Sunday to take action to protect its sovereignty as it condemned South Korea, the United States and Japan for their recent joint military exercises. The move came amid a growing North Korea-Russia alignment after Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un signed a "comprehensive strategic partnership" treaty that calls for providing military assistance to each other without delay if either side comes under an armed attack. "We will prote

June 30, 2024

Russia, Western nations joust on Pyongyang-Moscow arms cooperation in UNSC meeting

The UN Security Council held an open meeting Friday to discuss arms cooperation between North Korea and Russia, where Western nations condemned the two countries' transactions while Russia called them "completely false." South Korean Ambassador to the UN Hwang Joon-kook, this month's rotating UNSC president, presided over the meeting that at one point descended into an exchange of sharp criticism between the representatives of the United States, Russia and China. The meetin

June 29, 2024

N. Korea opens party plenary meeting with leader Kim in attendance

North Korea has convened a plenary meeting of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea, attended by its leader Kim Jong-un, state media reported Saturday, amid expectations that it would discuss follow-up measures to implement a new partnership treaty with Russia. North Korea held the 10th enlarged plenary meeting of the WPK's 8th Central Committee on Friday to review state policy performances in the first half, according to the Korean Central News Agency. The meeting is also to "discus

June 29, 2024

S. Korea urges N. Korea to give prior notice over border dam water discharge

The unification ministry urged North Korea on Friday to give prior notice if it releases water from a dam near the inter-Korean border, citing the need to prevent damage in border areas from possible heavy rains. The request came as North Korea opened the floodgates of the Hwanggang Dam to release water during the summer monsoon season without notifying the South in advance. "The government urges North Korea to give prior notice if it releases water from the dam to prevent flooding in borde

June 28, 2024

N. Koreans executed for sharing K-pop, films: Seoul

Testimonies from North Korean defectors have revealed that the Kim Jong-un regime has conducted public executions of individuals caught distributing South Korean TV series, movies or K-pop music under a 2020 law, South Korea's Unification Ministry said Thursday. According to the 2024 North Korean Human Rights Report released by the ministry in Seoul, testimonies suggested an "increase in public executions based on violations of the Law on Rejecting Reactionary Ideology and Culture.&quo

June 27, 2024