N. Korea claims to have conducted test of 'reconnaissance satellite' seen as ballistic missile

North Korea claimed Monday to have carried out an "important test" for developing a "reconnaissance satellite" despite South Korea's characterization of it as a ballistic missile launch. Sunday's test came amid concerns the North could fire a long-range rocket under the disguise of a satellite launch or conduct other provocative acts following its veiled threat last month to suspend its voluntary moratorium on nuclear and intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) tests. &qu

Feb. 28, 2022

Top S. Korean, US nuclear envoys discuss N. Korea's missile launch

Senior South Korean and US government officials handling North Korea affairs had phone consultations Sunday on Pyongyang's latest missile test, Seoul's foreign ministry said. Noh Kyu-duk, special representative for Korean Peninsula peace and security affairs, and his American counterpart Sung Kim shared their assessments of the North's move and expressed "deep concern and regret," it said. Earlier in the day, the North lobbed a ballistic missile into the East Sea in its eighth show of

Feb. 27, 2022

NSC holds emergency meeting over N. Korea's launch of unidentified projectile

The presidential National Security Council (NSC) on Sunday expressed grave regret over North Korea's launch of a ballistic missile, calling for Pyongyang to immediately stop acts that threaten peace on the Korean Peninsula. National security adviser Suh Hoon presided over the NSC meeting, shortly after North Korea fired a suspected ballistic missile that marked the North's eighth show of force this year. NSC members "expressed deep concern and grave regret over North Korea's launch of a b

Feb. 27, 2022

N. Korea fires unidentified projectile eastward: S. Korean military

North Korea fired a ballistic missile toward the East Sea on Sunday, South Korea's military said, in the recalcitrant regime's eighth show of force this year. The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said it detected the launch from around the Sunan area in Pyongyang at 7:52 a.m., and that the missile flew about 300 kilometers at a top altitude of 620 km. The latest launch, the first in just under a month, came 10 days ahead of South Korea's presidential election and amid the armed conflict in Ukraine

Feb. 27, 2022

Xi expresses gratitude to NK leader over congratulatory Olympic messages

Chinese leader Xi Jinping has expressed gratitude for North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's messages about the Beijing Winter Olympics and voiced hopes for developing the two nation's friendly ties, the North's state media said Saturday. Xi sent a letter Monday to the North's leader to deliver his thanks to Kim for having sent congratulatory messages for the opening and the "successful" closing of the Winter Games, according to the North's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). Xi said Kim's

Feb. 26, 2022

N. Korea ranked one of worst countries for political rights and civil liberties: report

North Korea has been rated as one of the worst countries in terms of freedom, a recent report by a US-funded freedom watchdog showed Friday. In an annual Freedom House report titled, "Freedom in the World 2022," the North received a combined freedom score of 3 out of 100 -- zero points for political rights and 3 points for civil liberties. It ranked only above Turkmenistan at 2 points, and South Sudan and Syria with just 1 point each among 195 countries assessed by the organization. Th

Feb. 25, 2022

Vietnam monitoring bank accounts of N. Korean embassy employees: report

The Vietnamese government is closely monitoring bank accounts of North Koreans in the country as part of efforts to implement UN sanctions against Pyongyang, an international organization's report showed Thursday. The Southeast Asian country has taken proactive measures against Pyongyang's activities prohibited under UN Security Council sanctions, according to an evaluation report on Vietnam's steps to combat money laundering released by the Financial Action Task Force. Based in Paris, the organ

Feb. 24, 2022

Next president should take ‘consistent approach’ to NK human rights: UN expert

A UN expert on Wednesday called on the next South Korean president to take a “consistent approach” to North Korean human rights issues, pointing to the Moon Jae-in government’s decision to stop co-sponsoring a UN resolution as a bad precedent. Tomas Ojea Quintana, the UN special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, underscored that the next South Korean government should maintain consistency in dealing with North Kore

Feb. 23, 2022

Gangwon governor bets again on Olympics for inter-Korean rapprochement

PYEONGCHANG, Gangwon Province — Four years ago this week, the PyeongChang Winter Olympics came to a grand finale. During the Games, South and North Korea enjoyed a moment of peace, with athletes from either side of the Demilitarized Zone marching together during the opening and closing ceremony. It was here in Gangwon Province that the two Koreas also fielded a unified team for the first time in Olympics history, with their joint women’s hockey team. 　 Preceded by a year of nuclear

Feb. 23, 2022

COVAX reduces COVID-19 vaccines allocated for N. Korea: UN agency

The COVAX Facility, a global vaccine distribution platform, has reduced the amount of COVID-19 vaccines allocated for North Korea, a UN website showed Tuesday, apparently canceling a batch of jabs developed by a US company, in a move seen attributable to the lack of a response from Pyongyang. A total of 1.29 million vaccines have been allocated to the North, according to the UN Children's Fund's COVID-19 Vaccine Market Dashboard, down 252,000 from the previous 1.54 million doses as of earlier th

Feb. 22, 2022

N. Korea massacred over 1,100 Christians, Catholics during Korean War: report

North Korea's military massacred more than 1,100 South Korean Christians and Catholics during the 1950-53 Korean War, a state reconciliation panel said Tuesday. The North's Korean People's Army killed 1,026 Christians and 119 Catholics during its retreat from the South following an amphibious Incheon landing operation by United Nations forces, also known as Operation Chromite, on Sept. 26, 1950, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission said, citing a report from Seoul Theological University.South

Feb. 22, 2022

N. Korean leader Kim congratulates China's Xi on 'successful' closing of Beijing Olympics

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has sent a verbal message to Chinese President Xi Jinping to congratulate China on the "successful" closing of the Beijing Winter Olympics, according to Pyongyang's state media Tuesday. "In the message the respected Comrade Kim Jong-un extended heartfelt warm congratulations to General Secretary Xi Jinping upon the splendid proceeding of the Beijing Winter Olympics as a novel and special grand sports festival," the North's Korean Central News A

Feb. 22, 2022

Seoul urges N. Korea to return to dialogue as Beijing Olympics wrap up

South Korea's unification ministry on Monday urged North Korea to return to dialogue amid speculation Pyongyang may resume major weapons tests following the end of the Beijing Winter Olympics. North Korea conducted seven rounds of missile tests in January, but refrained from shows of force during the Olympics period which ran from Feb. 4-20. Asked to comment on the possibility of Pyongyang resuming its weapons tests, Lee Jong-joo, spokesperson for Seoul's unification ministry handling inter-Ko

Feb. 21, 2022

1 in 4 students think unification with NK unnecessary: survey

One out of 4 South Korean students think that unification with North Korea is unnecessary, a survey showed Friday. In the online survey of 72,524 elementary, middle and high school students conducted by the education ministry and the unification ministry from Nov. 1 to Dec. 10, 61.2 percent replied that unification is necessary, while 25 percent said it is not needed. The rate of students against unification increased for the third consecutive year from 19.4 percent in 2019 and 24.2 percent in 2

Feb. 18, 2022

Beijing vows continued support for Pyongyang on late NK leader's birth anniversary

A senior Chinese official has said Beijing will continue support for North Korea on the 80th birth anniversary of the North's former leader Kim Jong-il, describing their relations as "forged by blood," according to Pyongyang's state media Friday. Ji Bingxuan, vice chairman of the Standing Committee of China's National People's Congress, made the remarks Wednesday during an event held at the North Korean Embassy in Beijing to mark the anniversary, the North's official Korean Central New

Feb. 18, 2022

N. Korea’s ‘massive scale’ crypto theft jumps 40% in 2021: report

North Korean state-sponsored cryptocurrency theft and money laundering have continued on a “massive scale” to generate illicit funds, while the total amount of stolen cryptocurrency jumped 40 percent just last year. North Korea-affiliated hackers launched “at least seven attacks on cryptocurrency platforms that extracted nearly $400 million worth of digital assets last year,” Blockchain data platform Chainalysis Inc. said on Wednesday in its 2022 Crypto Crime Report. Th

Feb. 17, 2022

N. Korea focuses on internal unity on late leader's birth anniversary: Seoul official

North Korea appears to have focused on boosting internal unity on the occasion of the 80th birth anniversary of the country's late leader Kim Jong-il, instead of using it as a chance to send a new major message to the outside world, a Seoul official said Thursday. North Korea has been holding various events to mark the anniversary, which falls on Feb. 16, with leader Kim Jong-un attending a national meeting held in the northwestern city of Samjiyon on Tuesday to pay tribute to his late father, a

Feb. 17, 2022

UN expert discusses NK human rights

Tomas Ojea Quintana, the UN special rapporteur on North Korea’s human rights situation, met with senior officials in Seoul on Wednesday and discussed human rights concerns in the reclusive nation. 　 Quintana arrived here on Tuesday for a nine-day stay, during which he will meet South Korean government officials, lawmakers as well as civic groups and North Korean defectors. 　 The purpose of his visit is to collect data necessary for writing a report on the findings of right abuses in the

Feb. 16, 2022

N. Korean leader attends national meeting to celebrate late father's 80th birthday

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has attended a national meeting to celebrate the 80th birthday anniversary of his late father Kim Jong-il, according to Pyongyang's state media Wednesday. Kim was present at the event to pay tribute to the former leader, which was held in the northwestern city of Samjiyon the previous day, the North's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said. "A floral basket in the name of Kim Jong-un was laid in front of the statue of the Chairman (Kim Jong-il),"

Feb. 16, 2022

N. Korea has lowest economic freedom among 177 countries: report

North Korea has the lowest economic freedom among 177 countries surveyed around the world, a Washington-based think tank said in an annual report on Monday. The Heritage Foundation released the “2022 Index of Economic Freedom,” which comprehensively estimates a country’s economic freedom by using 12 indicators across four broad pillars comprising rule of law, government size, regulatory efficiency and market openness. “North Korea’s economic freedom score is 3.0

Feb. 15, 2022