N. Korea in final stage of building 10,000 apartment units in capital: state media

North Korea is nearing the completion of a major housing project to construct 10,000 high-rise apartment units in its capital eight months after breaking ground, state media said Wednesday. Cabinet Premier Kim Tok-hun visited the construction site, according to the Korean Central News Agency, which reported the construction work is "in the final stage." During the North's eighth party congress in January, North Korea announced its aim of building 50,000 apartments in Pyongyang by 202

Nov. 3, 2021

North Korea may launch space rocket next year: expert

North Korea may launch a space rocket next year as part of the regime’s program to enhance weapons capabilities amid long-stalled denuclearization talks with the US, a state-run think tank report says.    Ko Jae-hong, a researcher at the Institute for National Security Strategy, a think tank run by South Korea’s spy agency, released a report Tuesday examining the North’s weapons expo held last month and the country’s defense outlook. 　 Ko said that it i

Nov. 3, 2021

Pope Francis unlikely to visit N. Korea in winter: Cheong Wa Dae

Pope Francis is unlikely to visit North Korea in the winter, although it is difficult to predict when the trip will happen, the Cheong Wa Dae spokesperson said Tuesday. President Moon Jae-in asked the pope during their meeting at the Vatican last week to visit North Korea to help foster peace on the Korean Peninsula. The pope responded that he would do so if he received an invitation from the North. "Various efforts are under way, but it's difficult to predict the timing," Cheong Wa

Nov. 2, 2021

Will forestry cooperation speed up inter-Korean talks?

President Moon Jae-in made another overture toward North Korea at a UN climate summit Monday, suggesting planting trees together to reduce carbon emissions on the Korean Peninsula and pledging to make good on a 3-year-old promise in an apparent bid to reengage Pyongyang. “The Republic of Korea will take a leading role in cooperation for reforestation,” Moon said in his keynote speech at the 26th Conference of the Parties or COP26 held in Glasgow, Scotland, calling tree planting one

Nov. 2, 2021

Unification minister, WHO chief agree to boost cooperation on N. Korea

Unification Minister Lee In-young has held talks with the head of the World Health Organization (WHO) in Geneva and agreed to strengthen cooperation on North Korea's public health issues, his office said Tuesday. Lee's meeting with WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus took place Monday (local time) after the minister accompanied President Moon Jae-in on his latest Vatican visit. "(The two sides) exchanged opinions on North Korea's COVID-19 situation and ways to cooperate in its

Nov. 2, 2021

S. Korea, US hold deputy-level talks on N. Korea

Senior officials from South Korea and the United States held talks in Washington on Monday on ways to restart dialogue with North Korea, the State Department said. US Deputy Special Representative for the DPRK Jung Pak hosted a "deputy-level consultation meeting" with her South Korean counterpart, Rim Kap-soo, according to the department. "The two sides discussed the current situation on the Korean Peninsula; prospects for humanitarian cooperation; and the potential for dialogue

Nov. 2, 2021

Unification ministry to discuss resuming Panmunjom tours with UNC

The unification ministry said Monday it will begin discussions with the US-led United Nations Command (UNC) to resume tours to the inter-Korean border village of Panmunjom as South Korea began its "living with COVID-19" scheme meant to phase out coronavirus restrictions amid a rising vaccination rate. Tours to Panmunjom, or the Joint Security Area (JSA), were suspended in July after health authorities imposed the toughest virus curbs in the greater Seoul area, home to half of the coun

Nov. 1, 2021

Seoul urges Pyongyang to accept proposed visit by pope

The South Korean government on Monday urged North Korea to respond positively to a suggestion that the pope visit there, expressing hope for progress in efforts to promote regional peace. The unification ministry's statement came after Pope Francis reaffirmed his willingness to visit the North during his meeting with President Moon Jae-in at the Vatican last week. Moon and the pope met Friday on the sidelines of the Group of 20 summit in Rome, during which Moon said a papal visit to North Kor

Nov. 1, 2021

N. Korea accuses S. Korean entertainment industry of helping Netflix

North Korea accused the South Korean entertainment industry on Sunday of working in favor of US companies, such as Netflix, through "unfair" deals. The North's propaganda outlet, Meari, said South Korean entertainment firms have turned to Netflix to improve their margins amid a business slump caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. It did not mention the South Korean-made hit Netflix series "Squid Game," but the article follows recent controversy in South Korea over the way the US

Oct. 31, 2021

Moon seeks papal visit to NK, but will Pyongyang play ball?

South Korean President Moon Jae-in is striving to have Pope Francis visit North Korea in what appears to be a final push to salvage diplomacy with the reclusive regime, but it remains to be seen whether Pyongyang will accept the proposal. 　 Moon asked the pope to visit the North when they met at the Vatican on Friday, saying a visit would build “momentum for peace” on the Korean Peninsula, according to Cheong Wa Dae spokesperson Park Kyung-mee. 　 In response, the pope, calling the

Oct. 31, 2021

Unification minister meets with WFP chief, senior Vatican official in Rome

Unification Minister Lee In-young held meetings with the chief of the World Food Program (WFP) and a senior Vatican official during a trip to Rome and discussed issues related to North Korea, the ministry said Sunday. The meetings with David Beasley, executive director of the U.N. food agency, and Cardinal Peter Kodwo Appiah Turkson, the first Prefect of the Dicastery for the Promotion of Integral Human Development, took place Saturday as Lee was in Rome to accompany President Moon Jae-in. Dur

Oct. 31, 2021

S. Korea, US envoys hold phone talks on N.K. nukes, end-of-war declaration

  The top nuclear envoys of South Korea and the United States had phone talks Friday on stalled nuclear negotiations with North Korea and Seoul's proposal for an end-of-war declaration, Seoul's foreign ministry said Friday. Noh Kyu-duk, special representative for Korean Peninsula peace and security affairs, and his American counterpart, Sung Kim, agreed on the need to "stably manage the situation" on the peninsula, the ministry said. "They held constructive consultations

Oct. 29, 2021

Moon asks Pope Francis to visit N. Korea

South Korean President Moon Jae-in on Friday asked Pope Francis to visit North Korea to bring peace on the Korean Peninsula, and the pope positively reacted to the offer, saying he is willing to do so if he receives an invitation from the North, an official said.   Moon made the offer during a meeting with the pope at the Vatican earlier in the day, saying a papal visit to North Korea will serve as momentum for bringing peace on the Korean Peninsula.  "If the pontiff visits

Oct. 29, 2021

N. Korea demands sanctions relief before discussing end-of-war declaration: NIS

North Korea demanded UN sanctions relief and the suspension of South Korea-US military exercises as preconditions for talks on an end-of-war declaration, the South Korean spy agency said on Thursday. The National Intelligence Service (NIS) confirmed Pyongyang’s position on the issue in a closed-door briefing at the parliamentary audit, Rep. Kim Byung-kee of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea and Rep. Ha Tae-keung of the main opposition People Party told a press conference. North Korea

Oct. 29, 2021

UN committee approves draft resolutions calling for N. Korea to give up nukes

A UN General Assembly committee has approved three draft resolutions concerning North Korea, including one reaffirming the Assembly's commitment to the "complete, verifiable and irreversible" abandonment of Pyongyang's nuclear program, its website showed Friday. On Wednesday, the First Committee in charge of disarmament and security affairs approved 25 resolutions and decisions, including those related to the North, amid reports that the recalcitrant regime has been doubling down on i

Oct. 29, 2021

Signs of activity detected at North Korea’s Yongbyon facility: NIS

North Korea may have reprocessed spent nuclear fuel rods at the Yongbyon Nuclear Complex this year, the South Korean spy agency was quoted as saying Thursday. The National Intelligence Service confirmed the activity in a closed-door briefing at the parliamentary audit, Rep. Kim Byung-kee of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea said during a press briefing. The spy agency said Pyongyang may have reprocessed spent fuel from its main 5MW(e) nuclear reactor in Yongbyon from February to July this

Oct. 28, 2021

WFP chief calls for intl. cooperation to improve N. Korea's food situation

The head of the World Food Programme (WFP) on Thursday called for international cooperation to improve North Korea's food situation, raising concerns over a "growing threat" from extreme weather caused by climate change. WFP Executive Director David Beasley made the remarks in a video keynote speech at a seminar in the northeastern county of Yanggu, referring to a series of droughts and floods that impacted North Korea's crop yields last year. "We stand ready to respond to these

Oct. 28, 2021

N. Korea slams US, some western countries for skipping UN meeting on racism

North Korea rebuked the United States and other western nations Thursday for having double standards on human rights and racism, taking issue with their absence from a recent symbolic UN meeting. In a note posted on the foreign ministry's website, North Korea criticized the US, Britain and others for not taking part in a high-level meeting at the UN General Assembly last month to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action that calls for racial justice.

Oct. 28, 2021

N. Korea builds more houses in Samjiyon under major development project

North Korea has completed building 1,000 more houses in the northwestern city of Samjiyon near the border with China, state media reported Thursday, as part of a major development project under way at the birthplace of leader Kim Jong-un's late father. "Shock brigade" members of the 216 Division "made the shining achievements of concluding the construction of all the dwelling houses they were tasked to fulfill," according to the North's official Korean Central News Agency (K

Oct. 28, 2021

US, South Korea may differ on end-of-war proposal

Washington and Seoul appear to be on different trajectories on the matter of declaring a formal end to the Korean War, with a top US security official saying the allies could have “different perspectives” on the timing and conditions. 　 US national security adviser Jake Sullivan made the remarks Tuesday (US time) amid Seoul’s renewed push to declare a formal end to the 1950-53 Korean War, as a way to nudge Pyongyang back to talks and ultimately to convince the regime to aband

Oct. 27, 2021