North Korea leader Kim Jong-un crossed the inter-Korean border early Friday, for the first sit-down meeting between the two at the truce village of Panmunjeom early Friday.With a smile on his face, Kim shook hands with South Korean President Moon after stepping out of Panmungak, a North Korean building that houses its liaison office to arrive in front of the military demarcation line. He crossed the border after shaking hands and exchanging a brief greeting with Moon. But instead of heading stra

North Korea April 27, 2018

[2018 Inter-Korean summit] All eyes on PanmunjeomWith the inter-Korean summit on Friday forecast to pave the way for denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, the event is being keenly watched by all those seeking to sit down at the negotiating table with North Korea. For the participants of the now-defunct six-party talks -- including the United States, China, Japan and Russia -- the meeting between South Korean President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un could serve as a guide an

Foreign Affairs April 26, 2018

As the world‘s eyes descend on the truce village of Panmunjeom, the venue of Friday’s inter-Korean summit, another border town seeks to benefit from the talks. In February 2016, Seoul shuttered an industrial park jointly operated by the two Koreas in the North Korean border town of Kaesong in retaliation for the North’s nuclear test and missile launch. The incident forced more than 120 South Korean businessmen to leave behind their properties, including key facilities and raw materials. Kaesong

North Korea April 26, 2018

An itinerary outline for the upcoming inter-Korean summit has been unveiled, with the leaders of South and North Korea set to have dinner together over the course of the meeting, Seoul’s presidential office said Monday. The announcement came as the results of the third working-level talks held earlier in the day to lay the foundations for the inter-Korean summit scheduled later this week.  From left: North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and South Korean President Moon Jae-in (Yonhap)“The South and th

North Korea April 23, 2018

Officials from South Korea and North Korea met for the third working-level talks Monday to lay out the foundation for the inter-Korean summit scheduled later this week. The meeting kicked off at 10 a.m., and lasted for nearly four hours at the joint security area of Panmunjeom inside the heavily fortified Demilitarized Zone, Cheong Wa Dae said. The JSA will serve as the venue for the summit between South Korean President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un slated for Friday.  Panmunj

North Korea April 23, 2018

North Korea stressed the need to “fully implement” its economic policy integrating market-oriented reforms, the country’s state-run newspaper said Monday, following its leader’s decision to pivot away from nuclear testing and toward the economy. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un visits a store selling dinnerware in Pyongyang. (Yonhap)North Korean leader Kim Jong-un announced on Saturday his country’s nuclear and missile tests coupled with a key nuclear test site will be scrapped with the completio

North Korea April 23, 2018

In what is generally seen as a bold pre-emptive move, North Korea on Saturday announced its decision to halt nuclear and missile tests and shut down its main nuclear test site -- and instead focus on economic development. The move took by surprise those who believed the North would slowly and cautiously play out such steps towards denuclearization as a bargaining chip for regime survival, through the two landmark summits planned between South Korea and the United States.  The United Nations Secu

North Korea April 22, 2018

North Korea will hold a plenary session of its ruling party‘s central committee on Friday, the country’s state media said Thursday, ahead of its planned summits with South Korea and the United States. The Workers’ Party of Korea meeting which will be convened Friday will “discuss and decide the policy issues of a new stage in line with the demand of the important historic period of the developing Korean revolution,” the North’s Korean Central News Agency said.The policy issues were not specified

North Korea April 19, 2018

The two Koreas held working-level talks on Wednesday in an effort to finalize preparations for the upcoming summit between their leaders next week. The talks kicked off 10 a.m. sharp at the Joint Security Area of the truce village of Panmunjeom near the border, which will also serve as a venue for the summit between South Korean President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un slated for next Friday. It lasted for nearly five hours without any breaks, according to the South’s presidenti

North Korea April 18, 2018

A petition calling for a probe into lawmakers that may have participated in illegal overseas trips or tampered with political donations is gaining traction, following the resignation of the country’s newly appointed financial watchdog chief on such misconduct.  A screen capture of a petition uploaded on Cheong Wa Dae website, calling for a probe into lawmakers. (Cheong Wa Dae/The Korea Herald)As of early Tuesday, more than 90,000 people had signed a petition on the Cheong Wa Dae website, request

Politics April 17, 2018

With an inter-Korean summit scheduled to take place on April 27, the two Koreas are expected to hold what is likely to be the final round of preparation talks this week. The two sides will hold working-level talks at the Tongilgak administrative building in the truce village of Panmunjeom on Wednesday, which will be closely followed by high-level talks, according to the South’s presidential Cheong Wa Dae, to build a solid foundation for the fast-approaching summit. The exact date for the high-le

North Korea April 16, 2018

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un met senior Chinese diplomat Song Tao and discussed “matters of mutual concern,” the North’s state media said Sunday, indicating closer ties between Pyongyang and Beijing ahead of Kim’s planned summits with South Korea and the United States.Kim met Song, head of the international liaison department of at the Central Committee of the Communist Party, on Saturday, according to the Korean Central News Agency. A Chinese art troupe, led by Song, arrived in Pyongyang on

North Korea April 15, 2018

North Korea’s Supreme People’s Assembly convened Wednesday, the country’s state media reported Thursday, with leader Kim Jong-un apparently absent from the proceedings. The parliamentary meeting comes head of an inter-Korean summit scheduled for April 27 and a planned meeting between Kim and US President Donald Trump in late May or early June.  North Korea`s parliament holds a key session on Wednesday, without its leader Kim Jong-un in attendance. (KCNA-Yonhap)The SPA, a rubber-stamp parliament,

North Korea April 12, 2018

South Korea reiterated Wednesday that it has ruled out North Korea’s human rights record as an agenda item for the upcoming inter-Korean summit, while the United States said it may touch on the sensitive issue. An unnamed Cheong Wa Dae official told Yonhap News Agency that the focus of the summit is tackling the “most urgent” issue of denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. Otto Frederick Warmbier (center), a University of Virginia student who was detained in North Korea for 17 months since Ja

North Korea April 11, 2018

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has briefed top ruling party officials on the prospects for dialogue with the United States, the North’s state media said Tuesday. It marks Kim’s first official comment on the diplomatic overtures he has made toward Seoul and Washington since January. Kim gave a “profound analysis and appraisal” of inter-Korean ties and potential talks with the US at a meeting of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Workers’ Party of Korea held Monday, according to

North Korea April 10, 2018