Congressional commission holds emergency hearing, urges China to protect N. Korean defectors

The Congressional Executive Commission on China held an emergency hearing in Washington on Tuesday to urge China to fulfill its obligations as a United Nations member and protect North Korean asylum-seekers. Members of the commission and key witnesses argued that nearly 2,000 North Korean defectors in China may face forced repatriation once North Korea reopens its border with China, which has been shut during the COVID-19 pandemic. "Close to 2,000 North Korean refugees are reportedly held i

June 14, 2023

Growing bilateral cooperation highlighted on Sweden Day

The Swedish Embassy highlighted the growing bilateral cooperation between the European country with Korea as it celebrated Sweden Day 2023 on Friday. Sweden Day, a national holiday, is observed on June 6. This year marks a double jubilee celebration for Sweden. It commemorates 500 years of independence since the election of King Gustav Vasa in 1523 and the 50th year on the throne for Carl XVI Gustaf, Sweden’s current and longest-reigning monarch. Delivering remarks at the event, Swedish Am

June 13, 2023

N. Korea's FM reaffirms stronger cooperation with Russia

North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui has sent a congratulatory message to her Russian counterpart over Moscow's key national holiday and vowed stronger cooperation between the two nations, state media reported Tuesday. In the message sent to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Monday on the occasion of Russia Day, Choe said Pyongyang and Moscow have ushered in a new "heyday" in their friendly relationship, according to the Korean Central News Agency. "Mutual coope

June 13, 2023

S. Korea to cremate body of presumed N. Korean if no response

South Korea said Monday it will cremate the body of a presumed North Korean man found near the inter-Korean border in May if North Korea does not respond to South Korea's offer to return the body by Friday. "We've requested North Korea to express its intention to receive the body by June 16. If the intention is not confirmed by then, the body will be treated as an unidentified deceased person in cooperation with local government authorities," Koo Byoung-sam, a Unification Min

June 12, 2023

Senior Pentagon official to visit Seoul this week to discuss deterrence against N.K threats

A senior US defense official will visit South Korea later this week to discuss deterrence against growing North Korean threats, Seoul and Washington officials have said, amid joint efforts to curb the recalcitrant regime's provocative acts. The planned trip by Colin Kahl, undersecretary of defense for policy, comes amid tensions heightened by Pyongyang's hardening rhetoric against the allies and its provocative acts, including the failed launch of a space rocket late last month. While

June 12, 2023

Top nuclear envoys of S. Korea, US to discuss N.K. spy satellite, other provocations

The top nuclear envoys of South Korea and the United States will meet in Washington this week to discuss ways to cooperate on countering North Korea's planned launch of a military spy satellite and other pending issues. Seoul's chief nuclear negotiator, Kim Gunn, is scheduled to meet his US counterpart, Sung Kim, on Monday to discuss Pyongyang's evolving nuclear and military threats. "After its botched attempt to launch the satellite, North Korea has been threatening to launc

June 12, 2023

16,000 S.Koreans died since 2018 waiting to reunite with family in North

Over 16,000 elderly South Koreans who had applied for a reunion with their separated families in North Korea have passed away in the absence of reunion events since August 2018. The annual number of South Korean applicants for reunions who have died has ranged from 3,300 to 3,700 since 2018, according to data provided by South Korea's Unification Ministry to Rep. Yang Kyung-sook of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea on Sunday. The most recent state-organized in-person reunion eve

June 11, 2023

NK launch window expires, but S. Korea not letting guard down

The office of President Yoon Suk Yeol said Sunday it is not letting its guard down even though the window for North Korea's satellite launch has expired, as the country can go ahead with a launch at any time. North Korea had set a period between the start of May 31 and the start of June 11 as the window for a satellite-carrying space rocket launch. The country fired the rocket on the first day of the window, but the launch ended in failure with the rocket crashing in the Yellow Sea. At the time,

June 11, 2023

Intl. Red Cross 'ready to reengage' with N. Korea as soon as access granted: official

The International Committee of the Red Cross remains ready to provide humanitarian assistance to North Korea and resume projects suspended during the coronavirus pandemic whenever the reclusive country reaches out for aid, an official at the organization has said. In an interview with Yonhap News Agency, Olivier Ray, the ICRC's director for mobilization, movement and partnerships, also said that the group maintains contact with the Red Cross Society of the Democratic People's Republic

June 10, 2023

N. Korea claims dam collapse in Ukraine occurred with Washington, Kyiv in 'cahoots'

North Korea claimed Friday the latest collapse of a dam in Ukraine was the result of a scheme cooked up by Washington and Kyiv in "cahoots" to shift responsibility for the humanitarian disaster to Russia amid Moscow's war with Ukraine. The North said the US, Ukraine and other western countries are "basely" passing on all responsibility for the destruction of the Kakhovka dam to Russia at a time when the world is concerned about humanitarian and material damage by the inc

June 9, 2023

N. Korea does not send athletes to intl. weightlifting competition in Cuba

North Korea has not sent its athletes to an international weightlifting competition being held in Cuba despite its earlier registration of entries to the event, according to the weightlifting governing body Friday. North Korea had registered a team of 14 athletes for the International Weightlifting Federation Grand Prix I to be held from June 8-18 in Havana, sparking speculation over the North's return to the international sports arena following years of COVID-19-related border shutdown. Bu

June 9, 2023

N. Korea says it 'never recognizes' IMO resolution condemning its missile launches

North Korea said Thursday it "rejects and never recognizes" the latest resolution adopted by an international maritime safety agency denouncing the North's missile launches following its attempt to launch a spy satellite. A spokesperson at the North's Maritime Administration denounced the resolution by the International Maritime Organization as "unfair and illegal" and demanded the agency reflect the North's stance in its official document, according to the off

June 8, 2023

Yoon’s new security strategy identifies NK as most pressing threats

The Yoon Suk Yeol administration on Wednesday released its first top security guidelines, the National Security Strategy, identifying North Korea's advancing nuclear development as the most pressing threat. The newly revised guidelines, under the theme of a global pivotal state for freedom, peace and prosperity, marks the first update in five years since the previous Moon Jae-in administration published its guidelines envisioning a peaceful and prosperous Korean Peninsula in 2018. The new g

June 7, 2023

[NK Hunger] Kim Jong-un’s food politics: How food insecurity is leveraged to maintain regime stability

Shortly after taking power, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un said in 2012 that he wouldn’t have his people “tighten their belts again.” He has pushed to overhaul the agricultural system and enhance crop yields since then, but food shortages have continued. This year, the Kim regime has prioritized enhancing grain production among its 12 major economic goals. The ruling party views agricultural challenges as a “life-or-death matter for the survival and development of the co

June 7, 2023

N. Korean premier sends condolence message to India's prime minister over rail disaster

North Korea's Premier Kim Tok-hun has sent a message of condolence to India's prime minister over last week's deadly train crash in the country, state media reported Wednesday. Three trains collided in the eastern state of Odisha on Friday, killing at least 288 people, according to foreign media reports. In the message sent to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday, Kim expressed "deep sympathy and condolences" to the bereaved families and victims, according to t

June 7, 2023

N. Korean youth group donates multiple rocket launchers to military

A major North Korean youth organization has donated multiple rocket launchers to the country's military on the occasion of the 77th anniversary of its founding, state media reported Wednesday. The Korean Children's Union made the donations at a ceremony Tuesday in Pyongyang after taking part in a labor movement designed to help secure the weapons, according to the Korean Central News Agency. The labor movement is known to be staged to raise funds for the North Korean military by utiliz

June 7, 2023

IMO may adopt resolution again if NK launches satellite without notice

The International Maritime Organization has hinted at adopting another resolution if North Korea launches a second spy satellite without notice. Natasha Brown, IMO Press Information Service Officer, said “IMO can adopt a resolution, issue a circular, issue a decision of an IMO body as it has done in the past,” in response to Voice of America’s written query in regard to North Korea’s statement that it would not notify the IMO in advance of any satellite launches. Offici

June 6, 2023

N. Korean leader’s public military activities spike upward this year

The frequency of publicly reported military activities by North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has been on a notable rise since the beginning of this year compared to the past few years. Kim conducted 12 public military activities by the end of April this year, according to analysis and data provided by the government-funded Korea Institute for National Unification headquartered in Seoul. The total number of such activities increased to 13 by the end of May, including Kim's inspection of prepara

June 6, 2023

N. Korean leader's sister slams UNSC meeting on space rocket launch

The powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on Sunday lambasted last week's meeting of the US Security Council on the country's recent failed space rocket launch as "the most unfair and biased act of interfering in internal affairs." In a statement carried by the North's official Korean Central News Agency, Kim Yo-jong expressed displeasure over Friday's open UNSC briefing, stressing the North will continue to exercise "all the lawful rights" as a sovereign state,

June 4, 2023

Military continues salvage operation for North Korean rocket debris

The South Korean military continued its operation Saturday to search and salvage the wreckage of a North Korean rocket that crashed into the Yellow Sea. Deep-sea divers from the Sea Salvage and Rescue Unit were deployed to the remote sea, 200 kilometers west of the western island of Eocheong, military officials said. The North launched what it claimed to be a satellite-carrying rocket Wednesday. But it crashed into the sea due to the abnormal starting of the second-stage engine, the North'

June 3, 2023