Defense chief says 'fundamental' solution to N. Korean threats lies on free, unified Korean Peninsula

Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun said Wednesday that the "fundamental" solution to North Korea's nuclear and missile threats lies in achieving a free and unified Korean Peninsula. He made the statement during the Seoul Defense Dialogue, an annual security forum in Seoul. Kim emphasized that "the fundamental solution to North Korea's nuclear and missile threats and North Korean human rights issues lies in establishing a free and unified Korean Peninsula." He added that

Sept. 11, 2024

N. Korea's leader vows push for exponential increase in nuclear weapons

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has vowed to bolster the country's nuclear capabilities to deter any threats by enemies, saying it is steadily carrying out a policy to increase the number of nuclear weapons exponentially, state media said Tuesday. Kim made the vow during a speech in a meeting with senior party and government officials on the occasion of the 76th founding anniversary of the regime, according to the Korean Central News Agency. The North's leader delivered a speech for th

Sept. 10, 2024

N. Korean trash balloon blamed for Paju warehouse fire

The past five days have seen a flurry of trash and debris littering the greater Seoul area again as North Korea resumed its campaign of floating hundreds of trash-carrying balloons over the border into South Korean territory. On Sunday, one of these balloons touched off a fire in a warehouse in the city of Paju, just 28 kilometers north of Seoul, local fire officials reported Monday. The fire reportedly broke out on the rooftop of a single-story pharmaceutical warehouse at around 1:59 p.m on Sun

Sept. 9, 2024

N. Korea holds celebrations to mark 76th state founding anniv.

North Korea has held celebrative events to mark the 76th anniversary of the regime's founding, with senior officials visiting a mausoleum to pay tribute to the country's late former leaders, state media reported Monday. Premier Kim Tok-hun and other key officials on Sunday visited the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun, where the embalmed bodies of the current leader's father, Kim Jong-il, and grandfather, Kim Il-sung, lie in state, according to the Korean Central News Agency. The North&#

Sept. 9, 2024

NK sends over 1,000 trash balloons to S. Korea in last 5 days

North Korea sent more than 1,000 trash-carrying balloons toward South Korea over five consecutive days, resuming its launch of trash balloons following a monthlong hiatus, according to the Joint Chiefs of Staff on Sunday. The JCS said that North Korea resumed its balloon launches at around 9 a.m. Sunday morning, just hours after it had sent around 200 trash-filled balloons toward South Korea late Saturday. “Around 50 trash balloons were confirmed to have landed in Seoul and the northern

Sept. 8, 2024

North Korea floats 190 trash balloons in resumed campaign

North Korea has launched around 190 balloons filled with scrap paper and other waste toward the South in its resumed balloon campaign, with many found in Seoul and surrounding areas, military officials said Saturday. North Korea floated the balloons from Friday night to early Saturday morning, and around 100 have landed in the capital and its surrounding Gyeonggi Province so far, the Joint Chiefs of Staff said. No hazardous materials have been found in the balloons, which contained only scrap

Sept. 7, 2024

N. Korea sends trash balloons into S. Korea for 2nd consecutive day: JCS

North Korea floated trash-carrying balloons into South Korea for a second straight day on Thursday, South Korea's military said, the latest in its repeated provocations Seoul condemned as "senseless." The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said it detected the North launching some 480 trash balloons from late Wednesday until 12 p.m. Thursday, with around 100 trash bundles landing in Seoul and northern parts of Gyeonggi Province that surrounds the capital. In a notice sent to reporters at

Sept. 5, 2024

S. Korea, US brace for NK 'grave provocations' around US election

South Korea and the United States concluded Wednesday that the possibility of North Korea launching "grave provocations" around the US presidential election in November could not be dismissed, prompting discussions on a coordinated response to a range of potential scenarios. The high-level meeting of the Extended Deterrence Strategy and Consultation Group, the alliance's premier annual forum for discussing and coordinating security strategy and policy issues impacting the Korean Penins

Sept. 5, 2024

N. Korea sending balloons into S. Korea for 2nd consecutive day: JCS

North Korea again started floating balloons into South Korea on Thursday morning, South Korea's military said, hours after it sent hundreds of balloons across the border the previous day. "As North Korea has again been floating balloons since 9 a.m., we advise the public to beware of falling objects and report to nearby military units or the police when discovering a fallen balloon," the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said in a notice to reporters. The move came after North Korea sen

Sept. 5, 2024

N. Korea launches more trash balloons toward S. Korea

North Korea again launched balloons likely carrying trash toward South Korea on Wednesday, the Joint Chiefs of Staff said, marking a resumption of its trash-balloon campaign after a near monthlong halt. The JCS said an unspecified number of balloons could travel to northern Gyeonggi Province, just north of Seoul, and advised the public not to touch fallen balloons and report them to the military or police. Since late May, the North has launched thousands of balloons carrying trash in a tit-for-t

Sept. 4, 2024

Defectors' rise to high posts in Seoul could shake NK elite: Tae

Tae Yong-ho, a former senior North Korean diplomat, said Wednesday that his appointment to a vice-ministerial position in the South Korean government sends a compelling message to the North Korean elite -- the key pillars of the Kim regime's sustainability -- by highlighting their potential for a promising future within South Korean society or a unified Korea. Tae has become the first North Korean defector who once served in the North Korean regime to ascend to a high-ranking South Korean o

Sept. 4, 2024

Ex-N. Korean diplomat in Cuba proposes paths to regime collapse from within

Ri Il-gyu, the former second-ranking North Korean diplomat in Cuba, on Tuesday publicly proposed strategies to destabilize the Kim Jong-un regime from within by promoting societal change in the North, including the inflow of external information to the North Korean populace. "The so-called elite class, or the cadre class, has undergone a significant shift in their perception of the regime," Ri, who served as a counselor at the North Korean Embassy in Havana, said during the Global Kore

Sept. 3, 2024

N. Korea earned over $6b through illicit activities over past 7 years: report

North Korea is estimated to have earned more than $6 billion through hacking and other illicit activities over the past seven years despite facing heavy international sanctions, a state-run think tank report showed Tuesday. North Korea's income through illegal activities from 2017 to 2023, such as smuggling out coal, reached a total of $6.29 billion, according to the report from the Institute for National Security Strategy. The UN Security Council has imposed wide-ranging sanctions on North

Sept. 3, 2024

Trump says getting along with Kim Jong-un is 'good thing'

WASHINGTON -- Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump said Friday that "getting along" with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is a "good thing," after his Democratic rival Kamala Harris vowed not to "cozy up to" dictators like Kim. During a campaign rally in Pennsylvania, a key battleground state, former President Trump again boasted about his personal ties with the North Korean leader, as he and the vice president are in a tight race with the presidential elec

Aug. 31, 2024

US stresses push for 'timely, accurate, unbiased' reporting on NK-related UNSC resolutions noncompliance

WASHINGTON -- The United States on Friday underscored its commitment to finding the "best" way to secure "timely, accurate and unbiased" reporting on noncompliance with North Korea-related UN Security Council resolutions as a key sanctions monitoring panel was disbanded four months ago. A State Department spokesperson made the remarks amid ongoing efforts among the US, South Korea, Japan and other countries to find an alternative to the UN expert panel whose mandate expired

Aug. 31, 2024

S. Korea, US to hold high-level talks on N. Korea deterrence next week

South Korea and the United States will hold vice-ministerial talks in Washington next week on deterrence efforts against North Korea's nuclear and missile threats, Seoul's foreign ministry said Friday. The fifth meeting of the Extended Deterrence Strategy and Consultation Group will take place Wednesday (local time), with a focus on assessing the progress on the allies' efforts to deter North Korea's military threats, the ministry said in a release. The talks will also addres

Aug. 31, 2024

Families of S. Korean detainees in NK appeal to embassies for support

South Korea's Unification Ministry on Thursday organized a first-ever event where families of South Koreans abducted and held captive by North Korea made a direct appeal to foreign missions in Seoul, urging global support in bringing these decades-old unresolved cases to the UN stage for resolution. The event, titled "Families' Call for International Solidarity: Issues of Abduction, Arbitrary Detention and Forced Disappearance," aimed to garner support for highlighting North

Aug. 29, 2024

Minister plays down US parties' omission of NK denuke goal

Unification Minister Kim Yung-ho on Wednesday aimed to quell rising concerns in Seoul over the omission of US commitments to North Korea's denuclearization from the 2024 platforms of both the Democratic and Republican parties. Kim remarked, "There has been back-and-forth debate recently over the platforms of US presidential candidates," specifically referring to the US Democratic Party’s platform released in August and the Republican Party’s platform from July that set

Aug. 28, 2024

N. Korea test-fires multiple rocket launcher equipped with new guidance system

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has overseen a test-fire of a 240mm multiple rocket launcher with a new guidance system, state media reported Wednesday, amid speculation that the new artillery system could be provided to Russia for use in its war with Ukraine. Kim attended Tuesday's test of the multiple rocket launch system that is produced at defense industrial enterprises under the Second Economic Commission, according to the Korean Central News Agency. The weapon could put Seoul and its

Aug. 28, 2024

US takes NK 'suicide drone' threat 'seriously': Pentagon

The United States takes threats from what North Korea calls "suicide drones" seriously, a Pentagon spokesperson said Tuesday, reiterating Washington's commitment to cooperating with South Korea and other allies to ensure regional security. North Korean state media reported Monday that leader Kim Jong-un oversaw a performance test of various drones on Saturday, calling for the development and production of more suicide drones to bolster the country's war preparedness. "We

Aug. 28, 2024