S. Korea holds drills as North vows nuclear buildup

South Korea, the US and Japan held joint missile defense drills off the Korean Peninsula on Tuesday to counter North Korea’s aggression, as the North vowed to expand its capability to use nuclear weapons at sea. The exercises in international waters off Jeju Island focused on tracking projectiles and sharing information about such potential launches by North Korea. Destroyers equipped with the Aegis system to shoot down missiles were used, South Korea’s Navy said. The aim is to &ldq

Aug. 29, 2023

N. Korea's Kim visits navy command, calls for bolstering naval forces

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un called for bolstering naval forces as he visited the country's navy command, while denouncing South Korea, the United States and Japan for stepping up their trilateral military cooperation, according to the North's state media Tuesday. Kim's visit, which took place on Navy Day in North Korea, came days after he visited a navy unit where he inspected a cruise missile test aboard a warship. "To achieve the successes in rapidly developing the nava

Aug. 29, 2023

N. Korean workers return home from China by road for 1st time since pandemic

SHENYANG, China -- More than 300 North Korean workers returned home Monday from a Chinese border city, multiple sources said, a day after Pyongyang reopened its borders for its citizens abroad for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic. Around 300 to 400 North Koreans left Dandong in northeastern China earlier in the day for the North's border city of Sinuiju by bus, according to the sources. It marked the first time for North Koreans to return home by road transportation since the two

Aug. 28, 2023

N. Korea apparently reopens its border due to economic difficulties: Seoul

North Korea apparently has decided to reopen its border after more than three years of its tight virus curbs due largely to economic challenges from its border closure, South Korea's unification ministry said Monday. North Korea said Sunday it has allowed its citizens abroad to return home amid eased concerns about the COVID-19 pandemic and will put them under quarantine for a week. The decision marked the secretive regime making official the reopening of its border. "Due to its border

Aug. 28, 2023

N. Korea criticizes European countries for sending F-16 jets to Ukraine

North Korea criticized a recent decision by the Netherlands, Denmark and Norway for providing F-16 fighters to Ukraine in its fight against Russia as an "anti-peace act," the North's state media said Monday. The commentary by the North's Institute of International Studies came as Pyongyang has expressed support for Russia's invasion of Ukraine and amid speculation of an arms deal between Pyongyang and Moscow. "Their decision to supply even fighters is an anti-peace

Aug. 28, 2023

NK edges towards full border reopening amid economic concerns

North Korea is gradually opening its tightly closed borders to neighbors like China and Russia amid concerns of an economic crisis in one of the world's most isolated nations. On Sunday, North Korea's state-run Korean Central News Agency said the North’s State Emergency Epidemic Prevention Headquarters on Saturday authorized North Korean citizens stranded abroad to return. The move comes more than three years after strict border restrictions were implemented to prevent the spread

Aug. 27, 2023

Another N. Korean airliner arrives in Beijing following resumption of Pyongyang-Beijing air route

BEIJING -- Another flight operated by Air Koryo, North Korea's national carrier, arrived in Beijing on Saturday, marking the resumption of regular passenger flights connecting the two countries after they were halted for more than three years due to the pandemic. China recently announced its approval of Koryo Air's schedule between the two countries' capitals, offering three flights per week, in a sign the border has reopened after international flights from and to the North were

Aug. 26, 2023

US calls for UNSC action against N. Korean satellite launch, says China, Russia's opposition is 'troubling'

WASHINGTON -- The United States' envoy to the United Nations called on the UN Security Council to condemn North Korea's recent failed satellite launch on Friday, while insisting that China and Russia's refusal to hold North Korea accountable for its actions is encouraging the recalcitrant country to continue making provocations. The US envoy. Thomas Linda-Greenfield, said China and Russia's refusal to condemn North Korean provocations is "troubling." "I urge ev

Aug. 26, 2023

N. Korean plane arrives in Vladivostok for 1st time in over 3 years: report

VLADIVOSTOK -- A flight operated by Air Koryo, North Korea's national carrier, arrived in Russia's far eastern city of Vladivostok on Friday, a Russian news agency reported, marking the resumption of a commercial flight connecting the two countries after more than three years of COVID-19 restrictions. The flight, which departed from Pyongyang, arrived at Vladivostok International Airport at 11:14 a.m., Russian news agency RIA Novosti said. According to sources, the plane did not carr

Aug. 25, 2023

N. Korea internally tight-lipped on 2nd satellite launch failure

North Korea's state media, which is primarily meant for internal audiences, has not yet reported on its second failed attempt Thursday to launch a purported spy satellite into orbit. The action shows a stark contrast with North Korea’s prompt external acknowledgment of the launch failure, detailed explanations of the primary cause, and the announcement of its intention to conduct a third satellite launch in October via the Korean Central News Agency. The KCNA, which predominantly targ

Aug. 25, 2023

N. Korea's failed satellite launch is provocative, destabilizing: Pentagon

North Korea's failed attempt to launch a military satellite is a provocative action that destabilizes the region, a Pentagon spokesperson reiterated Thursday, after the White House condemned the launch as a direct violation of United Nations Security Council resolutions. The Pentagon spokesperson, Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder, said the United States will continue working closely with its South Korean and Japanese allies to ensure stability in the region. "What we see here is another failed spa

Aug. 25, 2023

Korea-US-Japan summit builds strong foundation for trilateral cooperation: Amb. Cho

The recently held three-way summit between the leaders of South Korea, Japan and the United States has built an unprecedentedly strong foundation for trilateral cooperation that will help develop their ties under any circumstances, South Korea's ambassador to the US Cho Hyun-dong said Thursday. Cho also insisted that the trilateral summit has created a small multilateral forum that he said is stronger or more powerful than other regional gatherings, including the Quad, a grouping of the US,

Aug. 25, 2023

N. Korea slams S. Korea-US-Japan summit as 'Asian version of NATO'

North Korea on Thursday denounced the trilateral agreement among South Korea, the United States, and Japan as "the Asian version of NATO," and the US scheme to encircle Russia and China. Pyongyang's defense minister, Kang Sun-nam, issued a statement after the leaders of Seoul, Washington and Tokyo held a trilateral summit at Camp David last week, and agreed to beef up cooperation to deal with North Korea's nuclear and missile threats. "The recent confab brought to light

Aug. 24, 2023

N. Korea says Japan should immediately retract discharge of treated radioactive water

North Korea said Thursday that Japan should immediately halt the release of treated radioactive water from its crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant into the sea. In a statement carried by the North's official Korea Central News Agency, a spokesperson for its foreign ministry said the act devastates the earth's environment, and seriously threatens the security and survival of mankind. Earlier in the day, Japan began to discharge its first batch of treated radioactive water into the se

Aug. 24, 2023

S. Korea, US, Japan seek sanctions after NK launch

Foreign Minister Park Jin and his US and Japanese counterparts agreed to look into individual sanctions on North Korea, following its failed second attempt Thursday to put a military reconnaissance satellite into orbit, during a phone call that took place hours after the launch. The call is a “meaningful follow-up” to last week’s Camp David summit agreement for joint action on North Korea, an isolated country that defies United Nations sanctions prompted by its nuclear and weap

Aug. 24, 2023

US says N. Korean satellite launch violates UNSC resolutions, calls on Pyongyang to engage in dialogue

The United States called on North Korea to refrain from launching additional satellites Wednesday, stressing that North Korean space launch vehicles violate multiple United Nations Security Council resolutions. A State Department spokesperson urged Pyongyang to engage in serious diplomacy instead. "Any DPRK launch that uses ballistic missile technology, which would include SLVs used to launch a satellite into space, violates multiple UN Security Council resolutions," the spokesperson t

Aug. 24, 2023

NK's 2nd satellite launch attempt fails, plans another in Oct.

North Korea admitted an attempt to launch a military reconnaissance satellite into orbit ended in failure Thursday, but pledged to conduct another launch in October. North Korea’s National Aerospace Development Administration launched a Malligyong-1 spy satellite using a Chollima-1 space launch vehicle at Sohae Satellite Launching Station in the Tongchang-ri area of North Pyongan Province, according to North Korea’s state-run Korean Central News Agency. The first- and second-stage fl

Aug. 24, 2023

Food security prioritized in NK amid heavy rain: Unification Ministry

North Korea has been placing a high priority on stabilizing food security amid unfavorable weather conditions, while its trade with China has not fully recovered to pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels, South Korea's Unification Ministry said Wednesday. "North Korea has fully mobilized resources and manpower for grain production which has been designated as the No. 1 task among 12 major economic priorities for this year," reads a report submitted by the ministry to the National Assembly.

Aug. 23, 2023

North Korea's Kim lambasts premier over flooding, possible bid to shift blame for bad economy

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un severely rebuked his premier and other senior officials over their “irresponsible” response to recent flooding that inundated farmlands, state media reported Tuesday. Summer floods in North Korea often cause serious damage to its agricultural sector due to poor drainage and deforestation. Observers say Kim’s lambasting of top officials likely aims to shift blame for the country’s worsened economic hardships

Aug. 22, 2023

N.Korea plans satellite launch amid S. Korea-US military drills

North Korea has notified Japan of its plans to launch a satellite between Thursday and Aug. 31, sparking immediate condemnation from Seoul and Tokyo who called it a clear violation of UN Security Council resolutions. The launch window also aligns with the ongoing 11-day joint, interagency Ulchi Freedom Shield military exercise between South Korea and the US, which is scheduled to continue until the end of August and is accompanied by more than 30 field training exercises. North Korea has identif

Aug. 22, 2023