UN rights expert pins hopes on NK’s border easing

North Korea’s recent decision to slowly lift border shutdowns could help the isolated country re-engage with United Nations bodies on human rights, a UN rights expert said Monday on the last day of her trip to Seoul that started Monday last week. Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020, the North had kept its borders sealed, expelling rights and aid groups. Pyongyang last month approved the return of its citizens overseas. “I hope that the DPRK will restart its engagem

Sept. 12, 2023

Kim Jong-un flanked by military cadre enters Russia amid US warning

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, publicly flanked by a cadre of key military officers, has entered Russia via his armored private train following a lengthy journey from Pyongyang for a high-stakes summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the Russian Far East. Putin's announcement on Tuesday that he will visit the Vostochny Cosmodrome space launch center in the region also suggests that the location is the likely venue for the meeting. The move strongly signals that the focus of the i

Sept. 12, 2023

N. Korea may test fire SLBM following launch of tactical nuclear submarine: Beyond Parallel

North Korea may test fire a submarine-launched ballistic missile to show the effectiveness of its new tactical nuclear submarine launched earlier this month, a US monitor said Monday. Beyond Parallel, a project of the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies, also noted that Pyongyang may request submarine or SLBM-requested technology from Russia during leader Kim Jong-un's high-profile trip to Russia. "The logical next step for North Korea is a missile launch fr

Sept. 12, 2023

White House urges N. Korea not to provide weapons to Russia

The White House called on North Korea not to provide any weapons to Russia on Monday, ahead of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's widely anticipated meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Adrienne Watson, spokesperson for the White House National Security Council, underscored that the two countries will likely continue discussing a potential arms deal during Kim's ongoing trip to Russia. "As we have warned publicly, arms discussions between Russia and the DPRK are expected

Sept. 12, 2023

N. Korean leader to 'soon' visit Russia for summit with Putin: KCNA

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un will "soon" visit Russia to hold talks with President Vladimir Putin, Pyongyang's state media reported Monday, with a special train believed to be carrying him apparently heading for Russia. The North's leader will soon visit Russia at the invitation of Putin, the Korean Central News Agency reported, adding that Kim "will meet and have a talk with Comrade Putin during the visit." But it did not elaborate on details such as the timin

Sept. 11, 2023

Kim departs for potential summit with Putin

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has embarked on a train journey on Monday, government sources confirmed to The Korea Herald, strongly indicating the possibility of a forthcoming meeting with President Vladimir Putin in Russia. The move comes amid blistering criticism of talks between the two leaders on arms trade, which has raised concerns about potential support for Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The armored train, presumably carrying Kim, was slowly advancing toward the northeastern border

Sept. 11, 2023

N. Korean leader has photo session with paramilitary parade participants

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has had a photo session with participants of a paramilitary parade to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the country's founding, state media said Monday, amid speculation about his possible trip to Russia for talks with President Vladimir Putin. In the photo shoot session held Sunday, Kim called the parade a "powerful demonstration of the invincible spirit of socialist Korea" in a march to "achieve the great cause of building a powerful nation,&

Sept. 11, 2023

N. Korea's Kim touts patriotism on key anniversary

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has called patriotic people the "best assets" of the state as he marked the country's founding anniversary with a paramilitary parade, the North's state media reported Sunday. Kim made the remarks at a photo session Saturday with people who took part in the celebrations of the country's 75th founding day, according to the North's Korean Central News Agency. "The patriotic people, including the persons of merits and labor innovato

Sept. 10, 2023

N. Korean leader attends paramilitary parade to mark key anniversary

North Korea staged a paramilitary parade in Pyongyang on Saturday to mark the 75th anniversary of the regime's founding day, with leader Kim Jong-un in attendance, the North's state media said. Kim observed the military parade that took place "with splendor" at Kim Il Sung Square to celebrate the founding anniversary, according to the Korean Central News Agency. Kim did not deliver a speech at the event, which was also attended by his daughter, believed to be named Ju-ae. Als

Sept. 9, 2023

N. Korea holding paramilitary parade to mark key anniversary: source

North Korea was staging a paramilitary parade in Pyongyang on Saturday to mark the 75th anniversary of the regime's founding day, an informed source said. The event began at midnight following a pre-parade ceremony held Friday night, the source said, without elaborating. Details of the event, including whether leader Kim Jong-un attended the parade and what weapons were displayed, were not immediately known. The nighttime event marks the third military parade North Korea has staged this yea

Sept. 9, 2023

America’s retired North Korea intelligence officer offers a parting message on the nuclear threat

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The founder of North Korea’s ruling dynasty, an isolationist totalitarian leader named Kim Il Sung, was still building some of the country’s first nuclear facilities when Syd Seiler arrived on the Korean Peninsula as a young US military intelligence officer. Over the four decades since, Seiler has watched closely as Kim, his son and now his grandson have clung to their nuclear program and developed the potential to lob nuclear warheads at the US and its allies if t

Sept. 8, 2023

N. Korea unveils first 'tactical nuclear attack submarine'

North Korea has unveiled its first-ever operational submarine, purportedly capable of launching nuclear-capable ballistic missiles, while the country's leader, Kim Jong-un, has urged for intensified efforts to expeditiously arm the Navy with nuclear weapons against the evolving nature of military actions by adversaries. But South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff have dismissed the claim, assessing that the submarine does not seem to be capable of normal operation. North Korea conducted a ceremony t

Sept. 8, 2023

3 minor natural earthquakes strike near N. Korea's nuclear test site

Three minor earthquakes struck North Korea's northeastern county of Kilju, home to the country's nuclear testing site, but all of them were natural tremors, South Korea's state weather agency said Friday. The first quake occurred about 38 km north of Kilju at 3:29 a.m., while the second and third ones struck nearby areas at 4:01 a.m. and 5:12 a.m., respectively, with their magnitudes ranging between 2.1 and 2.3, according to the Korea Meteorological Administration. The KMA said al

Sept. 8, 2023

N. Korea-Russia partnership may benefit both but will have limits: former intelligence officer

North Korea and Russia may be seeking to improve their relations since it may offer benefits to both but the level of their cooperation, especially in advanced military technology such as nuclear weapons, will likely be limited, a former US intelligence officer on North Korea said Thursday. Sydney Seiler, former national intelligence officer on North Korea at the National Intelligence Council, also argued that Russian President Vladimir Putin, despite being desperate for North Korea's suppo

Sept. 8, 2023

China's vice premier set to visit N. Korea

A high-level Chinese delegation, led by Vice Premier Liu Guozhong, is set to visit North Korea to participate in events commemorating the 75th anniversary of the country's foundation, North Korean state media said Thursday. But all eyes are fixed on the reasoning behind China's decision to send a seemingly lower-ranking delegation compared to the previous occasion to commemorate North Korea's Sept. 9 anniversary. In September 2018, General Secretary Xi Jinping dispatched Li Zhansh

Sept. 7, 2023

N. Korea will face 'repercussions' if it provides weapons to Russia: Kirby

North Korea will face repercussions from the United States and other countries should it provide weapons to Russia that can kill innocent people in Ukraine, a White House official said Wednesday. John Kirby, National Security Council coordinator for strategic communications, also called on North Korea to stop its negotiations with Russia for a potential arms deal. "We are not seeing them provide any wholesale assistance to the Russian military, and we continue to urge North Korea not to do

Sept. 7, 2023

N. Korea will pay a price if it provides weapons to Russia: NSA Sullivan

The top US national security adviser urged North Korea not to provide any lethal weapons to Russia on Tuesday, saying it will pay a price if it decides to do so. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said there were no indications that the North has provided large amounts of weapons to Russia but that negotiations toward that end between the two countries are "actively advancing." "Providing weapons to Russia for use on the battlefield to attack grain silos and the heating infra

Sept. 6, 2023

Potential Kim-Putin summit raises possibility of arms deals

South Korea is looking closely into momentum for tighter ties between North Korea and Russia ahead of their potential “leader-level talks” over the North getting technology to advance its nuclear arsenal in return for supplying Moscow with weapons to support its war in Ukraine. A senior official at the Unification Ministry in Seoul said Tuesday that cooperation involving North Korea and its neighbors along its northern border should take place in a way that does not violate “in

Sept. 5, 2023

Premature to say Kim Jong-un's daughter an heir: Seoul

North Korean state media's ongoing efforts to spotlight Kim Ju-ae, the daughter of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, primarily serve to underscore Pyongyang's commitment to upholding fourth-generation hereditary succession, rather than indicating her formal designation as the heir apparent, South Korea's Unification Ministry said Tuesday. The Rodong Sinmun, an organ of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea that mainly targets North Korean audiences, reported a total of 15 public

Sept. 5, 2023

N. Korean leader Kim may visit Russia for talks with Putin on arms deal: report

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un may soon travel to Russia to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin and discuss a possible arms deal, a news report said Monday. The New York Times reported that Kim may travel to Vladivostok next week to meet with Putin. "In a rare foray from his country, Mr. Kim would travel from Pyongyang, North Korea's capital, probably by armored train, to Vladivostok, on the Pacific Coast of Russia, where he would meet with Mr. Putin," said the report, quo

Sept. 5, 2023