North Korea
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N. Korean envoy arrives in Viet Nam amid Pyongyang's move to resume diplomacy
SEOUL, August 8 (AJU PRESS) - North Korea's new ambassador to Viet Nam arrived in Hanoi earlier this week, becoming the isolated country's first envoy abroad since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic. Ri Sung-kuk replaces his predecessor Kim Myong-gil, who returned to Pyongyang in April 2019. The post had remained vacant since then. His appointment and arrival at the overseas mission came after Ri Ryong-nam was appointed as ambassador to China in 2021. Vietnam'
August 8, 2024 -
N. Korea deploys hundreds of missile launchers to frontline units
SEOUL, August 5 (AJU PRESS) - North Korea said it has deployed 250 new mobile launchers for ballistic missiles to frontline military units, the reclusive country said Monday. Pyongyang's state-run Korean Central News Agency reported that Kim attended a ceremony the previous day to commemorate the transfer of the new launchers. It quoted Kim as saying, "If the U.S. ignores our repeated warnings and continues to attempt to undermine the security of the region, it will have di
August 5, 2024 -
North Korean leader denounces 'fabricated' flood reports in South
SEOUL, August 03 (AJU PRESS) - North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on Saturday accused South Korea of fabricating the scale of recent floods in his country, state media reported. It was his first public reaction to Seoul’s offers of aid. In a statement carried by the Korean Central News Agency, Kim branded South Korea an “unchangeable enemy” and dismissed claims of widespread devastation in North Phyongan province as a “wicked” attempt to tarnish the Nor
August 3, 2024 -
N. Korean garbage balloons land inside presidential office in Seoul
SEOUL, July 24 (AJU PRESS) - Trash-filled balloons sent southwards by North Korea, landed inside the presidential office's compound in Seoul's Yongsan, the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said Wednesday. Pyongyang has been sending balloons carrying wastepaper and other garbage, including human feces, to South Korea since May this year in retaliation against South Korean activist groups, mostly consisting of defectors, sending propaganda leaflets to the North. Thousands of Nor
July 24, 2024 -
Suspicious border activities in N. Korea suggest growing instability amid elite defections
SEOUL, July 23 (AJU PRESS) - North Korea has been building walls and digging holes along the border with South Korea, recent satellite images suggest. An analysis of satellite photos from American earth-imaging company Planet Labs shows newly-elected structures resembling walls along the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), an area already heavily-fortified with landmines and high fences. Construction of these structures seemed to have started early this year, as they were not seen until at l
July 23, 2024 -
N. Korean athletes arrive in Paris for first Olympic appearance in 8 years
SEOUL, July 22 (AJU PRESS) - North Korean athletes arrived in Paris on Sunday, about a week ahead of the Summer Olympics in the French capital. Upon arrival at the Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport, about two dozen North Koreans, including sports officials, avoided media encounters by using separate gates while the French police kept onlookers from approaching them. The isolated country's Olympic participation marks its return after eight years, following its absence from the
July 22, 2024 -
S. Korea unwilling to stop activist groups from sending propaganda leaflets to N. Korea
SEOUL, July 19 (AJU PRESS) - The Unification Ministry said on Friday that it has no plans to stop activist groups from sending propaganda leaflets to North Korea to guarantee their freedom of speech. The ministry cited a September 2023 ruling by the Constitutional Court of Korea, which struck down a 2020 law that defined sending such leaflets to the North as "criminal activity." Sending balloons over the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) is a decades-old practice. South Korean ac
July 19, 2024 -
Trump speaks on Kim Jong-un in acceptance speech
SEOUL, July 19 (AJU PRESS) - Former U.S. President Donald Trump criticized the current White House's foreign policy on North Korea on Thursday, boasting about his ties with the isolated country's leader Kim Jong-un. In a lengthy, off-script speech at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin accepting his official GOP nomination for the upcoming presidential election in November, Trump said, "I get along with him, he'd like to see me back too. I thi
July 19, 2024 -
UN report condemns forced labor in N. Korea
SEOUL, July 17 (AJU PRESS) - North Korean has committed grave human rights abuses by subjecting its people to a "controlled and exploited" system of forced labor, according to a fresh U.N. report released on Tuesday. Based on 183 interviews conducted between 2015 and 2023 with victims and witnesses of such labor system, UN Human Rights Office highlighted the renegade country's serious human rights violations in the report. "The testimonies in this repor
July 17, 2024 -
Russia dismisses S. Korea's warning amid strained relations
SEOUL, July 9 (AJU PRESS) - Russia has responded with diplomatic rhetoric, dismissing Korea's recent warning "not to make any mistakes" that could harm bilateral relations. According to Russia's state-run news agency Ria Novosti, Russia's presidential press secretary Dmitry Peskov said Monday that the Kremlin does not agree with Seoul's approach. "We are supporters of building good relations with all states in the region -- both with [North Kor
July 9, 2024
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South Korea mulls sending inspectors to Ukraine to monitor North Korean troops in Russia
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U.S. stealth fighter completes maiden landing on Japanese vessel
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5.8 magnitude earthquake strikes Indonesia's Molucca Sea region
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North Korea dismisses allegations of troop deployment to Russia as 'groundless'
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Pulmuone showcases flagship plant-based food products at Paris show
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Viet Nam appoints military general Luong Cuong as new president
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Blinken begins 11th visit to Middle East for peace in Gaza and Lebanon
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IAEA confirms Japan's 10th Fukushima water release meets safety standards
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Poland expected to purchase Korean arms without financing support from Seoul
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Northern Gaza faces growing crisis amid Israel's military offensive