N. Korea fires unidentified projectile eastward: JCS

North Korea fired at least one unidentified projectile in an eastward direction Saturday, South Korea's military said. The Joint Chiefs of Staff said it detected the launch, without providing further details. The North last fired multiple short-range ballistic missiles toward the East Sea on Jan. 27. The latest launch came as South Korea and the United States are conducting their annual springtime Freedom Shield military exercise. (Yonhap)

March 14, 2026

N. Korea promotes new street for families of soldiers killed in Russia-Ukraine war

Families of North Korean soldiers killed during the Russia-Ukraine war have begun to move into homes on a newly built street in Pyongyang, state media said Saturday, saying it is the country's duty to help take care of such bereaved families. The families began to move into the homes located on Saeppyol Street, welcomed by Premier Pak Thae-song, as well as other party and government officials, the North's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said. The officials were quoted as saying it is their dut

March 14, 2026

PM Kim says Trump positive about dialogue with N. Korea's Kim but leaves open its timing

South Korean Prime Minister Kim Min-seok said Friday that US President Donald Trump remained positive about the resumption of dialogue with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un but left open the question of when they will meet again. Kim made the remarks during a press briefing on the 20-minute talks with Trump at the White House, underlining Trump's show of interest in diplomacy with Pyongyang amid speculation that he could seek a meeting with the North Korean leader during his upcoming trip to Chin

March 14, 2026

Air China to resume Beijing-Pyongyang flights after 6-year suspension

China’s national carrier Air China will resume passenger flights between Beijing and Pyongyang for the first time in six years, according to reports Friday. The airline plans to restart flights from Beijing to the North Korean capital starting Aug. 25, the reports said. The route had been suspended since 2020 as cross-border travel was halted following the outbreak of COVID-19. The move comes as China and North Korea gradually restore cross-border exchanges that had been largely frozen during th

March 13, 2026

North Korea warns Japan over missile deployment

North Korea warned Friday that Japan’s plan to deploy upgraded long-range missiles could sharply worsen regional security and would bring about the "sinking of the Japanese archipelago." In a commentary carried by the Korean Central News Agency, Pyongyang criticized Tokyo’s reported plan to deploy an extended-range Type 12 surface-to-ship missile at an army base in Kumamoto prefecture, with additional deployments being considered in Shizuoka and Miyazaki. North Korea said the missile, whose rang

March 13, 2026

NK may possess up to 50 nuclear weapons: report

North Korea may currently possess as many as 50 nuclear weapons as the country continues expanding its nuclear capabilities, according to news reports citing a former International Atomic Energy Agency official. In an interview with Voice of America, Olli Heinonen, former deputy director-general of the IAEA, said that North Korea’s nuclear program is growing faster and more extensively than previously understood. The warning comes after the IAEA confirmed that North Korea has restarted light-wat

March 13, 2026

US sanctions 6 individuals, 2 entities for roles in N. Korean IT worker 'fraud': Treasury Dept.

The US Treasury Department said Thursday it sanctioned six individuals and two entities for their roles in North Korea-orchestrated information technology (IT) worker schemes, which it accused of defrauding American businesses and generating revenue to fund Pyongyang's weapons programs. The department's Office of Foreign Assets Control announced the measure, noting that the latest sanctions are part of the United States' "whole-of-government" effort to counter Pyongyang's wide-ranging revenue ge

March 13, 2026

Russian agency launches North Korea tour using Moscow-Pyongyang train

A Russian travel agency has launched a North Korea tour package using the direct train between Moscow and Pyongyang, marking the first group tourism product to include the route since service resumed last year. According to a North Korea-specialized agency based in Russia’s Primorsky region, the eight-day itinerary departs Moscow’s Yaroslavsky Station on May 26 and travels by train to Pyongyang. Tourists will spend four nights and five days in the North Korean capital before returning home on Ju

March 12, 2026

Kim Jong-un tests new pistol with daughter Kim Ju-ae, stresses arms production

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un inspected a key military production facility and tested a newly developed pistol this week, state media reported Thursday, once again appearing in public with his young daughter Kim Ju-ae. According to Rodong Sinmun, Kim visited a munitions factory and stressed the importance of the factory’s role in producing portable light weapons, including pistols, saying such arms are essential for strengthening combat capabilities. During the visit, Kim tested the new pistol

March 12, 2026

The calculus behind Pyongyang's support for Tehran

North Korea’s swift backing of Iran after joint US-Israeli strikes appears to serve purposes far beyond routine diplomatic solidarity. By rallying behind Tehran, Pyongyang is signaling its intention to draw closer to Russia, Iran’s key partner, through carefully calibrated messaging that keeps it at arm’s length from the conflict. From the standpoint of regime security, the Kim Jong Un regime’s denunciation of the strikes as a violation of sovereignty functions as preemptive political signaling

March 12, 2026

N. Korea's Kim, daughter test pistols together at munitions factory

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un inspected a factory for light, portable munitions, where he and his teenage daughter tested pistols together, according to state media Thursday. Kim oversaw arms production at a "major munitions factory" under the second economy commission the previous day, where production began based on a new pistol design approved at a meeting of the party's central military commission last month, the Korean Central News Agency said. The second economy committee oversees the pr

March 12, 2026

South Korea investigates BTS ticket scalping after nearly 1,900 illegal listings detected

South Korea’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said it had identified 1,868 suspected scalping listings tied to upcoming BTS concerts in Goyang and Seoul’s Gwanghwamun area after monitoring major online resale platforms. Authorities said four cases involving 105 tickets appeared to reflect organized attempts to resell seats at steep premiums, and those cases have been referred to the National Police Agency for investigation. According to data released by the ministry, the majority of susp

March 11, 2026

[Key points] NK leader oversees cruise missile test

Missile launch: Kim Jong-un oversaw the launch of strategic cruise missiles from the Choe Hyon destroyer, with KCNA saying the test confirmed “the reliability of the national strategic weapons integrated command system.” Exercise response: The test is widely seen as a response to South Korea-US joint military exercises. Nuclear capability claim: Kim said the “state nuclear force has transitioned to a multifaceted operational stage.” Flight details: Missiles from the 5,000-ton Choe Hyon destroyer

March 11, 2026

Kim supervises destroyer cruise missile test amid Seoul-Washington drills

Click here for [Key points] NK leader oversees cruise missile test North Korean leader Kim Jong-un oversaw the test-firing of strategic cruise missiles from the Choe Hyon destroyer, state media reported Wednesday, roughly a week after a similar launch from the same vessel. The latest test is widely seen as a show of force against the ongoing South Korea-US joint military exercises, with the North's state-run Korean Central News Agency saying it was intended to underscore Pyongyang’s nuclear dete

March 11, 2026

N. Korea supports Iran's choice of new supreme leader amid raging war in Middle East

North Korea said Wednesday it respects the Iranian people's election of their new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, who was named earlier this week to succeed his father, who was killed during US-Israeli attacks on Tehran. A spokesperson at the North's foreign ministry made the remarks after Khamenei, a son of late former leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was named the country's new supreme leader by the Assembly of Experts on Sunday. "With regard to the recent official announcement that Iran's Ass

March 11, 2026