North Korea

27 January 2025
A missile flies during what state media KCNA says is a test of a new intermediate-range hypersonic ballistic missile at an undisclosed location on Jan. 6, 2025.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un speaks during a meeting of the country's ruling party, in Pyongyang, North Korea
North Korea tensions

North Korea fires strategic cruise missiles, vows tough stance on U.S.

Underwater-to-surface missiles traveled 1,500 kilometers, KCNA reports

26 January 2025
Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya is due to meet Marco Rubio, the nominee for U.S. secretary of state, after attending President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration on Jan. 20.
21 January 2025
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Natural disasters

North Korea replaces flood-hit villages on Chinese border with block housing

Satellite and on-the-ground photos show new, compact settlements

20 January 2025
A Russian soldier fires a gun toward a Ukrainian position in the Kursk region in this image from a video.(Russian Defense Ministry Press Service via AP)
Ukraine war

North Korean soldiers in Russia 'don't retreat' despite losses: Ukrainian sergeant

Kim Jong Un's troops poorly equipped but tough, according to frontline account

20 January 2025
North Korea claims to have successful tested of a new intermediate-range hypersonic ballistic missile on Jan. 6, according to state media. Moscow seems to be providing support for the country's missile program. (KCNA via Reuters) 
14 January 2025
A North Korean soldier appears in this screenshot from an aerial surveillance video. (Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's X account via Kyodo)
Ukraine war

North Korean troops told to choose suicide over capture in Ukraine: Seoul

Over 300 North Korean soldiers killed in battle, South Korea's spy agency says

14 January 2025
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at a news conference in Kyiv on Jan. 8.
Ukraine war

Ukraine offers to swap North Korean soldiers for Ukrainians in Russia

Zelenskyy had announced the capture of two on Saturday

13 January 2025
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the prisoners do not speak Russian, Ukrainian or English, so Ukrainian officials are communicating with them through a Korean interpreter.
Ukraine war

Ukraine captures 2 North Korean soldiers, says Zelenskyy

One prisoner claims he thought he was being sent to train, not to fight

12 January 2025
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un speaks during a meeting of the country's ruling party, in Pyongyang, North Korea, in this photo released on Dec. 29. (Korean Central News Agency via Reuters)
North Korea tensions

North Korea launches 'toughest' U.S. strategy at party meeting

Pyongyang claims South Korea, the U.S. and Japan form a 'nuclear military bloc'

29 December 2024
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un speaks at the National Defense University in Pyongyang on Oct. 7. (KCNA via Reuters)
Ukraine war

North Korea takes 1,000 casualties fighting Ukraine in past week, U.S. says

Some soldiers choose death over surrender: NSC spokesperson

28 December 2024
DMM Bitcoin has struggled since hackers breached its wallet management system in May. (Photo by Takanobu Aimatsu)
Crime

North Korea hacker group identified in theft of DMM Bitcoin assets

Police track the flow of stolen bitcoin to an account managed by TraderTraitor

24 December 2024
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at a press conference in Lviv, Ukraine, on Dec. 17.
Ukraine war

Zelenskyy says 3,000 N. Korean troops killed or injured in Russia war

Figure far exceeds estimates from South Korean intelligence

24 December 2024
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un attends a completion ceremony for a construction work in North Pyongan province, North Korea, on Dec. 21. (KCNA via Reuters)
Ukraine war

South Korea says North readying more troops, drones for Russia

Pyongyang's growing ties to Russia pose potential threat to Seoul: official

23 December 2024
Ukraine has released footage of what are believed to be North Korean troops receiving Russian equipment in the Russian Far East. (Center for Strategic Communication and Information Security of Ukraine via Kyodo)
19 December 2024
A South Korean soldier stands guard in the truce village of Panmunjom inside the demilitarized zone separating the two Koreas. 
South Korea leadership crisis

South Korean martial law fallout includes top defense officials

Rival North gloats amid concerns over security vacuum after Yoon impeachment

17 December 2024
North Korean soldiers participate in a demonstration during the training of air and amphibious combat units. (KCNA via Reuters)
Ukraine war

North Korean troops killed in combat against Ukraine: Pentagon

First such deaths involve fighting around Russian region of Kursk

17 December 2024
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un with Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov in Pyongyang on Nov. 30. Ukraine estimates there are 11,000 North Koreans fighting in Russia. (Russian Defense Ministry via Reuters)  
Ukraine war

North Korean troops join Russian assaults in 'significant' numbers

Ukrainian President Zelenskyy says soldiers are fighting in Russia's Kursk region

15 December 2024
The new reality in Syria and Donald Trump's impending return to the White House are weighing on Chinese President Xi Jinping. (Nikkei montage/Source photos by Reuters and Getty Images)
China up close

Analysis: Bashar Assad's fall reminds Xi Jinping of a Donald Trump bombshell

China's president was with Trump in Florida in 2017 when U.S. missiles struck Syria

12 December 2024
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin greet each other before a bilateral meeting in June in Pyongyang.
North Korea tensions

North Korea-Russia defense treaty takes effect

'Mighty' bilateral pact has provision for mutual assistance in case of attack

5 December 2024
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un oversees a performance test of drones during a visit to the Drone Institute of North Korea's Academy of Defence Sciences at an undisclosed location in North Korea in Aug. 2024, in this photo released by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency. 
Opinion

U.S. and allies must push to keep drone tech out of Pyongyang's hands

Leaders also need to dissuade North Korea from sending more troops to Russia

3 December 2024
Researchers at the seven Japanese organizations, including the University of Tokyo, said they were unaware of the existence of North Korean co-authors on their papers. (Photo by Takako Gakuto)
Science

Japanese researchers unwittingly collaborated with North Korean peers

Co-authored papers highlight difficulty enforcing sanctions in academia

30 November 2024
G7 foreign ministers said North Korean support for Russia marked a dangerous expansion of the Ukraine conflict. (Sputnik via Reuters)
International relations

G7 urges China to oppose North Korea's support for Russia

Top diplomats renew support for Ukraine, condemn Russian 'escalation'

27 November 2024
The new Starbucks store is in a DMZ buffer zone with restricted civilian access, so customers will go through an inspection point to visit. (Photo by Kosaku Mimura)
Food & Beverage

Starbucks set to open South Korean store with view of DMZ

American coffee chain's shop located in park observatory near North Korean border

25 November 2024
The flags of North Korea, left, and Russia: The two countries are stepping up military cooperation. 
Ukraine war

North Korea sending heavy arms to Russia, South Korean lawmakers say

Shipments come amid flurry of diplomacy between Moscow, Pyongyang

20 November 2024
Kim Kang-woo, who fled North Korea several years ago, is pushing to focus international attention on abuses in the country of his birth. (Ahn Seong-bok)
Ukraine war

North Korean defector frets over fate of soldiers thrown into Ukraine war

Kim Kang-woo works to draw global attention to rights abuses by regime

16 November 2024
U.S. President Joe Biden, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba participate in a trilateral meeting at the APEC summit in Lima, Peru, on Nov. 15.
International relations

U.S., Japan, South Korea formalize pact wary of emboldened North Korea

Partnership's preservation in question as Trump prepares to take office

16 November 2024
Russia's President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un meet at a gala in Pyongyang in June. (Sputnik via Reuters)
Ukraine war

North Korea 'already in combat' in Russia in new Asia security risk

U.S. vows 'firm response' but has limited options to put pressure on Pyongyang

14 November 2024
A Korean family walks around one of the K-Towns in Ho Chi Minh City. Vietnam has 50% more Korean residents than the rest of ASEAN combined. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)
ASEAN Money

Vietnam's booming Korea Towns nurture niche businesses

50% more ethnic Koreans live in the communist country than rest of ASEAN combined

12 November 2024
From left to right, Seok, Hyuk, Aito and Kenny from 1VERSE speak to Nikkei in October in Seoul. (Photo by Ahn Seong-bok)
Media & Entertainment

K-pop group 1VERSE is first to feature North Korean defectors

Boy band members Hyuk and Seok describe grueling journeys leaving home country

9 November 2024