North Korea sends 5,000 construction troops to Russia: Seoul
SEOUL: North Korea has sent about 5,000 construction troops to Russia since September to help with “infrastructure reconstruction,” a South Korean lawmaker said Tuesday after a briefing by Seoul’s spy agency. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has been emboldened by the war in Ukraine, securing critical support from Moscow after sending thousands of troops […]
Read MoreTrump-Kim summit speculation ahead of South Korea visit
As US President Donald Trump prepares for his first trip to Asia since returning to office, speculation is mounting over a potential meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in South Korea. If it happens, it would be the first summit between the two since their last impromptu encounter at the Korean border village […]
Read MoreNorth Korea set to ‘flaunt’ its growing arsenal at massive military parade
By Park Chan-kyong North Korea is expected to showcase a new generation of strategic missiles and advanced weapons systems at a massive military parade this week, in what observers say is an attempt to project its growing ability to strike US and South Korean targets. Analysts predict that the parade will centre on a new […]
Read MoreNorth Korea and China tighten diplomatic embrace as Kim seeks global relevance
North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui met with China’s top diplomat Wang Yi in Beijing on Sunday during her second visit to the Chinese capital in just one month, both countries’ official news agencies reported. Wang told Choe that “China is willing to strengthen coordination and cooperation with the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea […]
Read MoreWill Kim Jong-un’s ‘good memory’ of Trump lead to US-North Korea deal?
By Park Chan-kyong North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has responded positively to a recent overture by US President Donald Trump, even as analysts say the prospects for another summit between the two leaders remain slim due to their wide differences over denuclearisation. Kim said he could meet Trump again, provided the US were to drop […]
Read MoreNorth Korea threatens ‘unfavourable consequences’ over US-led drills
By Park Chan-kyong North Korea has threatened military retaliation in response to joint drills by South Korea, the United States and Japan, with the powerful sister of ruler Kim Jong-un and a top military official issuing parallel statements. Both denounced the ongoing drills and signalled that Pyongyang was prepared to answer with its own show […]
Read MoreWhy Kim Jong-un travels with his own toilet to battle biometric espionage
By David D. Lee When North Korean leader Kim Jong-un rose from his chair after a two-hour meeting with Vladimir Putin in Beijing last week, aides swooped in almost instantly, polishing the table and scrubbing the seat he had just occupied. The bizarre spectacle was not just political theatre or a quirk of the supreme […]
Read MoreHow Xi-Kim talks marked China’s ‘full-throated endorsement’ of North Korea on world stage
By Shi Jiangtao From a rare multilateral debut at Tiananmen Square to a high-stakes summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping, followed by an exclusive banquet, Beijing’s privileged treatment of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un was a calculated display of solidarity between the two communist neighbours, analysts said. In a subtle yet seismic shift, Beijing notably […]
Read MoreWhat does North Korea’s Kim want from rare China trip?
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is in China for a high-profile visit, a rare step beyond his country’s borders for prospective meetings with President Xi Jinping and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. The trip could be Kim’s bid to “formalise” ties with Pyongyang’s two main allies — and potentially play a more prominent role […]
Read MoreWhy Kim Jong-un’s military parade presence could signal a China-North Korea realignment
By Shi Jiangtao and Laura Zhou North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s coming visit to China – his first in over six years – for a military parade marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II could reinvigorate Beijing-Pyongyang ties and signal a broader strategic realignment, according to observers. For the first time, […]
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