South Korea plans to mobilize all available policy means to resolve the issue of families separated by the 1950-53 Korean War, prioritizing identifying whether their relatives in North Korea are alive, Seoul's unification ministry said Tuesday. Under the 2023-25 plan to deal with the long-pending issue, the ministry said it plans to focus on resuming exchanges of war-torn families and addressing...

WASHINGTON-- The United States is closely watching North Korea and its widely anticipated military parade, a state department spokesperson said Monday, while also highlighting US commitment to the security of South Korea. The department spokesperson, Ned Price, noted the military parades are have more "propaganda value" than any material value to North Korea. "These are always exercises that we...

North Korea has convened a meeting of the ruling party's central military commission to discuss ways to expand operational combat drills and "more strictly perfect" its readiness posture for war, according to its state media Tuesday. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un presided over an enlarged meeting of the Central Military Commission of the Workers' Party of Korea on Monday, according to the offi...

Seoul says suspected Chinese spy balloon did not fly over South Korea

North Korea plans to hold a plenary meeting of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea in late February to discuss issues related to agricultural development, its state media said Monday. At a politburo meeting of the WPK's Central Committee held the previous day, the North unanimously decided to convene the seventh enlarged plenary meeting of the party late this month, according to the Korean Centra...

North Korea has adopted a new law aimed at safeguarding state secrets at a parliamentary meeting, its state media said Friday, amid apparent efforts to tighten internal discipline. The plenary meeting of the Standing Committee of the Supreme People's Assembly , held in Pyongyang the previous day, also adopted other laws on the country's management of railways and the education of prodigies, acco...

North Korea on Thursday said the US would face the “toughest” response if Washington pushes to conduct larger-scale field training exercises with Seoul, threatening that it would not engage in talks if such moves go forward. The statement delivered through its Foreign Ministry came two days after the South Korean and US defense chiefs agreed on steps, including bolstering combined military exerc...

North Korea said Thursday it will take the "toughest reaction" to any US military action in response to the US defense chief's latest pledge to deploy more strategic assets to the Korean Peninsula to ensure its security commitment. The North's warning came as US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin visited Seoul earlier this week for talks with his South Korean counterpart and said there would be more...

North Korean state media has stepped up the rhetoric to justify military buildup despite lingering economic woes ahead of the army founding anniversary, saying that defending the country from “enemies” is its priority. “What comes first is to reinforce our own strength and national defense capabilities in order not to become a slave of imperialists,” the Rodong Sinmun, an organ of the ruling Wor...

North Korea has released a pictorial book of gifts given to its late leader Kim Jong-il from foreign leaders and governments, including a basketball signed by former NBA superstar Michael Jordan, a Pyongyang propaganda website showed Monday. The 216-page book carries photos of various presents gifted to Kim, the father of current leader Kim Jong-un, displayed at the North's International Friends...

Pyongyang appears to seek to officialize Russia support, but denies weapons transactions

CHUNCHEON -- A South Korean soldier has mistakenly fired a machine gun during training near the border with North Korea, and the military has immediately informed North Korea that the shooting was not intentional, military officials said Sunday. The South Korean military said four live rounds were fired from the machine gun during a training session by an Army unit along the inter-Korean border ...

A senior North Korean official on Sunday rejected alleged weapons transactions with Russia, warning the United States that it will face unsavory consequences if it continues to spread such rumors. Kwon Jong-gun, director-general in charge of affairs to the US at North Korea's foreign ministry, called the allegation a grave provocation and said North Korea cannot tolerate what he describes as a U...

The sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un issued a statement Friday criticizing the USs' decision to send tanks to Ukraine to help its fight against Russia's invasion, saying that Washington is crossing the "red line." "The U.S., which has exposed the whole continent of Europe to the grave danger of war and caused big and small concerns, is now further crossing the red line," Kim Yo-jong, vi...

The Ministry of Unification aims to disclose more information on North Korea to the general public in 2023, it said Friday during a New Year’s policy briefing to President Yoon Suk Yeol. The ministry said it would focus on improving accessibility and convenience by releasing more North Korean newspapers and broadcasts to the public. It added that it would operate a pilot program by publishing i...