Russia's security chief Shoigu arrives in Pyongyang for meeting with NK leader Kim Jong-un: reportRussia's Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu has arrived in Pyongyang to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, Russian news agency Tass reported Tuesday. Shoigu visited North Korea on a special mission from Russian President Vladimir Putin and is expected to meet with Kim, the report said. It marks Shoigu's second visit to North Korea, following his previous trip in early June, during which he also met with Kim and discussed security issues involving the Korean Peninsula. The back-to-back visit comes as Russia and North Korea mark the first anniversary of the signing of the treaty of Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in June last year in Pyongyang by Kim and Putin, which resulted in North Korea's deployment of troops on the Russian side in the war against Ukraine.Jun 17, 2025By Yonhap
Delegation of N. Korea's state-run news agency departs for Russia to attend OANA meetingA delegation from North Korea's state-run news agency, Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), has left for Russia to attend a meeting of a regional association of news agencies, the KCNA said Tuesday. The KCNA delegation, led by Vice President Kang Chol, left Pyongyang the previous day to attend the 19th plenary meeting of the Organization of Asia-Pacific News Agencies (OANA) in Saint Petersburg, Russia, the KCNA said. The trip came amid growing cooperation between the two countries across various fields, including defense, economy, public health and education, following North Korea's deployment of troops on the Russian side in the war against Ukraine.Jun 17, 2025By Yonhap
S. Korea, US to hold 5th NCG meeting in Seoul next month: sourceSouth Korea and the United States plan to hold a new meeting of their key nuclear deterrence body in Seoul next month, a source said Monday, as Seoul is striving to ensure close security cooperation with U.S. President Donald Trump's administration amid growing North Korean threats. The fifth meeting of the Nuclear Consultative Group (NCG) is set to take place next month, though a specific date has yet to be fixed, the source said, as the two countries agreed to hold it in the South Korean capital this year during the fourth NCG meeting in Washington in January. If held, the meeting would mark the first NCG gathering since both the Trump administration and the government of South Korean President Lee Jae-myung took office in January and earlier this month, respectively. "We plan to hold it in July with a date yet to be fixed," the source told Yonhap News Agency. The upcoming NCG meeting is expected to be a venue where Seoul and Washington underscore their shared commitment to collaboration against North Korea's advancing nuclear threats amid lingering concerns that Trump's America FirstJun 17, 2025By Yonhap
N. Korea slams US over 'strategic flexibility' to expand USFK roleNorth Korea on Tuesday slammed the United States over the resurfacing issue of "strategic flexibility" of the U.S. forces stationed in South Korea to expand their role to a broader region, calling it an "attempt of aggression." The Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) issued the criticism in a commentary by an individual contributor amid speculation Washington may seek "strategic flexibility" of the United States Forces Korea (USFK) to broaden its role to better deal with China's growing assertiveness. U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered the development of the Pentagon's 2025 National Defense Strategy to focus on raising "burden-sharing" with allies and deterring Chinese threats in the Indo-Pacific. The KCNA denounced the push as "extremely provocative," accusing the U.S. of harboring a "strategic intention to maintain its hegemonic position in the Asia-Pacific region." "It is a deep-rooted doctrine of aggression of the U.S. which has thought out under the pretext of promptly coping with the 'uncertain security threat' in any region on the earth since the end of the Cold War andJun 17, 2025By Yonhap
Police to send mobile units to border areas to curb anti-N. Korea leaflet campaignsPolice plan to dispatch mobile units to border areas to prevent activists from sending anti-North Korea leaflets across the border, the unification ministry said Monday after a pan-government meeting to discuss ways to curb "illegal" leaflet campaigns. The move came as President Lee Jae-myung ordered measures Saturday to prevent launches of leaflets critical of North Korea and punish violators of related laws as he seeks to mend frayed ties with the North. Earlier in the day, the unification ministry presided over a meeting to discuss ways to curb anti-Pyongyang leaflet launches with related government agencies, including the office of the National Security Council, the land and interior ministries, and the police agency. The meeting came as a civic group sent balloons carrying anti-Pyongyang leaflets toward North Korea in defiance of the government's stern warning, spawning concerns about the safety of residents in border areas due to the North's potential military actions. The participants in the meeting "shared the assessment that it is the nation's important duty to (promote) peace oJun 16, 2025By Yonhap
Over 6,000 N. Korean troops killed or injured in Ukraine war: British defense ministryNorth Korea is estimated to have sustained more than 6,000 casualties in fighting against Ukrainian forces in Russia's Kursk region, more than half of the troops Pyongyang initially deployed, according to Britain's defense ministry. The ministry shared the assessment in an X post Sunday, two months after its earlier estimate of over 5,000 North Korean troop casualties in Russia's western front-line region of Kursk in early April. "The total casualties amount to more than half of the approximately 11,000 DPRK troops initially deployed to the Kursk region," it said. "Significant DPRK casualty rates have almost certainly been sustained primarily through large, highly attritional dismounted assaults." DPRK stands for North Korea's official name — the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. The ministry said North Korea's operations in the war have so far been confined to the Kursk region, adding that any decision to deploy into Ukrainian territory would likely need approval from Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. After deploying some 11,000 troops to RussiaJun 16, 2025By Yonhap
N. Korea urges Japan to face up to history of wartime aggressionNorth Korea called on Japan on Monday to face up to history over its 1910-45 colonial rule of Korea as Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba is considering issuing a message marking the 80th anniversary of Japan's defeat in World War II. Japan's Sankei Shimbun reported last week that Ishiba's message would not be different from the 70th anniversary statement issued by then Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. In 2015, Abe reaffirmed Tokyo's past apologies over its wartime aggression but did not give a fresh apology, saying that future generations should not have to keep apologizing for the sufferings caused by Japan's military past. The director of the Institute for Japan Studies of North Korea's foreign ministry condemned Japan for trying to pass the 80th anniversary of its surrender without seriously reflecting on its wartime history, according to the Korean Central News Agency. "This is an unpardonable mockery and insult upon the peoples of the DPRK and other Asian countries that are suffering from the hideous crimes of the Japanese imperialists," the director said, using the acronymJun 16, 2025By Yonhap
Seoul pivots from confrontation to engagement with PyongyangSouth Korea is moving away from its previous confrontational stance toward North Korea, as the Lee Jae-myung administration tries to mend relations that deteriorated under his predecessor. In the latest development on Saturday, Lee directed all relevant government departments to devise measures to prevent and penalize the sending of leaflets critical of the North Korean regime across the inter-Korean border. This directive followed an attempt by human rights activists to launch balloons carrying anti-regime messages from Ganghwa Island, near North Korean shores, earlier that day. Lee reaffirmed his commitment the next day to restoring communication and trust between Seoul and Pyongyang. “The Lee Jae-myung government will cease all hostilities, resume dialogue and cooperation and restore the inter-Korean communication channel and the crisis management system to ease military tensions and create a peaceful atmosphere,” Lee said in a social media post on the 25th anniversary of the June 15 North–South Joint Declaration, which was adopted in Pyongyang following a landmark inter-KoreanJun 16, 2025By Jung Min-ho
Lee vows efforts to swiftly restore dialogue channel with N. KoreaPresident Lee Jae-myung vowed efforts Sunday to quickly restore suspended dialogue channels with North Korea, aiming to ease military tensions and build peace between the two Koreas. Lee delivered the message on his Facebook account to mark the 25th anniversary of the June 15 Declaration, signed by the late former South Korean President Kim Dae-jung and the late former North Korean leader Kim Jong-il during their 2000 summit. "In order to alleviate military tensions and foster a peaceful atmosphere, I will restore the crisis management system, starting with the recovery of the suspended dialogue channels between the South and the North," Lee wrote. "The Lee Jae-myung government will end hostile, wasteful acts and resume dialogue and cooperation," the president added. He described the 2000 inter-Korean declaration as a starting point for a new era of inter-Korean reconciliation and cooperation between the two Koreas, calling the 2000 summit a moment that demonstrated the potential for shared prosperity. Lee added that history has shown a lapse in peace can threaten not only the economy andJun 15, 2025By Yonhap
Ruling party calls for 'stern' response to illegal leaflet campaign against N. KoreaThe ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) on Sunday called for a "stern" response to a civic group's recent campaign to send anti-Pyongyang propaganda leaflets to North Korea. DPK spokesperson Rep. Hwang Jung-a issued the call a day after a civic group launched leaflets from Ganghwa Island in Incheon, near the inter-Korean border, toward the North, despite repeated calls by the new Lee Jae-myung government to halt such campaigns, which have drawn strong protests from Pyongyang. "The distribution of anti-North leaflets is a purely harmful and illegal act that threatens the daily lives and safety of border residents and escalates military tensions on the Korean Peninsula," Hwang said in a written briefing. She warned that inter-Korean tensions, escalated by such campaigns, could destabilize not only the financial markets, but also economic fundamentals. The spokesperson added that applying various safety-related laws, including the Aviation Safety Act, should be considered to impose stern punishments for such campaigns. On Saturday, Lee ordered officials to come up with measures to preventJun 15, 2025By Yonhap
