NK leader's sister slams S. Korea-US-Japan pledge to denuclearize North as 'most hostile act'The powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has denounced a recent pledge by South Korea, the United States and Japan to denuclearize Pyongyang, calling it the "most hostile act" and saying it won't change the country's possession of nuclear weapons. Kim Yo-jong, vice department director of the ruling party's central committee, issued the statement Wednesday in response to the outcome of last week's trilateral meeting of the three countries' foreign ministers. South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya reaffirmed their commitment to denuclearizing North Korea on the margins of a meeting of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) last Thursday. Kim claimed the joint pledge only revealed the uneasiness of the three countries about addressing North Korea's denuclearization, saying they know it is only "a daydream that can never come true." "If they frantically cry out for 'denuclearization,' really believing in it, they must be termed nonsensical," she noted in the statement carried by the KoreaApr 9, 2025By Yonhap
N. Korea removes founder's birthplace name from annual Pyongyang Int'l MarathonNorth Korea has renamed its annual international marathon in Pyongyang for this year, removing the name of national founder Kim Il-sung's birthplace, a government official said Tuesday. North Korea's state media reported the Pyongyang International Marathon took place in the capital on Sunday, marking the competition's resumption following a five-year hiatus due to COVID-19. Photos of the two events showed that the 2019 edition was named the Mangyongdae Prize International Marathon, while the 2025 edition was called the Pyongyang International Marathon. Mangyongdae is a neighborhood in Pyongyang that North Korea promotes as the birthplace of national founder Kim Il-sung as part of its propaganda. An official at South Korea's unification ministry confirmed the renaming, adding it appears intended to "dilute the idolization" of the late founder or reduce his influence. This year, North Korea also omitted its usual expression, the "Day of the Sun," which refers to Kim's birthday on April 15, when reporting on the marathon. North Korea has recently been seen reorienting its major ceremonies anApr 8, 2025By Yonhap
N. Korea's under-5 mortality rate rises for 2nd year in 2023 during pandemicNorth Korea's estimated mortality rate for children under age 5 reached 18 per 1,000 live births in 2023, marking two consecutive years of increase during the COVID-19 pandemic, United Nations data showed Tuesday. The 2023 rate marks an increase from an estimated 17.72 under-five mortality per 1,000 lives in 2022 and 17.44 in 2021, according to the website of the U.N. Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (IGME). North Korea's under-five mortality rate surged to 107.68 per 1,000 live births in 1995 as the country fell into a severe famine following the dissolution of the Soviet Union. The country had seen significant improvements since 2003, gradually reducing the rate to 17.7 in 2019 and 17.45 in 2020, reaching a low of 17.44 in 2021. The website did not provide clear reasons for the increases from 2021 to 2023, but they may be related to the country's pandemic-era border controls, which affected inoculation rates among North Korean children. According to UNICEF (United Nations Children's Fund), only 41 percent of children in North Korea received the first dose of the diphtheApr 8, 2025By Yonhap
Chinese officials managing Korean War memorial facility return to North Korea after 5 yearsChinese officials tasked with managing a memorial facility for troops who fought in the 1950-1953 Korean War returned to North Korea for the first time in five years, the Chinese Embassy in Pyongyang said Monday. According to the embassy's website, 14 Chinese officials arrived in North Korea last Monday via the border between Dandong in China's Liaoning Province and the North Korean city of Sinuiju. They were welcomed by Kim Chul-young, director of foreign cooperation at North Korea's Ministry of Urban Management. The return marks the first return of Chinese personnel managing Korean War memorial sites since the North closed its borders five years ago over the COVID-19 pandemic. On Tuesday, Chinese Ambassador to North Korea Wang Yajun visited the site to welcome their return. Wang is said to have emphasized strengthening the ties between the two countries, noting this year marks the 75th anniversary of China's entry into the Korean War. Last year, few high-level exchanges occurred between Pyongyang and Beijing despite it being declared the "Year of China-North Korea Friendship." But recentApr 7, 2025By Yonhap
N. Korea's Kim sends condolences over death of ex-Lao President SiphandoneNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un has sent a message of condolence to the Lao president over the recent death of former President Khamtai Siphandone, the North's state media reported Monday. The message sent to President Thongloun Sisoulith came as Laos observes a five-day mourning period through Monday, following the death of the former president last Wednesday at the age of 101. In the message reported by the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), Kim "expressed deep condolences" to the incumbent Lao president, his party, the government, the Lao people and the bereaved family on behalf of the North Korean government and people. "I am confident that the Lao party, government and the people will overcome the sorrow of the loss and achieve great success in the struggle to uphold and advance the socialist cause, as wished by comrade Khamtai Siphandone," Kim noted. Sharing a socialist ideology, Laos is one of the few countries with which North Korea maintains close ties. In March last year, a North Korean delegation led by Kim Song-nam, director of the international department of the country's ruApr 7, 2025By Yonhap
N. Korea hosts 1st Pyongyang marathon in 6 yearsNorth Korea has hosted its annual Pyongyang International Marathon for the first time in six years, resuming it following a suspension due to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the North's state media on Monday. Marathon enthusiasts from North Korea, China, Morocco, Ethiopia and other countries took part in the Pyongyang International Marathon held the previous day, which featured full and half marathons, as well as 10-kilometer and 5-km races for both men and women, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said. The opening ceremony took place at Kim Il-sung Stadium in Pyongyang, attended by Vice Premier and Vice Chairman of the state sports guidance committee Pak Jong-gun, Sports Minister Kim Il-kuk and other officials. The marathon competition was launched in 1981 to celebrate North Korean founder Kim Il-sung's birthday on April 15 and had been held annually until it was suspended in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Rodong Sinmun, the mainstream newspaper for the general public, reported that North Korean workers and adolescent students waved and clapped as runners passed along maApr 7, 2025By Yonhap
North Korea holds first Pyongyang Marathon in six yearsNorth Korea on Sunday is holding its first Pyongyang International Marathon in six years, hosting foreign runners in the reclusive country that had largely closed its borders during the pandemic. Athletes from China, Romania and other countries have arrived in North Korea to participate in the event, state media KCNA news agency and Rodong Sinmun reported on Sunday. About 200 travellers came into Pyongyang on Friday and Saturday, and runners from overseas practiced at a hotel in Pyongyang for the Sunday race, said Simon Cockerell, general manager at Beijing-based Koryo Tours, in his Instagram posts showing streets and a recreational area in Pyongyang. The Koryo Tours is the official partner of the Pyongyang Marathon, helping arrange the sign-up process for international visitors for the event. The isolated state sealed its borders in 2020 at the start of the pandemic but has been slowly lifting restrictions since 2023. It allowed some Russian tourist groups into the country but its capital still remains closed to regular tourism. The marathon is a return course run through central PyongyanApr 6, 2025By Reuters
North Korea reports on court ruling to remove Yoon from officeNorth Korea reported on the ouster of former President Yoon Suk Yeol, Saturday, following a South Korean Constitutional Court ruling this week. The North's state media said the court upheld the impeachment of Yoon in a unanimous vote Friday over his brief martial law declaration in December, immediately removing him from office. Without making its own commentary, North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency cited major foreign news outlets' headlines on Yoon's ouster. Yoon has become the nation's second president to be removed from office after former President Park Geun-hye was ousted in 2017 over a corruption scandal. In 2017, North Korea swiftly reported on Park's dismissal about two hours after the Constitutional Court upheld her impeachment. Observers said the North appears to be keeping a distance from South Korea as its leader Kim Jong-un defined inter-Korean relations as those between "two states hostile to each other." (Yonhap)Apr 5, 2025By Yonhap
N. Korean leader inspects special operation units' training on day of Yoon's ousterNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un inspected training activities of special operations units earlier this week, stressing that strengthening their capabilities was key to building a strong army, Pyongyang's state media reported Saturday. Kim visited a training base for the special operation units, Friday -- the day when South Korea's Constitutional Court upheld the impeachment of former President Yoon Suk Yeol, removing him from office. Kim oversaw the general tactical training and a small-arms shooting contest conducted by the units' soldiers, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). "The actual war capability for guaranteeing victory in the field is bolstered through intensive training and it is the most vivid expression of patriotism and loyalty to the country," Kim was quoted as saying by the KCNA. The North's leader noted that the "strengthening of the special operation forces constitutes a major component of the army building strategy at present," the report said. The KCNA said Kim also laid out "crucial" tasks to put the special operation units' capability on "a highly-deveApr 5, 2025By Yonhap
Over 63% of S. Korean students view N. Korea with caution, animosity: pollMore than 6 out of 10 students from elementary to high schools in South Korea view North Korea as an adversary that warrants caution and animosity, a poll released by the unification ministry showed Friday. In the poll, 48.2 percent of elementary to high school students responded that North Korea is an adversary that warrants caution, while another 15 percent said the country deserves animosity. Only 27.8 percent responded North Korea is a partner for cooperation, while 6.5 percent viewed it as a country in need of assistance. The unification ministry, along with the education ministry, surveyed 74,288 students from 775 elementary, middle and high schools across the country from Oct. 21-Nov. 15 to examine school education on unification issues. In a similar survey in 2021, a combined 60.6 percent viewed North Korea as a country warranting cooperation or assistance, while only 34.8 percent saw it as an adversary requiring caution or animosity. In last year's survey, 75.8 percent said the current inter-Korean relations were "not peaceful," while only 4.6 percent viewed them as peaceful. ThosApr 4, 2025By Yonhap
