N. Korea highlights feats during Korean War ahead of anniv. of armistice signingNorth Korea on Thursday highlighted its military achievements during the 1950-53 Korean War in a move seen as aimed at bolstering the regime's unity ahead of the 73rd anniversary of the armistice signing. In an article carried by the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), North Korea claimed the victory in a naval battle in waters off Jumunjin in July 1950 was a "miracle" as it successfully defeating U.S. warships in the East Sea with four torpedo boats. "At that time, world people said that it is a miracle, not a battle to sink a heavy cruiser with torpedo boats and it is the greatest miracle that cannot be seen in the world history of naval battles," the KCNA said, highlighting North Korea's state founder Kim Il-sung's role in the operation. The Korean War, which started with an invasion by the North, ended with the Armistice Agreement on July 27, 1953. North Korea celebrates the armistice signing date as "Victory Day" in what it calls the Great Fatherland Liberation War. There is speculation that North Korea may hold a military parade to commemorate Victory Day this year, given the largeJul 2, 2026By Yonhap
President Lee vows continued efforts to replace inter-Korean armistice with peace regimeSouth Korean President Lee Jae Myung said Wednesday government will pursue sustained efforts to engage North Korea and replace the Korean War armistice with a peace regime. Lee made the remarks in a meeting of the Peaceful Unification Advisory Council, a presidential advisory body on unification of the two Koreas. "At least to open a 'Korea premium' era for the future Korean Peninsula that is drawing global attention, we must replace the armistice with a peace regime," Lee said. However difficult it may be, the government should continue to "knock on North Korea's closed door," the president said. "Difficult does not mean impossible ... If we keep knocking, it will eventually open." North Korea has remained unresponsive to the Lee administration's repeated dialogue overtures, instead hardening its hostile stance toward Seoul. Since the 1950-53 Korean War ended in an armistice, not a peace treaty, the two Koreas remain technically at war. "Now is the time to resume action toward peace," Lee declared, pledging to find a way for the two Koreas to peacefully coexist while respecting each other'Jul 1, 2026By Yonhap
Photo display of N. Korean Embassy in Beijing features more photos of leader Kim's daughterThe North Korean Embassy in Beijing was seen Wednesday to have updated the photo display on its outdoor bulletin board, adding new images of leader Kim Jong-un and his daughter. The embassy irregularly changes the photos on the board, which sits beside its main gate. The recent update featured 25 new photos in total, with a central portrait of Kim flanked by 12 images on either side, drawn mostly from his inspection trips dating from 2016 until as recently as February this year. It included two photos from this year — one showing Kim visiting a livestock farm and the other capturing him at a construction completion ceremony alongside his daughter, Ju-ae, both in February. Her appearance brought the number of photos featuring her to six, up from three in March, though same as before, none of the captions identified her by name. The bulletin board has long served as a window into how North Korea wants to be seen abroad, and Pyongyang has used it to send political messages on its own timeline rather than to broadcast diplomatic milestones as they happen. The photo replacement seen on WednesJul 1, 2026By Yonhap
N. Korea's Kim vows strong ties with China on founding anniversary of Chinese Communist PartyNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un has marked the 105th founding anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in a congratulatory message to Chinese President Xi Jinping, reaffirming his commitment to strengthen ties with Beijing, state media reported Wednesday. "There is no new China without Communist Party. This is the truth the Chinese people have realized while advancing under its guidance for many years," the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) quoted Kim as saying. Kim recalled his summit with Xi in Pyongyang last month, calling it a "historic occasion of deepening the comradely friendship and trust between us and reconfirming the unshakable will to more dynamically promote socialist construction in the two countries and their traditional friendly relations," according to the KCNA. Xi made a two-day state visit to Pyongyang on June 8-9, his first trip to North Korea in nearly seven years. During the visit, the two leaders agreed to deepen cooperation across politics, economy and culture, pledging to strengthen high-level communication and open a new chapter in bilateral relations. "Jul 1, 2026By Yonhap
S. Korean, Ukraine FMs agree to resolve North Korean POW issue under international lawSouth Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun and his Ukrainian counterpart, Andrii Sybiha, agreed Tuesday that the repatriation of two North Korean prisoners of war (POWs) captured during the Russia-Ukraine war should be handled in accordance with international law and humanitarian principles. The two ministers discussed the POW issue as well as a wide range of mutual interests and bilateral cooperation during Sybiha's visit to Seoul, according to the ministry. It marked the first visit in 11 years by a Ukrainian foreign minister to Korea for bilateral talks. Cho and Sybiha agreed to continue seeking a resolution to the North Korean POWs issue that respects the detainees' free will, the foreign ministry said in a press release. "The two foreign ministers had a shared understanding that this matter should be resolved in a manner consistent with international law and humanitarian principles," ministry spokesperson Park Il said at a briefing, adding that the government will continue its diplomatic efforts to advance and resolve the issue. He declined to elaborate further, citing the sensitivity oJun 30, 2026By Park Ji-won
N. Korea's port activity jumps fivefold since 2019, suggesting illicit coal trade: reportCommercial vessel activity at North Korea's ports has surged fivefold since 2019, a report said Tuesday, raising fresh suspicions of illegal coal trading. The report, co-published by the Seoul-based Citizens' Alliance for North Korean Human Rights and British research group Data Desk, tracked vessels longer than 80 meters at North Korea's five major ports — Nampho, Chongjin, Wonsan, Rason and Kimchaek. Recorded activity climbed to 3,756 cases last year, up from 783 in 2019. Nampho, North Korea's largest coal export hub, saw the sharpest rise with more than 3,000 cases last year, up from 554 in 2019. The findings were based on satellite imagery of the ports combined with AIS data — the digital location signals sent by ships. One key detail in the report is that only between 14 and 33 percent of vessels visible in satellite photos appeared in AIS records — a gap the report says points to ships deliberately going dark to evade detection. North Korea's coal exports have been banned outright since the United Nations passed Resolution 2371 in 2017. The ban, however, has not stopped the trJun 30, 2026By Yonhap
Dossier reveals chaos behind Koreas' nuclear negotiations in early 1990sInter-Korean talks on the North Korean nuclear issue dissolved into shouting matches behind closed doors, with officials cutting each other off and hurling insults, according to newly declassified government records on the 1991-1993 nuclear negotiations Tuesday. The unification ministry released the 3,836 pages of transcripts from 32 rounds of inter-Korean nuclear talks held between December 1991 and January 1993. The disclosure marked the ministry's eighth release of archival records on inter-Korean talks since May 2022. At the center of these talks was the Joint Declaration on the Denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula signed by the two Koreas on Jan. 20, 1992. Following the landmark agreement, North Korea said it would agree to accept inspections from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), while South Korea agreed to suspend the Team Spirit, its annual military exercise with the United States. Negotiations, however, proved challenging. A joint nuclear control commission, which was set to manage mutual inspections, quickly stalled as the sides disagreed with inspection methodJun 30, 2026By Yonhap
S. Korea closely coordinates with US after belated disclosure of NK missile launchKorea said Monday it is maintaining close coordination with the United States on North Korea's missile launches, after criticism arose over its delayed announcement of the North's latest launch. The North's state media said Friday that North Korea conducted tests of a new multiple rocket launcher and other key weapons the previous day, a launch that was overseen by its leader Kim Jong-un. South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS), however, did not disclose details of the latest launch on the day of the test-firing, raising the question of whether it withheld the information or failed to detect the weapons launch in time. A local media outlet raised the possibility that the U.S.' decision to limit information-sharing with South Korea on the North's military movements may have hampered Seoul's ability to track them in real time. "South Korea and the U.S. detected and tracked in real time multiple projectiles launched by North Korea between 7:27 a.m. and 8.20 a.m. on June 25, maintaining close coordination for all contingencies," Col. Lee Kyung-ho, deputy defense ministry spokesperson, saidJun 29, 2026By Yonhap
N. Korea slams Japan-US military drills as 'war rehearsal'North Korea on Monday condemned the ongoing joint military exercise between Japan's Ground Self-Defense Forces and the United States Marine Corps, labeling it "a war rehearsal." In an editorial carried Monday by the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), North Korea criticized Japan for participating in the Resolute Dragon exercise, accusing it of sharpening its "invasion capability." "Japan has aggravated the (security) situation in the region by deepening its military ties with the U.S.," the editorial claimed, also referencing Iron Fist, a separate U.S.-Japan combined exercise held in February. The KCNA piece further claimed that long-range missiles were test-fired in a "preemptive" capacity intended to strike neighboring nations during Japan's first participation in a U.S.-led multinational exercise in the Asia-Pacific region in April and May. It accused Japan of using the current "confusing" global situation to "justify its transformation into a war nation" and warned Tokyo of a "tragic end" should it persist in what it called "reckless" military behavior. Notably, the piece stopped shorJun 29, 2026By Yonhap
Civic groups oppose unification minister's 'two-state' approachCivic organizations advocating the reunification of the Korean Peninsula urged the Lee Jae Myung administration to abandon what they called its "two-state relationship" policy, arguing that it contradicts Korea's Constitution and risks legitimizing the permanent division of the Korean Peninsula. The criticism stems from the Lee Jae Myung administration's first white paper on unification, released last month, which describes inter-Korean relations as "a peaceful two-state relationship." The coalition argued that the wording effectively formalizes the view that the two Koreas are de facto separate states, a position it said runs counter to the Constitution's goal of national reunification. At a press conference at the National Assembly on Thursday, 54 civic organizations under the One Korea National Coalition called on Lee to issue a public apology and demanded the resignation of Unification Minister Chung Dong-young. Lee Hee-bum, co-chair of the coalition and standing president of the Korea NGO Association, linked the controversy to the 76th anniversary of the outbreak of the 1950-53 KorJun 26, 2026By Anna J. Park
