Unification ministry produces documentary series on N. Korean newspaperThe unification ministry said Tuesday it has produced an online documentary series aimed at helping the public better understand the Rodong Sinmun, North Korea's key newspaper, as part of a government initiative to expand public access to North Korean media content. The first of the five-part series, titled "Reading Rodong Sinmun," was released on the ministry's official YouTube channel, with the rest of the series set to be released sequentially in the coming weeks. The first episode features Lim Eul-chul, a professor at the Institute for Far Eastern Studies of Kyungnam University, delivering an overview of the official newspaper of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea. The series will also feature former Unification Minister Kang In-duk, who played a key role in the working-level negotiations for the July 4 inter-Korean Joint Statement adopted in 1972. The ministry said it expects the series to help promote objective understanding of Rodong Sinmun, and spur broader public interest in North Korea and issues concerning the Korean Peninsula.May 26, 2026By Yonhap
Foreign ministry urges N. Korea to respond to peace efforts following missile launchThe foreign ministry urged North Korea to cooperate with Seoul's efforts to promote peace on the Korean Peninsula on Tuesday, shortly after Pyongyang fired multiple missiles in its latest missile launch. According to the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS), North Korea launched multiple close-range ballistic missiles (CRBMs) from the Jongju area in North Pyongan Province toward the West Sea at around 1 p.m., marking its eighth missile launch this year. "We once again call on North Korea to respond to our peace policy and efforts to ease tensions," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Park Il said at a regular press briefing. "As a government that firmly supports nuclear nonproliferation, we will continue efforts to make substantive progress in resolving the North Korean nuclear issue through a phased and practical approach in close coordination with the international community while maintaining the goal of complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula."May 26, 2026By Yonhap
Cheering for two Koreas: How South Koreans welcomed North in football clashChoi Seon-hee sat in the pouring rain at the Suwon Sports Complex on a cold Wednesday evening, watching something that hadn’t happened in South Korea in nearly eight years: a North Korean sports team competing for a trophy on the South’s soil. “We are still one people. We are compatriots,” Choi, a woman in her 50s who travelled from Ansan city, told NK News at the stadium about 20 miles south of Seoul. “I want them to leave with that kind of warm feeling.” Choi was one of roughly 5,760 spectators who gathered at the stadium as Suwon FC Women hosted the Pyongyang-based Naegohyang Women’s Football Club in the 2026 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Women’s Champions League semifinals — the first inter-Korean women’s club football match held in the South. At the half-filled stadium, the visiting team won 2-1 in a match that prompted speculation over whether football could become an alternate channel for inter-Korean contact, despite deepening political tensions. Naegohyang’s captain Kim Kyong-yong pounced on Suwon’s defensive error in the second half to score the winnMay 26, 2026By NK News
Pro-Pyongyang Korean group in Japan drops reunification goal at 1st congress in 4 yearsChongryong, the largest organization of pro-Pyongyang ethnic Koreans in Japan, has stripped all references to unification on the Korean Peninsula from its rules, signaling an ideological shift in line with North Korea's hardened stance toward Seoul. The organization held its 26th general congress in Tokyo over the weekend, its first in four years, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) and the Rodong Sinmun, the official newspaper of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea, on Tuesday. Unification language was notably absent from the meeting, marking a sharp contrast to the previous session four years ago, where "independent unification movement" featured prominently as a key objective. References to cooperation with the pro-Seoul Mindan organization were also removed. Instead, Chongryong vowed to protect members' rights, nurture younger generations and uphold the ethnic identity, according to the reports. The shift mirrors North Korea's increasingly adversarial view of the South, which it now treats as a separate, hostile state, rather than a partner for reconciliation. Seoul's unMay 26, 2026By Yonhap
N. Korea fires CRBMs, artillery rockets toward West Sea: JCSNorth Korea fired multiple close-range ballistic missiles (CRBMs) and artillery rockets toward the West Sea on Tuesday, South Korea's military said, amid speculation that Chinese President Xi Jinping may visit North Korea soon. The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said it detected the missiles launched from the Jongju area of North Phyongan Province at around 1 p.m., without elaborating on the details. CRBMs refer to ballistic missiles that have a relatively short range of less than 300 kilometers. The missiles flew some 80 kilometers before landing at sea, the JCS said, noting it is analyzing the exact specifications of the launch with the U.S. side. The JCS said North Korea fired various types of projectiles, including CRBMs and shells from multiple rocket launchers in what appeared to be a rare launch of a mix of such weapons. The launch is also believed to have involved "suicide drones." "We have stepped up surveillance and monitoring in preparation for possible additional launches and are closely sharing related information with the United States and Japan while maintaining a full readineMay 26, 2026By Yonhap
N. Korea to hold key party meeting in late June: KCNANorth Korea will convene a plenary meeting of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) next month for an interim review of state and party policies for this year, state media reported Monday. The WPK's political bureau has decided to hold the second plenary meeting of the ninth central committee in late June, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). The meeting will be convened "in order to have an interim review of the implementation of the party and state policies for 2026 and discuss the work in the second half of the year and a series of important issues," the KCNA said, without providing further details. The North has recently been holding plenary meetings regularly at the end of June and December, while also convening them when important issues need to be discussed. It remains to be seen whether North Korea will make major decisions regarding its policy stance against South Korea or the United States at the upcoming meeting, amid speculations Chinese President Xi Jinping may visit the North soon. The planned June meeting comes as North Korea seeks to implement follow-up mMay 25, 2026By Yonhap
N. Korea's Kim sends condolences to Xi over deadly coal mine blastNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un has sent a message of condolences to Chinese President Xi Jinping over a deadly gas explosion at a coal mine in northern China, state media reported Monday. A gas explosion at a coal mine in northern China's Shanxi Province on Friday killed 82 people and injured 182 others, while two remained unaccounted for, marking the country's worst mining disaster in nearly two decades, according to foreign media reports. "Upon hearing the sad news that a gas explosion accident at a coal mine in Shanxi Province of your country claimed heavy casualties, I express deep sympathy to you, Comrade General Secretary, and the Chinese party, government and people and to the bereaved families of the victims," Kim said in a message dated Sunday, according to the North's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). Kim also expressed hope that the Chinese people "will eradicate the aftermath of the damage as soon as possible" and that "the bereaved families will overcome their sorrow and regain a stable life."May 25, 2026By Yonhap
Pyongyang brands Japan's security overhaul bid as move to become 'war state'North Korea has stepped up its criticism of Japan's push to overhaul its key security legislation, denouncing it as "reckless militaristic acts." Pyongyang accused Tokyo of seeking to turn itself into a "war state" in a bid to revive "the Empire of Japan" and said that it "has exploited the good will of the international community to revive militarism," according to an article published by Rodong Sinmun, the official mouthpiece of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea, Saturday. Pyongyang's latest criticism came as Tokyo moves to revise its three key security documents — the National Security Strategy, National Defense Strategy and Defense Buildup Program — within this year, a drive widely seen as a response to China's growing military presence in the region and other regional security threats. "If Japan attempts yet another invasion, it will bring about consequences far more devastating to itself than in the past," it warned. The latest broadside follows a similar attack earlier this month, when Pyongyang branded the move "a brazen challenge to global peace and humanity."May 23, 2026By Yonhap
N. Korea slams Washington's arms deal with Seoul, vows to bolster military deterrentNorth Korea on Thursday warned of countermeasures against Washington's recent approval of arms sales to Seoul, denouncing it as part of a "reckless military buildup." In a commentary carried by the North's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), Pyongyang said the buildup would incite it to further strengthen its military deterrent, vowing to redouble efforts to bolster its defense capabilities. Earlier this week, the U.S. State Department authorized a potential sale to South Korea of MH-60Rs multi-mission naval helicopters and an upgrade program for the AH-64E Apache chopper, worth a combined $4.2 billion. The MH-60R is a naval helicopter used for anti-submarine warfare, maritime surveillance, surface warfare, and search and rescue operations. Pyongyang denounced the approval as Washington's scheme to use Seoul as its "armed shock brigade" in pursuit of "strategic hegemony in the Asia-Pacific region." "Such a unilateral arms build-up that goes beyond the defensive nature will only provoke the other party's corresponding measures for securing overwhelming military muscle," it warned. "The graviMay 21, 2026By Yonhap
Kim-Trump summit could be discussed if Xi visits Pyongyang: unification ministerUnification Minister Chung Dong-young said Thursday a summit between Pyongyang and Washington could be on the agenda if China's leader Xi Jinping visits North Korea. Xi is speculated to make a state visit later his month or early next month, sources said the previous day, citing recent visits by Xi's security guards and ceremonial staff to Pyongyang as indicators. If that happens, a Kim-Trump summit "will surely be discussed," Chung told reporters outside the government complex in Seoul, though he acknowledged the visit had yet to be confirmed by Beijing. "Gigantic tectonic plates are in motion," he said, referring to a series of recent summits among the United States, China and Russia. "Now is time for us to deeply contemplate strategic options for stability, peace and mutual prosperity amidst these tectonic changes in the geopolitical landscape of Northeast Asia surround the Korean Peninsula," he said. Seoul has been seeking to repair strained inter-Korean relations. It is said to have worked to place North Korea-related issues on the agenda of the recent Trump-Xi summit.May 21, 2026By Yonhap
