N. Korea's Kim says ties with Belarus will advance briskly in reply to LukashenkoNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un has sent a letter to Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, expressing confidence that their countries' friendship will advance briskly, the North's state media said Tuesday. Kim sent the message the previous day in response to Lukashenko's letter congratulating his reelection as president of the state affairs commission at the first session of the newly formed 15th Supreme People's Assembly, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said. "I express my confidence that the traditional friendly relations between the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and Belarus will advance briskly at a new level in accordance ... with our agreement," the KCNA quoted Kim as saying. Kim and Lukashenko held summit talks in Pyongyang on Thursday and signed a treaty on friendship and cooperation as the two countries are deepening ties based on their shared support for Russia's war against Ukraine. The leaders touted bilateral ties as having entered a "new stage." Kim also wished for Lukashenko's success in his policies aimed at national prosperity and the people's well-beingMar 31, 2026By Yonhap
UN adopts resolution on N. Korea's human rightsThe U.N. Human Rights Council has adopted this year's U.N. resolution on North Korea's human rights situation, co-sponsored by South Korea and 49 other nations. The Geneva-based U.N. Human Rights Council adopted the resolution on Pyongyang's human rights by consensus at its 61st regular session Monday (local time), according to its website. While the South Korean government reportedly considered opting out of the co-sponsorship this year amid its efforts to mend strained ties with Pyongyang, it has joined as a co-sponsor in an apparent bid to act in principle on recognizing the universal value of human rights. The U.N. resolution condemns "in the strongest terms" the long-standing and systematic, widespread and gross human rights violations and abuses in North Korea and urges the North to take "immediately all steps" necessary to end such crimes. It also called on Pyongyang to immediately release those who are arbitrarily detained in the North and resume the reunions of Korean families separated by the 1950-53 Korean War. South Korea was among the 61 co-sponsors of the resolution adoptedMar 31, 2026By Yonhap
Unification minister says joining UN resolution on NK human rights made through interagency coordinationUnification Minister Chung Dong-young said Monday that South Korea's decision to co-sponsor this year's U.N. resolution on North Korean human rights was reached through interagency coordination, signaling a measured shift from earlier expectations. Chung, who had previously voiced opposition to the co-sponsorship, citing Pyongyang's objections, made the remarks after the foreign ministry announced Saturday that Seoul would join other nations in co-sponsoring the resolution. "The decision can be seen as a compromise between respecting the U.N.'s role in representing universal values and taking into account the other party's position on matters it views as related to its sovereignty," Chung told reporters, apparently referring to North Korea. There had been speculation that South Korea might refrain from joining the resolution in line with President Lee Jae Myung's conciliatory approach toward Pyongyang, which has consistently condemned such moves as politically motivated and interference in its internal affairs. However, Pyongyang's continued hard-line stance toward Seoul is also believeMar 30, 2026By Yonhap
Air China resumes flights to North Korea after 6-year pauseBEIJING — Air China will restart direct flights between Beijing and Pyongyang on Monday after a six-year hiatus, another sign isolated North Korea is gradually opening up following the resumption of train services between the capitals. China has acted as a lifeline for North Korea's moribund economy as its largest trading partner and an important source of diplomatic and political support. However, travel between the East Asian neighbours has been heavily restricted since 2020, when strict border closures were imposed during the Covid-19 pandemic. Flight CA121 is scheduled to depart Beijing Capital Airport at 8:05 am (0005 GMT) on Monday and arrive at Pyongyang's Sunan International Airport at 11 am (0200 GMT), according to Air China's website. Economy class tickets were available for around $200, according to AFP checks, and a return flight from Pyongyang is scheduled for midday. Pyongyang's continued reluctance to issue tourist visas means only travellers with official or other special purposes can make the cross-border journey. Daily passenger train services resumed this month with ChMar 30, 2026By AFP
Belarus leader orders opening of embassy in North KoreaBelarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has instructed officials to open an embassy in North Korea following his summit with the North's leader Kim Jong-un, according to a news report Sunday. Belarusian Foreign Minister Maxim Ryzhenkov shared the details with reporters after Lukashenko's two-day official visit to Pyongyang earlier this week, its state media Belta reported Friday. "The president set very concrete tasks — to open our embassy here (in Pyongyang) ... to accelerate work on the visa waiver agreement and more broadly, to review the full range of matters that we can advance in the very near future," the media outlet quoted the top diplomat as saying. North Korea already runs its embassy in Minsk. Ryzhenkov also told reporters that the two sides discussed cooperation in areas including health care, education and agriculture, the news outlet said. The two sides exchanged views on international issues, including the situations in the Middle East and Russia's war against Ukraine, saying the leaders found they share "a lot in common," the news outlet said. The foreign minister addeMar 29, 2026By Yonhap
N. Korea's KCNA, Russia's TASS sign agreement on media cooperation amid expanding tiesNorth Korea and Russia have signed a media cooperation agreement, the North's state media reported Sunday, in the latest sign of deepening ties between Pyongyang and Moscow. The Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said it signed the news exchange and cooperation agreement with Russia's Tass news agency the previous day, marked by a ceremony attended by Kim Pyong-ho, the KCNA president, and Andrey Kondrashov, director general of Tass. A Russian delegation led by Kondrashov arrived in Pyongyang on Saturday for the signing event, the KCNA said. The agreement marks the latest sign of a close alignment between the North and Russia, expanding across the military, political and other sectors since they signed a mutual defense treaty in 2024.Mar 29, 2026By Yonhap
N. Korea's Kim oversees ground test of high-thrust solid-fuel missile engine: KCNANorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un has overseen a ground test of a high-thrust solid-fuel missile engine using a composite carbon fiber material, N. Korea's Kim oversees ground test of high-thrust solid-fuel missile engine: KCNA oversaw the test of a newly upgraded engine made with composite carbon fiber material, with maximum thrust of 2,500 kilonewtons, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said without disclosing the date or location of the test. The test was part of a five-year national defense development plan aimed at the steady upgrading of strategic strike means, the KCNA said, quoting Kim as saying that North Korea's defense capabilities had "entered a significant phase of change in the building of the strategic forces." It marks the North's first high-thrust solid-fuel missile engine test since the last test conducted in September last year, when the engine's maximum thrust was put at 1,971 kN. The engine is assessed to have been developed for use in the Hwasong-20 inter-continental ballistic missile under development. Kim touted the test as having "great significance" in puttingMar 29, 2026By Yonhap
S. Korea co-sponsors UN resolution on NK human rightsSouth Korea has joined as a co-sponsor of this year's U.N. resolution on North Korean human rights, the foreign ministry said Saturday, despite earlier expectations that Seoul might skip the move in line with its conciliatory gestures toward Pyongyang. "Under the stance of cooperating with the international community for the practical improvement of the human rights of North Korean residents, the government took part as a co-sponsor of the North Korean human rights resolution through consultation with relevant government institutions," the ministry said. The resolution, drafted by the European Union and Australia, is expected to be adopted at a regular session of the United Nations Human Rights Council later this month. While the government reportedly considered opting out of the co-sponsorship this year amid efforts to mend frayed ties with the North, it appears to have made the decision to act in principle on recognizing the universal value of human rights. North Korea's persistent hostility against the South, despite continued efforts to ease inter-Korean tensions, also likely playedMar 28, 2026By Yonhap
S. Korea, Ukraine FMs agree to handle issue of N. Korean POWs in line with humanitarian principlesThe foreign ministers of South Korea and Ukraine have agreed to make efforts to resolve the issue of two North Korean soldiers captured during the Russia-Ukraine war in accordance with international law and humanitarian principles, Seoul's foreign ministry said Saturday. Foreign Minister Cho Hyun and his Ukrainian counterpart, Andrii Sybiha, discussed the issue of North Korean prisoners of war (POWs) and other matters during their talks in France, Friday (local time), on the sidelines of a meeting of Group of Seven (G7) foreign ministers, the ministry said. Two North Korean soldiers were captured by Ukrainian forces in January last year while fighting alongside Russia. The Korean government has voiced a willingness to receive them through consultations with Ukraine, as the POWs have reportedly expressed their wish to come to South Korea instead of returning home. On March 6, Cho told a National Assembly session in Seoul that Ukraine has assured that the two North Korean soldiers will not be repatriated to Russia amid concerns that they could be transferred to the North against their wilMar 28, 2026By Yonhap
N. Korea's Kim says ties with China put on 'new high stage' in message to XiNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un has assessed relations between North Korea and China as being put on a "new high stage" in his message to Chinese President Xi Jinping, Pyongyang's state media reported Saturday. Kim made the remarks in a reply sent to Xi the previous day, expressing his "deep" thanks to the Chinese leader for congratulating him on his recent reelection as president of the state affairs commission at a key parliamentary meeting, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). "I am pleased to note that the traditional DPRK-China relations are being put on a new high stage in keeping with the aspiration and desire of the two parties and the peoples of the two countries," Kim said in the message. DPRK stands for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, the North's official name. The North's leader pledged to "continue to develop in depth the DPRK-China relations of friendship and cooperation with socialism as the core," the message read. On Thursday, Xi sent a message congratulating Kim on his reelection as president of the North's top policy guidance body for a third cMar 28, 2026By Yonhap
