Systemic, widespread and gross human rights violations remain rampant in North Korea: US official Students and youth take part in a dancing party to commemorate the 10th anniversary of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's election as the top party and state leader, at the Arch of Triumph plaza in Pyongyang, in this April 11 picture. AFP-Yonhap The United States will continue to raise international awareness about gross human rights violations in North Korea, a U.S. official said Tuesday, adding Washington hopes justice will one day be achieved for the people of the reclusive state.Lisa Peterson, acting assistant secretary of state for democracy, human rights and labor, also said the U.S. will impose sanctions on those responsible for human rights violations in North Korea whenever possible."So we do recognize that the DPRK is among the most repressive authoritarian states in the world, and, obviously, we remain deeply concerned about reports of systemic, widespread and gross human rights violations committed by the DPRK government," Peterson said in a press briefinApr 13, 2022
North Korea uses space program to disguise ballistic missile development: US intelligence The newly completed Songhwa District in eastern Pyongyang, North Korea, April 11, is seen in this photo released by the official North Korean Central News Agency. North Korea uses its space program as a disguise to test and advance its ballistic missile capabilities, a U.S. military intelligence report said Tuesday. EPA-Yonhap North Korea uses its space program as a disguise to test and advance its ballistic missile capabilities, a U.S. military intelligence report said Tuesday.The report also noted the North may be trying to acquire space and weapons technologies by hacking into aerospace companies."North Korea has placed two satellites in orbit and has articulated further space ambitions. Its space program has also enabled testing of technology used in ballistic missiles under the guise of peaceful use of space," the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) said in a rare unclassified report, titled, "2022 Challenges to Security in Space.""These systems provided North KoApr 13, 2022
North Korea demolishing South Korean-built golf resort at Mount Geumgang: Seoul official A view of the Diamond Country Club on North Korea's Mount Geumgang, Oct. 25, 2006. North Korea is continuing to unilaterally demolish a South Korea-built golf resort near the mountain, still unresponsive to Seoul's inquiries about the issue, according to a government official here Tuesday. Reuters-Yonhap North Korea is continuing to unilaterally demolish a South Korea-built golf resort near Mount Geumgang on its east coast, still unresponsive to Seoul's inquiries about the issue, according to a government official here Tuesday."The dismantlement of the Haegumgang Hotel and demolition of the golf course have been constantly ongoing," the unification ministry official told reporters on the condition of anonymity. The official refused to elaborate, saying it was an intelligence-related matter.NK News, a news outlet specializing in North Korea issues, reported earlier that the North appeared to have demolished facilities at the Ananti Golf and Spa Resort, April 9 and 10Apr 12, 2022
UN aviation agency chief voices concern over North Korea's unannounced missile launches Juan Carlos Salazar, secretary general of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) speaks during the 2022 ICAO Legal Seminar in Seoul, April 12. YonhapThe head of the United Nation's civil aviation agency urged North Korea on Tuesday to make prior notifications on its missile launches, saying Pyongyang's unannounced missile tests would pose a risk to international civil aviation.Tensions have recently escalated on the Korean Peninsula as North Korea fired its first intercontinental ballistic missile last month since November 2017.The latest launch ended North Korea's self-imposed moratorium on long-range missile testing in 2018 and came after a series of shorter-missile launches in recent months."Every time that North Korea is conducting these unexpected tests, one of the first concerns we have is precisely the risk that is posed to international civil aviation," Juan Carlos Salazar, secretary general of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), said in an interview with Yonhap News Agency in Seoul."ICAO member states, including North Korea, are expected to noApr 12, 2022
North Korea says forest fire broke out in Mount Kumgang area over weekend Local tourists walk on a trail at Mount Geumgang, or the Diamond Mountain, in North Korea in this Oct. 23, 2018, file photo. North Korea said Tuesday a forest fire broke out on the mountain in the eastern Gangwon Province over the weekend. AP-Yonhap North Korea said Tuesday a forest fire broke out on Mount Geumgang in the eastern Gangwon Province over the weekend, damaging hundreds of hectares of forests and facilities.The fire started at about 3:20 p.m. Saturday on a hill near Kuryong Pool on Mount Geumgang and the Kosong Port Golf Course in the border county of Kosong, according to the North's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).All available firefighters were immediately mobilized, and the fire was extinguished the next day at 11:20 a.m., the KCNA said. It did not elaborate on the exact size of the damaged area.The North's Cabinet and the State Emergency Disaster Committee took emergency measures to "rehabilitate" the area, with surveillance to prevent anoApr 12, 2022
Kim Jong-un celebrates completion of major housing project in Pyongyang This photo, released by the Korean Central News Agency, shows North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, third from left, cutting the red tape during a dedication ceremony, April 11, 2022, for the Songhwa District, built in eastern Pyongyang to resolve the capital city's housing shortage. YonhapNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un attended a ceremony to celebrate the completion of a major housing project in the country's capital, state media reported Tuesday.The event was to mark the completion of 10,000 apartments and an 80-floor skyscraper in the Songsin and Songhwa areas of Pyongyang, and a major street with "public catering facilities," according to the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).Kim did not deliver a speech in person while warmly waving to the cheering crowds and "wishing them happiness" in the new houses.The workers and soldiers involved in the project "performed an eye-opening miracle of building the distinctive grand architectural group of 10,000 flats" by waging a fierce campaign despite challenges, the KCNA said.Top officials attended the ceremony, including Jo Yong-won, sApr 12, 2022
North Korea celebrates 10 years of Kim as top party leader An event to mark the 10th anniversary of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's assumption of power takes place in Pyongyang, April 10, in this photo provided by the Korean Central News Agency. YonhapNorth Korea praised Kim Jong-un's leadership in developing nuclear weapons, touted his political achievements, and unveiled new portraits and exhibitions to celebrate his 10 years in charge of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea (WPK).Kim is considered to have assumed power when he was named supreme commander of the military after his father, Kim Jong-il, died in Dec. 2011.Monday marks ten years since the younger Kim was elected as the top party and state leader. The Kim family has ruled the one-party state for its entire history.In a speech at a national meeting on Sunday, Choe Ryong-hae, member of the Presidium of the Political Bureau of the WPK Central Committee and one of the most senior officials under Kim, praised the North Korean leader as "a gifted thinker and theoretician, outstanding statesman and peerlessly great commander."The events started a week of commemorations that will also Apr 11, 2022
North Korea-China trade on restoration path, but Pyongyang faces challenges North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, second from left, is seen at a groundbreaking ceremony for a greenhouse farm in South Hamgyong Province's Hamju County in a screen capture of Korean Central Television's broadcast on Feb. 19, 2022. YonhapEconomic sanctions, COVID risks loom over reclusive stateBy Kim Bo-eunHONG KONG ― North Korea is steadily restoring trade with China after bilateral commerce dived in 2020 and 2021 as the reclusive state closed its border to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.Trade with China totaled $318 million in 2021, down by 41 percent from the previous year and by 90 percent from levels before the pandemic, according to China Customs data. Last year's total was the lowest with its northwestern neighbor since Kim Jong-un assumed leadership in December 2011.But after mainly relying on shipping routes over the two years, railway transport resumed in January, with $60.9 million worth of trade crossing the border in February. “Trade is still 80 percent less than what it was before North Korea decided to close its borders in 2020,” said Soo Kim, a formeApr 10, 2022By Kim Bo-eun
North Korea slams US over Ukraine crisis, calls Joe Biden 'old man in his senility' U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks on administration efforts to strengthen national supply chains and increase the number of truck drivers, at the White House in Washington, U.S., April 4. Reuters-YonhapNorth Korea condemned the United States, Saturday, for making the crisis surrounding Ukraine a human rights issue and imposing sanctions against Russia, denouncing U.S. President Joe Biden as "an old man in his senility" and a man of a "repeated slip of tongue."A commentary carried by the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said the Ukraine issue has suddenly become a human rights issue, as the U.S. and western media have branded the conflict a war crime in a politically motivated plot to defame Russia and achieve the collapse of its regime."The latest story is the U.S. chief executive who spoke ill of the Russian president with groundless data," the English-language article read. "Such reckless remarks can be made only by the descendants of Yankees, master hand at aggression and plot-breeding."The North then called Biden "an old man in his senility" with "a problem in his intellApr 10, 2022
Restoration work ongoing at North Korea's nuclear test site: report An overview of new activity at the Punggye-ri nuclear test site, Kilju County, North Hamgyong province, North Korea, March 4, in this satellite image. Reuters-Yonhap North Korea appears to be continuing restoration work at the Punggye-ri nuclear test site, including the construction of a tunnel entrance, a new report said, amid concerns that the secretive state may be pushing for another nuclear test.Commercial satellite imagery taken between March 24 and April 6 indicates continued activity at the site's Tunnel 3, such as new spoil piles and a newly uncovered entrance, according to the report released by the Vienna-based Open Nuclear Network."The DPRK likely established a preliminary entrance to Tunnel 3 and started excavation of the tunnel structure," read the report by Katsuhisa Furukawa, a former member of the U.N. Panel of Experts on North Korean sanctions. DPRK stands for the North's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.There are four knownApr 8, 2022
