North Korea builds apartments on site for late founder's house In this Dec. 17, 2020, file photo, people walk past North Korean flags as they visit the statues of late North Korean leaders Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il on Mansu Hill in Pyongyang. North Korea's official newspaper said Tuesday that the site for riverside apartments now under construction in Pyongyang is where a special residence was once located for late state founder Kim Il-sung. AFP-YonhapNorth Korea's official newspaper said Tuesday that the site for riverside apartments now under construction in Pyongyang is where a special residence was once located for late state founder Kim Il-sung.In March, North Korea unveiled a plan to build around 800 "terraced apartments" along the Pothong River running through Pyongyang as "gifts" to "working people, including labor innovators and persons of distinguished services in all sectors, scientists, educators and writers."State media had not provided details on the site, but speculation had swirled that the area was where a special residence was located until the 1970s for Kim Il-sung, late state founder and grandfather of current leader Kim JoJun 29, 2021
Korean, US progressive Christian groups call for peace treaty, end to Korean War The seventh Korea-U.S. Church Conference was hosted online by the National Council of Churches in Korea (NCCK) and the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA (NCCCUSA), Friday. Courtesy of NCCKBy Park Ji-wonThe National Council of Churches in Korea (NCCK) and the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA (NCCCUSA) adopted a joint statement urging the governments of both South Korea and the United States to work towards declaring an end to the Korean War as well as to hold negotiations to sign a peace treaty on the Korean Peninsula.In a joint statement released by the NCCK and the NCCCUSA Friday, largely regarded as liberal Protestant church organizations in both countries, the two groups said, “We urge both governments to declare an end to the Korean War and open negotiations to conclude a peace treaty.”Stressing that the May 21 summit between Seoul and Washington was a “disappointment,” as it was a meeting mainly to reinforce the military alliance between the two nations, it said, “We are confident that the end of the war and Jun 28, 2021By Park Ji-won
North Korea policy failures causing food shortage: experts gettyimagesbankTransparency needed in humanitarian assistance to Pyongyang By Kang Seung-wooNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un's unusual acknowledgement of a food shortage is stirring up legitimate questions about the current situation inside the reclusive state and the reasons behind his admission. Pyongyang watchers also believe the country is facing a quite serious food shortage, and they see Kim's failed major policies as the culprits for the ongoing crisis, along with the triple whammy of last fall's typhoons, COVID-19 and international sanctions. When it comes to humanitarian food assistance from South Korea and the United States, experts also question whether, if accepted, such aid will be distributed to the intended end recipients. Kim admitted on June 17 during a plenary meeting of the ruling Workers' Party that his country is facing food shortages due to last year's typhoon and floods. “By most indications, there appear to be food shortages in the range of 1.35 million to 1.5 million tons ―the worst food crisis since the Great Famine of the 1990s,” said Robert ManJun 27, 2021By Kang Seung-woo
'Heartbroken to see him looking thinner': North Korean resident concerned over Kim's weight loss A photo released by the official North Korean Central News Agency shows North Korean leader Kim Jong-un presiding over the third Plenary Meeting of the 8th Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea in Pyongyang, North Korea, June 18. YonhapNorth Korea's state-run television recently aired an interview of a resident expressing concerns over a slimmer looking Kim Jong-un amid speculation that he has significantly lost weight."The people were most heartbroken to see the respected General Secretary looking thinner," a North Korean resident said during an interview with Korean Central Television on Friday."Everyone is saying that they are moved to tears," the resident said.A news report earlier said that Kim appears to have lost a "significant amount of weight" based on the analysis that his wristwatch seems to have been fastened tighter during a politburo session of the ruling party earlier this month.The unification ministry earlier said it is keeping an eye on Kim's health but has nothing to say about any unusual signs over his weight loss. (Yonhap)Jun 27, 2021
North Korea expanding air base, according to satellite imagery A North Korean fighter jet is seen taking off from an airbase near Pyongyang in this frame grab from a video released by North Korea's Korean Central Television in 2020 April. Yonhap North Korea is conducting "major maintenance and expansion" at its Sunchon Airbase, home to the most modern aircraft in the country's aging fleet, according to satellite imagery analyzed by Washington-based think tank the Center for Strategic and International Studies.Improvements to the base, located about 25 miles northeast of Pyongyang, include repairs and the extension of runways, taxiways and aircraft apron, according to an online report published Thursday by the Beyond Parallel project of CSIS.The upgrades appear to be timed to coincide with the annual summer training cycle of the Korean People's Air and Air-Defense Force, in which "KPAF aircraft are redeployed for flight training and to test operational readiness," the report's authors, Joseph Bermudez and Victor Cha, wrote.The aJun 26, 2021
North Korean hackers suspected of attacks using fake S. Korean gov't addresses gettyimagesbankHacker groups linked to North Korea are suspected of carrying out cyberattacks by using manipulated email addresses from the South Korean government to steal user information, cybersecurity firm ESTsecurity said Friday.The security company said it detected a cyberattack Tuesday, when the hackers used a manipulated email address from the Ministry of Unification. On Thursday, the hackers used an address from the state-run Korea Institute for National Unification.ESTsecurity said it suspects North Korea-linked hacking organizations, such as Thallium and Kimsuky, to be behind the attacks, which manipulated the sender emails to appear as official government addresses.The emails in the attacks included links to documents that appeared to be official government reports. When users click the links, they would be directed to enter their email passwords, which would then allow hackers to steal the information, according to ESTsecurity.The security firm said it traced the two incidents to a server that had been long used for other cyberattacks.The server had been used in an attacJun 25, 2021
North Korea seen marking Korean War anniversary in low-key fashion North Korean leader Kim Jong-un watches music performance with Workers' Party leaders in this frame grab from video released by North Korea's Korean Central Television, June 22. YonhapNorth Korea appeared to be marking the anniversary of the outbreak of the 1950-53 Korean War in a low-key manner Friday as it is striving to fight the global coronavirus pandemic and bolster its anemic economy.State media outlets have not reported on any anti-U.S. public rallies on the occasion of the 71st anniversary of the war. North Korea had held such street demonstrations around this time almost every year until the first-ever Singapore summit was held in 2018 between leader Kim Jong-un and then U.S. President Donald Trump. The official Rodong Sinmun newspaper, in particular, carried just two articles on the Korean War on Friday, without any relevant photos. In those articles, the North repeated its claims that the war broke out due to imperialists' invasion, and its late state founder and grandfather of the current leader, Kim Il-sung, led the nation to victory. The paper, instead, reported on leaJun 25, 2021
North Korea seeks more concessions from US: experts North Korea's leader Kim Jong-un speaks during the third plenary session of the eighth Central Committee of the country's ruling Workers' Party of Korea, June 17, the third day of the five-day meeting held last week in Pyongyang, in this photo released by the country's state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) the following day. Talking about the country's foreign policy on the third day of the meeting, the North Korean leader said the country needs to prepare for both dialogue and confrontation, which U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan called an "interesting signal." KCNA-YonhapPyongyang will not come to negotiating table without more US enticementsBy Jung Da-min North Korea is unlikely to return to dialogue with the United States unless Washington makes more concessions despite its hopes that Pyongyang will respond positively to its overtures, according to Pyongyang watchers, Thursday. This assessment was based on a series of recent messages from the reclusive regime that said it was not considering any dialogue with the U.S.“We are not considering even the pJun 24, 2021
North Korean FM rules out possibility of contact with U.S. North Korea Foreign Minister Ri Son-gwon / Korea Times fileNorth Korea is not considering contact with the United States, Foreign Minister Ri Son-gwon said Wednesday."We are not considering even the possibility of any contact with the U.S., let alone having it, which would get us nowhere, only taking up precious time," Ri said in a statement released by the North's state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).DPRK stands for the North's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. (Yonhap)Jun 23, 2021
North Korea anticipated to solidify ties with China Officials from China and North Korea look at photos of Chinese President Xi Jinping and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during an exhibition held in the Chinese embassy in Pyongyang, Monday, in this photo released by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency, Tuesday. YonhapExperts say Pyongyang seeks to strengthen bargaining power before talksBy Nam Hyun-wooNorth Korea is showing signs of strengthening ties with China, in an apparent bid to strengthen its bargaining position before it talks to or confronts the U.S., both of which the North should be prepared for its leader Kim Jong-un said earlier this month. According to Pyongyang's official Korean Central News Agency, Wednesday, the International Liaison Department (ILD) of the Chinese Communist Party hosted a joint meeting with officials from the North Korean Embassy in Beijing, Monday, to celebrate the third anniversary of Kim's visit to China and the second anniversary of Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to the North.During the meeting, Song Tao, director of the ILD, stressed that the friendship between Beijing and Jun 23, 2021By Nam Hyun-woo
