N. Korea stresses importance of designating leader's successor in party magazineA North Korean party magazine stressed the importance of designating the state leader's successor in a publication in March last year, shortly before leader Kim Jong-un's daughter, Ju-ae, resumed public appearances following a brief hiatus. Amid speculation that Ju-ae is being groomed as Kim's potential successor, the publication has gained attention as it may have been aimed at setting the stage for the ruling family's third hereditary transfer of power. "Geunroja," which means "workers" in Korean, a magazine published for party officials, raised the "issue of designating a successor to inherit the status and role of the political head and establishing (the designee's) leadership," in the March publication obtained by Yonhap News Agency on Thursday. The magazine, a key party publication intended for ideological indoctrination and policy promotion among officials, described the issue as central to handling the country's leadership succession, although it made no mention of Ju-ae. Designating a successor in line with the people's respect and trust, and the collective will of the party asJan 8, 2026By Yonhap
N. Korea urges heightened discipline, loyalty among officials ahead of party congressNorth Korea on Thursday urged officials to strengthen work discipline and loyalty to the regime ahead of an upcoming key party congress, calling it a "highly responsible" occasion in which their qualifications will be scrutinized. "Officials need to honorably face the party congress with proud achievements from their devoted service to the people," read the headline of an article carried by the Rodong Sinmun, North Korea's most widely read newspaper, on Thursday. Their official positions are those "the party has assigned to them to carry a heavier burden for the people and to take on more tasks," the newspaper said, adding that good service for the people means "correctly capturing the wishes and intentions of the party and becoming a genuine loyalist." The call for heightened devotion and work discipline came as North Korea is expected to convene the ninth party congress in January or February, the first such convention since 2021, to formulate a long-term policy line reportedly covering diplomacy, the economy and other areas. The newspaper said the period leading up to the party congreJan 8, 2026By Yonhap
Pyongyang's state media silent on birthday of N. Korea's KimNorth Korea's state media has remained silent on the birthday of leader Kim Jong-un, believed to fall on Thursday, instead focusing on reporting the nation's preparations for the upcoming key party congress. North Korea has not officially announced Kim's birthday, known to be Jan. 8, for special celebrations, though the birthdays of late state founder Kim Il-sung and former leader Kim Jong-il have been marked as national holidays. On the front page of the Thursday edition, the Rodong Sinmun, the North's main newspaper for the domestic audience, called for senior officials to thoroughly prepare for the ninth party congress set for early this year but did not carry any report on Kim's birthday. The Korean Central News Agency, the North's state-run news agency for external readers, also did not make any mention of it. Kim's birthday was first revealed in 2014, when the North's state media reported former American professional basketball player Dennis Rodman had visited North Korea on the occasion of Kim Jong-un's birthday. Attention has been drawn to the possibility that North Korea may formJan 8, 2026By Yonhap
Kim Jong-un’s ‘people-first leadership’ on display at memorial site, analysts sayNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un visited a construction site on the outskirts of Pyongyang for a memorial honoring troops dispatched to Russia, where he planted a commemorative tree. He was joined by his daughter Ju-ae, with whom he was seen holding a shovel and planting a sapling. He also drove a forklift himself, carrying Ju-ae and senior officials. Analysts say the display is intended to highlight a "people-first" image ahead of the Workers’ Party’s ninth congress. The Korean Central News Agency on Tuesday reported that Kim visited the construction site of the Memorial Hall for Overseas Military Operations and Combat Feats the previous day with senior party, government and military officials, where he encouraged the soldiers building the monument and their commanders. Touring the site, Kim said it is “a great monument of the times symbolizing the valor of the outstanding sons of the Korean people,” adding that the project will create “another important ideological and spiritual base for education in victory traditions in our capital.” Kim’s wife Ri Sol-ju and daughter JuJan 7, 2026By Hankookilbo
N. Korea touts achievements in 'rural revolution' ahead of key party congressNorth Korea on Wednesday hailed the country's endeavors in achieving a "rural revolution" as the regime is set to hold the ninth party congress early this year. The Rodong Sinmun, North Korea's most widely read newspaper, carried the report, praising the construction of farm villages as an "immortal journey" that has stood out prominently over the past five years. The paper cited rural achievements, such as increased agricultural output, advances in farming technologies and improvements in the rural environment, but did not provide any specific figures. "The new-era rural revolution is an undertaking that is unprecedented in the country's socialist construction in terms of the range and depth of its transformation and the magnitude of its tasks," the newspaper said. The North Korean party is expected to convene its ninth party congress in January or February, at which a new five-year development plan is expected to be formulated. It will mark the first party congress since the eighth in 2021, where a five-year economic development plan was adopted.Jan 7, 2026By Yonhap
Maduro’s fall may stoke Kim Jong-un’s fears: ‘He will cling more tightly to nuclear weapons’With the United States carrying out an operation to capture Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, diplomatic attention is turning to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. Observers say the latest U.S. attack on an authoritarian regime may have increased Kim’s fear of regime change. Experts say his conviction that "only nuclear weapons ensure survival" is likely to harden further. North Korea strongly condemned what it called a U.S. "invasion" of Venezuela in a Q&A session on Sunday with a foreign ministry spokesperson and a Korean Central News Agency reporter. The spokesperson said it was “another case that once again confirms the gangster-like and beastly nature of the United States as witnessed by the international community.” They added that North Korea brands Washington’s actions in Venezuela as “the gravest form of sovereignty violation and a violent breach of the U.N. Charter and international law, which are based on respect for sovereignty, non-interference in internal affairs and territorial integrity,” and said the country condemns it in the strongest terms. Early SaturdaJan 7, 2026By Hankookilbo
NK leader's daughter appearing at center stage likely aimed at socialist family imagery: officialThe appearances of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's daughter, Ju-ae, at the center of recent public events appear aimed at projecting socialist imagery that portrays society as one great family, a Seoul official said Tuesday. An official at the unification ministry in Seoul made the assessment after Kim's teenage daughter captured headlines by appearing at back-to-back public events alongside her father. Photos carried by state media showed Ju-ae standing at the center of the front row between her parents as they, accompanied by rows of officials, visited the family mausoleum to pay tribute to the former leaders on New Year's Day. The images rekindled long-brewing speculation that Ju-ae may be being groomed as Kim's heir apparent. Again on Tuesday, Ju-ae was seen in North Korean media joining Kim and other officials at a ceremony the previous day to plant trees for a memorial museum in Pyongyang commemorating North Korean soldiers killed while fighting for Russia in the war with Ukraine. The unification ministry official said the focus of North Korea's recent exposure of Ju-ae is likelyJan 6, 2026By Yonhap
N. Korea's Kim inspects construction of memorial for soldiers killed in Ukraine warNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un has visited the construction site of a memorial for the North's soldiers killed in Russia's war against Ukraine, hailing their sacrifice as an "eternal cornerstone" for Pyongyang, state media reported Tuesday. Kim "visited the construction site of the Memorial Museum of Combat Feats at the Overseas Military Operations" in Pyongyang the previous day and dug the first shovelful of earth for the museum's tree planting, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said. Images released by the North's state media showed Kim's wife, Ri Sol-ju, and daughter Ju-ae accompanied Kim at the event, with Ju-ae seen digging the ground along with her father in the tree planting. Kim said the sacrifice of North Korean troops "would serve as the solid root and eternal cornerstone supporting the mightiness of the motherly DPRK," according to the KCNA. DPRK stands for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, the official name of the country. While awarding official commendations in August last year to soldiers who were dispatched to support Russia in the war, Kim unveiled a plan toJan 6, 2026By Yonhap
Seoul says N. Korea's condemnation of Maduro's capture part of anti-US solidarityNorth Korea's recent condemnation of the United States' capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro appears to be part of its solidarity with countries opposed to Washington, Seoul's unification ministry said Monday. The remarks by unification ministry spokesperson Yoon Min-ho were in response to a statement by the North Korean foreign ministry Sunday, which "strongly" denounced Maduro's capture as "the most serious form of encroachment of sovereignty and as a wanton violation of the U.N. Charter and international laws." The ministry views the statement as "an extension of (Pyongyang's) criticism of the U.S. on (various) issues as part of anti-U.S. solidarity," Yoon said. The spokesperson recalled Pyongyang's criticism of Washington in June last year, when the U.S. launched military strikes against Iran's nuclear sites. At that time, the North denounced the attack as a violation of a sovereign state's security interests and territorial integrity. "The latest North Korean reaction is very similar to that issued in June last year, when the U.S. attacked Iran," he said, noting shared antJan 5, 2026By Yonhap
N. Korea says it tested hypersonic missiles with leader Kim Jong-un attendingNorth Korea test-launched hypersonic missiles in Pyongyang the previous day that successfully struck targets in the East Sea, with leader Kim Jong-un in attendance, state media reported Monday. "A sub-unit under a major firing strike group of the Korean People's Army conducted a missile launching drill" to evaluate the country's war deterrence and the readiness of the weapon system, as well as to verify its capacity to fulfill missions, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said. South Korea's military detected the missile launch at 7:50 a.m. Sunday, hours before President Lee Jae Myung departed for Beijing for summit talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping and after the United States announced the capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro in a large-scale military strike. "Through today's launching drill, we can confirm that a very important technology task for national defense has been carried out. The missile soldiers showed the readiness of the DPRK's nuclear forces without regret and gave confidence in it," the KCNA quoted Kim as saying. DPRK refers to the official name of North KJan 5, 2026By Yonhap
