'More than 7 out of 10 S. Koreans are against North Korean regime': survey North Korean leader Kim Jong-un speaks in a politburo meeting of the ruling Workers' Party, Thursday. A survey released by a think tank operating under broadcaster KBS showed, Monday, 74.5 percent of South Koreans have animosity toward the North Korean regime. / YonhapBy Yi Whan-wooMore than seven out of 10 South Koreans are against the North Korean regime, reflecting chilled inter-Korean relations despite President Moon Jae-in's efforts to resume cross-border cooperation, according to a survey released Monday.The poll conducted by a think tank operating under broadcaster KBS also showed almost six out of 10 South Koreans find the United States, China, Japan and Russia not helpful in fostering unification of the two Koreas.The survey came as the North continues to give the cold shoulder to the South's reconciliatory gestures, as seen from its demolition of a joint liaison office in the North's border town of Gaeseong in June and refusal to accept humanitarian assistance following recent flood damage.Some 74.5 percent of the respondents said they do not support the North, while 21.4 pAug 17, 2020By Yi Whan-woo
North Korean, Russian leaders pledge stronger ties on Liberation Day exchange Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean Kim Jong-un greet a North Korean delegation prior to their talks in Vladivostok, Russia, April 25, 2019. AP-YonhapNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un and Russian President Vladimir Putin exchanged greetings Saturday to mark the 75th anniversary of Korea's liberation from Japanese occupation, according to Pyongyang's state media.In their messages, the two men expressed their desire to further deepen bilateral ties based on an agreement for cooperation reached during their first summit in Russia's Far East city of Vladivostok in April last year, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported.The KCNA said Kim conveyed in his message that cooperative relations between the two countries "would steadily grow strong at a higher level" based on the summit agreement.Kim also wished Putin "bigger success in his responsible work" of building a powerful Russia, and for the prosperity of its people. The KCNA quoted Putin as saying that the North Korea-Russia agreement "contributes to further developing the reciprocal cooperation and promoting peace aAug 15, 2020By Ko Dong-hwan
North Korea leader warns against accepting outside flood aid due to virus risk North Korean leader Kim Jong-un at a politburo meeting of the ruling Workers' Party on Aug. 13. YonhapNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un said the country suffered serious damage from recent heavy downpours, but it should not accept any outside assistance due to the coronavirus risk, state media reported Friday.Kim made the remark while presiding over a politburo meeting of the ruling Workers' Party on Thursday to discuss measures to recover from the flood, stressing the importance of not letting up on COVID-19 prevention efforts, according to the official Korean Central News Agency."The worsening coronavirus situation around the globe calls for tighter border closures and stricter virus prevention measures, and not allowing any outside assistance whatsoever regarding the flood damage," Kim said during the meeting, according to the KCNA.Kim stressed the need to restore the flood-hit areas according to residents' needs and in a way that can avoid damage from any flood or natural disaster in the future, saying that he "cannot let the flood victims face the 75th anniversary of the Worker's Aug 14, 2020
USDA: 60% of North Koreans are food insecure North Korean farmers plants rice in the field in Pyongwon County, South Pyeongan Province, in May 19. YonhapSome 60 percent of North Koreans are suffering food insecurity, according to a new report released by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Economic Research Service, with the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic slightly exacerbating the already dire situation.The report, "International Food Security Assessment, 2020-30," found that 15.3 million North Koreans, or 59.8 percent of the population, are food-insecure in 2020."An estimated 59.2 percent of North Korea's population is food-insecure in 2020, rising slightly to 59.8 percent when the effects of the COVID-19 macro shock are taken into account," the report said.The total for 2020 represents an increase of 700,000 people from last year's assessment, which found 57.3 percent of North Korea's population, or 14.6 million people, to be food-insecure in 2019.North Korea ranks alongside Afghanistan and Yemen as the most food-insecure countries in Asia, according to the report, which was released this week.The USDA assessment defines aAug 13, 2020
Buses and trains disinfected as North Korea ramps up virus measures A passenger wearing a face mask to help curb the spread of the coronavirus is disinfected her hand before getting on a trolley bus in Pyongyang, North Korea, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2020. APTemperature checks, hand sanitisers, and face masks are being enforced across Pyongyang's public transport system as North Korea intensifies its fight against the coronavirus pandemic.North Korea ― whose crumbling health system would struggle to cope with a major outbreak ― has long insisted it has not had cases of the disease.But it raised its state of emergency to the maximum level in July, saying it had discovered what it called the country's first suspected virus case ― a former defector returning from the South.Pyongyang had yet to confirm whether he tested positive, but such a source might be more diplomatically convenient for the North than if the virus arrived from China ― its key ally ― where it first emerged.Pictures Wednesday showed passengers ― all with face coverings ― lining up for hand sanitiser before boarding buses in Pyongyang.At the capital's railway station, visitors in face masks hAug 13, 2020
Facilities at North Korea nuclear complex may be damaged by flood: US think tank Satellite images of North Korea's Yongbyon nuclear complex next to Kuryong River. Compared to the left taken on July 22, the right taken on Aug. 6 shows the overblown river covering the land. 38 North said the flooded water might have affected operation of the complex's uranium enrichment plant on the river bank, shown in the northeast corner. 38 North-YonhapSignificant flooding has happened along a river near North Korean's Yongbyon nuclear complex, and facilities at the complex could have been damaged, a U.S. monitoring website said Thursday.The website 38 North, a think tank monitoring North Korea, made the analysis based on satellite imagery from Aug. 6, saying that "water had reached the two pump houses that service the reactors" at Yongbyon nuclear complex."The August 6 imagery, when compared to imagery from July 22, shows a dramatic rise in the water level of the Kuryong River that flows alongside the Yongbyon complex," the think tank said. It said the flooding appears to the worst in recent years.The think tank also revealed an image of a fully submerged dam on the Kuryong RiAug 13, 2020
6,000,000 mobile phones in use in North Korea: research There are about 6 million mobile phone subscribers in North Korea, according to a state-owned development bank in the South. APThere are about 6 million mobile phone subscribers in North Korea, where the majority of the population does not have access to the global Internet, according to a state-owned development bank in the South.Kim Min-gwan, a researcher at Korea Development Bank Future Strategy Research Institute, said in a new report the number of mobile phones in use is rising in North Korea amid marketization and changing trends in consumption among North Koreans in their 20s and 30s, JoongAng Ilbo reported Tuesday.Mobile phone subscription rates are highest in major cities like Pyongyang and Rason, a port situated in a special economic zone. In each city, more than 70% of the residents own mobile phones, according to the South Korean researcher's estimates.Among North Koreans active in informal marketplaces, the average user owns about two to three mobile phones. In total, 4.5 million North Koreans, 18 percent of the total population, are actively using the phones, including Aug 12, 2020
Trump excessively touting success with NK for reelection U.S. President Donald Trump talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un at the inter-Korean border village of Panmunjeom in the Demilitarized Zone in June 2019. / Korea Times fileBy Kang Seung-wooEn route to the presidential election in November, U.S. President Donald Trump has been increasingly promoting the illusion of progress in ties with North Korea. However, diplomatic watchers say it is nothing more than a campaign strategy to stay in power for four more years.Last week, Trump said he would make "deals" with North Korea very quickly if reelected in November, followed by another report by Japan's Kyodo News saying the U.S. is seeking to establish liaison offices in both Pyongyang and Washington in order to advance denuclearization talks. Trump held a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Singapore in June 2018, becoming the first serving U.S. president to meet a North Korean leader; since then, they have met on two more occasions. However, there has been no progress in denuclearization negotiations, although the U.S. leader has touted a moratorium on long-range missile Aug 11, 2020By Kang Seung-woo
North Korea brings aid supplies to border town under lockdown: state media In this photo provided by the North Korean government, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, presides over an executive policy council meeting at the ruling Workers Party in Pyongyang, North Korea, Wednesday, Aug. 5. AP-YonhapNorth Korea's ruling party has delivered special aid packages of food and medical equipment to residents of Kaesong, near the border with the South, after imposing a lockdown there due to COVID-19 concerns, state media said on Sunday.North Korean leader Kim Jong Un declared an emergency and imposed a lockdown on the small border town last month after a person, who defected to South Korea in 2017, returned to Kaesong across the highly fortified border showing coronavirus symptoms.Pyongyang has not confirmed any coronavirus infections but has been taking strict quarantine measures and screening the town, while providing food, test kits and other medical equipment, according to state media.State television on Sunday showed a train arriving at the Kaesong station and trucks delivering supplies to residents.Separately, hundreds of people wearing masks and sitting apart frAug 9, 2020
Trump says he will make 'deals' with North Korea 'very quickly' if reelected U.S. President Donald Trump speaks at Trump National Golf Club Bedminster in Bedminster, N.J., Friday, Aug. 7, 2020. APPresident Donald Trump said Friday he will make “deals” with North Korea "very quickly" if reelected in November. Trump was referring to his administration's stalled efforts to get North Korea to dismantle its nuclear weapons program in exchange for concessions on international sanctions. "If and when we win, we will make deals with Iran very quickly. We'll make deals with North Korea very quickly," he said during a press conference in Bedminster, New Jersey. “Now whatever happened to the word North Korea? You haven't seen that, have you?" he continued. "If I didn't win the election in 2016, our country would now be ― maybe it would be over by now ― but in war with North Korea.”Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un agreed during their first summit in Singapore in June 2018 to "work toward" the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula in return for U.S. security guarantees.Despite two more meetings between them, the two countries rAug 8, 2020
