Kim Jong-un's Russia visit looks imminent By Lee Min-hyungNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-unNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un is likely to visit Russia in the near future following an invitation from President Vladimir Putin. “Our invitation has been handed over,” Russia's TASS news agency quoted Kremlin presidential aide Yuri Ushako as saying, Wednesday. “The dates will be agreed on. We are awaiting our North Korean counterparts' response.”As usual, the North has yet to report anything about Kim's possible Russia trip, but speculation is rampant in South Korea that the visit is imminent, as his de facto chief of staff, Kim Chang-son, visited Moscow and Vladivostok last month.As Kim Chang-son is known as the key North Korean figure handling the young dictator's overseas travel, his recent Russia trip is seen as increasing the likelihood of the visit.Russian Minister of the Interior Vladimir Kolokoltsev began a three-day trip to Pyongyang, Monday. On Tuesday, the minister met with Kim Yong-nam, the president of the Presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly, according to the regime's propaganda mouthpiece tApr 4, 2019By Lee Min-hyung
'North Korea should allow inspectors to Punggye-ri nuclear site' Moon Chung-in, a special adviser for unification and foreign and security affairs to President Moon Jae-in, speaks during the “Moon Jae-in Government and Korea Peace Initiative” forum at the Kim Dae-jung library in Mapo-gu, Seoul, Thursday. YonhapBy Jung Da-minNorth Korea should allow international inspectors to verify dismantlement of the Punggye-ri nuclear facilities, taking the initiative in facilitating the stalled denuclearization talks with the U.S., Moon Chung-in, a security adviser to President Moon Jae-in, said Thursday.Moon was speaking at the “Moon Jae-in Government and Korea Peace Initiative” forum, organized by the Yonsei Institute for North Korean Studies and the Korea Institute for National Unification (KINU) in Seoul. He said North Korea should act to break the mistrust that has emerged after the breakup of the second North Korea-U.S. summit in Hanoi in February. “It (the Punggye-ri nuclear site) needs inspection,” Moon said. “That would be one positive first move. That kind of activity will give a very positive signal to WashApr 4, 2019
Important announcement imminent? Kim Jong-un pays visit to late father's birthplace North Korean leader Kim Jong-un visits Samjiyon, known to be the birthplace of his late father, the North's state media reported Thursday. YonhapVisiting Samjiyon is Kim's ritual before making an important decision North Korean leader Kim Jong-un visited a northern county known to be the birthplace of his late father, state media reported Thursday, amid speculation that he could soon announce his next steps after the breakdown of his February summit with U.S. President Donald Trump.Kim inspected Samjiyon County of Ryanggang Province bordering China, according to the Korean Central News Agency. North Korea claims that Samjiyon, near Mount Paekdu, the sacred highest peak on the Korean Peninsula, is the birthplace of Kim Jong-il.Kim has visited Samjiyon ahead of major announcements or decisions.A visit in November 2013 came about a month before the execution of his once-powerful uncle Jang Song-thaek. Kim traveled there late in 2014, months before he expressed his intent to hold an inter-Korean summit in his New Year's speech. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un visits Samjiyon, known to beApr 4, 2019
Budget for DMZ hiking trails approved A South Korean soldier indicates a guard post of South Korean side in Goseong-gun County, Gangwon Province, April 2018. Korea Times fileSouth Korea on Wednesday approved a budget necessary to build hiking trails inside the demilitarized zone (DMZ) separating the two Koreas, a project to turn the Cold War relic into a symbol of peace.The unification ministry's Inter-Korean Exchange and Cooperation Council, composed of government and civilian experts, approved 4.4 billion won (US$3.9 million) to be set aside for the project, according to the ministry.The project is a follow-up to an inter-Korean agreement last September to come up with practical measures to turn the DMZ into a peace zone. In a related move, the two Koreas have since pulled out from 11 guard posts (GPs) each inside the area on a trial basis.A North Korean guard post is seen from the South Korean guard post in Goseong-gun County, Gangwon Province, February 2018. Joint Press CorpThe DMZ, about 250 kilometers long and 4 km wide, is one of the world's most heavily fortified borders and is located between South and North KorApr 3, 2019
Russian minister arrives in Pyongyang amid speculation over Kim's trip to Moscow Russian Interior Minister Vladimir Kolokoltsev TASSBy Park Si-sooRussian Interior Minister Vladimir Kolokoltsev arrived on an unannounced visit to the North Korean capital of Pyongyang, the Korean Central News Agency (KSNA) said on Tuesday."Russia’s Interior Minister Vladimir Kolokoltsev and persons accompanying him arrived in Pyongyang on April 1," the agency said.There has been no information about the duration of the visit or its agenda.The trip by Kolokoltsev, who is known to be in charge of security issues, came amid speculation that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is preparing to visit Russia for his first summit with Putin, which could take place as early as this month. Earlier, Kim Chang-son, known as Kim's de facto chief of staff, visited Moscow and Vladivostok, spawning speculation that the leader's Russia trip might be imminent. The North Korean leader has visited China four times since last year for summits with Chinese President Xi Jinping, including the latest in January. But he has not traveled to Russia since taking office in late 2011.North Korea appears to be Apr 2, 2019
Free Joseon warns Pyongyang with 'big events' following embassy raid in Spain North Korean leader Kim Jong-un waves at Pyongyang Station, March 5, after traveling a day-and-a-half by train from Vietnam, where his high-stakes nuclear summit with President Donald Trump ended without any agreement. AP-YonhapA mysterious anti-Pyongyang group claiming responsibility for February's raid on North Korea's Embassy in Spain said it is preparing for unspecified "big events," warning the reclusive regime will experience more "humiliation" if its human rights abuses continue.In a statement posted on its website Sunday evening (UTC), Free Joseon urged North Korea to close down its political prisoner camps, halt repatriation of North Korean defectors and begin to reform and open up to the outside world."The more the Kim Jong-un regime rejects freedom's orders, such as the dismantlement of political prison camps ... the more humiliation it will experience," the statement said. "We are now preparing for big events. Until then, we will remain silent like the calm before the storm." It did not elaborate.In this Wednesday, March 13, 2019 file photo, a member of the North Korea's Apr 1, 2019
Pyongyang's Air Koryo boosts flights to Beijing An Air Koryo's booking office in Pyongyang sells plane tickets to China, March 29, 2019. TASS-YonhapNorth Korea's flag carrier Air Koryo has increased the number of flights between Pyongyang and Beijing in apparent anticipation of a rise in exchanges amid their improving bilateral relations, a source said Monday.Air Koryo will fly between the capitals of the allies five times a week starting in April, up from the previous three flights a week, according to the source. The Pyongyang-Beijing direct flights will be available every day except Wednesdays and Sundays.The increase appears aimed at meeting an expected rise in the number of tourists and other cross-border exchanges in state and civilian sectors as the two countries mark the 70th anniversary of establishing diplomatic ties this year.In a sign of the improvement in bilateral relations, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has visited China four times since last year for talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping, including his latest trip in January this year.In September, North Korea resumed flights between Pyongyang and the Chinese cApr 1, 2019
FBI's alleged role in North Korea's Spanish embassy attack creates stir An outside view of the Embassy of North Korea building in Madrid, Spain, 27 March 2019. EPA-YonhapA mysterious case involving a recent break-in at North Korea's embassy in Spain has entered a new phase with speculation that U.S. authorities might be involved in it.Apparent anti-Pyongyang activists carried out the raid on the embassy there a week ahead of the second U.S.-North Korea summit in Hanoi in late February. A group calling itself Free Joseon claimed responsibility.They took computers and data and reportedly handed over some information to the FBI.NBC News quoted a "law enforcement source familiar with the matter" as confirming that the bureau has secured the information.It added the FBI has been put in a "delicate position" by receiving intelligence stolen from a foreign embassy in a NATO country, although experts say there would be no legal problem in making use of the material.In this March 13, 2019 file photo, a member of the North Korea's embassy tells reporters not to take pictures of the diplomatic building in Madrid, Spain. AP-YonhapNBC News said neither the FBI nor thApr 1, 2019
North Korea calls Spain embassy break-in 'grave terrorist attack' North Korea on Sunday released its first official statement on the break-in at its embassy in Spain by an anti-Pyongyang group, calling it a "grave terrorist attack."A spokesperson of North Korea's foreign ministry told the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), Pyongyang's official mouthpiece, that "an illegal intrusion into and occupation of a diplomatic mission and act of extortion are a grave breach of state sovereignty and a flagrant violation of international law, and this kind of act should never be tolerated."In late February, a group broke into the North Korean Embassy in Madrid and made off with computers and documents.Free Joseon, a mysterious anti-North Korea group, claimed responsibility for the break-in and said it shared some of the information obtained from the embassy with the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) on "their request."The KCNA reported that North Korea is "following the rumors of all hues now in the air that FBI of the United States and the small fry of anti-DPRK 'body' were involved in the terror incident." It said North Korea also expects the SpanisMar 31, 2019
North Korean official meets Laotian President Bounnhang Vorachith (second from right), general secretary of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party Central Committee and president of Laos, inspects Saysettha Comprehensive Development Zone in Vientiane, the capital of Laos, March 7. Xinhua-YonhapA senior North Korean official met Laotian President Bounnhang Vorachith and discussed expanding ties between the two countries, Pyongyang's state-run media said Saturday.Ri Su-yong, who is in charge of international affairs at the North's ruling Workers' Party of Korea (WPK), arrived in Laos, Wednesday, after spending a day in Beijing for a layover on his way to the Southeast Asian country."Bounnang Vorachith expressed full support for the efforts made by the WPK and the government of the DPRK for the building of a powerful socialist country and peace and security on the Korean Peninsula and the rest of the world," Pyongyang's state-run Korean Central News Agency said. North Korean ruling party senior leader Ri Su-yong, part of a visiting delegation led by North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, visits the Presidential Palace in Hanoi, Vietnam, MaMar 30, 2019
