Ruling party bets on thaw as Pyongyang signals potential ‘big deal’ with USFollowing the death of Kim Yong-nam, former president of North Korea’s Supreme People’s Assembly, members of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) are calling for a condolence delegation to be sent to Pyongyang — a gesture some hope could help ease the long freeze in inter-Korean relations. The idea aligns with what the National Intelligence Service (NIS) has described as Pyongyang’s "strategic timing," with the agency believing that North Korea may be testing the potential for a "big deal" with Washington early next year. Even so, experts on North Korea remain doubtful that such an outcome is likely. Park Jie-won, a five-term DPK lawmaker who served as chief of staff to former President Kim Dae-jung and played a pivotal role in arranging the first inter-Korean summit on June 15, 2000, has publicly offered to visit Pyongyang as a special envoy to pay his respects. In a Facebook post and a radio interview earlier this week, Park expressed condolences over Kim’s death and volunteered to lead the delegation. “I have already spoken with Unification Minister Chung Dong-youngNov 5, 2025By Anna J. Park
N. Korea appears to be ready for nuclear test once Kim makes decision: defense intelligenceNorth Korea appears to be ready to promptly carry out what would be its seventh nuclear test should leader Kim Jong-un make a decision on it, the defense intelligence agency was quoted as saying by lawmakers Wednesday. If Kim makes a decision to conduct a nuclear test utilizing the No. 3 tunnel at Punggye-ri, it can be carried out in a short time, Rep. Park Sun-won of the ruling Democratic Party and Rep. Lee Seong-kweun of the main opposition People Power Party, who co-chairs the parliamentary intelligence committee, told reporters following a closed-door audit of the Defense Intelligence Agency. Pyongyang last conducted an underground nuclear test in 2017. North Korea appears to be beefing up efforts to secure nuclear material and is establishing various types of manufacturing facilities for nuclear warheads, according to the assessment by the agency. Meanwhile, Pyongyang seems to be preparing for the launch of another spy satellite, capable of providing high-resolution imagery compared with its existing spy satellite, backed by technological assistance from Russia. The North successfullNov 5, 2025By Yonhap
US sanctions 8 N. Korean individuals, 2 entities over cybercrime money launderingThe United States said Tuesday it has imposed sanctions on eight North Korean individuals and two entities for their involvement in laundering money they stole through illicit cyberactivities. The Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) made the announcement, the latest in the U.S. imposition of its own sanctions aimed at blocking various cybercrimes used to generate revenue for the North's weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programs. Among the sanctioned individuals are Jang Kuk-chol and Ho Jong-son, two North Korean bankers who have helped manage the illicit funds, including US$5.3 million in cryptocurrency, a portion of which is linked to ransomware that has previously targeted U.S. citizens and handled revenue from North Korean information technology (IT) workers. Korea Mangyongdae Computer Technology Co. has been added to the sanctions list. The North Korea-based IT company has operated IT workers from at least two cities in China, Shenyang and Dandong. OFAC has sanctioned Ryujong Credit Bank for its role in helping overseas North Korean wNov 5, 2025By Yonhap
N. Korea mourns death of former ceremonial leader, joined by Chinese, Vietnamese envoysNorth Korean officials have mourned the death of the country's former ceremonial leader, Kim Yong-nam, joined by the Chinese and Vietnamese ambassadors, according to state media Wednesday. Kim, former chairman of the Standing Committee of the Supreme People's Assembly, died Monday at the age of 97 from multiple organ failure while battling colorectal cancer. North Korean officials from the ruling party, government, armed forces and other state organizations visited the funeral facility in Pyongyang the previous day, where Kim's body was laid, to mourn his death, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported. Television footage from the funeral facility showed a flower wreath bearing the name of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, while Chinese Ambassador Wang Yajun and Vietnamese Ambassador Le Ba Vinh also visited the site to offer condolences. North Korea has been holding a state funeral for Kim Yong-nam since the previous day. Leader Kim Jong-un visited his bier early Tuesday morning to express "deep condolences." Kim Yong-nam's coffin was to leave the funeral hall Wednesday to be laid toNov 5, 2025By Yonhap
N. Korea's Kim reprimands officials for delay in education material factory constructionNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un has inspected building sites for school supply and teaching tool factories and reprimanded cabinet and education officials over delays in the construction, state media reported Wednesday. Kim visited the sites the previous day to inspect construction progress and tour the factories, emphasizing the importance of strengthening the material foundation of the education sector and improving educational conditions and the environment, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said. The leader pointed out that the ruling party had addressed the issue of strengthening the material foundation for education at its plenary sessions for several years, but there had been no progress in the construction of the factories for five years till the middle of this year, the KCNA said. He blamed problems in the mindset and attitude of cabinet and education officials for the delay, adding that the cause should be strictly addressed at the upcoming plenary party meeting set for next month. The leader also acknowledged the efforts of military builders mobilized for the construction,Nov 5, 2025By Yonhap
NIS detects signs of N. Korea's preparations for possible US summitThe state intelligence agency has detected signs that North Korea had been preparing for a possible summit with the United States around the time of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) gathering in South Korea, although the meeting did not take place, officials said Tuesday. The agency also said there is high possibility of a summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un some time after a regular South Korea-U.S. military drill in March. The National Intelligence Service (NIS) delivered the assessment during a closed-door parliamentary audit session. "Although the much-anticipated North Korea-U.S. summit during APEC failed to materialize, various channels confirm that North Korea has been preparing behind the scenes for dialogue with the U.S.," said Rep. Lee Seong-kweun of the main opposition People Power Party, adding that Pyongyang had analyzed the positions of U.S. administration working-level officials on North Korea. Trump had expressed his willingness to meet with Kim before his visit to South Korea for the APEC gathering in the southeasterNov 4, 2025By Yonhap
Unification minister expresses condolences over death of N. Korea's ex-ceremonial leaderUnification Minister Chung Dong-young extended his condolences Tuesday over the death of Kim Yong-nam, former titular head of North Korea, saying in a message that he had contributed to the development of inter-Korean ties. North Korea's state media said earlier in the day that Kim, former chairman of the Standing Committee of the Supreme People's Assembly, died the previous day from multiple organ failure related to cancer. He had been battling colorectal cancer since June last year. "I express my condolences over the death of Kim," Chung said in a message released to the press on behalf of the government, also extending solace to his bereaved family and North Korean officials. The minister recalled Kim's visit to South Korea as head of North Korea's delegation to the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics, noting that it helped open inter-Korean dialogue at that time. Chung said he also met him twice in Pyongyang, in 2005 and 2018, where they had "meaningful discussions" on peace and the development of inter-Korean relations. A ministry official said the government issued the condolences in tNov 4, 2025By Yonhap
N. Korea's new general hospital in Pyongyang opens 5 years after construction beganPyongyang General Hospital, a large-scale, high-level medical facility envisioned by North Korean leader Kim Jong-un as part of his broader development plan, has opened five years after its construction began, according to state media Tuesday. Pyongyang General Hospital began receiving patients the previous day, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said, lauding it as being at "the world's best level" and providing "the best medical service." Photos released showed the hospital's lobby crowded with people, all wearing masks. North Korea launched the hospital's construction in March 2020, aiming to complete it by October that year, but the project hit a major snag due to a shortage of building materials and the COVID-19 pandemic. Its construction neared completion early this year, and medical equipment and staff were in place when Kim visited the site in September. Kim has pinpointed public health services, and the science and education sector as areas where the urban-rural gap is widest, pledging to build hospitals in 20 cities and counties every year.Nov 4, 2025By Yonhap
N. Korea fires multiple artillery rockets coinciding with Hegseth's visit to JSANorth Korea fired around 10 artillery shells from its multiple rocket launcher system earlier this week, coinciding with a joint visit by the defense chiefs of South Korea and the United States to the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) separating the two Koreas, the South's military said Tuesday. The North launched the rockets toward waters off the northern Yellow Sea at around 4 p.m. Monday, the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said, adding an analysis of the weapons test is under way. The launch came less than an hour before U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth arrived at Camp Bonifas, just south of the Joint Security Area (JSA) within the DMZ, for a joint visit to the tense border with Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back. Separately, the military confirmed the North also fired another 10 artillery rocket shells at around 3 p.m. Saturday, when President Lee Jae Myung and Chinese President Xi Jinping held summit talks in the southeastern city of Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province, on the occasion of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) gathering. "Our military is closely monitoring North Korea's varNov 4, 2025By Yonhap
Kim Yong-nam, NK’s ex-titular head of parliament, dies at 97North Korea's state media reported Tuesday that the North's former titular head of state, Kim Yong-nam, who had led Pyongyang's diplomacy for decades, has died at the age of 97, with leader Kim Jong-un expressing deep condolences over his death earlier in the day. Kim Yong-nam, former chairman of the North's rubber-stamp Supreme People's Assembly, died the previous day from multiple organ failure related to cancer-linked poisoning, the North's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported. Kim Yong-nam has been battling colorectal cancer since June last year. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un visited his bier at 1 a.m. Tuesday to express "deep condolences," accompanied by major senior party and government officials, the KCNA said. Kim Yong-nam visited South Korea as head of the North's delegation to the 2018 PyeongChang Olympics. The parliamentary standing committee and the cabinet decided to hold a state funeral for Kim Yong-nam on Tuesday, and his coffin will leave the facility Wednesday to be laid to rest. The state funeral committee is composed of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, Premier PNov 4, 2025By Yonhap
