N. Korea's Kim says national potential fully showcased in party anniversary eventsNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un has watched a mass gymnastic and art performance with people who helped host recent celebrations marking a party anniversary, saying they demonstrated the country's "potentials and might." Kim watched the performance, titled "Long Live the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK)," the previous day, congratulating those who participated in and worked on the recent celebration events for the party's 80th anniversary, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said. On the eve and day of the Oct. 10 anniversary, North Korea hosted a series of events, including a military parade, attended by foreign dignitaries such as Chinese Premier Li Qiang, Vietnamese leader To Lam and Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of the Russian Security Council. The military parade featured North Korea's new Hwasong-20 intercontinental ballistic missile, marking the first time the weapon system, capable of reaching the U.S. mainland, has been displayed. Kim expressed thanks to the participants, saying, "Indeed, thanks to your utmost sincerity and devoted efforts, our celebrations ... demonstrated thOct 13, 2025By Yonhap
N. Korea's Kim pays respects at family mausoleum for party founding anniversaryNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un has visited the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun family mausoleum to pay respects to former leaders on the 80th anniversary of the founding of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK), state media said Monday. Kim, "who organized and guided the grand celebrations of the 80th founding anniversary of the WPK in a responsible manner, respectfully presented the great glory won by the party and state to the great leaders," the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said. The mausoleum enshrines the embalmed bodies of the North's founder Kim Il-sung, grandfather of Kim, and Kim Jong-il, a former North Korean leader and Kim's father. The visit came as North Korea held celebratory events last week, including a military parade, to mark the Oct. 10 party anniversary, which were attended by foreign dignitaries, including Chinese Premier Li Qiang and Vietnamese leader To Lam. The KCNA quoted Kim as saying, "The revolutionary exploits of the great leaders who laid a solid cornerstone for the durable existence and victorious development of our party and state will be immortal along withOct 13, 2025By Yonhap
N. Korea unveils new Hwasong-20 ICBM, signaling multi-warhead ambitionsNorth Korea unveiled a new intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) and other advanced weapons during a massive nighttime parade in Pyongyang marking the 80th founding anniversary of the Workers’ Party, in what analysts described as a show of force highlighting its strides toward a multi-warhead nuclear deterrent. The parade, held Friday at Kim Il Sung Square, showcased the Hwasong-20, a solid-fuel ICBM that state media hailed as a “super-powerful strategic attack weapon” awaiting leader Kim Jong-un’s launch order. Mounted on an 11-axle transporter erector launcher (TEL), the missile resembled last year’s Hwasong-19 but featured key differences, suggesting new engineering. Its blunter, wider nose cone could signal space for multiple warheads or a multiple independently targetable reentry vehicle (MIRV) that allows a single missile to strike several targets. Rep. Yu Yong-weon, a former military journalist and lawmaker from the main opposition People Power Party, said the Hwasong-20’s design shows Russian influences. “Unlike the Hwasong-19, which had side lifting arms, the nOct 12, 2025By Kim Hyun-bin
N. Korea releases water from border dam without prior noticeNorth Korea appeared to have released water from a dam north of the inter-Korean border without giving prior notice to the South, officials said Sunday. The Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment said it has been monitoring the Hwanggang Dam, located upstream of the Imjin River, after satellite imagery taken around 11 p.m. Saturday showed signs of water being discharged from the dam. An official from the Gunnam Dam notified Yeoncheon County in Gyeonggi Province at 3:50 a.m. that North Korea appeared to be releasing water from the Hwanggang Dam without prior notice, a county official said. The water level at Pilseung Bridge, the northernmost point of the Imjin River in South Korea, had risen to 1 meter around midnight and reached 1.86 meters as of 10:50 a.m., according to Yeoncheon County and the Gunnam Dam operator. As a water level of 1 meter requires the evacuation of visitors in the river area, Gyeonggi Province and Yeoncheon County issued text alerts urging visitors and nearby residents to evacuate. The North is presumed to have discharged water to control the border dam's waterOct 12, 2025By Yonhap
Premiers of N. Korea, China hold talks in PyongyangNorth Korea's Premier Pak Thae-song has held talks with Chinese Premier Li Qiang, with Pak voicing support for Beijing's policies on Taiwan and other core national interests, the North's state media reported Sunday. The meeting took place Saturday as Li was visiting Pyongyang to attend events marking the 80th anniversary of the founding of the Workers' Party of Korea, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). Pak said Li's visit provided an important opportunity to elevate North Korea-China relations to a higher level, reaffirming his country's intent to explore "new phases in friendship." The North Korean premier also expressed "firm" support for China's policies and positions aimed at safeguarding its core national interests, including on Taiwan, saying North Korea will jointly oppose hegemonism and protect a fair international order and peace. Li reiterated China's intent to solidify friendship with North Korea regardless of changes in the international security situation, adding Beijing is ready to mutually support Pyongyang on the multilateral stage to uphold internationalOct 12, 2025By Yonhap
Xi tells N. Korea's Kim China is ready to strengthen strategic cooperation on int'l issuesChinese President Xi Jinping has told North Korean leader Kim Jong-un that China is ready to solidify strategic cooperation on international and regional issues in a recent message sent to him, the North's state media reported Sunday. Xi reaffirmed the Chinese commitment in a message sent to Kim on Thursday in response to the North Korean leader's congratulatory telegram for the 76th founding anniversary of the People's Republic of China, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). North Korea and China are "great neighbors, friends and comrades that help each other, and the traditional friendship between the two countries is solidifying as time passes," the KCNA quoted Xi as saying. Xi said China is ready to inherit and further develop the traditional friendship with North Korea to deepen friendly exchanges and mutually beneficial cooperation. China is willing to "strengthen strategic cooperation on international and region issues" to provide greater welfare to the peoples of the two countries and to jointly safeguard peace, stability and international equity and justice in theOct 12, 2025By Yonhap
N. Korea's Kim says its military should become 'invincible' entityNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un has called for the armed forces to continue to develop into an "invincible" entity at a military parade marking the 80th anniversary of the founding of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea, state media reported Saturday. In a speech delivered Friday night, Kim reaffirmed a will to bolster the nation's defense capabilities, but he did not issue threats directly targeting South Korea or the United States. The North's leader stressed the country's sovereignty can only be "defended and guaranteed by strength," according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). "Our army should continue to grow into an invincible entity that destroys all threats approaching our range of self-defense by dint of its political, ideological, military and technical superiority overwhelming the enemy, and it should steadily strengthen itself into elite armed forces which win victory after victory on the strength of morality and discipline," he said. His remarks came as North Korea has been ramping up the development of missiles and other weapons under its five-year defense plan. The NOct 11, 2025By Yonhap
N. Korea rolls out new Hwasong-20 ICBM at military parade to mark party anniv.North Korea has shown off its newly developed Hwasong-20 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) for the first time, among other new weapons, at a military parade to mark the 80th anniversary of the founding of its ruling Workers' Party of Korea, according to state media Saturday. The military parade at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, Friday night, overseen by North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and attended by high-ranking leaders from China, Russia, Vietnam and others, was seen as Kim's willingness to solidify his diplomacy with nations against the West and display the North's nuclear arsenal. The North's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) described the new ICBM as "the most powerful nuclear strategic weapon system" as it reported its disclosure at the military parade. The display of the Hwasong-20 ICBM, capable of striking the U.S. mainland, appears aimed at showcasing the country's nuclear force and demonstrating its de facto possession of nuclear weapons in the presence of foreign state leaders and high-level guests. In his speech to the parade, Kim called for the armed forces to contOct 11, 2025By Yonhap
China, Russia step up dual-track engagement with 2 KoreasChina and Russia are pursuing dual-track diplomacy with both Koreas, as top officials have visited North Korea and are planning to visit South Korea for different diplomatic events. The back-to-back visits are drawing attention to Beijing and Moscow’s diplomatic outreach on the Korean Peninsula, underscoring their growing regional ambitions. Considering that both countries historically have closer ties with Pyongyang than with Seoul, the visits are seen as strategies to maintain amicable ties with the North while improving those with the South to check the Seoul-Washington alliance. Chinese Premier Li Qiang, the country’s second-highest-ranking official after President Xi Jinping, visited Pyongyang on Thursday to attend a military parade on Friday, marking the 80th anniversary of the ruling Workers’ Party of Korea. It was the first visit by a Chinese premier to Pyongyang since 2018. According to Pyongyang’s state media, Li and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un discussed expanding “strategic communication and cooperation” across multiple fields. Russia sent Dmitry Medvedev, deputOct 10, 2025By Bahk Eun-ji
N. Korea, China reopen cross-border land route for postal service exchangesNorth Korea and China reopened a land route for postal services late last month that connects the North's border city of Sinuiju to China's Dandong, China's state postal service said Friday. The Sinuiju-Dandong land postal route has been "officially resumed" on Sept. 25 with cooperation from relevant government agencies, China's state post bureau said in a message on its social media. "The reopening of the China-North Korea land postal route is expected to provide greater convenience for postal exchanges between the peoples of the two countries," it said. The two border cities had undergone vibrant exchanges of personnel and transport before the North closed down its border in early 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The resumption of the land route for postal exchanges came after North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and Chinese President Xi Jinping pledged to increase cooperation and bilateral exchanges during their talks on the sidelines of the military parade in Beijing last month. Some speculate that economic exchanges between Pyongyang and Beijing, which have been stalled for years, may gOct 10, 2025By Yonhap
