N. Korea's Kim likely conditioned China visit on dropping denuclearization call: ministerNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un may have demanded that China make no mention of a goal of denuclearizing his country as a condition for his attendance at the recent military parade in Beijing, South Korea's unification minister said Monday. Minister Chung Dong-young raised the possibility during a parliamentary session after Kim's rare trip to China last week. During the trip, Kim attended a military parade marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II on Wednesday, standing shoulder to shoulder with the Chinese and Russian presidents in a show of trilateral solidarity to the world. Kim also held talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping, but the outcome contained no reference to the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, a major departure from the four summits they held between 2018 and 2019, when Beijing consistently called for it. "I presume that (Kim) may have strongly demanded no mention of denuclearization as a condition for his attendance (at the military parade)," Chung noted. He said from North Korea's perspective, Kim's attendance at the event may have represented "aSep 8, 2025By Yonhap
N. Korea remains silent on NYT report of 2019 secret US SEAL mission against its regimeNorth Korea on Saturday remained silent on a recent report that United States Navy special operations forces infiltrated North Korea in early 2019 to install a device aimed at intercepting leader Kim Jong-un's communications. A day earlier, the New York Times reported that the classified mission by Sea, Air and Land (SEAL) Team 6 — the same unit that killed Osama bin Laden — took place while Pyongyang was engaging in high-level nuclear talks with the Donald Trump administration during its first term. The report said the mission was unsuccessful after U.S. forces encountered North Koreans aboard a civilian boat, whom they reportedly killed. As of 6 p.m. on Saturday, about a day after the report, neither North Korean state media nor the country's foreign ministry had issued a response to the news. Experts said acknowledgement by North Korea of the U.S. infiltration would be tantamount to admitting failures in border security and protection of nationals, suggesting this could explain the regime's silence.Sep 6, 2025By Yonhap
N. Korea, Russia sign agreement to bolster cooperation on public safetyNorth Korea's public security ministry and Russia's interior ministry have signed an agreement to strengthen cooperation on public safety affairs and law enforcement, according to the Russian Embassy in Pyongyang on Saturday. The agreement was reached after North Korean Public Security Minister Pang Tu-sop and Vladimir Kolokoltsev, Russia's minister of internal affairs, held talks Tuesday in Moscow, the Russian embassy said on its Telegram account. The embassy did not disclose details about the agreement, but it noted that both sides shared the view that bilateral cooperation on public safety and security has taken on extra importance, given the geopolitical situation. As key areas for cooperation with North Korea, the Russian minister cited the fight against transnational organized crime, such as search and arrests of wanted criminals, responses to extremists and terrorist threats as well as a crackdown on trafficking of illegal drugs and humans. The two ministers also agreed on the need to beef up cooperation related to border areas, according to the Telegram message. North Korea and RuSep 6, 2025By Yonhap
N. Korea's state media domestically report on Kim's arrival after China tripNorth Korean state media on Saturday domestically reported on leader Kim Jong-un returning home after visiting Beijing to attend China's military parade, publishing photos of his daughter Ju-ae who accompanied him on the trip. The Rodong Sinmun, the North's main newspaper targeting domestic readers, reported on its front page that Kim arrived in Pyongyang on Friday after visiting China by his private armored train earlier this week. The Korean Central Broadcasting Station, the country's state-run radio network, also reported the leader's return on its 6 a.m. broadcast. On Friday night, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), the state-run news agency targeting readers outside North Korea, issued a short dispatch of Kim's arrival. A photo carried by state media showed Kim's daughter Ju-ae, in a dark suit, standing next to him in a cabin of Kim's private train. In the same carriage were key North Korean party and government officials accompanying the leader on his trip, including Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui. In another photo published by the KCNA, Ju-ae was seen stepping out of the train rSep 6, 2025By Yonhap
Secret US SEAL mission to plant device to intercept Kim's communications failed in 2019: NYTWASHINGTON — A group of the United States' Navy special operations personnel infiltrated into North Korea in early 2019 on a high-risk mission to install a device to intercept North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's communications, but the mission fell apart as it came across a North Korean civilian boat, a report said Friday. The New York Times (NYT) reported that the classified mission by Sea, Air and Land (SEAL) Team 6 — the same unit that killed Osama bin Laden, the founder of the militant Islamist organization al-Qaeda — proceeded when Pyongyang engaged in high-level nuclear talks with President Donald Trump's first administration. It elaborated on the botched mission that killed the unarmed North Korean crew of the boat, basing the report on interviews with two dozen people, including civilian government officials, members of the first Trump administration and current and former service members. During a press availability, Trump said he did not know anything about the mission. "I could look, but I know nothing about (it)," Trump said. "I'm hearing it now for the first time." The miSep 6, 2025By Yonhap
Putin sends congratulatory message ahead of N. Korea's founding anniversary: KCNARussian President Vladimir Putin has sent a congratulatory message to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un ahead of the North's founding anniversary next week, reaffirming his commitment to bilateral relations, the North's state media reported Friday. Putin sent the message the previous day, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said, one day after Kim and the Russian leader held a summit in Beijing on the sidelines of a Chinese military parade to discuss bilateral ties. It marked the North's 77th anniversary of its national founding on Sept. 4, 1948, by the current leader's grandfather, Kim Il-sung. Putin reminded Kim that Russia was the first country to officially recognize the newly established North Korea on Oct. 12, 1948, the KCNA said, noting that "since then, relations between Moscow and Pyongyang have honorably overcome the test of time. Russia, or the Soviet Union at that time, was the first in the international community to recognize the North as a state, following Kim Il-sung's founding of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea after the Korean War left the Korean Peninsula diviSep 5, 2025By Yonhap
Kim tells Xi that N. Korea will support China's interests: KCNANorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un has told Chinese President Xi Jinping that Pyongyang will "invariably" support China's interests, according to the North's state media Friday, as the two sides underscored their commitment to the two countries' constant friendship during their talks in Beijing. Kim and Xi met bilaterally at the Great Hall of the People on Thursday, the North's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported, a day after the leaders and Russian President Vladimir Putin jointly appeared at a military parade marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II -- in a show of their solidarity. Kim told Xi that North Korea "will as ever invariably support and encourage the stand and efforts of the Communist Party of China and the government of the People's Republic of China to defend the sovereignty, territorial integrity and development interests of the state," according to the KCNA report. The talks came amid speculation that broadening military cooperation between Pyongyang and Moscow might have put a strain on the traditional relations between China and the North as it coulSep 5, 2025By Yonhap
Kim Jong-un holds summit with Xi Jinping in BeijingNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un praised China’s “fair stance” on Korean Peninsula issues during a summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, Thursday, marking their first bilateral meeting in more than six years. According to China’s Xinhua News Agency, Kim expressed hope that the two countries would “continue strengthening coordination on multilateral platforms such as the United Nations to safeguard shared and fundamental interests.” The North Korean leader also stressed that “no matter how the international situation changes, the friendship between North Korea and China will remain unchanged.” During the talks, Xi emphasized the need to “strengthen strategic cooperation and safeguard common interests,” reiterating that China would “maintain an objective and fair position on the Korean Peninsula issue and enhance coordination with North Korea.” Chinese state media, including CCTV and Xinhua, reported that Kim arrived at the Great Hall of the People Thursday afternoon. His motorcade was seen en route at approximately 5:45Sep 4, 2025By Anna J. Park
China says Xi and N. Korea's Kim to hold talksBEIJING — Chinese President Xi Jinping and Kim Jong-un will meet for talks, Beijing said Thursday as the North Korean leader was in China on a rare foreign visit. Kim and Russia's Vladimir Putin flanked Xi at a massive parade of military might in Beijing on Wednesday, where underwater drones, massive missiles and laser weapons were showcased to the foreign leaders. China is North Korea's most important ally, their relationship forged in the bloodshed of the Korean War in the 1950s. Kim arrived in Beijing on Tuesday accompanied by his daughter Kim Ju-ae, in his second reported trip abroad in six years and first to China since 2019. His attendance at the parade was the first time he was seen with Xi and Putin at the same event. Beijing said Thursday that Kim and Xi will have a meeting. "The two... leaders will hold talks and have an in-depth exchange of views on China-DPRK relations and issues of common concern," foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said, using the acronym for North Korea. "China is willing to work with the DPRK to strengthen strategic communication... deepen the exchangeSep 4, 2025By AFP
N. Korean newspaper features Kim's presence at military parade with Xi, Putin on front pageNorth Korea's top newspaper on Thursday featured leader Kim Jong-un's attendance at a Chinese military parade alongside the Chinese and Russian presidents on its front page. The Rodong Sinmun, North Korea's most widely read newspaper, devoted the first three pages of its Thursday issue to stories and photos of Kim's attendance at the military parade in Beijing the previous day. On Wednesday, Kim joined Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin at the center stage of China's large-scale military parade commemorating the 80th anniversary of the end of the World War II, grabbing global headlines. The sight of the three leaders standing shoulder to shoulder signaled to the world the strengthening solidarity among North Korea, China and Russia, in defiance of the United States-led unipolar world order. On its front page, the Rodong Sinmun ran a photo of Kim standing next to Xi and Putin at the rostrum for top-level guests, underscoring Kim's key role. Another photo of Kim holding both of Xi's hands and smiling also appeared on the front page, emphasizing North Korea-ChiSep 4, 2025By Yonhap
