All eyes on solidarity between Pyongyang, Beijing, MoscowThe heads of North Korea, China and Russia are set to meet during a major military parade in Beijing on Wednesday, during which they are expected to display trilateral solidarity and strengthen ties between the three nations, according to the National Intelligence Service (NIS) and experts Tuesday. The NIS, however, saw little chance of Kim Jong-un, Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin meeting for a trilateral summit, which would be a first for them. Kim arrived in Beijing late Tuesday afternoon via his private train, nearly a day after departing from Pyongyang. In one of the photos of the North Korean leader emerging from his armored train, his daughter Kim Ju-ae was visible behind him, fueling speculation that he may be grooming her as his heir. It marks her first time joining her father on a visit to China, let alone at a multilateral gathering. Accompanied by senior party and government officials, including Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui, Kim will attend the large-scale military parade in China to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, a date Beijing commemorates as its victorSep 2, 2025By Lee Hyo-jin
N. Korea's public security minister heads to RussiaA North Korean delegation, led by the country's public security minister, has departed for Russia, the North's state media reported Tuesday, amid deepening cooperation between the two nations. North Korean Public Security Minister Pang Tu-sop left Pyongyang the previous day, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). The KCNA did not disclose the purpose of the trip, but the visit appears to be aimed at discussing issues of North Korean laborers who are currently working in Russia or expected to be dispatched. The trip came nearly three months after the deputy chief of the North's public security ministry held vice ministerial talks with his counterpart from Russia's interior ministry in Pyongyang to discuss expanding cooperation. North Korea's exports of laborers have been under United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolutions against its nuclear and missile programs. Russia previously sent back the North's workers in accordance with U.N. sanctions, but suspended the move due to the COVID-19 pandemic. After the North reopened its border in 2023 following years of COVID-19 bordeSep 2, 2025By Yonhap
N. Korea's Kim on way to Beijing for military parade alongside Putin, XiNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un crossed the border into China on early Tuesday as he headed for Beijing to attend a military parade that would mark his debut on the multilateral diplomatic stage and a possible three-way meeting with Russia's Vladimir Putin and China's Xi Jinping. The special armored train carrying Kim passed the North Korea-China border early Tuesday morning, according to the North's state media. Kim, Putin and Xi will be among some 25 leaders who attend the military parade as Beijing celebrates the end of World War II. Reflecting his previous rail route during a 2019 visit to China, it is expected to take about 20 hours for the train to arrive in Beijing. Kim's first visit to the Chinese capital since January 2019 comes as he seeks to improve traditional ties with China and boasts a deepening military alignment with Russia at a time when Seoul, Washington and Tokyo are tightening security cooperation. "Kim Jong-un, general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea and president of the State Affairs of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, left here for Beijing by hiSep 2, 2025By Yonhap
N. Korea's Kim inspects lab for new ICBM under development ahead of trip to ChinaNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un has inspected a research institute for a new intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) under development ahead of his departure for China to attend a military parade, state media reported Tuesday. Kim inspected the production of a new high-powered solid-fuel engine for ICBMs, saying it will be used for the next-generation Hwasong-20 ICBM during his visit to the institute affiliated with the Missile Administration on Monday, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said. The report came hours after the KCNA said Kim departed Pyongyang for Beijing aboard his private train on Monday to attend a military parade in China. This marks the first disclosure of the latest missile under development in the country's ICBM arsenal, following the test-firing of the solid-fuel Hwasong-19 ICBM in late October last year. North Korea said the new solid-fuel engine has a maximum thrust of 1,960 kilonewtons and will be used for the Hwasong-19 ICBM line and the new Hwasong-20 ICBM. Kim reviewed the results of eight rounds of tests on the engine, which uses carbon fiber composite maSep 2, 2025By Yonhap
N. Korea's Kim heads for Beijing by train to attend military parade with Putin, XiNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un departed for Beijing by private train to attend a Chinese event marking the 80th anniversary of Japan's surrender and the end of World War II, Pyongyang's state media said early Tuesday, in what will be his debut on the multilateral diplomatic stage. Kim Chon-il, director of the North's foreign ministry's press and information department, confirmed his departure on Monday, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported, as the reclusive leader is expected to stand alongside Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin during a military parade on Wednesday. Kim's first visit to the Chinese capital since January 2019 comes as he seeks to improve traditional ties with China and boasts a deepening military alignment with Russia at a time when Seoul, Washington and Tokyo are tightening security cooperation. "Kim Jong-un, general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea and president of the State Affairs of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, left here for Beijing by his private train on Sept. 1 to participate in celebrations of theSep 2, 2025By Yonhap
Kim Jong-un departs for China aboard train: sourcesNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un departed Pyongyang on Monday afternoon aboard his special armored train, a source familiar with the matter said, with Kim expected to make his debut on the multilateral diplomatic stage at a military parade in Beijing. "Kim left Pyongyang aboard a train this afternoon and is currently en route," the source said. Kim's train is expected to cross the North Korea-China border overnight and arrive in Beijing the following day. The journey from Pyongyang to Beijing by train typically takes 20 to 24 hours. Kim and Russian President Vladimir Putin will be among state leaders from 26 foreign countries attending the military parade in Beijing on Wednesday to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, which China commemorates as victory over Japan. It will be the first time for Kim, who assumed power in late 2011, to attend a multilateral diplomatic event. His grandfather and the North's founder Kim Il-sung attended a military parade in Beijing in 1959. Kim's presence at the military parade would possibly set the stage for the first three-way meeting withSep 1, 2025By Yonhap
Documentary shows atrocities faced by N. Korean troops deployed to RussiaA North Korean documentary revealed Monday that North Korean troops deployed to support Russia in the war against Ukraine had been subjected to battlefield atrocities, including death by suicide bombing. North Korea's state-run Korean Central Television aired the documentary Sunday night, featuring images of battles involving its soldiers deployed in the Russia-Ukraine war. The documentary introduced two young soldiers — Yun Jong-hyuk, 20, and Woo Wi-Hyuk, 19 — who embraced each other and detonated a grenade to kill themselves after being besieged by the enemy, describing such suicides as "heroic sacrifices." It also depicted the suicide bombing of another 22-year-old soldier, saying that after being wounded and seeing his comrades rush to save him, he detonated a grenade to kill himself. When the blast failed, he set off another grenade to his head, "heroically" killing himself, the documentary said. The video also showed some soldiers were used as human shields, introducing cases in which they sacrificed their lives to cover landmines or enemy drones during missions to clear a pathSep 1, 2025By Yonhap
S. Korea halts radio broadcast into N. Korea in peace overtureSouth Korea has halted the broadcast of a propaganda radio program into North Korea, the defense ministry said Monday, as the South seeks to mend frayed ties with the North. The move is the latest in Seoul's reconciliatory gestures, with President Lee Jae Myung vowing to restore inter-Korean ties and resume dialogue with Pyongyang. "The defense ministry has halted the 'Voice of Freedom' broadcast as part of efforts to ease inter-Korean military tensions," the ministry said in a notice to reporters. South Korea had aired K-pop and news into North Korea through the halted radio program. Last year, it broadcast news on North Korea's deployment of troops to Russia in support of its war against Ukraine. The ministry reportedly halted the broadcast starting earlier in the day, marking the first suspension of the radio program in 15 years. South Korea resumed the radio program in May 2010, following North Korea's deadly attack on the South Korean naval corvette Cheonan. Since taking office in June, Lee has ordered the military to stop propaganda broadcasts along the border with the North and urgSep 1, 2025By Yonhap
N. Korea slams Seoul-Washington-Tokyo statement targeting its cyber threatsNorth Korea on Monday denounced a recent joint statement by South Korea, the United States and Japan criticizing the regime's malicious cyber activities, calling it a "political farce." The Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) issued the criticism in a statement by the foreign ministry's press chief after the three countries voiced "serious concerns" in their joint statement last week over evolving malicious cyber activities by North Korean information technology (IT) workers. They accused North Korean IT workers of using artificial intelligence (AI) tools and other methods for cyber activities aimed at funding Pyongyang's illicit weapons programs and vowed to work together in response. The KCNA "strongly denounced" the statement, calling it a "political farce" aimed at internationally propagating "groundless" rumors about cyber threats and smearing North Korea's image to increase pressure. "The more the U.S. and its followers become obsessed with outdated and hostile acts ... the greater the insurmountable distrust and hostility" between North Korea and the U.S. will become, the KCNA said.Sep 1, 2025By Yonhap
N. Korea's Kim poised to leave for China, set stage for meetings with Putin, XiNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un was expected to depart for China on Monday aboard his special armored train to attend a military parade in Beijing, with attention focusing on his first presence on the multilateral diplomatic stage and a possible three-way meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping. Kim may have to leave Pyongyang as early as Monday to arrive in Beijing by Tuesday, given the train's travel time of about 20 to 24 hours, according to observers and government sources. China is scheduled to hold a 70-minute military parade on Wednesday, showcasing its latest weaponry and troops marching in formation to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, which it commemorates as victory over Japan. Kim is more widely expected to use his forest-green train rather than Chammae-1, the private plane Kim reportedly used for long-distance domestic trips in his early years in office, due to the aircraft's old age. Kim is expected to cross the North Korea-China border Monday night and stay at Beijing's Diaoyutai State Guesthouse, where he lodged dSep 1, 2025By Yonhap
