NK leader's sister says Pyongyang's nuclear status 'irreversible'The powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has said her country's status as a nuclear-armed state is absolutely irreversible, calling it a "line of no retreat" and vowing not to tolerate any threats against it, the North's state media reported Sunday. Kim Yo-jong made the remarks in a statement carried by the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), in which she reiterated Pyongyang's position that its nuclear weapons program is nonnegotiable while rejecting international efforts aimed at denuclearization. "The DPRK's status as a nuclear weapons state is the line of no retreat, and it is a stark reality whether anyone recognizes it or not," said the statement released Saturday, referring to North Korea by its official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. Her remarks came a day ahead of Chinese President Xi Jinping's scheduled visit to Pyongyang, apparently aimed at underscoring that Pyongyang's nuclear weapons program is not subject to discussions between Xi and Kim Jong-un. With Xi set to travel to Pyongyang, a U.S. State Department spokesperson on Friday highlighted tJun 7, 2026By Yonhap
N. Korea's Kim attends navigation test of destroyer Kang KonNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un has attended the navigation test of a naval destroyer, state media reported Saturday, calling for strengthening the navy's combat capabilities and nuclear deterrent. Kim boarded the destroyer Kang Kon, Thursday to assess its maneuvering and operational condition, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said. Building a powerful navy capable of "reliably taking charge of a part of the nuclear war deterrent" and striking the enemy "under the water or on the water" was "the most important core task" in the party's five-year national defense development policy, he said. Kim expressed confidence that the navy's modernization targets under the five-year plan, including the development of "underwater secret weapons" and the construction of 10,000-ton destroyers, would be "surely carried out" by the country's munitions workers and scientists. He ordered the destroyers Choe Hyon and Kang Won to be commissioned "as soon as possible." Photos released by the KCNA showed his daughter Ju-ae accompanying him. The 5,000-ton Kang Kon has had a troubled path to service. The warJun 6, 2026By Yonhap
US open to dialogue with N. Korea, committed to complete denuclearization: State Dept.WASHINGTON — The United States remains open to dialogue with North Korea "without preconditions," and committed to the "complete" denuclearization of the recalcitrant country, a State Department spokesperson said Thursday. The spokesperson's remarks came after Pyongyang's state media reported Thursday (Seoul time) that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un visited a newly launched nuclear material production facility earlier this week, vowing to "exponentially" strengthen the country's nuclear arsenal. "The United States remains open to dialogue with North Korea without preconditions," the spokesperson said in response to Yonhap News Agency's request for comment. "The United States remains committed to the complete denuclearization of North Korea." The comment reaffirmed a desire by U.S. President Donald Trump's administration to reengage with North Korea amid growing concerns that Pyongyang has been doubling down on its nuclear and ballistic missile programs in the absence of diplomacy with Washington and Seoul. The North's official Korean Central News Agency reported on Kim's visit to theJun 5, 2026By Yonhap
Unification minister floats 4-way peace talks involving 2 Koreas, US, ChinaUnification Minister Chung Dong-young on Thursday proposed a four-way dialogue involving South Korea, North Korea, the United States and China to establish a peace regime on the Korean Peninsula. Chung made the appeal in his special address at the opening ceremony of the 11th Ulaanbaatar Dialogue in Mongolia, a platform to discuss security and peace cooperation in Northeast Asia. He stressed the need for the two Koreas to "rebuild the inter-Korean trust and restore peace," proposing that the four-party talks expand over time to include Mongolia, Japan and Russia. "If those three fronts — rebuilding inter-Korean trust, institutionalizing a peace regime and advancing multilateral dialogue in Northeast Asia — move forward all together, we can build a new peaceful order across the region," he said. Chung also pointed to the Greater Tumen Initiative (GTI), an intergovernmental mechanism aimed at turning the Tumen River Basin to a regional hub, as a vehicle for his vision. He cited Arctic sea route cooperation and a high-speed rail link between Seoul and Beijing as potential early projectsJun 4, 2026By Yonhap
N. Korea's Kim inspects new nuclear facility, vows to 'exponentially' bolster nuclear forcesNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un has visited a newly launched nuclear material production facility, vowing to "exponentially" strengthen the country's nuclear arsenal, state media reported Thursday. Kim made the visit the previous day, accompanied by key party officials, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported, without disclosing the facility's location or other details. Seoul's defense ministry said in a press briefing that it assessed the newly revealed facility as a uranium enrichment site. Currently, North Korea is believed to house uranium enrichment facilities in three sites -- Yongbyon, Kangson and Kusong. It remains unclear whether the report suggests the existence of a fourth location. Kim said the country's "weapons-grade nuclear material production capacity more than doubled" over the past five years, attributing the gains to the country's nuclear scientists, according to the report. "Potential threats and unpredictable long-term crises further highlight the urgency" of expanding the nuclear deterrent "both in quality and quantity and in a sustained and accelerated way,"Jun 4, 2026By Yonhap
N. Korea slams USFK commander's 'dagger' remark on S. KoreaNorth Korea on Wednesday criticized a recent remark by the commander of U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) likening South Korea to a "dagger" aimed at China, warning that such an approach toward Beijing would only spur greater cooperation among countries in the region to counter Washington. The Korean Central News Agency carried a commentary by an international relations critic after USFK Commander Gen. Xavier Brunson called South Korea a "dagger in the heart of Asia" seen from China's east coast in a podcast interview Friday. "His assertion served as an occasion of revealing once again the position of the ROK as an advanced base for carrying out the U.S. Indo-Pacific Strategy," the English version of the commentary read. The ROK is short for South Korea's official name, the Republic of Korea. His remarks "clearly show the vicious appearance of the U.S. as the chieftain of harassing peace and the world's worst war empire, which has regarded the Korean Peninsula and its vicinity as the main battlefield for camp confrontation and new Cold War," it said. The commentator argued that Brunson's remarksJun 3, 2026By Yonhap
Unification Minister Chung heads to Ulaanbaatar Dialogue for security talksUnification Minister Chung Dong-young will travel to Mongolia on Wednesday to attend a two-day regional security forum, the ministry said. Chung is scheduled to deliver a special address at the opening ceremony of the 11th Ulaanbaatar Dialogue on Thursday. The forum, held in the Mongolian capital from Thursday to Friday, will provide a platform for Chung to outline Seoul's vision of peaceful coexistence and shared prosperity on the Korean Peninsula. The dialogue, established in 2014, brings together government officials, experts and scholars to discuss security and peace cooperation in Northeast Asia. During the visit, Chung will meet with Mongolian President Ukhnaa Khurelsukh. He will also hold talks with Foreign Minister Batmunkh Battsetseg and Culture Minister Jokov Alearjavkhlan to discuss ways to deepen bilateral ties and cooperation, and secure Mongolia's backing for South Korea's peace policies, according to the ministry. The ministry said Chung will also seek Mongolia's support for Seoul's policy aimed at fostering peaceful coexistence with Pyongyang. Mongolia's diplomatic ties witJun 3, 2026By Yonhap
Why some experts fear S. Korean missile sites could incentivize N. Korean strikesSouth Korea’s military appears to have deployed more than 300 short-range ballistic missiles in fixed concrete bunkers near Seoul, an arrangement that suggests it could be used as a first-strike weapon against North Korea, two U.S. security analysts have assessed. But some South Korean experts contend that the missile bases are aimed at rapidly responding to a North Korean attack rather than preemptive strikes, highlighting a debate about how the two Koreas’ development of increasingly precise missile systems exacerbates escalation risks. According to a study published in Survival, a bimonthly journal by the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), the three South Korean sites for the fixed concrete blockhouses in Gyeonggi Province collectively field 38 launch bays capable of housing up to 304 Korean Tactical Surface-to-Surface Missiles (KTSSM). The study was written by Decker Eveleth, an associate research analyst at the Center for Naval Analyses, and Jeffrey Lewis, a scholar of global security at Middlebury College. The authors geolocated the sites after the Joint ChieJun 2, 2026By NK News
N. Korea's Kim visits key political school for party cadres on its 80th founding anniversaryNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un has visited a key political school of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) to mark its 80th founding anniversary, calling it a "strategic fortress" ensuring the party's existence, state media reported Tuesday. Kim paid a "congratulatory" visit to the Central Cadres Training School of the WPK the previous day, accompanied by senior party officials, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). The Central Cadres Training School is North Korea's top political education institution designed to cultivate and reeducate party cadres. The school is "now glorifying its sacred original name ... as a strategic fortress guaranteeing the existence and development of the Party," Kim was quoted as saying in a speech by the KCNA. Kim highlighted the importance of the school's role in educating young cadres, noting that young party officials may lack party spirit amid generational shifts. He also emphasized North Korea's people-centered policy approach will remain unchanged even in the midst of shifting times, though "anti-people acts," including abuse of power,Jun 2, 2026By Yonhap
N. Korea's Kim inspects Sinuiju greenhouse complexNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un has visited a large-scale greenhouse complex in the northwest city of Sinuiju, calling areas hosting the farm a "standard" of regional development, state media reported Monday. Kim conducted an on-site inspection of the Sinuiju Combined Greenhouse Farm the previous day, reviewing vegetable production and management operations, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said. Photos carried by state media showed Kim's daughter, Ju-ae, walking immediately behind him during a greenhouse tour. Kim's wife, Ri Sol-ju, his sister Kim Yo-jong and other ranking officials were also seen accompanying him. North Korea built the complex on Wihwa Island, devastated by flooding in the summer of 2024, promoting it as a showcase of the regime's regional development policy and its focus on improving people's livelihoods. Sunday's visit marked Kim's eighth to the complex — five times last year and three so far this year, including the one in January, which marked his first on-site visit of the year. "The Wihwado area will be described again as a model and a standard of regionalJun 1, 2026By Yonhap
