Unification minister hopes to resume inter-Korean tour program, adding North's Kalma beachUnification Minister Chung Dong-young expressed hope Monday to resume an inter-Korean tour program to North Korea's Mount Geumgang and expand it to the newly developed Kalma beach resort. Chung made the remarks during a meeting with Hyun Jeong-eun, chairperson of Hyundai Group, the parent firm of Hyundai Asan, which operated the now-suspended tours to the North's Mount Geumgang resort. The once-brisk tour program came to an abrupt halt in July 2008 after a South Korean tourist was shot to death by North Korean soldiers for entering what Pyongyang claimed was an off-limits military area. "I hope the day will soon come when the tour to the Mount Geumgang tourist zone can be linked ... to (North Korea's) Wonsan-Kalma beach area so that it can be operated properly," the minister noted. Chung said U.S. President Donald Trump's previous remarks about North Korea's "great beaches" made the Kalma resort area "famous," adding that "It would be tremendously important for a summit between President Trump and Chairman Kim Jong-un to take place." The Hyundai chairwoman echoed the hope, saying, "HyundaSep 22, 2025By Yonhap
Attention rises over potential Trump-Kim meeting during APEC summitDiplomatic observers are cautiously revisiting the once-faded prospect for a meeting between North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and U.S. President Donald Trump on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Economic Leaders’ Meeting, as Kim has signaled his intention to hold talks with the American leader. While Pyongyang demanded Washington drop the U.S.-South Korea alliance’s stated goal of denuclearization as a condition for talks, speculation is rising that Seoul may also take a flexible approach to induce dialogue, as President Lee Jae Myung suggested the North’s halt of nuclear weapons production as the first stage. According to the North’s state-run media Monday, Kim said he sees no reason to avoid talks with Trump, invoking his personal history with the U.S. leader. “I still have good memories of President Trump,” he said at the Supreme People’s Assembly in Pyongyang on Sunday, according to the Korean Central News Agency. “If the United States abandons its obsession with denuclearization and seeks peaceful coexistence based on reality, we have no rSep 22, 2025By Bahk Eun-ji
Presidential office backs N. Korea-US talks but holds firm on denuclearization goalThe presidential office said Monday that South Korea is willing to support nuclear talks between North Korea and the United States if they resume, yet reaffirming its goal of denuclearization despite Pyongyang's call for Washington to take that objective off the table. The comments came after North Korean leader Kim Jong-un said at a parliamentary meeting that he is open to talks with Washington if it gives up on its demand for the North's denuclearization, recalling a "good memory" of U.S. President Donald Trump from their past meetings in 2018 and 2019. Kim also made it clear that his country will never abandon its nuclear arsenal and has no intention of resuming talks and seeking unification with the South. "We will support North Korea-U.S. dialogue," a presidential official said. "The government will work to ease tensions and build trust (with the North) with a long-term perspective, in order to overcome hostility between the two Koreas and move toward peaceful relations." But the official said the goal of denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula remains unchanged. "We will continue effortSep 22, 2025By Yonhap
Kim mentions 'good memory' of Trump, open to talks with US if it drops demand on denuclearizationNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un has said he has a "good memory" of U.S. President Donald Trump and Pyongyang is open to talks with the United States if Washington drops its demand for the North's denuclearization. Kim made the remarks during his speech Sunday at a two-day key parliamentary meeting, the North's Korean Central News Agency reported Monday, after Trump expressed hope to meet with the North's leader this year during his summit with President Lee Jae Myung last month. The North's leader made it clear that his country will never give up nuclear arms but said the North could sit down with the U.S. if Washington does not demand denuclearization as a condition for talks. "If the U.S. drops its hollow obsession with denuclearization and wants to pursue peaceful coexistence with North Korea based on the recognition of reality, there is no reason for us not to sit down with the U.S.," Kim said. "Personally, I still have a good memory of U.S. President Trump," he added. It marked the first time that Kim has directly commented on his ties with Trump since the U.S. leader began his seconSep 22, 2025By Yonhap
N. Korea appears to be preparing for military parade marking key party anniv.North Korea appears to be preparing for a large-scale military parade next month to commemorate the 80th founding anniversary of its ruling Workers' Party of Korea, a government source said Sunday, amid speculation that Chinese leader Xi Jinping may visit Pyongyang for the upcoming event. The North celebrates the party founding anniversary on Oct. 10, marking the date with large-scale military parades and gymnastic performances every five and 10 years. "Personnel, equipment and vehicles have been identified at a military parade training field near Mirim Airport in Pyongyang since early July through satellite images," the source told Yonhap News Agency, citing satellite imagery. Transporter erector launchers (TELs) were among the spotted equipment, according to the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity. The source said the scale of the mobilized personnel and equipment for the presumed military parade seems to be larger compared with recent years. North Korea last conducted a major nighttime military parade in September 2023 to mark its 75th state founding anniversary. The North is beSep 21, 2025By Yonhap
N. Korea keeps mum on outcome of key parliamentary sessionNorth Korea has not, as of Sunday, disclosed the results of a plenary session of its parliament that was set to take place last week, raising views the event could extend over a longer period than planned. The standing committee of the North's Supreme People's Assembly (SPA) decided to convene the session on Sept. 20, the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported last month. But neither the KCNA nor the Rodong Sinmun, the North's main newspaper for its domestic readers, had published reports on the meeting as of 7 a.m. Sunday. The delay in the results raises speculations that the SPA session could take place for two days or longer or have been rescheduled to another date. In last month's report, the KCNA said the session will address a grain management act, the review and adoption of an intellectual property rights act, and the implementation of a city management act, without providing further details on the agenda. The meeting had also garnered attention for its possible review of a constitutional revision reflecting the country's new hostile policy toward South Korea. During aSep 21, 2025By Yonhap
North Korea to send vice foreign minister to UN assembly: reportNorth Korea is set to send a high-level delegation, led by Vice Foreign Minister Kim Son-gyong, to the U.N. General Assembly in New York later this month, a media outlet reporting North Korean news said Friday. Kim is scheduled to deliver an address at the U.N. General Assembly's General Debate on Sept. 29, reported NK News, citing an anonymous source. This will mark the first time Pyongyang has sent a high-level delegation to the United Nations since 2018, when the then North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho addressed the 73rd U.N. General Assembly. In the past six consecutive years, the North Korean Ambassador to the U.N. has delivered a speech at the general assembly. Last year, Kim Song, permanent representative of North Korea to the U.N., issued a speech that Pyongyang will continue to increase its war deterrence capabilities, apparently including nuclear weapons, amid escalating tensions on the Korean Peninsula.Sep 19, 2025By Yonhap
N. Korea gave $9.8 bil in weapons to Russia but received $1.2 bil. in Ukraine war deal: reportNorth Korea has sent about $10 billion worth of weapons and troops to Russia under their deal to support Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, but Pyongyang has received comparatively limited compensation, according to a report Friday. The report, commissioned by the Korea Office of the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom, said it showed signs of "unequal partnership" between North Korea and Russia although they have intensified their military cooperation. The report said North Korea has provided weapons, ammunition and troops worth up to $9.8 billion, or more than one-third of the North's annual estimated economic output, since 2023. In contrast, Russia's direct compensation to the North is estimated at a maximum of $1.2 billion, which includes mainly food and oil assistance, along with "a small number of air defense systems, GPS jammers and possibly fighter aircraft." The report noted there is "no evidence" to support concerns that Russia has played a direct role in North Korea's technological modernization, saying the reclusive nation's economy also remains in a dire situation under thisSep 19, 2025By Yonhap
N. Korea's Kim oversees performance test of tactical attack dronesNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un has overseen a performance test of tactical attack drones, stressing the need to advance applicable artificial intelligence (AI) technology and bolster their operational capabilities, state media reported Friday. Kim inspected the test of unmanned weapons being developed and produced by an institute and enterprise under the Unmanned Aeronautical Technology Complex on Thursday, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). The leader reviewed the performance and combat applicability of strategic and tactical reconnaissance drones, as well as multipurpose unmanned aerial vehicles. The test approved the "excellent effectiveness of Kumsong-series tactical attack drones for combat uses, along with the military strategic value and performance of strategic surveillance drones' capabilities, the KCNA said. North Korean state media reported on Kumsong-line tactical attack drones for the first time. Kim said advancing AI and operational capabilities of unmanned weapons and equipment systems should be the top priority in modernizing the armed forces, stressing tSep 19, 2025By Yonhap
South Korea seeks 'peaceful 2 states' approach in relations with NorthUnification Minister Chung Dong-young said Thursday that South Korea will seek to transform North Korea's "hostile two-state" framework into a “peaceful two-state” arrangement, describing it as a transitional stage on the path toward eventual unification. Speaking at the Global Korea Forum hosted by the ministry in Seoul, Chung said South Korea will continue pursuing rapprochement with Pyongyang despite the North’s frosty response, calling dialogue the most effective means of reducing hostilities. "Even if North Korea continues to uphold the two-state theory, there is no justification for maintaining hostility," he said in an opening speech. "The main focus should first be on ending this hostility. The alternative is to transform the hostile two-state framework into a de facto peaceful two-state framework. This is the core of our policy toward North Korea." While Chung's remarks appear aimed at reviving talks with Pyongyang as the Lee Jae Myung administration seeks to restore engagement, some worry that this approach could spark controversy for aligning too closely with Kim Jong-uSep 18, 2025By Lee Hyo-jin
