The South Korean government reiterated Friday that the denuclearization of North Korea remains a shared goal of the international community amid controversy surrounding the United Nations nuclear chief's remarks suggesting the world should recognize that Pyongyang possesses nuclear weapons. In an interview with the Associated Press, Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), emphasized the importance of continuing to press North Korea to cease its

South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul on Wednesday pointed out "limitations" of the UN Security Council in effectively addressing pressing security issues, citing North Korea's transfers of weapons to Russia in breach of relevant UNSC resolutions. Cho made the remarks during a UNSC open debate on the leadership for peace, where high-level participants discussed a range of issues, including Russia's war in Ukraine, instability in the Middle East, and the civil war in Sudan

North Korea on Wednesday denounced the United States for violating the North's sovereign rights and trying to justify its hostile policy against Pyongyang by hosting the Quad summit with the leaders of India, Japan and Australia. After holding the fourth in-person summit in Wilmington, Delaware, the leaders of the four nations in the Quad security partnership on Saturday issued a joint statement denouncing North Korea's missile launches and its nuclear program, and reaffirming their co

Kim Yo-jong, the influential sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, vowed Tuesday to "continuously and limitlessly" bolster the North's nuclear war deterrent against what it called US threats, denouncing the arrival of a US nuclear-powered submarine in South Korea. The remark came a day after the 7,800-ton USS Vermont entered a major naval base in Busan, 320 kilometers southeast of Seoul, to replenish supplies and provide rest for crew members. "The DPRK's nuclear

North Korea sent more balloons likely carrying trash toward South Korea on Sunday, the South's military said, just four days after the prior similar launch. The Joint Chiefs of Staff said the North resumed its balloon campaign and warned the balloons may float toward Seoul and the surrounding Gyeonggi Province. Since late May, the North has launched thousands of balloons carrying trash in retaliation against anti-Pyongyang leaflets sent across the border by North Korean defectors and acti

Seoul and Washington issued concurrent statements condemning North Korea’s unlawful detention of six South Korean nationals and demanding their immediate, unconditional release, timed to mark missionary Kim Jung-wook's 4,000th day in captivity. South Korea released the statement from Unification Minister Kim Yung-ho on Friday, while the US simultaneously issued the press statement Thursday from State Department spokesman Matthew Miller. In his statement, Kim decried, "North Korea

While North Korea's state-run Korean Central News Agency, primarily targeting international audiences, reported missile test launches under Kim Jong-un's supervision on Thursday, the country's primary domestic newspaper unusually omitted the coverage. Kim supervised the tests of tactical ballistic missiles fitted with "super-large" warheads and modified cruise missiles on Wednesday, according to the KCNA. But the Rodong Sinmun, North Korea’s most widely circulated

North Korea has launched balloons likely carrying trash toward South Korea, the South's military said Wednesday. "North Korea is once again launching balloons likely carrying trash directed towards the South," the Joint Chiefs of Staff said, noting the balloons could travel toward the northern part of Gyeonggi Province, and the Seoul metropolitan area. Citizens are advised not to touch any balloons if found. Instead, the JCS urged people to report sightings to the nearest military

North Korea appears to be making progress in converting a Russian heavy transport plane into what could be the country's first airborne early warning platform, a report showed Wednesday, citing commercial satellite imagery. Joseph Dempsey, a research associate at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, made the analysis based on recent satellite imagery taken of the Ilyushin Il-76 aircraft at the Pyongyang Sunan International Airport. In the report, Dempsey identified the aircraf

North Korea launched multiple ballistic missiles Wednesday in its latest show of force, just days after an unprecedented public release of photos showing its uranium enrichment facilities capable of producing nuclear weapons material. The missile launches came on the heels of last week's launches which marked the end of a more than two-month pause in Pyongyang's missile provocations. The South Korean military detected North Korea launching several short-range ballistic missiles northea

North Korea fired multiple short-range ballistic missiles in a northeastern direction on Wednesday, South Korea's military said, further ratcheting up tensions already heightened by its rare disclosure of a uranium enrichment facility last week. The Joint Chiefs of Staff said it detected the launches at about 6:50 a.m. from the North's Kaechon area in South Phyongan Province, north of Pyongyang, and the missiles flew about 400 kilometers. It did not provide further details, such as the

North Korea sent its foreign minister to Russia for her second trip in less than a year to the major backer of Kim Jong-un’s regime. The move comes as Pyongyang readies for a parliamentary meeting that will likely approve measures that raise tensions with South Korea. Choe Son-hui led a delegation taking part in women’s conferences, the official Korean Central News Agency reported Tuesday in a two-sentence dispatch. The foreign minister who rarely travels abroad last went to Moscow i

North Korea will hold a key parliamentary meeting next month to mainly amend the country's constitution, state media reported Monday, after its leader Kim Jong-un called for the constitutional revision to define South Korea as its primary foe. The 11th Session of the 14th Supreme People's Assembly will be convened in Pyongyang on Oct. 7, according to the Korean Central News Agency. In an SPA meeting in January, the North's leader called for revising the constitution to define Sout

North Korea on Sunday launched balloons likely carrying trash toward South Korea for the second straight day, the South's military said. The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said it detected the latest launches, noting the balloons could travel toward the northern part of Gyeonggi Province, which surrounds Seoul, and the broader capital area. The launch came after the North flew around 50 trash-carrying balloons toward the South from Saturday night to early Sunday, with about 10 trash bundles landing

North Korea sent more balloons likely carrying trash toward South Korea on Saturday, the South's military said, just three days after it floated similar balloons southward. In a message sent to reporters at 10:26 p.m., the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said the North's balloons could travel to Gyeonggi Province that surrounds Seoul, warning the public of falling objects and asking people to report balloons to the military or police. On Wednesday, North Korea sent around 20 balloons likely carrying