WASHINGTON (Yonhap) -- The United States on Wednesday expressed skepticism about North Korea's proposal for unconditional dialogue with South Korea to ease tensions, saying Pyongyang must first apologize for recent provocations and show commitment for denuclearization. "We all understand that ultimately to resolve the challenge of North Korea, there has to be dialogue," State Department spokesman

North Korean leader Kim Jong-il conducted the largest number of public activities last year since he inherited the communist country from his father in 1994, according to figures aggregated by the South Korean government.The 68-year-old appeared in North Korea’s official media a total of 161 times, the Unification Ministry said Tuesday in a release that suggested Kim was trying to tamp down outsid

North Korean leader Kim Jong-il told a visiting South Korean businesswoman in 2009 that he had ordered the removal of a missile launch scene from his country's mass propaganda show because "Americans did not like it," according to a U.S. diplomatic cable.   The cable, found on WikiLeaks and released this week by a New York-based blogger, offered a rare look into how the aging but omnipotent leader

WASHINGTON -- The United States Monday called on North Korea to take concrete steps toward its denuclearization before reopening the six-party nuclear talks, which have been stalled for more than two years over the North's provocations.   "We have noted public statements about the potential for improved dialogue between North and South," State Department spokesman Philip Crowley said. "Obviously,

A U.S.-China summit set for later this month is unlikely to produce an agreement on resuming six-party talks on North Korea's nuclear programs as Washington is against convening talks for talks' sake, a South Korean official said Sunday.   U.S. President Barack Obama and Chinese President Hu Jintao are scheduled to meet in Washington on Jan. 19. North Korea is expected to be a key topic for the su

Foreign Minister Kim Sung-hwan hinted that the South Korea might allow for an “interim entity” if the North collapsed and said China’s role should be considered when he talked with a top U.S. diplomat, according to a leaked U.S. diplomatic cable dating from before his term as minister.The diplomatic cable in question was disclosed by Aftenposten, Norway’s largest newspaper which claims to have Wik

North Korea appears willing to push for humanitarian aid from South Korea by calling for cross-border dialogue in its New Year's message, despite tension that soared when the North attacked a South Korean island last year, the government  said Saturday.In its analysis of a joint press editorial from Pyongyang, the Unification Ministry in Seoul also warned that the North will continue to create a r

North Korea called Saturday for improvement in its relations with South Korea and a "full-scale offensive" to revive its moribund economy in its New Year message."Confrontation between north and south should be defused as early as possible," the North said in the joint editorial of its three leading newspapers, Rodong Sinmun, Joson Inmingun and Chongnyon Jonwi, adding nothing is "more vital" than