Chinese President Xi Jinping has reaffirmed efforts to strengthen bilateral relations with North Korea, Pyongyang’s state media reported Saturday. Xi made the remarks in a reply to Kim‘s earlier letter to mark the 72nd Chinese National Day, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). In the reply, Xi said he has highly taken note of relations between North Korea and China, and expressed his willingness to raise bilateral ties to a “new level.” North Korea and

Ensuring stability on the Korean Peninsula is the most important goal in handling issues surrounding North Korea, the presidential National Security Council (NSC) said Friday, after the North's test of a submarine-launched ballistic missile. National security adviser Suh Hoon made the remarks while presiding over a regular NSC meeting, days after North Korea test-fired a new type of submarine-launched ballistic missile, marking the North's latest weapons test in recent weeks. In a statement, t

The top US envoy for North Korea will visit Seoul this weekend, with his arrival delayed a day for an unspecified reason, an informed source said Friday. Sung Kim, special representative for North Korea, was initially scheduled to begin a three-day trip here Friday for consultations with his South Korean counterpart, Noh Kyu-duk. But his itinerary has changed, and he plans to fly to Seoul on Saturday, according to the source, who requested anonymity and did not elaborate on the reason. Kim and

A North Korean delegation is expected to attend a UN  climate conference slated to kick off in Britain later this month, a Seoul official said Friday. Officials at the North Korean Embassy in London will participate in the 2021 UN Climate Change Conference, known as COP26, which will run from Oct. 31 to Nov. 12 in Glasgow. "As far as I know, the North Korean mission in Britain is sending a delegation," a foreign ministry official said. According to a recent US intelligence repo

North Korea's nuclear activities has expanded over the years and continue to move ahead, creating a big challenge for verification and safeguard efforts, the head of the UN nuclear watchdog said Thursday. Rafael Grossi, director-general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), also highlighted the need for a diplomatic process to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula. "What is relevant is to see that compared with 2009, this program has spawned in activity wise, geographically into t

US ambassador to UN condemns launch as “reckless provocations,” calls for enforcement of sanctions

North Korea said Thursday its recent test-firing of a new submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) was not targeted toward the United States, adding there is no need for Washington to "worry or agonize" over it. A spokesperson for the North's foreign ministry expressed concerns over "nonsensical" reactions from the US and the UN Security Council over its "rightful exercise of right to defense" in a statement carried by the official Korean Central News Agency (KC

Pyongyang continues to beef up weapons capabilities despite repeated calls for dialogue from Seoul and Washington

North Korea announced Wednesday that it has successfully conducted a test-firing of a new-type of submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) a day earlier. On Tuesday, South Korea's military said the North fired a short-range missile believed to be an SLBM from the vicinity of Sinpo, where its main submarine shipyard is located. It marked the North's eighth known major missile test this year. The Academy of National Defense Science conducted the test-launch from "8.24 Yongung" where

North Korea test-fired what appeared to be a submarine-launched ballistic missile into the East Sea, the Joint Chiefs of Staff said Tuesday, as South Korea, the US and Japan step up efforts to bring Pyongyang back to nuclear talks. “We’re closely monitoring the situation and maintaining our readiness,” the JCS said, adding that South Korean and US intelligence were analyzing the launch, which took place at Sinpo, a port city along the east coast where North Korea runs a major

US, NK testing each other with strategic patience: expert

Washington’s point man on North Korea, Sung Kim, said Monday that he will visit Seoul later this week to discuss ways to bring Pyongyang back to the dialogue, and that declaring an official end to the Korean War will be part of the agenda.  Kim, the US special representative on North Korea, revealed his plans after talks with South Korea’s chief nuclear envoy, Noh Kyu-duk, in Washington on Monday, ahead of a three-way meeting Tuesday with their Japanese counterpart, Takehiro F

South and North Korea held their regular phone call via the liaison hotline Tuesday morning, but Pyongyang gave no prior notice of its latest missile launch, an official at Seoul's unification ministry said. In its latest show of force, the North fired a ballistic missile into the East Sea from near Sinpo, where it is known to be developing a new submarine capable of launching ballistic missiles, according to South Korea's military. "The liaison call occurred as normal this morning. (Nort

North Korea fired what appears to be a submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) toward the East Sea on Tuesday, South Korea's military said. The missile was launched eastward from a site in the vicinity of Sinpo, South Hamgyong Province, according to the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS). It said the launch was detected at 10:17 a.m. but gave no other details. "The intelligence authorities of South Korea and the United States are currently conducting a thorough analysis regarding additional

Two natural earthquakes hit eastern North Korea on Tuesday, South Korea's state weather agency said. The first quake with a magnitude of 2.6 occurred about 4 kilometers southeast of Changjin, South Hamgyong Province, at 6:41 a.m., according to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA). The second quake of magnitude 2.8 was detected at 6:45 a.m., about 4 kilometers northeast of Changjin. Both quakes occurred naturally and do not seem to have caused any damage, the KMA said. They posted a