North Korea touted an organization of pro-Pyongyang residents in Japan for its efforts to hand down the Korean national identity and patriotism on the 66th anniversary of its founding on Tuesday. The General Association of Korean Residents in Japan, or Chongryon, has "established a national education system from kindergarten to college and successfully fostered talents to lead the future, and also further elevated our outstanding culture and customs," the Korean Central News Agency sa

The US has put the diplomatic ball in Pyongyang’s court, with its Secretary of State Antony Blinken stressing that Washington is prepared to engage with North Korea to discuss denuclearization, but it remains uncertain whether the reclusive regime will respond. 　 “We are waiting to see if Pyongyang actually wants to engage. The ball is in their court,” Blinken said in an interview with ABC on Sunday, adding that Washington is prepared to pursue diplomacy with the North even a

North Korea has stayed mum on the results of last week's summit between President Moon Jae-in and US President Joe Biden amid questions about how Pyongyang will react to Biden's willingness to engage diplomatically with the country. At the summit meeting on Friday (Washington time), the two leaders agreed to engage diplomatically with the North to work toward denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. They also reaffirmed that dialogue will be pushed based on previous agreements, including the 2

Last week's summit between President Moon Jae-in and US President Joe Biden created "sufficient" conditions needed to resume the long-stalled dialogue with North Korea, Unification Minister Lee In-young said Monday. On Friday (US time), Moon and Biden held their first face-to-face summit in Washington and agreed to engage diplomatically with North Korea and take "pragmatic" steps to reduce tensions, while reaffirming that dialogue will be pushed based on previous agreements,

WASHINGTON -- US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Sunday reiterated Washington's commitment to diplomacy with North Korea to achieve the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, saying, "The ball's in their court." Blinken made the remarks after US President Joe Biden stressed the willingness to engage diplomatically with Pyongyang to take pragmatic steps toward the denuclearization goal, after his first in-person summit with President Moon Jae-in in Washington on Friday. "

Lifting of US missile restrictions signifies Seoul's missile sovereignty, Washington's China strategy: experts The full lifting of US restrictions on South Korean missiles is expected to beef up Seoul's defense capabilities by allowing it to secure longer-range missiles that can fly beyond the Korean Peninsula, experts said Saturday. The decision is also seen as part of the US strategy to counter China, and South Korea's deployment of longer-range missiles could bring the country further into

South Korean President Moon Jae-in said Friday he has agreed with US President Joe Biden on the importance of dialogue with North Korea. The most pressing common task for the allies is to achieve the complete denuclearization of Korea and permanent peace, Moon stressed during a joint press conference with the US leader following their summit talks at the White House. Moon said he and Biden have confirmed that it is vital to have dialogue, based on promises, between Washington and Pyongyang as

WASHINGTON/SEOUL -- A joint statement by Presidents Moon Jae-in and Joe Biden after their summit talks at the White House on Friday is likely to acknowledge commitments made by the two Koreas under the Panmunjeom Declaration, according to a ranking Cheong Wa Dae official on Thursday. “The Panmunjeom Declaration, along with other commitments made between the two Koreas, will be included in the joint statement,” the official told pool reporters in Washington on condition of anonymi

Chung Eui-yong says Seoul will push for combined approach with Pyongyang in interview with PBS Newshour

Unification Minister Lee In-young on Friday expressed hope that this week's summit between President Moon Jae-in and US President Joe Biden will provide new momentum for dialogue with North Korea. Moon and Biden are set to hold their first face-to-face summit talks in Washington on Friday (US time), with North Korea expected to be one of the key agenda items, along with cooperation on COVID-19 vaccine and semiconductor supplies. The summit comes after the US completed its monthslong review of

North Korea's official newspaper on Friday urged young people to tighten their ideological discipline, expressing concerns that "bourgeois" culture and "individualism" could make it hard to safeguard socialism. "In a country where younger people stay morally sound and civilized, the country would not wobble under any circumstances but if younger people go corrupt, there would be no future," the Rodong Sinmun, the organ of the North's ruling party, said. The paper

Unification Minister Lee In-young called Thursday for nonpartisan parliamentary support for the ratification of a 2018 inter-Korean summit agreement, saying such cross-border issues should be shielded from "wasteful" political controversies. Lee made the remark during a forum in Seoul, saying that the government will soon officially ask for the ratification of the "Panmunjom Declaration" signed by President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un after their first su

North Korea is reportedly refusing to cooperate with monitoring by the UN-backed vaccine-sharing program COVAX, which could further delay the supply of vaccines. 　 Early this year, North Korea requested coronavirus vaccines from COVAX, a multinational program that provides the vaccines to developing countries. 　 Pyongyang was to receive 1.7 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine by the end of May through COVAX, but the plan has been delayed as the regime is unwilling to abide by COVAX&rsquo

President Moon Jae-in's calls for aggressive engagement with North Korea could create tension with the United States, a recent congressional report said. The Congressional Research Service (CRS) report comes as Moon is in Washington this week for his first in-person summit talks with US President Joe Biden to discuss North Korea and alliance issues, as well as COVID-19 vaccine cooperation. "Although Moon has welcomed the mention of diplomacy, his preference for more aggressive engagement

Thirteen North Korean ships underwent safety inspections while docked at ports in the Asia-Pacific region last year and all of them were found to have defects, an intergovernmental port control agency said Thursday. A total of 64 safety deficiencies were discovered with the vessels, and two ships with serious defects were banned from sailing until the problems are fixed, according to the annual report on Port State Control (PSC) by Tokyo MOU. It also placed North Korea on its blacklist, along