North Korea's official newspaper on Tuesday urged people to brace for a prolonged fight against the coronavirus pandemic, saying that vaccines are not a cure-all solution, amid the country's apparent failure to secure supplies. "The situations in many countries prove that vaccines are far from a panacea," the Rodong Sinmun said. "Some vaccines, which had been considered highly effective, caused severe side effects, including even death, leading many countries to stop their use.&q

South Korea's police chief has ordered a swift and thorough probe into a North Korean defector group's alleged sending of anti-Pyongyang leaflets into the North last week, police officials said Monday. Commissioner General Kim Chang-yong gave the order to the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency on Sunday, hours after the North Korean regime threatened "corresponding action" in response to the "intolerable provocation." "I ask you to strictly handle the sending of anti-No

Unification Minister Lee In-young said Monday that tensions should not be heightened under any circumstances on the Korean Peninsula, vowing to make continued efforts to produce a "meaningful" change in stalled inter-Korean relations. Lee made the remarks in a speech at a seminar on cross-border cooperation in the renewable energy sector, a day after Pyongyang slammed the South and the United States in a string of scathing statements. The harsh words appear to be aimed at putting mor

A North Korean propaganda outlet on Monday criticized South Korea over a controversy surrounding the recently published memoirs of the North's national founder, saying that some "impure" forces are trying to hamper their sales in a "wicked way." A local publishing company recently began selling the eight-volume memoirs of Kim Il-sung, entitled "With the Century," here for the first time since the books were published by the North Korean regime in the early 1990s.

WASHINGTON -- The US policy toward North Korea is not aimed at hostility but reducing tension, the top US security adviser said Sunday, adding the ultimate goal of the policy is to completely denuclearize the Korean Peninsula. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan added the United States is prepared to engage with North Korea to discuss "practical" steps toward denuclearization. "Our policy towards North Korea is not aimed at hostility. It's aimed at solutions. It's aimed at u

North Korea lashed out at South Korea and the US, upping the ante as the Biden administration announced the completion of its monthslong policy review on how to deal with a nuclear-armed Pyongyang. 　 The North released three heated statements directed at the allies on Sunday via its state-run Korea Central News Agency. It attacked US President Joe Biden for labeling North Korea a serious threat, calling the remark a “big blunder,” while condemning South Korea for failing to stop ac

The sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un slammed South Korea for failing to stop anti-Pyongyang leaflets flown by a defector group last week, calling it an "intolerable provocation" and warning of "corresponding action." Kim Yo-jong made the remarks in a statement carried by the official Korean Central News Agency, saying that the South Korean government "again did not stop the reckless acts" and expressed "displeasure" over the matter. "'Defec

North Korea said Sunday that US President Joe Biden made a "big blunder" after he called Pyongyang's nuclear program a serious threat, warning the US will face a "worse and worse crisis beyond control." Kwon Jong-gun, director general of the Department of US Affairs of the North's Foreign Ministry, made the remarks after Biden pledged in his first congressional address last week to work with allies to address "serious threats" from the North and Iran through diplom

A North Korean defector group claimed Friday it has sent anti-Pyongyang leaflets across the border in defiance of a ban enacted recently over concern such a leafleting campaign could provoke the North and endanger the safety of people in border regions. Fighters for a Free North Korea led by Park Sang-hak, a vocal North Korean defector, said that the group flew 10 large balloons carrying around 500,000 leaflets, 500 booklets and 5,000 $1 bills from unidentified border areas in Gyeonggi and Gang

North Korea dropped the name of late national founder Kim Il-sung from the title of its largest youth organization and put the word "socialist" back into the title, according to state media Friday, a move aimed at tightening ideological discipline of younger generations. The Kimilsungist-Kimjongilist Youth League, governed by the ruling Workers' Party, was renamed as the Socialist Patriotic Youth League (SPYL) at the 10th congress in Pyongyang, according to the Korean Central News Age

Unification Minister Lee In-young on Thursday stressed the importance of the upcoming South Korea-US summit, pinning hopes on the meeting as a chance to revive the stalled Korean Peninsula peace process.   　 “I believe the first half of this year, with the US’ policy review on North Korea expected to be completed and uncertainty being cleared up, will be a golden opportunity and the most optimal time for the South, the North and the US to move together toward the Korean Penins

A UN committee called on North Korea to provide an explanation on reported cases of human rights violations and to report any progress, its website showed Thursday. The UN Human Rights Committee (HRC) last week urged the North to provide information on whether it has made progress on several human rights issues, including torture and violence against women. The committee asked the North to specify the measures it has taken to ensure that the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights

Unification Minister Lee In-young on Thursday said that South Korea will strive to bring the stalled peace process on the Korean Peninsula back on track, saying that the first half of this year will be the "most optimal" time to realize any possible progress. Lee urged the United States to engage North Korea at the earliest date possible during a press conference in Seoul as the Joe Biden administration is likely to finalize its monthslong North Korea policy review in the weeks to com

North Korea's largest youth organization called on its members to help root out anti-socialist practices as it held the first congress in five years, state media reported Thursday. The Kimilsungist-Kimjongilist Youth League, governed by the ruling Workers' Party, held its 10th congress in Pyongyang on Tuesday, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). At the meeting, Pak Chol-min, chairman of the league's central committee, told the youth league organizations to "wage a revoluti

North Korea plans to build an "export processing zone" near the border with China, state media said Thursday, in a move that appears to be aimed at increasing trade with the neighboring ally amid economic challenges due to global sanctions. The decision to establish the "Musan Export Processing Zone" in Musan County, North Hamgyong Province, was made during a meeting of the Standing Committee of the Supreme People's Assembly (SPA), the North's rubber-stamp parliament, accord