WASHINGTON -- The United States on Monday renewed its designation of North Korea as one of the state violators of religious freedom. It marks the 19th consecutive year the North has been named a state violator of religious freedom. "Religious freedom is an unalienable right, and the bedrock upon which free societies are built and flourish. Today, the United States -- a nation founded by those fleeing religious persecution, as the recent Commission on Unalienable Rights report noted -- onc

WASHINGTON -- North Korea is not currently engaged in proliferation of weapons at any significant level, US National Security Adviser Robert O'Brien said, adding such activity would mean crossing the "red line." "It would be an extraordinarily risky venture for Kim Jong-un to get into the proliferation business when it comes to nuclear weapons. It's something that I am hoping won't happen. We don't see it on the WMD side -– we don't see that happening at this point," O

A human rights group condemned the South Korean parliament’s push to penalize the launching of propaganda leaflets into North Korea as a violation of the freedom of expression, calling on the National Assembly to reject the proposed legislature.   　 Human Rights Watch, a New York-based organization, said in a statement Saturday that if the bill that bans leafleting campaigns is enacted, it would violate South Koreans’ rights to the freedom of expression, making “engaging

North Korean watchers are weighing in on ramifications of the regime’s extreme response to COVID-19, as it has suspended all travel by land, sea and air and shut down public facilities. Leader Kim Jong-un issued the highest alert for the pandemic on Dec. 2 for the second time since February, when the new coronavirus began spreading globally. Such extreme measures, however, would be a double blow to North Korea, which suffered reduced food production this year due to shrinking outside sup

North Korea will convene a Supreme People's Assembly meeting in late January, state media reported Saturday.   The SPA usually meets once a year in April to rubber-stamp decisions by the ruling Workers' Party. The North has also used SPA sessions as a major platform to unveil key policy changes or messages.   "The 4th Session of the 14th Supreme People's Assembly (SPA) of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea will be convened in Pyongyang late in January," the

North Korea experts on Thursday criticized a move by the South Korean parliament to criminalize sending propaganda leaflets, along with food and medicine, into the North across the inter-Korean border. Defectors here have long sent leaflets and other materials across the border, but the activity essentially ground to a halt in June when Pyongyang blew up the inter-Korean liaison office in protest. Roberta Cohen, who served as a US deputy assistant secretary of state for human rights, expresse

Unification Minister Lee In-young on Friday met with aid organization leaders and promised active support for their efforts to send humanitarian assistance to North Korea. During the meeting with the leaders of Korea NGO Council for Cooperation with North Korea (KNCCK), Lee also welcomed a UN Security Council panel's recent decision to extend the exemption period for sanctions on humanitarian aid to the North from the current six months to nine months. Lee promised to review the KNCCK's propo

Unification Minister Lee In-young said Friday that South and North Korea should look for creative ways to build peace and prosperity just as the European Coal and Steel Community led Europe into unity "beyond the barrier of ideology and boundaries." Lee made the remark during a video speech at a forum on peace in the demilitarized zone (DMZ), stressing the importance of inter-Korean dialogue and cooperation. The European Coal and Steel Community is an organization established in 1952

The incoming US administration of President-elect Joe Biden should signal its willingness to resolve the North Korean nuclear standoff through dialogue so as to prevent Pyongyang from undertaking provocations to grab US attention, an official said Thursday. The foreign ministry official made the case, pointing out that the Biden administration might be unable to pay enough attention to the issue of North Korea in its early months as it could be focused on domestic matters first. "We need

The unification ministry's budget for next year has been set at about 1.5 trillion won ($1.34 billion), including a new fund to build an artificial intelligence and big data program to analyze North Korea, officials said Thursday. Of the total 1.474 trillion-won budget, 1.245 trillion won ($1.12 billion) was set aside for the inter-Korean cooperation fund, a 3.3 percent increase from this year, according to a statement released by the ministry. The ministry also introduced a budget of 10.4 bil

 North Korean hackers have attempted a cyberattack on local pharmaceutical companies developing COVID-19 vaccines and treatments in recent weeks, international media reported Wednesday. 　 　 The Wall Street Journal said a North Korean-linked group, known as “Kimsuky,” has tried to break into six companies since August: US-based Johnson & Johnson and Novavax, British drugmaker AstraZeneca, and South Korea-based Genexine, Shin Poong Pharmaceutical and Celltrion.  　 Reute

The US-led United Nations Command (UNC) on Thursday rebutted allegations that it blocked South Korea's attempt to send antiviral medication to North Korea last year. South Korea tried to send 200,000 doses of Tamiflu to the North in early 2019 as a follow-up on an agreement between their leaders to closely cooperate in fighting the spread of infectious diseases. But the plan never materialized. In a recent media interview, Gyeonggi Province Gov. Lee Jae-myung said the influenza medication coul

North Korea has been enforcing tougher antivirus measures in Pyongyang since the capital was recently put on the highest level of alert against the global coronavirus pandemic, according to state media. "Preventive efforts to block the inflow of the vicious virus into Pyongyang have been under way in a more proactive manner," the state-run Korean Central Broadcasting station said. All people entering through the Mankyongdae region, a western gateway to Pyongyang, should get their tem

WASHINGTON -- The incoming US administration will need to quickly make a decision about how it will deal with North Korea to have a better chance of engagement, a former US diplomat said Wednesday. Kurt Campbell, former assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, also insisted the new administration under Joe Biden would have to send an "early signal" to the North. "There are always areas of unpredictabilities and, generally speaking, at the top of that list

WASHINGTON -- North Korea continues to develop its nuclear and long-range missile capabilities, but so are South Korea and the United States to deter provocations, the top US military officer said Wednesday. Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, also noted the communist state may stage military provocations but said the allies are fully ready and capable to deal with any provocation. "It is also true that North Korea has advanced their nuclear weapon and missile deli