WASHINGTON -- US Deputy Secretary of State Stephen Biegun stressed the need for a mixture of "top-down" and "bottom-up" approaches to rid North Korea of its nuclear ambition in a meeting with a group of visiting South Korean lawmakers on Tuesday. The top US negotiator in talks with North Korea also promised efforts to make sure his experience and lessons from dealing with the communist state will be transferred to the next US administration, according to the South Korean law

North Koreans left every other seat empty at theaters this week in an apparent social distancing measure against the coronavirus pandemic, according to state media photos. Photos released by the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on Tuesday showed several performances in Pyongyang marking Mother's Day on Nov. 16, with empty seats in between audience members as part of social distancing measures. A performance at the Pyongyang Circus Theatre showed every other seat empty at the center of the the

The number of North Koreans suspected of having contracted the new coronavirus reached 6,173 as of Oct. 29, up by 805 from a week earlier, the World Health Organization said Tuesday in its weekly COVID-19 update. The regime still claims zero cases. The WHO added the North had quarantined 32,182 people and tested 10,272 residents. Meanwhile, Pyongyang again urged people to remain on the highest alert and to obey all precautions to stem the coronavirus outbreak. The state newspaper highlighted p

North Korea's official newspaper on Tuesday demanded Tokyo apologize for its colonial-era atrocities and compensate victims, as it marked the 115th anniversary of the signing of a treaty that led to Japan's 1910-45 colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula. The treaty, which was signed on Nov. 17, 1905, deprived the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910) of its diplomatic sovereignty and made the country a protectorate of imperial Japan. Japan has been criticized for various atrocities during the period, incl

Unification Minister Lee In-young will hold a video call with former US Defense Secretary William Perry this week, the ministry said Tuesday, as the incoming US administration of President-elect Joe Biden prepares to take over. The videoconference, set for Wednesday, comes amid uncertainty over Biden's policy on North Korea. "We also need to explore ways to find a solution to denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula with the new US administration, so we decided to hold the meeting so that

　North Korea’s urban population increased this year compared with five years ago, with more than 60 percent of its total population now living in urban areas, though the figure is still one of the lowest in the region, a UN report showed. 　According to the “World Cities Report” by UN-Habitat, the number of North Koreans living in urban areas, including the capital city of Pyongyang, came to 16.12 million as of midyear, accounting for 62.4 percent of the total population, u

A 2.6 magnitude natural earthquake struck North Korea's northeastern region early Tuesday, South Korea's state weather agency said. The quake was detected around 3:10 a.m., 38 kilometers northwest of Kilju, North Hamgyong Province, and 8 km away from the site of North Korea's sixth nuclear test in 2017, according to the Korea Meteorological Administration. "This area used to be solid terrain without the occurrence of earthquakes, but there have been frequent natural earthquakes since the

Eight members of a voice phishing ring have been arrested in South Korea and China and investigators are looking into suspected links to a North Korean hacker, officials said Monday. Police and the National Intelligence Service worked together to arrest the members for allegedly stealing around 2 billion won ($1.8 million) from about 200 South Koreans by operating a phishing scam from China. All of them are South Koreans in their 20s and 30s. Four of them were arrested between January and June

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un presided over a Politburo meeting of the ruling Workers’ Party on Sunday to discuss COVID-19 measures, marking his first public appearance in 25 days, its state media said Monday. 　 During the meeting, Kim evaluated the country’s coronavirus situation and ordered that the emergency antivirus system be tightened in preparation for the worsening global public health crisis, the Korea Central News Agency said. 　 Kim stressed the “need to keep a h

The government decided Monday to spend 1.95 billion won ($1.76 million) to transform a guard post on the border with North Korea into a museum underscoring inter-Korean reconciliation efforts and honoring soldiers killed during the Korean War. The guard post at Arrowhead Ridge inside the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) has since been used as a place to display items unearthed from the former battlefield under a project to uncover remains of soldiers killed in the 1950-53 war. On Monday, a civilian-go

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un presided over a politburo meeting of the Workers' Party in his first public appearance in 25 days and discussed nationwide anti-coronavirus measures, state media said Monday. During the enlarged politburo meeting held Sunday, Kim discussed "COVID-19 and the state anti-epidemic situation and clarified the tasks for the Party, military and economic fields to further tighten the emergency anti-epidemic front," according to the Korean Central News Agency.

North Korea has yet to address the outcome of the US election, let alone engage in anti-US rhetoric, more than a week after Joe Biden became president-elect on Nov. 7. Its silence stands in sharp contrast with its quick responses to past US elections. Previously Pyongyang has responded within a week, except in 2000 when it released a statement only after the US Supreme Court handed former President George W. Bush victory over former Vice President Al Gore in a vote recount dispute. Speculation

North Korean individuals have taken to Twitter to post about their daily lives and domestic news, in a rare move by the reclusive country presumed to be aimed at reaching a broader audience through a more approachable style. It also appears to be in line with North Korea's recent stepped-up efforts to embrace social media, including a YouTube channel, as new propaganda vehicles. Two accounts appeared in October on Twitter, including one signed up as Kim Myong-il, who claims to be a director of

The unification ministry on Friday renewed calls for North Korea to refrain from provocations, urging Pyongyang to act in a "discreet, wise and flexible" manner during the heightened uncertainty following the US presidential election earlier this month. The calls came amid uncertainty over what policy the incoming Joe Biden administration of the US will take on North Korea and concerns Pyongyang could carry out provocations to draw attention and set the tone for future negotiations.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has not made any public appearances for the past 23 days, but his absence is nothing unusual, a unification ministry official said Thursday. Kim was last seen in public on Oct. 21 when he visited a cemetery in the North's South Pyongyang Province for fallen Chinese soldiers that participated in the 1950-53 Korean War. "We do not attach any special meaning to it as he has gone absent from public view for more than 20 days several times based on past records,