North Korea's top diplomat has expressed strong support for China amid the growing geopolitical conflict between Beijing and Washington, the North's media reported Friday. North Korea's foreign minister, Ri Son-gwon, expressed support for Beijing during a meeting with Li Jinjun, Chinese ambassador to North Korea, at the Mansudae Assembly Hall in Pyongyang on Thursday, according to the North's official Korean Central News Agency, In the meeting, Ri stated that the North "will continue ac

The South Korean government’s latest move to ban anti-Pyongyang leaflet launches by civic groups following North Korea’s strong complaints has stirred up controversy over the freedom of expression. Seoul’s Unification Ministry revealed Thursday a plan to legislate a law banning the leaflet launches, describing them as “tension-building acts,” with the presidential office Blue House vowing stern responses if the launches pose a danger to national security. The leaf

Seoul’s Unification Ministry said Thursday it was considering legislative measures to ban the contentious anti-Pyongyang leaflet campaign, just hours after North Korea threatened to scrap a bilateral military pact, saying the campaign raises hostilities prohibited by their prior agreement. “We were already looking into ways to prevent tension hikes at the border. Plans for legislative change had been under way,” Unification Ministry spokesperson, Yoh Sang-key said, adding that

North Korea is adopting a more approachable style to promoting itself, using YouTube videos to reach a broader international audience, posting videos featuring a stylish, English-speaking woman who takes viewers on tours of key spots in Pyongyang. That's a departure from North Korea's traditional way of sending messages to the outside world: all-serious newscasters using a hyped and bellicose tone to read provocative statements about nuclear or missile tests. North Korean propagandists had be

The defense ministry called Thursday for adhering to an inter-Korean tension reduction agreement after North Korea's warning to scrap it if the anti-Pyongyang leaflet campaign continues. Earlier in the day, Kim Yo-jong, leader Kim Jong-un's sister, issued a statement warning that the military pact will be nullified and other exchange projects halted if Seoul fails to stop defectors from sending anti-Pyongyang leaflets into the communist country. "The defense ministry maintains our posit

The government is working on a plan to legislate a ban on sending anti-Pyongyang leaflets into the communist nation, the unification ministry said Thursday, hours after North Korea railed against such leaflets and threatened to scrap a no-hostility military pact with the South. The envisioned legislation is aimed at preventing chilly inter-Korean relations from deteriorating further, but enacting a law banning leaflet-sending could spark an outcry over the possible infringement of the right to

Unification Minister Kim Yeon-chul was set to hold a videoconference with the head of the World Food Programme (WFP) on Wednesday, his office said, raising the possibility that they could discuss aid to North Korea. The talks with WFP Executive Director David Beasley were set up at the request of the UN food agency, the ministry said. "The talks set for this afternoon with the WFP executive director had been scheduled earlier to be held in the first half," Yoh Sang-key, the ministr

Gangwon Province is holding a series of events on June 25, marking the 70th anniversary of the breakout of the Korean War.  　 The province is holding a special ceremony to remember the victims of the deadly war, which lasted 1950-1953, and pray for lasting peace in the world and on the Korean Peninsula. The official ceremony will start at 11 a.m. at the Peace Culture Plaza in the border town of Cheorwon, which includes special performances, a merit commendation ceremony, paying tribute to

South Korea will do what it can on its own in preparations to move railway reconnection and other joint projects with North Korea forward after the coronavirus pandemic is over, a unification ministry official said Tuesday. "With hopes that the North will respond, we will prepare for inter-Korean relations in the post-coronavirus age starting with the ones we can afford to do, such as the rail construction project along the east coast and the cultural heritage research project in the Demi

North Korea's main newspaper stressed leader Kim Jong-un's devotion and love for his people Tuesday as the impoverished country struggles amid the double whammy of coronavirus concerns and deepening economic woes. The Rodong Sinmun, an organ of the North's ruling Workers' Party, carried the message in an editorial on its front page, saying Kim focuses on "prioritizing and showing ardent love towards his people." A monthly magazine by the party also published the editorial. "Ou

South Korea is seeking to revise a law on inter-Korean affairs to allow North Korean-run businesses in its territory, in spite of international sanctions currently placed on the North, the Unification Ministry said Monday. The revised South-North Exchange and Cooperation Act would also allow local municipalities to run businesses with the North without an intermediary while giving greater freedom to South Koreans to interact with their Northern peers. “We’re aware that the new cha

North Korea will reopen schools this month after closing them for months over coronavirus fears, according to state media on Monday.  The new school term was supposed to start on April 1, but has been repeatedly postponed, though some universities and high schools were allowed to open in mid-April.  “Preventive measures have been enforced for elementary, middle and high schools to start the new school year, and nurseries and kindergartens to resume their operations in early Jun

　Nearly 70 percent of South Korean youths think that reunification with North Korea is necessary, a survey showed. 　According to the poll conducted by the National Youth Policy Institute, 67.8 percent of 3,228 elementary, middle and high school students replied that the two Koreas need to reunify. 　Among them, 28.8 percent said that reunification is necessary as it will help South Korea become stronger, while 23.2 percent answered it will ease security concerns on the Korean Peninsula. So

North Korea is actively seeking to enlist the country's sacred Mount Paekdu as a UNESCO global geopark, state media reported Sunday. "Scientists in relevant fields of the DPRK made scientific proof of its geological features and world value through scores of years-long survey and research," the North's official Korean Central News Agency said, stressing the mountain's rich biodiversity and geological significance. DPRK stands for the North's official name, Democratic People's Republ

A North Korean newspaper carried a report Saturday on the 2018 death of a senior military officer who led an Army corps linked to the deadly artillery shelling of a South Korean border island a decade ago. The Rodong Sinmun, the daily of the North's ruling Workers' Party, reported that Ri Song-guk, who led the 4th Corps in charge of defending the areas near the Northern Limit Line in the West Sea, the inter-Korean maritime boundary, died in October 2018. He was 52. Ri, who took command of th