North Korean state media reported Thursday that senior officials paid their respect at the mausoleum of late national founder Kim Il-sung to mark his 108th birthday but did not mention whether leader Kim Jong-un also paid a visit there. That raises the possibility that Kim skipped an annual visit to the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun that he has made on the birthday of the national founder and his grandfather since he rose to power after the death of his father and former leader Kim Jong-il in lat

North Korea marked the 108th birthday of late national founder Kim Il-sung, grandfather of current leader Kim Jong-un, relatively quietly Wednesday without large-scale celebratory events drawing crowds of people amid efforts to ward off the coronavirus pandemic. The founder's birthday, referred to in the North as the Day of the Sun, is the country's biggest national holiday and has often been commemorated with massive military parades displaying new weapons and other cultural and sports events

A series of US surveillance aircraft have flown near and over the Korean Peninsula, an aviation tracker said Wednesday, following North Korea's launch of what appeared to be cruise missiles off its east coast. The US Air Force's RC-135U Combat Sent was spotted en route to waters between South Korea and Japan, Aircraft Spots tweeted, without giving details on the time of its operation. On Tuesday, the Air Force's E-8C and the Navy's EP-3E were also seen operating over South Korea after the Nor

North Korea fired what appeared to be multiple cruise missiles into the East Sea on Tuesday morning, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said, adding that it was maintaining readiness while monitoring developments in case of additional launches.　 The projectiles flew at least 150 kilometers from the eastern coastal town of Munchon during the 40-minute firings that began at around 7 a.m., according to the JCS. Along with the projectile launches, the North also flew multiple Sukhoi-varian

A US surveillance aircraft flew over South Korea on Tuesday, an aviation tracker said, on an apparent mission to monitor North Korea shortly after the communist nation fired what appeared to be cruise missiles off its east coast. The US Navy's EP-3E was spotted in skies above South Korea at around 10 a.m. (Seoul time), Aircraft Spots tweeted. Earlier in the day, North Korea fired surface-to-ship cruise missiles near its eastern coastal town of Munchon at around 7 a.m., according to the Joint

North Korea fired what appeared to be cruise missiles off its east coast and air-to-ground missiles from fighter jets into the East Sea on Tuesday, South Korea’s military said, in muscle-flexing maneuvers on the eve of the late national founder’s birthday and the South’s general elections. The surface-to-ship cruise missiles were fired northeastward from areas near its eastern coastal town of Munchon at around 7 a.m. during a time period of more than 40 minutes, the Joint Chi

North Korea has the deadline coming up this week for a project to develop the Wonsan-Kalma region on the east coast into a new tourist zone, but it is unclear how much the project has progressed, a unification ministry official said Tuesday. In April last year, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un extended the construction deadline of the Wonsan-Kalma tourist zone and ordered officials to complete it by April 15, 2020, the birthday of late state founder and his grandfather Kim Il-sung. "North

North Korea is likely to scale down celebrations for the birthday of late founder Kim Il-sung this week as the country is in an all-out fight against the new coronavirus, a unification ministry official said Tuesday. The North is to mark the 108th birthday anniversary of the grandfather of current leader Kim Jong-un on Wednesday, one of the biggest national holidays for the reclusive communist state that is usually celebrated with various events, including a military parade. This year's anniv

The United States supports the people of North Korea and other countries vulnerable to the COVID-19 pandemic, the White House National Security Council said Monday, underscoring Washington's commitment to providing humanitarian aid. The NSC statement was posted on its Twitter account together with a link to a press release issued by the Treasury Department last week. The Treasury said Thursday that it continues to allow US sanctions exemptions for the delivery of humanitarian aid to countries

North Korea's official newspaper called Tuesday for absolute obedience of anti-coronavirus guidelines, urging people not to let their guard down as the country is bracing for a long fight against the global pandemic. North Korea claims to have no confirmed COVID-19 infection, but the country has taken drastic preventive measures at an early stage, such as closing its border with China and toughening quarantine criteria. "What we have to stay away from is to be complacent about the achiev

North Korea’s rubber-stamp parliament held a session Sunday, two days later than scheduled, the country’s state media reported Monday. 　 The 14th Supreme People’s Assembly gathered for a third session in Pyongyang. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un was absent, so No. 2 leader Choe Ryong-hae chaired the parliamentary session, the Korea Central News Agency and Rodong Sinmun reported. While Kim’s attendance is not required at the Assembly, he has often appeared in the past a

North Korea has increased its health budget for this year and set aside nearly half of the total spending plans for economic construction projects amid efforts to prevent an outbreak of the coronavirus in an economy faltering under global sanctions. During a session of the Supreme People's Assembly (SPA) in Pyongyang on Sunday, the North forecast that its revenue will grow 4.2 percent on-year this year with its expenditures projected to increase 6 percent over the same period, the official Kor

  North Korea has held a long-anticipated session of its rubber-stamp legislature two days later than originally scheduled, state media reported Monday without explaining why the meeting was delayed. Leader Kim Jong-un apparently did not attend the Supreme People's Assembly meeting held Sunday as the official Korean Central News Agency said the country's No. 2 leader, Choe Ryong-hae, presided over the session. The SPA session had originally been scheduled to take place on Friday. But the

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un reinstated his sister as an alternate member of the Politburo, the ruling party’s top policymaking body, at its meeting Saturday, the North’s state media said Sunday. 　 The Worker’s Party meeting also addressed countermeasures to COVID-19, other personnel reshuffles and organizational matters, according to the Korea Central News Agency. 　 A joint resolution was adopted to take “more thorough state measures to protect life and safety of o

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has inspected an air defense unit, state media said Sunday, in his latest step apparently aimed at tightening troop discipline and readiness amid new coronavirus fears. Kim visited a pursuit assault plane group under the Air and Anti-Aircraft Division in the western area to check its performance of aerial defense, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said without mentioning when his visit took place. "Kim Jong Un learned about the readiness for s