North Korea called Thursday for replacing US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo with a "more careful and mature" negotiator, accusing the top American diplomat of failing to understand Pyongyang's position and causing the denuclearization talks to become "entangled."A senior North Korean foreign ministry official made the demand, claiming that whenever Pompeo "pokes his nose in, talks between the two countries go wrong without any results even from the point close to success," according to the Korea

North Korea’s propaganda outlets on Thursday criticized the South Korean government for conducting military exercises with the US, which it called “provocative actions” that destroy peace on the Korean Peninsula. The state-run online publication Uriminzokkiri denounced Seoul for lacking willingness to implement the military agreement signed by the two Koreas last year, as the South Korean military carried out a landing drill near Pohang, North Gyeongsang Province, on April 3 and another exercise

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has supervised a test-firing of a new tactical guided weapon, calling its development an "event of very weighty significance" in beefing up its military power, state media reported Thursday.The Korean Central News Agency said the test happened Wednesday but did not specify what the newly developed weapon was. (Yonhap)It was the first time since November the North's leader has overseen a weapons testing, and the visit to the testing center came a day after he visit

President Moon Jae-in has called for another inter-Korean meeting in his ongoing efforts to be a mediator in denuclearization talks between North Korea and the US, but the task may have become tougher, according to experts. Unlike previous occasions where Seoul mediated US-North Korea talks, Seoul now faces a situation where summit talks between the two countries have failed to produce an agreement and there are signs of North Korea deviating from its denuclearization pledge.Satellite imagery re

Commercial satellite imagery from last week shows activity that could indicate the movement of radioactive material at North Korea's main nuclear facility, a US think tank said Tuesday.The April 12 imagery shows five specialized railcars near the uranium enrichment facility and the radiochemistry laboratory at the Yongbyon nuclear site, according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies. (Yonhap)"In the past these specialized railcars appear to have been associated with the movement

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has been newly referred to as the "supreme commander of the Armed Forces" of the country in a state media report Tuesday, in another possible sign of his strengthened grip on power following last week's personnel reshuffle.The Korean Central News Agency used the title in a report on Kim's visit to the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun, the mausoleum commemorating the North's former leaders, on his late grandfather, and state founder, Kim Il-sung's birthday on Monday.  (Y

A senior Russian diplomat has confirmed that preparations are under way for a summit between President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, a top Seoul official has said.South Korea's Vice Foreign Minister Cho Hyun told reporters Monday that his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Titov, reiterated the Kremlin's earlier announcement that Moscow has long been preparing for the first summit between the two leaders.Cho and Titov held the seventh session of their countries' high-level strat

US President Donald Trump said Monday that nuclear disarmament talks with North Korea are moving along "just perfectly" even after the breakdown of his February summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.Trump also said that his relationship with Kim remains good and that sanctions continue to be enforced against the regime."I don't want it to move fast," he said during a roundtable on the economy and tax reform in Burnsville, Minnesota. "It doesn't have to move fast. Right now it's moving alon

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is likely to hold a summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin for the first time next week, amid a stalemate in nuclear talks with the US. The two leaders’ meeting may take place in the far eastern region of Russia, which borders the northeastern part of North Korea, on April 24 before Putin travels to Beijing for an international forum. The “One Belt, One Road” forum is scheduled for April 26-27, Yonhap News Agency said Monday, citing an unidentified diplomati

President Moon Jae-in on Monday called for another inter-Korean summit, saying that Pyongyang and Washington have expressed willingness to continue dialogue and that Seoul needs to lay the foundation for bigger results. “The Korean Peninsula peace process has entered the phase of building on the North-US Hanoi summit to prepare for practical results for the next stage,” Moon said at a weekly meeting with senior aides. President Moon Jae-in presides over the meeting with senior aides at the presi

President Moon Jae-in may be relieved to see positive signs of another round of US-North Korea talks over denuclearization, but challenges remain for him, as Seoul has very little leverage with Pyongyang. Last week, US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un openly reiterated their interest in holding a third summit to resume nuclear negotiations that have been stalled since the their meeting that ended abruptly with no deal in Hanoi, Vietnam, in late February.The North Korean

A massive rally was held in North Korea to celebrate Kim Jong-un's re-election as the communist nation's leader, the North's state media reported Sunday, in an apparent move to boost internal unity after the regime wrapped up a major personnel reshuffle at a key parliamentary session. Kim was re-elected as chairman of the State Affairs Commission, the country's highest seat of power, during the first session of the 14th Supreme People's Assembly on Thursday.  North Koreans attend a massive rally

A group of North Korean defectors said it sent anti-Pyongyang propaganda leaflets across the border on Sunday.The group, Fighters for a Free North Korea, flew 20 balloons carrying 500,000 leaflets from Yeoncheon, north of Seoul, at around 2 a.m., it said. (Yonhap)The balloons carried leaflets slamming the Kim Jong-un regime, as well as $1 bills and booklets. Park Sang-hak, head of the organization, said earlier this month that it plans to send the leaflets because the North’s leader “did not kee

US President Donald Trump said Saturday that a third summit with Kim Jong-un would be "good," after the North Korean leader expressed openness to another meeting.Trump's tweet came in response to Kim's speech to the North's parliament on Friday, during which he said he would be willing to hold a third summit if the US comes with the "right attitude" and "right method." (AFP-Yonhap)The North Korean leader also said his relationship with Trump remains excellent and that he will wait until the end

Weeks after North Korea's cryptic threat to explore a "new path" that stoked fears of a return to its provocative tack, leader Kim Jong-un made clear his desire to stick to nuclear negotiations with the United States, at least until the end of this year.During a key parliamentary gathering on Friday, Kim voiced his willingness to hold a third summit with U.S. President Donald Trump, calling for a "fair" and "mutually acceptable" agreement, according to the North's official Korean Central News Ag