The Korea Herald

Chief of N. Korea's minor political party dies: state media

Sept 20, 2022

Pak Yong-il, a senior member of North Korea's parliament known for his role in inter-Korean exchanges, has died, according to Pyongyang's state media Tuesday. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un sent a wreath the previous day expressing deep condolences over his death, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported. Pak was vice chairman of the standing committee of the North's rubber-stamp Supreme People's Assembly and chairman of the central committee of the Korean Soc
[Newsmaker] Families of Lee Dae-jun, Otto Warmbier meet

Sept 18, 2022

The families of Lee Dae-jun, a South Korean government official shot dead by North Korean troops at sea in 2020, and Otto Warmbier, a US college student who died after North Korea’s detainment left him in a coma in 2017, met on Saturday. Lee Rae-jin, the older brother of the South Korean official, told The Korea Herald that Fred and Cindy Warmbier, parents of the American student, got together for the first time at the couple’s home in Cincinnati, Ohio. “I have been wanting
FULL TEXT: Joint Statement on the Extended Deterrence Strategy and Consultation Group Meeting

Sept 17, 2022

The text of the following statement was released by the Governments of the United States of America and the Republic of Korea. In line with the decision by President Joseph R. Biden and President Yoon Suk Yeol in May, the foreign affairs and defense agencies of the United States and the Republic of Korea (ROK) held an Extended Deterrence Strategy and Consultation Group (EDSCG) meeting at the Under Secretary / Vice Minister level on September 16, 2022 in Washington D.C. ROK First Vice Minis
S.Korea, US warn of ‘overwhelming, decisive response’ to N.Korean nuclear attack

Sept 17, 2022

US commits to strengthen coordination with S.Korea to deploy US strategic military assets in a ‘timely, effective manner’
FULL TEXT: Grieving brother’s letter to Kim Jong-un

Sept 17, 2022

The older brother of Lee Dae-jun, South Korea’s Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries official who was killed by North Korean soldiers at sea in 2020, asked North Korean leader Kim Jong-un for a chance to visit the site of the tragedy. In an open letter to Kim, which was made public on Friday, Lee urged to be granted “a chance to pay a visit” and “a moment to pray for him to rest in peace.” He said that on the second anniversary of his death, on Sept. 22, his family p
N. Korea accuses Japan of 'nullifying' 2002 joint declaration

Sept 16, 2022

North Korea argued formally Friday that Japan should be held accountable for "nullifying" a joint declaration issued two decades earlier in a bid to improve bilateral ties, according to Pyongyang's state media Friday. Song Il-ho, ambassador of the North's foreign ministry, directed the criticism against Japan in a statement carried by the country's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the DPRK-Japan Pyongyang Declaration s
N. Korea holds 1st national meeting of judicial officials since 2017

Sept 16, 2022

North Korea convened a national conference of judicial officials earlier this week for the first time in five years to discuss ways to uphold the country's socialist laws, state media reported Friday. The two-day Seventh National Conference of Judicial Officers opened Wednesday in Pyongyang with top officials in attendance, including Choe Ryong-hae, head of the Standing Committee of the country's Supreme People's Assembly, according to the North's official Korean Central News
North Korea urged to disclose whereabouts of two men repatriated in 2019

Sept 15, 2022

South Korean lawmakers of the International Parliamentarians’ Coalition for North Korean Refugees and Human Rights on Wednesday called on North Korea to clarify the whereabouts of two North Korean men who were forcibly repatriated in 2019 after their defection was denied by South Korea. In a joint statement, Reps. Ha Tae-keung, Ji Seong-ho, Hong Suk-joon and Hwangbo Seung-hee of the ruling People Power Party said that more than three years since the men were returned against their will,
North Korea maintains hard line against “audacious initiative”

Sept 14, 2022

South Korea and US firmly restate will to push ahead denuclearization, sanctions amid intense provocation
Ruling party proposes bipartisan resolution against N. Korean leader's vows to keep nukes

Sept 14, 2022

The ruling People Power Party (PPP) suggested Wednesday that the rival parties adopt a joint resolution against North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's pledge to keep the country's nuclear weapons. "I urge the ruling party and the main opposition to react in a bipartisan manner amid an unprecedented security crisis," Emergency Committee Chairman Chung Jin-suk told a party meeting. "It has become clear that Kim Jong-un's 2018 promise to former President Moon Jae-in to give
S. Korea, US to discuss 'concrete' deterrence steps against N. Korea threats in this week's talks: official

Sept 14, 2022

WASHINGTON/SEOUL -- South Korea and the United States will discuss "concrete" steps to sharpen deterrence against North Korea's evolving military threats during their high-level security talks later this week, according to a senior Seoul official Tuesday. Vice Defense Minister Shin Beom-chul made the remarks upon arriving at Dulles International Airport near Washington, D.C., to attend a session of the Extended Deterrence Strategy and Consultation Group (EDSCG) slated for Friday (
N.Korea continues to run, expand uranium enrichment facility at Yongbyon: IAEA

Sept 13, 2022

IAEA assessment follows on heels of NK leader’s pledge to ‘never denuclearize’
S. Korea warns N. Korea's nuclear use would lead to regime's 'self-destruction'

Sept 13, 2022

South Korea's defense ministry warned Tuesday that North Korea's attempt to use nuclear weapons would lead to its "self-destruction," responding to Pyongyang's recent codification of an apparently assertive nuclear policy. Col. Moon Hong-sik, the ministry's deputy spokesperson, issued the warning after the North promulgated a law on its nuclear policy on Thursday last week that hinted at the possibility of the regime launching a preemptive nuclear strike in a contin
UN ambassador stresses need for S. Korea to co-sponsor resolution on N. Korea human rights

Sept 12, 2022

NEW YORK -- South Korea should co-sponsor an annual resolution condemning North Korea for its human rights abuses and urging the regime to improve the situation, Seoul's new ambassador to the United Nations said. Ambassador Hwang Joon-kook made the remark in an interview with Yonhap News Agency on Sunday, stressing that North Korean human rights is a "very important issue in terms of safeguarding universal values." "For the past few years, we have been clearly passive in addressin
N. Korea likely to skip this year's table tennis world championships: report

Sept 12, 2022

North Korea appears to have withdrawn its women's table tennis team from this year's world championships slated for later this month in the Chinese city of Chengdu, according to a US broadcaster. Pyongyang was not included in the final list of teams vying for the 2022 World Champions Title sent to the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) on Friday, according to Radio Free Asia (RFA). The ITTF did not provide further information on the North's decision to pull out from the