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 Peopl...

South Korea and US firmly restate will to push ahead denuclearization, sanctions amid intense provocation

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...

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...

IAEA assessment follows on heels of NK leader’s pledge to ‘never denuclearize’

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 pos...

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 safeguardin...

North Korea appears to have withdrawn its women's table tennis team from this year's world championships slated for later this month in the Chinese city of Chengdu, according to a US broadcaster.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). Th...

North Korea remains unresponsive to requests from a UN working group for information on more than 300 enforced disappearance cases involving the reclusive country, a UN report showed Saturday. The Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances has made the requests related to the 362 cases to the North between 1980 and May this year, but there has been no response from Pyongyang, accord...

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un publicly expressed his determination not to give up the country's nuclear weapons, accusing the United States of seeking the collapse of his regime, not just denuclearization. He made clear that Pyongyang has no intention of resuming negotiations for denuclearization, as the North's rubber-stamp parliament approved a new nuclear force policy during a key session e...

Unification Minister openly makes surprise proposal as N.Korea ratchets up bellicose rhetoric against S.Korea

North Korea has convened a key parliamentary session to discuss and adopt laws on rural development and landscaping, state media reported Thursday. The Supreme People's Assembly (SPA) meeting was held in Pyongyang the previous day, according to the North's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). The country's leader Kim Jong-un did not attend the gathering. "The session adopted with unanim...

North Korea bristled Wednesday at the United States having taken issue with its human rights situation, calling the move a "grave provocation." In July, a US State Department spokesperson expressed concerns over the North's rights situation following Seoul's appointment of a new envoy for the reclusive state's human rights. A researcher at the North's Korea Association for Human Rights Studies ...

South Korea has approved a civic group's plan to send nutritional aid to North Korea, a unification ministry official said Wednesday, the first such decision under the Yoon Suk-yeol administration launched in May. "Last month, we approved a civilian group's application for assistance related to nutritional materials," the official said, without providing details, such as the name of the group. ...

WASHINGTON -- Russia has reached out to North Korea and Iran, a US defense department spokesperson said Tuesday, in its apparently desperate search for ammunition. Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder insisted Moscow's request for ammunition from North Korea demonstrates the difficulties Russia now faces due to its ongoing war against Ukraine. "We do have indications that Russia has approached North Korea to r...