Tag - north korea

 
 

NORTH KOREA

Experts warn the world is drifting dangerously close to disaster as North Korea, Russia and China expand their nuclear arsenals and old arms-control frameworks crumble.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 4, 2025
Even nuclear experts are at a loss right now
Who would have thought strategists would be almost nostalgic for the Cold War?
A North Korean loudspeaker, whose broadcasts have ceased following a halt in broadcasts by both South and North Korea, is seen next to a guard post near the North Korean village Kaepong on July 2.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Aug 4, 2025
South Korea begins removing loudspeakers on border with North
The nations, still technically at war, had already halted propaganda broadcasts along the demilitarized zone.
South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun (left) is escorted by Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya at the start of their meeting at the Foreign Ministry in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 30, 2025
Japan-South Korea top diplomats’ meeting shows ties on solid footing
In an unusual move, Seoul’s foreign minister visited Tokyo before Washington, as the Asian neighbors emphasized the importance of maintaining stable relations.
Ground Self-Defense Force troops fire a Type-12 anti-ship missile as part of the RIMPAC 24 sinking exercise around the Hawaiian Islands in July last year.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 29, 2025
Japan eyes locations for deploying longer-range standoff missiles
The defense minister said that the location for the weapons, due to be deployed by next March, has yet to be decided — though reports called Kumamoto Prefecture a top candidate.
U.S. President Donald Trump meets with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un at the Demilitarized Zone separating the two Koreas, in Panmunjom, South Korea, on June 30, 2019.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jul 29, 2025
North Korea says Trump must drop denuclearization policy if he wants to meet Kim
Kim Yo Jong, the powerful sister of North Korea’s leader, called personal ties between Kim Jong Un and U.S. President Donald Trump "not bad.”
Kim Yo Jong, the sister of North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un, attends wreath-laying ceremony at Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum in Hanoi in March 2019.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jul 28, 2025
North Korea rejects South’s olive branch, saying it has ‘no interest’ in rapprochement
Kim Yo Jong, the powerful sister of North Korea’s leader, said that “no matter what policy ... is made in Seoul, we have no interest in it.”
Sanseito supporters celebrate at a rally in Tokyo on July 21, a day after the party’s strong showing in the Upper House election.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jul 28, 2025
Japan’s neighbors anxiously assess Upper House election results
Most notably, the far-right, anti-immigrant Sanseito won 14 seats, increasing its total seats from one to 15.
EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas attends a meeting in Brussels on July 14.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 23, 2025
China singled out at EU-Japan summit
The two sides reiterated their opposition to “any unilateral attempts to change the status quo by force or coercion” in the East and South China seas.
Members of Japan's Self-Defense Forces stand in formation during a review at Camp Asaka in October 2018. The government’s latest Defense White Paper warns of growing threats from China, Russia and North Korea.
EDITORIALS
Jul 18, 2025
Japan must be ready for an increasingly dangerous world
If there is a complaint to be issued against this year’s Defense White Paper, it is its reluctance to fully address the impact of Donald Trump’s return to the U.S. presidency.
The United Nations Command-Rear, which operates from Yokota Air Base, plays a critical role in maintaining peace and stability in Asia.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Jul 17, 2025
Little-known U.N. Command bases in Japan play a critical security role in Asia
The United Nations Command-Rear is a small multinational team that works quietly to ensure peace and stability in the region.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un greets Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov during a meeting in Wonsan, North Korea, on Saturday.
ASIA PACIFIC
Jul 14, 2025
Ukraine denies North Korea planning to send 30,000 more troops to Russia
Kyiv's military intelligence agency said Pyongyang will instead send 6,000 personnel for reconstruction operations in batches of 1,500 to 3,000 personnel this month and next.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s regime is supplying up to 40% of Russia’s ammunition, along with other military equipment, for Vladimir Putin's war in Ukraine, according to Ukraine's intelligence service.
WORLD
Jul 13, 2025
Ukraine spy chief says 40% of Russian ammunition is North Korean
Kim Jong Un’s regime is also sending other weapons to Russia, including ballistic missiles and artillery systems.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un (L) greets Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (R) in Wonsan, North Korea, on Saturday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jul 13, 2025
Kim offers Russia full support on Ukraine in Lavrov talks, North Korea media says
Lavrov's visit to North Korea was the latest in a series of high-profile trips by top Moscow officials.
The Demilitarized Zone — the border area separating the two Koreas — is one of the most heavily mined places on earth.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jul 4, 2025
North Korean man detained after crossing land border, Seoul says
Defections across the land border are relatively rare, as the area is densely forested, heavily mined and monitored by soldiers on both sides.
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung delivers a speech during a news conference to mark his first 30 days in office at the Blue House in Seoul on Thursday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jul 3, 2025
South Korea's Lee pledges 'bold' economic policy after martial law crisis
The South Korean president says his top priority is to improve the lives of the people, whose faith in government had been greatly shaken by "a national crisis."
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un attends tactical training by military special forces and a firing drill by tank units at an unknown location in North Korea on May 13.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 3, 2025
Russia could soon get up to 30,000 more North Korean troops, reports say
The addition would almost triple the total number of North Korean soldiers directly fighting alongside Russia in its war against Ukraine.
Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar (left), Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong (second from left), Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya (second from right) and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio stand together at the start of a meeting of "the Quad" at the U.S. State Department in Washington on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 2, 2025
‘Quad’ nations announce critical minerals initiative amid China concerns
A joint statement was carefully crafted not to directly mention China, but the four Indo-Pacific countries made clear a goal of reducing dependence on Beijing.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un (left) and his daughter Kim Ju Ae (front right) visiting the Wonsan Kalma coastal tourist area in Kangwon Province, North Korea, on June 24.
ASIA PACIFIC
Jul 2, 2025
North Korea opens massive beach resort, state media reports
The Wonsan Kalma Coastal Tourist Area can accommodate nearly 20,000 people, according to Pyongyang.
This screen shot from Korean Central Television taken Friday shows a screen displaying North Korean leader Kim Jong Un looking at coffins during a performance attended by Kim and Russian Minister of Culture Olga Lyubimova in Pyongyang.
ASIA PACIFIC
Jul 1, 2025
North Korea's Kim shown honoring troops killed in Russia-Ukraine war
Around 600 North Korean soldiers have been killed and thousands more wounded fighting for Russia, according to South Korea's spy agency.
A banner calling for the resolution of the issue of abductions by North Korea is displayed near the Diet building in Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo, on June 10.
JAPAN
Jun 29, 2025
Families of Japanese abductees race against time
Negotiations between Japan and North Korea have remained at a standstill since October 2002, when five victims were repatriated.

Longform

A mushroom cloud from the atomic bombing on Hiroshima taken from a U.S. military aircraft on Aug. 6, 1945. Copying the photo without permission is prohibited.
80 years on, a Japanese American hibakusha recalls the day the bomb dropped