Category Archives: North Korea

North Korea bans laughing for 11 days during mourning for anniversary of Kim Jong-il’s death – video

Posted on by

Video from Pyongyang shows North Korea's leader Kim Jong-un looking very dour as he attends the memorial service to mark the 10th anniversary of his father's death. As part of the national memorial, North Koreans have been banned from showing any sign of happiness. The restrictions include an explicit ban on laughter and alcohol during the 11-day period of mourning. On the exact anniversary of Kim Jong-il’s death, 17 December, North Koreans were even banned from going grocery shopping

Continue reading...

How has North Korea’s Kim Jong-un held on to power so long? – video

Posted on by

Kim Jong-un emerged onto the world stage as a virtual unknown in 2011, a young man thrust into power at the head of North Korea – a nuclear-armed state – after his father's unexpected death. 

In the decade since, he has ruthlessly purged alleged political opponents, extended his country's nuclear capabilities, and tightened his grip on power as North Korea's supreme leader.

From diplomatic summits with Donald Trump to executing members of his own family and failing to stave off famine in his own country, Guardian correspondent Justin McCurry charts the highs and lows of Kim's first 10 years in office. 

Continue reading...

From ‘tempestuous’ child to little rocket man: 10 years of Kim Jong-un

Posted on by

Some observers said he would survive a few months as the head of a nuclear-armed state but, a decade later, the North Korean leader has proved them wrong

It was not, perhaps, the image Kim Jong-un would have wanted to project in his first public appearance as the latest authoritarian leader of North Korea in 2011. As wailing citizens exhibited their grief along the snowbound streets of Pyongyang, Kim, then only in his late 20s, cut a forlorn figure.

Dressed in a long black coat, Kim walked with grim purpose alongside the hearse carrying his father, Kim Jong-il, one hand resting on the bonnet of the 1970s Lincoln Continental, the other executing an awkward salute. He was later seen crying and drying his eyes at the burial service, in footage broadcast on state television.

Continue reading...

Missile tests, horse rides and executions: Kim Jong-un’s leadership in pictures

Posted on by

Kim Jong-un has defied the expectations of many, to mark 10 years in power following the death in 2011 of his father, Kim Jong-il. In that time, he has presided over famines, executions and nuclear tensions, while finding the time to inspect a fish pickling station and go horse riding

Continue reading...

North Korea says test was new type of submarine-launched ballistic missile

Posted on by

State media report that device launched on Tuesday had ‘lots of advanced control guidance technologies’

North Korea says it has successfully tested a “new type” of submarine-launched ballistic missile, as the nuclear-armed country pursues ever more improved weapons.

The device had “lots of advanced control guidance technologies”, the official Korean Central News Agency said on Wednesday, adding that it was launched from the same vessel that the North used in its first submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) tests five years ago. The latter point casts doubt on claims by Pyongyang in 2015 that it had launched a submarine-based missile.

Continue reading...

Defectors tell court they were promised ‘paradise on Earth’ in North Korea

Posted on by

Five people seeking compensation say they were lured to country and then denied basic human rights

Five people who say they were lured to North Korea decades ago as part of a resettlement programme have told a court in Japan they were promised a “paradise on Earth” but were instead denied basic human rights.

The plaintiffs – four ethnic Korean residents of Japan and a Japanese woman who went to the North with her Korean husband and their daughter – are seeking 100m yen (£644,000) in damages from the regime of Kim Jong-un.

Continue reading...

North Korean leader watches extreme martial arts performance – video

Posted on by

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has watched an extreme martial arts demonstration by soldiers at a military event marking the 76th founding anniversary of its ruling party. In the video aired by the North's state-run television station, KRT, soldiers performed multiple shows of strength: smashing items, breaking free from chains, lying on glass and throwing knives. Kim smiled and clapped as he watched the show at the Defence Development Exhibition 'Self-Defence-2021'. During the exhibition, Kim said his country's weapons development is necessary in the face of the US' hostile policies and a military buildup in South Korea.

Continue reading...

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un marks 76th anniversary of ruling party – video

Posted on by

The North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un, has attended celebrations for the 76th anniversary of the founding of the Workers' party of Korea. Kim made a speech to a gathering of officials, the KCNA news agency said. State media showed Kim addressing a room full of officials, with little social distancing, masks or other Covid measures apparent. Kim urged officials to focus on improving citizens' lives in the face of a 'grim' economic situation

Continue reading...

North Korea’s Kim Jong-un vows to build ‘invincible’ military and blames US for tensions

Posted on by

The leader of the nuclear-armed country says there is ‘no basis’ to believe US actions are ‘not hostile’ during military exhibition

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un reviewed a rare exhibition of weapons systems and vowed to build an “invincible” military, as he accused the United States of being the “root cause” of instability.

In an apparent continued effort to drive a wedge between Washington and Seoul, Kim also said his drive to build up his military isn’t targeted at South Korea and that there shouldn’t be another war pitting Korean people against each other.

Continue reading...

North Korea accuses UN security council of double standards over missile tests

Posted on by

Top official says council ignores US weapons tests, after it met over Pyongyang’s anti-aircraft missile launch

North Korea has accused the United Nations security council of applying double standards over military activities among UN member states amid international criticism over its recent missile tests.

The council met behind closed doors on Friday upon requests from the United States and other countries over the North’s missile launches.

Continue reading...

John Key calling New Zealand’s Covid response ‘North Korean’ isn’t just lazy rhetoric, it’s wrong | Brian Ng

Posted on by

Irresponsible statements are fuel for those who falsely believe their rights have been taken away

When former prime minister John Key referred to New Zealand as a “smug hermit kingdom” in his widely disseminated op-ed, I thought it was pushing it a bit, but not completely off the mark – we closed our borders to outsiders, after all. What I didn’t expect was for him to start calling the government’s response “North Korean”. This isn’t just lazy rhetoric, it’s obviously wrong.

This is what North Korea’s been through: it closed its borders at the beginning of 2020, before most of the world put itself into lockdown. It stopped all shipments in and out of the country, including China, which is its largest trading partner and aid donor. Fishing in its surrounding waters and even salt harvesting was halted, for fear Covid may be transmitted that way. Foreign diplomatic staff left on one-way tickets: one group of Russians took a hand-powered rail cart out of the country.

Continue reading...

North Korea fires new anti-aircraft missile in latest test, state media reports

Posted on by

Kim Jong-un appears not to have attended test, which was overseen by a central committee member

North Korea has fired a newly developed anti-aircraft missile, the official KCNA news agency has reported, in the latest in its recent series of weapons tests.

The test on Thursday, conducted by the Academy of Defence Science, a military weapons developer, was aimed at confirming the practical functionality of the missile’s launcher, radar, comprehensive battle command vehicle and combat performance, KCNA said.

Continue reading...

Kim Jong-un orders hotline with the South to reopen as he condemns ‘cunning’ US

Posted on by

North Korean leader said Biden offer of dialogue is ‘a facade’ and blamed the US for ‘hostile policy’

Kim Jong-un has condemned a US offer of dialogue as a “facade”, state media reported, but said he had ordered officials to restore communication lines with South Korea to “promote peace”.

Speaking in parliament on Wednesday, the North Korean leader accused the US of continuing a “hostile policy” against his nuclear-armed country, despite the Biden administration’s offers of negotiations without preconditions.

Continue reading...

North Korea says it fired new hypersonic missile into sea

Posted on by

Latest of several launches within a month signals further ramp-up of hostility towards neighbours

North Korea has fired what it described as a hypersonic missile towards the sea off its east coast, as Pyongyang repeated a call for Washington and Seoul to scrap their “hostile policy” to restart talks.

On Wednesday, North Korea said it was a newly developed hypersonic missile. The official KCNA news agency said the launch was of “great strategic significance”, as the North seeks to increase its defence capabilities a “thousand-fold”.

Continue reading...

Kim Jong-un’s sister says North Korea open to talks with South if Seoul shows ‘respect’

Posted on by

Analysts say North Korea’s apparent desire for engagement part of a push to get the US to ease crippling sanctions

The influential sister of North Korea’s leader said that an inter-Korean summit could take place, but only if mutual “respect” and “impartiality” are guaranteed.

The statement on Saturday was the second in two days by Kim Yo-jong, Kim Jong-un’s sister and key adviser.

Continue reading...

‘Pushing the nuclear envelope’: North Korea’s missile diplomacy

Posted on by

Analysis: Fear and uncertainty of the Obama years could return as Kim Jong-un revives nuclear ambitions

North Korea’s recent missile launches signal that the regime has reverted to familiar tactics to attract the attention of the US. Although the rest of the world will take little comfort from this return to “normality”, after a six-month pause Pyongyang last weekend launched what it claimed were new long-range cruise missiles capable of hitting Japan, followed hours later by the test launch of two ballistic missiles into the sea, apparently from a train.

Then came the clearest sign since its last nuclear test in 2017 that the North is not about to abandon its project to build a viable deterrent, with satellite images showing it was expanding a uranium enrichment plant at its main Yongbyon nuclear complex.

Continue reading...

North Korea fires two ballistic missiles into sea, South Korea military says

Posted on by

Launch comes as Chinese foreign minister is in Seoul to discuss stalled nuclear diplomacy and two days after North tests a new long-range cruise missile

North Korea fired two ballistic missiles into the sea off its east coast on Wednesday, South Korea’s military has said, two days after the North claimed to have tested a new missile in its first weapons test in six months.

South Korea’s joint chiefs of staff (JCS) said the missiles flew from a central inland area towards the waters off the Korean Peninsula’s east coast and that further analysis with US officials was under way. “Our military maintains a full readiness posture in close cooperation with the US,” the JCS said.

Continue reading...

North Korea barred from competing at 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics

Posted on by

IOC says suspension is punishment for North Korea refusing to send team to Tokyo Games over Covid fears

North Korea has been formally suspended from the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics by the IOC as punishment for refusing to send a team to the Tokyo Games, citing the Covid-19 pandemic.

The International Olympic Committee president, Thomas Bach, said the North Korean national Olympic body would also now forfeit money it was due from previous Olympics. The unspecified amount – potentially millions of dollars – had been withheld because of international sanctions.

Continue reading...

‘Like Game of Thrones’: how triple crisis on China’s borders will shape its global identity

Posted on by

Analysis: China’s handling of troubles in Afghanistan, Myanmar and North Korea will differ to the west, and mould its identity as a global power

First it was North Korea. Then came Myanmar. Now it is Afghanistan. The three ongoing crises in China’s neighbourhood seem to have little in common. But for Beijing they pose the same question: how to deal with strategically important yet failing states on its border, and how will China’s response define its identity as a global power.

For many years China watchers in the west have been looking for clues to how a rising power will exercise its influence on the world stage through its involvement in Africa or its relations with the US. But the way China approaches the three neighbouring countries may provide a clearer picture.

Continue reading...