A new online broadcasting company led by a North Korean defector launched on Tuesday with the goal of sharing uncensored news and information with citizens living under the regime’s control, seeking to fill a gap left by the closure of U.S. and ROK radio services broadcasting into the DPRK. Korea Internet Studio has received the […]

The South Korean navy’s chief of staff has vowed to respond “proportionally” to Chinese incursions in the Korea-China Provisional Measures Zone (PMZ), a stretch of the Yellow Sea where Beijing has expanded its footprint through quasi-civilian projects and persistent naval patrols. But Adm. Kang Dong-gil’s pledge — made during a parliamentary audit last month — […] The post China’s gray-zone tactics in the Yellow Sea pose a military dilemma for Seoul appeared first on Korea Pro.

North Korea has sent a delegation to the 30th Conference of the Parties (COP30) climate summit that kicked off in Brazil on Monday, continuing the country’s focus on global environmental diplomacy even as it restricts political engagement to its closest partners. A livestream of Thursday’s opening plenum captured what appeared to be two DPRK representatives […]

The top diplomat of Laos will visit North Korea from Tuesday to boost bilateral ties between the two countries, according to Vientiane. Lao Foreign Minister Thongsavanh Phomvihane is visiting for five days at the invitation of his DPRK counterpart Choe Son Hui, Laos’ foreign affairs ministry announced on Saturday. The ministry stated that the visit […]

The state funeral for North Korea’s former No. 2 official Kim Yong Nam provided an opportunity to remember a man who was a fixture of DPRK politics for decades. But it also showcased the shifting fortunes of the country’s leadership. State media published a list of all the members of the State Funeral Committee for […] The post How Kim Yong Nam’s funeral revealed a secret North Korean leadership reshuffle appeared first on NK PRO.

This week, NK News founder Chad O’Carroll joins the podcast to discuss the life of Kim Yong Nam, the longtime No. 2 in North Korea’s leadership who died this month at 97.  He also unravels the mystery behind Pyongyang Papers, the website that anonymously published information on North Korea’s sanctions-evading network before disappearing without warning […]

South Korea’s trade ministry (MOTIR) held a joint public-private meeting on Monday to assess the impact of global protectionist measures targeting steel. The session brought together executives from POSCO, Hyundai Steel, SeAH Steel, Dongkuk CM and Nexteel, along with the Korea International Trade Association, the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Korea Trade-Investment […] The post South Korea confronts global steel barriers as US, EU and Canada tighten rules appeared first on Korea Pro.

A large fire burned down a building in central Pyongyang earlier this month, leaving a pile of ashes near the never-completed Ryugyong Hotel and the Korean War Museum. The incident took place on the northern bank of the Potong River encircling the central part of the North Korean capital, with low-resolution satellite imagery from Planet […]

A bold new North Korean cyberattack campaign targeting human rights activists has combined a previously undiscovered malware strain with new tactics that remotely wipe mobile phones, according to cybersecurity researchers. In a report published Monday, South Korean cybersecurity firm Genians linked the recent campaign, in which attackers hijacked a North Korean defector-activist’s messenger account, to […] The post North Korean cyber campaign fueled by new malware strain that wipes phones appeared first on NK PRO.

Chinese vessels illegally fishing near the inter-Korean maritime border have fled to North Korean waters to avoid patrols during crab season, according to the ROK coast guard, a development that suggests Pyongyang continues to sell fishing rights in violation of U.N. sanctions. A coast guard official told NK News that a daily average of 190 […]

North Korea solidified its status as a women’s soccer powerhouse by winning the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup for the second consecutive year on Sunday, trouncing the Netherlands by 3-0 after an undefeated tournament run. The DPRK team dominated the final match at Rabat Olympic Stadium in Morocco with 23 attempts on goal to the […]

North Korean embassies have been central to the country’s efforts to evade international sanctions on its nuclear program, with DPRK diplomats frequently engaged in selling arms and other sanctioned commodities, couriering goods back to Pyongyang and smuggling gold or illegal wildlife products to raise cash. But these illicit activities by North Korean diplomats precede the […]

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un “will lose sleep” over the prospect of South Korea deploying a nuclear-powered submarine, Seoul’s defense minister said Sunday, forecasting that construction could finish within the next decade. ROK defense minister Ahn Gyu-back made the remarks during an interview with national broadcaster KBS, discussing the Lee Jae-myung administration’s plans to […]

South Korea’s absence of a fiscal anchor — a rule that limits how much the government can spend or borrow — is emerging as a critical risk to its financial credibility as President Lee Jae-myung’s administration pursues an expansionary budget and record levels of debt. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) warned in September that Korea […] The post South Korea’s missing fiscal anchor threatens investor confidence appeared first on Korea Pro.

South Korea’s Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) said it held a series of meetings in Ottawa from Nov. 5 to 7 aimed at expanding defense industry cooperation with Canada. The delegation, led by DAPA Commissioner Seok Jong-geon, met with Canadian officials and research institutes, attended the ROK-Canada Defense and Defense Industry Cooperation Conference, and co-hosted […] The post South Korea deepens defense ties with Canada through new industrial deal appeared first on Korea Pro.

North Korea will take more “offensive action” in response to what it calls the Trump administration’s “brazen” military moves with South Korea, the DPRK’s defense minister warned Saturday, adding that Pyongyang has “no other choice” as U.S. hostility will only lead to lasting confrontation. The statement, carried by the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), came […]

Over a dozen Russian firms showcased goods ranging from electronics to food products at the fall trade fair in Pyongyang last week, NK Pro analysis shows, mingling with foreign counterparts from Asia and as far away as Switzerland. Сompanies from Russia’s Far Eastern Primorsky Krai region exhibited “rice, flour, fish, seafood, sausages and metal goods” […] The post Over a dozen Russian firms joined North Korea’s fall trade fair, down from 2024 appeared first on NK PRO.

American soldiers tasked with defending against North Korean missiles with Patriot interceptors recently returned to the peninsula after a six-month combat deployment around the Middle East, U.S. Forces Korea announced Wednesday. Soldiers of the 2nd Battalion, 1st Air Defense Artillery Regiment of Eighth Army arrived at Osan Air Base in South Korea on Oct. 30 […]

North Korean defectors and human rights activists have launched a committee to facilitate the defection of the two DPRK prisoners of war held in Ukraine, after both soldiers reportedly expressed their wish to resettle in South Korea.  The Emergency Committee for the Free Repatriation of North Korean Soldiers will rely on local networks and work […]

North Korean cybercriminals have stepped up their use of Google’s artificial intelligence (AI) assistant Gemini to supercharge their cryptocurrency theft operations and malware attacks, the U.S. search giant reported Thursday. In its new “AI Threat Tracker” report, the Google Threat Intelligence Group (GTIG) said North Korean state-sponsored threat actors have continued their “misuse” of generative […]

A record number of Russian visitors entered North Korea in the third quarter on the back of surging tourism, according to newly released official data, even as Moscow once again shied away from disclosing how many DPRK nationals entered the country. Russian entries into the DPRK from July to September totaled 3,460, the Federal Security […]

In this episode of The Korea Pro Podcast, Jeongmin and Joon Ha unpack the political and market fallout from Donald Trump’s remarks on restricting Nvidia’s most-advanced chips for U.S. use, and what it means for Seoul’s 260,000-GPU Blackwell deal with Hyundai, Samsung, SK and Naver — including implications for autonomous driving and the KOSPI’s sharp […] The post Nvidia ‘super-duper’ chips, nuke subs and new South Korean satellites — Ep. 104 appeared first on Korea Pro.

U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision to grant South Korea “approval” to build nuclear-powered submarines has created a new front in the global race for strategic propulsion technology and raised fresh risks of regional instability, industrial strain and alliance asymmetry. The announcement, made in Gyeongju during Trump’s bilateral summit with ROK President Lee Jae-myung, extends AUKUS […] The post South Korea’s nuclear submarine plan upends the AUKUS order appeared first on Korea Pro.

Pyongyang General Hospital finally opened its doors to patients this week after years of construction plagued by delays, with North Korean media praising the facility as “world-class” despite its apparent lack of modern equipment like MRI machines. The ruling party announced that it will convene its end-of-year plenum in mid-December — earlier than usual — […] The post North Korea’s shiny new hospital finally opens to patients after years of delays appeared first on NK PRO.

This is a developing news story. Please check back for updates. North Korea launched at least one “unidentified ballistic missile” toward the East Sea (Sea of Japan) on Friday afternoon, according to South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS). Japan’s defense ministry also released a statement through the coast guard at 12:37 p.m. KST, saying […]