Page 8 - Kim Jong Un

Kim's sister rejects US offer of dialogue, vows more satellite launches

The powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on Thursday dismissed US calls for a return to diplomacy and lambasted condemnations of the North's recent spy satellite launch, vowing more launches in violation of UN bans. During a UN Security Council meeting earlier this week, the US ambassador to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, called the North's satellite launch a "reckless, unlawful" action that threatens its neighbours. But she reiterated the US offer for dialogue without any preconditions, saying North Korea "can choose the timing and topic". Kim's sister and senior official, Kim Yo Jong, rejected the US overture and threatened more satellite and other weapons launches. "The sovereignty of an independent state can never be an agenda item for negotiations, and therefore, (North Korea) will never sit face to face with the US for that purpose," Kim Yo Jong said in a statement carried by state media. "(North Korea) will continue to make efforts to develop ...

North Korea restores border posts amid tensions over spy satellite: Seoul

South Korea said on Monday North Korea is restoring frontline guard posts that it had dismantled during a previous period of inter-Korean rapprochement, deepening tensions that spiked over the North's recent spy satellite launch. The two Koreas each earlier dismantled or disarmed 11 of their guard posts inside their heavily fortified border under a 2018 deal meant to ease frontline military confrontations. But the deal is now in danger of being scraped, as both Koreas openly threaten to breach it amid rising animosities over the North's satellite launch. After North Korea claimed to place its first military spy satellite into orbit last Tuesday, South Korea said it would partially suspend the deal and resume front aerial surveillance in response. South Korea called its step a minimum defensive measure to respond to the launch that it says involved the North's intentions of improving its missile technology as well as establishing a space-based surveillance system. North Korea ...

Kim Jong-un labels military spy satellite as 'deploying of a space guard'

Kim's remark came during his visit to the National Aerospace Technology Administration (NATA), according to the official space agency of North Korea

Evidence shows Hamas likely used some N Korean weapons to attack Israel

Hamas fighters likely fired North Korean weapons during their Oct. 7 assault on Israel, a militant video and weapons seized by Israel show, despite Pyongyang's denials that it sells arms to the militant group. The video was analyzed by two experts on North Korean arms. Along with an Associated Press analysis of weapons captured on the battlefield and South Korean military intelligence, the video indicates that Hamas used the F-7 rocket-propelled grenade, a shoulder-fired weapon that fighters typically use against armored vehicles. The evidence shines a light on the murky world of the illicit arms shipments that sanction-battered North Korea uses as a way to fund its arms programs. Rocket-propelled grenade launchers fire a single warhead and can be quickly reloaded, making them valuable weapons for guerrilla forces in running skirmishes with heavy vehicles. The F-7 has been documented in Syria, Iraq, Lebanon and the Gaza Strip, said N.R. Jenzen-Jones, a weapons expert who works as th

US aircraft carrier arrives in S Korea as Kim exchanges messages with Putin

A US nuclear-powered aircraft carrier arrived in South Korea on Thursday in a demonstration of strength against North Korea, as the North's leader reaffirmed his push to bolster ties with Russia. The USS Ronald Reagan and its battle group came to the southeastern South Korean port of Busan after participating in a trilateral South Korean-US-Japanese maritime exercise earlier this week, the South Korean Defence Ministry said. The aircraft carrier is to stay in Busan until next Monday as part of a bilateral agreement to enhance regular visibility of US strategic assets to the Korean Peninsula in response to North Korea's advancing nuclear programme, according to an earlier Defence Ministry statement. It's the first arrival of a US aircraft carrier in South Korea in six months since the USS Nimitz docked at Busan in late March, the statement said. The arrival of the USS Ronald Reagan is expected to enrage North Korea, which views the deployment of such a powerful US military asset as

Kim urges greater nuclear weapons production in response to new Cold War

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un called for an exponential increase in production of nuclear weapons and for his country to play a larger role in a coalition of nations confronting the United States in a new Cold War, state media said Thursday. The Korean Central News Agency said Kim made the comments during a two-day session of the country's rubber-stamp parliament which amended the constitution to include his policy of expanding the country's nuclear weapons programme. The Supreme People's Assembly's session on Tuesday and Wednesday came after Kim traveled to Russia's Far East this month to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin and visit military and technology sites. The trip sparked Western concerns about a possible arms alliance in which North Korea would supply Putin with badly needed munitions to fuel his war on Ukraine in exchange for economic aid and advanced Russian technologies to enhance North Korea's nuclear and missile systems. As North Korea slowly ends its pande

Russia's Lavrov to visit North Korea in Oct as part of follow-up measure

He made the remarks during a press conference at the United Nations headquarters in New York. Lavrov said that his upcoming visit to North Korea follows the agreement between Putin and Kim Jong Un

Kim presents steps to boost Russia ties as US, Seoul warn on weapons deals

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un ordered unspecified steps to further develop relations with Russia after his recent visit to the country as his foreign rivals warn that any cooperation on military weapons would be dangerous and bring consequences. Experts speculated North Korea and Russia likely discussed banned arms transfer deals and other cooperation measures during Kim's six-day trip last week. They say the two countries are serious about sharply boosting their ties while they are engaged in separate confrontations with the West. During a Politburo meeting on Wednesday, Kim arranged for work to be done on further developing bilateral ties at "a new high level at the practical stage" to consolidate "the success" of his Russia trip, the official Korean Central News Agency said Friday. Kim underscored the need to expand bilateral cooperation in every field, making a substantial contribution to the promotion of the well-being of the people of the two countries, KCNA said. While ...

Kim Jong Un back from Russia, where he deepened comradely ties: N Korea

North Korea said on Tuesday that leader Kim Jong Un has returned home from a trip to Russia where he deepened comradely fellowship and friendly ties with President Vladimir Putin. During Kim's six-day trip to Russia, his longest foreign travel as a leader, the two countries said they discussed boosting their defense ties but didn't disclose any specific steps. Foreign experts speculate the two countries, both locked in confrontations with the West, were pushing to reach arms transfer deals in violation of UN Security Council resolutions. The official Korean Central News Agency said Kim's train crossed a border river on Monday morning, but didn't say whether he headed to the capital, Pyongyang, or elsewhere inside the country. Before travelling to Russia, Kim made several visits to his munitions factories, triggering speculation that he intended to check on productions of arms to be shipped to Russia. While travelling through Russia's far eastern region, Kim met Putin at Russia's mo

Kim Jong Un discussed arms cooperation with Russian minister: N Korea media

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un held discussions with Russia's defence minister on strengthening strategic and tactical coordination between the countries' militaries, the North's state media said Sunday, as Kim continued a visit to Russia's Far East that has raised concerns about an arms alliance that would fuel Moscow's war on Ukraine. The talks with Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu came after Kim on Friday was shown some of Russia's most advanced weapons systems deployed for its war on Ukraine, including nuclear-capable bombers and hypersonic missiles, and a key warship of its Pacific fleet, the Korean Central News Agency said. Kim's trip, highlighted by a summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday, has underscored how their interests are aligning in the face of separate, intensifying confrontations with the West. US and South Korean officials have said North Korea could provide badly needed munitions for Putin's war on Ukraine in exchange for sophisticated Russian .

Kim inspects Russian nuclear-capable bombers on visit to country's far east

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un arrived Saturday at a Russian city near the far eastern port of Vladivostok where he's expected to see Russia's Pacific Fleet. The visit follows Kim's talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Vostochny spaceport on Wednesday and his visit Friday to an aircraft-making plant in Komsomolsk-on-Amur. The US and it allies are concerned that Kim's visit is focused on providing Moscow with weapons for its war in Ukraine in a possible arms-for-technology deal.

Kim stops to see fighter jet plant as Russia, N Korea warned off arms deals

Kim Jong Un arrived Friday in Komsomolsk-on-Amur in far eastern Russia and is expected to visit a plant that builds fighter jets as South Korea has said it's concerned his visit is focused on expanding military cooperation in a possible arms-for-technology deal. The visit to Komsomolsk-on-Amur is one of several the North Korean leader is making on a days-long trip to Russia. Arriving on an armoured train from North Korea, he rolled into Russia on Tuesday and was met by officials at a station near the Russia-North Korea border. After a long train trip north, on Wednesday he met Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Vostochny Cosmodrome and was greeted by Putin with a 40-second handshake. On Thursday, he largely disappeared from view, before reappearing local time Friday as his convoy swept out of Komsomolsk-on-Amur station. Putin told Russian state TV after the summit that Kim will travel to Komsomolsk-on-Amur, where he will visit an aircraft plant, and then go to Vladivostok to v

Why North Korea's Kim Jong Un prefers trains over planes

North Korea's Kim Jong Un has a penchant for travelling by train, a tradition deeply rooted in his family's history. But why does Kim Jong Un prefer trains over planes? Watch the video to find out

S Korea expresses concern, regret over Kim-Putin military cooperation talks

South Korea on Thursday expressed deep concern and regret over a meeting between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin that was apparently focused on expanding military cooperation as the two isolated, nuclear-armed leaders align over their escalating confrontations with the United States. Washington has warned that the summit on Wednesday between Kim and Putin could lead to a deal to supply ammunition for Moscow's war in Ukraine. There's widespread concern in Seoul that the North in return would receive advanced weapons technologies from Russia, including those related to military spy satellites, which would increase the threat posed by Kim's military nuclear program. We express our deep concern and regret that despite repeated warnings from the international community, North Korea and Russia discussed military cooperation issues, including satellite development, during their summit, said Lim Soo-suk, South Korea's Foreign Ministry spokesperson. Any

Vladimir Putin accepts invitation from Kim Jong Un to visit North Korea

"Putin accepted the invitation with pleasure and reaffirmed his will to invariably carry forward the history and tradition of the Russia-DPRK friendship," the report said

Kim Jong Un's Russia trip provides window into media coverage of 2 nations

The world is largely relying on North Korean and Russian media for information about the unusual train journey of leader Kim Jong Un to meet with President Vladimir Putin at a space facility. While news gathering is, to varying degrees, constrained by both authoritarian governments, the coverage by the countries' respective media this week is providing a window into the neighbours' unique news environments and how the summit is being presented to people in North Korea and Russia. The coverage shown to North Koreans is meant, like all media efforts there, to reflect the government's propaganda needs. The country's reporters have no higher aim than glorifying Kim for Koreans and the world. But Kim's trip to Russia, where foreign and local media have more access and leeway than in Pyongyang, has challenged how the North Korean media portray one of Kim's most important diplomatic moves in years. There are no independent television channels left in Russia since Putin invaded Ukraine, an

Kim vows support for Russia's 'just fight' during summit with Putin

North Korea may have tens of millions of aging artillery shells and rockets based on Soviet designs that could give a huge boost to the Russian army in Ukraine

Putin discusses military matters, Ukraine war with N Korea's Kim Jong Un

Putin showed Kim around Russia's most advanced space rocket launch site in Russia's Far East and discussed the possibility of sending a North Korean cosmonaut into space

Kim's meeting with Putin at spaceport may hint at space, weapons ambitions

Ending a global guessing game on when and where they would meet, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin convened at a rocket launch facility in Siberia on Wednesday in their first summit in four years. The talks between the two isolated, nuclear-armed leaders were expected to focus on expanding military cooperation amid their intensifying confrontations with the West. The decision to meet at Vostochny Cosmodrome, a major satellite launch facility, may communicate what Kim sees as the crucial next steps in his efforts to build a viable nuclear arsenal that could threaten the United States and its allies in Asia. Dangling North Korea's vast stockpiles of munitions Putin likely covets for his war in Ukraine, Kim in exchange could ask for badly needed economic aid and sophisticated weapons technologies to advance his military nuclear programme, experts say. Kim could push for Russian technology transfers on military reconnaissance satellites, a key asset o

Kim concludes one-on-one talks with Putin at Russian space launch base

One-on-one talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un have ended, Russia's state news agency Tass reported Wednesday. The meeting of the two leaders at the Vostochny Cosmodrome in eastern Siberia followed wider talks between delegations headed by the two leaders. Before the talks, the two leaders toured some of the facilities of the strategic spaceport. In remarks before the private meeting, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un offered Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday his country's full and unconditional support for Russia's sacred fight to defend its security interests, in an apparent reference to the war in Ukraine, and said Pyongyang will always stand with Moscow on the anti-imperialist front.