Page 19 - North Korea

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

Won't hesitate to impose additional sanctions: US on Russia, N Korea deal

The official spokesperson of the US Department of State highlighted how "troubling" it is to see the cooperation between Russia and North Korea

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.

Russia to help North Korea build satellites, says President Vladimir Putin

Kim arrived at Vostochny by train, after crossing into Russia early on Tuesday

Putin gives Kim Jong Un tour of rocket launch center as leaders meet

The leaders of Russia and North Korea met at a remote Siberian rocket launch facility for a summit that underscores how the two leaders' interests are aligning in the face of their separate, intensifying confrontations with the United States. The two men began their meeting with a tour of a Soyuz-2 space rocket launch facility, at which North Korean leader Kim Jong Un peppered Russian President Vladimir Putin with questions about the rockets. The meeting came hours after North Korea fired two ballistic missiles toward the sea, extending a highly provocative run in North Korean weapons testing since the start of 2022, as Kim used the distraction caused by Putin's war on Ukraine to accelerate his weapons development. The leaders' decision to meet at Vostochny Cosmodrome, a major satellite launch facility, suggests that Kim is seeking Russian technical assistance in his efforts to develop military reconnaissance satellites, which he has described as crucial in enhancing the threat of h

North Korea fired two missile into the sea, says South Korea military

South Korea's military says North Korea has fired at least one ballistic missile toward its eastern seas. The launch on Wednesday came as North Korean leader Kim Jong Un was traveling in Russia for a meeting with President Vladimir Putin while there are international concerns about a potential arms deal that could fuel Moscow's war efforts in Ukraine. South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff didn't immediately say how far the weapon flew. Kim has been using the international distraction caused by Russia's war in Ukraine to ramp up the North's weapons development, a process that has included more than 100 missile launches since the start of 2022.

Kim in Russia to meet Putin, with both locked in standoffs with the West

North Korea's Kim Jong Un rolled through Russia on an armoured train on Tuesday toward a meeting with President Vladimir Putin, a rare encounter between isolated leaders driven together by their need for support in escalating standoffs with the West. Kim is expected to seek economic aid and military technology for his impoverished country, and, in a twist, appears to have something Putin desperately needs: munitions for Russia's gruelling war in Ukraine. It's a chance for the North Korean leader to get around crippling UN sanctions and years of diplomatic isolation. For Putin, it's an opportunity to refill ammunition stores that the war has drained. Any arms deal with North Korea would violate the sanctions, which Russia supported in the past. Kim's personal train stopped in Khasan, a station on the Russia-North Korea border, where it was met by a military honour guard and a brass band, according to video posted on social media channels. He was met on a red carpet by regional Gov.

Kim is in Russia ahead of meeting with Putin as their nations draw closer

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has departed for Russia where he is expected to hold a highly anticipated meeting with President Vladimir Putin that has sparked Western concerns about a potential arms deal for Moscow's war in Ukraine. North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency said on Tuesday that Kim boarded his personal train from the capital, Pyongyang, on Sunday afternoon, and that he will be accompanied by unspecified members of the country's ruling party, government and military. State media photos showed Kim walking pass honour guards and crowds of civilians holding the national flag and flowers and waving his hand from his green-and-yellow armoured train before it left the station in Pyongyang. A group of senior officials, including Cabinet Premier Kim Tok Hun, Kim Jong Un's top economic official, were at the station to give the leader a hearty send-off", KCNA said. KCNA did not specify whether the train had crossed the border. A brief statement on the Kremlin's ..

North Korea's Kim Jong Un to meet Russian President Putin, Kremlin confirms

Recent overtures have signalled closer military ties between the nuclear-armed North Korea and Russia amid the Ukraine war

Russia turning to old ally N Korea to resupply its arsenal for Ukraine war

After a year and a half of fighting in Ukraine, Russia needs to replenish its supplies of ammunition for what could be a long war of attrition. Along with ramping up its domestic arms production, Moscow is turning to an old ally with a vast arsenal North Korea. Estimates say the reclusive and isolated Asian country has tens of millions of artillery shells and rockets that could give a huge boost to the Russian army. United States officials expect North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to visit Russia in the coming days to seal a possible deal on munitions transfer with President Vladimir Putin. That would be a remarkable reversal from the 1950-53 Korean War, when the Soviet Union provided the communist North with weapons and ammunition. We know that Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu has visited recently for artillery shells predominantly, and most likely that will be discussed between Putin and Kim Jong Un, said Alexander Gabuev, head of the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Centre. Shoigu .

North Korea's Kim Jong Un hosts Chinese and Russian guests at a parade

North Korea invited visiting Chinese delegates and Russian artists to a paramilitary parade featuring rocket launchers pulled by trucks and tractors, state media said Saturday, in leader Kim Jong Un's latest effort to display his ties with Moscow and Beijing in the face of deepening confrontations with Washington. The midnight parade in the capital, Pyongyang, which was to celebrate North Korea's 75th founding anniversary, came amid expectations that Kim will travel to Russia soon for a meeting with President Vladimir Putin that could focus on North Korean arm sales to refill reserves drained by the Kremlin's war on Ukraine. While China has sent a delegation led by Vice Premier Liu Guozhong to the North Korea's anniversary celebrations, Russia sent a military song and dance group. South Korean media speculated that the lack of Russian government officials at the festivities in Pyongyang could be related to preparations for a summit between Kim and Putin, which Washington expects ...

Launched a new nuclear attack submarine to counter US naval power: N Korea

North Korea said Friday it has launched a purported nuclear attack submarine it has been developing for years, a step leader Kim Jong Un described as crucial in his efforts to build a nuclear-armed navy to counter the United States and its Asian allies. The North's official Korean Central News Agency said the vessel named "Hero Kim Kun Ok" is designed to launch tactical nuclear weapons from underwater but did not specify the number of missiles it could carry and fire. In his speeches at the vessel's launching ceremony on Wednesday and an onboard inspection on Thursday, Kim expressed satisfaction that the country has acquired its own nuclear attack submarine to counter the advanced naval assets of the US, KCNA said. In July, the US docked a nuclear-capable ballistic missile submarine in South Korea for the first time since the 1980s. Kim said the country is also pursuing a nuclear-propelled submarine and plans to remodel its existing submarines and surface vessels so that they coul

Vladimir Putin and Kim's meeting shows the limits of US sanctions

But Washington has few points of leverage to deter two of the western world's most implacable geopolitical foes from cementing ties

China will send delegation to North Korea to celebrate founding anniversary

A Chinese delegation led by Vice Premier Liu Guozhong will visit North Korea to participate in celebrations for its 75th founding anniversary, which is on Saturday, the North's state media said Thursday. The report came amid speculation that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is preparing to visit Russia soon for a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin that could focus on North Korean arms sales to refill Russian reserves drained by its war on Ukraine. The North's official Korean Central News Agency said the visit by Liu's delegation comes at the invitation of North Korea's ruling Workers' Party. It didn't specify the events the Chinese officials would participate in or whether they would meet Kim. North Korea didn't immediately say whether a Russian delegation was also invited for the celebrations, which are expected to be highlighted by a parade of North Korean militia units. A US official said Monday that Washington expects Kim to make a trip to Russia within this month to

China sends delegation to North Korea as nations foster their ties

A Chinese delegation led by Vice-Premier Liu Guozhong will visit North Korea to participate in celebrations for its 75th founding anniversary, which is on Saturday, the North's state media said Thursday. The report came amid speculation that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is preparing to visit Russia soon for a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin that could be focused on advancing talks for North Korean arms sales to refill Russian reserves drained by its war on Ukraine. Pyongyang's official Korean Central News Agency said the visit by Liu's delegation comes at the invitation of North Korea's ruling Workers' Party. It didn't specify the events the Chinese officials would be participating or whether they would be meeting Kim. A U.S. official said Monday that Washington expects Kim to make a trip to Russia within this month to meet Putin as the Kremlin tries to acquire military equipment for use in its war in Ukraine. According to some U.S. reports, the meeting could happe