North Korea

Park Sang-hak  prepares to release a balloon containing leaflets denouncing North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in 2016.
Interview

North Korea defector to continue leaflet drops despite Seoul ban

Kim Jong Un grew furious after seeing them on trip, Park Sang Hak says

23 June 2020
From left, then-U.S. national security adviser John Bolton, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and President Donald Trump attend the second North Korea-U.S. summit in Hanoi in February 2019.
International relations

Bolton's account of North Korea talks is distorted, Seoul says

Former US adviser's memoir claims South Korea pushed for Trump-Kim summit

23 June 2020
SoftBank Group Chairman and CEO Masayoshi Son will face investors at the company's annual shareholders' meeting. 
Your Week in Asia

SoftBank's Son faces investors, China-EU summit, Korean War at 70

Your weekly lineup of Asia's biggest business and political events

21 June 2020
The North Korean regime is especially sensitive to propaganda leaflets, sent via balloons, that criticize leader Kim Jong Un. (Source photos by AP/Reuters)
N Korea at crossroads

North Korea has dealt furiously with propaganda affronts before

From military to activists, South Korea has history of provoking Kim Jong Un

20 June 2020
Former National Security Adviser John Bolton's book "The Room Where It Happened" is scheduled for release on June 23.
International relations

Five things John Bolton revealed on Trump's Asia policy

From trade deal to Xinjiang, tell-all book paints boss as erratic

20 June 2020
Kim Yo Jong has emerged as one of North Korea's most visible figures in recent weeks as the country resumes a more aggressive posture toward the South.
N Korea at crossroads

Kim Yo Jong bolsters military credentials leading charge on South

Kim Jong Un paves way to ensure trusted sister can carry on the dynasty

18 June 2020
Marines patrol on Yeonpyeong Island, South Korea, on Tuesday. North Korea blew up an inter-Korean liaison office building just north of the heavily armed border the same day, sharply raising tensions on the Korean Peninsula.
N Korea at crossroads

North and South Korea border tensions: Seven things to know

The two militaries rarely exchange fire, but accidental clashes are a risk

17 June 2020
South Korean K-55 self-propelled howitzers are loaded onto vehicles in Paju, near the border with North Korea, on Wednesday. North Korea said it will redeploy troops to now-shuttered inter-Korean tourism and economic sites near the border.
N Korea at crossroads

South Korea vows to retaliate against any North military action

Seoul says it can no longer tolerate personal attacks on President Moon Jae-in

17 June 2020
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un supervises a "strike drill" involving rocket launchers in May 2019.
17 June 2020
Stream article image
Aerospace & Defense Industries

Aegis Ashore suspension stretches Japan's defenses dangerously thin

Decision shakes alliance with US and puts country's southwest at risk

17 June 2020
North Korea demolished the two Koreas' joint liaison office in the border city of Kaesong on Tuesday. (Courtesy of South Korea's Ministry of National Defense)
N Korea at crossroads

North Korea destroys Kaesong joint liaison office with South

Pyongyang has hinted at taking military action in recent days

16 June 2020
Kim Jong Un with his sister, Kim Yo Jong: Kim Yo Jong has become an increasingly visible in the North Korean regime, fueling widespread speculation that she is being groomed as her brother's successor.
N Korea at crossroads

Kim Jong Un's sister fans flames of inter-Korean tensions

South Korea on edge over threat of retaliation over anti-Pyongyang flyers

16 June 2020
Detail of a painting titled "Follow the Orders of the Great Party and Win the Final Victory!” Hand-painted in acrylic on heavyweight paper by North Korean artists, it is based on a propoganda poster. (Courtesy of koryostudio.com)
Arts

North Korean art captures the world's imagination

Paintings offer unique insight into the Hermit Kingdom

15 June 2020
Kim Yo Jong, seen on TV, is considered the most powerful woman in North Korea. 
N Korea at crossroads

Kim Jong Un's sister hints at military action against South Korea

North Korea's Kim Yo Jong says liaison office will be destroyed

14 June 2020
North Korean students stage a rally in Pyongyang on Saturday to denounce South Korea after activists in the South flew propaganda leaflets over the border.
N Korea at crossroads

North Korea brands South 'enemy' as domestic woes mount

Income dries up and food crisis looms as coronavirus keeps borders shut

12 June 2020
Kim Yo Jong seen walking at the truce village of Panmunjom inside the demilitarized zone separating the two Koreas in April 2018. 
N Korea at crossroads

Kim Jong Un's sister emerges as policymaker in spat with South

Kim Yo Jong issues statement with unique style, analysts say

10 June 2020
Shigeru Yokota, foreground, whose daughter Megumi was abducted by North Korean agents in 1977, has died at the age of 87.
The Nikkei View

Father's death highlights need for results in abduction issue

Just two parents of North Korean kidnapping victims are still alive

10 June 2020
Shigeru Yokota always carried a comb Megumi gave him, saying that he would like her to comb his hair someday. The wish never came true.
Obituaries

Father's dream of seeing abducted daughter Megumi forever dashed

Long struggle helped other victims return from North Korea, but not Yokota's daughter

6 June 2020
(All images from Amazon.com)
Arts

Top 10 East Asian books to read during lockdown

From Chinese sci-fi to Tibetan short stories, we have something for everyone

15 May 2020
disquieting moves in North Korea have fueled much speculation in recent weeks.
The Nikkei View

Beware North Korea taking advantage of coronavirus chaos

Pandemic must not be catalyst for regional disorder

13 May 2020
A woman passes by a TV screen showing an image of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and his sister Kim Yo Jong during a news program at the Seoul Railway Station in Seoul, South Korea on May 2. 
N Korea at crossroads

Kim Jong Un's sister and the fight for North Korea's bloodline

Kim Yo Jong must win over family members to be next in line to lead

9 May 2020
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, left, walks alongside Chinese President Xi Jinping during the latter's visit to Pyongyang, North Korea in this picture released on June 21, 2019. (KCNA via Reuters)
N Korea at crossroads

Kim Jong Un congratulates Xi on coronavirus handling

North Korean leader says relations with China are 'firmly consolidated'

8 May 2020
North Korean citizens seen wearing masks in front of Pyongyang Station on April 1.
N Korea at crossroads

Seoul says there is panic buying in North Korea

Kim Jong Un conducts duties, but economy under pressure

7 May 2020
Members of Japan's Self-Defense Forces stand by land-to-air missiles in Tokyo. Japan is boosting its missile defenses to protect itself from a potential strike by North Korea.
Aerospace & Defense Industries

Japan's missile shield deployment scuppered by local resistance

Tokyo looks at alternative Aegis Ashore sites as North Korean threat looms

7 May 2020
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has visited the fertilizer plant several times, as seen here in this image released in January by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency.
N Korea at crossroads

Kim drives home message with fertilizer plant reemergence

North Korea attempts to show economic 'breakthroughs' at home and abroad

3 May 2020