North Korea launches a railway-borne missile during drills in January, according to state media. (Photo by KCNA via Reuters)
Japan-South Korea rift

U.S., Japan vow cooperation with South Korea on Pyongyang threat

Washington aims to bridge rift between allies to bolster missile response

3 February 2022
Joe Biden's administration is "concerned about a pattern of what we see as increasingly disturbing and escalatory behavior" by North Korea, an official tells Nikkei.
International relations

U.S. weighs more monitoring of illicit North Korea transactions

Biden considers 'appropriate' next move as ICBM concerns grow, official says

2 February 2022
North Korea said it tested a Hwasong-12 intermediate-range ballistic missile on Sunday.
N Korea at crossroads

North Korea demands Biden's attention with flurry of missile tests

Launches coincide with reports of appointment of hard-line U.S. envoy to Seoul

31 January 2022
Shinsegae Group Vice Chairman Chung Yong-jin, shown in his New Year's video message, caused a stir in South Korea by posting an anti-communist slogan on Instagram. (Photo courtesy of Shinsegae Group)
Comment

Retail mogul's anti-communist Instagram posts roil South Korea

Controversy caused by Shinsegae Group heir echoes deepening social divide

30 January 2022
North Korean weaponry, including what is thought to be an ICBM, on display at an October 2020 military parade in Pyongyang. (Korea Media via Kyodo)
N Korea at crossroads

Will North Korea turn up the heat with ICBM test in April?

Pyongyang poised to raise ante as saber-rattling fails to draw attention

30 January 2022
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un attends a meeting of the politburo of the ruling Workers' Party in Pyongyang on Jan. 19. (KCNA via Reuters) 
N Korea at crossroads

North Korea appears to have fired cruise missiles

South Korea's military assesses the launches to determine the nature of the projectiles

25 January 2022
South Korea’s opposition presidential candidate Yoon Suk-yeol, left, said Monday would not meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un without conditions being met. (Source photos by Reuters and KCNA/Reuters) 
South Korea election

South Korean candidate Yoon sets conditions for Kim Jong Un summit

Conservative hopeful defends preemptive strike option against North Korea

24 January 2022
North Korea's Central News Agency reported a missile launch from an undisclosed location on Jan. 17 -- one of four already this year.  
Comment

North Korea policy needs to be overhauled and plan B developed

Tokyo, Seoul, Washington should stop depending on fruitless old approach

23 January 2022
Intercontinental ballistic missiles at a February 2018 military parade in Pyongyang to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the Korean People's Army.
Comment

North Korea tests more missiles -- and China's patience

Kim's volley of launches put pressure on delicate balance in East Asia

20 January 2022
The success of state-sponsored crypto heists will say much about the stability of Kim Jong Un's economy and nuclear ambitions.
Opinion

Will North Korea be the death of Bitcoin?

Pyongyang's $400m crypto haul is bad news for bellwether digital currency

20 January 2022
(Nikkei montage/Reuters/KCNA)
N Korea at crossroads

North Korea's missile launch spree shows Kim Jong Un's hand

Pyongyang times tests to threaten but not doom future diplomacy, economy hopes

19 January 2022
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in December 2021. (KCNA via Reuters)  
N Korea at crossroads

North Korea fires two ballistic missiles from Pyongyang airport

Fourth test this month comes amid stalled talks with U.S. and South Korea

17 January 2022
A railway-born missile is launched during firing drills at an undisclosed location in North Korea, according to the country's state media, in this photo released on Jan. 14. (KCNA via Reuters) 
N Korea at crossroads

North Korea tests railway-borne missile in latest launch

KCNA says a firing drill was held to 'check and judge the proficiency'

15 January 2022
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, right, speaks with officials while attending a hypersonic missile test on Jan. 11, according to state media. (KCNA via Reuters) 
N Korea at crossroads

Kim Jong Un calls for more 'military muscle' after missile test

North Korean leader attends a launch for first time since March 2020

12 January 2022
A TV at a Seoul railway station shows a news report about North Korea's latest missile launch on Jan. 11.
N Korea at crossroads

North Korea's latest missile reached Mach 10: Seoul

'More advanced' test follows condemnation and skepticism of Jan. 5 launch

12 January 2022
"Just like Kim Il Sung had 'juche' and Kim Jong Il had 'songun,' Kim Jong Un too is trying to create his own thought form, by combining these two ideologies and naming it after himself."
Asia Insight

Kim Jong Un-ism: Leader seeks 'new' ideology for North Korea

The third Kim is trying to build an image distinct from his father and grandfather

11 January 2022
Tokyo this year will recast its national defense program guidelines, which define key security policy challenges and detail how they will be tackled.
Comment

How to defend weak Japan: A bitter national security reality

As military balance shifts and China gains dominance, Japan restructures

9 January 2022
North Korea claims it fired a hypersonic missile Jan. 5, shown in this photo released by the country's Korean Central News Agency.
N Korea at crossroads

Seoul rejects North Korea's 'hypersonic missile' claim

South Korean defense ministry thinks conventional ballistic missile was fired

8 January 2022
North Korea's decision comes after not attending Tokyo Olympics in 2021. 
Beijing Winter Olympics

North Korea to skip Beijing Winter Olympics

Pyongyang also calls U.S. moves an 'insult' to Olympic sprit

7 January 2022
Kim Jong Un speaks in Pyongyang: the Peace on the Korean Peninsula Act would run up against the same intransigent North Korean government that has mooted all past attempts at peace negotiations.
Opinion

Peace with North Korea remains a pipe dream

Draft U.S. legislation another attempt in search of elusive 'golden concession'

4 January 2022
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un chairs a session of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea in this photo released on Dec. 29. (Photo by KCNA via Reuters) 
N Korea at crossroads

North Korea calls for greater loyalty by troops to Kim Jong Un

Country celebrates 10th anniversary of his ascension as supreme military commander

30 December 2021
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un addresses the Central Committee of the Workers' Party on Dec. 28.
N Korea at crossroads

Kim Jong Un urges rural growth ahead of 10th anniversary in power

North Korean leader unveils new road map to fight food shortage amid COVID

30 December 2021
Buildings in North Korea are seen behind the Friendship Bridge in Dandong, China. The bridge is one of the few ways to enter or leave the North.
N Korea at crossroads

North Korea braces for economic winter as omicron cuts off trade

A decade later, Kim Jong Un continues policy of suppression over development

21 December 2021
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un delivers remarks in Pyongyang. Kim emulated his grandfather, North Korean founder Kim Il Sung, during the early days of his tenure.
N Korea at crossroads

10 years in, Kim Jong Un steps out of his grandfather's shadow

North Korean leader's weight loss evidence of his desire for long-term rule

19 December 2021