Politics

U.S. President Donald Trump has instructed officials to be vigilant against attacks on the upcoming elections.
International relations

US to go on cyber offense against state actors

Washington warns Russia, China and North Korea of consequences of attacks

29 September 2018
Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong, center, welcomes Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, right, and South Korean President Moon Jae-in during the inauguration of a smartphone plant in Noida, India in July. (courtesy of Samsung)
Business trends

Moon warms to Samsung for help on jobs and North Korea

South Korean prosecutors excuse Lee family from union sabotage indictment

28 September 2018
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe addresses the 73rd session of the United Nations General Assembly on Sept. 25 in New York.
International relations

Abe tells UN he hopes to meet 'face to face' with Kim Jong Un

Japanese prime minister also stresses free trade talks with RCEP nations and US

26 September 2018
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, left, met with South Korean President Moon Jae-in on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly.
N Korea at crossroads

Kim 'ready' to talk with Japan, Moon tells Abe

North Korean leader open to improving relations, at an appropriate time

26 September 2018
U.S. President Donald Trump, right, and South Korean President Moon Jae-in gesture after signing the U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreementon during a ceremony on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly in New York on Sept. 24.
Trade war

South Korea gives Trump his first big trade deal

Second summit with Kim will be announced 'soon,' president says

25 September 2018
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has invited North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho to meet in New York next week.
N Korea at crossroads

US pulls North Korea to home turf to lock in diplomatic gains

Trump and Pompeo will use UN events to narrow gaps on denuclearization

21 September 2018
South Korean President Moon Jae-in says North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has messages for him to pass to U.S. President Donald Trump. 
N Korea at crossroads

Moon says Kim Jong Un gave him messages to relay to Trump

South Korean leader asks US and North Korea to set denuclearization deadline

20 September 2018
Ri Sol Ju, left, wife of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, and Kim Jung-sook, wife of South Korean President Moon Jae-in, visit a children's hospital in Pyongyang on Sept. 18. (Pyongyang Press Corps)
N Korea at crossroads

North Korea deploys 'first lady diplomacy' during Moon's visit

Pyongyang eager to create the impression of an 'ordinary country'

20 September 2018
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and South Korean President Moon Jae-in make a show of unity on Mount Paektu on September 20.
N Korea at crossroads

Moon and Kim trek 'sacred' Mt. Paektu together

Korean leaders take symbolic retreat after denuclearization agreement

20 September 2018
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, left, has extended an invitation to meet North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho in New York next week.
N Korea at crossroads

US to restart North Korea talks, with 2021 deadline in sight

Pompeo proposes meeting with counterpart Ri Yong Ho in New York

20 September 2018
South Korean President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un signed an agreement on denuclearization in Pyongyang on Sept. 19.  (Pyongyang Press Corps)
N Korea at crossroads

North Korea agrees to demolish nuclear site under expert supervision

Kim Jong Un to visit Seoul as Moon pushes economic ties despite sanctions

19 September 2018
South Korean President Moon Jae-in walks with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un upon arrival in Pyongyang, North Korea on Sept. 18.  (Pyongyang Press Corps)
N Korea at crossroads

Kim Jong Un tells Moon 'Singapore summit stabilized region'

South Korean leader looks to persuade North to act in Pyongyang visit

18 September 2018
South Korean President Moon Jae-in, right, is set to meet with North Korea's Kim Jong Un on Tuesday. Moon is to bring a business delegation with him. 
N Korea at crossroads

Moon to bring South Korean businesses to summit with Kim

Samsung subdued about projects in the North but KT and Lotte dive in

17 September 2018
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un attends a military parade marking the 70th anniversary of the country's founding on Sept. 9. His appearances are increasingly geared toward economic endeavors over military ones.
N Korea at crossroads

On Kim Jong Un's list of worries, public opinion outranks a coup

Silent majority grows weary waiting for elusive 'glory of socialism'

17 September 2018
Kim and Trump walk to their meeting during the historic Singapore summit.
N Korea at crossroads

Kim Jong Un and Donald Trump: Each other's enabler

Denuclearization has stalled but the men remain on their eerie honeymoon

16 September 2018
Tanks -- not intercontinental ballistic missiles -- roll through Pyongyang during a parade celebrating the 70th anniversary of North Korea's founding on Sept. 9.
China up close

Xi-Kim honeymoon exposed as a facade

Ties with Trump more important to the old allies than their own relationship

13 September 2018
North Korea held a celebratory parade on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of its founding, but the country remains hemmed in by tough economic sanctions that the U.S. is not willing to loosen until concrete steps toward denuclearization are taken. 
N Korea at crossroads

Three months after Trump-Kim summit: Where five leaders stand

With denuclearization talks stalemated, the two leaders seek another meeting

12 September 2018
The Kaesong industrial complex is located in North Korea, close to the border with South Korea.
N Korea at crossroads

Two Koreas to open joint liaison office in Kaesong on Friday

Facility will offer communications channel for exchanging messages between leaders

12 September 2018
U.S. President Donald Trump, left, and North Korea's Kim Jong Un, who conferred in Singapore June 12, both have their reasons for wanting a second meeting soon.
N Korea at crossroads

Trump seeks Kim summit soon as US elections approach

Pyongyang aims for a declaration of the end of the Korean War

12 September 2018
North Korea's Reconnaissance General Bureau, which is said to have a team of 6,800 hackers, is considered to be one of the globe's five cyberespionage powers, along with the U.S., Russia, China and Israel.
N Korea at crossroads

North Korean hackers' evolution on display in US case

Extensive legwork employed to gain trust before attacks unleashed

11 September 2018
North Korea's "mass games" on Sunday featured English-language messages with a conciliatory tone.
11 September 2018
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, right, raises the hand of  Li Zhanshu, China's third-ranking official, during a parade on Sept. 9, marking the 70th anniversary of North Korea's founding in Pyongyang.
N Korea at crossroads

North Korea keeps ICBMs out of sight at 70th anniversary parade

Kim signals commitment to nuclear talks with US and close China ties at event

9 September 2018
Members of the Japan Self-Defense Forces search for survivors from a house damaged by a landslide in this week's Hokkaido earthquake.
Economy

Japan ministries seek record budget for defense, disaster relief

Abe seeks to prepare nation for higher welfare costs and North Korea threat

7 September 2018
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un wants to issue a declaration with the U.S. and South Korea officially ending the Korean War.
7 September 2018
South Korean President Moon Jae-in, left, and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during their meeting in May.
N Korea at crossroads

Two Koreas agree to hold summit in Pyongyang Sept. 18-20

Kim Jong Un tells South Korean envoy of his will to denuclearize

6 September 2018