Pyongyang
The North Korean flag flies above the North Korean Embassy in Beijing, Thursday, Feb. 17, 2022. As Beijing holds the winter Olympic games, hundreds of North Koreans are enduring perhaps the longest-running pandemic-enforced separation in the world. The isolationist Communist state has sealed off its borders so tightly that they've left their own ambassador to China stranded in Beijing. (AP Photo/Dake Kang)
BEIJING SNAPSHOT: N. Korea not at Games but diplomat remains

By Dake Kang Feb. 17, 2022 05:28 AM EST

FILE - North Korea's Hwang Chung Gum and South Korea's Won Yun-jong carry the unification flag during the opening ceremony of the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea on Feb. 9, 2018. North Korea basked in the global limelight during the last Winter Games in South Korea, with hundreds of athletes, cheerleaders and officials pushing hard to woo their South Korean and U.S. rivals in a now-stalled bid for diplomacy. Four years later, as the 2022 Winter Olympics come to its main ally and neighbor China, North Korea isn't sending any athletes and officials because of coronavirus fears. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)
'Someone else's festival': No North Korea at ally's Olympics

By Hyung-Jin Kim And Kim Tong-Hyung Feb. 04, 2022 11:29 PM EST

South Korea's Special Representative for Korean Peninsula Peace and Security Affairs Noh Kyu-duk, right, meets with Director-General of the Asian and Oceanian Affairs Bureau of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan Takehiro Funakoshi during their bilateral meeting at a hotel in Seoul, Monday, June 21, 2021. (Jung Yeon-Je/Pool Photo via AP)
US envoy hopes N. Korea responds positively on offered talks

By Kim Tong-Hyung Jun. 20, 2021 11:43 PM EDT

President Joe Biden attends a meeting with South Korean President Moon Jae-in, in the State Dinning Room of the White House, Friday, May 21, 2021, in Washington. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is at left. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Biden, South Korea's Moon 'deeply concerned' about NKorea

By Aamer Madhani, Darlene Superville, And Zeke Miller May. 21, 2021 01:34 AM EDT

North Korea withdraws from World Cup qualification

May. 16, 2021 03:59 AM EDT
SEOUL (AP) — The Asian Football Confederation has announced North Korea has pulled out of qualification for the 2022 World Cup. “The (AFC)...

People visit the statues of their late leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il on the occasion of the Day of the Sun, the birth anniversary of Kim Il Sung, in Pyongyang, North Korea Thursday, April 15, 2021. (AP Photo/Cha Song Ho)
N Koreans mark founder's birthday amid economic difficulties

Apr. 15, 2021 06:11 AM EDT

FILE - In this Feb. 9, 2018, file photo, Kim Yo Jong, right, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's sister, and Kim Yong Nam, president of the Presidium of the Presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly of North Korea, center, observe with South Korean President Moon Jae-in, second from left, and first lady Kim Jung-sook during the opening ceremony of the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, Friday, Feb. 9, 2018. North Korea has decided not to participate in this year’s Olympic Games in Tokyo as it continues a self-imposed lockdown amid the coronavirus pandemic. A website run by the North's Sports Ministry said the decision was made during a national Olympic Committee meeting on March 25, 2021 where members prioritized protecting athletes from the “world public health crisis caused by COVID-19.” (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)
EXPLAINER: Why is North Korea skipping the Tokyo Olympics?

By Hyung-Jin Kim Apr. 06, 2021 06:36 AM EDT

Russia: North Korea 'exodus' will continue amid hardship

Apr. 01, 2021 04:30 PM EDT
MOSCOW (AP) — MOSCOW — Russia’s embassy in North Korea says the country is suffering severe shortages of medicines and necessary goods amid the coronavirus...

FILE - In this June 21, 2019, file photo provided by the North Korean government, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, left, and Chinese President Xi Jinping stroll in the premises of Kumsusan guest house in Pyongyang, North Korea. Kim in a message to Xi called for stronger “unity and cooperation” between the countries in the face of challenges posed by “hostile forces,” the North’s state media and Tuesday, March 23, 2021. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP, File)
Xi, Kim share messages reaffirming China-N. Korea alliance

By Kim Tong-Hyung Mar. 22, 2021 11:28 PM EDT

FILE - In this Feb. 1, 2020, file photo, a staff member of State Commission of Quality Management in protective gear carries a disinfectant spray can as they continue to check the health of travelers in foreign countries and inspect and quarantine goods being delivered via the borders at the Pyongyang Airport in Pyongyang, North Korea. A U.N. spokesman said the world body has been left with no international staff in North Korea and its North Korean employees are working remotely. Despite claiming to be coronavirus free, North Korea has sealed off its borders as part of stringent anti-pandemic measures that also involved the departure of diplomats and foreign nationals. (AP Photo/Jon Chol Jin, File)
UN says no international staff left in North Korea

By Hyung-Jin Kim Mar. 20, 2021 02:07 AM EDT

FILE - In this March 2, 2019, file photo, Kim Yo Jong, sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, attends a wreath-laying ceremony at Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum in Hanoi, Vietnam. In North Korea's first comments directed at the Biden administration, Kim Yo Jong criticized the United States and South Korea for holding military exercises and warned the U.S. against further provocations if it wants a "good night's sleep for the next four years." Her statement was issued on Tuesday, March 16, 2021, as U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin arrived in Asia to talk to U.S. allies Japan and South Korea about North Korea and other regional issues. (Jorge Silva/Pool Photo via AP, File)
North criticizes US-South Korean drills before allies meet

By Kim Tong-Hyung Mar. 15, 2021 10:05 PM EDT

North Korean defector Choi Bok-hwa speaks during an interview in Ansan, South Korea, Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021. For the first time in years, Choi didn’t get her annual birthday call from her mother in North Korea. Choi believes the silence is linked to the pandemic, which led North Korea to shut its borders tighter than ever and impose some of the world’s toughest restrictions on movement. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
N Korean defectors struggle to send money home amid pandemic

By Hyung-Jin Kim Mar. 11, 2021 09:14 PM EST

In this photo provided by the North Korean government, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, center, acknowledges to the applauds after he made his closing remarks at a ruling party congress in Pyongyang, North Korea Tuesday, Jan. 12, 2021. Kim vowed all-out efforts to bolster his country's nuclear deterrent during the major ruling party meeting where he earlier laid out plans to work toward salvaging the broken economy. Independent journalists were not given access to cover the event depicted in this image distributed by the North Korean government. The content of this image is as provided and cannot be independently verified. Korean language watermark on image as provided by source reads: "KCNA" which is the abbreviation for Korean Central News Agency. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP)
North Korea ends party meeting with calls for nuclear might

By Kim Tong-Hyung Jan. 12, 2021 07:50 PM EST

A man wearing a face mask walks past near a TV screen showing a footage of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, at the Seoul Railway Station in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, Jan. 11, 2021. Kim was given a new title, “general secretary” of the ruling Workers’ Party, formerly held by his late father and grandfather, state media reported Monday, in what appears to a symbolic move aimed at bolstering his authority amid growing economic challenges. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
N. Korea's Kim adds title: General secretary of ruling party

By Hyung-Jin Kim Jan. 10, 2021 07:42 PM EST

In this photo provided by the North Korean government, a ruling party congress is held in Pyongyang, North Korea Tuesday, Jan. 5, 2021. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un opened its first Workers’ Party Congress in five years with an admission of policy failures and a vow to lay out new developmental goals, state media reported Wednesday. Independent journalists were not given access to cover the event depicted in this image distributed by the North Korean government. The content of this image is as provided and cannot be independently verified. Korean language watermark on image as provided by source reads: "KCNA" which is the abbreviation for Korean Central News Agency. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP)
Kim opens North Korean congress by admitting policy failures

By Hyung-Jin Kim Jan. 05, 2021 06:19 PM EST

People watch the national flag raising ceremony and fireworks display to celebrate the New Year, at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, North Korea, early Friday, Jan., 1, 2021. (AP Photo/Jon Chol Jin)
North Korea's Kim thanks people in rare New Year's cards

By Hyung-Jin Kim Dec. 31, 2020 08:56 PM EST

FILE - In this Nov. 15, 2020, file photo provided by the North Korean government, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un attends a meeting of the ruling Workers' Party Politburo in Pyongyang, North Korea. Kim is facing the toughest challenges of his nine-year rule. His country’s fragile economy was battered this year by pandemic-related border closings and natural disasters. He’s also likely concerned about President-elect Joe Biden’s expected new approach on North Korea. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP, File)
Mired in crises, North Korea's Kim to open big party meeting

By Hyung-Jin Kim And Kim Tong-Hyung Dec. 28, 2020 12:27 AM EST

FILE - In this Nov. 15, 2020, file photo provided by the North Korean government, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un attends a meeting of the ruling Workers' Party Politburo in Pyongyang, North Korea. Kim ordered at least two people executed, banned fishing at sea and locked down capital Pyongyang as part of frantic efforts to guard against the coronavirus and its economic damage, South Korea’s spy agency told lawmakers Friday, Nov. 27, 2020.(Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP, File)
North Korea accused of using virus to crack down on rights

By Edith M. Lederer Dec. 11, 2020 07:54 PM EST

FILE - In this Nov. 15, 2020, file photo provided by the North Korean government, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un attends a meeting of the ruling Workers' Party Politburo in Pyongyang, North Korea. Kim ordered at least two people executed, banned fishing at sea and locked down capital Pyongyang as part of frantic efforts to guard against the coronavirus and its economic damage, South Korea’s spy agency told lawmakers Friday, Nov. 27, 2020.(Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP, File)
S. Korea agency says N. Korea executed people, shut capital

By Hyung-Jin Kim Nov. 27, 2020 02:06 AM EST

In this image made from video broadcasted by North Korea's KRT, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, center, smiles as he leaves a ceremony to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the country’s ruling party in Pyongyang Saturday, Oct. 10, 2020.(KRT via AP)
North Korea unveils new weapons at military parade

By Kim Tong-Hyung Oct. 10, 2020 10:16 AM EDT