North Korea held a national election on Sunday for its Supreme People’s Assembly, a rubber-stamp event thought to strengthen the solidarity of its communist regime. The North elects its legislators every five years in events similar to general elections for lawmakers here. But each constituency has a sole candidate and voters can only vote for or against.  An electoral worker shows a ballot during the election at a polling station in Pyongyang, North Korea, Sunday. (AP-Yonhap)The Supreme People’

North Korea March 10, 2019

The unexpected sight of South Korean President Moon Jae-in and North Korea’s leader Kim Jong-un crossing the Military Demarcation Line back and forth, hand-in-hand, before their first summit on April 27, 2018, is still fresh in the memory of many Koreans. Starting with the first summit, the inter-Korean relationship, which had virtually frozen over the North’s repeated missile and nuclear tests, quickly improved, leading to a bilateral military agreement to stop “all hostile acts.”  South Korean

North Korea March 10, 2019

A 47-year-old man with over 62 criminal convictions was arrested again Tuesday for drinking and dashing, two months after being released from prison.Gwangju Seobu Police Station detained the man for habitual fraud. He was caught trying to run away after consuming some 340,000 won ($300) worth of drinks at a bar on Feb. 26.  (Reuters-Yonhap)According to police, the man told them to detain him because the jail is “comfortable” and said that he had committed the crime deliberately. He also reported

Social Affairs March 5, 2019

South Korea and the United States kicked off their weeklong combined exercise Dong Maeng on Monday, replacing the previous large-scale springtime exercises, as announced by the defense ministries of the two sides Sunday.The newly introduced Dong Maeng, a computer-simulated command post exercise, will run through March 12. It is widely understood to be a downsized version of Key Resolve, which had usually been conducted over a period of two weeks. “Dong Maeng” means alliance in Korean.  (AFP-Yonh

Defense March 5, 2019

HANOI, Vietnam -- North Korean leader Kim Jong-un will depart from Hanoi earlier than scheduled, sources said Friday, following his summit with US President Donald Trump that ended with no deal. Kim began a two-day official visit to Hanoi on Friday. He is scheduled to meet with Vietnamese President Nguyen Phu Trong, who is also the general secretary of the ruling Communist Party. He will also meet Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and National Assembly Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan. He

North Korea March 1, 2019

HANOI, Vietnam -- US President Donald Trump hinted that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s vision for denuclearization may be different from that of the United States, after the two failed to reached an agreement at their summit in Hanoi on Thursday.During a press conference, Trump said that while the meeting with Kim was “productive,” he felt it was not time to sign a deal, as they had failed to reduce gaps on the extent of denuclearization and the lifting of economic sanctions.Kim had asked for

North Korea Feb. 28, 2019

HANOI, Vietnam -- Just a couple of hours before the first meeting set to take place between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on Wednesday during their second summit, the roads around the Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi were blocked with barricades and standing armed guards.Vietnamese security officials restrict access to roads leading to Sofitel Metropole Hanoi Hotel on Wednesday. (Jo He-rim/The Korea Herald)Vietnamese security officials restrict access to roads leadi

North Korea Feb. 27, 2019

HANOI, Vietnam -- While every movement of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is being watched by the world, his sister’s close assistance has caught the public‘s attention. As one of the most powerful figures in North Korea, Yo-jong stands next to her brother in all engagements and has been spotted inspecting the summit venue and holding an ashtray for her brother.When the North Korean leader departed Pyongyang for Hanoi on Saturday afternoon for his second summit with US President Donald Trump, Yo

North Korea Feb. 27, 2019

HANOI, Vietnam -- Hosting the second summit between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, Hanoi bustled with both excitement and tension as it welcomed the two leaders Tuesday.From US and North Korean flags hung on the streets to shops selling T-shirts featuring the faces of Trump and Kim, the city has been busy preparing for the summit. As Kim got off from the train from Pyongyang at Dong Dang Station in Vietnam in the morning, security was tightened and roads were bloc

North Korea Feb. 26, 2019

US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un are set to negotiate their respective offers when they meet Wednesday and Thursday, with both sides expressing a commitment to the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. While speculation is rampant as to what might be on the negotiating table, Washington is expected to try to persuade Pyongyang to give up its nuclear and missile programs and facilities. In return, analysts say, the communist regime is likely to demand measures to

North Korea Feb. 26, 2019

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is on his way to Hanoi, Vietnam, for his second summit with US President Donald Trump this week. While every movement of the isolated communist leader is a subject of attention, questions have been raised as to why Kim has chosen a 60-hour train ride, over a plane journey that would take just three or four hours.Kim started off on his long train trip Saturday afternoon, departing from Pyonngyang’s train station at around 4:30 p.m. If Kim were to take the train all

North Korea Feb. 25, 2019

Seoul and Tokyo are at odds over Japan’s participation in planned multinational maritime exercises in spring, raising tension between the two countries already strained by a recent military spat and historical issues. The 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations and eight other partner countries, including Korea, plan to hold maritime exercises first in the coastal waters off Busan from April 29 to May 2, followed by waters off Singapore from May 9 to 13.After finalizing details during t

Defense Feb. 24, 2019

North Korea’s cyber operations against South Korea are increasingly carried out for financial gain, whereas its espionage attacks have become more subtle and sophisticated, a report said Wednesday.“The Evolution of North Korean Cyber Threats” by the Asan Institute for Policy Studies said the North’s illegal cyber activities had shifted toward theft in the past decade. (Yonhap)Describing the trends from 2009 to 2018, the report said Pyongyang had focused on Distributed Denial of Services attacks

North Korea Feb. 20, 2019

North Korean hackers ranked second in cyberattack capabilities in terms of the speed in breaking into targeted networks, a report by a US cybersecurity firm said Wednesday.According to the Global Threat Report by CrowdStrike, North Korea was second in “breakout time” at 2 hours and 20 minutes, coming behind Russia, which recorded 18 minutes and 47 seconds. (123rf)Breakout time refers to the window of time from when the attacker first compromises the endpoint machine -- any device that has the ca

North Korea Feb. 20, 2019

The number of foreign residents in Korea continues to grow and now accounts for some 3.6 percent of the country’s population. This story is part of a series that examines how Korea is grappling with the issue of multiculturalism, as well as the challenges facing new arrivals. -- Ed.In a country where the phrase “homogenous nation” was once chanted with pride not long ago, there was nothing strange about a provision within the military law that exempted men of mixed heritage from military service

Defense Feb. 19, 2019