North Korea

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North Korea Confirms It's Holding 2 US Reporters

(Newser) - North Korea today confirmed it is detaining two American journalists on charges of “illegally intruding” into the communist nation, the New York Times reports. The reporters, both from Al Gore’s Current TV station, were reporting along the river border between China and Korea when they were apprehended. “...

North Korea Seizes US Reporters

Guards cross Chinese border to detain pair reporting on refugee crisis

(Newser) - North Korean soldiers reportedly crossed the Chinese border to arrest two American journalists filming in the border zone, the BBC reports. The women were detained Tuesday along with their guide after ignoring warnings to stop filming, according to Korean media. North Korea—which regularly accuses journalists reporting on its refugee...

Despite Hunger, N. Korea Rejects US Food Aid

Pyongyang boots humanitarian groups ahead of rocket launch

(Newser) - North Korea will reject future US food assistance and kicked out five groups distributing American aid, a move that could make an already precarious humanitarian situation even worse, reports the AP. Pyongyang gave no reason for refusing the aid, according to the State Department. North Korea faces chronic food shortages...

North Koreans Eat Pizza—After 10 Years' Wait

Kim Jong-Il wanted perfect recipe before authorizing restaurant

(Newser) - Millions of North Koreans suffer from undernourishment, but in Pyongyang, the ruling elite have a new dining option: the country's first pizzeria. It opened last December, more than a decade after Kim Jong-Il, reportedly a serious gourmand, brought a stable of Italian pizza chefs to teach army officers how to...

North Korean Troops on War Alert
North Korean Troops
on War Alert

North Korean Troops on War Alert

Nuclear state prepares 'satellite' launch that US fears is missile test

(Newser) - North Korea is warning that troops are on full combat alert as its southern neighbor preps for an annual military exercise with the US, BBC reports. The nuclear nation also threatened war if a "satellite" it plans to deploy soon is disturbed. South Korea and the US believe that...

South Korea Slams North's 'Inhumane' Flight Threat

Pyongyang condemned for warning it can no longer guarantee safety for civilian aircraft

(Newser) - South Korea has called on North Korea to withdraw an apparent threat to passenger jets, the Times of London reports. Flights have had to be diverted since North Korea, enraged by upcoming US-South Korea military exercises, warned yesterday that it could no longer guarantee the safety of civilian aircraft—a...

Desperate Hunger Plagues N. Korea, Forces Change

Rampant malnutrition fuels capitalist markets

(Newser) - North Korea has, in its words, an “eating problem”: unable to feed its residents, it has become the world’s first nuclear-armed “beggar,” the Washington Post reports. Malnutrition has led to a spate of mental and physical disabilities—a quarter of potential troops will be disqualified because...

North Korea Threatens Civilian Flights

South Korean-US military exercise rattles Pyongyang

(Newser) - North Korea said it could not guarantee the safety of civilian flights near its airspace in light of a joint US-South Korean military exercise, the Telegraph reports. The annual exercise, which South Korea and the US say is purely defensive, is for next week. Pyongyang warned that it could not...

Stroke Survivor Kim Puffs Away
 Stroke Survivor Kim Puffs Away 

Stroke Survivor Kim Puffs Away

Despite strict anti-smoking laws, North Korean leader takes a drag

(Newser) - President Obama isn't the only world leader with a less-than-consistent message about smoking. Despite his reported stroke last August, North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il was recently photographed puffing on a cigarette during a recent tour of a tobacco factory, reports the AP. One photo shown on North Korean state television...

North Korea Prepares 'Satellite' Launch

Neighbors believe country is readying test of long-range missile

(Newser) - North Korea’s announcement today that it is preparing to launch an "experimental communications satellite" on one of its rockets has raised fears that a long-range missile test is imminent, CNN reports. US and South Korean officials, citing intelligence reports, believe that the country is preparing to launch a...

In Asia, Clinton's on a Mission to Listen
 In Asia, Clinton's 
 on a Mission to Listen 
analysis

In Asia, Clinton's on a Mission to Listen

Secretary of State right at home on 'world stage'

(Newser) - On her trip to China, Japan, South Korea, and Indonesia, Hillary Clinton is making the most of long experience and enthusiastic crowds, the Washington Post reports. The secretary of state is on a listening tour, aiming to rehab the country's image. “There is a hunger for the United States...

Clinton Warns North Korea, Names Special Envoy

Special envoy for North Korea named

(Newser) - Hillary Clinton warned an increasingly belligerent North Korea to cease its "provocative and unhelpful" threats toward the South today, the AP reports. In a Seoul press conference, the secretary of state named former US ambassador to South Korea Stephen Bosworth as special envoy for North Korea and said he...

'Naive' Hillary Underestimates North Korea
'Naive' Hillary Underestimates North Korea
OPINION

'Naive' Hillary Underestimates North Korea

Pyongyang can't be trusted with any nuclear program, says Bolton

(Newser) - Hillary Clinton has embarked on an Asian tour armed with Bush-administration rhetoric and precious little understanding of the gravity of the North Korean situation, writes John R.  Bolton in a Los Angeles Times op-ed. The secretary of state is attempting to gain further support for American efforts to block...

Aso Will Be First Foreign Leader to Visit Obama

Clinton expresses solidarity on North Korea

(Newser) - Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso will head to Washington next week to discuss the economy with President Obama, Hillary Clinton announced today. It will be the first time Obama welcomes a foreign leader to the White House. The meeting was billed as a “bilateral summit” that will show that...

Clinton Arrives in Japan, Warns North Korea

Secretary of state begins week of visits in Asia

(Newser) - Hillary Clinton, on her first trip as secretary of state, arrived today in Tokyo, where she warned North Korea to live up to its commitments to dismantle its nuclear programs, reports the AP. Clinton said the main issues on her agenda include climate change, clean energy, and nuclear proliferation, as...

Clinton Tells N. Korea to Scrap Nukes for Peace Deal

Obama administration willing to aim for permanent peace

(Newser) - Before heading to Asia tomorrow on her first trip as secretary of state, Hillary Clinton sent a clear message to North Korea: Scrap the nukes, drop the war talk, and reap the benefits of better relations with the US, CNN reports. Pyongyang's nuclear program is “the most acute challenge...

Earth, Sky Celebrate Kim Jong-Il's B-day

Leader's upcoming birthday has improved weather: state agency

(Newser) - Temperatures in North Korea are warmer than normal, willow catkins are in bloom, and the moon is sporting a halo—all thanks to Kim Jong-Il. A Korean news agency says “that even the nature and the sky unfolded such mysterious ecstasy in celebration of the birthday” of the North...

Pakistan Frees Nuke Scientist Khan From House Arrest

Admitted giving secrets to North Korea, Iran

(Newser) - The Pakistani scientist who admitted to giving nuclear secrets to rogue states was freed from house arrest today, the BBC reports. Abdul Qadir Khan was pardoned in 2004 but has remained under tight restrictions; the former head of Pakistan’s nuclear program can now leave his house and receive visitors....

Clinton's First Official Stop: Japan

Secretary of state to discuss economy, North Korea

(Newser) - The first stop on Hillary Clinton’s first official trip as secretary of state will be in Japan, reports Asahi Shimbun, allying Japanese fears that Tokyo would take a back seat to the Obama administration's focus on China. The trip will also include stops in China and South Korea. Clinton...

Tensions Flare as N. Korea Axes Pacts With South

Risk of border skirmishes looms

(Newser) - North Korea is unilaterally scrapping all agreements with South Korea as political and military tensions mount between the rival neighbors. The North Koreans are even repudiating the 1953 truce which ended the Korean war, reports the New York Times. Analysts see the move as a tactic to grab the attention...

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