North Korea News Podcast by NK News

Donald Trump’s return to the White House has dramatically reshaped Washington in just two short months, including the world of North Korea policy. But while many in the U.S. expect that Trump will return to the unfinished business of diplomacy with Kim Jong Un, few in the Beltway are willing to speak openly about the […]

Russian security chief Sergei Shoigu made a surprise visit to Pyongyang on Friday to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, a trip that came as DPRK troops fight against Ukraine and the U.S. pushes peace talks to end the war. This week, NK News Data Correspondent Anton Sokolin joins the podcast to discuss […]

A White House order suspending funding for U.S. foreign assistance programs has precipitated an existential crisis for North Korean human rights organizations, likely forcing some to shutter entirely and raising concerns about other DPRK-related initiatives that rely on U.S. government support. This week, three women working in the field — Yoonhee Kim, Joanna Hosaniak and […]

North Korean troops have played a pivotal role in Russia’s successful counteroffensive in Kursk, shaping the lay of the land for peace negotiations and setting up a potential expansion of the DPRK’s role. NK News Managing Editor Bryan Betts joins the podcast to discuss the latest developments from the war in Ukraine and how North […]

Many prominent North Korean defectors who have resettled in South Korea are known for their alignment with conservative political causes, such as the former DPRK diplomat Tae Yong-ho, activist Yeonmi Park and defector lawmaker Park Choong-kwon. But author and political commentator Joh Kyeongil has built his reputation as a defector who supports progressive stances, advocating […]

D-day is rapidly approaching for South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol, with the Constitutional Court expected to rule on whether to uphold his impeachment in the next week. Whatever the court decides, it will have profound implications for not just domestic politics but also North Korea policy and peninsula security. To better understand what’s on the […]

North Korea launched “multiple unidentified ballistic missiles” toward the Yellow Sea on Monday afternoon, according to the South Korean military, hours after the U.S. and ROK kicked off large-scale springtime joint exercises. NK News Deputy Managing Editor Alannah Hill discusses the DPRK’s criticism of the U.S.-ROK Freedom Shield exercise as an “aggressive and confrontational war […]

In this episode, Russian scholar and former diplomat Georgy Toloraya offers his view on the evolving dynamic between Moscow and Pyongyang, exploring how economic cooperation, military ties and geopolitical circumstances are bringing the two closer together. He talks about why this relationship is not just a marriage of convenience but rather a convergence of values, […]

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s younger sister warned the U.S. that Pyongyang is “seriously considering” measures to “escalate” nuclear weapons-related actions in response to Washington sending an aircraft carrier to South Korea this week. NK News Correspondent Joon Ha Park joins the podcast to discuss the arrival of the USS Carl Vinson to the […]

On this week’s episode, NK News Correspondent Jeongmin Kim discusses her time at the Munich Security Conference, an annual meeting on international security policy that has been held in the German city since 1963. She discusses the conference’s focus on the war in Ukraine and North Korean security threats relating to its ties with Russia. […]

North Korea is testing a larger version of its state-of-the-art reconnaissance drone, according to exclusive NK Pro analysis, showing that it is continuing to copy U.S. designs. NK News Data Correspondent Anton Sokolin joins the podcast to discuss the advantages of introducing the new unmanned aerial vehicle with a 40-meter wingspan, as well as the […]

Representatives from Young Pioneer Tours and Koryo Tours crossed over the Chinese border to the Rason Special Economic Zone last week as part of preparatory efforts to resume full-fledged tours to the DPRK in the near future, marking a first since before the pandemic. Rowan Beard and Greg Vaczi join the podcast shortly upon their […]

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un announced that old and deteriorating neighborhoods of Pyongyang will be redeveloped in the coming years, according to state media this week. NK News Lead Correspondent Shreyas Reddy joins the podcast to discuss Kim’s revelation that major annual residential construction projects in Pyongyang won’t end when the current 50,000-home project […]

On today’s episode, intellectual historian Thomas Stock discusses his paper “Polyphonic Peace: The 1989 World Festival of Youth and Students in Pyongyang,” which explores North Korea’s hosting of the 13th World Festival of Youth and Students. This massive event, which brought together 15,000 young people from over 150 countries, was North Korea’s attempt to counter […]

The leader of South Korea’s main opposition party called for renewed dialogue with North Korea this week, while emphasizing the need to maintain strong military readiness amid heightened tensions on the Korean Peninsula. NK New’ Correspondent Jeongmin Kim joins the podcast to discuss what Lee Jae-myung, the current frontrunner in multiple presidential polls, has to […]

In this episode, we speak with Dan Gudgeon, a post-doctoral researcher at the University of Vienna, about how peace narratives shape inter-Korean relations. Drawing from his research on South Korea’s Sunshine Policy era, Dan explains how national identity and “ontological security” influence public and political willingness to engage in peace building. He then discusses whether […]

North Korea issued its first statement directed at U.S. President Donald Trump and his DPRK policy since his inauguration two weeks ago. NK News founder Chad O’Carroll joins the podcast to discuss Pyongyang’s remarks as well as reports that Ukraine killed multiple North Korean officers in a strike on a command post in Russia’s Kursk […]

Researcher Kap Seol, a frequent contributor to the leftist magazine Jacobin, joins the podcast to discuss his recent article about how the deployment of DPRK troops to fight in Ukraine could lead South Korea to respond by escalating its own involvement. The self-described former socialist also talks about the similarities between Kim Il Sung and […]

North Korea launched multiple sea-to-surface strategic cruise missiles on Saturday, with leader Kim Jong Un overseeing the first weapons test since Donald Trump assumed the U.S. presidency. NK News Correspondent Joon Ha Park joins the podcast to discuss the launch, as well as a former ROK spy likening President Yoon Suk-yeol’s alleged order to arrest […]

North Korea-Russia ties have grown by leaps and bounds since Moscow launched its invasion of Ukraine, while its relationship with China appears to have suffered as a result. This week, expert Lyle Goldstein joins the podcast to share insights into Pyongyang’s strategic partnerships with its neighbors and the complex dynamics that shape its nuclear ambitions. […]