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You’re the Jong that I want — North Korean leader was an all-American hero — Kim Jong-un starred in school production of Grease — Despot 'sang along to hits like Summer Nights'

No one should be allowed to throw Asia into chaos: Xi Jinping Beijing, Apr 7: Amid raging tension in the Korean peninsula, new Chinese President Xi Jinping today warned that no one should be allowed to throw the region into chaos for “selfish gains”, saying future of rapidly growing Asia depends on peace and stability. “No one should be allowed to throw a region and even the whole world into chaos for selfish gains,” Xi said in apparent reference to US Pivot to Asia Pacific, which China says is aimed at containing it. “Stability in Asia now faces new challenges,...

2013/04/04 14:28 KST N. Korea threatens to pull out its workers from Kaesong park SEOUL, April 4 (Yonhap) -- North Korea threatened Thursday to pull out tens of thousands of its workers from the joint inter-Korean industrial complex if South Korea continues to insult Pyongyang's dignity. The latest threat comes as the North has banned the entry of South Koreans workers and vehicles into the complex in the North's western border city of Kaesong for a second straight day, though it is allowing South Koreans there to return home. If South Korea keeps "vociferating about the zone, we will take...

North Korea seen moving mid-range missile to east coast: reports SEOUL | Wed Apr 3, 2013 9:13pm EDT (Reuters) - North Korea has moved what appears to be a mid-range Musudan missile to its east coast, South Korea's Yonhap news agency said on Thursday, quoting multiple government sources privy to intelligence from U.S. and South Korean authorities. It was not clear if the missile was mounted with a warhead or whether the North was planning to fire it or was just putting it on display as a show of force, one South Korean government source was quoted as saying.

2013/04/03 11:25 KST N. Korea only allowing S. Korean workers to leave Kaesong, banning entry SEOUL, April 3 (Yonhap) -- North Korea said Wednesday it will ban South Korean workers from entering the inter-Korean industrial park in Kaesong, only allowing South Koreans now staying at the North Korean border town to return home. Seoul's Ministry of Unification said that it received an official notification to the effect from the North earlier in the day. "South Korea's government deeply regrets the entry ban and urges it be lifted immediately," ministry spokesman Kim Hyung-seok said in a press conference. He said every...

Who Is the Mystery Man Next to Kim Jong-un? A mystery man was spotted next to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un at a ceremony on Sunday marking the first anniversary of former leader Kim Jong-il's death. The man, dressed in a suit and tie, occupied a place close to the leader reserved for the No. 1 military official, and South Korean intelligence are trying to find out who he is. Since Kim Jong-un seems lately more concerned about his personal safety, the man may just be a body guard, an intelligence official here said. An unidentified man (marked) stands next...

A guard in helmet carrying an assault rifle is seen in the background(circled in the photo.) Previously, an armed security guard had not been seen in the photo of his on-site tours as well as Kim Jong-il's. N. Korea recently conducted mass firing (purge) of high-ranking generals. Many top-ranking generals are either demoted or under house arrest (one-time top military man, Lee Yong-ho.) Besides, Kim Jong-eun took away military's lucrative hard currency earning enterprises. He must be mindful of backlash. His life expectancy is shrinking.

2012/10/26 10:48 KST N. Korea imports US$170,000 of firearms from Switzerland SEOUL, Oct. 26 (Yonhap) -- North Korea imported US$170,000 worth of firearms from Switzerland in the first half of this year, Seoul's trade agency said Friday. The communist country brought in about $100,000 of guns such as shotguns, air and gas rifles, and revolvers while importing around $70,000 worth of firearm components, according to the report by the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency, or KOTRA.

Kim Jong Il’s grandson calls his uncle Kim Jong Eun a ‘dictator’ By Olga Khazan , Updated: October 19, 2012 With hipster glasses, near-perfect English and progressive ideas, Kim Han Sol certainly doesn’t seem like a stereotypical North Korean. In an interview with a Finnish broadcaster, the grandson of Kim Jong Il and nephew of current North Korean leader Kim Jong Eun comes off as a normal, well-adjusted teen who dreams of going back to North Korea to “make things better, make it easier for the people there.” Kim was born in 1995 in Pyongyang but went to an international...

Kim Jong-nam Disappears from Radar The eldest son of former North Korean leader Kim Jong-il has not been seen in his second home in Macau since his half brother Kim Jong-un became the new leader of the North. The head of an association for Korean residents in Macau, Lee Dong-sup, said Kim Jong-nam disappeared from Macau since his brother came to power late last year. Lee, who has lived in Macau since 1982, told the Chosun Ilbo, "I got to know Kim Jong-nam around 2000 due to a chance encounter and kept in touch with him, but I haven't seen...

Kim Jong-un's Aunt 'Seriously Ill' North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's aunt Kim Kyong-hui, one of the young leader's main pillars of support, is said to be seriously ill. Kim Kyong-hui did not show up at the session of the Supreme People's Assembly on Tuesday, a senior South Korean government source said Thursday. "It's likely that her health has deteriorated." There are rumors in the diplomatic community that she is in Singapore for emergency surgery. But the source denied this, saying the North Korean elite often visit Singapore for fun. Another source said Kim Kyong-hui looked healthy at the opening of...

Alcohol a Threat to Kim Guardianship Role By Park Seong Guk [2012-08-24 12:16 ] Despite treatment in China for her dependence on alcohol, 66-year old Chosun Workers’ Party Secretary Kim Kyung Hee has been unable to stop drinking and is in increasingly ill-health as a consequence, Daily NK has been informed. A Japanese source explained on the 24th, “Due to the long term damage caused by her drinking, Kim Kyung Hee went to China in secret for treatment. However, she still has not been able to quit drinking, to the point where her poor health may make it hard for...

UPDATE: Kim Jong Eun to Iran? No, Kim Yong Nam August 22, 2012, 6:54 PM KST By Evan Ramstad A report that suggested North Korean dictator Kim Jong Eun might travel to Iran lit up the North Korea watch-o-sphere Wednesday. But it appeared to be a misunderstanding over the role of Kim Yong Nam, the poor old guy who has the biggest title in the North’s government but has always been second fiddle to the leader from the family of Kim Il Sung. The German news agency DPA, citing an Iranian news website Tabnak, got the report going around the...

Kim Jong Un Is No Reformer North Korea's new leader studied in Switzerland and has a young, attractive wife. That doesn't mean he's into the whole hope and change thing. BY VICTOR D. CHA |AUGUST 21, 2012 For those searching for signs of reform in North Korea, Kim Jong Un has been a godsend. Women on North Korean state TV wore high heels and miniskirts while he sat in the audience. Disney characters, the cultural export of a country North Korea has long demonized, danced onstage. The not-yet-30-year-old Kim, since taking over from father in December 2011, frolicked with school...

Reports: North Korea's Kim Jong Un will travel to Iran North Korean leader Kim Jong Un at a military base in the southern part of the country, in a recently released, undated photo from the country's official news service. By Kari Huus, NBC News North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is planning to travel to Tehran next week, in his first overseas visit since taking over after his father's death in December, South Korea’s Yonhap and Arirang news services reported on Wednesday. Iran’s spokesman for the Non-Aligned Movement Summit confirmed that Kim would attend a meeting of the 120-member Non-Aligned...

Kim Jong-un Inherits Father's Taste for Bling North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is spending top dollar on luxury products from overseas. He is apparently building a private ski resort and importing equipment to build his own sauna. The younger Kim's propensity for luxury goods seems to exceed even his late father Kim Jong-il's penchant for the good life, which involved expensive whiskey and foreign cars bought as gifts for loyal officials. According to diplomatic sources, the North recently imported sauna equipment from Finland and Germany. "Kim Jong-un likes to drink and party all night like his father and ordered the...

Kim Caught Fiddling as Rome Burns By Choi Song Min [2012-08-06 17:45 ] Ri Sol Joo has caught the attention of the international community with her shows of public affection for husband Kim Jong Eun but, contrary to the aim, this is eliciting a negative response from some sections of the North Korean public. A source from Hyesan in Yangkang Province told Daily NK today, “Recently, a documentary film ‘Marshal Kim Jong Eun’s Guidance in All Areas of the People’s Economy’ has been on Chosun Central TV every day. The film shows scenes praising Kim Jong Eun’s achievements over the...

Death Camps Vs. Disney Characters By Kim Tae Hong [2012-08-01 15:44 ] In recent months, the world has watched North Korea adopt several reform measures under its new leader. However, it appears that policy regarding human rights problems in the country will remain unchanged. Earlier this year, former Washington Post correspondent Blane Harden released a book entitled Escape from Camp 14, which details the conditions inside one of North Korea’s political prison camps. In the current issues of Foreign Policy, Harden again touches upon the issue of North Korea’s camps, and his perception of Kim Jong Eun’s leadership. Kim Jong...

AshleyMadison's Dumbest Ad Yet Stars Kim Jong Un Billboard goes up in L.A. By David Kiefaber Not content with ruining marriages on the East Coast, adultery website AshleyMadison.com is expanding into Los Angeles with a billboard near the airport that features a picture of North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un, alongside the headline, "Affairs now guaranteed. Even if you look like him." Like what, an Asian guy? Nice. Have fun settling that out of court. The ad refers to the recent surprise news that Kim is married, and is a cheap shot at a guy who, whatever any other issues...

Competition and Corruption Breed Disruption [Lee Young Hwa Reform Outlook ③] By Prof. Lee Young Hwa, Kansai University, Japan [2012-07-26 15:36 ] ▲ The spoils of (non) war Another factor is military trends. Even today, the North Korean military enjoys many economic benefits under military-first politics. Obviously, there are power struggles within the military. There was once a fierce battle between Lee Young Ho’s up-and-coming military faction and the former generations like Oh Keuk Ryul’s camp. According to information obtained from a senior North Korean cadre, the newer group actively revealed its hostility toward the ‘6.28 Policy.’ This was because...

The Wild Horses of Capitalism [Lee Young Hwa Reform Outlook ②] By Prof. Lee Young Hwa, Kansai University, Japan [2012-07-26 09:33 ] ▲ The 2009 currency redenomination as ‘economic terrorism’ In North Korea, markets emerged spontaneously as a result of the famine between 1994 and 1999. These new markets made the greatest possible contribution to ending the famine. To employ a metaphor; past economic reforms attempted to rein in the wild market horses. This is illustrative of the character of “reforms” that occurred in the past. Kim Jong Il thought it was dangerous for the herd of wild horses to...

Kim Jong Eun is married, North Korea confirms By Chico Harlan, Thursday, July 26, 12:20 AM TOKYO — North Korean state media on Wednesday revealed that leader Kim Jong Eun is married, a jarring announcement in a country that has long kept its first ladies nearly invisible. The announcement ends weeks of speculation about the identity of a slender woman — with a stylish bob of hair — who’d accompanied Kim in several recent public appearances. Inside North Korea: A rare visual tour inside the reclusive and secretive country. Kim Jong Eun, North Korea’s ‘great successor’: Following the death of North Korean...

A Policy of Market Suppression [Lee Young Hwa Reform Outlook ①] By Prof. Lee Young Hwa, Kansai University, Japan [2012-07-25 18:00 ] According to recent defector testimony, low- and mid-level cadres and the North Korean people are expecting big things from the Kim Jong Eun regime. The focus is on economic reform. Everyone is wondering whether the Kim Jong Eun regime really will improve the lives of the North Korean people through economic restructuring. Widespread expectation means that many people are ‘watching the Kim Jong Eun regime closely.” The Kim Jong Eun regime needs to respond swiftly to these expectations....

Kim's ex-sushi chef 'invited back to N. Korea' A Japanese sushi chef who served the late North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il and his family for 13 years, writing books about their secretive lives, was seen on his way to revisit the country on Friday. The author, who goes by the pseudonym of Kenji Fujimoto, told Japanese media at Tokyo's Narita airport that he had been invited to visit North Korea by its new leader Kim Jong-Un, whom he had served when the Korean leader was a boy. "I was invited by Marshal Kim Jong-Un himself, and there is no reason...

North Korea's Kim Takes on Marshal's Rank By EVAN RAMSTAD North Korean leader Kim Jong Eun added a new military rank—marshal—to his list of other titles, the North's state media announced Wednesday, capping a shake-up in the highest ranks of the North's military that included the ouster of a general who was considered to be close to Mr. Kim. The new rank places Mr. Kim above six military leaders who hold the rank of vice marshal, including one who was promoted on Tuesday and was viewed as a possible successor of the military chief who was relieved of his duties...

North Korea's young leader promoted a new army marshal after sacking his top general in what a South Korean official report said was a bid to impose authority on a military that has been the backbone of his family's long rule over the isolated state. But analysts said the moves, just seven months since rising to power, do not suggest any fundamental change by Kim Jong-un to the policies of his grandfather and father which have left North Korea constantly on the brink of famine and ostracized by the most of the world. … One of the main beneficiaries of...

Video link at DailyNK.com: http://www.dailynk.com/korean/read_nktv.php?cataId=tv00003&num=264&viewmode=

July 9, 2012, 9:16 p.m. ET Replica Disney Dancers Take North Korea Stage By EVAN RAMSTAD SEOUL—North Korean leader Kim Jong Eun and other top officials attended a televised variety show over the weekend that included dancers imitating Disney Co. DIS -0.08% characters such as Mickey Mouse, a noteworthy development in an authoritarian regime that routinely criticizes the U.S. and other foreign cultures. The dancers' costumes weren't precise replicas of Disney characters, and Disney told the Associated Press that it didn't authorize or license its characters to North Korea or the art troupe that produced the show. But the variety...

The top managers of North Korea's clandestine nuclear and ballistic missile program have been methodically promoted and now dominate the inner circle of Kim Jong-eun's new government, confidential foreign government documents and official media reports from Pyongyang show. The shadowy group of power brokers in the world's most secretive nation emerged in the first military promotions prominently unveiled during recent high-profile ceremonies as the official mourning period for the death of former dictator Kim Jong-il concluded last week. These same senior officials are known to be behind Pyongyang's missile test launch - scheduled for the middle of April - which...

Can Kim Jong-un Subdue the N.Korean Military? As soon as North Korean leader Kim Jong-un became vice chairman of the Workers Party's powerful Central Military Commission there emerged signs of a sweeping purge. Around a dozen high-ranking officers, including an assistant chief of the Ministry of the People's Armed Forces, an assistant chief of the General Staff Department as well as frontline commanders were brutally executed, ostensibly for being drunk or for sexual harassment during the mourning period for dead leader Kim Jong-il. But what does the purge mean, and what is exactly is going on in the North Korean...

/begin my excerpts On the Kim Jong-eun's Order "Not even a hair should be left" ... Mortar Used Lee Yong-soo Kim Jong-eun Ordered, "Not even a hair should be left" More than ten generals purged this year, "Another day, another one disappears." Since Kim Jong-il's sudden death last year, Kim Jong-eun took over and N. Korean military has been in the vortex of unprecedented 'purge drive' and the means of execution is (very) cruel, such as using mortar fire, a knowledgeable government source on N. Korea revealed on Mar. 21. He said, “Since Dec. 30 last year when Kim Jong-eun...

/begin my excerpts Exclusive: Drinking during Kim’s Mourning Period... Vice Defense Minister Shot in Public A Deputy Chief of Staff also shot for a sexual misconduct Kim Jong-eun, Vice Chairman of Party’s Central Defense Commission, purged senior military figures in an attempt to establish discipline in military after Kim Jong-il’s death, according to sources on Mar. 20. They said, “Last January, Kim Jong-eun gave an order to ‘eliminate anybody who did outrageous things during General’s (Kim Jong-il’s) mourning period.’ We have intelligence that a Deputy Chief of General Staffs was arrested for committing a sexual misconduct during Kim’s mourning period...

Kim Jong-eun visiting Man-Kyong-Dae Revolutionary Academy, a school for kids from elite families in N. Korea.

5 – North Korea Implosion or Explosion Don’t be fooled by stories of how smoothly the transition is proceeding in Pyongyang. The first rule of analyzing North Korea—it’s the world’s most opaque regime and no one really knows what’s going on inside—has not changed. Maybe things really are going smoothly. Maybe they’re already off the rails. We do know that North Korea is a nuclear power, that provocation is its traditional foreign policy tool of choice, and that North Korean collapse is the likeliest way to bring American and Chinese soldiers face to face in an unpredictable and dangerous security...

 Kim Jong-nam Says N.Korean Regime Won't Last Long Kim Jong-nam Former North Korean Leader Kim Jong-il's eldest son Jong-nam has said the isolated regime will eventually fail with or without reforms. The comment appears in e-mail conversations exchanged over seven years between Kim Jong-nam and a Japanese journalist and obtained by the Monthly Chosun. The nearly 100 e-mails were sent from 2004 until December last year to Yoji Komi, an editor at the Tokyo Shimbun daily. The two also spoke in person in January and May last year. ◆ Oppostion to Dynastic Succession Kim Jong-nam, who was passed over...

The Signs Are Bad, and Time Is Short By The Daily NK [2011-12-30 09:52 ] On Thursday, ten days of mourning for Kim Jong Il was wound up. Internally, there have been no signs of anything out of the ordinary since Kim’s sudden death was announced on December 19th. In content and style, the mourning process was very similar to that of Kim Il Sung, up to and including the wailing mourners. Although international observers have long held concerns about the new leader, twenty-something year old Kim Jong Eun, the North Korean authorities have not taken long to proclaim him...

Who Is in Charge of N.Korea's Nuclear Weapons? New North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is taking control of the renegade country's nuclear weapons, Defense Minister Kim Kwan-jin told the National Assembly's Defense Committee last Tuesday. "It also seems that Kim Jong-un has the final say on nuclear weapons considering that the power is being handed over to him now," he added. Kim Jong-un is vice chairman of the Workers Party's Central Military Commission, which now commands the military. A South Korean intelligence officer said the North Korean military attaches the greatest importance to the nuclear arms, and Kim Jong-un is...

Purges 'Ensure Kim Jong-un's Succession' A series of executions and unexplained deaths since North Korean leader Kim Jong-il's son Jong-un was anointed heir to the throne in January 2009 were apparently meant to remove obstacles to the transition. Kim senior instituted several bloody purges to ensure his iron grip on power since he officially took over from his own father in 1994. The most prominent example is perhaps the death of Ri Je-gang, a former senior deputy director of the Organization and Guidance Department and a close aide to Kim Jong-il who oversaw key military appointments for more than two...

December 26, 2011 Jang Song-taek Cements Position in N.Korean Regime Jang Song-taek, the uncle and patron of new North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, appeared on state TV on Sunday dressed in full military uniform for the first time. Until now, Jang had only been spotted in a suit and tie. Korean Central TV broadcast footage of Kim Jong-un and Jang paying their respects to dead leader Kim Jong-il, who lies in state at Kumsusan Memorial Hall in Pyongyang. Jang's insignia confirm his military status as a four-star general in addition to his existing titles of vice chairman of the powerful...

In North Korea, young Kim Jong Eun will test age-old reliance on maturity By Marc Fisher, Published: December 23 At 28 or 29, Kim Jong Eun, the presumed new leader of North Korea, will be the youngest person ever to have authority over a nuclear arsenal. At that age, neuroscientists say, the brain is still in the final stages of development. Developmental psychologists say thereÂ’s a good reason that AmericaÂ’s Founding Fathers set 35 as the minimum age for a president: People younger than that just donÂ’t have the experience or skill to deal with complex decision making. Historians warn...

'He couldn't speak English, didn't pass any exams and was obsessed with basketball and computer games': Kim Jong Un's Swiss school days revealed By Allan Hall Last updated at 4:14 PM on 22nd December 2011 He is the heir poised to become the next leader of rogue state North Korea. But a probe into the school days of Kim Jong Un - youngest son of dictator Kim Jong Il - proves he is little more than an academic failure who squandered his education playing computer games and basketball. /snip But the signs are not good. Despite having thousands of pounds...

FMR. PRESIDENT JIMMY CARTER is today reported to have not only sent off a condolence message to North Korea over the death of mass murderer, horrendous DICTATOR Kim Jong-il, in it he also addressed comments to the heir-apparant, Kim Jong-un, and wished for "his success" as he goes forward to "assume power."

North Korean dictator Kim Jong Il's death opens a period of intense danger and risk, but also potentially enormous opportunity for America and its allies. Kim's health had obviously been poor for some time, and his regime has worked to ensure an orderly transition to his son, Kim Jong Eun. The Kim family and its supporters, with everything obviously at stake, will work strenuously to convey stability and control. Indeed, the official North Korea news agency has already referred to Jong Eun as "the great successor to the revolutionary cause." But the loathsome Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea (DPRK) is...

North Korea's new leader is depicted in U.S. intelligence assessments as a volatile youth with a sadistic streak who may be even more unpredictable than his late father, according to U.S. officials. U.S. intelligence officials say they have limited information about Kim Jong Eun, the youngest son of Kim Jong Il and his anointed successor. The U.S. has had few direct contacts on which to make a "conclusive assessment" of Kim Jong Eun's nature and character, a senior U.S. official said. Some analysts say Kim Jong Eun's youth, inexperience and lack of public exposure raise questions about whether he can,...

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) -- Kim Jong Il, North Korea's mercurial and enigmatic leader, has died. He was 69. Kim's death was announced Monday by state television from the North Korean capital, Pyongyang. Kim is believed to have suffered a stroke in 2008 but appeared relatively vigorous in photos and video from recent trips to China and Russia and in numerous trips around the country carefully documented by state media. The leader, reputed to have had a taste for cigars, cognac and gourmet cuisine, was believed to have had diabetes and heart disease.