This week, NK News founder Chad O’Carroll joins the podcast to discuss the life of Kim Yong Nam, the longtime No. 2 in North Korea’s leadership who died this month at 97. He also unravels the mystery behind Pyongyang Papers, the website that anonymously published information on North Korea’s sanctions-evading network before disappearing without war…

This week, three members of the NK News team unpack their time at the APEC summit in Gyeongju and discuss how North Korea featured in the week’s diplomatic drama. Despite high expectations, U.S. President Donald Trump did not meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during his trip to Korea, though Pyongyang still loomed large […]…

This week, NK News founder Chad O’Carroll joins the podcast to discuss the life of Kim Yong Nam, the longtime No. 2 in North Korea’s leadership who died this month at 97. He also unravels the mystery behind Pyongyang Papers, the website that anonymously published information on North Korea’s sanctions-evading network before disappearing without war…

Maarten Jongsma, a senior researcher at Wageningen University in the Netherlands, joins the podcast to discuss his years of collaboration with North Korean agricultural scientists and efforts to help improve potato cultivation in the DPRK. He shares his recollections from his multiple visits to North Korea between 2004 and 2012, describing the coun…

Maarten Jongsma, a senior researcher at Wageningen University in the Netherlands, joins the podcast to discuss his years of collaboration with North Korean agricultural scientists and efforts to help improve potato cultivation in the DPRK.He shares his recollections from his multiple visits to North Korea between 2004 and 2012, describing the count…

This week, three members of the NK News team unpack their time at the APEC summit in Gyeongju and discuss how North Korea featured in the week’s diplomatic drama. Despite high expectations, U.S. President Donald Trump did not meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during his trip to Korea, though Pyongyang still loomed large […]…

In this episode, veteran KBS journalist Bong Seung Shin shares his experience reporting from North Korea and communicating with journalists on the ground in the country. Shin first traveled to Pyongyang in 2008, crossing the demilitarized zone by air as part of a trip organized by an NGO. He describes the excitement of entering North […]…

In this episode, veteran KBS journalist Bong Seung Shin shares his experience reporting from North Korea and communicating with journalists on the ground in the country. Shin first traveled to Pyongyang in 2008, crossing the demilitarized zone by air as part of a trip organized by an NGO. He describes the excitement of entering North […]…

NK News founder Chad O’Carroll joins the podcast this week to unpack the busy week ahead on the Korean Peninsula as APEC kicks off and U.S. President Donald Trump heads to South Korea. He discusses the growing speculation over whether Trump will meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un for the first time in over […]…

NK News founder Chad O’Carroll joins the podcast this week to unpack the busy week ahead on the Korean Peninsula as APEC kicks off and U.S. President Donald Trump heads to South Korea. He discusses the growing speculation over whether Trump will meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un for the first time in over […]…

This week, historian Remco Breuker explores how Pyongyang has built illicit networks that operate far beyond its borders to oversee labor exports, arrange business deals and traffic arms. He reflects on the collapse of the U.N. Panel of Experts that once tracked sanctions violations, warning that the world has lost a vital mechanism for understandi…

This week, historian Remco Breuker explores how Pyongyang has built illicit networks that operate far beyond its borders to oversee labor exports, arrange business deals and traffic arms.He reflects on the collapse of the U.N. Panel of Experts that once tracked sanctions violations, warning that the world has lost a vital mechanism for understandin…

This week, NK News Correspondent Jooheon Kim joins the podcast to discuss the North Korean soldier who crossed the inter-Korean border over the weekend, marking the first confirmed military defection under the Lee Jae-myung administration. He also talks about next week’s APEC Summit in Gyeongju. With former U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese l…

This week, NK News Correspondent Jooheon Kim joins the podcast to discuss the North Korean soldier who crossed the inter-Korean border over the weekend, marking the first confirmed military defection under the Lee Jae-myung administration. He also talks about next week’s APEC Summit in Gyeongju. With former U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese l…

For a brief period after Korea’s liberation, a cross-peninsula postage system shuttled letters across the 38th parallel, linking the Soviet-led north and U.S.-led south. This week, postal expert Tony Bard and historian JiHoon Suk join the podcast to explore this forgotten link and the logistics, politics and human stories behind the letter exchange…

For a brief period after Korea’s liberation, a cross-peninsula postage system shuttled letters across the 38th parallel, linking the Soviet-led north and U.S.-led south. This week, postal expert Tony Bard and historian JiHoon Suk join the podcast to explore this forgotten link and the logistics, politics and human stories behind the letter exchange…

This week, Korea Risk Group Executive Director Jeongmin Kim and Senior Analytical Correspondent Colin Zwirko unpack North Korea’s military parade in Pyongyang for the 80th anniversary of the Workers’ Party of Korea. They explore how the event demonstrated both a commitment to spectacle and restraint, featuring more than 100,000 soldiers but fewer w…

This week, Korea Risk Group Executive Director Jeongmin Kim and Senior Analytical Correspondent Colin Zwirko unpack North Korea’s military parade in Pyongyang for the 80th anniversary of the Workers’ Party of Korea. They explore how the event demonstrated both a commitment to spectacle and restraint, featuring more than 100,000 soldiers but fewer w…

This week, Chandana Seshadri joins the podcast to discuss her RUSI Journal article, “How DPRK IT Workers Exploit Identity Management Vulnerabilities,” which documents how North Korean workers slip through remote-hiring systems to earn hard currency and open doors for bigger cyber operations. The researcher highlights the case of Christina Chapman —…

This week, Chandana Seshadri joins the podcast to discuss her RUSI Journal article, “How DPRK IT Workers Exploit Identity Management Vulnerabilities,” which documents how North Korean workers slip through remote-hiring systems to earn hard currency and open doors for bigger cyber operations. The researcher highlights the case of Christina Chapman —…

NK News

Colin Zwirko | Jacco Zwetsloot | NK News

James Heenan, the representative of the U.N. Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Seoul, joins the podcast this week to unpack the High Commissioner’s new update on human rights in the DPRK — an effort to take stock of the situation in the country 11 years after the landmark U.N. Commission of […]…

James Heenan, the representative of the U.N. Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Seoul, joins the podcast this week to unpack the High Commissioner’s new update on human rights in the DPRK — an effort to take stock of the situation in the country 11 years after the landmark U.N. Commission of […]…

NK News Correspondent Joon Ha Park joins the podcast to discuss President Lee Jae-myung’s first speech to the U.N. General Assembly and his debut of a new acronym for his peace road map — “E.N.D.,” short for exchange, normalization and denuclearization.He also talks about Seoul's unification minister’s controversial “two states” remarks, Lee’s call…

NK News Correspondent Joon Ha Park joins the podcast to discuss President Lee Jae-myung’s first speech to the U.N. General Assembly and his debut of a new acronym for his peace road map — “E.N.D.,” short for exchange, normalization and denuclearization. He also talks about Seoul’s unification minister’s controversial “two states” remarks, Lee’s cal…

This week, Dr. Vipin Narang joins the NK News podcast to unpack how the U.S. and South Korea are seeking to strengthen extended deterrence against North Korean threats under the joint Nuclear Consultative Group, a platform that he helped develop and lead as a key nuclear policy official under the Biden administration.Narang highlights how North Kor…

This week, Dr. Vipin Narang joins the NK News podcast to unpack how the U.S. and South Korea are seeking to strengthen extended deterrence against North Korean threats under the joint Nuclear Consultative Group, a platform that he helped develop and lead as a key nuclear policy official under the Biden administration. Narang highlights how […]…

This episode of the NK News podcast unpacks the unusual loyalty relays taking place across North Korea, where both children and adults carry letters pledging fealty to Kim Jong Un.NK News Lead Correspondent Shreyas Reddy also discusses new murals of the leader, some of which appear to have replaced longstanding depictions of his father and grandfat…

This episode of the NK News podcast unpacks the unusual loyalty relays taking place across North Korea, where both children and adults carry letters pledging fealty to Kim Jong Un. NK News Lead Correspondent Shreyas Reddy also discusses new murals of the leader, some of which appear to have replaced longstanding depictions of his father […]…