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North Korea

The leader of the world's most isolated country Kim Jong Un has flouted international sanctions to develop North Korea's weapons program -- viewed as a direct threat to neighboring South Korea and Japan. Kim, a dictator who inherited power from his father in 2011, has also pledged to strengthen the country's nuclear arsenal, despite signals earlier in his reign he would support denuclearization. View the latest North Korea news and videos.

Latest news

  • Former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol attends his criminal trial on insurrection charges at a courtroom of the Seoul Central District Court on April 21, 2025.
    Jung Yeon-Je/Pool/Getty Images
    Ex-South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol sentenced to 30 years in jail over Pyongyang drone plot
  • A large screen in Beijing shows Chinese leader Xi Jinping and his North Korean counterpart Kim Jong Un shaking hands in Pyongyang on June 8.
    Kyodo News/Getty Images
    Why China’s Xi wants a ‘brighter’ future with North Korea
  • In this photo released by Xinhua News Agency, Chinese President Xi Jinping, left, and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un shake hands for a photo at Kumsusan State Guesthouse in Pyongyang, Monday, June 8, 2026. (Xie Huanchi/Xinhua via AP)
    Xie Huanchi/Xinhua/AP
    China’s Xi Jinping calls for strengthened ‘strategic cooperation’ with North Korea in rare summit with Kim Jong Un
  • Korth Korea's leader Kim Jong Un meets with U-17 Asian champions in Pyongyang, North Korea on June 1, 2026.
    KCNA
    Kim Jong Un is loving North Korean women’s soccer. What drives its remarkable success?
  • Chinese President Xi Jinping pictured on May 20, 2026 in Beijing, China.
    Contributor/Getty Images
    China’s Xi Jinping to make rare trip to North Korea next week
  • North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un looks around the new nuclear materials production factory on June 3, 2026, according to state media KCNA.
    KCNA
    Kim Jong Un inspects new nuclear plant, plans ‘exponential’ weapons production ramp-up
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  • Kim Jong Un uses Iran war to justify North Korea’s decision to keep its nuclear weapons
  • After Iran and Venezuela, Kim Jong Un must decide how to handle Trump
  • Radar bases housing key US missile interceptor hit in Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and UAE, satellite images show
  • With sniper rifle photos, Kim Jong Un intensifies spotlight on his daughter, a potential successor
  • Kim Jong Un vows to strengthen nuclear program, watches military parade with daughter
  • North Korea shows Kim Jong Un at the wheel of a mobile rocket launcher
  • Could this teenage girl be North Korea’s next leader?
  • Sex, death and betrayal: This North Korean movie shows things audiences have never seen before
  • North Korea’s Kim fires vice premier, calls him ‘a goat yoked to pull an ox cart’
  • Can two North Korean defectors take a new K-pop boy band to global superstardom?

Latest Videos

  • <p>In a rare breakthrough after years of frozen relations, North Korea’s women’s soccer team has arrived in South Korea for the first time in over seven years. The 39 players, hailed as national heroes by Kim Jong Un and under tight supervision, landed at Incheon Airport Sunday and will face Suwon FC Women in a high-stakes Asian Club Cup semifinal. With no direct talks between the two governments, the visit raises hopes that football and joint cheer squads can spark a rare moment of goodwill. CNN's Will Ripley reports. </p>
    • Video 3:06
    Clipped From Video
    Video North Korean women’s soccer team arrives in South Korea for the first time in over 7 years 3:06
  • thumbnail npw russian ship nuclear 1.jpg
    • Video 7:29
    Telegram
    Video A Russian ship carrying nuclear reactors sank. Where was it headed? 7:29
  • NK 16x9 1.jpg
    • Video 0:49
    CNN
    Video Kim Jong Un memorializes troops killed fighting for Russia 0:49
  • 118877_NorthKoreaNuclearProgram_Horizontal_Clean_Thumb.jpg
    • Video 0:46
    Korean Central TV
    Video Watchdog warns of rapid North Korea nuclear expansion 0:46
  • rutte.jpg
    • Video 10:36
    MS
    Video NATO Chief on Trump meeting: Trump ‘clearly disappointed’ with allies 10:36
  • 118630_Ripley_KJUComplimentsSK_THUMB0.jpg
    • Video 0:42
    KOREAN CENTRAL TV// KTV/KRT via Reuters
    Video Kim Jong Un compliments South Korea’s president 0:42
  • 118227_NKRadiationExposure digvid.jpg
    • Video 1:16
    CNN
    Video Were North Korean defectors exposed to nuclear test site radiation? 1:16
  • thumbnail kim guns nk 1.jpg
    • Video 0:37
    KRT
    Video Kim Jong Un and daughter fire handguns 0:37

Politics

Show all

  • This photo from the US District Court District of Massachusetts shows North Korean information technology workers on a multi-member team that the US Department of Justice says works with the North Korean government to fund its regime. Note: Parts of the image provided by the US District Court District of Massachusetts have been obscured.
    US District Court District of Massachusetts
    Two Americans sentenced to prison for North Korean tech worker scheme
  • Kim Jong Un at an opening of Saeppyol Street apartment complex for families of soldiers killed in Russia deployment in Pyongyang, North Korea, on February 16, 2026.
    Rodong Sinmun/KCNA/File
    North Korean hackers bug software used by thousands of US companies in potential crypto heist attempt
  • PALM BEACH, FLORIDA - JANUARY 3: (EDITOR'S NOTE: This Handout image was provided by a third-party organization and may not adhere to Getty Images' editorial policy.) U.S. President Donald Trump, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth (L), and CIA Director John Ratcliffe monitor U.S. military operations in Venezuela, from Trump's Mar-a-Lago Club on January 3, 2026 in Palm Beach, Florida. President of Venezuela Nicolas Maduro and first lady Cilia Flores were brought to New York on Saturday after being captured by the U.S. military in Caracas. They are expected to face federal charges related to drug trafficking and working with gangs designated as terrorist organizations. (Photo by Molly Riley/The White House via Getty Images)
    • Video 1:29
    Handout/Getty Images North America/White House via Getty Images
    Video Inside Trump’s makeshift situation room at Mar-a-Lago during Maduro’s capture 1:29
  • A North Korean flag flies over its embassy in Moscow on October 31, 2024.
    Alexander Nemenov/AFP/Getty Images/File
    North Korean operatives running fake job portal targeting US AI firms
  • FILE - A sub-surface atomic test is shown March 23, 1955 at the Nevada Test Site near Yucca Flats, Nev. (U.S. Atomic Energy Commission via AP, File)
    US Atomic Energy Commission/AP
    Why is there so much talk about nuclear weapons this week?

Style

Show all

  • This picture released by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency shows Hwasong, the new high-rise neighborhood being constructed in Pyongyang, North Korea.
    KCNA
    North Korea unveils new 10,000-home showpiece residential district
  • A 3D visualization of the Hwasong development shows a tall skyscraper on the left, with other towers lining a wide street.
    EyePress News/Shutterstock
    North Korea breaks ground on 10,000-home residential project in major housing drive
  • Hyun Mi experiences her hometown in North Korea through VR in September, 2020.
    Courtesy Ministry of Unification
    This woman left North Korea 70 years ago. Now virtual reality has helped her return
  • north korea virtual reality intl hnk_00015616.png
    • Video 2:40
    Ministry of Unification
    Video This woman left North Korea 70 years ago. Now virtual reality has helped her return 2:40
  • Dennis Rodman at a book signing for "Bad as I Wanna Be," in New York City
    Evan Agostini/Liaison/Hulton Archive/Getty Images
    Remember when Dennis Rodman put on a wedding dress and claimed to marry himself?

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