North Korea News Podcast by NK News

This week, Balazs Szalontai returns to the podcast to explore the overlooked history of North Korea’s relationship with countries across the Middle East and North Africa.

The expert discusses how Pyongyang navigated ideological contradictions, opportunistic diplomacy and shifting global alliances throughout the Cold War, touching on the DPRK’s ties with Iran, Egypt, Algeria, Iraq and more.

He also explains how North Korea often prioritized strategic survival and a symbolic presence in the region over ideological consistency. 

Dr. Balazs Szalontai is a historian and professor at Korea University in the Division of Public Sociology and Korean Unification. He previously appeared on episode 106 of the podcast.

About the podcast: The North Korea News Podcast is a weekly podcast hosted by Jacco Zwetsloot exclusively for NK News, covering all things DPRK — from news to extended interviews with leading experts and analysts in the field, along with insight from our very own journalists.

NK News subscribers can listen to this and other exclusive episodes from their preferred podcast player by accessing the private podcast feed. For more detailed instructions, please see the step-by-step guide at nknews.org/private-feed.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un inspected a hospital construction site in Kusong on Monday, where he criticized the skills of the military conscripts he frequently mobilizes for major state construction projects.

NK News Senior Analytic Correspondent Colin Zwirko joins the podcast to talk about Kim's comments, as well the voyage by North Korea’s damaged destroyer to a shipyard in the northeast for repairs and Pyongyang’s brief coverage of South Korea’s election of Lee Jae-myung as president.

About the podcast: The North Korea News Podcast is a weekly podcast hosted by Jacco Zwetsloot exclusively for NK News, covering all things DPRK — from news to extended interviews with leading experts and analysts in the field, along with insight from our very own journalists.

In this episode, NK News welcomes back Professor Moon Chung-in, one of South Korea’s most influential scholars of inter-Korean relations to assess the landscape on the peninsula today and what prospects remain for diplomacy.

He discusses why he believes North Korea has officially abandoned unification in its current form, how inter-Korean engagement has become increasingly constrained by global geopolitics, and what a presidency under Lee Jae-myung might mean for the peninsula.

Moon Chung-in is a professor emeritus at Yonsei University and one of South Korea’s most influential scholars of inter-Korean relations. He served as special adviser on unification, diplomacy and national security to former President Moon Jae-in, and has long been a key advocate for diplomatic engagement with North Korea. He previously appeared on episode 71 of the podcast.

About the podcast: The North Korea News Podcast is a weekly podcast hosted by Jacco Zwetsloot exclusively for NK News, covering all things DPRK — from news to extended interviews with leading experts and analysts in the field, along with insight from our very own journalists.

NK News subscribers can listen to this and other exclusive episodes from their preferred podcast player by accessing the private podcast feed. For more detailed instructions, please see the step-by-step guide at nknews.org/private-feed.

North Korea’s new warship remains submerged on its side more than 10 days after the embarrassing failure to side-launch the vessel last month, despite DPRK experts’ confidence that they could right the ship. U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth made only a passing mention of North Korea at the Shangri-La Dialogue over the weekend, even as officials talked behind the scenes about wanting U.S. Forces Korea to play a bigger role in countering China. And Lee Jae-myung appears poised to claim the South Korean presidency in Tuesday’s snap election, setting up potential changes in inter-Korean policy.

This week, NK News CEO Chad O’Caroll and Lead Correspondent Shreyas Reddy join the podcast to discuss all these events during a busy week on the peninsula, as the ROK prepares to finally fill a monthslong leadership vacuum since Yoon Suk-yeol’s ill-fated declaration of martial law and subsequent impeachment.

They also talk about why North Korea will likely do little in response to a new president in Seoul and explore why Kim Jong Un should worry about Ukrainian drones following Kyiv’s stunning attack on Russian assets far from the front lines.

About the podcast: The North Korea News Podcast is a weekly podcast hosted by Jacco Zwetsloot exclusively for NK News, covering all things DPRK — from news to extended interviews with leading experts and analysts in the field, along with insight from our very own journalists.

A year and a half ago, North Korea made waves when it announced that it was abandoning the goal of inter-Korean reunification. Now, South Koreans are getting ready to head to the ballot box to elect a new president, with their pick set to shape Seoul’s policy toward a neighbor that now views the South as a “hostile, enemy state.”

On this week’s episode, Dr. Tomasz Wierzbowski and Dr. J.R. Kim join the podcast to debate whether Seoul should formally abandon the national goal of unification with North Korea.

They discuss the evolving generational and political attitudes toward unification, whether the Ministry of Unification should be overhauled or scrapped and the ethics of maintaining peaceful coexistence with an authoritarian neighbor.

Dr. Tomasz Wierzbowski is an adjunct professor at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies and the Korea Representative of EURAXESS, a European Commission initiative supporting researcher mobility. 

Dr. J.R. Kim retired as director-general at South Korea’s Ministry of Unification and is still active as the president of the Korean Council for Peace and Cooperation. 

About the podcast: The North Korea News Podcast is a weekly podcast hosted by Jacco Zwetsloot exclusively for NK News, covering all things DPRK — from news to extended interviews with leading experts and analysts in the field, along with insight from our very own journalists.

NK News subscribers can listen to this and other exclusive episodes from their preferred podcast player by accessing the private podcast feed. For more detailed instructions, please see the step-by-step guide at nknews.org/private-feed.

Just one week remains until South Koreans head to the polls in the snap election to replace impeached President Yoon Suk-yeol, setting up potential changes in how Seoul approaches North Korea, the U.S. alliance and more.

NK News Executive Director Jeongmin Kim joins the podcast to unpack where the major and minor candidates stand on DPRK policy — and whether they’re avoiding the topic altogether.

She discusses how North Korea was once a clear dividing line between conservative and progressive parties, with the former adopting hardline communist stances and the latter favoring engagement. And she explains why both major candidates in this election — Lee Jae-myung of the Democratic Party and Kim Moon-soo of the People Power Party — are taking a more subdued approach.

About the podcast: The North Korea News Podcast is a weekly podcast hosted by Jacco Zwetsloot exclusively for NK News, covering all things DPRK — from news to extended interviews with leading experts and analysts in the field, along with insight from our very own journalists.

This week, veteran North Korea negotiator Joel Wit joins the podcast to revisit his decades of experience negotiating with Pyongyang, what went wrong in efforts to stop the DPRK’s nuclear development and what, if anything, can still be done.

He shares insights from high-level talks, including surreal moments inside the DPRK, and discusses whether dialogue is still a viable path forward after the Trump-Kim summits.

Joel Wit is distinguished fellow in Asian and Security Studies at the Stimson Center. As a U.S. State Department official, he helped negotiate the 1994 U.S.-DPRK Agreed Framework and was in charge of its implementation until he left government in 2002, holding numerous talks with North Korean officials.

He is also the author of the forthcoming book "Fallout: The Inside Story Of How America Failed to Disarm North Korea,” published by Yale University Press. His work can be primarily found on the website 38 North, which he founded and formerly operated. 

About the podcast: The North Korea News Podcast is a weekly podcast hosted by Jacco Zwetsloot exclusively for NK News, covering all things DPRK — from news to extended interviews with leading experts and analysts in the field, along with insight from our very own journalists.

NK News subscribers can listen to this and other exclusive episodes from their preferred podcast player by accessing the private podcast feed. For more detailed instructions, please see the step-by-step guide at nknews.org/private-feed.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un observed a series of military drills aimed at enhancing the country’s ongoing “war preparations” last week, ahead of a gathering of thousands of military officers in Pyongyang for a rare conference on instigating a “revolution” in army training. 

NK News Managing Editor Bryan Betts joins the podcast to discuss the DPRK’s push to improve its air force and how the military events appear tied to the troop deployment to fight against Ukraine. 

He also talks about Kim Jong Un’s visit to a Pyongyang cemetery to pay tribute to late military official Hyon Chol Hae for the third consecutive year, as well as the appearance of sanctioned North Korean goods in Ukraine trade data despite the two sides’ severed ties.

About the podcast: The North Korea News Podcast is a weekly podcast hosted by Jacco Zwetsloot exclusively for NK News, covering all things DPRK — from news to extended interviews with leading experts and analysts in the field, along with insight from our very own journalists.

In this episode, scholars Immanuel Kim and Benoit Berthelier discuss their new book, “Hidden Heroes: An Anthology of North Korean Fiction,” which brings together 10 DPRK short stories from the last 30 years that focus on ordinary citizens who quietly contribute to society.

Kim and Berthelier discuss their motivations for curating this anthology, their translation choices and the challenges of navigating the fine line between state-sanctioned propaganda and genuine storytelling. They also reflect on the ethical implications of translating and publishing North Korean literature for a global audience.

Dr. Immanuel Kim is the Korea Foundation and Kim-Renaud Associate Professor of Korean Literature and Culture Studies at George Washington University. His research specializes in North Korean literature and cinema, including comedy films, some of which he previously discussed on episode 190 of the podcast.

Dr. Benoit Berthelier is senior lecturer in Korean Studies at the University of Sydney. His research interests include North Korean literature, culture and society, as well as digital humanities and discourse analysis. ​

About the podcast: The North Korea News Podcast is a weekly podcast hosted by Jacco Zwetsloot exclusively for NK News, covering all things DPRK — from news to extended interviews with leading experts and analysts in the field, along with insight from our very own journalists.

NK News subscribers can listen to this and other exclusive episodes from their preferred podcast player by accessing the private podcast feed. For more detailed instructions, please see the step-by-step guide at nknews.org/private-feed.

Russian President Vladimir Putin met and embraced the North Korean general leading troops deployed to fight against Ukraine during a military parade in Moscow last week, but Kim Jong Un was a no show. 

NK News Correspondent Jooheon Kim joins the podcast this week to discuss how the North Korean leader instead visited the Russian Embassy in Pyongyang, where he gave a speech justifying support for Moscow to mark Victory Day. The podcast also covers the official start of campaigning for South Korea’s snap presidential election and celebrations to mark the 93rd founding anniversary of the Korean People’s Revolutionary Army.

About the podcast: The North Korea News Podcast is a weekly podcast hosted by Jacco Zwetsloot exclusively for NK News, covering all things DPRK — from news to extended interviews with leading experts and analysts in the field, along with insight from our very own journalists.