North Korea News Podcast by NK News

James Scullin talks about his new book, "Hotels of Pyongyang," which reveals never-before-seen photos of North Korean architecture and aesthetic.

James Scullin is a part-time tour leader for Juche Travel Services, a British-North Korean travel company, and China business consultant for the Australia China Business Council.

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

Free Joseon is the mysterious group behind the daring 2019 raid of North Korea's embassy in Madrid, and has orchestrated defections of at least one North Korean diplomat overseas.

Alastair Gale co-authored what is perhaps the most extensive exposé of the group for The Wall Street Journal, published last week. He joins the NK News Podcast to talk about Free Joseon, their motivations, connections, leadership, and more.

Alastair Gale is Japan editor for The Wall Street Journal, where he focuses on regional security and politics, and handles investigative projects.

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

The Month in Review is a regular product by NK News's parent company the Korea Risk Group, summarizing the most important trends and news in North Korea and forecasting events that will likely grab headlines in the coming weeks. Subscribers can read the most recent issue here.

On this week's episode, contributing analyst Caroline Kearney talks us through some of the most important developments in North Korea in March -- and what to expect in April.

Caroline Kearney is a recipient of the Global Korea scholarship and begins a PhD in the Korean Studies department at Yonsei University in Seoul this fall. She is also a contributing analyst to NK Pro.

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

The Quincy Institute was launched in Washington DC last year with funding from George Soros's Open Society Foundation and the Koch Foundation, and aims to work toward ending "endless war" and forging a more modest, non-interventionist path for U.S. foreign policy.

So how would this approach translate into action on the Korean peninsula?

This week, Jessica Lee, a Senior Research Fellow at the think tank's East Asia Program, discusses managing diplomacy with North Korea, the importance of realistic expectations, and why we should keep the Korean people at the center of any Korean peninsula strategy.

Jessica Lee is a Senior Research Fellow in the East Asia Program at the Quincy Institute.

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

North Koreans that escape and resettle in the South release a myriad of challenges, perhaps none more daunting than acclimating to a 21st century global economy. Connecting these people with the right mentors and resources is essential.

That's where today's guest Marta Allina comes in. Marta is the founder of Seoul Startups and a coach with ASAN SANGHOE, an entrepreneurship training program now in its second year that brings together North Korean resettlers with young people from South Korea and abroad to conceive of and plan business proposals. She also has a personal blog.

The organization is now recruiting people to go through their second startup boot camp. The deadline is April 3.

ASAN SANGHOE is a project run by the Asan Nanum Foundation, founded in 2011 to commemorate Hyundai founder Chung Ju-young, and its aims are the alleviation of social inequality and the promotion of entrepreneurship among youth. It is funded by the Hyundai Group.

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

North Korea was one of the first to completely block all travel to and from China amid fears of the spread of COVID-19, and although state media has been reticent to reveal the extent to which the novel coronavirus is affecting the North Korean people, it's likely having a severe toll.

Rob Lauler at Daily NK joins the NK News Podcast to talk about the impacts of the coronavirus, follows up on some startling reports out of the country, the state of international cooperation between the regime and the outside world, and how to tell fact from fiction when reporting on North Korea.

Rob Lauler is the English language editor at Daily NK and its parent organization the Unification Media Group.

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

Continuing our European Union theme from last week's episode, the NKNews Podcast sits down with Lukas Mandl, the Chair of the EU's Delegation for relations with the Korean peninsula, to talk about the institution's role on the Korean peninsula and key issues such as sanctions and human rights.

Lukas Mandl of the Austrian People's Party is a member of the European Parliament, where he is vice-chair of the Subcommittee on Security and Defence, a member of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and Chair of the Delegation to the European Parliament's Delegation for Relations with the Korean peninsula.

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

The European Union is invested in solving the North Korea nuclear issue as well as improving the human rights situation.

Virginie Battu-Henriksson, spokesperson for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy from the EU’s European Commission, discusses the role that sanctions are designed to play in denuclearizing the North, how those sanctions are formulated, and what opportunities exist for Pyongyang to get sanctions relief.

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

In this interview with NK News’s Washington DC correspondent, Jacob Fromer, we learn about the current discourse regarding North Korea, how U.S. President Donald Trump’s approach has been received, and how a new president, potentially elected this year, may change Washington-Pyongyang relations.

Jacob Fromer is NK News's Washington DC correspondent. He previously worked in the U.S. Senate. You can read his work here, and follow him on Twitter @jakefromer.

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

"The Two Koreas" is among the most well-known and widely read books on inter-Korean relations, North Korea’s nuclear program, and the U.S.’s interactions with and policy directed at North Korea.

Robert Carlin, co-author of the third edition of the book, joins the NK News podcast to discuss writing the book, American intelligence on North Korea, why he believes there is room for discourse and discussion among Pyongyang’s elite, and what Washington gets right (and wrong) about its North Korea policy.

Robert Carlin is a visiting scholar at Stanford University's Center for International Security and Cooperation.

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