North Korea News Podcast by NK News

In this special roundtable edition of the NK News podcast, the team sits down to discuss the results of North Korea’s Ninth Party Congress, the messaging behind the latest parade in Pyongyang and what leadership reshuffles may signal for the country’s domestic and foreign policy direction. 

The panel explores why this congress focused less on major course corrections and more on reinforcing Kim Jong Un’s leadership, embedding his priorities more deeply in party structures  and and strengthening elite discipline.

They also discuss how North Korea further hardened its stance toward South Korea, and scrutinize the congress’s relatively vague language on future weapons development.

Featured in this episode are: 

Korea Risk Group Executive Director Jeongmin Kim 

NK News Senior Analytical Correspondent Colin Zwirko 

NK News Lead Correspondent Shreyas Reddy 

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 insights from our very own journalists.

NK News Correspondent Joon Ha Park joins the podcast to discuss the ongoing Ninth Party Congress, which kicked off last week in Pyongyang

The conversation breaks down key developments from the congress so far, including Kim Jong Un’s reappointment as general secretary of the Workers’ Party, the promotion of younger loyal cadres and the sidelining of several senior military and party officials. 

He also discusses Kim Yo Jong’s new but unspecified director role, the lack of major foreign policy announcements and continued emphasis on domestic economic goals tied to a new five-year plan. 

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 insights from our very own journalists.

North Korea media and tech specialist Martyn Williams joins this week’s episode to discuss his trips to the inter-Korean border with NK News CEO Chad O’Carroll, which have explored how technology is reshaping control and communication in the DPRK.

The conversation covers smartphones and digital infrastructure inside North Korea, including how mobile technology has expanded rapidly since the pandemic. He discusses the growing number of domestic smartphone brands, hundreds of state-approved apps and the broader 4G rollout across much of the country. 

Williams also examines a North Korean health app offering telemedicine features and medicine delivery, illustrating how digital tools serve both convenience and surveillance.

Martyn Williams is a senior fellow for the Stimson Center’s Korea Program and 38 North. His primary interests are in North Korea’s technology, infrastructure, broadcasting system and propaganda. He previously appeared on episode 149 of the NK News 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 insights from our very own journalists.

Alec Zebrick of blockchain analytics company Chainalysis joins this week’s episode to break down how North Korea-linked actors are upgrading their tactics to steal cryptocurrency, why 2025 was a record year for large-scale hacks and what can be done to reduce risk.

The expert explores the shift in North Korean operations toward fewer but much larger targets, as exemplified by the outsized impact of the DPRK’s Bybit heist last year. He places this in the context of state-backed actors’ preference for “high-impact” operations over the “spray-and-pray” model common among non-state cybercriminals.

The discussion also covers how attack methods have evolved beyond basic phishing, as well as the continuing importance of sanctions and cross-border intelligence-sharing for stopping cybercrime.

Alec Zebrick is senior manager, global services at Chainalysis. He is based in South Korea, where he leads cryptocurrency investigations for public and private clients. A former U.S. detective and secret service task force officer, he is a subject-matter expert on North Korea’s crypto operations, has investigated major DPRK-linked hacks and has briefed the U.N. Security Council.

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 insights from our very own journalists.

In this episode, NK News Deputy Managing Editor David Choi and Senior Analytical Correspondent Colin Zwirko discuss newly released U.S. Justice Department files that show the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein explored possible business opportunities in North Korea.

The conversation then shifts to the two North Korean prisoners of war currently held in Ukraine, including the diplomatic and legal complexity around any transfer to South Korea and the likelihood that their status could become part of a wider Russia-Ukraine prisoner exchange.

They conclude by discussing North Korea’s announcement that it will hold the Ninth Party Congress in late February, as well as the latest on preparations for the event in Pyongyang.

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 insights from our very own journalists.

Lee Sang-sin of the Korea Institute for National Unification (KINU) returns to the podcast to discuss the results of the think tank’s annual survey, which found for the first time ever that less than half of South Korean adults think that unification with North Korea is necessary.

The expert discusses how Seoul’s broad unification framework has remained largely consistent across administrations and explains KINU’s role as a think tank under the prime minister’s office, which allows it to support the Ministry of Unification while maintaining independence.

The conversation then turns to North Korea’s rejection of unification and dialogue and KINU’s expanded global surveys, which show stark differences in how foreign publics view the two Koreas.

Dr. Lee Sang-sin is a senior research fellow and polling expert at the Korea Institute for National Unification. He last appeared on episode 74 of the NK News podcast in June 2019. 

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 insights from our very own journalists.

NK News Lead Correspondent Shreyas Reddy joins this week’s episode to discuss the formal preparations for the upcoming Ninth Party Congress, including meetings where the Central Committee has elected delegates and observers, and what signs to watch for as Pyongyang moves closer to announcing an official schedule. 

He also talks about recent diplomatic activity in Pyongyang, focusing on Iran’s appointment of a new resident ambassador, and explains why the timing matters, Iran’s longstanding ties with both Korean capitals and the possibility that Tehran has also dispatched a military attaché.

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 insights from our very own journalists.

In this episode, Agence France-Presse (AFP) global news editor Roland de Courson joins the podcast to discuss his photo-and-essay project — K-Scar — documenting life, memory and tourism along the inter-Korean border. 

De Courson explains why he describes the border as a “scar” and reflects on how indifference, curiosity and commercialized “dark tourism” shape the way people experience the DMZ and nearby frontline sites. The conversation moves from observatories and curated attractions to quieter human stories, such as aging refugees and communities living inside civilian control zones. He also discusses how art, everyday life and even a Starbucks overlooking North Korea reveal the normalization and contradictions of the border. 

Roland de Courson is a French journalist born in Madrid. He started his career in Canada and joined AFP in 1994. He is currently a global news editor in Seoul. For over two years, Roland traveled along the inter-Korean border to document his K-Scar project, which can be found online here. 

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 insights from our very own journalists.

NK News CEO Chad O’Carroll joins the podcast this week to discuss why the Workers’ Party of Korea still hasn’t held its Ninth Congress, the lack of typical pre-event mobilization campaigns and what satellite imagery of parade preparations suggests about a possible timeline.

The episode then turns to leadership dynamics in Pyongyang, including Kim Jong Un’s dismissal of a senior official during an on-the-spot inspection, before turning to revelations about both North and South Korea’s influence operations targeting a human rights advocate.

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 insights from our very own journalists.

Dr. Ria Roy, a scholar of modern Korea and East Asian history, joins the podcast to discuss the differences in language between the two Koreas, including contrasts in linguistic and ideological correctness.

She examines the Soviet Union’s influence on the Korean language in the DPRK and the importance of conveying information with the right tone. She also explores the use of profanity on North Korean state TV and why announcers often refer to specific groups of people in bespoke ways — whether using a motherly tone when discussing children or pausing before the name of leaders.

Roy is a Kleinheinz Fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University and the author of the article “The Sacred Text and the Language of the Leader: ‘Cultured Language’ and the Rhetorical Turn in North Korea.”

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 insights from our very own journalists.