North Korea News Podcast by NK News

Despite what appears to be a promising rapprochement between the two Koreas, North Korea's scheduled dismantlement of the Punggye-ri nuclear test site, and an upcoming summit between the POTUS and Kim Jong Un, to many this seems like a bad case of déjà vu.

So have we been here before, only to emerge with nothing to show for it? In this episode of the North Korea News Podcast, Evans Revere explains why we should be wary of the DPRK's promises, his experience of past negotiations with Pyongyang, prospects for peace, and what North Korea ultimately hopes to gain from talks.

For decades one of the U.S. State Department's top Asia experts, Evans J.R. Revere is currently senior advisor with the Albright Stonebridge Group, providing strategic advice to clients with a specific focus on North Korea, China and Japan. He is also a Nonresident Senior Fellow at Brookings. He has been working on Asia with a special focus on Korea for 49 years.

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 interview with leading experts and analysts in the field and insight from our very own journalists.

Want to gain instant access to breaking news stories and in-depth analysis discussed in our podcast? You can sign up for an annual NK News subscription, and save $50 by using promo code "podcast" at checkout.

Featured image: KCNA

Until about the mid-1970's, North Korea's economy actually outpaced that of the South. Since then, it has been on a downward spiral, somewhat from the collapse of the communist bloc but more than anything, due to the DPRK's poor decision-making.

In this episode of the North Korea News Podcast, Aidan Foster-Carter details his decades-long observation of the North Korean economy, his evaluation of the inter-Korean summit, and what needs to happen next in order to make real positive gains between the two Koreas.

Aidan Foster-Carter is an honorary senior research fellow in Sociology and Modern Korea at Leeds. He is also a freelance analyst and consultant: covering the politics and economics of both South and North Korea for, amongst others, the Economist Intelligence Unit, Oxford Analytica, and BBC World Service. A prolific writer on and frequent visitor to the Korean Peninsula, he has lectured on Korean and kindred topics to varied audiences in 20 countries on every continent.

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.

Want to gain instant access to breaking news stories and in-depth analysis discussed in our podcast? You can sign up for an annual NK News subscription, and save $50 by using promo code “podcast” at checkout.

What a week! In just a few days, we witnessed South Korean President Moon Jae-in and DPRK leader Kim Jong Un attempt to break the 73-year conflict by signing the joint Panmunjom Declaration, and North Korea announcing the dismantlement of their Punggye-ri nuclear test site in May.

Managing Editor Oliver Hotham and Senior Correspondent Dagyum Ji – who covered the events from the Inter-Korean Summit Press Center in Ilsan, South Korea – and NK News CEO Chad O’Carroll convened right after Friday’s historic inter-Korean summit to explain everything you need to know: what happened, who was there, and what it all meant.

Also discussed? Dokdo cake, fried potato rösti, and a magical hundred dollar bill.

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.

Want to gain instant access to breaking news stories and in-depth analysis discussed in our podcast? You can sign up for an annual NK News subscription, and save $50 by using promo code “podcast” at checkout.

Featured image: Joint Inter-Korean Summit Press Corps

What role can the European Union play in northeast Asia, and can it really contribute to negotiations for peace on the Korean peninsula?

In this week’s episode of the NK News Podcast, Dr. Tereza Novotna explains what this role can and should look like, her thoughts on Kim Jong Un’s upcoming meetings with Presidents Moon Jae-in and Donald Trump, and the similarities between modern North Korea and Eastern Europe’s communist bloc countries of the Cold War.

Tereza is currently a Korea Foundation Fellow and Visiting Professor at the EU Center at Seoul National University, as well as an academic collaborator with the Department of International Relations at the Institute for European Studies, Université libre de Bruxelles, and a Senior Associate Research Fellow at EUROPEUM, a Prague-based think tank with a branch in Brussels.

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.

Want to gain instant access to breaking news stories and in-depth analysis discussed in our podcast? You can sign up for an annual NK News subscription, and save $50 by using promo code “podcast” at checkout.

It is difficult to parse reality and rhetoric from North Korean propaganda, but Dr. Daniel Pinkston believes they really mean what they say when it comes to realizing a unified Korean peninsula under DPRK rule.

As the two Koreas prepare to meet for the first time in eleven years, Dr. Pinkston warns us not to forget this and other potentially dangerous North Korean objectives.

Dr. Daniel Pinkston is a Lecturer in International Relations at Troy University. Previously, he was the Northeast Asia Deputy Project Director at the International Crisis Group in Seoul and the Director the East Asian Nonproliferation Program at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies.

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 interview with leading experts and analysts in the field and insight from our very own journalists.

Want to gain instant access to breaking news stories and in-depth analysis discussed in our podcast? You can sign up for an annual NK News subscription, and save $50 by using promo code “podcast” at checkout.

 Featured image: KCNA

What do we really know about North Korea, and what mysteries are the world’s top intelligence agencies still trying to solve?

This week, NK News CEO Chad O’Carroll interviewed Dr. Sue Mi Terry, a former senior analyst on Korean issues at the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and now a senior fellow at the Korea Chair at the Center of Strategic and International Studies (CSIS).

Recorded in Washington D.C. in early April, this episode explores how the U.S. government corroborates and makes sense of information on North Korea, Dr. Terry’s experience in the CIA, and her thoughts on Trump, Kim Jong Un’s strategy on U.S.-DPRK relations, and denuclearization.

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 interview with leading experts and analysts in the field and insight from our very own journalists.

Want to gain instant access to breaking news stories and in-depth analysis discussed in our podcast? You can sign up for an annual NK News subscription, and save $50 by using promo code “podcast” at checkout.

Spring has sprung on the peninsula, and the two Koreas are now in summit mode.

As the DMZ prepares to host an inter-Korean summit on April 27, North Korea’s foreign minister Ri Yong Ho is making the diplomatic rounds in Asia and Europe, and in D.C., talks on the Trump-Kim meeting are still underway.

In this episode, we invited our very own NK News Managing Editor Oliver Hotham, Senior Correspondent Dagyum Ji, and NK Pro analyst Fyodor Tertitskiy for a roundtable discussion on North Korea’s reaction to the K-pop concerts from two weeks ago, the latest developments ahead of the inter-Korean summit, and a controversy at one of Washington D.C.’s top Korea-focused think tanks.

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 interview with leading experts and analysts in the field and insight from our very own journalists.

Want to gain instant access to breaking news stories and in-depth analysis discussed in our podcast? You can sign up for an annual NK News subscription, and save $50 by using promo code “podcast” at checkout.

Featured image: KCNA

North Korea is a controversial travel destination. While considered a relatively safe place if one abides by local rules and customs, the ethics behind tourism to the DPRK remains a topic of wide debate.

While some argue that it is a form of positive engagement, and that profits from tourism are so tiny as to not represent a substantial contribution to the nuclear program, others argue that tourism lends support – and legitimacy – to the regime.

These arguments notwithstanding, thousands continue to visit the DPRK every year: including Ayesha Sitara, a frequent traveler to the North.

This week, we sat down with Ayesha, who has gained access to places and experiences most do not ever get to see, to discuss her most recent trip to North Korea, as well as the ethics of tourism to the North, how to remain a responsible photographer, and some memorable encounters with guides, minders, and locals.

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.

Related:

Ask a North Korean: what do you think of tourism to the DPRK?

Restrict tourism with North Korea, not dialogue

Subverted Engagement

With a South Korean art troupe currently in Pyongyang for a series of historic inter-Korean concerts and a third DPRK-ROK summit set to start on April 27, it feels like the two Koreas might – slowly but surely – be taking steps to solve the conflict first launched by the war that struck the peninsula over 60 years ago. These rapid developments make understanding – and discussing – the Korean War all the more important.

In this episode of the “North Korea News Podcast,” we sat down with Dr. Kathryn Weathersby to discuss the legacy of the conflict, her efforts to consolidate Chinese, Russian, and Korean sources and materials on the war into one centralized archive, and the prospects for summit diplomacy in the coming months.

Dr. Weathersby is a Visiting Professor and Vice-Head of the Korean War Archive Project at Korea University, and Professorial Lecturer in Korean Studies at the School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University. She has written extensively on Soviet-DPRK, Russo-East Asia relations, and Korean history.

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.

Announcing the winners of the podcast review subscription giveaway: 

Week 1 (February 26 – March 4): Curtley Oakley

Week 2 (March 5 – 11): Edvenchers

Week 3 (March 12 – 18): extratooth

Week 4 (March 19 – 25): LTgovernor

Week 5 (March 26 – 31): Sleepy Kitty

Please contact Christina at [email protected] to redeem your free subscription, with proof of your username identity.

Featured image: U.S. Navy

After days of speculation that DPRK leader Kim Jong Un had made an impromptu visit to China, Xinhua News on Wednesday confirmed that Kim Jong Un traveled to Beijing for his first trip abroad as head of state.

In the latest roundtable – recorded hours after the news of the summit broke – NK News Managing Editor Oliver Hotham, Senior Correspondent Dagyum Ji, and NK Pro analyst Fyodor Tertitskiy also address why the South Korean government was unable to confirm anything for two days, U.S. President Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Abe’s reaction, and what we can expect from the new U.S. National Security Advisor John Bolton.

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.

*From now until March 31, we will be choosing one lucky listener every week to receive a free NK News subscription ($300 value). To enter, please leave us a rating or review on iTunes or the iOS Podcast app.

Announcing winners of the podcast review subscription giveaway: 

Week 1 (February 26 – March 4): Curtley Oakley

Week 2 (March 5 – 11): Edvenchers

Week 3 (March 12 – 18): extratooth

Week 4 (March 19 – 25): LTgovernor

Week 5 (March 26 – 31): To be determined

Please contact Christina at [email protected] to redeem your free subscription, with proof of your username identity.

Featured image: KCNA