North Korea will'never' get nuclear recognition, EU and South Korea say European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen shakes hands with South Korean President Lee Jae Myung next to European Council President Antonio Costa on the day of an EU-South Korea summit in Brussels on Wednesday. South Korea and the European Union have said that North Korea will "never" be recognized as a nuclear-weapon state, reaffirming their commitment to denuclearization days after China and North Korea pledged closer ties at a summit that made no public mention of the issue. South Korean President Lee Jae Myung held talks with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Antonio Costa on Wednesday in Brussels, where they agreed to step up defense ties, including efforts to facilitate the exchange of classified information. "The DPRK will never be accepted as a nuclear-weapon state," the EU and South Korea said in a joint statement, referring to North Korea's formal name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. In a time of both misinformation and too much information, quality journalism is more crucial than ever. By subscribing, you can help us get the story right.

Sakie Yokota (center, back), mother of North Korean abductee Megumi Yokota, and others attend a rally held in Tokyo on Saturday that called for the immediate return of Japanese people abducted by North Korea. A large-scale rally was held in Tokyo on Saturday to seek the immediate return home of all Japanese abductees in North Korea. Relatives of those abducted to North Korea decades ago expressed hopes for the return of abductees immediately and while their parents are still alive. The event, organized by the association of families of abduction victims and other entities, was attended by about 800 people, including Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi. "We will never give up," said Takuya Yokota, 57, head of the association and the younger brother of Megumi Yokota, who was abducted in 1977 at the age of 13. He called on North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to release all abductees to "chart a bright future for both countries."

Kim Jong Un praises troops who'self-blasted' to avoid capture by Ukraine Kim Jong Un has praised North Korean soldiers who killed themselves by detonating their grenades while fighting for Russia against Ukraine, confirming a long-suspected battlefield policy. In a speech this week, the North Korean leader said those who unhesitatingly opted for self-blasting, suicide attack, in order to defend the great honour were heroes. South Korea estimates at least 15,000 North Koreans have been sent to help Russia recapture parts of western Kursk, and more than 6,000 have been killed so far. Neither Pyongyang nor Moscow have confirmed the numbers. Intelligence agencies and defectors have said the soldiers were under Pyongyang's orders to kill themselves rather than be taken prisoner by Ukraine.

Chinese President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un arrive for a reception marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Sept. 3, 2025. Moscow and Beijing are driving closer collaboration between authoritarian states and such networks help advance repression globally, according to researchers who used artificial intelligence to drill into the activities. The U.S.-based nonprofit Action for Democracy said in a report Wednesday that its researchers built an index to track seven types of cooperation, including on funding, diplomatic activities, propaganda and tech sharing. It found that China and Russia sit at the center of global authoritarian collaboration" and were jointly involved in around half of all recorded activity. The report's authors said that such cooperation generated compound returns because, for example, surveillance infrastructure exported to one regime becomes a template for the next." In a time of both misinformation and too much information, quality journalism is more crucial than ever.

N Korea's Kim unveils 50 rocket launchers ahead of key congress North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has unveiled dozens of nuclear-capable rocket launchers ahead of a key congress of the governing Workers' Party, according to state media. Kim hailed the 600mm-calibre rocket launchers as "wonderful" and "attractive" during the ceremony on Wednesday, adding that new military and construction goals will be set during the upcoming congress. "When this weapon is used, actually, no force would be able to expect God's protection," Kim said, according to the KCNA "It is really a wonderful and attractive weapon," Kim said, according to South Korea's Yonhap News Agency. He described the launchers as the "world's most advantageous weapon for concentrated super-powerful attack", according Yonhap. Photos released by state media showed dozens of launch vehicles parked in neat rows on the plaza of Pyongyang's House of Culture, which will host the congress.

North Korea's Kim Yo Jong urges South Korea to investigate drone incidents Kim Yo Jong, sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, arrives at the Vostochny Сosmodrome before a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un, in Russia's far eastern Amur region in September 2023. Seoul - North Korea's Kim Yo Jong, the powerful sister of leader Kim Jong Un, urged South Korea to investigate recent drone incidents for detailed explanations, in a statement carried by state media Sunday. Kim said she personally appreciates Seoul for making a wise decision to announce its official stance that it has no intention of provocation, warning that any provocations will result in terrible situations, the official Korean Central News Agency said. Drones were flown from South Korea into North Korea earlier this month, after another intrusion in September, North Korea's military said on Saturday, which was soon followed by South Korea's response that they were not operated by the military. South Korea also said there would be a thorough investigation of a civilian possibly having operated the drones, making clear its stance of having no intention of provocation. Clear is just the fact that the drone from the ROK violated the airspace of our country, Kim said.

Donald Trump has departed for Malaysia, where he's set to attend the ASEAN summit and hold trade talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Speaking before he left, the US President criticised Canada over its'crooked ad' about tariffs, and said he'd be open to meeting North Korea's Kim Jong Un. 'Can't control' US tariffs: Canada'stands ready' to resume trade talks'Occupation, expulsion and colonisation': Israeli protesters block Gaza aid

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Kim Jong Un declares AI military drone development a'top priority' North Korea's Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un has said the use of artificial intelligence is a "top priority" in modernising his country's increasingly sophisticated weapons technology and building up drone capabilities, state media reports. During a visit to the Unmanned Aeronautical Technology Complex in the capital Pyongyang on Thursday, Kim presided over performance tests of multipurpose drones and unmanned surveillance vehicles, North Korea's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said on Friday. Kim also called for "expanding and strengthening the serial production capacity of drones". The visit to the aeronautical complex comes just a week after Kim oversaw another test of a new solid-fuel rocket engine designed for intercontinental ballistic missiles, which he hailed as a "significant" expansion of Pyongyang's nuclear capabilities. North Korea's military power includes nuclear-armed ballistic and cruise missiles, an increasing stockpile of nuclear weapons and a nascent spy satellite programme, according to the United States Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA).