As North Korean troops dispatched to Russia become increasingly involved in combat with Ukraine, China is upping its pressure on North Korea with crackdowns on North Korean workers.

The US is indicting yet another five suspects it believes were involved in North Korea's long-running, fraudulent remote IT worker scheme – including one who changed their last name to "Bane" and scored a gig at a tech biz in San Francisco.

North Korea's Supreme People's Assembly (SPA) met over two days this week and reported on its achievements during 2024 but state media made no mention of anticipated changes to the constitution that would further cement its hostile policy towards South Korea.

John Kirby, White House national security communications adviser, said of Hegseth's remarks on North Korea's status as a nuclear power: "We've not made such a recognition. I can't speak to what the incoming team will—how they'll characterize it. We've not gone so far as to make that recognition."

(Reuters) - Russia signed a strategic partnership treaty with Iran on Friday that follows similar pacts with China and North Korea. All three countries are adversaries of the United States, and Russia has used its ties with them to help blunt the impact of Western sanctions and boost its war effort in Ukraine.

North Korea has renamed its DMZ entry permits and expanded travel permits for citizens of the capital, Daily NK has learned.

The United States, Australia, India, and Japan reaffirmed their partnership at a meeting focusing on countering China's influence. Hosted by Marco Rubio, the Quad grouping emphasized a Free and Open Indo-Pacific.

South Korea's defence ministry said on Tuesday the denuclearisation of North Korea must continue to be the goal necessary for lasting global peace, after reports that U.S. President Donald Trump had called Pyongyang "a nuclear power.

The U.S. Air Force has maintained a rotational presence of fighter jets at Kadena Air Base in Japan, which serves as an air power hub in the first island chain.

A chance for Ukraine and Trump to set Putin back and drive a wedge between Pyongyang and Moscow.

The loose arrangement of hostile powers could pose a series of conundrums for President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for secretary of state.