North Korea

A relaxation of rules around private vehicle ownership and a growing class of relatively affluent consumers are driving a surge in the number of cars on the streets of Pyongyang, testing the city’s infrastructure

A new agreement expands bilateral health care cooperation between Russia and North Korea; according to Moscow the plan will include training of DPRK medical specialists and the supply of Russian-made medicines and equipment

A Russian cargo ship that has been sanctioned for facilitating illicit weapons trade with North Korea appeared at a northeastern DPRK port this week for the first time in two months

Six North Korean and Burmese targets have been sanctioned for facilitating arms trafficking; the US move is seeking to cut off a key network that generates revenue for Pyongyang and has enabled the Myanmar military’s lethal air strikes on civilians

A Chinese website dedicated to DPRK investment opportunities published a list of NK export products with items like textiles, machinery and cars that violate UN sanctions but it’s unclear if shipments have actually occurred

Tumen, a remote Chinese city, has restarted a cross-border bridge project to boost trade with North Korea, according to NK Pro analysis of satellite imagery and local Chinese media, over five years after the bridge was completed but abandoned

Leader Kim Jong-un paid tribute to North Korean troops killed in Russia’s war against Ukraine during an event broadcast on state TV

Inter-Korean reunions hotel is being desmantled, despite South Korea's engagement push; the current work on ROK-owned tower at Mt. Kumgang resort appears to signal DPRK will maintain anti-South policies

A large-scale industrial project to build better machines for manufacturing weapons has started, according to analysis of satellite imagery, soon after leader Kim Jong Un visited the Huichon Ryonha General Machine Plant in Jagang Province last month

State media reported that renovations on the Kalma train station in Wonsan have completed; they are part of the final preparations for the expected grand opening of the Wonsan Kalma beach resort later this month

With 'Hidden Heroes: An Anthology of North Korean Fiction', selection of 10 short contemporary stories on ordinary citizens who quietly contributed to society, curators Kim and Berthelier make a point of distinguishinging propaganda from storytelling

A sanctioned NK company, deeply tied to the military, is expanding into Russia’s diamond-rich Yakutia region, local media reported; the operation appears to be a try to send labor abroad and deepen economic cooperation with Moscow, defeating UN sanctions