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Kim Jong-Un
Dennis Rodman is heading to North Korea for a five-day visit, where he will train the national basketball team.
The former basketball player has previously described his visits as “basketball diplomacy”, and called North Korean leader Kim Jong-un his “friend for life”.
The US State Department has stressed that Dennis Rodman is not representing the US government on this trip.
The visit comes weeks after Kim Jong-un’s uncle Jang Sung-taek was executed.
Dennis Rodman is heading to North Korea for a five-day visit
Speaking to reporters in Beijing before heading to North Korea, Dennis Rodman said politics had “nothing to do with [him]”.
“I’m just going over there to do a basketball game and have some fun,” he told Reuters news agency.
Organizers of the trip say that Dennis Rodman will also arrange a friendship basketball match between North Korea and a group of former NBA players on January 8, to mark Kim Jong-un’s birthday.
Dennis Rodman remains the most high-profile American to meet Kim Jong-un since the leader took over after his father died in 2011.
He said that he spent time with Kim Jong-un and his wife Ri Sol-ju during his last visit in September, and said Kim had a baby daughter called Ju-ae.
US State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf said on Tuesday: “Dennis Rodman is not a representative of the US government in his trip to North Korea.”
“We need to focus on what’s really important here when it comes to North Korea… the brutality of the North Korean regime he’s going to meet.”
American citizen Kenneth Bae (known in North Korea as Pae Jun-ho) is detained in North Korea after being arrested in November 2012. He was sentenced to 15 years’ hard labor in May.
Dennis Rodman previously rejected calls to lobby for Kenneth Bae’s release.
“That’s not my job to ask about Kenneth Bae,” Dennis Rodman told reporters after his September visit.
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North Korea is commemorating its leader Kim Jong-il, two years after his death in 2011.
Images from Pyongyang showed ranks of thousands of officials at a ceremony to commemorate Kim Jong-il.
His son, Kim Jong-un, inherited the leadership after his death in 2011.
Last week he presided over the execution of Jang Sung-taek, his uncle and a powerful figure seen by outside observers as his mentor.
Jang Sung-taek was accused of multiple crimes, state media said, including forming a power base and attempting to overthrow the state.
On Monday, UN Secretary-General Ban Kim-moon described his execution as “very dramatic and surprising”.
North Korea is commemorating its leader Kim Jong-il, two years after his death in 2011
He urged regional nations “while they must be vigilantly and carefully watching the development of situation, not to take any premature actions”.
Residents laid flowers at monuments to both Kim Jong-il and his father, Kim Il-sung, North Korea’s first leader.
Kim Jong-il, who ruled North Korea for almost two decades, died on December 17, 2011.
On Tuesday, his third son and chosen successor, Kim Jong-un, attended a ceremony to remember his father.
Kim Jong-un sat on the podium flanked by North Korea’s ceremonial head of state, Kim Yong-nam, and the head of the army.
“All our people and soldiers have struggled and achieved victory for the past two years by holding our great leader [Kim Jong-il] in high esteem,” Kim Yong-nam said in his speech.
On Monday thousands of North Korean soldiers lined up in front of the state mausoleum to pledge their allegiance to Kim Jong-un.
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South Korea’s President Park Geun-hye has convened a meeting of security officials after the shock execution of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s uncle, Jang Sung-taek.
Ahead of the meeting Park Geun-hye warned of possible “reckless provocations” by the North and called for increased border vigilance.
Last week’s execution of Jang Sung-taek left the region in a “grave and unpredictable” situation, she said.
Jang Sung-taek, a key figure in North Korea, was executed for allegedly planning a coup.
President Park Geun-hye has convened a meeting of security officials after the shock execution of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s uncle
The move – together with the recall of a North Korean business team from China – prompted concerns that Jang Sung-taek’s associates were being purged as part of a campaign by Kim Jong-un to consolidate his power.
China’s foreign minister, Wang Yi, said he believed an “important change” was taking place inside North Korea.
China – which in state media has called for Kim Jong-un to visit Beijing – was “closely watching” the situation, Wang Yi said.
“Given the latest development in the North, it is uncertain in what direction its political situation would evolve,” Park Geun-hye said early on Monday.
“We also can’t rule out the possibility of contingencies such as reckless provocations,” she added.
President Park Geun-hye later met her foreign affairs and security officials in a specially convened session to discuss events in the North.
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Jang Sung-taek’s execution will not alter North Korea’s economic goals, an official said.
Jang Sung-taek, uncle of leader Kim Jong-un, had been building trade with China before his removal led to speculation a drive to attract foreign cash will end.
Foreign investment is seen as crucial to North Korea’s fragile economy.
Kim Kyong-hui, Jang Sung-taek’s wife and Kim Jong-un’s aunt, was meanwhile named on a state committee – signaling she remains safe within the ruling dynasty.
Jang Sung-taek had been one of North Korea’s most powerful officials and a key architect of the country’s economic policies.
Kim Jong-un touring the Masik-Ryong ski resort
His execution last week and the recall of a North Korea business team from China, prompted concerns that his associates were being purged as part of a campaign by Kim Jong-un to consolidate his power.
It also led to fears for the stability of the nuclear-armed state.
But Yun Yong Sok, a senior member of the state economic development committee, told the Associated Press news agency that North Korea’s trade goals were unaffected.
“Even though Jang Sung-taek’s group caused great harm to our economy, there will be no change at all in the economic policy of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea,” he said.
“It’s just the same as before.”
North Korea last month announced plans to create provincial economic zones offering incentives for foreign tourism and investment.
Kim Kyong-hui, Jang Sung-taek’s widow and the influential aunt of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, has been given a prestigious position, even after the execution of her husband on Thursday.
Kim Kyong-hui remains a part of the regime’s inner circle, even after the execution of Jang Sung-taek, the second most powerful man in North Korea.
Late on Saturday, North Korea named 67-year-old Kim Kyong-hui, daughter of North Korea’s founder Kim Il-sung, as one of the funeral committee members for the ruling party, a prestigious position.
Kim Kyong-hui remains a part of the regime’s inner circle, even after the execution of Jang Sung-taek
Jang Sung-taek was executed just days before the second anniversary of the death of Kim Jong-il, the father of North Korea’s current ruler.
He had been executed for attempting to seize power and for driving the economy “into an uncontrollable catastrophe.”
North Korea will mark the second anniversary of the death of Kim Jong-il on Tuesday.
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Just days after Jang Sung-taek’s execution, the North Korean business people have been recalled from China, says a South Korean report.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un may be purging associates of Jang Sung-taek, who was in charge of economic ties with China.
Kim Jong-un has been pictured by state media for the first time since the execution of his uncle Jang Sung-taek.
The South Korean government believes Kim Jong-un is trying to consolidate his power through a reign of terror.
The execution of Jang Sung-taek raised international concern about the stability of the nuclear-armed state.
North Korea has summoned back business people working out of the north-eastern Chinese cities of Shenyang and Dandong, sources told the South Korean news agency Yonhap.
They are in China to enhance bilateral trade and investment.
Kim Jong-un has been pictured by state media for the first time since the execution of his uncle Jang Sung-taek
Another source told the agency Pyongyang planned to bring all officials and staff home from China in stages.
It appeared to be a crackdown on those perceived as loyal to Jang Sung-taek, Yonhap said.
It could also be another sign that Jang Sung-taek’s downfall reflected discomfort at his enthusiasm for Chinese-style economic reform.
There have been other reports over recent days about officials being recalled to North Korea from abroad.
South Korean intelligence officials say two of Jang Sung-taek’s closest aides were executed last month, and analysts suggest the purging of such a high-profile figure is unlikely to take place without a “ripple effect” – a purge of others linked to them.
Kim Jong-un was pictured in photographs released by state media for the first time since the dramatic execution of Jang Sung-taek on Thursday following a military trial.
He was shown touring a military design institute, trailed by military officers, many taking notes. Among them was Kim Jong-un’s personal envoy, Vice-Marshal Choe Ryong-hae.
The pictures appeared designed to demonstrate Kim Jong-un’s continuing hold on power and “business as usual” for the North Korean leadership, said commentators.
The images will also be scrutinized for clues to Kim Jong-un’s inner circle, analysts say.
Among those pictured in the latest photographs are believed Hwang Pyong-so, vice departmental director of Party Central Committee (not in military uniform), Choe Ryong-hae, vice-marshal of the armed forces, and Jang Jong-nam, the nation’s new defense minister.
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Jang Sung-taek’s execution in North Korea has rekindled fears of instability in the secretive nuclear-armed state.
South Korean defense chief Kim Kawn-jin promised “heightened readiness” after the purge of Jang Sung-thaek.
Kim Kawn-jin said the execution could be seen as part of a “reign of terror” by the North Korean leader.
Jang Sung-taek, Kim Jong-un’s uncle, was executed for “acts of treachery” after appearing before a military trial.
Jang Sung-taek’s execution in North Korea has rekindled fears of instability in the secretive nuclear-armed state
He was dramatically removed from a special party session by armed guards earlier this week.
South Korean Unification Minister Ryoo Kihl-jae warned that the purge could be followed by military moves from Pyongyang, including another nuclear test.
He told lawmakers that “the North usually curbs internal (agitation) through waging provocations externally”.
North Korea carried out its third nuclear test in February, to widespread international condemnation.
As tensions rose, Pyongyang threatened attacks on Japanese, South Korean and US military targets in the region.
China, North Korea’s ally and neighbor, described Jang Sung-taek’s execution as an “internal matter”.
“As a neighboring country, we hope for North Korea to maintain stability…” South Korean foreign ministry spokesman said.
Victor Cha, a former senior White House adviser on Asia, warned that Kim Jong-un’s purge could spread further than Jang Sung-taek.
“If he has to go as high as purging and then executing Chang, it tells you that everything’s not normal,” Victor Cha said.
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North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s uncle, Jang Sung-taek, has been executed after being purged for “acts of treachery”, state media say.
Jang Sung-taek was dramatically removed from a Communist Party session by armed guards earlier this week.
It was the biggest upheaval since Kim Jong-un succeeded his father two years ago.
State news agency KCNA said Jang Sung-taek had admitted at a military trial on Thursday to attempting to overthrow the state, and was executed immediately.
Jang Sung-taek, who is thought to have mentored his nephew during the leadership transition from Kim Jong-il to his son Kim Jong-un in 2011, was “worse than a dog”, said the agency.
He had admitted abusing his positions of responsibility to form a faction against the state and to harboring his own political ambitions, it said in a lengthy and detailed report.
The White House said it could not independently verify the reports but had “no reason to doubt” them.
“If confirmed, this is another example of the extreme brutality of the North Korean regime. We are following developments in North Korea closely and consulting with our allies and partners in the region,” it said in a statement.
Jang Sung-taek – married to the elder Kim Jong-il’s sister – had held senior posts in the ruling party and the National Defense Commission, the North’s top military body.
He was frequently pictured alongside his nephew and seen by some observers as the power behind the throne.
But in early December, it emerged that he had been removed from his senior military position and that two of his aides had been executed.
Then on Monday, KCNA broadcast footage of him being removed from a party session by uniformed guards.
Jang Sung-taek has been executed after being purged for acts of treachery
In a long report on Friday, KCNA described Jang Sung-taek as a “traitor” and “human scum”.
It said: “Chang dreamed such a foolish dream that once he seizes power by a base method, his despicable true colors as <<reformist>> known to the outside world would help his <<new government>> get <<recognized>> by foreign countries in a short span of time.”
KCNA also said Jang Sung-taek:
- Attempted to “overthrow the state”
- Transformed his department into “a ‘little kingdom'” and attempted to “trigger off discontent” within the army to mobilize a coup
- Took control of the “major economic fields of the country” and “schemed to drive the economy of the country and people’s living into an uncontrollable catastrophe”
- Committed corruption by transferring construction units to his contacts
- Committed irregularities related to a joint economic zone with China, Rason
- Was responsible for unpopular currency reforms in 2009. In December 2009 Pyongyang’s reported redenomination of the won knocked two zeros off the nominal value of each banknote.
Jang Sung-taek admitted his “crimes” in court and a death sentence was “immediately executed”, KCNA said.
Analysts say his fall from grace could be seen as the latest in a series of carefully calibrated moves to demonstrate Kim Jong-un’s authority and an assertion of his independence.
In August 2012, Jang Sung-taek made a high profile trip to China, where he met then-President Hu Jintao. The two sides later signed a raft of economic deals, including the development of two special economic zones: Rason, on North Korea’s east coast, and Hwanggumphyong, on the border with China.
As news of the purge emerged earlier this week, South Korean President Park Geun-hye warned the North was “carrying out a reign of terror” to reinforce Kim Jong-il’s position.
She said the volatile relationship between the two countries was likely to become “more unstable” as a result.
On Friday, South Korea’s military said it had tightened surveillance on Pyongyang, news agency Yonhap reported.
Unification Ministry spokesman Kim Eyi-do said the government had “deep concerns” about the latest developments and was “watching the situation closely”.
Meanwhile, Japan’s top government spokesman Yoshihide Suga said: “We will calmly monitor the situation while communicating with other countries and collect relevant information.”
Chinese state media reported on Jang Sung-taek’s execution, but there has been no official government response so far.
Who is Jang Sung-taek:
- Born 1946, he married Kim Jong-il’s sister in 1972
- Joined Korean Workers’ Party administrative ranks in 1970s
- Elected to Central Committee in 1992
- Sidelined in 2004, but rehabilitated in 2006
- 2011: Got top military post under Kim Jong-un
- November 2013: Dismissed from his position
- December 2013: Executed as a “traitor”[youtube rsiqP8eIA9o 650]
North Korean state television KCNA has broadcast images of Jang Sung-taek – the once powerful uncle of leader Kim Jong-un – being removed from a meeting, confirming reports of his dismissal.
The dramatic images show Jang Sung-taek being escorted from a party session by uniformed guards.
The television accused Jang Sung-taek of forming factions against the state, corruption and “depraved” acts such as womanizing and drug abuse.
Analysts say such a public dismissal is unique and could signal a wider purge.
It is the biggest upheaval in North Korea’s leadership since Kim Jong-un succeeded his father Kim Jongil two years ago.
The KCNA state news agency said the decision was announced after a meeting of the ruling communist Korean Workers’ Party Politburo over the weekend.
News of Jang Sung-taek’s dismissal filtered out in South Korea last week along with reports that two of his close aides had been executed for corruption. It is unclear when these latest images date from.
Jang Sung-taek escorted from a party session by uniformed guards
The KCNA report accuses Jang Sung-taek of being part of a faction working against the North Korean state.
“Jang pretended to uphold the party and leader but was engrossed in such factional acts as dreaming different dreams and involving himself in double-dealing behind the scenes.”
It also accused Jang Sung-taek of offences such as financial mismanagement and selling off national resources for his personal gain, but it also denounced him for leading what it called “a dissolute and depraved life”.
“Ideologically sick and extremely idle and easy-going, he used drugs and squandered foreign currency at casinos while he was receiving medical treatment in a foreign country under the care of the party,” the KCNA report said.
It added that Jang Sung-taek had “improper relations” with several women and “was wined and dined at back parlors of deluxe restaurants”.
Such an official announcement detailing a leader’s alleged crimes is unique.
Almost overnight, Jang Sung-taek has morphed from uncle and mentor to North Korea’s young leader, to “anti-revolutionary” criminal outcast.
The move could be seen as the latest in a series of carefully calibrated moves to demonstrate Kim Jong-un’s control, yet another sign of his authority and an assertion of his independence.
Jang Sung-taek is reported to have been stripped of all his positions and expelled from the party.
On Saturday, North Korean state TV was also reported to have removed footage of Jang Sung-taek from a documentary.
North Korea has confirmed for the first time that Jang Sung-taek has been dismissed from his post.
Jang Sung-taek had committed “criminal acts”, according to the state-run KCNA news agency.
Kim Jong-un’s uncle was seen as an economic reformer and regularly handled talks with China, Pyongyang’s only major ally.
North Korea has confirmed for the first time that Jang Sung-taek has been dismissed from his post
Jang Sung-taek’s removal is the biggest upheaval in North Korea’s leadership since Kim Jong-un succeeded his father, analysts say.
Two of his close aides have been executed for corruption, according to earlier South Korean reports.
KCNA said the decision had come after a meeting of the politburo of the ruling Workers’ Party.
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Kim Jong-un’s uncle, Jang Sung-taek, lost his position as vice-chairman of North Korea’s top military body, South Korean media reports say.
Citing South Korea’s intelligence agency, they say Jang Sung-taek, 67, has been removed from his post.
Two close aides were also executed for corruption, according to the reports.
If confirmed, Jang Sung-taek’s removal would be the biggest upheaval in North Korea’s leadership since Kim Jong-un succeeded his father, analysts say.
Kim Jong-un took over after his father Kim Jong-il died in 2011.
The latest reports emerged from an intelligence briefing given to South Korean lawmakers.
Jang Sung-taek lost his position as vice-chairman of North Korea’s top military body
The National Intelligence Service (NIS) made the assessment based on information provided by multiple sources, the South’s Yonhap news agency said.
It also quoted the intelligence service as saying two of Jang Sung-taek’s closest associates had been executed in public in late November.
However, the reports are difficult to verify, and South Korea’s spy agency has been proven wrong before. But if true, the development would mark a significant shift.
Jang Sung-taek, who is married to Kim Jong-il’s sister, was seen by some observers as the power behind the throne.
He climbed through the ranks of the secretive leadership of North Korea’s Korean Workers Party (KWP) in the 1970s. In 1992, he was elected to its Central Committee.
However, Jang Sung-taek has been targeted by purges in the past. In 2004, despite his place in the Kim family, he disappeared from public view.
One report at the time, citing South Korean intelligence, said Jang Sung-taek had been placed under house arrest. Others suggested he had been sent for “re-education”.
However, two years later Jang Sung-taek appears to have been reinstated. He was regarded as an economic reformer and a major influence on Kim Jong-un.
Jang Sung-taek held key positions in both the Communist Party and the National Defense Commission.
Dennis Rodman plans to visit North Korea for an exhibition basketball tour late next month.
In an interview with The Associated Press, Dennis Rodman said he’ll be accompanied on the trip by a dozen or so former NBA players. But he refused to name names.
“I have seven people right now,” he said.
“I talked to a couple of guys last week. Lot of guys are saying, <<OK, great. I’ll go. We’ll go>>. But I’m not saying this to get people to go over there to prove a point — <<OK, great, let’s go over there and make a difference.>>”
Back in the news as a self-appointed ambassador and friend of Kim Jong-un, Dennis Rodman returned Thursday to where he won the last three of his five NBA championships playing alongside Michael Jordan. On a promotional tour to pitch a vodka brand, Dennis Rodman held court downtown amid camera flashes.
Dennis Rodman, 52, said he wouldn’t talk about his relationship with Kim Jong-un or North Korean politics, including its widely condemned human-rights record and secretive nuclear weapons program. Though he eventually touched on those subjects, Dennis Rodman glossed over several related questions and largely ignored a challenge to his answer about whether North Korea was holding US citizens as hostages, including 85-year-old Korean War veteran Merrill Newman.
Dennis Rodman plans to visit North Korea for an exhibition basketball tour late next month
The Swedish Embassy is negotiating on behalf of Newman because the US has no diplomatic ties to North Korea. Dennis Rodman’s friendship with Kim Jong-un has afforded him the kind of access denied statesmen from the West and even President Barack Obama.
Dennis Rodman came under criticism for being “naive” during a previous visit to North Korea, where he was photographed often with Kim Jong-un, and some members of the diplomatic community fear his antics could further aggravate already-sensitive negotiations.
He said his reasons for returning to North Korea were much more personal and beyond that, Kim Jong-un’s motives were not his concern.
“Like I told you, this is not all about trying to create this major buzz,” Dennis Rodman said.
“Because I don’t want my friend to sit there and say I been doing this all along to slip in some information on him. I don’t want that. That’s why I’m not doing that. We’re friends and that’s it.
“This ain’t about me trying to be a politician and try to get some scoop on him and stuff like that. … He’s my friend first. Other than that, I don’t give a damn what … he does.”
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In a rare admission of military failure, North Korea has revealed that one of its warships sank last month, killing a number of sailors.
North Korean state media reported a visit by leader Kim Jong-un to a naval cemetery for the crew of “submarine chaser No 233”.
Photographs showed Kim Jong-un surrounded by more than a dozen gravestones inscribed with the date October 13.
The report said the vessel had been performing combat duties but gave no more information about what happened.
Kim Jong-un visit to a naval cemetery for the crew of submarine chaser No 233
“Submarine chaser No 233 fell while performing combat duties in mid-October,” state news agency KCNA said.
Images showed Kim Jong-un, accompanied by several officials, visiting a memorial which included multiple gravestones with images inscribed on them.
North Korea has a large military but much of its equipment is believed to be old and out of date.
Reports in South Korean media, citing unidentified sources, suggested age of submarine chaser could have been a factor in the sinking.
These reports said the incident was believed to have taken place off Wonsan, on the east coast of the Korean peninsula, during an exercise.
North Korea has marked the 65th anniversary of its founding with a huge military parade.
The country held its second mass parade in little more than a month, with leader Kim Jong-un presiding over a display of goose-stepping paramilitary troops, marching bands and flower-waving civilians.
North Korea has marked the 65th anniversary of its founding with a huge military parade
At the start of the ceremony, tens of thousands of guards gathered in tight formation in Pyongyang’s Kim Il-sung Square, with hundreds of thousands more civilians in the background carrying brightly colored flowers in the pattern of a giant national flag.
Kim Jong-un’s arrival on the viewing platform with senior party and military officials was greeted with the usual thunderous applause and cries of Mansei.
Leading the parade were the Worker-Peasant Red Guard – a civilian militia with an estimated strength of more than three million active members.
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Hyon Song-wol, long-term mistress of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, was executed by firing squad along with 11 others, Reuters reported.
The group was “accused of filming and selling s** tapes of themselves” while some of them “allegedly possessed bibles, which is a political crime”.
The women were machined-gunned with their families forced to watch. Their families were then sent to prison camps because of North Korea’s policy of “guilt by association”.
Hyon Song-wol, a singer in North Korea’s famed Unhasu Orchestra, was killed along with 11 other members of the orchestra and the Wangjaesan Light Music Band, another popular state-run music group, according to a report in The Chosun Ilbo, South Korea’s largest daily newspaper.
The report, which cites an anonymous source in China, says the group was arrested on August 17. The clip reportedly found its way across the border to China. Their families were forced to watch the execution, which took place three days later, and were then sent to the country’s notorious prison camps, the source said.
Hyon Song-wol, long-term mistress of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, was executed by firing squad along with 11 others
Hyon Song-wol was a famous performer whose fame peaked around 2005 with the popular song Excellent Horse-Like Lady. She is said to have dated Kim Jong-un in the early 2000’s, after the young leader returned from boarding school in Switzerland. But she disappeared from the public eye around 2006, near the time Kim Jong-il began grooming his son to be Supreme Leader. Kim Jong-il reportedly disapproved of the relationship and ordered Hyon Somng-wol to leave the orchestra to keep her away from his son.
Shortly after the breakup, HyonSong-wol is said to have married an officer in the North Korean army and given birth to his son. But after Kim Jong-il’s death in late 2011, rumors spread among Pyongyang’s military elite that Kim Jong-un and Hyon Song-wol had rekindled their romance.
A young woman photographed next to Kim Jong-un at a concert in Pyongyang last summer was thought by South Korean intelligence officials to have been Hyon Song-wol. Experts speculated that the photos were circulated as a play to make Kim Jong-un seem more approachable. However, reports later said the woman was Ri Sol-ju, Kim Jong-un’s current wife.
Ri Sol-ju was also a member of the Unhasu Orchestra before she married Kim Jong-un, but it’s unclear if she knew Hyon Song-wol personally. Kim Jong-un and Ri Sol-ju have a baby daughter called Ju-ae together, as retired US basketball player Dennis Rodman confirmed.
Hyon Song-wol’s ties to Kim Jong-un raise the question whether it’s possible there is an ulterior motive for the execution. In North Korea, executions have been carried out as a way to eliminate perceived threats to the power of the Supreme Leader and his inner circle, but with such a dearth of facts in this case, it is hard to say anything for certain.
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North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has a baby daughter called Ju-ae, Dennis Rodman says.
Dennis Rodman, who was in North Korea last week on a “basketball diplomacy tour”, made the comments in an interview with The Guardian newspaper.
He said that he spent time with Kim Jong-un’s family by the sea, and described him as “a good dad”.
Kim Jong-un leads one of the most secretive countries in the world, with relatively little known about his personal life.
“The Marshal Kim and I had a relaxing time by the sea with his family,” Dennis Rodman said.
Kim Jong-un and his wife Ri Sol-ju have a baby daughter called Ju-ae
“I held their baby Ju-ae and spoke with [Kim Jong-un’s wife] as well. He’s a good dad and has a beautiful family,” he said.
Last year, photos of Ri Sol-ju, Kim Jong-un’s wife, prompted speculation that she was pregnant, although there was no official confirmation.
North Korea only confirmed Ri Sol-ju was Kim Jong-un’s wife in July 2012, a month after she was first seen in public with him.
Dennis Rodman, who has visited North Korea twice this year, remains the most high-profile American to meet Kim Jong-un since the leader took over after his father died in 2011.
Speaking to reporters in Beijing on Saturday, after his return from North Korea, Dennis Rodman angrily rejected calls to lobby for the release of American citizen Kenneth Bae detained in North Korea.
“That’s not my job to ask about Kenneth Bae,” he said.
Kenneth Bae (known in North Korea as Pae Jun-ho) was arrested in November 2012 and sentenced to 15 years’ hard labor in May.
Last month, North Korea revoked an invitation for Robert King, the US special envoy for North Korean rights, to visit Pyongyang to discuss the case.
Dennis Rodman is visiting North Korea for the second time this year to meet leader Kim Jong-un.
The retired basketball player said meeting “my friend Kim”, who is a basketball fan, was part of his “basketball diplomacy tour”.
Dennis Rodman told reporters he would not be discussing the case of jailed Korean-American Kenneth Bae with Kim Jong-un.
Last week, North Korea revoked a trip by a US envoy seeking Kenneth Bae’s release.
Dennis Rodman, a former NBA star, spent time with Kim Jong-un in March while filming a documentary with a US media company.
He visited with members of the Harlem Globetrotters team, who played a game with members of North Korea’s “Dream Team”.
Dennis Rodman is visiting North Korea for the second time this year to meet leader Kim Jong-un
Dennis Rodman remains the most high-profile American to meet Kim Jong-un since the leader took over after his father died in 2011.
On his way from Beijing, China, to Pyongyang, North Korea, on Tuesday, Dennis Rodman told reporters: “I just want to meet my friend Kim, the marshal, and start a basketball league over there.”
“I have not been promised anything. I am just going there as a friendly gesture.”
Asked if he was going to discuss the jailed American, Dennis Rodman said: “I’m not going to talk about that.”
Last week, North Korea revoked an invitation for Robert King, the US special envoy for North Korean rights, to visit Pyongyang.
Robert King was expected to appeal for the release of Kenneth Bae, 45, sentenced to 15 years of hard labor in May, on humanitarian grounds.
North Korea said Kenneth Bae, described as both a Christian missionary and tour operator, used his tourism business to plot sedition.
Kenneth Bae (known in North Korea as Pae Jun-ho) was arrested in November 2012 as he entered the north-eastern port city of Rason, a special economic zone near North Korea’s border with China.
His trial and conviction came at a time of high tension between the US and North Korea, in the wake of the communist state’s third nuclear test.
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Switzerland has decided to block a deal to sell ski lifts to North Korea in the latest setback for leader Kim Jong-un’s pet ski resort project.
The Swiss government cited expanded sanctions on luxury exports to North Korea.
Heavy rains and landslides have already delayed the project, viewed as a response to South Korea hosting the 2018 Winter Olympic Games.
Kim Jong-un has ordered the army to complete the resort by year’s end.
Switzerland has decided to block a deal to sell ski lifts to North Korea in the latest setback for leader Kim Jong-un’s pet ski resort project
The North Korean leader has repeatedly visited the Masik ski resort site and promoted it as an attempt to enhance the lifestyle of the nation’s citizens.
But Switzerland’s State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (Seco) labelled the resort a “prestigious propaganda project for the regime”.
“It is inconceivable that this resort will be used by the general public,” Seco spokeswoman Marie Avet said.
It is thought Kim Jong-un learned to ski in Bern, where he attended secondary school without revealing his true identity.
The ski lift deal with Swiss company Bartholet Maschinenbau, valued at more than $7 million, is reportedly the third to fall through due to sanctions.
Austrian and French manufacturers also turned down deals, citing political reasons.
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North Korea announces it has produced its first home-grown smartphone – Arirang – but experts have disputed its origins.
The Arirang handset, described as a “hand phone” in state media, was shown to leader Kim Jong-un during a factory tour.
North Korea has had a mobile network since 2008, but activity is heavily monitored and restricted.
Last year North Korea launched a tablet, but it later emerged it was likely to have been made in China.
Clues to the tablet’s origin were uncovered by Martyn Williams, an expert on North Korean technology, who noted that parts of the tablet’s software code suggested links to a manufacturer in Hong Kong.
The Arirang smartphone, named after a popular folk song, was unlikely to have been made in the country, Martyn Williams added.
He noted that actual manufacturing was shown, and that the device was “probably made to order by a Chinese manufacturer and shipped to the May 11 Factory where they are inspected before going on sale”.
Kim Jong-un demoing the Arirang smartphone, which appeared to be running a version of Google’s Android mobile operating system
Kim Jong-un was accompanied by the Korean Workers’ Party propaganda chief and the head of the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), a hint that the devices could be used for widespread dissemination of government information.
The North Korean leader was seen to be demoing the device, which appeared to be running a version of Google’s Android mobile operating system.
There are no further details available about the smartphone’s exact specifications, but the KNCA reported that Kim Jong-un praised the “high pixels” of the built-in camera.
The article said Kim Jong-un had high hopes for the “educational significance in making people love Korean things”.
He advised that factory workers should “select and produce shapes and colors that users like”.
Mobile phones in North Korea have been available since 2008. The national network is maintained thanks to a joint operation by the North Korean government and Egyptian telecoms company Orascom.
Phones on the network are heavily restricted. They cannot access the internet and can only make calls within North Korea.
For a short time, foreigners in the country were able to use mobile internet, but this access was later revoked.
It is believed that many in North Korea, particular those near the borders, use illegally owned mobiles to contact people outside the country.
Being found in possession of a foreign phone would be a very serious crime.
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North Korea has blasted a report that its leader, Kim Jong-un, gave out copies of Adolf Hitler’s memoir Mein Kampf to officials on his birthday.
The report, from a news website run by North Korean defectors, said that senior officials were given the book as a gift in January.
North Korea has denounced the defectors as “human scum” and threatened to kill them.
Nazi leader Adolf Hitler wrote Mein Kampf in 1924 while in prison.
The book, which translates as My Struggle in English, outlines his early life and racist views.
News portal New Focus International wrote the original report, citing an unnamed North Korean official in China.
“Mentioning that Hitler managed to rebuild Germany in a short time following its defeat in WWI, Kim Jong-un issued an order for the Third Reich to be studied in depth and asked that practical applications be drawn from it,” the source reportedly said.
North Korea has blasted a report that Kim Jong-un gave out copies of Adolf Hitler’s memoir Mein Kampf to officials on his birthday
North Korea’s Ministry of People’s Security, which is responsible for policing, issued an angry response which was carried by the country’s official news agency, KCNA.
It dismissed the report as a “smear campaign” written by “a handful of human scum… moving desperately to deter [North Korea’s] progress”.
The defectors were being used by South Korea and the US, it went on.
The ministry was determined to “physically remove [the] despicable human scum who are committing treason”, the statement added.
The two Koreas remain technically at war after the 1950-53 Korean war ended with an armistice, not a peace treaty.
Ties between the two are currently very tense in the wake of Pyongyang’s February 12 nuclear test.
It is estimated that more than 20,000 North Koreans have defected to the South since the 1950s.
However, fleeing North Korea is dangerous, and defectors who are repatriated to North Korea face punishments including labor camps and execution, activists say.
Kim Jong-un has sent Choe Ryong-hae as special envoy to Beijing, North Korean state media has announced, amid cooling relations between the two neighbors.
Choe Ryong-hae, a top military official, flew to the Chinese capital on Wednesday, KCNA said.
The brief dispatch gave no details of the visit, which comes amid an apparent toughening of Beijing’s stance in the wake of Pyongyang’s third nuclear test.
Chinese media said Choe Ryong-hae met Wang Jiarui, a top foreign affairs official.
The visit – the duration of which remains unknown – follows weeks of high tension on the Korean peninsula.
China is North Korea’s biggest trading partner and closest ally. It has traditionally sought to maintain stability in North Korea, avoiding any crisis that could trigger the fall of the regime and propel a flow of refugees across the border.
In recent weeks, following Pyongyang’s February 12 nuclear test and amid strident rhetoric from its leaders, China has expressed frustration with North Korea, with state media openly debating the benefits of close ties.
Beijing supported expanded UN sanctions against Pyongyang after its nuclear test and some of its banks have recently suspended trading with North Korea’s Foreign Trade Bank.
Kim Jong-un has sent Choe Ryong-hae as special envoy to Beijing
It is also under domestic pressure after unidentified North Koreans seized, and subsequently released two weeks later, a 16-strong Chinese crew who had been fishing in the Yellow Sea.
The KCNA report described Choe Ryong-hae as director of the General Political Bureau of the Korean People’s Army.
He has risen quickly under North Korea’s young leader – last year he was promoted to vice-marshal and given senior positions within the party’s key organizations.
Kim Jong-un inherited the North Korean leadership in December 2011 after the death of his father, Kim Jong-il. The late Kim Jong-il visited China in August 2011 and his brother-in-law, Jang Song-thaek, who is thought to be a key adviser of the younger Kim Jong-un, in August 2012.
Choe Ryong-hae is thought to be the most senior North Korean official to visit China since then.
He appears to be the first top-level envoy publicly dispatched by the North Korean leadership to the region since the recent tensions, which saw multiple threats of attacks from North Korea and a show by the US of high-profile military hardware in joint exercises with the South.
Japan, meanwhile, said on Wednesday it would be open to direct talks with North Korea if it would help resolve the issue of Japanese nationals kidnapped by the communist state in the 1970s and 1980s.
The comments, from Japan’s top government spokesman, followed a visit to Pyongyang by a special envoy of Japanese leader Shinzo Abe. South Korea and the US have criticized the visit as unhelpful and said they were not consulted.
In another development, a KCNA report named a hard-line general, Kim Kyok-sik, as North Korea’s army chief. Kim Kyok-sik was previously defense minister, a lower ranked position, until earlier this month.
Kim Kyok-sik was said to be responsible for the shelling of South Korea’s border island Yeonpyeong in 2010, which killed four South Koreans.
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North Korea is marking today the 101st anniversary of the birth of country’s founding father Kim Il-sung as tensions continue in the Korean peninsula.
Kim Jong-un, Kim Il-sung’s grandson, visited the mausoleum of his grandfather and his father Kim Jong-il in Pyongyang, the official KCNA news agency reports.
In recent weeks North Korea has threatened to attack South Korea, Japan and US bases in the region.
The US has ruled out holding any more “artificial talks” with North Korea.
US Secretary of State John Kerry said North Korea’s main diplomatic ally, China, had made a very strong statement criticizing Pyongyang for its recent behavior. He said he hoped Beijing was now recognizing the regional instability created by the actions of Kim Jong-un.
North Korea is marking the 101st anniversary of the birth of founding father Kim Il-sung as tensions continue in the Korean peninsula
Early on Monday Kim Jong-un was at the Kumsusan mausoleum to pay “high tribute and humblest reverence” to the country’s former leaders, KCNA reports.
The streets of Pyongyang are adorned with flags and banners for the holiday, a red-letter day for one of the world’s most powerful cults of personality.
Tensions have been high on the Korean peninsula after North Korea conducted its third underground nuclear test on February 12 that resulted in sanctions from the UN.
There is speculation that North Korea will use Kim Il-sung’s birthday for a missile launch.
At this time last year, North Korea launched a rocket with the stated aim of putting a satellite into orbit to mark the 100th anniversary of Kim Il-sung’s birth. The rocket broke up shortly after take-off.
The UN Security Council condemned the launch, which many outside the country saw as an illegal test of long-range missile technology.
On Sunday US Secretary of State John Kerry called on North Korea’s leaders to “come to the table in a responsible way” to end regional tensions, warning it risked further isolation if its threats continued.
He also reaffirmed the US commitment to defend its allies, including Japan.
Speculation has been building that North Korea is preparing a missile launch, following reports that it has moved at least two Musudan ballistic missiles to its east coast.
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North Korea has released footage showing its leader Kim Jong-un supervising a “drone drill” attack amid tensions on the Korean peninsula.
Kim Jong-un is seen watching a rocket-launched small aircraft blowing up in the sky after being intercepted by anti-aircraft missile – on Friday he was seen brandishing a gun in a video.
The footage broadcast by North Korea’s state television comes amid reports the US has deployed an unmanned spy plane to Japan for surveillance following reports the rogue state has moved missile launchers to its east coast.
North Korea has released footage showing its leader Kim Jong-un supervising a “drone drill” attack amid tensions on the Korean peninsula
The Global Hawk will be stationed at the US airbase in Misawa, northern Japan – it was due to be deployed between June and September, but it has now been bought forward according to the Sankei Shimbun.
On Friday, foreign embassies in Pyongyang have been warned to evacuate staff as their safety cannot be guaranteed beyond Wednesday, April 10.
But on Saturday staff appeared to be staying in embassies across North Korea despite the appeal.
Several aid organizations were also given the warning, as the North Koreans moved more mid-range Musudan missiles to their east coast – where they could directly threaten Japan and America’s Pacific bases.
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North Korea has declared “state of war” against South Korea in its latest escalation of rhetoric against its neighbour and the US.
A statement promised “stern physical actions” against “any provocative act”.
North Korea has threatened attacks almost daily after it was sanctioned for a third nuclear test in February.
North Korea has declared “state of war” against South Korea in its latest escalation of rhetoric against its neighbour and the US
However, few think the North would risk full-blown conflict, and the two sides have technically been at war since 1953 as no peace treaty has been signed.
An armistice at the end of the Korean War was never turned into a full treaty.
North Korea carried out its third nuclear test on February 12, which led to the imposition of fresh sanctions.
The annual US-South Korean military exercises have also taken place, angering Pyongyang further.
Many analysts believe that all-out war with South Korea and its ally the United States would be suicidal for the North, says the BBC’s Lucy Williamson in Seoul.
But with both sides threatening heavy retaliation, there’s a chance of minor incidents escalating, our correspondent adds.
A North Korean statement released on Saturday said: “From this time on, the North-South relations will be entering the state of war and all issues raised between the North and the South will be handled accordingly.
“The long-standing situation of the Korean peninsula being neither at peace nor at war is finally over.”
In Washington, Caitlin Hayden, a spokeswoman for the National Security Council, said the US had “seen reports of a new and unconstructive statement from North Korea”.
“We take these threats seriously and remain in close contact with our South Korean allies,” she said.
North Korea has made multiple threats against both the US and South Korea in recent weeks, including warning of a “pre-emptive nuclear strike” on the US and the scrapping of the Korean War armistice.
On Thursday, North Korean state media reported leader Kim Jong-un “judged the time has come to settle accounts with the US imperialists”.
Kim Jong un was said to have condemned US B-2 bomber sorties over South Korea during military exercises as a “reckless phase” that represented an “ultimatum that they will ignite a nuclear war at any cost on the Korean peninsula”.
US mainland and bases in Hawaii, Guam and South Korea were all named as potential targets.
State media in the North showed thousands of soldiers and students at a mass rally in Pyongyang supporting Kim Jong-un’s announcement
North Korea’s most advanced missiles are thought to be able to reach Alaska, but not the rest of the US mainland.
White House spokesman Josh Earnest said the rhetoric only deepened North Korea’s isolation.
China, North Korea’s biggest trading partner, has reiterated its call for all sides to ease tensions.
Foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei told a daily news conference that “joint efforts” should be made to turn around a “tense situation”.
Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov went further, voicing concern that “we may simply let the situation slip out of our control”.
“We are concerned that… unilateral action is being taken around North Korea that is increasing military activity,” he said.
On March 16, North Korea warned of attacks against South Korea’s border islands, and advised residents to leave the islands.
In 2010, North Korea shelled South Korea’s Yeonpyeong island, causing four deaths.
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North Korea announces it has put missile units on stand-by to attack US targets in response to US stealth bomber flights over the Korean peninsula.
State news agency KCNA said leader Kim Jong-un signed off on the order at a late-night meeting of top generals.
The time had come to “settle accounts” with the US, KCNA quoted him as saying, with the B-2 flights an “ultimatum”.
Pyongyang has been angered by fresh UN sanctions and annual US-South Korea military drills.
China, North Korea’s biggest trading partner, has called on all sides to ease tensions.
North Korea announces it has put missile units on stand-by to attack US targets in response to US stealth bomber flights over the Korean peninsula
Kim Jong-un “finally signed the plan on technical preparations of strategic rockets of the KPA, ordering them to be stand-by for fire so that they may strike any time”, the KCNA report said.
“If they make a reckless provocation with huge strategic forces, the Korean People’s Army (KPA) should mercilessly strike the US mainland, their stronghold, their military bases in the operational theatres in the Pacific, including Hawaii and Guam, and those in South Korea,” the agency quoted him as saying.
Thousands of North Koreans later took part in a march in Pyongyang in support of Kim Jong-un’s announcement, the Associated Press news agency reported.
A Yonhap news agency report citing an unidentified military official said increased activity had been noted at North Korea’s missile sites, but this remains unconfirmed.
The US – which flew two stealth bombers over the peninsula on Thursday as part of the ongoing military drills – has said it is ready for “any eventuality” on the peninsula.
In a statement, it said that the B-2 planes demonstrated America’s ability to “provide extended deterrence” to its allies and conduct “long-range, precision strikes quickly and at will”.
“The North Koreans have to understand that what they’re doing is very dangerous,” US Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel told reporters on Thursday.
“We must make clear that these provocations by the North are taken by us very seriously and we’ll respond to that.”
The US flew nuclear-capable B-52 bombers over South Korea earlier this month, in what it called a response to escalating North Korean threats.
In Beijing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei reiterated a call for calm on all sides.
Hong Lei told a daily news briefing that “joint efforts” should be made to turn around a “tense situation”. He made similar remarks on Tuesday.
Tensions in the Korean peninsula are high following North Korea’s third nuclear test on February 12, which led to the imposition of a fresh raft of sanctions.
North Korea has made multiple threats against both the US and South Korea in recent weeks, including warning of a “pre-emptive nuclear strike” on the US and the scrapping of the Korean War armistice.
North Korea is not thought to have the technology to strike the US mainland with either a nuclear weapon or a ballistic missile, but it is capable of targeting some US military bases in Asia with its mid-range missiles.
While North Korea has issued many threats against the US and South Korea in the past, this level of sustained rhetoric is rare, observers say.
On March 16, North Korea warned of attacks against South Korea’s border islands, and advised residents to leave the islands. In 2010 it shelled South Korea’s Yeonpyeong island, causing four deaths.
On Wednesday, Pyongyang also cut a military hotline with the South – the last direct official link between the two nations.
A Red Cross hotline and another line used to communicate with the UN Command at Panmunjom have already been cut, although an inter-Korean air-traffic hotline still exists.
The jointly-run Kaesong industrial park is still in operation, however, and over 160 South Korean commuters entered North Korea yesterday to work in its factories.
Kaesong Industrial Complex employs an estimated 50,000 North Korean workers and is a source of badly-needed hard currency for the North.
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