"The return of tourists could help reshape North Korea's reputation, shifting it from a 'dangerous country' in the eyes of the international community to a potentially 'safe' travel destination," Dr Yee Ji Sun, a researcher at the Korea Institute for National Unification, told The Independent.

The White House in January said that the " complete denuclearization " of North Korea remains President Donald Trump 's priority. However, Kim Jong Un, the North's leader, refused to give up his nuclear weapons and vowed to expand the nation's nuclear arsenal.

Analysts at the Institute for the Study of War point out that Russia has become increasingly reliant on Iran and North Korea to support its war against Ukraine. Source: ISW Quote: "Russia appears to be relying more on Iran and North Korea to support its war in Ukraine.

Justin Martell recently became the first known American to step foot inside the secretive nation since the onset of the pandemic more than five years ago.

A guide who took some of the first foreigners to North Korea in five years told BI that he had tourists from the UK, Jamaica, and Germany.

North Korea has denounced the U.S. and its allies for pursuing what it called the "absurd" goal of denuclearization, vowing instead to bolster its nuclear capabilities under leader Kim Jong Un. The statement,

North Korea has criticized the United States and Asian neighbors for pursuing the “absurd” goal of denuclearizing the North and says it will push to expand its nuclear forces under the direction of its authoritarian leader Kim Jong Un.

On-chain sleuthing linked Friday's $1.4 billion hack of crypto exchange Bybit to North Korea's Lazarus Group, Arkham Intelligence said.

North Korean troops are back in action in western Russia’s Kursk Oblast—attacking on foot with fresh tactics and targeting Ukrainian vehicles with their unique Bulsae-4 mobile missile launchers. “The military contingent of the Korean People’s Army has returned to the operational zone,