Democratic People’s Republic of Korea

IAEA Headquarters in Vienna, Austria.
IAEA/Dean Calma

IAEA ‘deeply troubled’ by DPRK nuclear reactor development

30 August 2021
Peace and Security

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) says it is “deeply troubled” by indications that the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) appears to have restarted its Yongbyon nuclear reactor.

Commuters travel to work by bus in the North Korean capital, Pyongyang. (file)
UNOCHA/David Ohana

COVID contributed to ‘starvation’, executions in DPR Korea, Rights Council hears

10 March 2021
Human Rights

Disturbing reports have emerged from North Korea - officially known as the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) - that people have starved or been executed because of COVID-19 restrictions, a leading rights expert said on Wednesday.

US President Donald Trump shakes hands with the Chairman of the Workers’ Party of Korea Kim Jong-un as the two leaders meet at the Korean Demilitarized Zone which separates North and South Korea on 30 June 2019.
White House/Shealah Craighead

UN chief welcomes possibility of resumed talks between US and DPR Korea

1 July 2019
Peace and Security

As the clicking of cameras and flash of lightbulbs captured on Sunday the first sitting United States President to set foot inside the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), Secretary-General António Guterres offered his full support to a potentially reset relationship that may render a denuclearized Korean Peninsula.

An FAO and WFP assessment team visited Unpa County, North Hwanghae Province, in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea in April 2019.
WFP/James Belgrave

North Korean families facing deep ‘hunger crisis’ after worst harvest in 10 years, UN food assessment shows

3 May 2019
Humanitarian Aid

More than 10 million North Koreans are suffering “severe food shortages” after the worst harvest in a decade, according to a United Nations food security assessment released on Friday.

A worker prepares meals in a WFP-supported children’s nursery and Hasong Kindergarten in Sinwon County in South Hwanghae Province, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. 9 May 2018.
WFP/Silke Buhr

Nearly four million North Koreans in urgent need, as food production slumps by almost 10 per cent

6 March 2019
Humanitarian Aid

The UN is calling for some $120 million to provide life-saving humanitarian aid, desperately needed by 3.8 million North Koreans, as it releases its 2019 Needs and Priorities Plan for the country.

Children at a World Food Programme (WFP)-supported children’s nursery and Hasong Kindergarten in Sinwon County in South Hwanghae Province, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, 9 May 2018.
WFP/Silke Buhr

Critical food programmes in North Korea can’t wait for ‘diplomatic progress’, UN food agency warns

9 October 2018
Humanitarian Aid

North Korea’s humanitarian situation remains dire, with widespread chronic food insecurity and malnutrition, the United Nations emergency food relief agency has warned, urging greater and sustained funding for its aid operations there.

Children in Hoeryong City, Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), observe the UN inter-agency assessment mission that evaluated the needs of people affected by floods in September 2016.
Photo: UNICEF/Murat Sahin

UN Chief praises efforts to reduce tension on Korean Peninsula

29 September 2018
Peace and Security

UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, has welcomed the latest efforts made towards building trust and reducing military tension on the Korean Peninsula, following his meeting with North Korea’s Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho on Friday, during High-Level week of the General Assembly.

A UNICEF officer, talks to children about the importance of Ebola prevention in North Kivu, the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
© UNICEF/Mark Naftalin

DR Congo: Amid renewed risk of spread, Ebola virus leaves over 150 children orphaned or unaccompanied

21 September 2018
Health

New Ebola virus hotspots in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) are threatening progress made in tackling the deadly disease and increasing its risk of spreading, the World Health Organization (WHO) warned on Friday.

Rosemary A. DiCarlo, Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, addresses the Security Council meeting on Non-proliferation and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea on 17 September 2018.
UN Photo/Loey Felipe

Signs that North Korea is ‘maintaining nuclear weapons programme’ – UN political affairs chief

17 September 2018
Peace and Security

There are signs that North Korea (formally known as the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, or DPRK), is “still maintaining and developing its nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programmes”, Rosemary di Carlo, United Nations political affairs chief, told the Security Council on Monday.

Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Mark Lowcock (right), visits the Kumchon Cooperative Farm (supported by FAO) in Unryul County, South Hwanghae Province, Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
OCHA/Anthony Burke

Visiting North Korea, UN relief chief spotlights funding shortfall to meet humanitarian needs

11 July 2018
Humanitarian Aid

The United Nations is seeking to raise $111 million to meet humanitarian needs in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), where millions of people face malnutrition, a shortage medicines, and lack of access to safe drinking water, the Organization’s top relief official said on Wednesday.