North Korea

The Dear Leader's Death Rites

A look at Kim Jong Il's snowy state funeral.

DECEMBER 28, 2011

Next Year's Wars

Ten conflicts to watch in 2012.

BY LOUISE ARBOUR | DECEMBER 27, 2011

Weep Not for Kim Jong Il

He had a good life.

BY ANDREI LANKOV | DECEMBER 23, 2011

Inspector O and the Case of the Dearly Departed Leader

North Korea's most famous fictional police detective smells something fishy in the circumstances surrounding Kim Jong Il's death.

BY JAMES CHURCH | DECEMBER 21, 2011

The Pudgy Prince of North Korea

Trust me, you wouldn’t want to be Kim Jong Un.

BY PAUL FRENCH | DECEMBER 20, 2011

Get Ready to Starve

The West was just gearing up to send food to a hungry North Korea. Then came the death of Kim Jong Il.

BY CHRISTIAN CARYL | DECEMBER 20, 2011

The Cruelty of Kim

Forced breeding, torture, starvation, rape, execution: This is what it’s like to be a political prisoner in North Korea.

BY BLAINE HARDEN | DECEMBER 20, 2011

Mourning the Dear Leader

Pyongyang grieves over the death of a despot.

DECEMBER 20, 2011

All Quiet on the Southern Front

Does the average South Korean really care about the news of Kim Jong Il's death?

BY JASON STROTHER | DECEMBER 20, 2011

Reading Shakespeare in Pyongyang

Want to understand North Korea after Kim Jong Il’s death? Good luck. The palace intrigue in Pyongyang would put the bard to shame.

BY ABRAHAM M. DENMARK | JAN/FEB 2012

How to Free North Korea

The time to topple the criminal government in Pyongyang is now. Here's how to do it.

BY ADRIAN HONG | DECEMBER 19, 2011

Poking Fun at the Dear Leader

Whether portrayed as a hopelessly lonely egomaniac or a wannabe Batman, Kim Jong Il has long been a favorite target for comedians.

BY URI FRIEDMAN | DECEMBER 19, 2011

Kim Jong Il's Life in Photos

A look back at the highlights of the Dear Leader's  odd, unpredictable, and often quirky behavior as North Korea's leader.

DECEMBER 19, 2011

North Korea's Pudgy Cipher

For a reporter covering the Hermit Kingdom, Kim Jong Il was everywhere -- and nowhere.

BY ISAAC STONE FISH | JAN/FEB 2012

Realpolitik and the Myanmar Spring

Wondering why Hillary Clinton is in Myanmar right now? Hint: it's all about China.

BY BERTIL LINTNER | NOVEMBER 30, 2011

R.O.C.K. in the D.P.R.K.

What can we learn about the Hermit Kingdom from the amazing music videos it has on YouTube?

BY SUZANNE MERKELSON | OCTOBER 21, 2011

Pyongyang Rock City

Meet the hitmakers of the Hermit Kingdom.

BY ISAAC STONE FISH | OCTOBER 21, 2011

Looking East

Six decades of the United States in Asia, in photographs.

OCTOBER 11, 2011

Atomic Dogs

Why can't the world's nuclear energy watchdog do anything about Fukushima or Iran's weapons program? I went to find out.

BY KONSTANTIN KAKAES | SEPTEMBER 28, 2011

All Quiet on the Northern Front

In banning innocuous tourism websites, "seditious" anti-capitalist books, and information about Pyongyang, South Korea's intelligence service is acting a lot like its brother to the north.

BY CULLEN THOMAS | AUGUST 25, 2011

Two Plus Two Equals Five

What numbers can we trust? A second look at the death toll from some of the world's worst disasters.

BY PHILIP WALKER | AUGUST 17, 2011

Stopping the Nuclear North

Kim Jong Il is rapidly building his doomsday arsenal. If Washington wants any shot to stop him, the time for negotiations is now.

BY JOEL WIT, JENNY TOWN | JULY 26, 2011

For the Love of Money

From whiskey to nuclear secrets, North Korea plays a remarkably entrepreneurial role in international affairs for a Communist regime.

BY SIMON HENDERSON | JULY 7, 2011

The World's Most Dangerous Borders

Thirteen places you don't want to be stuck at.

BY PHILIP WALKER | JUNE 24, 2011

Strategic Patience Is Strategic Blunder

Don't believe the hype: Obama's North Korea plan is a mess.

BY JOEL WIT, JENNY TOWN | JUNE 16, 2011

Behind the Curtain

It's not often you get a window into Kim Jong Il's country-sized plaything.

JUNE 8, 2011

Pyongyang Spring

Could Kim Jong Il's regime be the next autocratic government to fall? Don't bet on it.

BY SEBASTIAN STRANGIO | JUNE 8, 2011

How to Talk to a North Korean

Advice from a career Pyongyang hand to would-be nukes negotiators: Bluster won’t get you very far.

BY JOEL WIT | APRIL 20, 2011

What Not to Wear

Five countries where the term "fashion police" is meant literally.

BY SUZANNE MERKELSON, JOSHUA E. KEATING | APRIL 11, 2011

Bad Politics, Worse Prose

From suicidal astronauts to bestiality, you can learn a lot about what makes the world's worst tyrants tick from the terrible books they write.

BY SUZANNE MERKELSON | APRIL 8, 2011