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Chad O'Carroll

@chadocl.bsky.social

Founder of NK News/NK Pro and Korea Risk Group. From London, based in Seoul. Drum and bass music aficionado.

2,729 Followers  |  139 Following  |  2,892 Posts  |  Joined: 22.08.2023  |  1.9621

Latest posts by chadocl.bsky.social on Bluesky

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Kim Jong Un meets Laos leader for first summit talks, vowing to boost ties North Korean leader Kim Jong Un held talks with his Laotian counterpart Thongloun Sisoulith in Pyongyang on Tuesday, according to DPRK state media, where the two promised to keep “boosting mutual cooperation.” The Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported Wednesday that Kim interpreted Thongloun’s visit, his first as president, as “an expression of the full […]
08.10.2025 03:04 — 👍 1    🔁 1    💬 0    📌 0
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Built to beat the North: How DPRK soccer success changed South Korean sport South Korea will head to the men’s FIFA World Cup for an Asian-record 12th time next year, but while they contend for soccer glory, North Korean players will have to follow the world’s most-watched sporting event from home after an abject qualifying campaign. With its elimination from contention for the fourth consecutive World Cup, the […]
08.10.2025 02:07 — 👍 0    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
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South Korea says inflation stable amid scrutiny of Lee’s cash voucher plan South Korea’s finance ministry said Monday that consumer inflation remained stable near the Bank of Korea’s 2% target in September, as food price pressures eased following the Chuseok holiday. The consumer price index rose 2.1% from a year earlier, unchanged from August, while prices for agricultural, livestock and fisheries products increased 1.9%, down sharply from […] The post South Korea says inflation stable amid scrutiny of Lee’s cash voucher plan appeared first on Korea Pro.
07.10.2025 23:16 — 👍 0    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
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North Korea’s latest weapons expo, naval ambitions and Pyongyang hospital opens NK News’ Senior Analytic Correspondent Colin Zwirko unpacks the key developments ahead of North Korea’s Oct. 10 military parade marking the 80th anniversary of the Workers’ Party of Korea. He begins by discussing Pyongyang’s latest weapons exhibition, where state media previewed an unmanned surface vehicle — a type of naval drone — and explains that […]
07.10.2025 09:01 — 👍 0    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
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North Korean tech company registers office for ‘market research’ in Vladivostok North Korea’s flagship operating system developer has registered a branch office in Russia “for market research,” becoming the first DPRK entity to openly set up shop in the country since last year as the two states seek to expand cooperation while flouting global sanctions. A North Korean company likely affiliated with Red Star Technology Exchange […]
07.10.2025 09:01 — 👍 0    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
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All the weapons on display at North Korea’s 2025 arms expo North Korea has revealed a range of new weapons developments at an arms expo ongoing this week in Pyongyang, according to NK Pro analysis of state media imagery, including nuclear missiles and aerial and naval drones.  NK Pro has created a map of the expo floor, labeling over 40 systems on display inside the Heavy […] The post All the weapons on display at North Korea’s 2025 arms expo appeared first on NK PRO.
07.10.2025 08:03 — 👍 0    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
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China’s stance and US volatility converge to raise South Korea’s security risks The Pacific Forum’s new survey on Chinese views of Korean reunification lands as Beijing’s long-held opposition to U.S. troops and Washington’s volatility converge, heightening South Korea’s strategic risk. The survey itself offers few surprises about China’s position, but its timing is revealing. South Korea’s push for “self-reliant defense” now collides with U.S. incoherence, while China’s […] The post China’s stance and US volatility converge to raise South Korea’s security risks appeared first on Korea Pro.
07.10.2025 05:13 — 👍 0    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
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Chinese premier to visit North Korea for ruling party celebrations this week Chinese Premier Li Qiang will visit Pyongyang this week to attend celebrations marking the 80th founding anniversary of North Korea’s ruling party, both countries announced on Tuesday. In a one-line report, North Korea’s state-owned Korean Central News Agency reported that Li — the second-ranked official in the Chinese Communist Party’s Politburo after President Xi Jinping […]
07.10.2025 03:21 — 👍 1    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
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Kang Kyung-wha takes up post as ROK envoy to US amid push for North Korea talks Kang Kyung-wha, the former ROK foreign minister who helped steer diplomacy with North Korea from 2018-19, took up her post as Seoul’s new ambassador to Washington on Monday, amid renewed speculation about the potential revival of U.S.-DPRK talks. In her inaugural address at the South Korean Embassy, Kang said “the foundation of our pragmatic diplomacy […]
07.10.2025 03:19 — 👍 2    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
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Australia deploys patrol aircraft to monitor North Korea’s maritime smuggling Australia has deployed a long-range surveillance aircraft to monitor North Korea’s maritime smuggling activities funding the regime’s nuclear and missile programs in violation of U.N. sanctions, according to Japan’s foreign ministry. A Royal Australian Air Force P‑8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft is operating out of Okinawa’s Kadena Air Base from early to mid-October to track […]
07.10.2025 02:22 — 👍 2    🔁 2    💬 0    📌 0
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Kim Jong Un demands major health sector ‘reform’ at Pyongyang hospital opening North Korean leader Kim Jong Un severely criticized the country’s Ministry of Public Health and called for health sector “reform” at the opening ceremony for the Pyongyang General Hospital on Monday, according to state media. The Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported that Kim vowed to build a second large general hospital in the capital […]
06.10.2025 23:31 — 👍 0    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
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KEPCO-KHNP legal clash exposes cracks in South Korea’s nuclear export unity South Korea’s two state-run energy firms, Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) and Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP), are locked in a costly legal dispute over final settlement payments for the Barakah nuclear power plant project in the United Arab Emirates. KHNP filed for arbitration with the London Court of International Arbitration in May, seeking […] The post KEPCO-KHNP legal clash exposes cracks in South Korea’s nuclear export unity appeared first on Korea Pro.
06.10.2025 23:31 — 👍 0    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
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Kim Jong Un denounces ‘dangerous’ US nuclear moves with eye on potential talks North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s denunciation of “dangerous” U.S.-ROK nuclear moves and threat to retaliate with “special assets” has ramped up the regime’s rhetoric even as the allies entertain diplomacy, experts say, driving home that denuclearization is off the table for any negotiations. In a speech at a major weapons expo over the weekend, […]
06.10.2025 09:17 — 👍 0    🔁 1    💬 0    📌 0
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Surging North Korean inflation exposes the costs of major economic changes Available evidence indicates that North Korea has experienced a dramatic spike in inflation over the past year, a development underscoring major changes in the country’s economy since the pandemic. Data from inside the country shows that the value of forex against the DPRK won (KPW) has ballooned since Sept. 2024, while food prices have doubled […] The post Surging North Korean inflation exposes the costs of major economic changes appeared first on NK PRO.
06.10.2025 09:17 — 👍 0    🔁 1    💬 0    📌 0
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Rise of Japan’s ‘Iron Lady’ heralds hardline shift to countering North Korea A firebrand security hawk who has pushed for Japan to renounce its pacifist military stance and downplayed wartime atrocities is set to become the country’s next prime minister, setting up a shift in Tokyo’s approach to countering North Korea but potentially endangering cooperation with Seoul. In her third leadership bid, former economic security minister Sanae […]
06.10.2025 08:19 — 👍 0    🔁 2    💬 0    📌 0
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Takaichi’s rise to power poses critical test for fragile South Korea-Japan ties Sanae Takaichi’s election as leader of Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) has set her up to become the next prime minister and introduced the most serious risk to Seoul-Tokyo relations in years, arriving just as both countries had settled into a rare phase of pragmatic cooperation. Her nationalist background creates uncertainty about whether Japan […] The post Takaichi’s rise to power poses critical test for fragile South Korea-Japan ties appeared first on Korea Pro.
06.10.2025 06:25 — 👍 1    🔁 1    💬 0    📌 0
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Kim Jong Un inspects upgrades to country’s largest warship as deployment looms North Korea showed off changes and upgrades to its largest new warship at a ceremony on the west coast on Sunday, after six months of post-launch tinkering and ahead of its planned deployment to the east coast early next year. Leader Kim Jong Un toured the ship with hundreds of military and party officials and […]
06.10.2025 05:29 — 👍 2    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
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Trump suggested NATO ‘join’ US in countering North Korea: Former NATO chief President Donald Trump floated the idea of NATO “joining” the U.S. in countering North Korea during his first meeting with then-NATO head Jens Stoltenberg in 2017, the former secretary general has recalled in his new memoir.  Stoltenberg, a two-time Norwegian prime minister (2000-2001, 2005-2013) who led NATO from 2014-2024, said the topic of DPRK nuclear […]
06.10.2025 05:29 — 👍 1    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
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Japan’s Sanae Takaichi breaks glass ceiling but risks reopening old wounds Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party on Saturday elected Sanae Takaichi as its new president, setting her on course to become the country’s first female prime minister when parliament votes to confirm her in mid-October. Takaichi, a conservative lawmaker and long-time ally of the late Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, defeated agriculture minister Shinjiro Koizumi in a […] The post Japan’s Sanae Takaichi breaks glass ceiling but risks reopening old wounds appeared first on Korea Pro.
05.10.2025 23:46 — 👍 0    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
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Kim Jong Un says ROK potential military target ahead of Oct. 10 parade Ahead of a planned military parade marking the ruling party’s anniversary on Friday, Kim Jong Un warned that South Korea has become a potential target for Pyongyang due to the rapid evolution of the U.S.–ROK nuclear alliance.  According to the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on Sunday, Kim made the remarks in a speech […]
05.10.2025 02:52 — 👍 3    🔁 2    💬 0    📌 0
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Lee Jae-myung calls for North Korea to allow contact between separated families South Korean President Lee Jae-myung met with citizens displaced from their hometowns in North Korea by the peninsula’s decades-long division on Friday, expressing hope that improvements in inter-Korean ties will allow separated families to reconnect. The meeting took place at the Ganghwa Peace Observatory on the inter-Korean border ahead of the fall harvest holiday of […]
03.10.2025 09:04 — 👍 1    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
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Russian government jet flies to North Korea, a week before military parade A Russian government jet known to transport top officials made a brief visit to North Korea from Thursday to Friday, aviation data shows, hinting at a possible high-level visit to Pyongyang a week before an expected military parade. A Tupolov Tu-204-300 aircraft (RA-64058) operated by Russia’s Special Flight Squadron Rossiya took off from Moscow shortly […]
03.10.2025 08:08 — 👍 0    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
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Sex workers barricade against demolition in Seoul’s last red-light district Editor’s note: The names of the women working in Miari interviewed for this article have been changed to protect their privacy and safety. In a narrow alley in northern Seoul, plywood boards cover the windows of a brothel. Earlier this month, demolition crews attempted to enter Miari Texas by force in the latest attempt to […] The post Sex workers barricade against demolition in Seoul’s last red-light district appeared first on Korea Pro.
03.10.2025 08:08 — 👍 0    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
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North Korean corvette sails to dry dock in sign of progress for troubled project A North Korean naval corvette on the east coast sailed to a repair yard this week, a possible sign of efforts to finally officially deploy the ship after a troubled development spanning 14 years. According to NK Pro analysis of Planet Labs satellite imagery, the 77-meter vessel unofficially dubbed a Tuman-class corvette disappeared between Sept. […] The post North Korean corvette sails to dry dock in sign of progress for troubled project appeared first on NK PRO.
03.10.2025 08:08 — 👍 0    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
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North Korea fashion police exhort young people to dress like socialists North Korea’s cabinet daily urged young people this week to reject “reactionary” cultural schemes and dress and groom “in our own way,” policing fashion in line with an ongoing crackdown on foreign influence that aims to boost loyalty to the country’s socialist system. But state media attempted to show that youth who violate the official […] The post North Korea fashion police exhort young people to dress like socialists appeared first on NK PRO.
03.10.2025 06:13 — 👍 1    🔁 1    💬 0    📌 1
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US, ROK agree to expand drone cooperation as North Korea doubles down on UAVs South Korean Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back held talks with the U.S. secretary of the army on Thursday and agreed to expand drone cooperation, emphasizing the importance of a “robust” defense posture to deter North Korean military threats. The meeting in Seoul with Daniel Driscoll, a senior civilian official within the U.S. Defense Department, came as […]
03.10.2025 04:19 — 👍 1    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
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US shutdown, Trump’s chip tariffs and Lee’s self-reliant defense — Ep. 100 In this episode of The Korea Pro Podcast, Jeongmin, John and Joon Ha dissect a week dominated by U.S. volatility and South Korea’s response. They start with Washington’s first government shutdown since 2019, examining its implications for trade negotiations, U.S. Forces Korea operations and the Bank of Korea’s policy outlook. The team then unpacks the […] The post US shutdown, Trump’s chip tariffs and Lee’s self-reliant defense — Ep. 100 appeared first on Korea Pro.
03.10.2025 04:19 — 👍 1    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
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North Korea in September 2025: A month in review and what’s ahead About the Month in Review Every month, NK Pro conducts an in-depth analytic review of news on the Korean Peninsula. This Month in Review covers the period of Sept. 1, 2025 to Sept. 30, 2025. In addition to an executive summary providing top-line findings, the following review includes detailed analysis on a wide range of other […] The post North Korea in September 2025: A month in review and what’s ahead appeared first on NK PRO.
03.10.2025 03:22 — 👍 1    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
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Cashing in on the crown: North Korea’s foray into British royal memorabilia North Korea’s ruling Kim family has long used stamps as a subtle but lucrative tool of statecraft — and in 1981, the regime found an unlikely opportunity in Britain’s royal wedding.  Newly released British archives reveal how Pyongyang capitalized on the global frenzy surrounding the marriage of Prince Charles and Lady Diana, issuing commemorative stamps […]
03.10.2025 02:25 — 👍 0    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
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Samsung bets on OpenAI to regain AI edge, but risks loom in chips and trade Samsung said on Wednesday it signed a letter of intent with OpenAI to collaborate on next-generation artificial intelligence infrastructure, including memory supply, cloud services and floating offshore data centers. The agreement involves four affiliates — Samsung Electronics, Samsung SDS, Samsung C&T and Samsung Heavy Industries — and is tied to OpenAI’s “Stargate” project, which intends […] The post Samsung bets on OpenAI to regain AI edge, but risks loom in chips and trade appeared first on Korea Pro.
02.10.2025 23:34 — 👍 0    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0

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