North Korea

North Korea's economy remains in a desperate state. The impoverished country, with a population of 22.5mn, had a gross national income of US$20.8bn in 2004, according to South Korea's... 2005-11-14

North Korea's economy is slowly opening up to market-orientated ideas as it tries to revive its moribund economy. After decades of central planning, in mid-2002, the regime introduced... 2005-11-07

North Korean leader Kim Jong-il has failed to name a successor-in-waiting at the ruling communist party's 60th birthday celebrations, as some had expected. Major announcements have... 2005-11-07

North Korea continues to face desperate economic conditions. Better weather is likely to boost the rice harvest and ease food shortages this year, leading to a request from North... 2005-10-19

North Korea's announcement in September that it will give up its nuclear weapons programme and return to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) is a welcome step towards resolving... 2005-10-10

Multilateral talks on North Korea's nuclear weapons programme have reached an agreement for the reclusive state to dismantle its atomic weapons in exchange for security guarantees,... 2005-10-10

North Korea's economy remains in a desperate state, with the market-style reforms of 2002 pushing up commodity prices, leading to food shortages and growing income inequality.

The two Koreas are technically still at war, after a truce ended the 1950-53 Korean War. But since an unprecedented summit of the two countries' leaders five years ago, Pyongyang... 2005-09-16

Six-party talks on North Korea's nuclear weapons programme are expected to resume in mid-September, after joint US-South Korean drills are over. The fourth round of discussions went... 2005-09-16

The two Koreas are developing warmer ties at both a political and economic level. BMI View: Although we view reunification of the peninsular as highly likely, it would be both disruptive... 2005-09-01