About the author
More articles by 'Andrei Lankov'
Shocked Soviets: What embassy records reveal about North Korean market activity
Declassified archives show DPRK was a tough place to live even during era now remembered for stability
Send Donald Trump to North Korea to break the impasse in bilateral talks
The US cannot afford disengagement with Pyongyang and should use former president as a crude tool to jump-start dialogue
In Washington, worries of ROK nukes steal spotlight from North Korean missiles
US capital has shifted focus to trilateral pacts with Tokyo, info dissemination into DPRK — and China above all
North Korea rails against markets. But its policies show it can live with them.
DPRK authorities did little to curtail flourishing seafood trade for years, only to reverse course during the pandemic
How foreigners laid the groundwork for North Korea’s market revolution
Early DPRK entrepreneurs leveraged connections in Japan and China, undercutting regime’s narratives of self-sufficiency
The cult of Kim: North Korea’s obsession with portraits of its leaders
Complex rules govern the display of images of the Kim family, which are treated like holy icons in a state religion
North Korea takes step closer to dream of conquering South with solid-fuel ICBM
DPRK seeks to keep US from intervening in conflict, a strategy pushing ROK toward developing its own nuclear deterrent
Why even hawkish Yoon administration won’t ignore a North Korean peace offensive
Pyongyang can manipulate pro-engagement, anti-Japan factions with a simple olive branch to Seoul — even if it’s all talk
How North Korea’s education fever has driven a boom in private tutoring
Academic achievement is increasingly important in DPRK for success, leading parents to spend heavily on illegal lessons
How illegal North Korean farms could fend off the next famine
Private hillside fields known as ‘sotoji’ have long been a major source of sustenance but undercut reforestation efforts
