2025 in North Korea

Photo	Position	Name
	General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea	Kim Jong Un
	Chairman of the Standing Committee of the Supreme People's Assembly	Choe Ryong-hae
	Premier of North Korea	Pak Thae-Song

January 6 – According to reports by the South Korean military, North Korea launches an intermediate-range ballistic missile towards the Sea of Japan.^[1]^[2]
January 11 – Ukraine announces the capture of two North Korean soldiers during fighting in Russia's Kursk Oblast.^[3]
January 16 – Travel agencies announce the reopening of the border city of Rason and the Rason Special Economic Zone to foreign visitors following a prolonged closure caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.^[4]

February 13 – According to reports by the South Korean Ministry of Unification, North Korea begins the demolition of the Reunion Center for the Separated Families, which hosts reunions of families split by the Korean War, in Mount Kumgang.^[5]
February 27 – The United States formally accuses North Korea of responsibility over the theft of $1.5 billion in virtual assets from the cryptocurrency exchange ByBit, in what is reported to be the biggest such heist in history.^[6]
February 28 – North Korea announces that it had carried out test launches of strategic cruise missiles in the Yellow Sea.^[7]

March 27 – The Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) publishes pictures of what is believed to be North Korea's first airborne early warning and control aircraft.^[8]

April 6 – The Pyongyang Marathon is held for the first time since 2019 following a hiatus caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.^[9]^[10]
April 8 – A group of North Korean soldiers enter the South Korean side of the eastern section of the DMZ, prompting warning shots from South Korean forces that force them to retreat.^[11]
April 25 – The Korean People's Navy launches its first destroyer, the Choe Hyon, at a ceremony in Nampo.^[12]
April 28 – North Korea admits to sending its military to fight alongside Russian forces in Kursk Oblast against Ukraine.^[13]

May 8 – North Korea fires several ballistic missiles into the Sea of Japan near Wonsan.^[14]
May 21 – The Korean People's Navy's second destroyer is damaged during its launching ceremony in Chongjin, with Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un in attendance.^[15]
May 22 – North Korea fires several cruise missiles into the Sea of Japan near Sondok, South Hamgyong.^[16]

June 5 – The Korean People's Navy's second destroyer, which was damaged during its initial launching ceremony in Chongjin on May 21, is successfully launched.^[17]
June 7 – A major internet outage is reported in North Korea.^[18]
11 June – The Republic of Korea Armed Forces suspends loudspeaker broadcasts across the DMZ into North Korea as part of efforts "restore trust" between the two Koreas.^[19]
25 June – The first train from North Korea arrives at the Yaroslavsky railway station in Moscow, Russia, after a five-year pause due to the COVID-19 pandemic.^[20]

4 July – A North Korean civilian defects to the South by crossing through the DMZ with the help of the Republic of Korea Armed Forces.^[21]
7 July – The Kalma resort in Wonsan receives its first group of foreign visitors, with 12 Russian tourists arriving on a week-long organized tour.^[22]
9 July – South Korea repatriates six North Koreans after their vessels had drifted across their maritime border.^[23]
13 July – Mount Kumgang is designated as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.^[24]
18 July – Foreign tourists are banned from the newly opened Wonsan-Kalma beach resort.^[25]
27 July – The Russian airliner Nordwind launches flights to Pyongyang, marking the first commercial flights between Russia and North Korea.^[26]

4 August – The South Korean military begins removing loudspeakers along the DMZ as part of efforts to reduce tensions with North Korea.^[27]

Incumbents