In North Korea

Russia on Thursday blocked the renewal of a panel of U.N. experts monitoring international sanctions on North Korea, weeks after the body said it was investigating reports of arms transfers between Moscow and Pyongyang.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has hailed the test launch of a new strategic cruise missile from a submarine as a key moment in building the nation's naval power, state media said Monday.

Pyongyang has accelerated weapons testing in the new year, including tests of what it called an "underwater nuclear weapon system" and a solid-fuelled hypersonic ballistic missile.

North Korea initiated its first missile launch of the year by firing an unidentified ballistic missile towards the East Sea on Sunday, as confirmed by the South Korean military. While details remain limited, the Joint Chiefs of Staff acknowledged the launch without providing further information.

Bulgaria's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mariya Gabriel, alongside 46 foreign ministers, have collectively denounced the Democratic People's Republic of Korea's (DPRK) export of ballistic missiles to Russia.

North Korea initiated the firing of an unspecified ballistic missile towards the East Sea (Sea of Japan) in the early hours of Monday, as reported by the South Korean military, intensifying concerns amid speculation about its nature.

According to officials in Seoul and Tokyo, North Korea launched another long-range ballistic missile on Monday with the potential to strike the United States, continuing a record-breaking number of weapons tests this year that the West has denounced.

The news was announced today by North Korean state media, after Pyongyang announced that it will deploy stronger armed forces and new weapons along the border with South Korea.
During a visit to North Korea's Air Force Command on Air Force Day on Thursday, Kim presented guidelines for improving the military's combat capabilities, the KCNA news agency reported.

A military spy satellite launched by North Korea earlier in the day crashed into the Yellow Sea owing to an engine problem and it plans to carry out its second launch "as soon as possible," reported Yonhap News Agency.

North Korea has informed Japan that it will launch a satellite within two weeks, but Tokyo believes it could be a ballistic missile and is therefore taking precautions, AFP reported.

North Korea on Monday notified neighboring Japan that it plans to launch a satellite in coming days, which may be an attempt to put Pyongyang's first military reconnaissance satellite into orbit.