North Korea warns of ‘bigger gift package’ for U.S.

Some analysts fear North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is building up to another nuclear test. That's prompted one South Korean to take civil protection into his own hands.

Pyongyang said it was not involved in arms dealings with Russia, and had no plans to do so. The US previously indicated North Korea was supplying Russia with artillery shells for its war in Ukraine.

Some analysts fear North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is building up to another nuclear test. That's prompted one South Korean to take civil protection into his own hands.

North Korea has fired a missile towards the Sea of Japan, the South Korean military has said. Pyongyang promised a "fiercer" response to the US presence in the region.

At an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council, the US led condemnation of North Korea's recent missile tests. However, the council did not impose new sanctions or even give a formal statement.

In an interview with FRANCE 24 from Brussels, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg warned that any use of nuclear weapons in Ukraine would have "severe, dramatic consequences for Russia", calling Russian President Vladimir Putin's nuclear rhetoric "reckless and dangerous".

Pyongyang has come one step closer to getting a military spy satellite in space. A state-run news agency has published photos of Seoul, the South Korean capitol, taken by the test device.

Kim stressed the need to secure "overwhelming military power" to defend Pyongyang's sovereignty, according to state media. His remarks came after North Korea tested yet another missile, after a year of record launches.

The visit comes after Japan recently announced a massive expansion of its defense capabilities in light of China's growing clout in the Indo-Pacific region and security threats posed by North Korea.

The reported government notice ordering the five-day lockdown did not mention COVID-19 but said the symptoms of the "respiratory illness" include common cold.

South Korea has released a paper describing North Korea as its enemy for the first time in several years. The document highlights Pyongyang's growing stockpile of nuclear weapons and missiles.

A Russian ship loaded with hypersonic missiles will take part in joint naval drills with China off South Africa's eastern coast this week. But a Russian commander denied there were plans to fire the weapons.