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Chinese President Xi Jinping, left, shakes hands with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un ahead of their talks in Pyongyang on Monday. No independent journalists were given access to cover the event.

Xi Jinping is feted in Pyongyang as Kim Jong-un swivels to Moscow

In a rare visit to Pyongyang, Xi and Kim talked up China-North Korean ties, even as Kim draws closer to Vladimir Putin.

  • Lisa Visentin

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Illustration by Dionne Gain

Trump’s madcap folly emboldening this ‘axis of upheaval’

China, Russia, Iran and North Korea, dubbed the CRINKs, have been bolstered by their shared determination to challenge the US-led world order.

  • Peter Hartcher
Joon Shik Shin watches as Su Hee Cho & Co, a traditional Korean percussionist group, performs during a celebration of the 2026 Women’s Asian Cup in Parramatta Square.

Why these South Koreans are supporting North Korea in the Asian Cup

Joon Shik Shin is leading a group of fans to support the North Korea women’s team in the hope that it will be a small step towards peace in the peninsula.

  • Frances Howe
Chinese President Xi Jinping prepares to review troops at the Beijing military parade on September 3.

China is rising, but the challenge is not from China alone

An autocratic alliance is gaining in strength while the democracies grow weak and divided.

  • Andrew Neil
This photo provided by the North Korean government shows what it says is a new intercontinental ballistic missile called the Hwasong-20.

North Korea flaunts new missiles ​as top Chinese and Russian officials look on

The presence of Chinese and Russian leaders at the latest Pyongyang mega-parade underlines Kim Jong-un’s rising star as a geopolitical partner against the West.

  • Choe Sang-Hun
Kim’s letters to Trump suggest a young, insecure man who is grateful for being taken seriously by the most powerful man in the world.

Rubbish balloons, K-pop and ghostly wailing: How life’s changing on Korean border

For Cho Yong-hae and his neighbours, ghostly wailing sounds blasting their village have finally stopped. But for the West, the problem is only growing louder.

  • Lisa Visentin and Sean Na
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Could Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin beat ageing?

A hot mic revealed Putin’s secret immortality hope. Here’s how that could go

A regenerative medicine expert weighs in on the Russian leader’s ideas about living forever.

  • Angus Dalton
North Korean staff wipe surfaces.

Kim and Putin met in Beijing. Then the North Korean’s minders wiped away all traces he was there

Footage shows the reclusive state’s extraordinary measures to conceal clues about Kim’s health.

  • Ju-min Park and Josh Smith
Kim Jong-un supervising the latest test of anti-air missiles at an undisclosed location, in an image provided by the North Korean government.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un supervises test of new anti-air missiles

The test coincided with trips to Tokyo and Washington by South Korea’s new President Lee Jae Myung.

  • Kim Tong-Hyung
Mogami frigates off the coast of Japan and at sea.

Inside the futuristic Japanese warship that could change the face of the Australian navy

Australia is about to spend $10 billion on a new fleet of frigates, with German and Japanese ship makers battling for the contract.

  • David King