North Korea reports on South’s new president with no commentary

Meanwhile in North Korea, the regime has acknowledged South Korea's presidential election, reporting Lee Jae-myung's victory just a day after he was officially declared president.

Our North Korean affairs correspondent Kim Jung-sil reports.

A day after President Lee Jae-myung was sworn into office, North Korea reported on the election.

North Korea's official newspaper, the Rodong Sinmun, briefly reported the South's presidential election result on Thursday, saying that the vote took place on June 3rd, two months after Yoon's impeachment, which it called the 'December 3rd Martial Law Incident.'

There was no commentary, no criticism.

But analysts say what Pyongyang didn't say might be just as telling.

"Despite declaring the South an enemy state and cutting all ties, North Korea reported the election result just a day after. This quick response may be a subtle sign that Pyongyang is closely watching developments in the South, even as it maintains its posture of disengagement."

In the past, North Korea took more time to respond, waiting three days after the 2017 election and two days in 2022.

On those occasions as well, Pyongyang offered only short, factual summaries with no analysis.

This time, a senior official at South Korea's Unification Ministry pointed to a subtle shift in language.

Instead of using "South Chosun", a term often associated with shared Korean identity, Pyongyang referred to the South as "South Korea."

Experts say the change could reflect Pyongyang's strategy of maintaining distance from the South, a pattern seen in recent years.

Whether it signals an opening or just a more deliberate kind of silence remains to be seen.

Kim Jung-sil, Arirang News.