What Life Is Really Like for North Korean Elite

Oct 27, 2025 | Behind Pyongyang’s spotless skyline lies a secret world of unimaginable privilege and silent terror. From million-dollar Mercedes convoys and $30,000 cognac to private zoos, smuggling networks, and fear-based loyalty — this is the untold story of North Korea’s élite.

Discover how the “Little Royals” live like kings while the rest of the nation survives on two bowls of rice a day. Explore a world built on contradictions — where luxury meets paranoia, and privilege depends on obedience.

Was Your T-shirt Made in North Korea? - BBC News

North Korea's textile industry is the latest to come under UN sanctions - so how big a sector is it? The BBC's Karishma Vaswani takes a look.

Money And Power in North Korea: Hidden Economy – Documentary

North Korea has becoming increasingly isolated under a series of international economic sanctions. The country is in financial straits. How has the Kim Jong Un regime managed to stay in power? Our interviews with people who were once high-ranking officials in the leadership inner circle and investigation in several countries revealed the existence of secret funds that only the supreme leader can freely use. The program will explore connection between power and money in North Korea.

Dispatch from the North Korean Border: What Do You Want to Know?

NK News are crowdfunding to send an investigative reporter to the North Korea–China border, and they want you to shape what they’ll cover

Read The Guardian article here | Maeve Shearlaw | Thursday, April 16, 2015

North Korea Taps into Tourism to Attract Foreign Investment
There are perhaps few more incongruous-sounding holiday destinations than North Korea.

Read article here

South Korea Bans All Trade With North Over Cheonan Attack
TIMES ONLINE: President Barack Obama today said he “fully supports” the South Korean president and his response to the torpedo attack by North Korea that killed 46 South Korean sailors as the cross-border animosity between the two countries continues to rise.

South Korea’s President Lee Myung-bak earlier today demanded that North Korea “immediately apologise and punish those responsible for the attack, and, most importantly, stop its belligerent and threatening behaviour” and announced it will take the case of the torpedoed Cheonan warship to the United Nations Security Council.

In a move which analysts described as “cautiously hard-line”, Mr Lee also said he would be suspending all exchanges between the two Koreas and imposing a total ban on North Korean ships passing through South Korean waters.

His government banned all trade, investment and visits with North Korea. South Korea also plans to reduce the number of workers in a joint factory park just inside the North which has long been an important source of income for the North Korean leadership.

The White House said Seoul can continue to count on the full backing of Washington. Read on and comment >>> Leo Lewis, Beijing | Monday, May 24, 2010