The Jangmadang is Sino-NK’s marketplace for fresh ideas. In keeping with the tradition established by its eponymous counterpart in North Korea, our Jangmadang, managed by Sino-NK staff, provides short, snappy, but vital information on the latest documentary research and news. Unlike most English-language outlets, you will find that a majority of the sources are in Chinese or Korean, with cameo appearances from places like France, Germany and Japan. Jangmadang articles are a quick read, too. No introductions, just reliable translations and timely analysis.

North Korean Citizens in Changbai: Social Insurance, Residency Rights, and Chinese Informants

By | January 21, 2019

Local Chinese governments are making changes in the way they deal with some undocumented North Korean residents in their border communities. Adam Cathcart investigates.

SEZ Revival Tour? Kim Jong-un in Dandong

By | January 14, 2019

Coverage of Kim Jong-un’s first diplomatic outing of 2019 yields little information on who Kim met in Dandong en route for Beijing. Since the border city is where the rubber of bilateral policy meets the road, it deserves more attention. Adam Cathcart does the honors.

From New York to Dandong: Maximum Pressure

By | July 23, 2018

Digging into sources outside the Anglosphere, Adam Cathcart finds that developments along the border and further into the interior of both China and North Korea indicate any American desire to maintain economic pressure on the DPRK will be difficult, if not impossible.

North Korean Human Rights in the State of the Union

By | January 31, 2018

President Trump used his first State of the Union address to criticize North Korea for its human rights abuses. Trump’s framing contrasts sharply with the somewhat positive messaging coming from Seoul. Leif-Eric Easley compares and contrasts.

What Inspired DPRK Invective against China?

By | December 19, 2017

Amid new rumors of Chinese preparations for contingencies on the Korean peninsula and more sanctions enforcement, Chinese-North Korean relations seem likely to sour further. Adam Cathcart investigates a key example of North Korean public anger aimed at Beijing.

Chinese Discourse on the New North Korea Sanctions

By | September 12, 2017

How have Chinese officials and periodicals been discussing trade with and sanctions on North Korea? Adam Cathcart investigates.

Korean People’s Army Contacts with the Chinese Military

By | August 21, 2017

The perception that China and North Korea no longer have the extensive bilateral contacts that they once did may be broadly speaking correct, but it is by no means the whole story. Here, Adam Cathcart brings to our attention an official event from July 25, 2017.

Trade Wars and Hot Wars: #Shigak no. 51

By | August 08, 2017

This installment of #Shigak explores the two most popular political stories from the conservative and progressive Twittersphere between July 28 and August 4. For the right, that means the reappointment of a former trade minister to his old post, while the left homes in on some comments about the possibility of war on the Korean peninsula.