2013 in North Korea
overview of North Korea-related events during the year of 2013

The following lists events that happened in 2013 in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. In 2013, tensions between North Korea and South Korea, the United States, and Japan escalated because of United Nations Security Council Resolution 2087, which condemned North Korea for the launch of Kwangmyŏngsŏng-3 Unit 2. The crisis was marked by increased rhetoric by the new North Korean administration under Kim Jong-un and actions suggesting imminent nuclear attacks against South Korea, Japan, and the United States.
Incumbents
First Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea: Kim Jong-un
Premier: Choe Yong-rim (until 1 April), Pak Pong-ju (starting 1 April)
Events
January
January 1 – First Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea Kim Jong-un makes a rare New Year broadcast, calling for an improved economy and a reunified Korea.
January 22 – The United Nations Security Council passes Resolution 2087, condemning North Korea's December 2012 rocket launch and expanding economic sanctions against the country.
January 24 – North Korean authorities announce a new nuclear weapon and long-range missile test, threatening their publicly manifested arch-enemy, the United States, as their primary target.
January 25 – North Korea threatens to take "strong physical countermeasures" if South Korea co-operates with new United Nations Security Council resolutions against it.
January 29 – Google expands its Google Maps map data coverage of North Korea, updating what had been blank in most of that country's satellite images, for its search engine.
January 31 – South Korean media reports claim that North Korea has been placed under martial law with another nuclear test considered to be imminent.
February
February 12 – North Korea confirms that it has successfully tested a nuclear device, claiming that it is small enough to be weaponized.
The public source identifies “2013 in North Korea” as overview of North Korea-related events during the year of 2013. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around North, Korea and overview.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “2013 in North Korea”, the useful work is to connect “overview of North Korea-related events during the year of 2013” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jul 31, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q19891923. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 2013, 2087 and 2012.
Overview language is designed for orientation and should not be treated as a substitute for the evidence cited beneath it. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “2013 in North Korea”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow 2013 in North Korea primary sources, 2013 in North Korea archive and North research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “2013 in North Korea”?
- Which cited source is closest to the event, object or claim?
- Which institution is responsible for the underlying evidence?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “2013 in North Korea” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.