The May 2026 issue examines the Lee Jae Myung administration’s Korean Peninsula Peaceful Coexistence Policy while using quantitative and satellite-based evidence to assess North Korea’s industrial and economic conditions. Against the backdrop of Pyongyang’s “two hostile states” doctrine and deepening alignment with Moscow, it emphasizes the need to manage tensions, keep channels for dialogue and contact open, and recalibrate inter-Korean relations. Drawing on the North Korea Industry and Enterprise Database and satellite indicators, including nighttime lights, the issue identifies uneven, heavy industry-led growth linked to North KoreaRussia military cooperation, alongside persistent structural constraints across industry. It also examines fisheries through market prices and satellite data, shifts in the agency of North Korean overseas workers amid competition and wage shocks in China and Russia, and proposals for cooperation infrastructure, including an East-West Peace Expressway, disaster monitoring, and legal reforms for border areas. Overall, it highlights an industrial sector being sustained rather than renewed, and the growing potential of data-driven monitoring to inform mid- to long-term policy for inter-Korean relations and a peace economy.