North Korea stayed on the U.S. religious freedom blacklist for the 20th year. 

In its "2021 Report on International Religious Freedom" released on Thursday, the U.S. State Department said that the North has continued to seriously limit its people’s freedom to worship. 

The U.S. has designated North Korea as a "Country of Particular Concern" for violations of religious freedom since 2001.

The department said the U.S. has raised concerns about religious freedom in North Korea in multilateral forums and in bilateral discussions with other governments, particularly those with diplomatic relations with the country.

It also noted that the U.S. co-sponsored a resolution passed by the UN General Assembly in December condemning North Korea's long-standing and ongoing systematic, widespread and gross violations of human rights.