The Korea Herald

Koreas exchange fire twice near border

DefenseAug 10, 2011

North Korea twice fired shells near the flashpoint Yellow Sea border with South Korea Wednesday, prompting warning shots from the South's marines in response, Seoul's military said. The incidents fuelled already high tensions along the disputed sea border, which saw bloody naval skirmishes in recent years and a deadly shelling attack on South Korea's Yeonpyeong island last November. The first i...
N. Korea reportedly attempting to assassinate S. Korean defense chief: sources

DefenseAug 10, 2011

North Korea is apparently trying to assassinate South Korea's defense chief known for his hard-line stance against Pyongyang, government sources here said Wednesday. A source said Seoul has "received intelligence" that North Korea is after Defense Minister Kim Kwan-jin. "The defense minister is a key official and we're always keeping close tabs on his security," one source said. "When he has to...
Chun in Washington for discussions on N. Korea, alliance issues

Foreign affairsAug 10, 2011

WASHINGTON, Aug. 9 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's national security adviser, Chun Yung-woo, arrived here Tuesday for a series of meetings expected to focus on a strategy for North Korea. Chun's first trip to Washington in his capacity as senior presidential secretary for foreign affairs and national security comes about two weeks after Pyongyang and Washington restarted high-level talks on denucleari...
EU gives 200,000 euros in North Korea flood aid

North KoreaAug 9, 2011

The European Union has donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to an international charity group to help flood victims in North Korea, a U.S.-funded radio station reported Tuesday. The EU, which shipped food aid to the impoverished state to feed its starving people last month, has donated 200,000 euros ($280,000) to the International Federation of Red Cross in flood aid, Voice of America report...
Unification Ministry targeted in cyber attack

Foreign affairsAug 9, 2011

South Korea’s Unification Ministry was the target of an attempted cyber attack, an official here said Tuesday, as the latest in the string of hacking attacks that Seoul suspects have been orchestrated by its northern rival. Unidentified people tried to hack into the website of the Unification Ministry by planting malicious software in the email system of a lawmaker’s aide who frequently emailed ...
U.N. chief urges Korea to play bigger global role

Foreign affairsAug 9, 2011

United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Tuesday called on South Korea to play a bigger role in international affairs as he made his first official visit to the country after reelection in June to a second five-year term as the U.N. chief. He arrived in Seoul from Japan as part of a two-nation tour. “This year marks the 20th anniversary of the Republic of Korea’s formal admission to the ...
Opposition camp rejects nominees Kwon and Han

PoliticsAug 9, 2011

The parliamentary judicial committee refused to endorse the justice minister and prosecutor-general nominees on Tuesday after opposition parties boycotted the hearings. “The hearings on the two nominees are not yet over,” said Rep. Park Young-sun of the main opposition Democratic Party. “We shall not accept the ruling party’s plot to cut out all contacts from the opposition camp.” DP members o...
Students gather in Songdo for model U.N. conference

Social affairsAug 9, 2011

Undergraduate and graduate students from 61 countries will take part in an annual model conference hosted by the United Nations at Songdo Convensia in Incheon, starting Wednesday through Sunday. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is scheduled to give a keynote speech on Thursday, after which he will offer a special lecture to teenagers and college students at the nearby University of Incheon. S...
Officials under fire for lack of disaster readiness

Social affairsAug 9, 2011

The local and central governments have come under fire for the nation’s lack of disaster readiness made apparent by the floods that ravaged the country this July. Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon has also drawn criticism for his decision to continue with the already highly controversial plebiscite vote on free school lunches as scheduled despite the recent crisis. “As someone who should be managing flood...
Parties near deal on savings bank losses

PoliticsAug 9, 2011

Government opposes plan to compensate depositors beyond statutory limit Lawmakers from rival political parties are pushing to fully compensate the financial losses of depositors at nine savings banks that collapsed this year, stirring another round of controversy over populism. Representatives of the ruling Grand National Party and the main opposition Democratic Party reached a tentative agreem...
Sohn sees synergy in Moon’s rise

PoliticsAug 9, 2011

Rep. Sohn Hak-kyu, chairman of the main opposition Democratic Party, feels the most heat from Moon Jae-in’s rise in political stature, but his aides say their potential rivalry will not harm the DP leader. They hope that any competition between Sohn and Moon galvanized through next year’s parliamentary elections would see the whole opposition camp basking in a synergy effect. “We expected the a...
Singapore looks ahead with cautious optimism

InternationalAug 9, 2011

The following is a message from Singaporean Ambassador Peter Tan Hai Chuan to mark Singapore’s National Day. ― Ed. Singapore celebrated its 46th National Day on Tuesday with some cause for optimism. Despite the global market uncertainties, Singapore’s economy still grew by 0.5 percent on a year-on-year basis. This comes on the back of its strong economic performance in the first quarter of 2011,...
Assignments yet to be done

PoliticsAug 9, 2011

Confidant to late President Roh raises profile as potential opposition standard-bearer It was supposed to be a gathering of senior civic and religious leaders to call for the merger of liberal and progressive opposition parties in preparation for the parliamentary and presidential elections next year. But the media focused upon a single person, who remained silent throughout the meeting on July...
Kim of Ewha Medical Center wins Hippocrates Award 2011

Social affairsAug 9, 2011

Kim Young-hoo, director of Ewha Womans University Medical Center’s Joint Replacement Center, was named the winner of the Hippocrates Award 2011 by the American Biographical Institute, the hospital said Tuesday. ABI is one of the top three biographical dictionaries. The two others are International Biographical Centre and Marquis Who’s Who. Kim is among 10 doctors who have taken the honor this ye...
Three receive Proud Korean Award

Social affairsAug 9, 2011

Winners honored for making contribution to Korean-American community Former National Assembly Speaker Lee Man-seop, Philip Kim, a professor of physics at Columbia University and Colonel Daniel Yoo of U.S. Marine Corps received the Proud Korean Award from the Korean American Leadership Foundation in Los Angeles on Aug. 7. Lee and Kim were selected for the award last month, and more recently Col....