Most Popular
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Tensions heighten ahead of first president-opposition chief meeting
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Seoul to provide housing subsidy to married couples with newborns
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[KH Explains] No more 'Michael' at Kakao Games
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Rapper jailed after public street fight with another rapper
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Woman gets suspended term for injuring boyfriend with knife
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Samsung chief bolsters ties with Germany’s Zeiss
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NewJeans pops out ‘Bubble Gum’ video amid troubles at agency
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Med schools expect 1,500+ new admission slots next year
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Nominee for chief of anti-corruption body pledges 'independence, effectiveness'
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[Grace Kao] Hybe vs. Ador: Inspiration, imitation and plagiarism
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Budget bill battle to reach full fury
The ongoing battle over next year’s budget bill between rival parties is expected to reach a climax this week as the deadline set by law approaches, forcing the two sides to finish their reviews.According to the Constitution, legislators must complete their reviews by Dec. 2. Seldom have they met the date though, with this year’s partisan rows over tax hikes and education subsidies hinting at a repeat of the unconstitutional practice.But a newly imposed law in 2012 could allow the governing Saen
Nov. 23, 2014
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(Photo News) Strong quake strikes central Japan
People view the damage on Sunday after a strong earthquake hit Hakuba, Nagano prefecture, central Japan, the night before, destroying more than half a dozen homes in the ski resort town and injuring at least 30 people. (AP-Yonhap)
Nov. 23, 2014
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Seoul vows stern response on anniversary of deadly shelling
Citizens salute the photos of two marines killed in North Korea’s artillery attack in 2010 on Yeonpyeongdo Island during a ceremony marking the fourth anniversary of the provocation at the War Memorial of Korea in central Seoul on Sunday. (Yonhap)South Korea’s Prime Minister Chung Hong-won pledged strong retaliation against any North Korean attacks as Seoul on Sunday commemorated the fourth anniversary of the deadly shelling of a frontline South Korean island.“The government and the military wil
Nov. 23, 2014
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S. Korea, China, Japan to adopt joint statement on Ebola fight
BEIJING -- The health ministers of South Korea, China and Japan were poised to sign a joint statement this weekend on trilateral cooperation to help fight the deadly Ebola virus, a Seoul diplomat said Saturday. The joint statement will be announced after a three-way meeting of the ministers due on Sunday in Beijing, the diplomat at the South Korean embassy said on the condition of anonymity. South Korean Health Minister Moon Hyong-pyo and his Chinese and Japanese counterparts, Li Bin and Yasuhi
Nov. 22, 2014
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Accusations fly as child care budget row deepens
The row over the Nuri Curriculum budget expanded further Friday with the ruling and opposition parties hurling accusations of underhanded manipulations and being the administration’s puppet. Nuri Curriculum is a free child care program for children aged 3 to 5. The program became the biggest sticking point in this year’s government budget review, with the two main parties clashing over whether local education offices or the central government should foot the bill. On Thursday, the main oppositio
Nov. 21, 2014
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Ex-first lady Lee to make overland trip to N. Korea
North Korea agreed Friday to former South Korean first lady Lee Hee-ho’s plan to make an overland trip to the communist country, one of her aides said.The North also promised to allow the wife of late former President Kim Dae-jung to stay at the Paekhwawon State Guesthouse in Pyongyang, according to former culture minister Kim Sung-hoon.But no date has been set yet for the date of Lee’s planned visit and the size of her entourage, he added.“We agreed to discuss the matters in the second working-
Nov. 21, 2014
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Hungarian leader to visit S. Korea next week
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban plans to visit Seoul next week for talks with South Korean President Park Geun-hye on boosting bilateral ties, Park's office said Friday.Orban is set to meet with Park on Friday, a day after he makes a three-day trip to the Asian country, the office said.The two leaders are expected to discuss how to strengthen cooperation on issues such as trade, defense, science and culture as well as politics and economy, Park's office said.Trade volume between South Kore
Nov. 21, 2014
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Ruling-party lawmaker acquitted of graft in retrial
Rep. Chung Doo-un of the ruling Saenuri Party was acquitted in a retrial Friday of charges that he received bribes from a savings bank.Chung was indicted on charges of receiving 140 million won (US$137,600) in bribes from former Solomon Savings Bank chairman Lim Suk in return for using his influence to help the bank avoid regulatory audits and punishment."There is no tangible proof showing that Chung received illegal political funds, and the testimony of the bribery giver is inconsistent, which
Nov. 21, 2014
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Ruling party chief bashes N. Korea for human rights
The head of South Korea's ruling party criticized North Korea on Friday for its widely condemned human rights record and vowed efforts to persuade the North to give up its nuclear ambitions.Kim Moo-sung, chairman of the Saenuri Party, made the remarks in a keynote speech at the 2014 Party Leaders Meeting of the International Democrat Union (IDU) in Seoul, a gathering of the world's conservative party leaders. "The North Korean people have been suffering from famine and the worst human rights con
Nov. 21, 2014
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Gov't agrees with rural county on new nuclear power plant
The government struck an agreement with a southeastern coastal county Friday to build a new nuclear power plant there, the Prime Minister's Office said.Uljin County, some 330 kilometers southeast of Seoul, is currently home to an existing nuclear power plant with six reactors. The government had been negotiating for the past 15 years with the county to build an additional plant there.Under the deal, the government plans to provide 280 billion won (US$252.3 million) worth of infrastructure and ot
Nov. 21, 2014
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KITA chief makes case for S. Korea's participation in TPP
South Korea's participation in a U.S.-led free trade bloc for Asia-Pacific economies would be a boon for all members, especially the United States, the head of the Korea International Trade Association said Thursday.South Korea expressed its interest in participating in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) last year and has since held talks with each of the 12 nations, which have already been negotiating to forge the free trade deal, in an effort to get their approval."Korea is already a signific
Nov. 21, 2014
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Assembly budget war intensifies
Rival parties on Thursday refused to budge over next year’s proposed budget as they continued to wrangle over contentious issues ranging from preschool subsidies and an investigation into the four-river refurbishment project implemented by the previous administration.Amid an intensifying bipartisan fight, President Park Geun-hye met with senior governing Saenuri Party officials at Cheong Wa Dae in the afternoon and urged them to pass next year’s spending plan. The government submitted a 376 tril
Nov. 20, 2014
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[Graphic News] Record number of bills languishing
The current 19th National Assembly has written 11,942 draft bills since its induction in May 2012, according to parliamentary statistics.But the percentage of bills fully reviewed by lawmakers has fallen to a record low, with only about 11.4 percent of prospective legislation being written into law.Critics cited the recent political deadlocks that paralyzed the parliament. The main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy’s boycott in August played a role, while the governing Saenuri Party
Nov. 20, 2014
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(Photo News) Korea-Finland talks
President Park Geun-hye offers a seat for Finnish Prime Minister Alexander Stubb at a meeting held at Cheong Wa Dae on Thursday. (Yonhap)
Nov. 20, 2014
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Park seeks ideas for globalization of Korean food
President Park Geun-hye invited star chefs to Cheong Wa Dae on Thursday afternoon to seek ways to globalize Korean food and promote its history and delicacies overseas, officials said.Internationally renowned chefs including Pierre Gagnaire, Joan Roca and Rene Redzepi attended the luncheon at the presidential office and shared their views on Korean food, particularly on ways to combine fermented Korean ingredients with Western dishes. The European chefs are known for experimenting with Korean fo
Nov. 20, 2014
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Park urges parliament to pass FTA, pension reform bills
President Park Geun-hye asked the parliament Thursday to endorse South Korea's free trade agreements with Australia and Canada as well as a bill meant to reduce the government's growing pension deficit."I need cooperation and assistance in the political community, including the parliament, to lay the basis for an economic take-off," Park said in a meeting with top officials of her ruling Saenuri Party at the presidential office.Park made the appeal a week after the parliamentary committee on for
Nov. 20, 2014
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PM set to visit Egypt, Morocco, Azerbaijan
Prime Minister Chung Hong-won will start a tour of Egypt, Morocco and Azerbaijan this weekend to discuss ways of boosting economic cooperation with the countries, his office said Thursday.The seven-day tour will start on Saturday with Egypt, where Chung plans to meet with his Egyptian counterpart Ibrahim Mahlab to discuss South Korean firms' possible participation in the country's massive nuclear reactor construction project, according to the Prime Minister's Office.Chung will fly to Morocco on
Nov. 20, 2014
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PM vows tougher crackdown on illegal Chinese fishing
Prime Minister Chung Hong-won vowed Thursday to conduct a stronger crackdown on Chinese fishermen's illegal fishing in South Korean waters amid their growing violence against South Korean authorities.Hundreds of Chinese fishermen are arrested each year for illegally crossing into and fishing in South Korean waters in the Yellow Sea, often leading to violent clashes with South Korean Coast Guard officials. In early October, a Chinese captain was shot dead while trying to escape a crackdown after
Nov. 20, 2014
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Seoul FM to meet with counterparts from Pacific islands next week
Foreign ministers from South Korea and 14 Pacific islands countries will meet in Seoul next week to discuss ways to promote mutual cooperation, Seoul's foreign ministry said Thursday.The talks, scheduled for Monday and the second of its kind, will be focused on development cooperation, climate change and maritime issues, the ministry said.The ministry said that the talks will help promote South Korea's push for mini-lateral diplomacy as well as enhance cooperation in the areas of fishery and mar
Nov. 20, 2014
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S. Korea to beef up surveillance of illegal fishing by Chinese
South Korea will boost its efforts to crack down on illegal fishing by Chinese ships while also moving to confiscate and retire Chinese boats that are caught fishing illegally in South Korean waters, the government said Thursday.The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries said it will first increase the number of patrol ships from the current 34 to 50 while also introducing new, large vessels and aircraft that will make up a special task force. The move comes as over 2,000 Chinese boats are believed
Nov. 20, 2014