Most Popular
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Russia sent more than 165,000 barrels of refined petroleum to N. Korea in March: White House
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Key suspects grilled over alleged abuse of power in Marine death inquiry
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S. Korean children, teens grow taller, mature faster than before: study
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[Graphic News] Number of coffee franchises in S. Korea rises 13%
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Army takes group action against Hybe for neglecting BTS
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Marine Corps commander summoned by CIO for questioning on alleged influence-peddling case
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Some junior doctors are returning: Health Ministry
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[Robert J. Fouser] AI changes rationale for learning languages
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Ador CEO's request for exclusive right to terminate NewJeans' contract with Hybe refused in February
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Woman dangling from power lines rescued by residents holding blanket
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Korea asks trade partners for cooperation in rice tariff talks
South Korea has asked its major trade partners including China and the United States for cooperation in its upcoming negotiations to set tariff rates on its rice imports, the trade ministry said Sunday.South Korea on Friday announced that it will open its rice market to tariffed imports, ending a 20-year waiver that had capped the import of the grain to a set minimum. It now has to negotiate the tariff rates with the World Trade Organization before the market opening from Jan. 1 next year.In a b
July 20, 2014
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New, yet incomplete Cabinet sets off
President Park Geun-hye urged new ministers to make the utmost efforts in carrying out state reform agendas at a conferment ceremony that marked the final launch of her new, yet incomplete Cabinet. “We must make our best efforts until (the day when we) root out accumulated evils,” she said after presenting letters of appointment to new ministers and vice ministers at Cheong Wa Dae.Last month, the president replaced seven ministers and one spy agency chief in a major Cabinet reshuffle aimed at mo
July 18, 2014
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New NIS chief vows political neutrality
Lee Byung-kee, the new director of the National Intelligence Service, emphasized Friday his agency should stay away from politics, as he took up the post following a series of political scandals involving the intelligence agency.Lee, a former career diplomat, said that political neutrality will help the disgraced organization to regain public trust, according to the NIS.In his swearing-in ceremony, Lee called on the NIS to focus on its basic mission ― protecting the country and people from the t
July 18, 2014
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Korea opts for double-engine platform for fighter project
South Korea has decided to adopt a double-engine platform for its indigenous warplane project, which would boost combat capabilities and ensure long-term economic feasibility, the Defense Ministry said Friday.The Joint Chiefs of Staff reached the decision to take the C-130 twin-engine platform over the single-engine one, putting an end to a long-drawn-out heated debate, according to the ministry.Under the so-called KFX program for developing and producing the home-built fighter jets, South Korea
July 18, 2014
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1 more body retrieved from Sewol
One more body was recovered Friday from the sunken passenger ferry Sewol, after no progress was made over the past three weeks, officials said. The body, presumed to be that of a female cook, was found in the cafeteria of the submerged ship around 6:20 a.m., according to officials from the government’s disaster response team.The finding raised the death toll to 294 and lowered the number of those missing to 10, the officials said.The officials said they will conduct a DNA test and fingerprint sc
July 18, 2014
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13 liberal leaders join hunger strike for ferry victims
A group of leading progressive activists joined a hunger strike by family members of victims of April's ferry disaster on Friday, demanding the early adoption of a special law on the disaster.Thirteen leaders of liberal civic, labor and religious groups joined the protest to show their sympathy for the family members who are on their fifth day of hunger strike, according to a group statement from the organizations.The bill calls for the creation of an inspection team to look into the cause of th
July 18, 2014
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Parties to submit request for extra parliamentary session
The ruling and main opposition parties will submit a request Friday for an extra parliamentary session aimed at passing a special bill on April's deadly ferry sinking, party officials said.The bill calls for the creation of a parliamentary inspection team to look into the cause of the April 16 disaster as well as measures to provide compensation to families of the victims.The government has been accused of bungling its initial response to the sinking, resulting in the deaths of more than 300 peo
July 18, 2014
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Korea to open its rice market from next year
The South Korean government announced Friday it will open the rice market to tariffed imports, ending a 20-year waiver. "As the result of an economic ministers' meeting held July 18, the government decided to open the country's rice market with tariffication from Jan. 1, 2015," the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs said. "The government decided that opening the rice market with import tariffs is inevitable, and also the best choice available," it added.South Korea's agreement with
July 18, 2014
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Parties launch election campaign
The ruling and opposition parties launched their 13-day campaign for the crucial July 30 by-elections, with each concentrating on the capital and central Chungcheong regions. The ruling Saenuri Party claims that its candidates are “tailored” to each constituency while its new leaders plan to engage in intensive supporting campaigns. “Local development can only be achieved by a ruling party candidate,” Saenuri Party chairman Rep. Kim Moo-sung said at the opening of Kim Je-sik’s campaign headquart
July 17, 2014
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[Newsmaker] Home affairs minister faces tough mission
Chong Jong-sup, the home affairs minister who took office Thursday, confronts the daunting challenge of revamping the public sector.The former constitutional scholar, entrusted with the task of regaining the public’s trust via governmental reforms, vowed to put his efforts into ensuring that accidents like April’s deadly sinking of the Sewol will not happen again. The ferry sank off the country’s southwestern island of Jindo on April 16 and left over 300 dead or missing, most of them high school
July 17, 2014
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(Photo News) Kicking off campaign
Saenuri Party chairman Rep. Kim Moo-sung (second from left) poses with party lawmakers dressed in the party’s uniform for the by-election campaigns at the National Assembly (top photo). On the bottom, New Politics Alliance for Democracy cochairman Rep. Kim Han-gil (fourth from left) and other lawmakers are seen supporting Ki Dong-min’s (third from left) campaign for the Dongjak-B constituency in Seoul on Thursday. (Lee Gil-dong/The Korea Herald)
July 17, 2014
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Korea seeks UNESCO listing of sex slavery records
Korea plans to apply for UNESCO designation for documents related to Korean women who were forced into sexual slavery for the Japanese imperial army during World War II, the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family announced on Thursday.“The records should be used as an important reminder that such tragedies should never be repeated in the future,” said Gender Equality Minister Kim Hee-jung in a statement. “The issue of wartime sex slavery is directly linked to the issue of women’s rights, which i
July 17, 2014
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Park removes culture, education ministers
President Park Geun-hye on Thursday removed the education and culture ministers from office in a rare decision feared to cause a temporary vacuum in state affairs. Cheong Wa Dae said that Park has informed Education Minister Seo Nam-soo and Culture Minister Yoo Jin-ryong of their dismissals early in the morning.The announcement came a day after former Culture Minister-designate Chung Sung-keun withdrew his nomination on Wednesday. On Tuesday, Park also withdrew her nomination of former Education
July 17, 2014
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Parties to push for ferry bill next week
With no progress made on a special bill to determine the causes of the April ferry disaster, rival parties agreed to seek a solution in a new extraordinary session next week amid disputes over proposed compensation for victims’ families.A clause within the “special Sewol bill” concerning how much judicial power to give the investigation team remains a sticking point impeding the bill’s legislation in the current extraordinary session. The proposed bill is named after the ferry that sunk in the W
July 17, 2014
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Park removes education, culture ministers from office
President Park Geun-hye removed the education and culture ministers from office on Thursday, her office said, despite a delay in the formation of her new Cabinet.Education Minister Seo Nam-soo and Culture Minister Yoo Jin-ryong were both subject to a partial Cabinet reshuffle last month, which came in the wake of a deadly ferry sinking in April that claimed the lives of more than 300 people, mostly high school students.Park informed Seo and Yoo of their dismissals earlier in the day, her office
July 17, 2014
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[Newsmaker] Education nominee generates mixed reactions
Former Saenuri Party chairman and pro-Park Geun-hye heavyweight Rep. Hwang Woo-yea is generating mixed reactions as President Park continues to struggle with her personnel selections. Past precedents indicate that Hwang will not face much trouble in passing the parliamentary confirmation hearing. So far, no lawmaker tapped for a Cabinet position has been blocked by the hearings. However, his track record is raising ire among the opposition parties. The five-term lawmaker’s tenure as the ruling p
July 16, 2014
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Diplomats to stop serving lawmakers on personal trips
South Korean diplomats in foreign countries will no longer offer support services to lawmakers traveling abroad for personal reasons, government officials said Wednesday.Legislators had been allowed to request support staff from embassies and consulates when making trips to foreign countries, regardless of the nature of their visits.Lawmakers will now be required to submit paperwork to the Foreign Ministry at least 10 business days before going abroad in order to receive administrative support f
July 16, 2014
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Parties start by-election campaigns
The country’s political parties are to be swallowed up by election fever as the 13-day campaign period for the pivotal July 30 by-elections kicked off Thursday.On Wednesday, leaders of both the ruling Saenuri Party and the main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy stressed the importance of the by-elections, each calling on their members to come together. In the by-elections, 15 parliamentary seats will be contested for by 55 candidates. Six of the 15 seats are located in Seoul and the
July 16, 2014
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NPAD rallies for ferry bill
Opposition lawmakers staged a rally on Wednesday in front of the National Assembly, accusing the governing party of stalling the passage of a special bill aimed at forming a special investigation committee into the Sewol ferry disaster.The so-called “special Sewol bill” is named after the sunken ferry that left more than 300 dead or missing.But partisan division over how much legal power to give the panel is impeding the bill’s legislation, angering victims’ families who have been calling for a
July 16, 2014
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Culture minister nominee withdraws
Culture Minister-designate Chung Sung-keun withdrew his nomination on Wednesday, despite President Park Geun-hye taking the political risk of pushing ahead with his appointment. The former TV anchor has been facing fierce resistance from the main opposition party over his record of drunken driving and alleged perjury during his parliamentary confirmation hearing last week.“Today, I step down from my position as minister nominee for culture, sports and tourism,” Chung said in a statement. “There
July 16, 2014