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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Nominee for chief of anti-corruption body pledges 'independence, effectiveness'
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Med schools expect 1,500+ new admission slots next year
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KT launches new mobile plans for foreign residents
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S. Korea, Canada declare conclusion of FTA negotiations
South Korea and Canada on Tuesday concluded their negotiations for a bilateral free trade agreement that, once implemented, is expected to help significantly boost their bilateral trade.The conclusion of negotiations came at the two nations' trade ministers' talks held in Seoul earlier in the day, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy here."At the trade ministers' talks, the sides confirmed that an agreement has been reached for the Korea-Canada FTA after all remaining issues h
March 11, 2014
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Park to hold summit with Canada amid hopes for free trade deal
South Korean President Park Geun-hye was to hold summit talks with Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper on Tuesday amid reports the two sides could announce the conclusion of a free trade deal after nine years of negotiations.Harper arrived Monday for a two-day visit, his fourth trip to South Korea. Tuesday's summit will be the second time for Park and Harper to meet. They first met one-on-one on the sidelines of a summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum last year.Canadian report
March 11, 2014
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Prosecutors raid NIS in evidence forgery probe
Prosecutors raided the National Intelligence Service on Monday as part of their investigation into alleged evidence fabrication in an espionage case. The move came hours after President Park Geun-hye called for a thorough investigation and opposition leaders called for an independent probe and dismissal of the spy chief.At Monday’s meeting with senior presidential staff, Park said that she considered evidence forgery as “very regretful.”“In order to reveal the truth, the prosecutors’ investigati
March 10, 2014
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Pope Francis to visit Korea Aug. 14-18
Pope Francis will visit Korea from Aug. 14-18 on an invitation by President Park Geun-hye and the Catholic Church of Korea, Cheong Wa Dae said Monday.The pope will meet the president and attend an international gathering by Catholics from Asian countries to be held in Daejeon during his five-day visit.“The upcoming visit by Pope Francis, a symbolic figure of (someone who has lived) a poor but honest life and (upheld) neighborliness, will be an opportunity to deliver the message of love and peace
March 10, 2014
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Korea, Canada expected to clinch FTA
Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper said he intends to finalize a trade deal with South Korea on a trip starting Monday, after the two countries have struggled for more than eight years to reach an agreement.Harper arrived in Seoul on Monday for a two-day visit. Harper will hold a summit with President Park Geun-hye Tuesday.Reuters reported last week citing unnamed sources that the two sides were very close to signing a long-delayed free trade deal after years of talks.“This is an important s
March 10, 2014
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Opposition urges special probe into spy agency
The leaders of the planned new opposition party on Sunday called for a special investigation into alleged evidence fabrication by the National Intelligence Service, raising pressure on President Park Geun-hye over the issue. Saying that the spy agency was “threatening the foundations of democracy,” Reps. Kim Han-gil and Ahn Cheol-soo ― the co-chiefs of the party launch committee ― said that the president should end her silence on the issue. “The president should take stern measures to prevent th
March 9, 2014
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Korea, Canada to hold summit talks Tuesday
President Park Geun-hye will hold a summit with Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper on Tuesday, Cheong Wa Dae said Sunday.Harper will arrive in Seoul on Monday for two-day state visit. It will be his fourth trip to Korea. Park and Harper held their first summit on sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Bali in Indonesia last year.“President Park will hold summit talks with Prime Minister Harper to discuss ways to enhance bilateral ties in trade, investment, energy and te
March 9, 2014
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Presidential secretary offers to resign over election intervention
A presidential aide offered to resign Saturday after allegations were raised that he illegally intervened in the ruling party's nomination process for candidates who want to run in June's local elections, the presidential office said. "Lim Jong-hoon, a presidential secretary for civil affairs, handed in his resignation, and we believe it will be accepted," presidential spokesman Min Kyung-wook told Yonhap News Agency. Min said that action against the secretary is expected to be taken on M
March 9, 2014
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Opposition groups reach deal on merger steps
South Korea's two most popular opposition groups reached an agreement Friday on the next steps for their planned merger, paving the way for its launch ahead of upcoming local elections. The agreement came five days after the main opposition Democratic Party (DP) and the opposition group led by popular independent lawmaker Ahn Cheol-soo announced the merger in a surprise move that changed the political landscape ahead of the June 4 local elections. Public interest in the planned merger is
March 7, 2014
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Park nominates new home affairs minister
President Park Geun-hye named a former vice chief of the home affairs ministry as its new minister on Friday, her spokesman said.Kang Byung-kyu, who served as the second vice minister from 2009-2010 before leaving the ministry, has been nominated to succeed Yoo Jeong-bok as minister for security and public administration, presidential spokesman Min Kyung-wook said.Yoo quit earlier this week to run for mayor of Incheon in June's local elections.The nomination is subject to a parliamentary confirm
March 7, 2014
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DP heavyweight sparks discord over South Jeolla race
The main opposition Democratic Party is facing yet another bout of internal discord fueled by Rep. Park Jie-won’s apparent turnaround on running for office in South Jeolla Province. Park’s comments have prompted vehement criticism from other South Jeolla governor hopefuls including the DP’s Rep. Lee Nak-yon.“As the two parties have been combined, the conditions he set (for running for office) have been removed,” Lee in an interview with a Gwangju-based broadcaster on Thursday. “(Park’s actions)
March 6, 2014
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Park vows to boost social safety net
President Park Geun-hye on Thursday reiterated her drive to strengthen the social safety net through a fair redistribution of state income generated by economic stimulus plans amid growing concerns over welfare blind spots. “We should put our society back on the right track so that we can open an era of happiness for the people, where the fruits of growth are shared evenly with all people,” she said at a national breakfast prayer meeting held by Christian churches here. “I will try harder to eli
March 6, 2014
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'East Sea' bill sent to Gov. McAuliffe's desk
Virginia legislators wrapped up all legislative procedures in both chambers on the "East Sea" bill Wednesday, passing the onus to Democratic Gov. Terry McAuliffe. Last month, the House and Senate approved bills that require all public schools to name the body of water between Korea and Japan as the East Sea as well as the Sea of Japan. Koreans view the name Sea of Japan, which is still better known worldwide, as a relic of Japan's imperialistic past, including the colonization of Korea from
March 6, 2014
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[Newsmaker] Gyeonggi to be biggest match of June poll
The Gyeonggi Province gubernatorial race is becoming one of the hottest contests in the June 4 local elections with the ruling and opposition parties going to great lengths to bring their best cards into the game. For the ruling Saenuri Party, five-term lawmaker Rep. Nam Kyung-pil is considered the favorite to fill the post currently held by potential conservative presidential hopeful Kim Moon-soo. Announcing his plans, Nam did not mince words and launched a direct attack on the opposition bloc.
March 5, 2014
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DP, Ahn appear at odds over new party launch
Leaders from the major opposition bloc on Wednesday appeared to have differing ideas on the course of setting up rules for the new party, which they have agreed to launch ahead of the local elections in June.Democratic Party chairman Rep. Kim Han-gil reiterated that he has no intention of beginning a tug-of-war contest to secure more candidates from his side for the June 4 local elections. Independent lawmaker Ahn Cheol-soo, meanwhile, urged the main opposition party to drop its demands for a la
March 5, 2014
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Five-term ruling party lawmaker to run for Gyeonggi governor
A five-term lawmaker of the ruling Saenuri Party declared his bid to run for governor of Gyeonggi Province on Wednesday, the latest in a series of big-name politicians to join what are expected to be tight races in the June local elections.Rep. Nam Kyung-pil made his governorship bid official during a party meeting. His bid shows the ruling party is mobilizing all resources to win the upcoming elections that are seen as a midterm confidence vote for the government of President Park Geun-hye.Nam,
March 5, 2014
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Security minister joins election fray
Minister of Security and Public Administration Yoo Jeong-bok will resign and enter the race for Incheon mayor on Wednesday, joining the growing list of conservative heavyweights entering the June 4 local elections. “The situation does not allow me to ignore the political command to run for Incheon mayor for the success of the Park Geun-hye administration,” Yoo told Saenuri Party members in Gimpo, Gyeonggi Province, on Tuesday. Gimpo is Yoo’s constituency, where he has won three terms in the Nati
March 4, 2014
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Park calls for more family exchanges with N. Korea
President Park Geun-hye has ordered officials to open talks with North Korea to allow letter exchanges and video reunions for families separated by the Korean War, which ended more than 60 years ago. Stressing that time is running out for millions of separated families in the South and North, the president said the government has to seek ways to help them reunite with their long-lost kin before they die. The remark came only three days after she suggested holding the family reunions on a regular
March 4, 2014
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Kim, Ahn forge ahead toward party launch
Rep. Kim Han-gil and independent Rep. Ahn Cheol-soo are gearing up for the launch of their new party despite concerns of internal discord within both of their organizations. From Wednesday, Democratic Party leader Kim and Ahn are set to begin a nationwide tour to whip up support for the new party. In addition, Kim named three-term lawmaker Rep. Sul Hoon as the chief of the committee that will oversee the new party’s launch, which the two sides plan to complete before March 23. “I think that thos
March 3, 2014
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Merger with DP undermines Ahn’s ‘new politics’ pitch
The main opposition Democratic Party and independent Rep. Ahn Cheol-soo’s plan to launch a new party will be a double-edged sword for the opposition bloc, experts say. According to political analysts, the DP-Ahn merger will place the opposition on stronger footing against the ruling Saenuri Party in the June 4 local elections, but weaken its cause of introducing so-called new politics. “Establishing a two-party structure can be considered laying the foundations for competitive elections. This gi
March 3, 2014