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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New celebrity-endorsed therapy for face contouring requires only a pair of rubber bands
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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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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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NewJeans pops out ‘Bubble Gum’ video amid troubles at agency
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Japan again claims Dokdo as its own in diplomatic report
The Japanese government released a diplomatic report reiterating its claims over South Korean islets of Dokdo on Friday adding further pressure on strained relations.With the development coming days after Japan approved new set of textbooks that claim Dokdo as Japanese territory, Seoul’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade has responded with unusual firm stance. On March 27, new textbooks citing Dokdo as Japanese territory were released, rekindling concerns over Japan’s continued distortion of
April 6, 2012
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U.S. congressmen to visit Seoul ahead of N.K. launch
A delegation of U.S. Republican congressmen will visit South Korea this week to inspect security conditions, officials said Thursday, as North Korea presses ahead with its plan to launch a long-range rocket. The five U.S. lawmakers, including Saxby Chambliss of Georgia and Richard Burr of North Carolina, are scheduled to arrive in Seoul Friday for a three-day visit during which they will meet with South Korean Foreign Minister Kim Sung-hwan, the ministry said in a statement. They also plan to vi
April 5, 2012
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Japan to approve annual diplomacy report renewing claim to Dokdo
Japan's cabinet plans to approve an annual foreign policy report Friday that renews Tokyo's territorial claim to Seoul's easternmost islets of Dokdo, a diplomatic source said Thursday. In a move certain to deepen diplomatic tension with South Korea, the Diplomatic Blue Book 2012 will reiterate claims that Dokdo is Japanese territory historically and under international law, the source said on cond
April 5, 2012
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ASEAN pivotal in Korea’s global presence
Chung calls for closer ties with Korea’s second-largest trading blocEven though South Korea has seen its economy rapidly growing over the past several decades, its GDP accounts for only about 1.7 percent of the world’s GDP.Should Korea meaningfully raise its voice and power in the international community, the GDP ratio of Korea could be at least 3 percent ― and an integrated Association of Southeast Asian Nations will play a pivotal role in helping Korea reach that goal, said Chung Hae-moon, sec
April 4, 2012
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Russia likely to seek greater influence on Koreas
Putin’s return to presidency may strengthen Moscow’s engagement with two KoreasIn his phone conversation with President Lee Myung-bak days after being reelected Russian president on March 4, Vladimir Putin pledged to help improve inter-Korean ties and discussed a deal for Russia to pipe natural gas to South Korea through North Korea.Putin was quoted by aides to Lee as saying he would “pay attention” to the project to build a gas pipeline passing through the three nations.The remark reflected th
April 3, 2012
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S. Korea, Italy sign revised pact to prevent double taxation
South Korea and Italy inked a revised pact on double taxation prevention Tuesday to help expand investment and trade between the two countries, officials said. The pact, an amended protocol of a 1989 agreement, was signed in Seoul between First Vice Foreign Minister Ahn Ho-young and Italian Ambassador to South Korea, Sergio Mercuri. The signing of the revised agreement came a week after President Lee Myung-bak and Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti held a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of th
April 3, 2012
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Uzbek asylum seeker deported for holding fake passport
An Uzbek asylum seeker in South Korea was recently deported to his native country for holding a fake passport, officials said Tuesday, a move likely to spark controversy amid Seoul’s protests over China’s similar treatment of North Korean defectors.The Uzbek national, whose identity was withheld, was sent home from South Korea’s Incheon International Airport two weeks ago, immediately after he was denied refugee status by Seoul’s Immigration Office, according to a source close to the asylum seek
April 3, 2012
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Seoul to offer $1m in aid for Syrian opposition
The South Korean government will provide $1 million in humanitarian assistance for the Syrian opposition, joining a series of international efforts to help end the bloody crackdown by the regime of President Bashar al-Assad, government officials said.“The Syrian government has been using military force against protesters over a number of months, deepening the humanitarian crisis in the country by leaving some 9,000 people dead and 40,000 seeking asylum abroad,” the Foreign Ministry said in a sta
April 2, 2012
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Bangladesh celebrates independence
The Bangladeshi ambassador praised his country’s ties with Korea while celebrating its national day. Shahidul Islam marked the 41st anniversary of Bangladeshi Independence with a reception in Seoul on Thursday, where he paid respects to Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, who proclaimed the independence of Bangladesh in 1971.“We pay our humble tribute to the 3 million martyrs of the War of Liberation,” he added. “We pay our deepest homage to the valiant freedom fighters who gave their life so tha
April 1, 2012
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Students to get insight into Russia, Belarus
The top Russian and Belarusian envoys to Korea are to host a forum for students interested in their countries on April 7. Russian Ambassador Konstantin Vasilievich Vnukov and Belarusian Ambassador Natalia Zhylevich will deliver speeches to students from more than 30 Korean universities at the forum at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies’ Aegun Hall.A Q&A session will also be held by diplomats, as well as professors who have studied in the countries, with a chance for Russian language students t
April 1, 2012
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Czech minister meets Korean conglomerates
The Czech deputy prime minister and minister of foreign affairs met the main Korean investors in his country’s economy while in Seoul last week. Karel Schwarzenberg met representatives from Hyundai Motor Company, Doosan Heavy Industries and Construction, Hanwha and GS Caltex while in Korea to attend the Seoul Nuclear Security Summit. He also met representatives from Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics, as well as Korean Air, which has been operating direct flights from Incheon to Prague four
April 1, 2012
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Australia picks ambassadors for Expo
Australia has appointed two honorary ambassadors to promote its participation in the 2012 Yeosu Expo in Korea. The Australian government held an event at the Sydney Opera House to appoint swimmer Ian Thorpe and Korean-born Australian fashion designer Bae Yeo-jin as honorary ambassadors for the international event to run from May 12 to Aug. 12 this year. Bae kicked off her honorary ambassadorship by presenting awards to winners of a uniform design competition that had taken place in Sydney. Cheri
April 1, 2012
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Celebration marks Korean-Iranian ties
The finer details may have been hidden from all except those fluent in both Persian and Korean, but it didn’t take long to understand what was happening. With actors on one side of the stage speaking Iran’s official language, and actors on the other side speaking Korean while dressed in the garb of Korea’s bygone times, it soon became clear that this was the story of how the two peoples first came into contact. The dramatic performance, backed by Iranian musicians playing traditional Persian ins
April 1, 2012
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Thai envoy heads for U.S. posting
Thai Ambassador Chaiyong Satjipanon is leaving Korea to take up a new posting in the U.S. capital. Satjipanon will depart for America next month to become ambassador in Washington D.C.As part of his diplomatic duties here, Satjipanon most recently facilitated the visit of Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra to the Seoul Nuclear Security Summit on March 26-27.On her first official visit here, Shinawatra agreed on a target of $30 billion in bilateral trade between Thailand and Korea in the nex
April 1, 2012
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British deputy leader moved by N. Korean defectors’ stories
British Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg may have dined with scores of world leaders at the Seoul Nuclear Security Summit last week, but the following evening he enjoyed a more remarkable meal with five young North Korean defectors. Clegg said the dinner with North Korean students at a restaurant in Insa-dong was the most moving part of his trip. “The most powerful memory for me will be the dinner with five young North Koreans who fled from North Korea through various routes to make their homes
April 1, 2012
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Korea spied through spouses’ eyes
Ambassadors’ wives are showcasing their snapshots of Korea at a special exhibition in Seoul. The spouses of envoys posted here are sharing 52 pictures taken by them and their predecessors at the Raemian Gallery until April 6.Maria Ligaya Fujita, who is married to the Brazilian ambassador, was inspired to start the project after a Brazilian photography exhibition in Seoul last September. She decided to organize another exhibition to show Koreans the images that diplomats show their families and f
April 1, 2012
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S. Korea to work with U.S. to reduce Iran oil imports
SEOUL (AP) -- South Korean officials said Saturday that they will continue working with the U.S. to reduce oil imports from Iran after President Barack Obama greenlighted potential sanctions against countries that continue to buy Iranian oil. South Korea is one of sever
March 31, 2012
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Foreign ministers of S. Korea, China, Japan to meet on N. Korea
Top diplomats from South Korea, China and Japan will hold three-way talks early next month on regional security and cooperation, Seoul’s foreign ministry said Thursday, with North Korea’s rocket plan expected to be a hot topic on the sidelines. South Korean Foreign Minister Kim Sung-hwan will hold the two-day tripartite talks with China’s Yang Jiechi and Japan’s Koichiro Gemba in the eastern Chinese city of Ningbo starting April 7, ministry spokesman Cho Byung-jae said. The three-way meeting, th
March 29, 2012
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P.M. holds talks with leaders of Algeria, Israel, Pakistan, Ukraine
Prime Minister Kim Hwang-sik on Wednesday held a series of talks with visiting leaders from Algeria, Israel, Pakistan and Ukraine to discuss cooperation over this week’s Nuclear Security Summit in Seoul and other bilateral issues, his office said.Kim held separate meetings with Abdelkader Bensalah, head of Algeria’s upper house of parliament, Israeli Deputy Prime Minister Dan Meridor and Pakistani Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani, followed by lunch with Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych
March 28, 2012
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S. Korea, Indonesia announce launch of free trade talks
South Korea and Indonesia announced Wednesday they will kick off official negotiations to open up trade between the two countries and agreed to hold the first round of talks as early as possible.The two sides made the announcement on the launch of talks on a comprehensive economic partnership agreem
March 28, 2012