Most Popular
-
1
Yoon sorry for shortcomings but insists policies were right
-
2
1 in 3 Koreans live alone, family types becoming diverse
-
3
S. Korea ‘strongly’ protests Japan’s claim over Dokdo in diplomatic bluebook
-
4
US 'incredibly concerned' about suspected NK-Iran military ties
-
5
Korea, Japan finance chiefs vow to tame rampant FX market volatility
-
6
Korean won weakens amid heightened uncertainty
-
7
Seoul says will cut power to porn festival planned on Han River
-
8
Sewol victims commemorated on tragedy's 10th anniversary
-
9
K-pop group's manager dismissed for setting up spycam in theater dressing room
-
10
Chanel, Louis Vuitton see muted growth in Korea
-
N. Korea sends leaflets via Hangang River for 1st time
A pack of propaganda leaflets sent from North Korea via the Hangang River were found Tuesday, marking the first time such leaflets had been sent via the waterway, the South Korean military said Wednesday.According to the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the leaflets distorted the 63rd anniversary of the Korean War Armistice agreement -- which fell on Wednesday -- claiming it as the day the communist nation achieved victory against the united forces of the U.N. and the South Korean military. They also said
July 27, 2016
-
N. Korea experts support unification tax: poll
A majority of South Korean experts on inter-Korean ties believe the introduction of a "unification tax" is necessary to prepare for a unified Korea, a survey showed Wednesday.They agreed that a reunification itself is in the interest of South Korea, but they were divided on an ideal format, according to the Hyundai Research Institute.The think tank, affiliated with Hyundai Group, conducted the poll on 93 pundits from July 11-19. The margin of error is plus or minus 3.08 percentage points at a 95
July 27, 2016
-
S. Korea says sanctions most effective tool to rein in N. Korea's nuclear program
Imposing sanctions will be the most effective way to rein in North Korea's nuclear ambitions as decades of inter-Korean talks failed to induce any positive changes in the reclusive country, South Korea's unification ministry said Wednesday. South Korea reiterated its firm stance toward the North in response to North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho's remarks made a day earlier at a press meeting held on the sidelines of the ASEAN Regional Forum in the Laotian capital. At the meeting Ri said,
July 27, 2016
-
N. Korea importing bear bile from China for party officials: report
North Korea has been importing a large amount of bear bile, used in traditional Asian remedies, from China for key officials of the ruling Workers' Party, a media report said Wednesday, citing testimonies by defectors.A defector, who was not named, told Radio Free Asia that there is a flow of bear gallbladders into North Korea from China.The source said transactions generally take place in China's border city of Suifenhe in Heilongjiang Province.RFA said that gallbladder trade is able to be cond
July 27, 2016
-
N. Korea sends propaganda leaflets via Han River
South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said Wednesday they found strongly worded North Korean leaflets in the Han River, the first distribution of such propaganda materials via a waterway. On July 22, the Korean military collected scores of tightly air-filled vinyl bags carrying North Korean leaflets which contained threats of the North's possible attacks on the South using the intermediate-range Musudan ballistic missile, a spokesman for Seoul's JCS said in a press briefing. "North Korea intention
July 27, 2016
-
N. Korea fired 31 ballistic missiles in past 5 years
North Korea has launched a total of 31 ballistic missiles in the past five years under Kim Jong-un, twice the number of missiles test-fired when his late father was in power, the defense ministry here said Wednesday.North Korea has test-fired 16 short-range Scuds with a range of 300 to 1,000 kilometers, six mid-range Rodongs that can fly 1300-1500 km, six intermediate-range Musudans with a range of 3,500-4,000 km and three submarine-launched ballistic missiles since late 2011. The incumbent lead
July 27, 2016
-
S. Korea blocks N. Korea's participation in martial arts competition: report
The South Korean government has blocked North Korea's participation in a martial arts competition here in September, after Pyongyang accepted an invitation, a Washington-based news media report said Wednesday.According to Voice of America, the organizers of World Martial Arts Masterships asked George Vitale, the spokesman of the North Korea-led International Taekwondo Federation, to check whether North Korean taekwondo practitioners are willing to participate in its inaugural event in Cheongju,
July 27, 2016
-
S. Korean deputy national security adviser in U.S. for talks about pressuring N. Korea
South Korea's deputy national security adviser, Cho Tae-yong, arrived in Washington on Tuesday for talks with U.S. officials about how better to pressure North Korea over its nuclear and missile programs.Cho is scheduled to meet with Deputy Secretary of State Tony Blinken on Wednesday for the third round of high-level strategic talks on North Korea that were established under an agreement President Park Geun-hye reached with U.S. President Barack Obama at their summit in October."Having the same
July 27, 2016
-
U.S. urges N. Korea to refrain from destabilizing rhetoric
The United States urged North Korea on Tuesday to refrain from destabilizing rhetoric and actions after Pyongyang's top diplomat threatened the country could conduct yet another nuclear test depending on the "U.S.' attitude."North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho made the remark to reporters in Laos on the sidelines of a regional security forum, arguing that what he calls the U.S. "hostile policy" toward the North is increasingly becoming severe.Ri also said the "biggest hostile act" by the U.
July 27, 2016
-
Additional nuke test depends 'entirely' on Washington: N.K.'s top diplomat
North Korea's top diplomat blamed the United States Tuesday for dashing hopes for denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula, saying that whether or not there will be additional nuclear tests depends "entirely" on Washington's attitude.In a hastily-arranged press meeting after attending a regional security gathering held in the Laotian capital, North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho also demanded U.S. troops pull out of South Korea altogether."It is the U.S.' hostile policy that is making the cu
July 27, 2016
-
N.K. has no plans for press conference after ARF, decision remains up to Ri: N.K. official
A North Korean official said Tuesday that the North has no plans at the moment to hold an official press conference on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific countries' meetings underway in Laos, but it could have a chance to let its position be known before the end of the gathering.Asked if there is a press conference, the official accompanying North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho told a group of reporters, "We don't have enough time for it, but the decision is up to the minister.""I don't know
July 26, 2016
-
Unification minister says now is not the time for dialogue with Pyongyang
South Korea's unification minister said Tuesday now is not the right time to hold talks with North Korea as Pyongyang continues to ramp up its saber-rattling over Seoul's decision to deploy an advanced U.S. anti-missile defense system in the country. On July 19, a week after it warned of "physical" counter-actions against the decision by Seoul and Washington to deploy the Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense system in South Korea by 2017, Pyongyang test-fired three ballistic missiles and made cle
July 26, 2016
-
Former N. Korean leader Kim Jong-il's widow purged: RFA
Former North Korean leader Kim Jong-il's widow appears to have been purged by the Kim Jong-un regime, the U.S.-based Radio Free Asia said Tuesday, citing multiple sources familiar with the reclusive country.A Chinese businessman, fresh from his recent visit to Pyongyang, told the RFA that Kim Ok, 52, the fourth wife of the deceased leader, was sent to a political prison camp within a year of her step-son taking power. The incumbent leader inherited the country following the sudden death of his f
July 26, 2016
-
Regional security forum to kick off with NK nuke likely to dominate agenda
Top diplomats from nearly 30 Asia-Pacific countries and regional powers will meet Tuesday to discuss regional security issues such as North Korea's nuclear weapons program. The ASEAN Regional Forum, the largest regional security gathering, will be attended by foreign ministers from the 10 members of the Association of Northeast Asian Nations and top officials from other parts of Asia, North America, Europe and Oceania.The ARF is a rare international occasion attended by the North along with all
July 26, 2016
-
N. Korea's Air Koryo seems to be operating regular Pyongyang-Jinan route: VOA
North Korea's national carrier Air Koryo appears to have opened a regular flight service between Pyongyang and China's eastern city of Jinan for what seemed to be the transport of Chinese tourists, a Washington-based news media report said Tuesday.According to Voice of America, the North Korean flag carrier recently launched regular flights between the two cities twice a week, raising speculations the North Korean jet may be transporting Chinese tourists to the reclusive country.VOA said that Ai
July 26, 2016
-
Seoul to set up N. Korean human rights foundation
South Korea will establish a foundation in September to better study human rights situations in North Korea and develop related policies, the unification ministry said Monday.The government plans to inject about 25 billion won ($22 million) annually into the 50-member foundation under the North Korean Human Rights Act, which is set to take effect Sept. 4 and designed to improve human rights abuses in the reclusive country, according to the ministry in charge of Seoul's Pyongyang policy.A group o
July 25, 2016
-
U.N. Security Council unlikely to issue statement condemning N.K. missile launches
The U.N. Security Council appears unlikely to issue a statement condemning North Korea's latest ballistic missile launches, spurring speculation that China may be uncooperative in anger over a decision to deploy the THAAD missile defense system in South Korea.Right after the North launched three ballistic missiles last Tuesday, the U.S. government said it will "raise our concerns at the U.N. to bolster international resolve in holding the DPRK accountable for these provocative actions." The DPRK
July 25, 2016
-
[Herald Interview] Activist-turned-scholar urges action on N.K. abductees
On April 29, 1992, South Korea’s top intelligence agency arrested dozens of activists for plotting to overthrow the government by building underground socialist organizations. The authorities described the groups as the biggest antistate entity ever established in the country’s modern history. One of those arrested was Baik Tae-ung, who served as leader of the South Korean Socialist Coalition of Workers or “Sanomaeng” in Korean. Despite the plea that he was exercising the right to political free
July 22, 2016
-
N. Korea's Air Koryo airplane makes emergency landing in China due
An airplane of North Korea's flag carrier Air Koryo made an emergency landing in the Chinese city of Shenyang on Friday due to fire, a Chinese report said.The flight en route from Pyongyang to Beijing "made a forced landing in China's northeastern city of Shenyang because the plane caught fire," said Xinhua News Agency, citing a passenger on board.Referring to flight tracking websites, Japan's Kyodo News later added that the Tupolev Tu-204 plane "diverted shortly after crossing over the border b
July 22, 2016
-
Gov't bolsters countermeasures to deter N.K. cyberattacks
South Korea is beefing up its governmentwide countermeasures to prevent possible cyberattacks by North Korea, officials said Friday.The Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning said the number of cyberattacks by North Korea more than doubled in the first half of this year. The cyberattacks "are judged as a part of North Korean provocations to trigger public anxiety" in South Korea, the ministry said. Last month, South Korean police said North Korea hacked into more than 140,000 computers at
July 22, 2016