Most Popular
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Exports to US reach all-time high, widen gap with China
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Trump rekindles criticism: US forces defending 'wealthy' S. Korea 'free of charge'
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[Music in drama] Rekindle a love that slipped through your fingers
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S. Korea discussed possible participation in AUKUS Pillar 2 with Australia: defense minister
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Opposition-led Assembly unilaterally passes bill to probe Marine's death
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[New faces of Assembly] Architect behind ‘audacious initiative’ believes in denuclearized North Korea
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Seoul Metro to seek legal action against malicious complaints
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Illit, mired in controversy, remains on Billboard charts for 5th week
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On May Day, labor unions blast Yoon's foreign nanny proposal
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Golden chance to liquidate babies’ gold rings?
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N. Korea unable to import luxury Swiss watches: report
North Korea has been unable to import luxury watches from Switzerland as the European country enforced tough sanctions on the reclusive country for its nuclear and long-range missile program, a U.S.-based media report said Wednesday.According to Radio Free Asia, North Korea's Swiss watch imports fell to zero in May, in sharp contrast to the monthly average of 20 watches from January through April this year. It said such a development will seriously affect leader Kim Jong-un's so-called "gift pol
June 22, 2016
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N. Korean envoy tight-lipped on mid-range missile tests
A North Korean nuclear envoy was tight-lipped on Wednesday when asked about the North's test launch of two intermediate-range ballistic missiles earlier in the day. South Korean defense officials said North Korea test-fired two mid-range ballistic missiles into the East Sea in the North's latest violation of U.N. Security Council resolutions that ban Pyongyang from using ballistic missile technology. The Wednesday tests come as North Korea sent its nuclear envoy, Choe Son-hui, deputy director fo
June 22, 2016
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N. Korea fires off 2 Musudan IRBM missiles
North Korea launched what appeared to be two Musudan intermediate-range ballistic missiles (IRBMs) from its east coast early Wednesday morning, but the first test-firing is assumed to have been unsuccessful, the Joint Chiefs of Staff said.At around 5:58 a.m., North Korea fired off what is presumed to be a Musudan missile from near Wonsan along the east coast, but the launch seems to have ended in failure, the JCS said, providing no further details. (Yonhap)About two hours later at 8:05 a.m., th
June 22, 2016
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N. Korea botches fifth Musudan missile test-launch
North Korea launched what appeared to be a Musudan intermediate-range ballistic missile from its east coast early Wednesday morning, but the launch again ended in failure, the Joint Chiefs of Staff said."The North launched one missile presumed to be Musudan from areas near Wonsan at around 5:58 a.m., but it is assumed to be unsuccessful," the JCS said in a brief release. (Yonhap)The latest launch failure marks the fifth in the North's back-to-back test launches of the mid-range Musudan. On April
June 22, 2016
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Obama extends executive orders imposing sanctions on N. Korea
U.S. President Barack Obama on Tuesday extended executive orders imposing sanctions on North Korea, saying the communist nation poses an "unusual and extraordinary threat" to the U.S.Obama notified Congress of the continuation of North Korea's designation as a "national emergency," which serves as the basis for a series of executive orders calling for sanctions on Pyongyang for provocations, such as its fourth nuclear test in January.By law, such national emergencies should be extended every yea
June 22, 2016
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U.S. urges N. Korea to refrain from missile test
The United States urged North Korea on Tuesday to refrain from another missile test after South Korea warned that the communist nation appears to be preparing to test its Musudan intermediate-range ballistic missile after four successive failures."We, of course, would have concerns if the North Koreans were to conduct another missile test. It would be another violation of U.N. resolutions. It would be another provocative action," Pentagon press secretary Peter Cook said at a regular press briefi
June 22, 2016
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N. Korean defectors tallied at 1,103 worldwide: U.N.
The U.N. refugee agency said in an annual report that there were 1,103 North Korean defectors living as refugees around the world in 2015, down 1,282 from the year before.An additional 230 are currently pending decision on their asylum applications, according to the Global Trend 2015 report by the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, while a total of 74 are being assisted by the UNHCR.The report did not specify the distribution of defectors per country. As the figure does not include defectors w
June 21, 2016
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Dispute boils over court hearing on defectors
About two months after fleeing their oppressive homeland, 12 former workers of a North Korean restaurant in China on Tuesday faced a legal debate over the legitimacy of their stay here under state protection. The Seoul Central District Court opened a hearing to review a request by the Lawyers for a Democratic Society, better known as Minbyun, to determine whether the 12 had defected on their own free will and thus whether the government’s current holding of them is lawful. The liberal lawyers’ a
June 21, 2016
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S. Korean envoy rules out bilateral meeting with N. Korea in Beijing
A South Korean nuclear envoy said Tuesday he has "no plans" to hold a bilateral meeting with his North Korean counterpart on the sidelines of a regional security forum in Beijing this week. The annual Northeast Asia Cooperation Dialogue, which will begin its two-day run from Wednesday, brings together nuclear envoys from six nations involved in long-stalled talks on North Korea's nuclear weapons program. Among those attending the forum are Choe Son-hui, deputy director for North American affairs
June 21, 2016
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N. Korea deploys ballistic missile to east coast: source
North Korea has deployed an intermediate-range ballistic missile to its east coast although there are no signs it's ready for launch, a South Korean government source said Tuesday. (Yonhap)"We have detected signs that the North has deployed what appears to be a Musudan missile," the source said on the condition of anonymity.A South Korean military official said the military is closely watching the situation.Earlier, Japan's Kyodo news agency reported the North is preparing to fire a missile. (Yo
June 21, 2016
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Seoul's spy agency to put 13 N.K. restaurant workers under its protection
South Korea's spy agency has decided not to send a group of 13 North Korean restaurant workers to a state-run resettlement facility as it plans to hold them under its protection, government officials said Tuesday.The National Intelligence Service has notified Seoul's unification ministry that it will put the group of 13 North Koreans who defected to Seoul en masse in April under its protection for their safety."The NIS has notified the government that its decision was made for their security, gi
June 21, 2016
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U.S. rejects N. Korea's threat over detainees
The United States on Monday rejected North Korea's threat to keep detaining two American citizens unless a former detainee stops criticizing Pyongyang, saying the freedom of speech is guaranteed in the U.S. and urging Pyongyang to immediately free detainees.The North's official Korean Central News Agency issued the threat earlier in the day, claiming that Kenneth Bae, a Korean-American missionary who spent two years at a North Korean labor camp, "keeps spouting invectives against the DPRK."After
June 21, 2016
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N.K. warns against Seoul-UNC crackdown in neutral waters
North Korea on Monday lambasted the South’s joint crackdown with the U.N. Command on Chinese boats illegally fishing in neutral waters, threatening another provocation similar to the 2002 scuffle in the West Sea. In its first reaction to the operation, Pyongyang’s state media condemned it as a “military provocation,” saying it will never accept such a “reckless maritime intrusion.” Calling it a “vicious, evil plot,” the official Korean Central News Agency said that the campaign is aimed at escal
June 20, 2016
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Seoul court to hold hearing on N.K. defectors
A local court will hold an unprecedented hearing on Tuesday over the legality of South Korea's holding of 12 North Korean defectors that Pyongyang claims have been abducted by the Seoul government.The Seoul Central District Court will open the hearing in the afternoon in line with a request by an association of progressive lawyers to determine whether the defectors are being legitimately held by the South Korean government.The North Korean women, who worked at a Pyongyang-run restaurant in China
June 20, 2016
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N. Korean traders going all out to receive permits: report
North Korean trading companies are making all-out efforts to get trade permits so they can earn as much foreign currency as possible, a media outlet reported Monday, citing sources in the reclusive country.According to the Washington-based Radio Free Asia, the North's state-run trading firms, as well as state agencies, are competing to broaden their business boundaries as a way to export minerals and herbal plants. 123rfEarlier this year, the United Nations slapped its toughest-ever sanctions ag
June 20, 2016
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N. Korea's nuclear envoy arrives in Beijing for security forum
A North Korean nuclear envoy arrived in Beijing on Monday to attend an annual security conference that brings together government officials and scholars from all six nations involved in the long-stalled negotiations about the North's nuclear weapons program.Choe Son-hui, deputy director for North American affairs at North Korea's foreign ministry, did not make any remarks upon her arrival at the Beijing airport. Choe is scheduled to attend the Northeast Asia Cooperation Dialogue that will start
June 20, 2016
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Korea rebukes N.K. for threatening nuclear attacks
South Korea on Monday condemned North Korea for threatening to carry out nuclear attacks against U.S. military assets in the South, saying that the latest provocation clearly proves that Pyongyang's recent dialogue offer was just a bogus peace initiative.North Korea's National Defense Commission said that its military has long put U.S. bases in South Korea in the range of its precision strike, warning Washington that it has the capacity to carry out nuclear strikes.Seoul's unification ministry s
June 20, 2016
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N.K. slams S. Korea's crackdown on China's illegal fishing
North Korea on Monday slammed South Korea for its operation with the United Nations Command to repel Chinese fishing boats operating illegally in neutral waters between the two Koreas, calling the move a "military provocation."This marks the North's first official reaction to South Korea and the UNC's joint crackdown on Chinese fishing vessels operating in the neutral waters of the Han River's estuary. The only vessels allowed to operate in the area are those manned by military police officers.S
June 20, 2016
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Chinese official's possible visit to N.K. wouldn't improve bilateral ties: expert
Strained ties between North Korea and China would not undergo a turnaround even if Beijing sends a high-ranking official to Pyongyang at a key anniversary next month, an expert at Seoul's think tank said Sunday.North Korea and China will mark the 55th anniversary of the signing of a military treaty on July 11 amid the possibility that Beijing may send a high-ranking official to Pyongyang in return for the latest visit by the North's party official Ri Su-yong to China.Chinese President Xi Jinping
June 19, 2016
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Incheon mayor pledges to institute inter-Korean fish sale system
Incheon Mayor Yoo Jeong-bok on Sunday pledged to push for an inter-Korean fish sale system under which South Korean fishermen pay for fish from their North Korean counterparts, and sell them here and elsewhere.The move came as South Korean fishermen have continuously suffered from income losses due to Chinese fishermen illegally operating in South Korean waters near the tense inter-Korean maritime boundary.Yoo made the pledge as he met with some 30 fishermen during his visit to the border island
June 19, 2016