Most Popular
-
1
Debate rages over ‘overly fatty’ samgyeopsal
-
2
40 flights canceled on Jeju Island due to bad weather
-
3
[Weekender] Korean psyche untangled: Musok
-
4
N. Korea slams US, other countries for seeking alternative to UN sanctions monitoring panel
-
5
Pandemic left Korea more depressed than before: report
-
6
Gov't appears to shelve punitive measures against mass walkout by doctors
-
7
[Eye Interview] 'If you live to 100, you might as well be happy,' says 88-year-old bestselling essayist
-
8
From fake prostitution ring to nonexistent robber, prank calls hamper police
-
9
Missing S. Korean traveler in Paris found safe after 2 weeks
-
10
S. Korea, China, Japan in talks to hold trilateral summit May 26-27: official
-
Both Koreas' militaries return to peacetime mode
Militaries on both sides of the Korean border have relaxed their defense postures to peacetime levels following a landmark deal that defused tensions between the sides, military officials said Sunday. South and North Korea raised their militaries' alert levels after tension flared up over a land mine explosion and ensuing artillery exchange earlier this month. On Tuesday, the two sides struck a breakthrough agreement to end the hostilities and expand cross-border ties. "The highest alert leve
Aug. 30, 2015
-
N. Korea's Kim marks death anniversary of Unification Church founder
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has sent a message of condolence to the family members of Unification Church founder Moon Sun-myung on the third anniversary of his death, state media reported Sunday. "On the occasion of the third anniversary of (the) death of Mr. Moon Sun Myung, former president of the World Peace Federation, I express profound sorrow to President Han Hak Ja and bereaved family members," Kim said in the message, according to an English dispatch by the North's Korean Central New
Aug. 30, 2015
-
N. Korea agrees to hold Red Cross talks on Sept. 7
North Korea has accepted the South Korean Red Cross' offer to hold working-level talks on Sept. 7 to discuss the issues of reunions for families separated by the Korean War, the Unification Ministry here said Saturday. On Friday, the Korean Red Cross proposed that the two sides meet at its "House of Peace" in the village of Panmunjom inside the Demilitarized Zone that divides the Koreas. The ministry said it received a letter from the North through a contact channel in Panmunjom around 1 p.m
Aug. 30, 2015
-
S. Korea's Red Cross proposes talks with North on Sept. 7 for family reunions
South Korea's Red Cross on Friday proposed holding working-level talks with its North Korean counterpart on Sept. 7 to discuss the issue of reunions for families separated by the Korean War, a government official said.The Korean Red Cross proposed the two sides meet at its "House of Peace" in the village of Panmunjom inside the Demilitarized Zone that divides the Koreas, according to Unification Ministry spokesman Jeong Joon-hee.The South made the offer through a contact channel in Panmunjom at
Aug. 28, 2015
-
N. Korea's Kim fires party officials
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has dismissed some members of the ruling party's central military commission, state media reported Friday.The dismissals took place at an enlarged meeting of the Central Military Commission of the Workers' Party of Korea, according to the North's Korean Central News Agency. It did not say when the meeting was held, but the communist nation is known to often report events a day after they take place.The meeting "dismissed some members of the WPK Central Military Co
Aug. 28, 2015
-
China respects N. Korean military's non-attendance at parade
China's Defense Ministry has said it respects the decision by North Korea not to send its military delegation to next week's huge military parade marking the end of World War II.North Korea, the only treaty ally of China, will send a top official, Choe Ryong-hae, to the Sept. 3 military parade, but no military delegation from the North will take part, according to Chinese officials. Asked about the non-attendance of the North Korean military delegation at the event, China's Defense Ministry spok
Aug. 28, 2015
-
Red Cross to confirm surviving members of separated families
The South Korean Red Cross is set to launch a survey of surviving members of the separated families soon to prepare for the reunions to be held in mid-October.The organization will set up some 100 telephones and begin the confirmation process of the applicants’ current status and whereabouts after consultation with the Unification Ministry, a Red Cross official told The Korea Herald.Since 1988, a total of 129,698 people have registered with the Seoul government as having their relatives in the N
Aug. 27, 2015
-
Blue House cautious on N.K. ties
Despite tension abating on the Korean peninsula after breakthrough talks earlier in the week, Cheong Wa Dae said Thursday it would cautiously deal with North Korea over recent agreements on bilateral cooperation, citing Pyongyang’s volatility.Presidential spokesman Min Kyung-wook told reporters that the negotiation between the two Koreas is not over, but has just begun, noting that there is a wide consensus among the officials that Seoul should first watch to see whether Pyongyang keeps its end
Aug. 27, 2015
-
N. Korea committed to improving ties with South: N.K. official
A senior North Korean official said Thursday his country will work "actively" to improve relations with South Korea based on the spirit of a recent landmark agreement between the two sides.Kim Yang-gon, Pyongyang's top official handling inter-Korean ties, also called on the two sides to move in a constructive direction toward the reunification of the Korean Peninsula."Based on the spirit of the urgent high-level contact between the North and South, we will work actively to improve North-South re
Aug. 27, 2015
-
S. Korea checking reports of N. Korea's flood damage
South Korea is not yet considering any humanitarian aid for North Korea, which was reportedly hit by a severe flood in its northeastern region, an official said Thursday.Pyongyang's state media said more than 40 people were killed and many houses destroyed in the border town of Rason, home to a special economic zone, during last weekend's heavy rain caused by Typhoon Goni.The South's Korea Meteorological Administration and other relevant authorities are trying to confirm the damage in the secret
Aug. 27, 2015
-
Inter-Korean family reunion expected in October
South Korea is still reviewing whether to propose a date for talks on a family reunion to North Korea or wait for Pyongyang's offer, a government official said Thursday."We are reviewing the timing and related content," the Unification Ministry official said. A priority is to implement the agreement reached at the high-level negotiations between the two Koreas earlier this week, he added.The two sides agreed to hold a Red Cross working-level meeting in early September to arrange the reunion of f
Aug. 27, 2015
-
S. Korean Red Cross expects family reunions around mid-October
Reunions of families on either side of the Korean Peninsula separated by the Korean War could be held around mid-October, a South Korean Red Cross official said Thursday.In a breakthrough agreement following intensive talks earlier this week, the two Koreas said they’d hold Red Cross talks early September to arrange for family reunions.“Considering the amount of time it takes from the inter-Korean Red Cross meetings to the actual reunions, I estimate the family meetings to take place around mid-
Aug. 26, 2015
-
40 people killed, 11,000 affected in N. Korean floods
Torrential rains soaked the northern part of North Korea, leaving at least 40 people dead and affecting about 11,000 people over the weekend, the International Federation of the Red Cross (IFRC) said Wednesday.Caused by Typhoon Goni, the heavy rains particularly hit the border town of Rason, where a special economic zone is located and borders with China and Russia, said Hler Gudjonsson, a spokesman for the Red Cross in Beijing, in a statement.“Although the typhoon did not make landfall in the D
Aug. 26, 2015
-
Seoul eases military alert as tension abates
By Shin Hyon-heeSouth Korea has lifted its highest-level military readiness posture as more signs were detected of frontline North Korean forces cranking back into their bases in the wake of cross-border dialogue, military officials here said Wednesday. The decision coincides with the North’s ongoing reinstatement of submarines, air cushion vehicles, 76.2-milimeter artillery guns and other firearms and gunners. Seoul, in turn, ceased its anti-Pyongyang loudspeaker broadcasts along the Military D
Aug. 26, 2015
-
Allies’ foreign ministers to meet over N.K. provocations
South Korean Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se will hold talks with his U.S. counterpart John Kerry to discuss a range of issues, including North Korea’s recent provocations and the bilateral summit slated for October, during his visit to the U.S. from Saturday to next Monday.Seoul’s Foreign Ministry said Wednesday that the bilateral meeting will be held on the sidelines of a meeting of foreign ministers over Arctic-related issues, called “Global Leadership in the Arctic: Cooperation, Innovation, En
Aug. 26, 2015
-
S. Korea open to talks with N. Korea on sanctions
South Korea Wednesday left open the possibility of holding further talks with North Korea to discuss the lifting of sanctions on Pyongyang amid easing tensions between the two sides.Following weeks of military standoffs, the two Koreas struck a deal Tuesday to end the hostilities and work for better ties through a series of measures, including increased civilian exchanges between the sides. Jeong Joon-hee, spokesman of the Unification Ministry (Yonhap)Nearly all inter-Korean projects have been
Aug. 26, 2015
-
China believes N. Korea's denuclearization possible: Chinese envoy
China believes that North Korea's denuclearization is possible through resuming the now-suspended six-party talks, China's top envoy to South Korea said Wednesday.The remarks were made during a closed-door meeting between Amb. Qiu Guohong and Rep. Moon Jae-in, chairman of the main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy, in Seoul, said the party's spokesman Kim Sung-soo.Guohong said that "China believes that quickly resuming the six-party talks will solve the North Korean nuclear issue an
Aug. 26, 2015
-
U.S. declines comment on N. Korea's expression of regret in agreement with S. Korea
The United States declined comment Tuesday on whether North Korea's expression of regret in a peace agreement with South Korea can be seen as an apology for its planting of landmines that maimed two South Korean soldiers."What's important is that this was first and foremost an agreement between North and South and that President Park (Geun-hye) found acceptable the expression made by the North," State Department spokesman John Kirby said at a regular press briefing."I don't think it would be app
Aug. 26, 2015
-
Koreas set out to defuse military tension
Following a hard-fought breakthrough, the two Koreas began taking steps Tuesday to defuse tension on the peninsula, as the South halted anti-Pyongyang broadcasts along the border as of midday and the North lifted its “quasi-state of war” and was seen reinstating some frontline military forces. The broadcasts and wartime declaration came to an end at noon, hours after the two sides clinched a six-point agreement in which Pyongyang displayed regret over a recent land mine blasts in the Demilitariz
Aug. 25, 2015
-
[Newsmaker] Loudspeakers mightier than the sword
Though it came to a close just 15 days after breaking an 11-year hiatus, South Korea’s loudspeaker broadcast along the heavily fortified border proved to be formidable enough to rush a defiant Kim Jong-un regime to the negotiating table and extract concessions. The equipment became idle as of noon Tuesday in line with the two Koreas’ agreement earlier in the day. Pyongyang, for its part, expressed regret over a land mine explosion on Aug. 4 that nearly maimed the legs of two South Korean soldier
Aug. 25, 2015