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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[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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On May Day, labor unions blast Yoon's foreign nanny proposal
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Illit, mired in controversy, remains on Billboard charts for 5th week
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Opposition-led Assembly unilaterally passes bill to probe Marine's death
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[KH Explains] Will alternative trading platform shake up Korean stock market?
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N. Korea: Detained American smuggled in propaganda
North Korea delivered its most in-depth account yet of the case against a Korean-American sentenced to 15 years' hard labor, accusing him late Thursday of smuggling in inflammatory literature and trying to establish a base for anti-Pyongyang activities at a border city hotel.Still, the long list of allegations included no statement from Kenneth Bae, other than claims that he confessed and didn't want an attorney present during his sentencing last week for what Pyongyang called hostile acts again
May 10, 2013
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U.S. nuke envoy to visit S. Korea next week: source
The U.S. envoy on the North Korean nuclear program will visit South Korea next week as part of his Asian tour, a diplomatic source here said Thursday, as the leaders of Seoul and Washington vowed no concessions to Pyongyang after months of simmering tensions.U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Policy Glyn Davies plans to arrive in Seoul on May 13 for a three-day stay as part of his trip to Asia which also includes China and Japan, the source said, requesting anonymity.During the visit, D
May 9, 2013
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International pressure deepens N.K.’s isolation
Growing international unity against North Korea’s nuclear adventurism is putting the reclusive state into deeper isolation, which could doom any chances of economic reform and push it to explore arms trading and other illicit means for survival.Already under a host of economic sanctions for its nuclear and missile tests, Pyongyang might not be seriously susceptible to additional pressure, but growing signs of its sole patron China losing patience could ring alarm bells for the North, observers s
May 9, 2013
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Chinese bank’s severed ties with N.K. shows Beijing’s frustration
The Bank of China’s recent cutoff of ties with North Korea’s main foreign exchange bank appears to be the latest sign of Beijing’s patience wearing thin on the back of a string of nuclear threats and provocations by its rebellious ally. The U.S. and South Korea welcomed China’s first publicly pronounced action which they expect to have considerable impact on curbing the North’s military ambition. The state-run institution, one of the biggest in China, said Tuesday it has suspended transactions w
May 9, 2013
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U.N. names 3 experts to verify N.K. rights abuses
The U.N. Human Rights Council on Tuesday appointed three experts from Indonesia, Australia and Serbia to conduct a probe into North Korea’s human rights violations. U.N. Special Rapporteur Marzuki Darusman of Indonesia will lead the Commission of Inquiry along with Michael Kirby, a retired Supreme Court justice from Australia, and Sonja Biserko, founder and president of the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Serbia. The 47-nation body in March approved its first-ever formal inquiry mechanism
May 8, 2013
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Seoul hails China’s suspension of N. Korean foreign exchange bank
China’s decision to end financial dealings with a key North Korean foreign exchange bank is a “significant” step that may severely punish North Korea for its internationally condemned nuclear ambitions, a Seoul official said Wednesday.Bank of China Ltd has shut down the account of North Korea’s Foreign Trade Bank, which was hit with U.S. sanctions in March after Washington accused it of helping finance Pyongyang’s nuclear weapons program.The North’s state-run bank was told its transactions had b
May 8, 2013
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Rodman urges N.Korean friend to free American
Basketball hall-of-famer Dennis Rodman, who forged an unlikely friendship with North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un on a recent trip, appealed Tuesday for the freedom of an American sentenced to 15 years."I'm calling on the Supreme Leader of North Korea or as I call him 'Kim', to do me a solid and cut Kenneth Bae loose," Rodman tweeted.Bae, whose Korean name is Pae Jun-Ho, was sentenced last week to 15 years of hard labor on charges that he tried to topple the North Korean regime. The Korean-American
May 8, 2013
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Top China bank shuts key N. Korea account
BEIJING (AFP) - The state-owned Bank of China has shut the account of a North Korean bank accused by the United States of supporting the North's nuclear programme, Dow Jones Newswires said Tuesday.The closure would be the first openly acknowledged move by an institution in China -- the North's key backer -- against North Korean interests in the current stand-off, which escalated in February with Pyongyang's third atomic test.But the details of the move were not revealed, and an analyst warned it
May 7, 2013
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U.N. names 3 experts to prove rights abuse in N.K.
The U.N. Human Rights Council on Tuesday appointed three experts from Indonesia, Australia and Serbia to conduct a probe into North Korea’s human rights violations. U.N. Special Rapporteur Marzuki Darusman of Indonesia will lead the Commission of Inquiry along with Michael Kirby, a retired Supreme Court justice from Australia, and Sonja Biserko, founder and president of the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Serbia. The 47-nation body in March approved its first-ever formal inquiry mechanism
May 7, 2013
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Top China bank shuts key N. Korea account: Dow Jones
The state-owned Bank of China has shut the account of a North Korean bank the US accuses of backing Pyongyang's nuclear program, Dow Jones said Tuesday, citing a statement from the Chinese financial institution.Beijing is Pyongyang's key backer and it would be the first openly acknowledged move by a Chinese institution against North Korean interests in the current stand-off, which escalated in February with Pyongyang's third atomic test."The Foreign Trade Bank of North Korea, the country's main
May 7, 2013
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Seoul to extend low-interest loans to Gaeseong firms
South Korea said Tuesday that it will give 63 billion won ($57.6 million) worth of low-interest loans to companies that pulled out of the inter-Korean industrial complex, as part of its efforts to limit fallouts to the business sector.The Ministry of Unification said the money will come from a special economic cooperation fund. Interest has been set at just 2 percent, which is lower than the key rate of 2.75 percent set by the Bank of Korea.“This is a considerable favor to companies,” a ministry
May 7, 2013
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N. Korea gets info on U.S. aircraft carrier on internet
North Korea appears to have been informed of the deployment of a nuclear-powered U.S. aircraft carrier to the South, through an internet posting a local firm registered to hire temporary drivers to transport U.S. sailors, the Defense Ministry said Tuesday.On Sunday, Pyongyang berated Washington for deploying the 97,000-ton USS Nimitz aircraft carrier around Friday shortly after the end of the allied military exercise, which it criticized as a rehearsal of a nuclear war of incursion.The North’s s
May 7, 2013
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N.K. lifts top combat posture; seen pulling out mid-range missiles
North Korea appears to have lifted its highest combat alert and pulled out two mid-range missiles from the east coast in a move that defused tension after weeks of warlike threats, reports said Tuesday. The Supreme Command of the North Korean People’s Army appears to have removed the No. 1 combat-ready posture around April 30, an anonymous senior government official was quoted as saying by Yonhap News. “We are not fully able to locate the two Musudan missiles that have been moved to somewhere e
May 7, 2013
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Not friends, but not quite foes either
A movie about three North Korean spies dispatched to South Korea on a covert mission is slated for opening in June. Titled “Eunmilhagae, Widaehagae (Discreetly, Greatly),” it is a story about elite agents from the hermit kingdom and people of the South coming to understand one another.“I hope viewers will be moved by the human side of the movie, like how three North Koreans connect with South Koreans,” said Park Ki-woong, who played one of the North Korean spies in the movie. The North Korean s
May 7, 2013
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N.K. says it's poised to strike back against S. Korea-U.S. joint drills
North Korea's military warned Tuesday that it would mercilessly avenge any breach of its territorial sovereignty by South Korea or the United States during the ongoing anti-submarine drills in the Yellow Sea.The Southwestern Front Command of the Korean People's Army said it has directed its troops to immediately strike back in case even a single shell falls in its territorial waters, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said.The anti-submarine drill that began Sunday and runs through Friday com
May 7, 2013
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Park vows to make N. Korea 'pay' if it attacks S. Korea
President Park Geun-hye warned Monday North Korea will "pay" if the communist nation launches attacks like its sinking of a warship and shelling of a border island in 2010.Park made the remark during an interview with CBS television broadcast Monday."Yes, we will make them pay," Park said in response to whether South Korea will respond militarily if North Korea launches small-scale attacks like the ones in 2010 that claimed the lives of 50 South Koreans.Park also called for an end to rewarding N
May 7, 2013
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N. Korea removes missiles from launch site: U.S. officials
North Korea has moved two missiles from launch sites on the country's eastern coast, U.S. officials said Monday, signaling lowered tensions following worries Pyongyang was ready to test-fire the weapons.The Musudan missiles had been ready to launch at any moment, but "they moved them," a U.S. defense official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told AFP.North Korea's move meant there was no longer an imminent threat of a launch, and Pyongyang would have to make preparations before returning to
May 7, 2013
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South Korea sharply reduces power supply to Gaeseong
South Korea has not disconnected the power to Gaeseong but reduced supplies to a “minimum level” in line with the suspension of the joint industrial park, officials said Monday. The Korea Electric Power Corp. had transmitted 30 to 50 megawatts of electricity to a 100-megawatt plant inside the district via a substation in Paju, Gyeonggi Province. The state-run utility was forecast to turn off the power and linked water supplies after the last seven South Koreans came home last Friday, effectively
May 6, 2013
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Koreas brace for prolonged deadlock over Gaeseong
The stalemate over the suspended industrial park in Gaeseong is expected to continue for some time as neither Seoul nor Pyongyang appears likely to make the first concession.While leaving open chances of dialogue, the Seoul government has refused to back down given that a soft stance could hamper its efforts to rein in an increasingly provocative North Korea.For Pyongyang, appearing weak in the face of South Korean pressure could pose a challenge to its young leader Kim Jong-un, who is striving
May 5, 2013
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North Korea rules out political bargaining over jailed American
North Korea said Sunday it would not invite any leading U.S. figure to seek the release of a jailed American and he would not become a “bargaining chip” in any political negotiations.“Some media of the U.S. said that the DPRK (North Korea) tried to use Bae’s case as a political bargaining chip. This is a ridiculous and wrong guess,” a foreign ministry spokesman told the official KCNA news agency.“The DPRK has no plan to invite anyone of the U.S. as regards Bae’s issue.”The North said Thursday it
May 5, 2013