Most Popular
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Debate rages over ‘overly fatty’ samgyeopsal
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40 flights canceled on Jeju Island due to bad weather
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[Weekender] Korean psyche untangled: Musok
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N. Korea slams US, other countries for seeking alternative to UN sanctions monitoring panel
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Pandemic left Korea more depressed than before: report
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Gov't appears to shelve punitive measures against mass walkout by doctors
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[Eye Interview] 'If you live to 100, you might as well be happy,' says 88-year-old bestselling essayist
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From fake prostitution ring to nonexistent robber, prank calls hamper police
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Missing S. Korean traveler in Paris found safe after 2 weeks
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S. Korea, China, Japan in talks to hold trilateral summit May 26-27: official
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Obama likely to tour border of Koreas
WASHINGTON (Yonhap News) ― The White House indicated Tuesday that President Barack Obama will tour the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), which separates the two Koreas, during his visit to South Korea later this month.“A visit to the DMZ would be reflective of the president’s commitment to both security on the Korean Peninsula and the need for North Korea to live up to its international obligations, give up its nuclear weapons program and return to the community of nations,” White House Press Secretary
March 14, 2012
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King urges N.K. to stop punishing repatriated people
WASHINGTON (Yonhap News) ― The U.S. special envoy on North Korean human rights issues demanded in this week’s U.N. meeting that Pyongyang stop punishing forcefully repatriated defectors.Robert King, attending a meeting of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva on Tuesday (local time), shared “deep concerns” about the plight of refugees and asylum seekers from the North, according to a transcript of his remarks released by the State Department“We urge the DPRK to end the punishment and
March 14, 2012
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IAEA soon to inspect N.K. nuke facilities: Ri
NEW YORK (Yonhap News) ― North Korea’s chief nuclear envoy said Monday that U.N. nuclear monitors will soon be able to return to his reclusive country under a recent deal with the United States.“I think (it) will be implemented in the near future. Concrete measures are being constantly taken to fulfill the February agreement,” the North’s Vice Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho told reporters.He was wrapping up a rare visit to the U.S. for an academic forum, reflecting continued dialogue between Pyongy
March 13, 2012
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Tussle in Geneva reveals inter-Korean rift
U.N. envoy presses China to stop repatriation of North Korean refugeesAn unprecedented tussle Monday in Geneva between South Korean lawmakers and a North Korean ambassador over human rights showed how badly inter-Korean relations have recently soured, experts here said Tuesday.At the U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva, the South’s lawmakers tried to approach So Se-pyong, the North’s ambassador, after he rejected a report by Marzuki Darusman, the U.N. special rapporteur on human rights in North
March 13, 2012
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Lee confidant‘s China visit triggers speculation on N. Korea
Yim Tae-hee, a former South Korean presidential chief of staff, made a two-day visit to Beijing before returning to Seoul on Monday, a source here said Tuesday, raising speculation about his possible contact with North Koreans in the Chinese capital.It was the second time this year that the top aide for President Lee Myung-bak has visited China, following the previous trip early last month. “Yim’s trip to Beijing is verified, but details of his activities in Beijing are not yet known,” the sourc
March 13, 2012
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Food shipment for N. Korea ‘as soon as possible,’ U.S. says
The United States said Monday that it will start sending food to North Korea “as soon as possible,” as its delegation is set to meet officials at the World Food Program (WFP) in Rome later this week.Robert King, the U.S. special envoy on the North‘s human rights, will “talk more about the modalities of this assistance” with WFP representatives, said Mark Toner, the State Department’s deputy spokesman.“But I think, you know, we‘re trying to work out whatever the remaining logistical challenges ar
March 13, 2012
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N. Korean defectors in Japan struggle to adjust to new life
South Korea has been joined by activists around the world in its recent public campaign against China’s forced repatriation of North Korean defectors, but those who have resettled in Japan continue to face difficulties, defectors and activists said Monday.About 200 North Korean defectors currently live in Japan, with about 150 in Tokyo and the rest in Osaka, according to activists here. These defectors were mostly born in Japan during Tokyo’s 1910-1945 colonial rule over the Korean Peninsula and
March 12, 2012
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S. Korea military vows tough response to N. Korea attack
South Korea‘s military chief urged the navy Monday to hit back hard against any new North Korean attack, as Seoul strengthens security before a major forum.General Jung Seung-jo, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, called on sailors to stay alert, saying the North’s navy would increase activities as its frozen ports begin to thaw. “The North can provoke us at any moment... you should seize the opportunity to launch immediate and strong retaliation with all available weapons,” he said during a
March 12, 2012
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Lawmakers appeal for international effort to stop repatriation of N.K. defectors
A group of South Korean lawmakers vowed to step up efforts to stop China’s forced repatriation of North Korean defectors as they visited Geneva to attend a U.N. meeting on human rights.The four-member delegation made the pledge in a meeting Sunday with Park Sang-ki, the ambassador at South Korea’s mission to Geneva in Switzerland, as part of their efforts to draw international attention to North Korean escapees facing repatriation to their home where they could face punishment and even death. “R
March 12, 2012
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S. Korea cautious on N. Korea’s recent nuclear deal with U.S.
North Korea’s recent nuclear deal with the United States is a good indicator of Pyongyang’s current movement, but it is still too early to “conclusively assess” it, South Korea’s point man on North Korea said.North Korea has agreed to freeze its uranium-enrichment facilities and temporarily halt its nuclear and long-range missile tests in exchange for 240,000 tons of U.S. food aid.The North has also agreed to allow the return of monitors from the International Atomic Energy Agency to its main nu
March 12, 2012
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N. Korean orchestra arrives in Paris for joint concert with French orchestra
(Yonhap) -- A North Korean orchestra arrived in Paris on Sunday for a joint concert later this week with a French orchestra led by renowned South Korean conductor Chung Myung-whun, according to Pyongyang's official Korean Central News Agency.The Unhasu Orchestra's arrival came three days before it p
March 11, 2012
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N. Korean leader inspects Navy units in western sea
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un inspected Navy units in the western sea, Pyongyang said Saturday, as the communist country continued to ratchet up threats against South Korea.Kim accompanied several military commanders on a tour of a defense unit on Cho Islet, some 70 kilometers west of the North's
March 10, 2012
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Unification minister blasts N.K. on defectors
Unification Minister Yu Woo-ik on Friday used strong rhetoric to criticize the North Korean regime over the issue of North Korean defectors.“The situation in which North Korean residents cross the border and flee their country should be resolved as soon as possible,” Yu said at a forum in Seoul.Yu had vowed to take “flexible” North Korean policies when taking office in September, but has started to ramp up Pyongyang-bashing rhetoric since President Lee Myung-bak convened a foreign affairs and se
March 9, 2012
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U.N. chief voices concern over N. Korean defectors in China
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon expressed “deep concern” Thursday over the fate of North Korean defectors in China, which has emerged as a key diplomatic issue between Seoul and Beijing, according to his office.In a meeting with visiting South Korean Foreign Minister Kim Sung-hwan, Ban “shared the deep concern with the Foreign Minister about the dislocated people from the DPRK, and encouraged the concerned parties to do their utmost to find a mutually agreeable solution,” the U.N. l
March 9, 2012
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US ‘cautiously optimistic’ food aid will go to NKorea
The United States said Thursday it is “cautiously optimistic” that food aid will be delivered to North Korea as technical matters still had to be ironed out.State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said U.S. envoy Robert King had a “pretty good round” of talks with North Korean officials in Beijing. “He made clear that he needs to come home (to Washington) and report and there are a number of technical things that have to go forward,” Nuland told reporters.“We are cautiously optimistic that
March 9, 2012
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Nuclear envoys of the rival Koreas in New York
Nuclear envoys of the rival Koreas both addressed a closed-door conference on security in Northeast Asia on Thursday but there was no word on whether they spoke to each other.The two-day, academic forum in New York is an opportunity to break the ice between communist North Korea and U.S.-allied Sout
March 9, 2012
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Minister presses China over N.K. defectors
Number of defectors here drops in JanuarySouth Korea’s Unification Minister Yu Woo-ik on Thursday urged China to show an “improved position” on the issue of North Korean defectors.He also stressed close bilateral consultation to diplomatically resolve the issue of the defectors who could face harsh punishment such as torture and execution should they be sent back to their impoverished, repressive state.“(I) hope this issue would not undermine the enhancement of the South Korea-China relations,”
March 8, 2012
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50 N. Korean orphans defected to China in late Feb.: lawmaker
A opposition lawmaker revealed Thursday that a group of 50 North Korean orphans defected from their impoverished homeland late last month, while it is not known whether they have been caught by Chinese authorities.Rep. Park Sun-young of the conservative minor Liberty Forward Party said 50 children fled from an orphanage in the northern Yanggang Province in late February, adding she has been holding the information acquired from sources in China due to their safety.“Fortunately, I haven’t heard t
March 8, 2012
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U.S. in talks with China on North Korean refugees
WASHINGTON/NEW YORK (Yonhap News) ― The United States government confirmed Wednesday that it “talked about” the plight of North Korean defectors with China, which has emerged as a source of diplomatic tensions between Seoul and Beijing. “We do, as part of our regular dialogue with Beijing, talk about refugee difficulties,” State Department spokesperson Victoria Nuland said at a press briefing.The issue of North Koreans fleeing their hunger-stricken communist nation and holing up in China is not
March 8, 2012
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N. Korea nuclear negotiator meets U.S. academics
North Korea’s main nuclear negotiator on Wednesday held talks with U.S. academics in New York as part of a private visit amid new hopes of disarmament progress after the isolated state agreed to freeze its weapons program.Ri Yong-ho, a vice foreign minister and chief envoy to international nuclear talks, held talks with the academics at a New York hotel.The talks were part of a forum organized by Syracuse University which South Korea’s nuclear envoy Lim Sung-Nam was also to attend. No details on
March 8, 2012