Most Popular
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Korean labor force to shrink by 10 million by 2044: report
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[AtoZ Korean Mind] Does your job define who you are? Should it?
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Allegations surrounding BTS resurface, enraged fans demand apology
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Students with history of violence will be barred from becoming teachers
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Top prosecutor pledges 'speedy, strict' probe into first lady's luxury bag allegations
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'Super Rich in Korea' will leave viewers appreciating Korea more: producers
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Medical feud leaves hospitals in financial crisis
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'Queen of Tears' riding high on Netflix chart
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Samsung mocks Apple over iPhone alarm glitch
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Chip up cycle won’t stay long: SK chief
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North Korea requests U.S. food aid: reports
North Korea’s leadership, headed by Kim Jong-un, has requested changes in the composition of food aid from the U.S. after his father Kim Jong-il died, Japanese media reported Sunday.According to the news reports, Pyongyang reopened food aid talks with the U.S. at the end of December, following the funeral of the late Kim.While some have interpreted the first contact between Pyongyang and Washington since Kim Jong-il’s death as a sign that the two sides will seek more active communication, the re
Jan. 8, 2012
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S. Korea, U.S., Japan to hold talks on N. Korea: Campbell
South Korea, the United States and Japan have agreed to hold a meeting of their senior diplomats dealing with the North Korea issue, an official confirmed Friday.“I think we’ve agreed that we’ll be holding a meeting in the near future,” Kurt Campbell, U.S. assistant secretary of state for East Asian
Jan. 7, 2012
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Boat carrying N. Koreans found near Japanese island: report
Japan's coast guard on Friday found a wooden boat carrying three men and the dead body of another individual, believed to be adrift from North Korea in waters off the western Japanese island of Okinoshima, a report said.According to Japan's public broadcaster NHK, coast guard officials initially sus
Jan. 6, 2012
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N. Korea threatens to strengthen nuke programs if provocation continues
North Korea on Thursday dismissed South Korean President Lee Myung-bak‘s recent New Year speech as nothing but “sophism,” saying that it will strengthen its nuclear power status if its “enemy” continues its provocative action.This strong word is the first official response by the North to President Lee’s speech on Monday, in which he said that South Korea has left a “window of opportunity” open to improve relations with North Korea.But Lee repeated his previous stance that the six-party talks on
Jan. 6, 2012
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N. Korean doctors received training in U.S. in 2008: doctor
A dozen of North Korea’s medical professionals undertook a three-month training program at the MD Anderson Cancer Center in the United States after their leader Kim Jong-il suffered a stroke in 2008, a South Korean doctor claimed Thursday.Lee Byung-hoon, an adviser to the Seoul-based Korean Medical Association, said he heard the information from a Korean professor in the cancer center last year while training at the same center.Lee said the North requested the training from the MD Anderson Cance
Jan. 5, 2012
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Seoul to leave dialogue channel open for Pyongyang
South Korea’s unification ministry said the government will open the possibility of a high-level dialogue with North Korea in line with President Lee Myung-bak’s New Year address, as part of its yearly plan for 2012.However, the ministry made it clear that Pyongyang should come clean on the two deadly attacks on South Korea in 2010 before seeking progress in inter-Korean relations.“To keep the Korean Peninsula peaceful and stable, the ministry will establish a South-North dialogue channel and ma
Jan. 5, 2012
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NK spy indicted after coming to South in disguise as defector
Prosecutors on Thursday indicted an alleged North Korean spy suspected of impersonating a defector seeking to settle in South Korea.The 47-year-old man surnamed Kim, believed to be a former agent of the North's military intelligence unit, was charged with entering South Korea in June last year on a
Jan. 5, 2012
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Will N.K. power organs go through changes?
After the death of North Korean ruler Kim Jong-il last month, attention is being drawn to possible changes in the status of power organs in the communist state.Experts concur that the ruling Workers’ Party’s Central Military Commission will gain greater power under the leadership of Kim’s successor Jong-un, who holds its vice chairman post.The CMC is one of the top power organs including the party’s Central Committee and the National Defense Commission. It is expected to oversee overall affairs
Jan. 4, 2012
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U.S. downbeat about revival of N. Korea nuclear talks
WASHINGTON (AFP) ― The United States said Tuesday that the new North Korean leadership’s stated refusal to engage with South Korea bodes ill for reviving six-party nuclear disarmament talks.“That’s not going to be conducive to getting back to the table,” State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland told reporters when asked about the North Korean stand.North Korea Friday ruled out engagement with South Korea’s current government of conservative President Lee Myung-bak, a day after proclaiming Ki
Jan. 4, 2012
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‘N.K. power shifting from military to party’
Pyongyang may idolize Kim Jong-un with typical party-centric communist systemUnder the new leadership of Kim Jong-un, the center of power of the North Korean regime seems to be moving toward the Workers’ Party from the military, experts said. The deceased despot Kim Jong-il, who the North announced died of a heart attack on Dec. 17, was general secretary of the Workers’ Party of Korea and chairman of the National Defense Commission of North Korea. As such, the senior Kim, Jong-un’s father, exerc
Jan. 4, 2012
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Report: N. Koreans told to go gloveless at funeral
North Korean civilians were ordered not to wear hats or gloves for the snowy funeral of leader Kim Jong-il because his son and successor chose to escort the hearse bare-headed, a report said Tuesday.Daily NK, a Seoul-based online newspaper run by defectors, said it had received information from a Pyongyang source about the “level of stage-management” for the Dec. 28 ceremony.It said local officials had told residents the day before the massive ceremony that Kim’s son and heir “Comrade Kim Jong-u
Jan. 4, 2012
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N.K. holds rally to pledge loyalty to new leader
PYONGYANG, North Korea (AP) ― Pumping their fists and chanting, tens of thousands of North Koreans packed the snowy main square of the capital Tuesday to pledge their loyalty to new leader Kim Jong-un as the campaign to consolidate his power deepened.State television also aired footage of Kim’s recent visit to an elite tank unit with family and historical ties that showed him interacting with soldiers with ease and carrying out inspections much like father Kim Jong-il and grandfather Kim Il-sung
Jan. 4, 2012
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’N.K. power seen moving from military to party’
Pyongyang may idolize Kim Jong-un with typical party-centric communist systemUnder the new leadership of Kim Jong-un, the center of power of the North Korean regime is seen as moving toward the Workers’ Party from the military, experts said. The deceased despot Kim Jong-il, who the North announced died of a heart attack on Dec. 17, was general secretary of the Workers’ Party of Korea and chairman of the National Defense Commission of North Korea. As such, the senior Kim, Jong-un’s father, exerci
Jan. 4, 2012
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N.K. major cause of conflict in S. Korea
But experts predict ideological division over N.K. issues may lessen due to youth indifferenceIdeological conflict last year over a series of issues including North Korea has raised the question of whether it is a sign of South Korea’s vibrant democracy or just deepening social and political division.A parliamentary melee over the ratification of the Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement in November had made many wonder whether the National Assembly is a place for settling or amplifying conflicts.The
Jan. 2, 2012
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80 percent of S. Koreans believe N. Korea won't abandon nuclear weapons: survey
Eight out of 10 South Koreans believe North Korea will not abandon its nuclear weapons, a survey showed Monday.In the poll conducted by the Korea Institute for Defense Analyses (KIDA), 81.7 percent said they felt North Korea will not give up its nuclear weapons program. Only 14.7 percent said it is
Jan. 2, 2012
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N. Korea's new leader visits tank division on New Year's Day
SEOUL, Jan. 1 (Yonhap) -- North Korea's new leader Kim Jong-un visited a tank division on Sunday, the state media said, paying his first apparent inspection visit to the military since the death of his father in a clear indication that he would inherit Kim Jong-il's "military-first" policy. The youn
Jan. 2, 2012
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N.K. to issue gold, silver coins to honor late leader
North Korea said Saturday it will issue gold and silver coins to mark the 20th anniversary of late leader Kim Jong-il’s ascension to the supreme commander of the communist nation’s armed forces.Pyongyang’s Korean Central News Agency made the announcement minutes after Kim’s successor son, Jong-un, took over the supreme commandership in a strong sign that the young son, believed to be in his late 20s, is rapidly solidifying power.The commandership is one of the titles that the late leader held be
Jan. 1, 2012
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U.S. urges N.K. to improve ties with S. Korea
WASHINGTON (Yonhap News) ― Responding to the new North Korean leadership’s threats to eschew dialogue with South Korea, the United States called Friday for Pyongyang to improve inter-Korean relations. “We continue to monitor the situation on the peninsula and are in close contact with our ally, the Republic of Korea. We share a common interest in ensuring regional peace and stability. We continue to urge North Korea to take steps to improve its relations with its neighbors,”a State Department of
Jan. 1, 2012
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‘N.K. economy likely to get boost from China’
North Korea will likely become stabilized within months after the death of leader Kim Jong-il due mainly to China’s rapid economic assistance, a major South Korean think tank said Sunday. A report by the Korea Development Institute on the death of Kim Jong-il and its impact on North Korea’s economy forecast that China will soon begin providing economic assistance to North Korea in a rapid manner to help stabilize its communist neighbor.“In that case, North Korea’s economy will escape from a temp
Jan. 1, 2012
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Pyongyang unlikely to change policy for now
Experts negative about inter-Korean ties; N.K. focuses on rallying people behind successorNorth Korea is unlikely to make any positive change in its policy toward the South for the time being and will focus on rallying its people behind its late leader Kim Jong-il’s successor Jong-un, experts said Sunday.Based on their analysis of the North Korean media’s New Year’s joint editorial, they painted a negative outlook for inter-Korean ties this year, which deteriorated after the two deadly attacks i
Jan. 1, 2012