Most Popular
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K-pop group's manager dismissed for setting up spycam in theater dressing room
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Contentious grain bill put directly to plenary meeting for vote
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Why is Apple Pay struggling to get purchase in Korea?
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Will tug-of-war between doctors, government end soon?
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Climate impacts set to cut 2050 global GDP by nearly a fifth
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Trilateral talks acknowledge ‘serious’ slumps of won, yen
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[Today’s K-pop] BTS pop-up event to come to Seoul
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Yoon's approval rating plunges to all-time low
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[Graphic News] More Koreans say they plan long-distance trips this year
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Mother of student activist, whose death sparked pro-democracy movement, dies
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S. Korea, US still in talks over missile defense
U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta said Wednesday that Washington is still in consultations with Seoul over its future role in a regional missile defense system."With regards to future missile defense, that's an area we continue to discuss in order to make sure that we have all of the defenses necessary to deal with the missile threat coming fromNorth Korea and whatever steps are necessary to try to make sure that we are prepared for that," Panetta told reporters after talks with his South K
Oct. 25, 2012
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N. Korean defectors float anti-Pyongyang leaflets despite threat
About 10 North Korean defectors said Monday they had floated tens of thousands of anti-Pyongyang leaflets as they brushed off the North's latest threats of military attacks.The defectors announced on a Web site that they launched balloons carrying about 120,000 leaflets at 6 p.m. from South Korea's western island of Gangwha, which is close to North Korea.Park Sang-hak, who has led a high-profile campaign to send anti-Pyongyang leaflets for years, said separately the leaflets criticized North Kor
Oct. 22, 2012
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Six nabbed for illegal sales of U.S. military equipments
Six South Koreans have been indicted after they allegedly bought and resold U.S. military equipment banned from circulation, police said Monday.The group, including a man surnamed Kim, is suspected of purchasing seven U.S. military items, such as night vision goggles and laser target designators, from an unidentified soldier stationed at a U.S. military base in Dongducheon, 40 km north of Seoul, in May of last year, the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency (SMPA) said.Kim then allegedly smuggled the
Oct. 22, 2012
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Local gov't concerend over U.S. plan to redeploy military unit
EUIJEONGBU -- A municipal government expressed concern Sunday over a U.S. plan to redeploy a unit in their region, saying it would undermine a project to replace the U.S. base with a college campus. The U.S. Army plans to relocate the 23rd Chemical Battalion from the U.S. state of Washington to Camp Stanley in Euijeongbu, just north of Seoul, by March of next year, an official of the Euijeongbu city government said Sunday. The relocation would come nine years after the unit withdrew from
Oct. 21, 2012
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Porous security reveals military complacency, patrol challenges
Experts say more realistic troop education, firmer discipline should be givenThe recent unchecked border crossing by a North Korean soldier has underscored the South Korean military’s complacency, slackened discipline and outmoded troop education, experts said.Some also pointed out that the incident revealed the troops’ difficulty patrolling the mountainous frontline areas around the clock, calling for a fundamental change in guarding the border.The porous security has caused public discontent a
Oct. 16, 2012
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Minister sorry for border security failure
Defense Minister Kim Kwan-jin on Monday apologized and pledged to discipline commanders responsible for the failure to detect a North Korea solider crossing the border.Kim said in a press briefing that the ministry admitted its failure to keep its military units on security alert at all times on the front-line and a proper reporting system in the chain of command.“We sincerely apologize to the public for failing to inform of the incident truthfully, and causing confusion,” Kim said. The ministry
Oct. 15, 2012
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Defense minister offers public apology over border security failure
South Korea's defense minister issued a public apology Monday over the undetected defection early this month of a North Korean soldier through the heavily armed border and announced disciplinary measures against those responsible for the incident. "I acknowledge that the North Korean soldier's defection apparently shows the failure of security and flaws in the emergency reporting system. I sincere
Oct. 15, 2012
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PACOM: S. Korea's improved missiles to boost 'defensive capability' against N. Korea
The U.S. Pacific Command (PACOM) said Sunday that South Korea's improved missile range will bolster its "defensive capability" to counter North Korea's ballistic missile threat.It emphasized the communist nation poses the most urgent threat to its area of jurisdiction -- the Pacific Ocean."This improved range distance will provide a defensive capability that will allow the ROK and allies to defend
Oct. 15, 2012
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Inspection on Army unit tightened
Lawmakers of the National Assembly’s National Defense Committee visited South Korea’s 22nd Infantry Division on Friday in Goseong, Gwangwon Province, to toughen their inspection on the military base.The 22nd Division had been held responsible for lax border security on Oct. 2, when a North Korean solider jumped over three fences on the demarcation line and crossed over to the South without being spotted.Lawmakers criticized the Joint Chiefs of Staff during the parliamentary inspection on the inc
Oct. 12, 2012
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126 military secrets leaked in last four years: report
Over 100 items of classified military information have been leaked in the last four years but most violators received only light punishments, a ruling party lawmaker said Friday.According to a report submitted by the Defense Security Command (DSC) for a parliamentary audit, 126 items of military information classed as third-degree or higher were been leaked between January 2009 and July of this year.Among them, 61 were classified as second-degree secrets, which include secret military operations
Oct. 12, 2012
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Military blasted over border security
The Joint Chiefs of Staff came under mounting criticism Thursday over lax security on the border with North Korea following the defection of a soldier from the communist state.The military is also being reproved for maintaining a poor reporting system in the chain of command, further raising concern over South Korea’s military communication channels.The JCS said that the military unit guarding the demarcation line that took in the North Korean solider did not falsely report the situation to or t
Oct. 11, 2012
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Korea, U.S. to strengthen missile defense
South Korea and the U.S. are moving to boost their missile defense as a key deterrent against nuclear-armed North Korea.Various sources told local media that the two allies have drawn up a strategic plan that aims to target and intercept the North’s nuclear facilities, underground bunkers and missiles.Officials from the two sides are expected to discuss the matter at the bilateral Security Consultative Meeting, scheduled to be held in the U.S. later this month.The plan calls for launching a stri
Oct. 10, 2012
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JCS blasted for lax border watch
The Joint Chiefs of Staff has been criticized for loosely guarding the military demarcation line and allowing a North Korean soldier to freely cross over to the South.At a parliamentary inspection on the incumbent administration, lawmakers of the National Assembly’s national defense committee lashed out at JCS Chairman Jung Seung-jo for lax security at the border.The Ministry of National Defense said last Saturday that a North Korean solider defected to the South by crossing the MDL after killin
Oct. 9, 2012
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Seoul to deploy longer-range missiles in 5 years
South Korea, U.S. seek to strengthen missile intelligence cooperationSouth Korea plans to fully deploy ballistic missiles with ranges of 550 km and 800 km within five years as Seoul and Washington have revised a bilateral guideline governing its missile development.A senior Seoul official said that the government had earmarked some 2.4 trillion won ($2.16 billion) for a five-year plan, starting from next year, to develop and deploy these longer-range missiles.“We aim to deploy these ballistic mi
Oct. 8, 2012
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Outdated materials used for chemical warfare exercises
Korea’s Defense Ministry has its soldiers use aging and out-of-date materials for chemical and biological warfare exercises, raising concerns over their health and drill practicality.Citing a report submitted to the National Assembly’s national defense committee, lawmakers said that the ministry had only disposed of 44,367 materials out of 165,600 between 2008 and 2011. The rest, including 29-year-old mask filters and 13-year-old emergency personal decontaminants, are still being used. Soldiers
Oct. 8, 2012
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White House says S. Korea's improved missile capability to target only N. Korea
The White House sought Sunday to limit the impact of a new missile deal with South Korea to its global nonproliferation efforts and regional security conditions in which China plays a growing role."The ROK's new missile guidelines are designed to improve the Republic of Korea's ability to defend against DPRK ballistic missiles," White House Press Secretary Jay Carney told reporters."The revisions
Oct. 8, 2012
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S. Korea to deploy 550-km, 800-km-range missiles in 5 years: gov't source
South Korea plans to complete the deployment of new ballistic missiles with ranges of 550 and 800 kilometers in five years, a government source here said Monday, a follow-up measure for a revised missile agreement with the United States aimed at deterring threats from North Korea. (Yonhap News)
Oct. 8, 2012
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Seoul to get more powerful, longer-range ballistic missiles
Seoul to get more powerful, longer-range ballistic missilesSeoul and Washington have agreed on revising a bilateral guideline to allow South Korea to develop more powerful ballistic missiles with a range of up to 800 km, up from the previous 300 km, Cheong Wa Dae said Sunday.The revision is expected to strengthen deterrence against North Korea as the maximum range, from South Korea’s central regio
Oct. 7, 2012
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N. Korean soldier defects after killing two superiors
A North Korean soldier on Saturday crossed the military demarcation line to defect to South Korea after shooting dead two of his superiors, officials at Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said.The soldier crossed the border at around 12:06 p.m. and expressed his intention for defection to a nearby guard post just south of the heavily fortified border. He is the first to defect across the MDL since the
Oct. 6, 2012
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U.S. chemical battalion to be redeployed to S. Korea
(Yonhap) -- The United States plans to redeploy a chemical unit to South Korea to strengthen the combined deterrence against North Korea, nine years after its departure from the Asian ally, an American military official said Saturday. The 23rd Chemical Battalion withdrew from South Korea in 2004 as part of an agreement calling for South Korea to take over 10 major defense missions from the Unite
Oct. 6, 2012