The shadow of his grandfather loomed large when North Korean leader Kim Jong-un gave a much-trumpeted New Year’s speech on Tuesday, calling for economic growth and the defusing of tensions with the South. It was the first verbal New Year’s address made by a North Korean leader in 19 years. Kim made his maiden live speech on April 15 when Pyongyang held a massive celebration for the 100th anniver...

Kim Yong-joon “I highly respect this person, who incarnates the Saenuri Party’s cherished values, law and principles, and the constitutional spirit.” So said Park Geun-hye in October when she appointed former Constitutional Court president Kim Yong-joon co-chair of her campaign committee. The former top judge proved her assessment right, exerting a calm and credible leadership within the elect...

Local passengers raised their eyebrows when the state-run railway operator Korail claimed the safety and on-time operation of its trains as global No. 1 in a report submitted for evaluation in June. At the time, Korail was suffering from public condemnation after a series of frequent breakdowns and delayed schedules of the nation’s KTX bullet trains. Korail explained that it had cited official ...

President-elect Park Geun-hye’s first choice of her senior aides was a lawmaker versed in tax and fiscal policy and without a distinctive factional hue. Rep. Yoo Il-ho, 57, a two-term lawmaker of Park’s conservative ruling Saenuri Party, will serve as her chief of staff, assisting the incoming leader in shaping the new government in the next two months. His has a powerful post, controlling acce...

Seichu Naito, a Japanese historian renowned for his relentless rebuttal of Japan’s territorial claims to Dokdo, died on Dec. 16. He was 83. After news reports on his demise belatedly circulated, many Koreans lamented the passing of a “conscientious intellectual” who bravely dug into the falsity of Tokyo’s claim to Korea’s easternmost islets of Dokdo in the East Sea. His death comes as concerns ...

John Kerry U.S. President Barack Obama tapped John Kerry, a Massachusetts senator and former presidential candidate, to be the new secretary of state on Friday. For the entirety of his career on Capitol Hill since 1985, Kerry, 69, a decorated Vietnam War veteran and son of a foreign-service officer, has specialized in foreign affairs. Since 2009, he has chaired the Senate Committee on Foreign R...

The Finance Ministry on Tuesday took down its signboard to signal its move to Sejong City. The relocation has been anticipated for the past year, but to ministry employees, it was a moment to remember. “The era spent at Gwacheon was one of passion and devotion, and we are overcome with emotions as we prepare to let go of this era,” said a nostalgic Finance Minister Bahk Jae-wan, who will be the ...

Lee Jung-hee Former presidential candidate Lee Jung-hee and her leftist party are coming under increasingly heavy fire from the conservatives over the issue of the government election subsidy. Lee’s minority Unified Progressive Party has received 2.7 billion won ($2.5 million) from the government following her candidate registration in November. Although Lee is no longer in the race, having wi...

Adam Lanza (AP-Yonhap News) Some described him as weird, others said he was smart, but none of the Connecticut gunman Adam Lanza’s acquaintances saw a potential killer in the 20-year-old. On Friday, Lanza opened fire at a U.S. elementary school and slaughtered 20 children and six adults before killing himself. He also murdered his mother by shooting her in the face before embarking upon the atr...

Former and current managers of two university baseball teams have been arrested in an admission scandal. Prosecutors said Wednesday that they have arrested former Lotte Giants manager Yang Seung-ho and current manager of the Yonsei University baseball team Jung Jin-ho to investigate charges of taking cash in return for admission. Less than two months ago, Yang was a high-profile manager of the ...

Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti. (Bloomberg) His resignation may have been what former Italian President Silvio Berlusconi wanted, but the timing of Mario Monti’s resignation may cause his flamboyant evictor some problems. Berlusconi’s party agreed to pass the 2013 budget but withdrew its support for his government, effectively making Monti’s position untenable. His resignation means that a...

A 60-something man in a dark-brown checkered coat approached a Salvation Army officer manning a red kettle in Myeong-dong, a fashion and shopping district in Seoul on Sunday. The man put a white envelope in the red kettle, saying, “Please use it for the elderly in need.” He then took a taxi and disappeared. The Salvation Army Korea Territory later found a check of around 106 million won ($98,30...

Shares of top smartphone maker Samsung Electronics are getting ready to break the 1.5 million won mark as the Korean IT behemoth is gaining an edge in its ongoing global patent battle against Apple Inc. Samsung’s stocks were being traded at over 1.5 million won ($1,389) per share, up 1.62 percent from Friday, shortly after the market opening at 9:01 a.m. on Monday. The share price is setting a ...

Kim Yu-na Olympic figure-skating champion Kim Yu-na made a successful comeback from a 19-month break on Saturday at the NRW Trophy in Dortmund, Germany, scoring 72.27 points, the season’s highest, in the short program. The season’s previous high in the event was 67.95 achieved by Mao Asada of Japan at the NHK Trophy last month. Kim’s flawless routine melted away worries here that she may fail t...

John Huh Korean-American John Huh, 22, was named the U.S. PGA Tour’s Rookie of the Year on Tuesday. The award is an inspiration for Korean golfers seeking to make their names on the U.S. Tour. The award sets a milestone for golfers of Asian heritage as well. Huh is the first Asian-American to be named the PGA Rookie of the Year since it was established in 1990. His award is especially memorabl...