Articles by Choi Si-young
Choi Si-young
siyoungchoi@heraldcorp.com-
NATO chief warns of risks of overreliance on China
South Korea should be careful not to be overly dependent on China, a key sourcing destination for Seoul, as Beijing could leverage that to get what it wants in a world split between free democracies and authoritarian regimes, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said in Seoul on Monday. The visit by the chief of the 30-member military alliance based in Brussels, Belgium -- the second time since 2017 -- is the latest move by the Western coalition trying to push back against longtime adversarie
Foreign Affairs Jan. 30, 2023
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FM Park, NATO chief discuss North Korea, expanding ties
Foreign Minister Park Jin and NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg on Sunday discussed jointly working on curbing North Korea’s nuclear ambitions and bolstering ties between the Asian country and the 30-member military alliance. The meeting comes as President Yoon Suk Yeol looks to enlist help from European countries in combatting an increasingly belligerent North Korea, which fired off a record number of missiles last year and still shows no sign of dialing down aggression. Yoon was th
Foreign Affairs Jan. 29, 2023
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Winter illnesses increase
Unusually cold weather in South Korea is driving a surge in winter illnesses, such as hypothermia, frostbite and chilblains, according to health authorities. The latest data from the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency found that the number of such patients reached 345 as of Friday since December, a 65.9 percent rise from the same period a year ago. The temperature in Seoul last week dropped below minus 17 degrees Celsius, a threshold that the country’s weather agency says has been
Social Affairs Jan. 29, 2023
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S. Korea, US to discuss NK, trade dispute
Foreign Minister Park Jin is set to hold talks with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in early February, sources said Thursday, as the two allies step up efforts to curb North Korea’s nuclear ambitions and resolve a trade dispute involving US tax rules that its allies say favor locally made electric vehicles. The Foreign Ministry said details like exact dates and agendas were under debate, without elaborating. In late February, Park is expected to attend the Munich Security Conference i
Foreign Affairs Jan. 26, 2023
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Tensions flare again as S. Korea investigates Chinese cyberattacks
South Korea and China look set for a renewed clash over what South Korean authorities believe are Chinese cyberattacks on multiple local academic organizations, potentially the latest flare-up in tensions recently heightened by a tit-for-tat visa spat over stronger COVID travel curbs. Police opened a formal probe Wednesday to investigate hacking that had disrupted access to websites of at least 12 academic groups, a string of attacks that took place over the four-day Lunar New Year holiday endin
Social Affairs Jan. 25, 2023
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‘Rewriting wartime past’ clouds prospects for forced labor deal
A second attempt by Japan to seek a UNESCO World Heritage List designation for a 400-year-old gold mine that South Korea says forced Koreans into labor during World War II is casting a shadow over current bilateral talks underway to resolve the dispute. Tokyo formally refiled a request Friday to obtain recognition for its Sado Island mine, omitting the history of Koreans forced to work at what was once the world’s largest gold producer before the shutdown in 1989. Updated documents submitt
Foreign Affairs Jan. 24, 2023
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Key takeaways from contentious deal on forced labor
After roughly a four-year struggle, South Korea and Japan are nearing a compromise on making amends to Koreans forced into labor by Japanese companies during World War II. The dispute -- which Seoul’s top court said in October 2018 was Tokyo’s fault -- strained bilateral ties as Japan refused to honor the ruling and pay damages to the victims. Tokyo claims a 1965 treaty that normalized relations with Seoul following its colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula already settled the issue.
Foreign Affairs Jan. 23, 2023
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S. Korea calls in Iran envoy over Yoon’s ‘enemy’ remarks
South Korea’s Foreign Ministry on Thursday summoned the Iranian ambassador in Seoul, a day after Tehran called in Seoul’s chief envoy there demanding a clarification on why President Yoon Suk Yeol called Iran “the enemy” of the United Arab Emirates during his trip there this week. In a rare tit-for-tat spat on the brink of a row, First Vice Foreign Minister Cho Hyun-dong told Ambassador Saeed Badamchi Shabestari that Yoon’s comments were meant to encourage Korean tr
Foreign Affairs Jan. 19, 2023
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[S. Korea-Japan Reboot] Time to put history behind us for good: ex-envoy
This is the last installment of the three-part interview series exploring what experts believe should take place for S. Korea to better advance its interests, while resetting ties with Japan amid disputes. -- Ed. aaaaa It is in South Korea’s best interests to bring closure to the dispute with Japan over making amends to Koreans forced into labor by Japanese firms during World War II. Only then will Seoul be able to take advantage of all the help it needs from Tokyo as it combats regional c
Foreign Affairs Jan. 18, 2023
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S. Korea downplays Yoon’s Iran remarks during UAE trip
South Korea’s Foreign Ministry on Tuesday downplayed President Yoon Suk Yeol’s remarks made a day earlier during his state visit to the United Arab Emirates, in which he said that Iran was the UAE’s “enemy,” and compared their relationship to inter-Korean hostilities. Yoon was offering a word of encouragement to the soldiers while visiting a Korean special forces unit stationed in Abu Dhabi to train local troops, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lim Soo-suk said at bri
Foreign Affairs Jan. 17, 2023
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State-run body to start fleshing out compromise on forced labor
South Korea’s state-run foundation established to help Koreans forced into labor by Japanese companies during World War II is preparing to reach out to Korean companies as early as next week to compensate the victims, sources said Tuesday, as part of a compromise deal Seoul believes will help settle the longtime historical dispute with Tokyo. Last week, the Korean government essentially endorsed a plan to have the Korean government or companies compensate the victims while awaiting Japan&r
Foreign Affairs Jan. 17, 2023
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2 Koreans in Nepal plane crash confirmed dead
South Korea’s Foreign Ministry said Monday evening a teenage Korean -- who remained missing from a plane that crashed into a gorge on Sunday while making a 27-minute flight to a Nepalese tourist town northwest of the capital Kathmandu -- also died, along with his father found dead earlier in the day. The Korean consul in Nepal confirmed the bodies of the father and his son who were flying for a family vacation, at the Gandaki Medical College hospital in Pokhara, the destination that the tw
Foreign Affairs Jan. 16, 2023
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China eases visa rules for S. Korea, Japan amid spat
Chinese authorities resumed issuing visas for some South Koreans and Japanese on official or nonofficial business that requires immediate attention, Kyodo News said Monday, citing Chinese sources. The latest relaxation of rules, which China toughened only last week by ceasing the issuing of short-term visas for the two countries, came as Seoul and Tokyo complained about Beijing’s “retaliation” for stepping up their COVID-19 travel curbs on Chinese arrivals amid a fresh surge in
Foreign Affairs Jan. 16, 2023
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Search continues for Korean still missing after plane crash in Nepal
Nepalese authorities on Monday resumed searching for a South Korean, one of four people who remained missing from a plane that crashed into a gorge on Sunday while making a 27-minute flight to a Nepalese tourist town northwest of the capital Kathmandu. The Himalayan country’s deadliest plane crash since 1992 left at least 68 of the 72 people aboard dead, including another Korean -- the father of the missing teenage Korean who was a noncommissioned Army officer, according to local reports.
Foreign Affairs Jan. 16, 2023
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US quickly downplays Yoon’s ‘nuclear prospect’
The US said Thursday it is still committed to a completely denuclearized Korean Peninsula and that South Korea has made it clear it is not seeking nuclear weapons, a day after President Yoon Suk Yeol openly backed a nuclear buildup if North Korea poses a bigger threat than now. Yoon’s remarks about South Korea arming itself with nuclear weapons against North Korea, a nuclear state, were made public Wednesday when his defense minister briefed him on the ministry’s plan for this year.
Politics Jan. 13, 2023
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