A visit to South Korea by the US special envoy for North Korea this week has sparked speculation that he may meet Pyongyang’s officials to resume stalled denuclearization talks at the inter-Korean border village of Panmunjom. US Special Representative for North Korea Stephen Biegun will travel to Seoul from Tuesday to Thursday just after joint South Korea-US military exercises wrap up Tuesday. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has expressed willingness to restart denuclearization talks

North Korea Aug. 18, 2019

South Korea should target Japan’s “abandonment” of the universal values of human rights and free trade to resolve their escalating dispute, according to professor of Japanese studies Lee Won-deog. Meanwhile, he said, a tit-for-tat response to its retaliatory export restrictions is not a wise strategy.“Given the asymmetry of their economies, a more effective way of pressing Japan is to take actions that follow the universal values or norms,” Lee, a professor at Kookm

Foreign Affairs Aug. 14, 2019

US National Security Advisor John Bolton urged South Korea to ramp up its share of costs for stationing American troops here during his visit to Seoul last month, revealing his country’s spending records, according to the Dong-a Ilbo on Friday.When Bolton met South Korean National Security Office Director Chung Eui-yong on July 28, he showed a statement with details of the US spending for stationing 28,500 soldiers here, including training fees and wages for overseas dispatch of military f

Foreign Affairs Aug. 9, 2019

Discussions are underway for a foreign ministers’ meeting later this month in Beijing, where South Korea, China and Japan can discuss issues concerning Northeast Asia ahead of a trilateral summit expected to take place before the end of the year. “The three countries are in talks (for) a foreign ministers’ meeting,” Seoul’s Foreign Ministry said Wednesday, adding that details, including the date of the meeting, have not been confirmed. Earlier in the day, Japan

Foreign Affairs Aug. 7, 2019

Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo will hold a meeting with US counterpart Mark Esper in Seoul on Friday, amid Washington’s growing calls for allies to support protecting shipping routes from Iranian attacks in the Middle East. The US defense secretary’s trip comes as both countries face crucial security issues, including North Korea’s recent missile launches in protest against a South Korea-US military exercise and the building of a global coalition to patrol the Gulf shipping

Defense Aug. 5, 2019

Korea is gearing up to fire back at Japan after the neighboring country removed its fast-track export status, while seeking ways to mitigate the economic impact of the trading restrictions as the two Asian countries’ bilateral relations sink to a recent rock bottom. The government plans to announce measures to strengthen the competitiveness of the materials and parts industries this week that will come under tighter rules for export approval, following the Tokyo’s cabinet’s dec

Foreign Affairs Aug. 4, 2019

The top envoys of South Korea and Japan will hold bilateral talks and a three-way meeting with the US in Bangkok this week as the East Asian neighbors struggle to resolve a diplomatic row heightened by trade restrictions imposed by Tokyo, amid concerns that the measures could hurt global semiconductor chip supply chains.Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-hwa will meet Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono on Thursday on the sidelines of gatherings of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in B

Foreign Affairs July 31, 2019

The US Treasury Department on Monday slapped a sanction on a North Korean man for allegedly evading trade restrictions by importing and exporting goods to support the regime’s weapons program.The move came amid growing skepticism over the US president’s North Korea policy, with last week’s short-range ballistic missiles tests by the North and a delay in resumption of denuclearization talks. Kim Su-il, who works in Vietnam, was blacklisted by the US Department of the Treasu

North Korea July 30, 2019

Three North Koreans who crossed into South Korea in the East Sea on Saturday were repatriated to the North, as a daylong investigation uncovered no evidence of espionage activities, the Ministry of Unification said Monday. A wooden boat and the three crew members were transferred to North Korean authorities in the afternoon after the ministry announced that they had departed for the inter-Korean sea border. The government notified the North of the repatriation decision through the inter-Korean l

North Korea July 29, 2019

The Overseas Koreans Foundation, a Foreign Ministry-affiliated organization, was found to have been supporting children of diplomats and expatriates with its scholarship programs designed for educating overseas Korean youths to contribute to the development of overseas Korean communities. The government watchdog Board of Audit and Inspection said Thursday it requested a correction to the organization’s loose standards in selecting scholarship recipients. “Taking account of the Overse

Social Affairs July 26, 2019

Cheong Wa Dae on Friday named new senior presidential secretaries for civil affairs, job creation and civic society, with a wider Cabinet reshuffle expected next month.  Kim Jo-won, head of Korea Aerospace Industries, was appointed senior secretary for civil affairs, replacing Cho Kuk. Cho served his post for 26 months since taking office in May 2017 as one of President Moon Jae-in’s first senior presidential secretaries. He is expected to be appointed as the next justice minister.&nb

Politics July 26, 2019

North Korea’s display of military might with short-range missile launches and a newly built submarine this week appears to be in protest of joint South Korea-US military exercises scheduled for next month. The North fired two short-range missiles Thursday from Hodo Peninsula on the east coast, which flew about 430 kilometers and 650 kilometers, respectively, before falling into the East Sea. On Tuesday, the North’s Korean Central News Agency said that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un

North Korea July 25, 2019

South Korea hopes to deliver food aid to North Korea as initially planned, despite Pyongyang’s refusal to accept it in a show of the regime’s discontent with an upcoming joint military exercise with the US.The Unification Ministry said Wednesday that North Korea’s working-level officials have expressed “a negative view” toward South Korea’s assistance of 50,000 tons of rice, citing the joint military drills scheduled for next month.The World Food Program&rsquo

North Korea July 24, 2019

South Korea agreed to continue consultations with the US over cooperative measures for Washington’s effort to safeguard freedom of navigation in the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz off Iran, Cheong Wa Dae said Wednesday. South Korea’s national security adviser Chung Eui-yong, who met with US national security adviser John Bolton in Seoul, agreed on “the need for international efforts for the safe voyage of private merchant ships,” according to Ko Min-jung, presidenti

Foreign Affairs July 24, 2019

North Korea has been holding a Russian fishing ship carrying two South Korean nationals since July 17, after the vessel drifted into waters off eastern North Korea due to a mechanical problem, Seoul’s Unification Ministry said Wednesday. The 300-ton red crab fishing vessel, Xiang Hai Lin 8, which sails under the flag of Russia, was apprehended at sea by North Korea authorities and moved to the port city of Wonsan after entering North by crossing the maritime border. The ship was headed to

North Korea July 24, 2019