Most Popular
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Court refuses injunction on medical school expansion
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Jimin of BTS, actor Song Da-eun suspected to be dating, again
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Police raid popera singer Kim Ho-joong's house over hit-and-run suspicions
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What's next for the government's push in quota hike?
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Trump may like to 'solve' N. Korean nuclear problem if reelected: ex-official
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Woman falls to death from acquaintance's home after exhibiting ‘unexplained' behaviors
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N. Korea slams planned S. Korea-US military drills, warns of 'catastrophic aftermath'
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N. Korea fires short-range ballistic missiles toward East Sea: JCS
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‘Malice should not undermine the system, social order,’ says Hybe's Bang
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[Robert J. Fouser] Social attitudes toward language proficiency
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Constitutional reform debate resurfaces
A debate over a constitutional amendment is likely to expand this year as calls have been cropping up to revise the basic law. The Constitution has often been at the center of political discourse, especially near the end of a presidential term, since South Korea last changed it in 1987.While Cheong Wa Dae has yet to announce that it will seek to change the law anytime soon, some senior lawmakers began to float the idea that the 20-year-old law should be replaced with a new one that reflects the
PoliticsJan. 3, 2016
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[Newsmaker] Park’s lame duck deadline looms
The political clock is ticking for President Park Geun-hye.With the next presidential race two years away, the incumbent state leader would normally have more time on her hands before entering her lame-duck period.But in reality, Park is under pressure to come up with impressive achievements by April’s general election. If not, she might lose the spotlight to potential presidential candidates and their campaigns.President Park Geun-hye (Yonhap)The president’s advantage is that she has successful
PoliticsJan. 3, 2016
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Ban blasted for sex slavery deal support
Amid the mushrooming public uproar over the compromise with Japan on the “comfort women,” U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has added fuel to the fire by expressing his support during a phone call with President Park Geun-hye on New Years’ Day. The two leaders spoke Friday to swap greetings for the New Year and discuss ways to deepen cooperation on development, climate change, human rights and other common challenges. Ban, for his part, commended last week’s agreement, saying that history would
Foreign AffairsJan. 3, 2016
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Former leader quits opposition party
Rep. Kim Han-gil announced Sunday his departure from the main opposition party he had once jointly led, further deepening the party’s factional crisis aggravated by a recent series of defections, including one by another former cochairman, Rep. Ahn Cheol-soo. Since Ahn left the New Politics Alliance for Democracy -- a precursor to the Minjoo Party of Korea -- on Dec. 13, eight other lawmakers, including Kim, have followed suit, reducing its number of parliamentary seats to 118. Ahn, along with K
PoliticsJan. 3, 2016
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Uncertainties remain over inter-Korean relations
Uncertainties hang over inter-Korean relations, as North Korean leader Kim Jong-un sharpened his criticism against South Korea while expressing his will for bilateral dialogue to enhance cross-border ties during his New Year’s address on Friday.North Korean leader Kim Jong-un delivers his New Year`s speech on Friday. (Yonhap)During the 29-minute address, broadcast by the North’s official Korean Central Television, Kim blasted Seoul’s unification policy, arguing that Seoul “begged foreign forces”
North KoreaJan. 3, 2016
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South Korea delays approval of death with dignity bill
Uncertainties loom over whether the nation’s death with dignity bill will be passed before the current parliamentary term ends after the general elections in April. South Korea’s parliamentary committee on Thursday delayed its approval of the so-called “well-dying” bill -- which allows patients with incurable diseases to end their own lives by rejecting any life-sustaining treatment. The biggest stumbling block is the ongoing debate among lawmakers on whether or not traditional Korean doctors sh
Social AffairsJan. 3, 2016
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South Korea eyes vice FM talks with U.S., Japan
South Korea is trying to schedule a meeting of vice foreign ministers with the United States and Japan, a government official here said Sunday.Confirming an earlier report by NHK, the official said, "The three countries are trying to hammer out details, and we will make an announcement when they are confirmed."NHK said earlier Sunday that the meeting, likely to take place sometime in January in Tokyo, will bring together South Korean Vice Foreign Minister Lim Sung-nam, U.S. Deputy Secretary of S
InternationalJan. 3, 2016
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Former opposition leader quits party
Kim Han-gil, a former co-leader of the main opposition party, quit his party Sunday, dealing another blow to the opposition in the disarray following a high-profile departure of its other former co-chairman.Kim co-founded the New Politics Alliance for Democracy (NPAD) in 2014, with Rep. Ahn Cheol-soo, who announced his departure last month. The party changed its name to the Minjoo Party of Korea on Wednesday."I will dedicate myself to creating a new political order from scratch and win the gener
PoliticsJan. 3, 2016
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North may be readying for thermonuclear weapon tests: South Korean military
North Korea may be preparing to test its thermonuclear weapons capabilities at its Punggye-ri nuclear test site, a South Korean military unit responsible for nuclear defense said Sunday.In its report, the South's Chemical, Biological and Radiological (CBR) Defense Command said the North has already laid the groundwork to develop thermonuclear weapons and may already be producing tritium, a radioactive isotope necessary to build more sophisticated nuclear weapons."We can't discount the possibilit
DefenseJan. 3, 2016
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South Korea, Japan pushing for high-level economic talks in Jan.: source
South Korea and Japan are trying to schedule high-level talks to discuss bilateral economic issues and cooperation, a government source here said Sunday.According to the source, the two countries are pushing for their 14th high-level economic consultation in Tokyo in mid-January. The last such meeting took place in Seoul in January 2015.Lee Tae-ho, South Korea's deputy foreign minister for economic affairs, will represent Seoul, while his counterpart will be Yasumasa Nagamine, Tokyo's deputy for
InternationalJan. 3, 2016
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Youth hold rallies protesting 'comfort women' deal
Dozens of young South Koreans took to the streets Saturday to protest a recent agreement between South Korea and Japan to resolve the issue of Korean women forced into sexual slavery for Japanese soldiers during World War II.The agreement, reached on Dec. 28, has sparked a wave of public protests among victims and their supporters, who claim Japan got the better side of the deal by obtaining Seoul's promise to settle the issue once and for all if Tokyo fulfills its commitments.Under the deal, Ja
Social AffairsJan. 2, 2016
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N. Korea's Kim opens sci-tech complex
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un attended the opening ceremony of a science technology complex on the first day of the new year, the North's state media said Saturday.The "Sci-Tech Complex" opened Friday to help spread the latest science and technology developed by the North's ruling Workers' Party, according to the Korean Central News Agency."Going round the interior of the complex, (Kim) said this is a great center for all-people study and one for disseminating latest science and technology in
North KoreaJan. 2, 2016
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U.S. asked N. Korea's chief nuclear envoy to meet S. Korean counterpart after 2012 deal: Clinton email
Shortly after a 2012 nuclear deal with Pyongyang, the United States had asked North Korea's chief nuclear envoy to meet bilaterally with his South Korean counterpart, according to a newly released email of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.Clifford Hart, then U.S. special envoy for six-party talks on North Korea's nuclear program, made the request during a phone call with North Korea's deputy U.N. ambassador Han Song-ryol, days after the two sides reached a food aid-for-denuclearization
North KoreaJan. 2, 2016
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U.N. chief commends Park on Korea-Japan deal of wartime sexual slavery
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Friday South Korea's President Park Geun-hye had made a "courageous decision" to reach a landmark agreement with Japan on resolving the issue of Japan's wartime sexual slavery."History will laud President Park Geun-hye's courageous decision based on her vision," Ban said during his phone call with Park.Ban also said it is a relief that the two countries reached the agreement before the end of 2015, as it marked the 50th anniversary of the establishment of
PoliticsJan. 2, 2016
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First batch of Chinese tourists visit new tour zone in N. Korea
About 300 Chinese tourists have visited a new tourism zone in North Korea's border city of Sinuiju this week for the first time, according to Chinese media reports on Friday, in another push by Pyongyang to boost its tourism sector. North Korea's border city of Sinuiju (Yonhap) The new North Korean tourism zone, jointly developed by the North's Korea Myohyangsan Travel Company and the Dandong International Travel Agency of China, was officially opened for visitors on Dec. 20 last year. Nor
North KoreaJan. 1, 2016
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Park extends words of encouragement to military
Park delivers a video message to the country's 650,000-strong military on New Year's Day. (Yonhap)President Park Geun-hye said Friday she has "full confidence" in the country's military, vowing to provide full support to improve soldiers' mission capabilities. "(I) have full trust in our strong and manly soldiers, and will provide full support for the execution of your mission," Park said in a video message to the country's 650,000-strong military on New Year's Day. "Our military should be r
PoliticsJan. 1, 2016
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N.K. leader vows to improve ties with S. Korea
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un vowed efforts Friday to improve ties with South Korea, saying that he is open to talks with Seoul in an open-minded manner for unification. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un delivers his New Year`s message live on the North`s television on Friday. (Yonhap) In his New Year's message delivered live on the North's television, Kim said North Korea is open to having candid dialogue with the South. He did not mention the North's nuclear weapons program. "We will make
North KoreaJan. 1, 2016
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[Photo News] N.K. leader visits the mortuary of Kim Yang-gon to pay homage
A handout picture provided by North Korea`s state-run Rodong Sinmun newspaper on 31 December 2015 shows North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, touching the body of Kim Yang-gon, a secretary of the ruling Workers` Party of Korea and one of his key aides handling inter-Korean affairs, as he visits the mortuary of Kim to pay homage in Pyongyang, North Korea, 30 December 2015. Kim, one of the two ranking North Korean officials who attended the rare inter-Korean high-level talks in August, died in a car ac
North KoreaJan. 1, 2016
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North Korean leader to deliver New Year’s address in the afternoon
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un plans to deliver his New Year’s address at 12:30 p.m., later than in previous years, Pyongyang's state media said Friday. Kim's New Year’s message will be announced at noon (Pyongyang Time), the North's Korean Central Television said without elaborating. Usually, the North’s leader delivers his message early in the morning on the first day of the new year. It also did not clarify whether Kim will deliver a verbal message. Since 2013, Kim has issued a verbal
North KoreaJan. 1, 2016
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Korean-American group to campaign for 'comfort women' issue's
An organization of Korean Americans in Los Angeles plans to stage a campaign to send emails to California's government in support of new school curriculum guidelines calling for teaching students about Japan's wartime sexual slavery, an official said Thursday. California's Department of Education has been collecting comments from the public on the 2014-2016 Draft History-Social Science Framework that includes the so-called "comfort women" issue in the world history curriculum for grade 10. "
DefenseJan. 1, 2016