Most Popular
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No plan to let doctors with foreign licenses practice here anytime soon: PM
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Science Ministry expresses regret over Japan’s pressure on Naver
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Hostilities get out of hand as YouTuber murders another outside courthouse
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Yoon interacts with public for 1st time since election defeat
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[Weekender] Pet food makers bet big on ‘recession-free’ pet food market
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N. Korea says to deploy new multiple rocket launcher starting this year
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Lee Sun-kyun's posthumuous film to hit theaters in August
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Seoul transit pass for travelers to be available starting July
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State-led adoption system to be established to ensure adoptees' well-being, minimize overseas adoption
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Bithumb to pay W40b taxes for crypto airdrop winners
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Seoul calls for N.K. to accept dialogue offer
South Korea’s pointman on North Korea renewed Thursday his call for Pyongyang to accept Seoul’s offer to have high-level talks, saying that only face-to-face dialogue can resolve a set of pending inter-Korean issues.Earlier last month, South Korea proposed high-level talks with the North for discussions on various pending issues, including reunions of separated families.Following a month-long silence, North Korea said on Sept. 13 that Seoul activists should first stop all anti-Pyongyang hostile
Sept. 25, 2014
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Ceaseless struggle for justice
The following is the 11th and last in a series of articles on Japan’s wartime sexual enslavement of Asian women on the occasion of the 61st anniversary of the foundation of The Korea Herald on Aug. 15. ― Ed.Despite pressing needs and ongoing diplomatic negotiations, prospects for an end to the tragedy of the “comfort women” remain dim in the face of Tokyo’s tenaciously defiant attitude toward wartime history and other hostile political and social circumstances. The two countries have since April
Sept. 24, 2014
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Resolving ‘comfort women’ issue as starting point for end to wartime sexual violence
Seo Hyun-juIn 1941, 15-year-old Kim Bok-dong left her home in Yangsan, South Gyeongsang Province, under pressure from senior village leaders, who had made a sugar-coated proposal about working at a military uniform factory.Her journey ended after five years of tragedy. Kim was first raped by a Japanese army surgeon after arriving in Guangdong province in China via Shimonoseki and Taiwan. After that she was forced into sexual servitude in “comfort stations” run by the Japanese military in such r
Sept. 24, 2014
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Abe skips chance to encounter Park in U.N.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has skipped a U.N. session presided over by South Korean President Park Geun-hye, dashing hopes that the two leaders may meet following Abe's recent offer for a summit. Abe had been expected to attend a climate session on Tuesday, but he did not show up, according to Park's office. Some observers had expected that the two leaders may meet in the U.N. General Assembly. On Friday, Abe proposed to hold a summit with Park in the fall, without elaborating on a
Sept. 24, 2014
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Yun, Kerry discuss N.K. human rights, IS air strikes
The top diplomats of South Korea and the U.S. discussed the dire human rights situation in North Korea, Washington’s military operation against Sunni militants in Syria and other bilateral, regional and global issues in New York, officials said Tuesday. Yun Byung-se and John Kerry met on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly immediately before an unprecedented ministerial gathering hosted by the top U.S. diplomat on Pyongyang’s human rights violations. Among other participants were Japanese
Sept. 23, 2014
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Korea, Iran seek ministerial talks at U.N
The foreign ministers of South Korea and Iran are seeking to hold their first bilateral talks in nearly six years in New York this week in apparent efforts to heal ties dampened by Tehran’s suspected military cooperation with Pyongyang and international sanctions, government sources said Monday. The meeting between Yun Byung-se and Mohammad Javad Zarif is likely to take place Friday on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly, where President Park Geun-hye is scheduled to deliver a speech on W
Sept. 22, 2014
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Saudi Arabia celebrates 84th national day
The following is a congratulatory message from Ambassador of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to Korea Ahmad Y. Al Barrak celebrating the kingdom’s 84th National Day on Sept. 23. ― Ed. The national day anniversary of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia comes at a time when the comprehensive development renaissance, the foundations of which were laid by the kingdom’s founder King Abdulaziz Al Saud, is continuing apace. Building on the intellectual, institutional and management foundations laid by the founding
Sept. 22, 2014
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Korea, Canada to ink free trade agreement soon
OTTAWA (Yonhap) ― South Korea will sign a free trade deal with Canada Monday (early Tuesday, Korean time) following a summit between President Park Geun-hye and Prime Minister Stephen Harper in Ottawa. Seoul officials said. Park arrived in the Canadian capital Saturday for a three-day state visit on a trip that will also take her to New York for the U.N. General Assembly.The two countries concluded a free trade agreement in March after nearly nine years of tough negotiations, a deal Seoul says c
Sept. 21, 2014
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‘Comfort women’ abuses were crimes against humanity
After spending six years as U.N. human rights chief, Navi Pillay strongly urged Japan to investigate “every allegation of sexual slavery” and “prosecute perpetrators” through a rare statement and then again a media interview last month.Her perspective and interest in the issue of the “comfort women” stand out because they demonstrate the international community’s human rights standards and growing demands for Tokyo’s action.In the Aug. 6 statement, Pillay expressed “profound regret that Japan ha
Sept. 21, 2014
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[Herald Interview] Seeking justice for sex slavery victims
The following is the 10th in a series of articles on Japan’s wartime sexual enslavement of Asian women on the occasion of the 61st anniversary of the foundation of The Korea Herald on Aug. 15. ― Ed.In 2007, U.S. lawmaker Mike Honda set a milestone in the issue of Japan’s sexual enslavement of Asian women during World War II by spearheading the adoption of a resolution at the House of Representatives calling for Tokyo’s apology. The resolution played a key role in boosting awareness in the intern
Sept. 21, 2014
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Korean trade ties highlighted on Mexico’s Independence Day
Mexican Ambassador Jose Luis Bernal lauded diplomatic ties between his country and South Korea during a reception celebrating Mexico’s 204th Independence Day in Seoul on Monday.“Our bilateral trade exceeds $15 billion per year. There are more than 1,600 Korean companies in Mexico, the most recent of which is the decision by KIA to establish an automobile production plant which was announced just two weeks ago and which comes to join other big projects of KORES, KEPCO, POSCO, Samsung, LG and many
Sept. 21, 2014
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German envoy lauds preparation as key to fall of Berlin Wall
This year marks the 25th anniversary of the “Peaceful Revolution” that began in the East German cities of Leipzig and Dresden and precipitated the fall of the Berlin Wall, and eventually led to the unification of the country the following year. Commemorating the historic event this year is particularly important for the German Embassy and for the South Korean government. A slew of more than 20 events are planned, including academic seminars, cultural exchanges, visits by VIPs and trade delegatio
Sept. 21, 2014
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EU, Northeast Asian diplomats compare notes on regional security
European diplomats, policymakers and academics and their counterparts from Japan and South Korea hashed out what Northeast Asia should take away from Europe’s nearly 70 years of experience with regional integration and the creation of the EU from out of the ashes of World War II on Thursday and Friday in Seoul.The officials also discussed how regional integration and community-building can ensure peace and security in Northeast Asia, as it has in Europe.Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se hosted EU Am
Sept. 21, 2014
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Paraguay eyes Korean investment
South Korean investment in South America has mostly poured into countries such as Chile, Peru and Colombia, three important commercial partners with which East Asia’s third-largest economy also has free trade agreements. But recent changes in Paraguay, a rural, landlocked country that borders Argentina and Brazil, could very well redirect the investment attention of Korea Inc. “My aim here is to start a continuous process of putting Panama on the map for investment,” said Gustavo Leite, Paraguay
Sept. 21, 2014
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Seoul-based group promotes ‘shared histories’ in East Asia
As compared to the success of the European Union in fashioning a European identity, East Asian community building has proved frustratingly elusive for regional organizers.In anticipation of the launch of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC 2015) late next year, advocates for a regional identity for “East Asia” are redoubling their efforts.In one such endeavor, the Seoul-based Asia-Pacific Center of Education for International Understanding led an intercultural dialogue exploring shared histories d
Sept. 21, 2014
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Free press crucial for continued development in Vietnam
Press freedom is crucial for development, said Vietnamese Ambassador to South Korea Pham Huu Chi during a lecture organized by the Asia Society Korea Center at the ASEAN-Korea Center in Seoul on Tuesday.Pham described how his country dramatically decreased the poverty rate and achieved many United Nations Millennium Development Goals in just two decades. But he cautioned that continued development would depend on a free press. Vietnam has long been criticized for having a poor record on press fr
Sept. 21, 2014
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Park: S. Korea to sign free trade deal with Canada
South Korea will sign a free trade deal with Canada next week, President Park Geun-hye said Saturday, as she arrived in Ottawa for a three-day state visit on a trip that will also take her to New York for the U.N. General Assembly.The two countries concluded a free trade agreement in March after nearly nine years of tough negotiations, a deal Seoul says could benefit South Korea's automobile industries, among other industries."The free trade deal will serve as an important occasion" to take bila
Sept. 21, 2014
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Ex-Japan leader conveys Abe’s message to Park
A former Japanese leader conveyed Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s message to President Park Geun-hye on Friday, an official said, a move that may pave the way for a potential summit between the two neighbors.Former Japanese Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori delivered the message to Park during their meeting in the presidential office in Seoul, the official said, though details of the message were not immediately available.The message came as South Korea and Japan are seeking to repair bilateral relations
Sept. 19, 2014
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President Park to meet former Japanese leader
South Korean President Park Geun-hye plans to meet with a former Japanese prime minister later this week, an official said Thursday, amid a recent thaw in relations between the two neighbors.Park is set to meet with former Japanese Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori on Friday, presidential spokesman Min Kyung-wook said, a move that’s widely seen as a potential stepping stone for a summit between Park and her Japanese counterpart, Shinzo Abe.Mori, who is due to arrive in Seoul to attend Friday’s opening
Sept. 18, 2014
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S. Korea, Turkey initial FTA in service, investment sectors
South Korea and Turkey initialed a free trade agreement (FTA) for their investment and service sectors Thursday, which will complement a trade pact for products that went into effect last year.The new South Korea-Turkey FTA on service and investment will soon undergo reviews by each side after it is translated into their languages, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy."The two countries have agreed to officially sign the agreement in early 2015, and they plan to work for its i
Sept. 18, 2014