Most Popular
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Marine Corps commander summoned by CIO for questioning on alleged influence-peddling case
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Debate rages over ‘overly fatty’ samgyeopsal
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[Weekender] Korean psyche untangled: Musok
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40 flights canceled on Jeju Island due to bad weather
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[Eye Interview] 'If you live to 100, you might as well be happy,' says 88-year-old bestselling essayist
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N. Korea slams US, other countries for seeking alternative to UN sanctions monitoring panel
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Pandemic left Korea more depressed than before: report
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From fake prostitution ring to nonexistent robber, prank calls hamper police
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Missing S. Korean traveler in Paris found safe after 2 weeks
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Defense chiefs of US, Australia, Japan decry NK-Russia military cooperation
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Seoul calls on N.K. to explain its stance on denuclearization
South Korea’s Defense Ministry said Monday it has responded to North Korea’s latest offer for military talks by calling on Pyongyang to make its stance on denuclearization clear. The government also said denuclearization steps should be a top priority in any inter-Korean dialogue.Seoul earlier referred to Pyongyang’s calls to hold a working-level meeting with South Korea in late May or early June in preparation for military talks as a proposal without sincerity and a propaganda ploy.“We expresse
May 23, 2016
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S. Korea calls for N.K. to give up nukes in response to dialogue offer
South Korea's defense ministry said Monday it has responded to North Korea's latest offer for military talks by saying that the North's denuclearization steps should be a top priority.The government said it sent its reply to Pyongyang earlier in the day as North Korea on Saturday proposed holding a working-level meeting with South Korea in late May or early June in preparation for military talks. Seoul has rejected it as a proposal without sincerity."We expressed regret that North Korea had prop
May 23, 2016
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N.K. holds state funeral of top diplomat Kang Sok-ju
North Korea held a state funeral for Kang Sok-ju, a top North Korean diplomat who had negotiated the now-collapsed 1994 nuclear deal with the United States, the North's state media said Monday.On Sunday, the North carried out the funeral of Kang, a former party secretary in charge of international affairs, who died of esophagus cancer at the age of 77, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA)."The death of Kang Sok-ju, genuine revolutionary and able political activist, was a great loss
May 23, 2016
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Top N. Korean diplomat Kang Sok-ju dies of cancer: state media
Kang Sok-ju, a top North Korean diplomat who negotiated a now-defunct 1994 nuclear deal with the United States, has died, Pyongyang’s state media reported Saturday. Kang, a Workers’ Party secretary in charge of international affairs, died of esophagus cancer at 4:10 p.m. on Friday at age 76, the Korean Central Broadcasting Station reported.Kang has long been a top foreign policy brain of the North and negotiated the Agreed Framework deal with the U.S. that defused the 1994 nuclear crisis.The dea
May 22, 2016
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N.K.’s talks offer presents dilemma
South Korea on Saturday immediately snubbed North Korea’s proposal to hold an inter-Korea working-level military meeting, but with a bitter aftertaste.Observers here said Pyongyang is likely to continue sending overtures for talks as it faces tough sanctions by the international community against its nuclear programs, in a strategic attempt to shift the blame over to Seoul for the protracting standoff.Pyongyang, on the coattails of holding its first ruling party congress in 36 years, had called
May 22, 2016
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N.K. proposes working-level meeting for military talks with Seoul
North Korea on Saturday proposed holding a working-level meeting with South Korea in late May or early June in preparation for military talks that can diffuse tension on the Korean Peninsula.Pyongyang's charm offensive toward Seoul came one day after it called on South Korea to immediately accept its latest proposal for inter-Korean dialogue made by the North's leader Kim Jong-un at the country's recently concluded ruling party congress."We propose to hold working-level contact for opening (the
May 22, 2016
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N. Korea pushes S. Korea to accept its dialogue proposal
North Korea again urged South Korea to accept its proposal for military talks Saturday in its latest charm offensive toward Seoul. In a statement carried by the North's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), a ranking official from the country's ruling Workers' Party called on the Seoul government to accept the dialogue proposal made by North Korean leader Kim Jong-un at the recently concluded party congress. "If South Korea is willing to improve its relations with the North, it should
May 21, 2016
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Top N. Korean diplomat Kang Sok-ju dies of cancer: state media
Kang Sok-ju, a top North Korean diplomat who negotiated a now-defunct 1994 nuclear deal with the United States, has died, Pyongyang's state media reported Saturday. Kang, a Workers' Party secretary in charge of international affairs, died of esophagus cancer at 4:10 p.m. on Friday at age 76, the Korean Central Broadcasting Station reported. Kang has long been a top foreign policy brain of the North and negotiated the Agreed Framework deal with the U.S. that defused the 1994 nuclear crisis.
May 21, 2016
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N.K. urges S. Korea to immediately accept its offer for military talks
North Korea urged South Korea Friday to accept its offer to hold military talks in its latest charm offensive toward Seoul after spiking tensions with its missile and nuclear weapons program.North Korea's National Defense Commission (NDC) called on South Korea to immediately accept the dialogue proposal made by the North's leader Kim Jong-un at the country's recently-concluded party congress."South Korea should respond to our proposal for the talks without delay in a bid to end the two Koreas' a
May 20, 2016
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S. Korean civic group officials meet with N. Koreans without gov't approval
Officials from a South Korean civic group met their North Korean counterparts in Shenyang Friday to discuss how to hold a joint summit anniversary event despite Seoul's opposition, the group said.The South's group held a meeting with North Koreans in China earlier in the day to discuss inter-Korean exchanges and the preparation of a possible joint event to mark the historic inter-Korean summit in 2000.Seoul's unification ministry earlier rejected the group's request for approval of its plan to m
May 20, 2016
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Russia joins banking sanctions against N.K.
Russia’s central bank has directed local institutions to halt financial transactions with North Korea, marking the latest in a string of countries joining the global sanctions push, a news report said Friday. The central bank on Thursday circulated U.N. Security Council Resolution 2270 imposed in March, following Pyongyang’s nuclear and missile tests earlier this year, noting that the local banks can engage in wire transfers or other dealings with the North only upon U.N. approval, Radio Free As
May 20, 2016
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Seoul's top diplomat vows efforts to lead global pressure on Pyongyang
South Korea will lead the international community in putting pressure on North Korea to give up its nuclear ambitions, the country's top diplomat said Friday."A perception has taken hold in the international community that sanctions and pressure of a different kind compared to the past should be applied to get the North to change and seek denuclearization," Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se said in a speech at a forum."In the last couple of days, Switzerland the European Union took their own sanctio
May 20, 2016
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Seoul urges N.K. to give up nukes, missiles amid Gaeseong zone shutdown
South Korea on Friday called on North Korea to end its nuclear and missile programs as Seoul marked the 100th day since shutting down the joint industrial complex in the communist country.Seoul shut down the Gaeseong Industrial Complex in the North's border city of the same name on Feb. 10 in response to Pyongyang's January nuclear test and long-range rocket launch in February.The decision came amid concerns that money generated from the factory zone is bankrolling the North's nuclear and missil
May 20, 2016
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Russia joins U.N.-led sanctions on N. Korea: media report
Russia has joined other countries in imposing sanctions on North Korea in line with the United Nations' push to punish Pyongyang for its nuclear test and other provocative acts this year, a Washington-based media outlet said Friday.Radio Free Asia said in a report posted on its website that Russia's central bank recently ordered other local banks and financial institutions to halt transactions with North Korea.The central bank also said that transactions of bonds held by North Korean individuals
May 20, 2016
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S. Korea to hold expo on unification next week
South Korea said Thursday it will hold an exhibition on unification next week, hoping that the event can help raise awareness about inter-Korean unification amid frayed Seoul-Pyongyang ties.The exhibition on unification will run from next Friday to next Sunday at Gwanghwamun Plaza and a park near the government complex and will involve 141 organizations including local governments, civic groups and media companies, according to the Ministry of Unification.The event will be the second of its kind
May 19, 2016
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N. Korea waging nonsmoking campaign as Kim Jong-un not seen smoking in 2 months
North Korea has actively launched a nonsmoking campaign and even set up research stations across the country to get people to stop smoking, according to North Korean media reports.In a report picked up in Seoul, the North's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said non-smoking research stations have been established in provincial capitals and major cities and are in close touch with the Pyongyang-based Non-smoking Research Center.Their action programs include counseling for smokers and off
May 19, 2016
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Switzerland joins toughened global sanctions on N. Korea
Switzerland has joined the United Nations-led efforts to impose toughened sanctions on North Korea for its nuclear test and other provocative actions earlier this year, a U.S.-based media outlet said Thursday.Radio Free Asia (RFA) said in a report posted on its website that the sanctions, which also included halting financial transactions related to the North, were enforced by the Swiss federal government as of 6 p.m. on Wednesday local time. The move is in tandem with the toughened United Natio
May 19, 2016
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N.K. leader calls for factory's modernization by party's founding anniversary
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has called on a factory to modernize the process of producing machines by the founding anniversary of the ruling party in October, the North's state media said Thursday.Kim's remarks were made while inspecting a machine manufacturing plant in North Pyongan Province. The visit marks the third time he made an on-site inspection after the country concluded its key party congress on May 9.Pyongyang used the four daylong event to help strengthen Kim's heavy-handed rule
May 19, 2016
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U.S. says N. Korea should first demonstrate denuclearization commitment before talks
The United States is prepared to engage with North Korea if Pyongyang demonstrates its denuclearization commitment, the White House said Wednesday, after Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump expressed his willingness to speak to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un."The United States has worked effectively with the international community, including countries like Russia and China, to isolate North Korea because of their failure to abide by their international obligations when it comes to t
May 19, 2016
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Now is the time to focus on pressuring N.K. with sanctions: unification minister
SEOUL, May 18 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's point man on unification said Wednesday that now is the time to focus on punishing North Korea with sanctions for its nuclear and missile provocations amid the possibility of the North's fifth nuclear test.Unification Minister Hong Yong-pyo told a forum that seeking dialogue with Pyongyang is needed down the road, but it is also not a panacea.“Dialogue is necessary, but it is not a cure-all,” Hong said.“There is the need to prod North Korea into changing i
May 18, 2016