Most Popular
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Key S. Korean, USFK special operations officials to hold rare meeting amid NK threats
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Jennie, Stray Kids's Met Gala attendance puts them on 'digital guillotine' blacklist
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Controversy brews over shakeup of prosecutors amid probe of first lady
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OpenAI gives ChatGPT new powers to see, hear
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Another suspect behind murder of Korean tourist in Pattaya arrested in Cambodia
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S. Korea to inject $70m into AI-powered public education
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[KH Explains] Naver’s Line dilemma: Lose global footing for cash?
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Korean industries gauge impact of Biden's steep tariffs on China
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[Herald Interview] Carbon breakthrough in Korea: Making diamonds at atmospheric pressure
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Do Korean doctors make too much money?
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Pyongyang official on Seoul likely doubling as spy agency head
A new North Korean official handling inter-Korean affairs is believed to be continuing his previous role as leader of the North's reconnaissance bureau, an organ similar to Seoul's spy agency, sources said Thursday.Gen. Kim Yong-chol has been appointed as the party secretary handling inter-Korean affairs, also doubling as the head of the United Front Department at the ruling party, following the death of his predecessor, Kim Yang-gon.Kim also appears to hold his original position as the North's
March 31, 2016
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N. Korea key topic for Obama-Xi summit: White House
North Korea will be a key topic when U.S. President Barack Obama holds a summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping this week, the White House said Wednesday."There obviously are a wide range of issues that the United States and China are able to effectively coordinate on," White House press secretary Josh Earnest said. "The best example of that recently is that, you know, our efforts to work together to isolate and apply further pressure on the North Korean regime for their destabilizing activiti
March 31, 2016
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Only sanctions can lead to change in N. Korea‘s nuclear calculus
Only sanctions can lead to a change in North Korea's nuclear calculus, the U.S. treasury secretary said Wednesday, calling for stringent implementation of the latest package of U.N. Security Council sanctions.Secretary Jack Lew made the remark during a discussion at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, saying the U.S. is working closely with China and others to carry out the new sanctions that are considered the toughest ever to be imposed on Pyongyang."We are mindful, though, that No
March 31, 2016
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Seoul, Iran officials to meet over economy, Pyongyang
South Korea and Iran will hold working-level talks in Tehran next week to discuss their economic ties and the implementation of international sanctions against North Korea, a government official said Wednesday.The fourth round of director-general level talks between the two countries will take place next Wednesday as South Korea pushes to capitalize on new business opportunities that have arisen after the lifting of international sanctions on Tehran.The meeting will also touch on issues related
March 30, 2016
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NK‘s provocation, war rhetoric aim to elicit internal solidarity
South Korea said Wednesday that North Korea's latest provocations and bellicose rhetoric appear to aim to elicit stronger internal solidarity ahead of the North's key party event slated for May.North Korea fired off several short-range and ballistic missiles this month in an apparent show of defiance against tougher U.N. sanctions over the North's January nuclear test and long-range rocket launch. It has also threatened to make a pre-emptive strike against Seoul and Washington.The Ministry of Un
March 30, 2016
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Seoul sees slim chance Pyongyang nuke test can trigger volcanic eruption
South Korea sees a slim chance that additional North Korean nuclear tests would trigger a volcanic eruption of Mount Paekdu, a North Korean mountain situated close to the country's underground atomic test site, government sources said Wednesday.Seoul's assessment came amid speculation that North Korea may conduct another nuclear test soon in defiance of stronger U.N. sanctions over the North's latest nuke and missile provocations.The government has recently held a series of seminars to study the
March 30, 2016
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N. Korea may be trying to develop new medium-range solid-fuel missile
North Korea's recent test of a solid-fuel rocket engine suggests that the communist nation may be trying to develop a new two-stage missile similar to its Rodong medium-range ballistic missile, a U.S. expert said Tuesday.The North claimed last week that the country successfully conducted a ground test of a solid-fuel rocket engine, with leader Kim Jong-un saying that the test "helped boost the power of ballistic rockets capable of mercilessly striking hostile forces."The North also released phot
March 30, 2016
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U.S. urges N. Korea to tone down rhetoric
The United States urged North Korea on Tuesday to tone down its bellicose rhetoric after Pyongyang's top diplomat threatened the communist nation is ready to launch a preemptive nuclear strike against the U.S.Foreign Minister Ri Su-yong made the threat in an interview with Russia's Itar-Tass news agency published on Monday, saying the country "placed its army into the state of its readiness to deliver a preemptive nuclear strike in response to the U.S. hostile activities."It was the latest in a
March 30, 2016
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Pressuring N. Korea to top Obama‘s trilateral summit with Park, Abe
Pressuring North Korea with sanctions will be the No. 1 topic for a trilateral summit that U.S.President Barack Obama is scheduled to hold with South Korean President Park Geun-hye and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe this week, a top American diplomat said Tuesday.The three leaders are scheduled to hold the three-way meeting Thursday on the sidelines of the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington. The meeting comes as Pyongyang has been ratcheting up tensions with threats of attacks, claims of
March 30, 2016
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North Korea fires short-range missile into East Sea
North Korea on Tuesday fired a short-range missile into the East Sea in another show of force, the South’s military said. The projectile took off at around 5:40 p.m. from the eastern coastal city of Wonsan and flew some 200 kilometers toward the northeastern inland areas, the Joint Chiefs of Staff said. A picture released by North Korea’s main newspaper Rodong Shinmun on March 11, claiming the short-range ballistic missile launch test. (Yonhap) “Our military maintains tight readiness posture wh
March 29, 2016
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Park to coordinate N.K. squeeze at nuclear summit
President Park Geun-hye is leaving for Washington on Wednesday to attend the Nuclear Security Summit, where she will also hold a series of talks with leaders of the U.S., China and Japan to coordinate their steps on North Korea in the wake of its new nuclear and missile tests. Park will meet separately with U.S. President Barack Obama, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Thursday, Cheong Wa Dae said Tuesday. Her schedule also includes a separate trilateral sess
March 29, 2016
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Pyongyang clamping down on people making phone calls with South Koreans
North Korea has been intensifying a "sting operation" to arrest people making contact with South Koreans using mobile phones, especially in border areas near China, sources said Tuesday.Sources familiar with North Korean affairs said that nearly 10 people have been arrested by security forces since the start of the ongoing 70-day campaign to encourage its people to work harder as the ruling Workers' Party gets ready to host its first congress since 1980.The event is expected to allow North Korea
March 29, 2016
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Seoul journalists urged to use caution at China-Pyongyang border
South Korea urged its journalists Tuesday to exercise special caution when reporting near the Chinese border with North Korea amid heightened tensions following the North's nuclear and missile tests, a diplomatic source said.The government sent a letter to local news organizations, urging reporters in the area to pay special attention to their safety and follow Chinese laws, the source said on condition of anonymity.The warning comes after South Korea received intelligence of a possible North Ko
March 29, 2016
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U.N. sanctions to halve N. Korean exports
The latest wave of U.N. sanctions on North Korea following its banned weapons tests may nearly halve the impoverished state's mineral exports, clouding its economy heavily dependent on China, a report showed Tuesday. The U.N. Security Council imposed a raft of tougher sanctions on Pyongyang earlier this month to punish it for the Jan. 6 nuclear test and Feb. 7 launch of a long-range rocket, both of which violated previous U.N. resolutions.The sanctions, agreed upon by Washington and Beijing, inc
March 29, 2016
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Pyongyang uses nuclear development as deterrence
North Korea's push to develop nuclear arms is part of its struggle to establish deterrence against the United States rather than a scheme to launch a preemptive strike on the continental U.S., a prominent American expert said Monday.David Albright, head of the U.S-based non-governmental Institute for Science and International Security, said that the communist regime has been utilizing the process of developing atomic bombs to ensure its deterrence.He made the remarks during his speech on the sta
March 29, 2016
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N. Korea increases drone sorties along western border
North Korea's military has sharply increased drone sorties along the western part of its border with South Korea, a government official said Tuesday."Drone activity has increased sharply around the western part of the frontline as of late," the official said, asking not to be identified. "There is a brisk pace of take-off and landing exercises involving various types of small and bigger-than-medium-size unmanned aerial vehicles," the official noted. Roughly seven or eight drone missions are bein
March 29, 2016
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Pyongyang kicks off preparations for May party congress
North Korea has begun preparations for the ruling party's congress slated for May, picking candidates for provincial delegates, a source said Tuesday.The Workers' Party of Korea plans to hold its first party congress in 36 years in May, where North Korean leader Kim Jong-un will likely unveil new lines of policies. Seoul's spy agency said that the event is expected to be held on May 7.A source familiar with North Korean affairs said the country started the process to select candidates for delega
March 29, 2016
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Park calls for thorough deterrence against North Korea
President Park Geun-hye on Monday called for airtight defense readiness and “dominant” deterrence against North Korea as the communist neighbor ramped up its threats. In a message to the military, she cheered the soldiers for having maintained “airtight” readiness since Pyongyang’s new nuclear and missile tests early this year, which would make the North “afraid.” “We’re under a graver security situation than ever, but the crisis can become a fresh opportunity depending on how we respond. Now we
March 28, 2016
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Banning distribution of propaganda leaflets to N.K. legal: top court
The Supreme Court said Monday it is legal for the government to ban distribution of propaganda leaflets to North Korea for the sake of preventing retaliatory provocation from across the border.The ruling came after Lee Man-bok, 59, a North Korean defector, filed for compensation against the state, citing “emotional distress” after the government stopped him from dispatching such leaflets.Lee, who defected in 1991, has been working as a missionary and was the first person in South Korea to send a
March 28, 2016
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Kim Jong-un visits commercial area accompanied by wife, sister
North Korea's Kim Jong-un has visited a newly built commercial district and health complex, the North's official news agency reported Monday, in what appears to be a move to show that the leader cares about the livelihoods of ordinary people.According to a report by the Korean Central News Agency, Kim called on officials and employees at the Mirae Shop and a health complex to give good service to customers. The health complex contains bathrooms, a barber's shop, a beauty salon and other faciliti
March 28, 2016