Amid escalated tensions between the US and Iran, experts are mixed on how the situation in the Middle East will impact Washington’s military standoff with Pyongyang.  　North Korea’s state-run Korea Central News Agency on Monday ran its first report on the recent US killing of Qassem Soleimani, Iran’s top military general, four days after the incident. 　It said Soleimani was killed in a US missile attack in an airfield in Baghdad and quoted a phone conversation between Chin

Foreign Affairs Jan. 6, 2020

Seoul officials said Sunday they were cautiously watching escalating tensions between the US and Iran and staying vigilant about the possible repercussions here. 　　The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has launched a task force to evaluate the current situation in the Middle East and to discuss measures to protect Koreans living in the area, the officials said. 　On Friday, the US confirmed that President Donald Trump had ordered the airstrike that killed Qassem Soleimani -- the head of Iran’s el

Foreign Affairs Jan. 5, 2020

Cambodia has confirmed the shutdown of seven North Korean businesses in the country, including a museum near the Angkor Wat temple in Siem Reap, to comply with UN-led sanctions.According to Japan’s Kyodo News last week, which cited Cambodian government officials, Angkor Panorama Museum recently halted operations, along with six North Korean restaurants. Established in 2015 by the hermit state with a $24 million investment, the museum had been staffed by North Koreans. The closures add to a

North Korea Jan. 5, 2020

While allies paid keen attention to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s warning about a “new strategic weapon,” officials in Seoul had one more concern -- the absence of South Korea from Kim’s lengthy remarks on the communist state’s policy direction. On Wednesday, instead of delivering his traditional New Year’s address, the North Korean leader announced the results of a four-day plenary session of ruling party officials. In his 18,000-word address, report

North Korea Jan. 2, 2020

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on Wednesday declared the regime will continue to develop its nuclear program and debut a new “strategic weapon” in the near future, if the US does not end its economic sanctions. 　His remarks -- during an unexpectedly long four-day meeting of ruling party officials, reported by the state-run Korea Central News Agency -- signals the country plans to revert to its prior “byungjin” policy of simultaneously developing nuclear capabilities alon

North Korea Jan. 1, 2020

It was another whirlwind year for US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. 　They met twice this year, grabbing global headlines with their friendly handshakes in Hanoi, Vietnam, and a dramatic turn of events, as Trump “walked way” proclaiming a collapse of their talks. This was followed months later by photo ops of the US president crossing the border at the Demilitarized Zone in Pannumjom to meet Kim. 　Despite all the drama and “Trump-Kim chemistry,&rdquo

North Korea Dec. 30, 2019

Expressing regret over stalled inter-Korean relations, South Korean Unification Minister Kim Yeon-chul stressed the need to seek “modus vivendi,” or a tentative deal, as a solution to break the impasse in the nuclear negotiations between the US and North Korea. “With North Korea’s looming deadline for negotiations, the situation on the Korean Peninsula hereafter is very uncertain. Concerned countries share the severity of the circumstances, and are undertaking variou

North Korea Dec. 27, 2019

South Korea and Japan have revived top-level dialogue, but it will take a while for the squabbling neighbors to make substantive progress toward resolving the core issues, experts said Wednesday.  South Korean President Moon Jae-in and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe held a summit, their first formal talks in 15 months, on the sidelines of the South Korea-China-Japan trilateral summit in the southwestern Chinese city of Chengdu.   No breakthroughs were made, but the two ag

Foreign Affairs Dec. 25, 2019

South Korea’s Constitutional Court is to rule Friday on the constitutionality of the controversial 2015 agreement between Korea and Japan regarding Korean women who were forced to work in Japan’s military brothels during World War II. The now-botched deal, which was meant to “finally and irreversibly” resolve the issue, is one of several reasons behind the two neighbors’ soured relations, with Seoul declaring it critically flawed and Tokyo blaming Seoul for bre

Foreign Affairs Dec. 24, 2019

To say the least, the year 2019 was a tumultuous one. Ups and downs, tears of joy and sorrow dominated the headlines. 　Here are some of the major stories that dominated K-pop news. 　1. Plight of YG Entertainment　At the beginning of the year, it seemed like K-pop powerhouse YG Entertainment would have a solid 2019. YG’s girl group Blackpink was enjoying growing popularity around the world, while the label’s crown jewel Big Bang was gearing up for a possible comeback when all the

K-pop Dec. 22, 2019

The fourth season of BTS’ travel show “Bon Voyage” was unveiled on Tuesday evening, with the seven bandmates seen preparing for their trip to New Zealand.In the first episode, released exclusively via Weverse, the members got together at a Chinese restaurant in August, to brainstorm and prepare for the trip that took place in September. The members were supposed to do some research on New Zealand before the meeting. They discussed what they wanted to do there while eating

K-pop Nov. 20, 2019

Following the release of new EP “Call My Name” on the previous day, GOT7 returned to Twitter’s Blueroom on Tuesday afternoon for a live broadcast to chat with their fans.The seven members, all dressed in black except for JB who wore a brown sweater, were excited to return to the music scene. It’s been six months since it dropped “Spinning Top: Between Security & Insecurity” in May.  Kicking off the broadcast by streaming its latest music video &l

K-pop Nov. 6, 2019

It ended where it started. BTS on Tuesday staged the grand finale of its “Love Yourself” series in Seoul, wrapping up a yearlong world tour that kicked off in the capital of band’s home country. Tuesday’s show at Seoul’s Olympic Stadium was the last of three sold-out shows of BTS’ “Love Yourself: Speak Yourself” stadium tour, an extension of “Love Yourself,” which kicked off in August on the same stage last year. When BTS

K-pop Oct. 30, 2019

BTS’ “Love Yourself: Speak Yourself” world tour has come to an end with the grand finale in Seoul on Tuesday. Starting from sunny California, the colossal stadium tour took the septet to ten cities across the US, Brazil, the UK, France, Japan, Saudi Arabia and finally to the band’s home ground of Korea from May to October. With the latest concert series, BTS broke records at each of the venues, selling out tickets at breakneck pace. It only took 2 1/2 hours

K-pop Oct. 25, 2019

TXT, the rookie band from BTS agency Big Hit Entertainment, on Monday returned to the music scene with the group’s first full-length album, “The Dream Chapter: Magic.”The new album arrives seven months since the five-piece act -- leader Soobin, Yeonjun, Beomgyu, Taehyun and Huening Kai -- made a much-anticipated debut in March with EP “The Dream Chapter: Star.” The new eight-track album is led by “Run Away,” a synth-pop tune that highlights its brig

K-pop Oct. 21, 2019