S. Korea's F-35As make official debut on Armed Forces Day

South Korea showcased its F-35A stealth fighters to the public for the first time during the Armed Forces Day ceremony Tuesday to officially mark the introduction of the radar-evading high-tech fighters that North Korea has angrily protested.  South Korea has so far brought in eight F-35As, beginning with two in late March, under a plan to deploy 40 fifth-generation jets through 2021. But it has handled their arrivals in a low-key manner, sparking speculation Seoul is concerned about r

DefenseOct. 1, 2019

US e-scooter firm Lime taps S. Korea this week

US electric scooter company Lime said Tuesday it will begin e-scooter sharing services in South Korea on Friday to capture burgeoning demand for urban mobility solutions. South Korea will be the first Asian market where Lime will introduce its e-scooter sharing platform, Lime Korea said in a statement."We are extremely excited to finally start Lime's e-scooter service in Korea, a dynamic market with significant demand for increasing micro mobility," Mitchell Price, Lime's Asia Pacific

IndustryOct. 1, 2019

Suspected ASF case south of Seoul tested negative

South Korea's agricultural ministry said Tuesday a new suspected case of African swine fever reported south of Seoul a day earlier was negative, easing concerns over a possible nationwide spread of the fatal animal disease.The suspected case was in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province, about 42 kilometers south of the capital, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. It would have been the first ASF case to occur south of Seoul, if it tested positive. So far, all confirmed cases

Social AffairsOct. 1, 2019

NK ambassador urges US to come to nuclear talks with new proposal

North Korea's ambassador to the United Nations urged the United States Monday to come to denuclearization negotiations with a new proposal acceptable to Pyongyang.In an address to the UN General Assembly in New York, Ambassador Kim Song said it is up to Washington to turn any future negotiations into a "window of opportunity" or "an occasion that will hasten the crisis."His remarks come as Washington and Pyongyang are expected to resume working-level talks in the coming weeks

North KoreaOct. 1, 2019

Netflix announces fourth season of hit show 'Stranger Things'

NEW YORK (AFP) -- Netflix announced Monday a fourth season of retro sci-fi show "Stranger Things," the site's most successful original production, as it bids to fend off intense competition from other streaming platforms.The video subscription service added that it had entered into a multi-year deal with the hit series' creators, Matt and Ross Duffer, to work on unspecified film and series projects."Stranger Things," a nostalgic 1980s drama about a gang of suburban adolescent

TelevisionOct. 1, 2019

China celebrates 70 years as Hong Kong unrest looms large

BEIJING (AFP) -- China celebrates 70 years of Communist Party supremacy Tuesday with a parade of tanks, missiles and troops, a muscular display of its rising superpower status even as it faces an unprecedented challenge to its authority in seething Hong Kong.Authorities in Beijing have closed roads, banned the flying of kites, and shut some bars as they tightened security for an event celebrating China's journey from a country broken by war and poverty to being the world's second-largest economy

World NewsOct. 1, 2019

Australian PM confirms Trump asked for help investigating Mueller probe

WASHINGTON (AFP) -- Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has confirmed that US President Donald Trump asked him to help gather information for an inquiry into Robert Mueller's investigation of Russian meddling in the 2016 election.The New York Times, citing two unidentified US officials, earlier reported the request to assist in the investigation -- which aims to discredit the Russia probe -- was made during a recent telephone call between Trump and Morrison.An Australian government spokesma

World NewsOct. 1, 2019

S. Korea logs first drop in inflation in September

South Korea's headline inflation dropped for the first time in September due to declines in prices of agricultural products and stabilizing petroleum prices, the statistics agency said Tuesday.South Korea's consumer prices fell 0.4 percent in September from a year earlier, marking the first on-year drop in inflation since Statistics Korea began compiling related data in 1965. The statistics agency said the record low consumer prices are blamed on a fall in prices of agricultural products, stabil

EconomyOct. 1, 2019

Korea's exports down for 10th month on trade rows, chips

South Korea's exports sank 11.7 percent in September from a year earlier, extending their slump to a 10th consecutive month, data showed Tuesday, hurt by still weak prices of semiconductors and the yearlong trade row between the United States and China. Outbound shipments reached $44.7 billion last month, compared with the $50.6 billion tallied a year earlier, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.Imports fell 5.6 percent on-year last month to $38.7 billion

EconomyOct. 1, 2019

US rules out redeployment of nukes to S. Korea

A senior US defense official on Monday ruled out the possibility of redeploying nuclear weapons to South Korea to counter North Korea's nuclear threat.Undersecretary of Defense for Policy John Rood made the remark at a forum in Washington as conservative groups in South Korea have renewed calls for the country's own nuclear armament. "We have no current plans to return nuclear weapons to the Korean Peninsula, those that were withdrawn a couple of decades ago, and that's not under discussion

DefenseOct. 1, 2019

Unleashed from Trump, Bolton says N. Korea still seeks nukes

WASHINGTON (AFP) -- John Bolton warned Monday that North Korea had not truly chosen to give up nuclear weapons in the hawk's first public appearance since he left as President Donald Trump's national security advisor.At a think-tank conference on North Korea, Bolton said he could now "speak in unvarnished terms" about the "grave threat" posed by the regime of Kim Jong-un, who has courted Trump."It seems to be clear that the DPRK has not made a strategic decision to give

North KoreaOct. 1, 2019

Kim vows to 'always stand by' China in message to Xi

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un vowed to "always stand by" China in a message sent to President Xi Jinping on the occasion of China's founding anniversary, Pyongyang's state media said Tuesday."Our party, government and people fully support the Chinese party, government and people in their struggle to defend the stability and the core interests of the country and achieve sustained development, and will always stand by them on the path of defending and glorifying socialism," K

North KoreaOct. 1, 2019

International lawyers urge Seoul to repatriate N. Korean waitresses

A committee of international lawyers has concluded that a dozen North Korean restaurant workers who arrived in South Korea in April 2016 were victims of an abduction, and called for their repatriation to Pyongyang.The fact-finding committee on Monday released the final report on its probe into the high-profile “mass defection” case after conducting investigations in both Koreas. The committee, formed in May, comprises International Association of Democratic Lawyers’ repres

North KoreaSept. 30, 2019

S. Korean parliament adopts resolution against use of imperial

South Korea's National Assembly adopted a resolution Monday urging Japan to ban the use of its imperial-era flag during the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. The statement calls on the Tokyo Organizing Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games to ban spectators from carrying the Rising Sun Flag or wearing uniforms that feature its image at the Games. Koreans view the flag as a symbol of Japan's militarism in the first half of the 20th century.The resolution, approved in a 196-3 vote, also calls on t

PoliticsSept. 30, 2019

Another suspected African swine fever case reported in

Another suspected case of African swine fever was reported south of Seoul on Monday, amid continued quarantine efforts to contain the spread of the virus.  The report was made in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province, about 42.5 kilometers south of the capital. If confirmed, it will be the tenth case since Sept. 17, when the country's first-ever outbreak of African swine fever was confirmed, and will be the first to occur south of Seoul. The test result is expected to be released early Tuesday. 

Social AffairsSept. 30, 2019

[Graphic News] Rights abuses at military barracks on rise over past 5 years: data

　The number of violations of rights cases involving soldiers has been on a steady increase over the past five years, according to government data.　A total of 253 complaints were filed by service personnel with the National Human Rights Commission last year, up from 153 in 2015 and 199 in 2016, though down from 278 in 2017, showed data compiled by the commission and released by Rep. Choi Jae-sung of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea.　As of end-July, 367 such cases had been reported for 2019, i

DefenseSept. 30, 2019

MAMA stirs controversy with decision to hold this year's event in Japan

CJ ENM is generating a bit of controversy over its choice of Japan as the sole destination for this year's Mnet Asian Music Awards despite unprecedented trade and diplomatic rows between Seoul and Tokyo.A week earlier, the media and entertainment unit of the conglomerate CJ unveiled Nagoya as the city to host the biggest K-pop award event in Asia, set for Dec. 4 at the 30,000-seat Nagoya Dome.This marks the third year in a row a Japanese city will be hosting MAMA after CJ held the award show as

PerformanceSept. 30, 2019

[Diplomatic circuit] Argentine Embassy seeks to enhance cultural ties with Korea

The Embassy of Argentina here held an opening ceremony for the Sala Mirtha Legrand hall and the launch of El Ciclo de Cine Argentino 2019 on Thursday, with an aim to strengthen cultural ties between Argentina and South Korea. “Films are a bridge connecting the two countries culturally. Just as diplomatic relations expand into trade and politics, films will also help form friendly ties. This is why we have decided to screen Argentinian movies,” Argentine Ambassador to South Korea Alfr

Diplomatic CircuitSept. 30, 2019

[Diplomatic circuit] EU ambassador to South Korea receives Austria’s presidential award

European Union Ambassador to South Korea Michael Reiterer received the Grand Decoration of Honor in Silver with Star for Services to the Republic of Austria in recognition for his service to his mother country, the related embassies said.“I am deeply honored that the President of the Republic of Austria conferred this high distinction upon me -- a recognition of my nearly four decades of work as a diplomat with assignments on three continents. ... I take this as an encouragement to continu

Diplomatic CircuitSept. 30, 2019

Samsung launches highest-end display lineup in Korea

Samsung Electronics on Monday opened a shop for its highest-end display lineup The Wall in the southern part of Seoul, rolling out the first modular displays. The world’s top TV manufacturer is showcasing the 146-inch The Wall Luxury packaged with Danish audio brand ODEPort’s Steinway Lyngdorf audio system Model O at the ODE shop in the Gangnam district.  It is the third showcase venue for the latest display technology by Samsung, following the first located in the Harrods depar

TechnologySept. 30, 2019