S. Korea expresses 'deep concerns' over Abe's offering to controversial war shrine

South Korea on Thursday expressed "deep concerns" over Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's ritual offering to a war shrine seen as a symbol of Japan's imperialistic past.Abe sent the offering to Tokyo's Yasukuni Shrine via an aide to mark the country's 1945 surrender in World War II, Kyodo News reported. It marked the seventh consecutive year for him to send an offering to the shrine on the Aug. 15 day of surrender since taking office in December 2012.Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide

World NewsAug. 15, 2019

As China pressure mounts, Hong Kong's Cathay sacks two pilots

Cathay Pacific said Wednesday two pilots had been sacked, as the Hong Kong carrier comes under huge pressure from Beijing to clamp down on staff supportive of anti-government rallies."One is currently involved in legal proceedings. The other misused company information on Flight CX216/12 August," the airline said in a statement.Hong Kong has been gripped by ten weeks of protests that have seen millions take to the streets, sparked by opposition to a planned law that would have allowed

World NewsAug. 14, 2019

Govt braces for Typhoon Krosa as it nears the Korean Peninsula

The government is on alert Wednesday as Typhoon Krosa is forecast to affect the eastern part of the country, officials said. The powerful tropical storm is heading northward from western Japan and will likely skirt the eastern coastal regions, including Busan, Ulsan and the easternmost islands of Ulleung and Dokdo, early Thursday, according to the country's weather agency. Krosa is not expected to make landfall in South Korea.The Ministry of the Interior and Safety said it had raised the typhoon

Social AffairsAug. 14, 2019

Russia's vice foreign minister in Pyongyang: KCNA

Russian Vice Foreign Minister Igor Morgulov arrived in Pyongyang on Wednesday, North Korea's state media reported, a visit that comes amid the possibility of a resumption of nuclear talks between the North and the United States. Morgulov, the senior diplomat in charge of Asia-Pacific affairs, is in the North Korean capital along with other officials, the Korean Central News Agency reported, without giving details on when he arrived or the purpose of his trip. Morgulov also serves as Russia's spe

North KoreaAug. 14, 2019

Three workers killed in elevator crash

An elevator carrying three workers crashed from a height equivalent to a 15-story building, killing all three.Two foreign laborers on the ground level, who were injured when a hoist crashed at the construction site in Sokcho, Gangwon Province, were transferred to a hospital, but they soon disappeared, police said Wednesday. Police suspect the two foreign nationals in their 40s were in Korea illegally and left the hospital out of concern their undocumented status would be revealed. “We are

Social AffairsAug. 14, 2019

[Anniversary Special] Waiting for apology they deserve

On Saturday, a commemoration ceremony was held in Gwangju, Gyeonggi Province, to remember the women who were forced into sexual slavery by the Japanese military during World War II. The House of Sharing, a shelter for the wartime sex slavery survivors, hosted the event, with two of its residents in the audience. This year marks the 28th anniversary since the first South Korean survivor of sexual slavery came forward on Aug. 14, 1991. Of the six remaining survivors currently residing at the House

Social AffairsAug. 14, 2019

Seoul, Tokyo cancel vice foreign ministers meeting

South Korea’s Foreign Ministry on Wednesday denied reports that the vice foreign ministers of Seoul and Tokyo would meet this week to discuss the trade row. Ministries from both sides appear to have canceled the plan after it was reported by the media. Citing diplomatic sources, news outlets in the two countries reported that South Korean Vice Foreign Minister Cho Sei-young and his Japanese counterpart, Takeo Akiba, would meet Friday or Saturday to discuss ways to resolve the ongoing trade

Foreign AffairsAug. 14, 2019

[Anniversary Special] Historian calls for recognition of progress in Korea-Japan relations

The long-brewing dispute between Seoul and Tokyo over history has come to a head, spilling over into the economic realm, with Japan restricting the exports of key materials for manufacturing chips and displays to South Korea and removing it from its whitelist of trade partners.While the Korean government has responded with retaliatory measures of its own and citizens here are boycotting Japanese goods and travel, there are concerns about bilateral relations and how the current situation will pan

PoliticsAug. 14, 2019

[J. Bradford DeLong ] America’s superpower panic

Global superpowers have always found it painful to acknowledge their relative decline and deal with fast-rising challengers. Today, the United States finds itself in this situation with regard to China. A century-and-half ago, imperial Britain faced a similar competitive threat from America. And in the 17th century, the Dutch Republic was the superpower and England the challenger.History suggests that the global superpower should aim for a soft landing, including by engaging with its likely succ

ViewpointsAug. 14, 2019

[Kim Myong-sik] Moon’s illusory ‘peace economy’ with North Korea

The physical world we live in is governed by constructive power and destructive power. Constructive power can be measured by the value of things that individuals or groups create over a period of time. They call it GDP on the national level. Destructive power is estimated by looking at the things that can be destroyed (annihilated) in a conflict; it represents security threats between adversaries.North Korea is believed to have stored 20 to 30 nuclear bombs, each having the destructive energy of

ViewpointsAug. 14, 2019

S. Korea begins process of excluding Japan from whitelist

South Korea on Wednesday started the legislative process to exclude Japan from its list of preferential trading partners, as part of the snowballing trade row between the two neighbors.The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy has posted an advance legislative notice to revise its whitelist of trade partners, removing Japan from the top-tier list.Feedback will be accepted until Sept. 2, after which it will be put through a regulatory screening and legal review, before taking effect. Earlier thi

EconomyAug. 14, 2019

NK says US missile deployment will turn S. Korea into 'bullet-shield'

North Korea's official news agency on Wednesday warned South Korea not to host US intermediate-range missiles on its soil, saying the deployment would be a "reckless act of escalating tension" in the region.Earlier this month, the US formally pulled out of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces treaty with Russia and vowed to begin testing new missiles and deploy them around the world. Shortly after the withdrawal, US Secretary of Defense Mark Esper said Washington will consult with its

North KoreaAug. 14, 2019

[Photo News] New favorite Korean instant noodles?

Samyang Foods and Homeplus said Wednesday that an accumulated 1.3 million packs of Samyang Kookmin Ramyun have been sold since its launch June 13. Samyang said the product was developed jointly with Homeplus to provide instant noodles at a reasonable price. Samyang Kookmin Ramyun is sold only at Homeplus stores and costs 2,000 won ($1.65) for a bundle of five packs. The word “Kookmin,” meaning people in Korean, is often used in describing a brand or product to suggest popul

IndustryAug. 14, 2019

[Monitor] New jobs hit 18-month high in July in Korea

The number of jobs added reached the highest level in 18 months in July, attributable to a rise in employment in the health care, food and leisure-related industries, data from Statistics Korea showed Wednesday.The jobless rate was, however slightly up by 0.2 percentage point to 3.9 percent. also the highest for the same month in 19 years. A total of 27.38 million were employed in the country, up 299,000 from a year earlier.Overall, employment in the retail, wholesale and public sectors decrease

EconomyAug. 14, 2019

[Anniversary Special] Domestic politics in Korea, Japan leave behind victims of Japan’s wartime atrocities

The somber atmosphere is palpable in Korea around this time of the year, when South Korea commemorates its independence from Japan.This year marks the 74th year of Korea’s independence from the brutal 1910-1945 Japanese colonial rule.South Korea has achieved notable growth since independence. It stands as Asia’s fourth-largest economy, home to leading tech giants including the likes of Samsung Electronics and the birth place of global K-pop sensation BTS. All the while, however, a re

Social AffairsAug. 14, 2019

[Newsmaker] Ex-chief of staff Kim Ki-chun gets suspended term for falsifying records on Sewol sinking

The Seoul Central District Court on Wednesday sentenced Kim Ki-chun, former President Park Geun-hye’s chief of staff, to a year in prison suspended for two years for falsifying records on reports received by President Park on the day of the Sewol ferry disaster. The court also acquitted former National Security Office chiefs Kim Jang-soo and Kim Kwan-jin. Kim Ki-chun and Kim Jang-soo allegedly manipulated records submitted to the National Assembly about the time that former President Park

Social AffairsAug. 14, 2019

Moon names new vice finance minister, deputy chief of spy agency

President Moon Jae-in appointed a new vice finance minister and a deputy head of the state intelligence agency Wednesday as part of his work to install fresh faces into key posts in his third year in office. Kim Yong-beom, formerly a No. 2 official at the Financial Services Commission (FSC), was tapped as vice minister of economy and finance. Kim is known for expertise in the financial sector, having served at the finance ministry and the FSC for decades.Moon picked Choi Yong-hwan, ambassador to

PoliticsAug. 14, 2019

[Anniversary Special] From Sony to Samsung, how tech leadership migrated from Japan to Korea

In the 1980s and 1990s, commuters on subways or buses in South Korea proudly held a Sony Walkman, the world’s first portable cassette player, in their hands. But today, it has been replaced by large-screen smartphones -- mostly a Samsung Galaxy or iPhone model.It’s a stark change from the years between 1979 -- when the first Sony Walkman was officially launched -- and 2007 when the first iPhone was released, and 2009 when Samsung announced its first Galaxy smartphone. It is no exagge

TechnologyAug. 14, 2019

Incheon Airport marks accumulated 700m passengers

Incheon International Airport Corp. said Wednesday that the airport’s accumulated number of passengers has surpassed 700 million. To mark the milestone, the operator of South Korea’s main gateway held various events, including giving a round-trip ticket and a Turtle Ship made of pure gold to the 700 millionth passenger who arrived at Incheon Airport.  IIAC said the achievement of marking an accumulated 700 million passengers since its opening in March 2001 is meaningful, as

IndustryAug. 14, 2019