Families of Budapest boat tragedy victims visit scene

South Korean relatives of victims of the Budapest boat tragedy on Friday visited the scene of the accident which left seven dead and 21 missing after a sightseeing boat sank.The ill-fated Mermaid carrying mainly South Korean tourists overturned and capsized in pouring rain late Wednesday, seconds after colliding with a much larger cruise ship on the Danube river. Rescuers looking for the missing are battling strong currents with Seoul requesting that the search be extended further south alo

Social AffairsJune 1, 2019

Hungary needs extended search for 21 missing in boat sinking

As divers descended Friday into the Danube, Hungarian authorities predicted it would take an extended search to find the 21 people still missing after a boat carrying South Korean tourists was rammed by a cruise ship and sank into the river in Budapest. Seven people so far are confirmed dead and seven others were rescued. Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto and his South Korean counterpart, Kang Kyung-wha, visited the site of Wednesday's accident and met with rescue and search officials before

Social AffairsJune 1, 2019

Pentagon chief says N. Korea remains 'extraordinary' threat

North Korea remains an "extraordinary" threat to regional and global security, acting U.S. Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan said Saturday, calling on China and other countries to work closely for sanctions.He, however, stressed his strong backing for diplomacy "to achieve the final, fully verified denuclearization of North Korea and uphold the international rule of law," in his keynote speech during the 18th Asia Security Summit, better known as the Shangri-La Dialogue,

North KoreaJune 1, 2019

S. Korea's exports down 9.4 percent in May on chips, China

South Korea's exports dropped 9.4 percent in May from a year earlier, extending their on-year fall for the sixth consecutive month, data showed Saturday, due mainly to the sluggish shipments of chips and the weak Chinese economy.  Outbound shipments came to US$45.9 billion for May, down from the $50.68 billion tallied a year earlier, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.  Imports moved down 1.9 percent last month to $43.64 billion, the minis

EconomyJune 1, 2019

Pompeo says US is looking into reports of purge of NK officials

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Friday the United States is looking into reports that several top North Korean officials have been purged in the wake of the no-deal February summit between the countries' leaders. "We've seen the reporting to which you're referring," Pompeo said during a press conference in Berlin. "We're doing our best to check it out. I don't have anything else to add to that today."The Chosun Ilbo, a conservative South Korean daily, reported the

North KoreaJune 1, 2019

South Korea's defense chief seeks to boost defense ties with partners

South Korea's Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo sought to promote defense exchanges and cooperation with Vietnam, NATO and Singapore and asked for their backing for Seoul's efforts to achieve the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, his office said Friday.  Jeong made the appeals during back-to-back bilateral talks with Vietnam's Defense Minister Ngo Xuan Lich; Air Chief Marshal Sir Stuart Peach, chairman of the NATO Military Committee; and Singapore's Defense Minister Ng Eng Hen

Foreign AffairsMay 31, 2019

Nuke envoys of S. Korea, US, Japan discuss N. Korea in Singapore

The chief nuclear envoys of South Korea, the US and Japan held trilateral talks in Singapore on Friday to explore ways to break the current impasse in negotiations on North Korea's denuclearization, officials said.  The envoys -- Lee Do-hoon, Seoul's special representative for Korean Peninsula peace and security affairs; U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Stephen Biegun; and Kenji Kanasugi, director-general of the Japanese Foreign Ministry's Asian and Oceanian Affairs Bur

Foreign AffairsMay 31, 2019

Moon talks about Hungary boat sinking with foreign ambassadors

The deadly boat sinking in Hungary earlier this week was a topic of President Moon Jae-in's conversations with a group of new foreign ambassadors here Friday, his office said.Presenting their credentials, five ambassadors based in Seoul and a dozen others stationed in different countries but doubling as ambassadors here expressed a chorus of condolences over the sinking of the sightseeing ship on the Danube River in Budapest on Wednesday night (local time). A total of 33 South Koreans were aboar

Foreign AffairsMay 31, 2019

US senators vow support for tension-reducing moves on Korean Peninsula

US senators pledged active congressional support Friday to continue close coordination between Seoul and Washington on easing military tensions on the Korean Peninsula and to further promote the bilateral alliance, Seoul's defense ministry said.  The senators -- Angus King (I-ME), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) -- made the commitment during a meeting with South Korean Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo on the sidelines of the ongoing Asia Security Summit, better know

Foreign AffairsMay 31, 2019

OB shows support for LGBTQ community with rainbow Cass can poster

South Korea’s largest alcoholic beverage provider Oriental Brewery expressed its support for the Seoul Queer Culture Festival which starts Saturday and sexual minorities, according to the company’s social network accounts on Friday.On its official Twitter account, the company posted an image of a rainbow-colored Cass can with a message that read, “(The company) supports your color, YASS!” with hashtags such as “#queer festival.” It also said the company sends

IndustryMay 31, 2019

Global biopharma firms back open innovation with Korean startups

Open innovation, a joint effort to discover and develop innovative ideas, has become a major mantra of most industries, with the bio sector firms being no exception in their search for novel drug candidates.Attention toward biotech and novel drugs has spiked particularly in South Korea after the government announcement in May to inject 4 trillion won ($3.36 billion) in the bio-health industry.Against such a backdrop, several global pharmaceutical firms in Korea are engaged in identifying and sup

IndustryMay 31, 2019

Shangri-La Dialogue opens in Singapore amid pressing security challenges

One of Asia's biggest annual security meetings opened in Singapore on Friday as major players in the region grapple with complex security challenges, including stalled denuclearization talks with North Korea.  The 18th Asia Security Summit, better known as the Shangri-La Dialogue, brought defense chiefs and top-level military officers from 38 countries across the world together for discussion sessions, as well as bilateral and multilateral talks, according to its organizer, the Internationa

DefenseMay 31, 2019

No change in Seoul-Washington shared stance on NK missile tests: minister

South Korea's defense minister insisted Friday that the official stance of Seoul and Washington remains the same on the North Korean missiles fired earlier this month, despite the US defense chief's characterization of the launches as a violation of UN sanctions.The remark by Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo indicates that South Korea still has not conclusively determined whether or not the short-range missiles, fired on May 9, were ballistic missiles banned under UN Security Council resolution

DefenseMay 31, 2019

Art Busan has settled in after all

The eighth edition of Art Busan kicked off Thursday at the Bexco Exhibition Center in Busan, featuring some 4,000 works from 164 galleries in 17 countriesMany galleries at this year’s art fair agreed that the quality of the annual event is getting higher. “The fair underwent many changes, and it seems to have finally settled in, particularly in terms of its program,” a representative from Seoul-based Hakgojae Gallery said.This year’s edition of the country’s second-

Arts & DesignMay 31, 2019

South Korea to provide 50,000 tons in food aid to North Korea: lawmaker

South Korea is to provide 50,000 tons of food aid to North Korea via an international organization in the coming week, a lawmaker said Friday.“The government is planning to offer 50,000 tons of food to North Korea through an international organization next week,” said Rep. Sul Hoon of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea.Sul’s remarks were made during the ruling party’s supreme council meeting at the border village of Panmunjom. Citing a UN survey that 10.1 million North

North KoreaMay 31, 2019

Rock band U2 to stage first-ever concert in Korea

Legendary Irish rock band U2 will perform at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul on Dec. 8, marking its first-ever visit to South Korea. The upcoming concert is an extension of the band’s worldwide Joshua Tree Tour of 2017, which celebrated the 30th anniversary of the release of its seminal album “The Joshua Tree.” The six-month tour in 2017 attracted some 2.7 million people to 51 concerts in North America, Europe and Latin America. The Joshua Tree tour in 2019, which covers Asia, will r

PerformanceMay 31, 2019

Defectors' group scatters anti-Pyongyang leaflets at NK embassy in London

A group of North Korean defectors said Friday it spread hundreds of anti-Pyongyang propaganda leaflets at North Korea's embassy in London last week.Fighters for a Free North Korea said three of its members visited the mission on May 21 to meet its staff and deliver a letter to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, but was denied. They attached dozens of leaflets slamming Kim as "a devil who killed his brother" at the embassy's main gate, wall, and threw some 500 others into its compound, it

North KoreaMay 31, 2019

Seoul shares up for 2nd day on upbeat BOK assessment

South Korean stocks rose for the second straight session Friday as the central bank said the economy is recovering. The local currency fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index edged up 2.94 points, or 0.14 percent, to 2041.74. Trading volume was moderate at 426 million shares worth 4.8 trillion won ($4.3 billion), with gainers outnumbering decliners 485 to 348. The index opened lower, but it moved into positive terrain, apparently tracking Wall Street gains.US

MarketMay 31, 2019

State pension to increase overseas investment to 50% in 2024

South Korea's state pension will gradually increase its overseas investment to some 50 percent of its assets under management in 2024 as part of its effort to boost returns and diversify its portfolio, its management committee said Friday.Under the five-year investment plan, the National Pension Service, the fund's operator, aims to log a return rate of 5.3 percent for the 2020-2024 period.As of late 2018, some 30.1 percent of the pension fund's assets were invested in overseas assets."With

MarketMay 31, 2019

Gov't to offer food aid to N. Korea next week: lawmaker

The government plans to provide 50,000 tons of food to North Korea next week via an international organization, a ruling party lawmaker said Friday.North Korea needs more than 1.45 million tons of food to resolve its food crisis, Rep. Sul Hoon of the Democratic Party said during a meeting with senior party members held at the Demilitarized Zone that separates the two Koreas."Next week, the government plans to offer 50,000 tons of food to North Korea through an international organization,&qu

North KoreaMay 31, 2019