Most Popular
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[Exclusive] Korean adoptee sisters meet for the first time in 39 years
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Signs point to N. Korean troops in Russia-Ukraine combat zone
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Rose's 'Apt.' redefines K-pop's global appeal
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Two years on, thousands mourn Itaewon tragedy, calling for accountability
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Yoon calls for measures to protect Koreans amid escalating Iran-Israel conflicts
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Civil servant’s death linked to workplace bullying
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[Weekender] Walk around Korea to really get to know the country
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[Herald Interview] Love for K-drama, food defines 'Secret Ingredient'
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Hanwha, HD Hyundai vie for Poland’s $2.7b submarine program
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[Photo News] Rallying against LGBTQ+
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Spring travel surge adds to concerns as S. Korea reports over 400 cases
Warmer spring weather is concerning authorities in South Korea as the country battles community infections amid the third COVID-19 wave to date. As flowers blossom across the country, traffic has surged nationwide with an increasing number of people traveling for gatherings in the warmer weather. Although most regions have canceled their flower festivals for the season, the number of travelers is expected to stay high, especially on weekends. The situation is alarming, as the number of daily n
Social AffairsMarch 21, 2021
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S. Korea to begin inoculating people aged 65 or over at nursing homes, hospitals this week
South Korea will start administering vaccines to inpatients and employees of nursing homes and long-term care hospitals who are aged 65 or older this week as part of its monthslong inoculation plan, health authorities said Sunday. Starting from Tuesday, more than 370,000 health workers and patients aged 65 and older at sanatoriums, nursing facilities and rehabilitation facilities will receive their first shots of AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine in steps, according to the Korea Disease Control an
Social AffairsMarch 21, 2021
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S. Korea to provide own satellite-backed real-time air quality map
South Korea will begin providing a real-time air quality map for the Korean Peninsula and neighboring areas to the public, utilizing data sent from Chollian-2B, its environmental satellite launched last year, the science ministry said Sunday. The new service, available from Monday, will provide data of seven types of air pollutants, including nitrogen dioxide, ozone and aerosol optical depth, whose coverage ranges from India to Japan. It will also provide additional data, such as sulfur dioxi
Social AffairsMarch 21, 2021
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Prosecution decides to close false testimony case related to ex-PM
The top prosecution office said Sunday that it has finally decided to put an end to the reexamination of allegations of false testimony in a bribery case involving former Prime Minister Han Myeong-sook. The Supreme Prosecutors Office (SPO) said it reported the decision to the Ministry of Justice the previous day. It came as a group of senior prosecutors reached a conclusion to drop the false testimony case after a 13-hour marathon meeting on Friday. Han, who served as prime minister from 2006
Social AffairsMarch 21, 2021
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No S. Korean casualties in Japan earthquake: ministry
No South Korean casualties have been reported in a powerful earthquake that struck off northern Japan on Saturday, the foreign ministry said. The 6.9 magnitude quake occurred shortly after 6 p.m. off the coast of Miyagi prefecture, according to news reports. Its strength was revised downward from a magnitude of 7.2. "As of now we understand that there have been no casualties among our nationals," a ministry official said. "The ministry and the consulate general in Sendai immedi
Foreign AffairsMarch 21, 2021
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Oh, Ahn agree on terms of survey for unifying Seoul mayor candidacies
The two leading opposition candidates for Seoul mayor agreed Saturday on the terms of a public opinion survey that will determine which of them runs as the single unified candidate in next month's by-election. Oh Se-hoon of the main opposition People Power Party and Ahn Cheol-soo of the minor conservative People's Party reached the deal after closed-door working-level talks between the two campaigns, both sides said. The public opinion survey will be conducted on mobile phone users only, not l
PoliticsMarch 21, 2021
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New virus cases in 400s for 5th day on cluster infections
South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases stayed in the 400s for a fifth day on Sunday, raising concerns that continued sporadic cluster infections might lead to a resurgence in the pandemic. Cases tied to saunas, sports facilities and church gatherings continued to take place, and more infections are likely in the coming weeks from spring outings. The country reported 456 more COVID-19 cases, including 437 local infections, raising the total caseload to 98,665, the Korea Disease Control and P
Social AffairsMarch 21, 2021
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Govt. expresses condolences over deaths of 4 ethnic Koreans in Atlanta shootings
The government expressed its condolences Saturday over the deaths of four women of Korean descent, including one South Korean national, in this week's shootings in Atlanta. In a statement issued by the foreign ministry's spokesman, the government said it expresses "deep condolences and profound consolation to the families" of the four who were shot dead by a gunman in the US city on Tuesday (local time). "Our government, in line with our firm and consistent position that such a
Foreign AffairsMarch 21, 2021
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Korea to add clot warning to AstraZeneca vaccination guidance
The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said in a press briefing Saturday that official instructions for vaccinators and emergency medical services will now include a warning about blood clotting risks following AstraZeneca vaccinations. The update comes as the European Medicines Agency said the previous day that although the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine is safe and effective, a link to rare blood clots could not be ruled out. The European regulator urged hea
Social AffairsMarch 20, 2021
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[Photo News] Spring, the season of flowers, blooms in Korea
Cherry blossoms begin to form pink clouds of flowers near Yeojwacheon Romance Bridge in Jinhae-gu, Changwon in South Gyeongsang Province. Against a clear sky without fine dust, Magnolia Kobus are in full bloom on the campus of Chonnam National University, located in Gwangju. Fully-bloomed plum blossoms attract honey bees to the campus of Chonnam National University in Gwangju. (Photos: Yonhap) By Yoon Chae-won (choenayoon@heraldcorp.com)
Social AffairsMarch 20, 2021
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Seongnam university reports coronavirus infections of 11 foreign students
Thirteen foreign students enrolled in a university in Seongnam, just south of Seoul, have been diagnosed with COVID-19, municipal officials said Saturday. The first coronavirus case of a foreign student occurred at the unnamed university in the city's Sujeong district on Wednesday, and two more expat students who lived together with the first patient tested positive for the virus the following day, the officials said. On Friday, eight other foreign students were confirmed to be infected with t
Social AffairsMarch 20, 2021
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Biden says too many Asian Americans are living in fear
President Joe Biden strongly denounced violence against Asian Americans on Friday, saying too many of them have been forced to worry about their very safety amid a rise in hate crimes targeting Asian American communities in the US. He and Vice President Kamala Harris blamed the former administration for scapegoating Asian Americans for the COVID-19 pandemic. "They've been attacked, blamed, scapegoated and harassed. They've been verbally assaulted, physically assaulted, killed. Documented
PoliticsMarch 20, 2021
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Russian FM Lavrov to visit Seoul next week for talks on bilateral ties, peninsula issues
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will visit Seoul next week for talks with South Korean Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong on bilateral ties, Korean Peninsula issues and other matters, the foreign ministry said Thursday. Lavrov will arrive here on Tuesday for a three-day visit. His talks with Chung are set to take place on Thursday after the ministers attend a ceremony on Wednesday to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the establishment of relations between the two countries.
PoliticsMarch 20, 2021
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New virus cases in 400s for 4th day, concerns over resurgence during weekend
South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases stayed in the 400s for a fourth day on Saturday, with continued sporadic clusters in the greater Seoul area adding to concerns over a resurgence in cases as more people go out during the weekend. The country reported 452 more COVID-19 cases, including 440 local infections, raising the total caseload to 98,209, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. The country added three more deaths from COVID-19, increasing the total to 1,693.
Social AffairsMarch 20, 2021
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After N. Korea cuts ties, Malaysia orders its diplomats out
Malaysia said Friday it'll order all North Korean diplomats to leave the country within 48 hours, in an escalation of diplomat brawl over Malaysia's decision to extradite a North Korean criminal suspect to the United States. Malaysia's announcement came hours after North Korea said it was terminating diplomatic ties with Malaysia because it committed a "super-large hostile act ... in subservience to the US pressure.'' North Korea called the money laundering charges an "absurd fabric
North KoreaMarch 19, 2021
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Korea pushes back announcement on AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine as EU regulator adds warning
Korean health authorities on Friday have postponed an announcement of their response to the European medical regulator’s verdict on the safety of AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine, after it once again vouched for jab, but without fully dispelling concerns surrounding the side effects. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency had said earlier that it would be giving its official opinion on the European Medicines Agency’s announcement at 2 p.m. Friday, but pushed it back t
Social AffairsMarch 19, 2021
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Seoul withdraws testing mandate for all foreign workers
The Seoul city government on Friday withdrew an order requiring mandatory coronavirus testing for all foreign workers after facing criticism from foreigners, medical workers and the human rights commission. The Seoul Metropolitan Government released a statement on Friday afternoon, saying, “We changed the administrative order issued on March 17 after the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters requested the withdrawal of the order.” “We changed from the man
Social AffairsMarch 19, 2021
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Gaps to fill in ‘ironclad’ alliance between Korea, US
South Korea and the US have held the first foreign policy talks since US President Joe Biden came to power, but the two allies fell far short of reaching consensus on the reason the US secretaries of state and defense flew to Asia in their first overseas travel: China and North Korea. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken labeled China authoritarian and a challenge that a democratic coalition should try pushing back, referring to its key allies in the region such as Korea and Japan. The two US s
Foreign AffairsMarch 19, 2021
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Assembly speaker discusses S. Korea-US alliance, NK issues with Nancy Pelosi
National Assembly Speaker Park Byeong-seug held a videoconference with US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Friday to discuss pending issues such as the South Korea-US alliance and North Korea’s nuclear weapons. During the meeting Park said that “the Korea-US alliance is a starting point and a crucial point of reference for Korea’s diplomacy and security and, as the US’ most successful alliance, serves as a bedrock for peace and stability in the region.” He went on t
PoliticsMarch 19, 2021
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S. Korea, US launch working-level policy dialogue
South Korea and the United States launched a new regular working-level dialogue Friday, aiming to deal with bilateral diplomatic and security issues in a "systematic and speedy" manner, the foreign ministry said. Koh Yun-ju, the ministry's director general for North American affairs, and Marc Knapper, deputy US assistant secretary of state for Korea and Japan, held the inaugural session of the Bilateral Policy Dialogue in Seoul. The launch came just a day after the allies held their
Foreign AffairsMarch 19, 2021