Most Popular
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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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[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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First lady’s controversies to top agenda at meeting of party leaders
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4 in 10 young South Koreans take up 'irregular' jobs: data
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[Photo News] Rallying against LGBTQ+
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Seoul aims to halve current suicide rate by 2030
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'1 million' Christians join anti-LGBTQ+ marriage rally
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Moon says sorry to college entrance examinees over virus concerns
President Moon Jae-in sent a special "warm" message Wednesday to nearly half a million people in South Korea gearing up for the nationwide college entrance exam this week in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. "It's hard to prepare for the CSAT itself, and it will be even more difficult and worrisome to take the exam in the coronavirus situation," he wrote on his social messaging accounts. "I feel sorry (as the president). I'd like to put warm scarves around your necks.
PoliticsDec. 2, 2020
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Another soldier at Camp Casey tests positive for COVID-19
An American soldier stationed at Camp Casey, north of Seoul, tested positive for the new coronavirus on Wednesday, after another service member at the base was confirmed to have contracted the virus over the weekend, the US military said. The soldier has been transferred to an isolation facility designated for confirmed COVID-19 patients at Camp Humphreys in Pyeongtaek, south of Seoul, according to the US Forces Korea (USFK). "Contact tracing is ongoing, and US
Social AffairsDec. 2, 2020
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Moon names lawyer as new vice justice minister
President Moon Jae-in has tapped a judge-turned-lawyer as new vice justice minister, Cheong Wa Dae announced Wednesday, amid a simmering controversy over the ministry's move to punish South Korea's prosecution chief over alleged ethical lapses and other misdeeds. The nomination of Lee Yong-gu, who served as a judge for more than 20 years, came just a day after Vice Justice Minister Koh Kee-young tendered his resignation in apparent protest against Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae's push for discipli
PoliticsDec. 2, 2020
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Berlin district council passes resolution seeking permanent installation of sex slave statue
BERLIN -- A Berlin district council has passed a resolution seeking to keep a statue of a girl symbolizing the victims of Japan's wartime sexual slavery permanently installed at a public site, officials and reports said Wednesday. The resolution, approved by a majority vote at Berlin's Mitte district parliament on Tuesday (Berlin time), calls for measures to have the statue remain in the district while extending the statue's installation period by another six weeks to September next year. The
Foreign AffairsDec. 2, 2020
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7 more soldiers test positive for new coronavirus
Four Army officers and three enlisted soldiers have tested positive for the new coronavirus, the defense ministry said Wednesday, in the latest in a series of infections reported at barracks. The enlisted soldiers were confirmed to have contracted COVID-19 while in quarantine after cluster infections were reported at their boot camp in the border county of Yeoncheon, according to the ministry. The total number of infections reported at the unit rose to 75. An officer in Pocheon, north of Seoul
Social AffairsDec. 2, 2020
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US encouraged by S. Korea-Japan efforts to address differences: Knapper
The United States was "encouraged" by recent efforts by South Korea and Japan to "address their differences," a State Department official said Wednesday, highlighting the need for trilateral cooperation against North Korean nuclear and missile threats. Marc Knapper, deputy assistant secretary for Korea and Japan at the East Asian and Pacific affairs bureau, made the remark in a webinar, apparently referring to a series of visits to Japan by senior South Korean officials on t
Foreign AffairsDec. 2, 2020
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Court rejects info disclosure request regarding deported N. Korean fishermen in 2019
The two fishermen confessed to killing 16 fellow crew members and expressed a desire to defect, but South Korean authorities dismissed their intentions as insincere. It was the first deportation of North Koreans since the 1950-53 Korean War. The lawyers' group, which claims the deportation is a violation of the North Koreans' human rights, started the litigation after the NSO and the NPA dismissed its request for the disclosure of all relevant data, including their written statements and letter
North KoreaDec. 2, 2020
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PM says No. of quarantined people tops 70,000 amid rapid virus spread
Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun said Wednesday that the number of those quarantined at home in South Korea due to COVID-19 has soared to an all-time high level of over 70,000 and asked the public to cooperate with the government's antivirus measures. "Transmissions are continuing in all places, with the number of quarantined people soaring above 70,000 to reach an all-time high level since two days ago," Chung said during a meeting of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headq
PoliticsDec. 2, 2020
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New virus cases bounce back to over 500 as effect of tougher curbs yet to be felt
The daily number of new coronavirus cases in South Korea bounced back to over 500 again Wednesday, adding to concerns that the country faces a bigger wave of the pandemic in winter amid tougher social distancing measures. The country added 511 more COVID-19 cases, including 493 local infections, raising the total caseload to 35,163, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). It reported no additional coronavirus fatalities, bringing the total to 526. The daily virus t
Social AffairsDec. 2, 2020
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S. Korea to deploy suicide UAVs, advanced attack drones on trial next year
The military plans to deploy suicide unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and gun-shooting drones on a trial basis next year under a rapid acquisition project aimed at better responding to fast-evolving future battle environments, the arms procurement agency said Wednesday. The Defense Acquisition Program Administration said it has signed contracts with companies to acquire three types of advanced attack drones -- the suicide UAVs, drones that fire guns at ground targets and small-sized drones with
DefenseDec. 2, 2020
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[Newsmaker] S. Korea braces for nat'l college entrance exam amid pandemic
South Koreans were on high alert Wednesday with only hours to go until hundreds of thousands of students would sit for the annual state college entrance exam amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Around 490,000 high school seniors, graduates and others plan to take the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) on Thursday amid a sharp increase in the number of coronavirus infections across the country. That includes 37 coronavirus patients and 430 people in self-quarantine, according to Dec. 1 data from th
Social AffairsDec. 2, 2020
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S. Korea confirms 2nd highly pathogenic bird flu case from farm
South Korea on Wednesday confirmed another highly pathogenic avian influenza (AI) case from local poultry farms, sparking further concerns over possible nationwide transmission of the disease. A suspected case from an egg farm in Sangju, 270 kilometers southeast of Seoul, earlier this week tested to be a highly pathogenic H5N8 strain of bird flu, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food, and Rural Affairs. Local authorities said they are currently culling 188,000 chickens being raised at
Social AffairsDec. 2, 2020
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US wants allies to call out 'bad behavior' from China: Knapper
WASHINGTON -- The United States is not asking its allies, including South Korea and Japan, to sever their ties with China but to call out bad behavior, a senior US diplomat said Tuesday. Marc Knapper, deputy assistant secretary of state for Korea and Japan, also said his country understands its two Asian allies have a very unique relationship with China. "First of all, we recognize both Japan and South Korea have very complex, very nuanced relations with the People's Republic of China, in
Foreign AffairsDec. 2, 2020
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US says China's failure to enforce sanctions delaying N. Korea denuclearization
WASHINGTON -- China's failure, if not refusal, to implement UN sanctions aimed at denuclearizing North Korea may be delaying the process, a senior US diplomat said Tuesday. Alex Wong, deputy assistant secretary of state for North Korea, insisted China often "chooses" not to implement the sanctions imposed by the UN Security Council, of which it is a permanent member. "It (China) has the resources to implement its UN sanctions obligations. But again, it chooses not to," Wong
North KoreaDec. 2, 2020
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Moon says S. Korea to work with int'l community in anti-corruption campaign
President Moon Jae-in reaffirmed South Korea's commitment Tuesday to cooperating with the international community in the fight against corruption, speaking during a virtual session of a major global conference on the issue. "South Korea supports all the global cooperation to combat corruption, including the work of the Transparency International, and will work with the rest of the world towards sustainable development of humanity," he said. The president was delivering an address at
PoliticsDec. 1, 2020
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Four killed, seven injured in apartment building fire in Gunpo
Four people were killed and seven others injured in a fire at a 25-story apartment building in Gunpo, Gyeonggi Province, on Tuesday afternoon, fire authorities said. Among the victims, two fell to their deaths, while two were found dead in the stairwell leading to the rooftop, authorities said, adding one of them is in a critical condition. The blaze started on the 12th floor of the building located in the city about 32 kilometers south of Seoul, at around 4:37 p.m. Firefighters brought th
Social AffairsDec. 1, 2020
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FM Kang to visit Bahrain, UAE this week
Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha will visit Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates this week, in a move to bolster cooperation with countries in the Middle East, her office said Tuesday. Kang is set to travel to Bahrain from Friday to Saturday, during which she will attend the Manama Dialogue, an annual security conference held in Bahrain’s capital that involves security and political officials and experts in the region. At the forum, she is set to deliver a speech about globa
Foreign AffairsDec. 1, 2020
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S. Korea, UN disarmament office to hold joint conference on emerging weapons technologies
South Korea and the UN disarmament office will hold a joint conference on disarmament and nonproliferation this week, with a focus on emerging weapons, such as killer robots and hypersonic missiles, the foreign ministry said Tuesday. The 19th Joint Conference on Disarmament and Nonproliferation Issues will take place via video links Wednesday for a two-day run, with government officials and think tank experts from more than 20 countries, as well as those from international organizations, expect
Foreign AffairsDec. 1, 2020
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Health authorities begin last-ditch prep for virus control during Suneung
Health authorities on Tuesday vowed to guard against potential threats of the new coronavirus to ensure the safety of around 500,000 college hopefuls taking the national college entrance exam this Thursday. They also pledged to make all efforts to not allow a single test taker to miss the life-defining exam due to the virus. Even if one is diagnosed with the COVID-19 on the eve of the test date, they will still be able to sit the College Scholastic Aptitude Test, known here as Suneung. &ldq
Social AffairsDec. 1, 2020
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UN to allow longer period of sanctions exemption for humanitarian aid to N. Korea
A UN Security Council panel has approved a proposal to extend the exemption period for sanctions on humanitarian assistance to North Korea and streamline procedures to allow easier delivery of aid to the impoverished country, its website showed Tuesday. The North Korea sanctions committee on Monday (US time) adopted a revision to its "Implementation Assistance Notice No. 7" with regard to sanctions on Pyongyang, extending the exemption period from the current six months to nine months
North KoreaDec. 1, 2020