[Newsmaker] S. Korea seeks to arrange 2 chartered flights to bring home citizens from virus-hit Italy

South Korea is seeking to arrange two chartered flights to bring home hundreds of its citizens from Italy, which has been hit hard by the new coronavirus, a senior foreign ministry official said Friday. Italy's COVID-19 death toll had topped 3,400 as of Thursday afternoon -- a tally higher than that of China where the novel virus first emerged in December. As of Friday afternoon, more than 570 people have expressed their wish to return to Korea. "We currently think that two flights are

March 20, 2020

FM Kang calls for efforts to minimize economic, social fallout from coronavirus

Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha called Friday for joint efforts with China and Japan to minimize the social and economic fallout from the coronavirus outbreak as she held a videoconference with her counterparts, her office said.   "I believe the three countries should discuss the need to minimize the economic and social shock, as well as the contraction in people-to-people exchanges and cooperation due to this crisis, along with (efforts to) stem the virus spread," she said

March 20, 2020

US weighs warning against all overseas travel

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Trump administration is considering an upgrade to its already dire warning to Americans against all international travel as the coronavirus outbreak spreads. US officials said Thursday the State Department could soon issue a new alert urging Americans not to travel abroad under any circumstances. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because a final decision has not been made and the warning could be tempered, even if approved. At the moment, the department's ad

March 20, 2020

S. Korea, US still have gaps in defense cost-sharing talks: foreign ministry

South Korea and the United States still have gaps over the sharing of the cost for stationing the US Forces Korea, the foreign ministry said Friday, after they wrapped up three days of hard bargaining in Los Angeles. The failure to reconcile their differences added to concerns that Korean workers in the USFK could be forced to go on unpaid leave starting next month, as the US military has repeatedly warned of their furloughs absent a deal to fund their wages. Seoul's top negotiator Jeong Eun

March 20, 2020

S. Korea to focus on easing virus restrictions for businesspeople in upcoming G20 teleconference

South Korea will make the case for minimizing travel restrictions aimed at combating the new coronavirus for businesspeople in next week's teleconference among the leaders of the Group of 20 nations, a foreign ministry official said Thursday. Seoul has been preparing for the gathering that Saudi Arabia, this year's chair of the G-20 summit, has said will take place sometime next week to "present a coordinated set of policies to protect people and safeguard the global economy." "

March 19, 2020

S. Korea evacuates 80 citizens from Iran on charter flight

The South Korean government sent a charter flight to Iran on Thursday and evacuated 80 people from the Middle Eastern country, which is struggling with a severe coronavirus outbreak. 　 The Asiana Airlines flight departed from Al Maktoum International Airport near Dubai at 8:05 a.m. (Korean time), carrying 74 Korean nationals and six Iranian family members, and arrived at Incheon International Airport on Thursday at around 4:30 pm. The passengers had flown to Dubai on an Iran Air flight. 　 Up

March 19, 2020

Third athlete on national fencing team tests positive for COVID-19

South Korea’s national fencing team reported that a third athlete on the team had been confirmed to have the novel coronavirus, health officials said Thursday. The 36-year-old athlete tested positive Wednesday. She had returned home from an international competition in Budapest, Hungary, over the weekend, according to South Chungcheong Province health authorities. She was tested for the virus at a test center in Taean, South Chungcheong Province, earlier this week after a teammate was

March 19, 2020

170 countries, territories restricting entry from S. Korea over coronavirus fears

A total of 170 countries and territories were restricting entry or imposing stricter quarantine procedures for people from South Korea over coronavirus concerns on Thursday. Of them, 114 countries and territories were imposing an entry ban on people who have been in South Korea in at least the past two weeks, including 50 countries that have temporarily closed their borders to all foreigners over the virus outbreak, the foreign ministry said. The number marks a sharp rise from Monday's 75 n

March 19, 2020

US suspends routine visa services: State Department

WASHINGTON (AFP) -- The United States is suspending routine visa services in most countries because of the coronavirus pandemic, the State Department announced late Wednesday. It said embassies and consulates in "most countries worldwide... will cancel all routine immigrant and nonimmigrant visa appointments as of March 18, 2020." It did not specify which countries would be exempted from the suspension, which was in response to "worldwide challenges" related to the deadly

March 19, 2020

White House task force sees S. Korea at end of epidemic curve

WASHINGTON -- The White House coronavirus task force said Wednesday it is seeing South Korea and China at the far end of their epidemic curves and studying the two countries to predict patterns in the United States. Dr. Deborah Birx, the coordinator of the task force, offered the assessment during a press briefing at the White House. Moments earlier, President Donald Trump said he was invoking the Defense Production Act, which would give him authority to get industries to increase output of me

March 19, 2020

S. Korean chartered flight heads home carrying 80 people evacuated from coronavirus-hit Iran

A South Korean government-arranged chartered flight departed for Seoul on Thursday, carrying 80 people evacuated from Iran due to the worsening outbreak of the new coronavirus. The Asiana Airlines plane, with 74 Koreans and six Iranian family members aboard, took off from Al Maktoum International Airport near Dubai at 8:05 a.m. (Korean time), the foreign ministry in Seoul said. It is scheduled to arrive at Incheon International Airport on Thursday afternoon. The evacuees had earlier been air

March 19, 2020

Seoul expands travel advisory to all countries

South Korea's foreign ministry said Wednesday it has issued a travel advisory for all countries previously not affected by its travel warnings prompted by the global spread of the new coronavirus. Under the unprecedented move, all South Koreans are advised to take caution when visiting any foreign country, the ministry said, adding that the level-1 travel advisory will be effective as of Thursday. "All those planning an overseas trip are advised to carefully consider the need and possibl

March 18, 2020

US Embassy to suspend visa interviews as precaution against coronavirus

The US Embassy in Seoul said Wednesday that it will suspend all routine visa interviews this week in line with a State Department measure to respond to the new coronavirus outbreaks. The measure, set to take effect on Thursday, will not affect the visa waiver program for Korean citizens or services for US citizens, the embassy said. "The US Embassy to the Republic of Korea will cancel all routine immigrant and nonimmigrant visa appointments as of March 19, 2020," the embassy said in

March 18, 2020

Foreign demands rapidly increasing for S. Korean-made coronavirus test kits, knowhow: official

A growing number of foreign countries have been asking about importing South Korean-made coronavirus diagnostic kits and other forms of aid to help curb the pandemic, a foreign ministry official said Wednesday. Such calls have been rising as Seoul's containment efforts have led to a slowdown in new COVID-19 cases and a low fatality rate, which have created breathing space for South Korea to look beyond its shores to embrace a broader role in the global fight against the virus. "We have b

March 18, 2020

Korea sends military planes to secure more medical gowns amid anti-virus efforts

South Korea dispatched two military transport aircraft to Myanmar on Wednesday to bring back 80,000 sets of surgical gowns for use in dealing with the new coronavirus, the defense ministry said. The Air Force C-130J planes departed for the Southeast Asian nation from Gimhae airport, near the southeastern city of Busan, marking the first time that military planes have been mobilized to bring commercial goods into the country, the ministry said. The planes are scheduled to return to Seoul's Gi

March 18, 2020

S. Korea to bring home part of rotational troops from South Sudan

South Korea will bring back part of its troops from South Sudan without sending a replacement contingent for the time being due to coronavirus concerns, government sources said Wednesday. The decision to bring home about 210 troops of the 270-strong Hanbit Unit came after South Sudan officially asked Seoul and other foreign countries not to send fresh troops in the wake of the continued spread of the COVID-19 virus across the globe. About 150 service members will return home this month and th

March 18, 2020

Coronavirus spurs exodus of South Koreans from Europe

With the novel coronavirus spreading fast around the world, a growing number of South Koreans living in hard-hit countries such as Italy and France are seeking to flee home. 　 There are some 5,000 Korean nationals residing in Italy, where COVID-19 has killed more than 2,000 people and sickened nearly 28,000, making it the worst-affected country outside of China, where the virus emerged late last year. 　 Korean residents there are arranging a charter flight to Korea, according to news reports.

March 17, 2020

S. Korea, China, Japan hold conference call on coronavirus response

The foreign ministries of South Korea, China and Japan held a working-level conference call on Tuesday to discuss cooperation in stemming the regional and global spread of the new coronavirus, officials said. Kim Jung-han, director-general for Asian and Pacific affairs at Seoul's foreign ministry, joined the call with his Chinese and Japanese counterparts, Wu Jianghao and Shigeki Takizaki. In the call, they agreed to explore ways to hold trilateral talks among the foreign ministers of their

March 17, 2020

150 countries, territories restricting entry from S. Korea over coronavirus fears

Ten more countries have banned the entry of people from South Korea over coronavirus concerns, raising the total number of countries and territories imposing such entry or quarantine restrictions to 150, even though Seoul has seen a marked drop in new infections. Eighty-five countries and territories were set to impose or were already imposing an entry ban on people from Korea, up from 75 the previous day, the foreign ministry's chart showed Tuesday. Canada was the latest in the list with it

March 17, 2020

Senior diplomats of S. Korea, US hold phone talks over fight against new coronavirus

Senior diplomats of South Korea and the United States held phone talks Tuesday to discuss joint efforts to fight the new coronavirus, the foreign ministry said, as Seoul's anti-virus efforts have led to a drop in new infections and a low fatality rate. First Vice Foreign Minister Cho Sei-young and US Deputy Secretary of State Stephen Biegun discussed the global containment efforts and their countries' responses to the COVID-19 pandemic that has sickened thousands of citizens and disrupted dail

March 17, 2020