Former senior judge indicted in judiciary power abuse probe

State prosecutors on Wednesday indicted a former senior judge, a key suspect in a judicial power abuse scandal involving former top court officials.  The Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office charged Lim Jong-hun, former deputy head of the National Court Administration, the top court's administration affairs body, with abuse of power, dereliction of duty and obstruction of justice, among others, its officials said.  (Yonhap)Lim. 59, was arrested on Oct. 27. Lim is suspected of being the key

Nov. 14, 2018

Korea, US seeking to hold high-level economic dialogue next month: source

South Korea and the United States are seeking to hold a high-level economic dialogue in Washington next month, possibly over the future direction of bilateral cooperation, a government source in Seoul said Wednesday.Seoul's Vice Foreign Minister Lee Tae-ho and Manisha Singh, US assistant secretary of state for economic and business affairs, are expected to lead what will be the first Senior Economic Dialogue since Seoul's Moon Jae-in administration was launched in May last year.Lee Tae-ho, Vice

Nov. 14, 2018

Moon to discuss Korean Peninsula with Chinese, US leaders

SINGAPORE -- President Moon Jae-in will meet with US Vice President Mike Pence and Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of multilateral summits, Cheong Wa Dae announced Wednesday. According to Cheong Wa Dae, Moon and Pence will meet in Singapore, where the two are attending ASEAN-related meetings, on Thursday.  President Moon Jae-in attends the Korea-ASEAN Summit meeting in Singapore on Wednesday. Yonhap“President Moon and Vice President Pence will hold a meeting in the morning of the 1

Nov. 14, 2018

Moon considers inviting NK leader to next year's Korea-ASEAN summit

SINGAPORE -- President Moon Jae-in said Wednesday he will actively consider inviting North Korean leader Kim Jong-un to a special summit that South Korea plans to host for Southeast Asian nations next year, his spokesman said.Moon made the remark during a summit with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in Singapore after Indonesian President Joko Widodo said the North Korean leader's attendance would make next year's special summit more meaningful, presidential spokesman Kim Eui-kyeom sai

Nov. 14, 2018

S. Korea’s nuclear envoy seeks to visit US next week: report

South Korea’s top nuclear envoy is seeking to meet with his US counterpart as early as next week to discuss the launch of a “working group” aimed at coordinating their North Korea policy, according a local news report Wednesday.  South Korea's top nuclear envoy Lee Do-hoon (Yonhap)Seoul’s special representative for Korean Peninsula peace and security affairs, Lee Do-hoon, may visit Washington next week to meet with Stephen Biegun, the US special representative for North Korea, to finalize the cr

Nov. 14, 2018

Moon holds summit with Brunei's sultan

SINGAPORE -- President Moon Jae-in held a summit with Brunei's Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah in Singapore on Wednesday and discussed ways to bolster bilateral relations between Korea and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, officials said.During the meeting held on the sidelines of annual ASEAN-related summits, Moon congratulated Brunei on assuming ASEAN's dialogue coordinatorship and asked for support for South Korea's New Southern Policy aimed at strengthening relations with Southeast Asian n

Nov. 14, 2018

Moon highlights cooperation, suggests multilateral summits at ASEAN meeting

SINGAPORE -- President Moon Jae-in on Wednesday called for closer cooperation between South Korea and the ASEAN member states.　At the ASEAN meeting, Moon proposed special back-to-back summits next year with all 10 of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and with those along the Mekong River, which according to Cheong Wa Dae was met with unanimous approval from the attending leaders. 　“I have faith in ASEAN’s limitless potential and strength in unity. In addition, (I) have a clear vision of

Nov. 14, 2018

Korea, UAE to hold high-level talks on nuclear energy cooperation this week

South Korea and the United Arab Emirates will hold the inaugural session of their high-level dialogue on nuclear energy cooperation in Seoul later this week, Seoul's foreign ministry said Wednesday.Vice Foreign Minister Lee Tae-ho and Suhail Mohamed Faraj Al Mazrouei, the UAE minister of energy and industry, are set to lead the session at a Seoul hotel on Friday. South Korean President Moon Jae-in (left) and UAE Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, March 26, 2018 (Yonhap)The two countries

Nov. 14, 2018

Moon to hold one-on-one summit with Putin

SINGAPORE -- President Moon Jae-in was set to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of a regional summit in Singapore on Wednesday, with North Korea's denuclearization process expected to be a key topic.The meeting, their fourth since Moon took office last year, comes days after high-level denuclearization negotiations between the United States and the North were abruptly called off at the last minute last week.In Wednesday's meeting, Moon and Putin are expected to discuss

Nov. 14, 2018

PM voices concern over Canada's steel safeguard measures

South Korean Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon voiced his concern over Canada's provisional safeguard measures against the country's steel products in a meeting with the Canadian Senate Speaker on Tuesday. Lee met George Furey at his office in Seoul and told the senator that concerns are growing in South Korea regarding Canada's steel safeguards."We need to pay attention to continuing free and fair trade between the two nations," Lee said. "I also want to ask Canada to expand its quota for its working

Nov. 14, 2018

Moon begins ASEAN, APEC trip

President Moon Jae-in flew to Singapore on Tuesday, ahead of summit meetings with the leaders of Brunei, Laos and Russia the following day.According to Seoul’s presidential office, Moon will meet with Sultan of Brunei Haji Hassanal Bolkiah, Laotian Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith, and Russian President Vladimir Putin, on the sidelines of ASEAN and East Asia Summit events. Moon is in Singapore on a four-day visit to attend a series of multinational summits, and will move on to Papua New Guinea

Nov. 13, 2018

[Herald Interview] ASEAN important for Korea’s peace as well as prosperity: ambassador

SINGAPORE -- The Association of Southeast Asian Nations has become an important partner for not only Korea’s prosperity, but also for its peace, Korea’s Ambassador to Singapore Ahn Young-jip said in an interview with The Korea Herald.“ASEAN has expressed its views on the Korean Peninsula through various summits, and has been showing great interest in the stability, peace and prosperity of the Northeast Asian region,” Ambassador Ahn said Friday at the embassy here.President Moon Jae-in arrived Tu

Nov. 13, 2018

US might resume military drills with S. Korea next spring: report

The US has told Japan it might resume large-scale joint military exercises with South Korea as early as next spring unless there is tangible progress on the denuclearization of North Korea, according to a Japanese news report Tuesday. 　 (Yonhap)The US has consulted with Japan about the plan a number of times since September, Japan’s Kyodo News Agency reported, citing Japanese government sources. It floated the possibility of a resumption of two major South Korea-US exercises -- Key Resolve and F

Nov. 13, 2018

Moon leaves for Singapore to take part in ASEAN summits

President Moon Jae-in left for Singapore Tuesday for annual summits with Southeast Asian nations and their dialogue partners as he strives to bolster relations with the region and drum up international support for his initiative for peace with North Korea.During the three-day visit, Moon is scheduled to attend a trio of annual summits hosted by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations -- a Korea-ASEAN summit, an ASEAN Plus Three summit also involving China and Japan and the broader East Asia S

Nov. 13, 2018

S. Korea's unification minister to visit US to discuss North Korea issues

South Korea's unification minister left for the United States on Tuesday for a five-day visit amid speculation over possible differences between the two allies over how to achieve North Korea's denuclearization.Minister Cho Myoung-gyon is likely to meet Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and other officials and experts to discuss issues of the North's denuclearization and inter-Korean relations, the ministry said. "This is a meaningful trip that comes at a very important time," Cho told reporters be

Nov. 13, 2018

Korea in talks with US over solid-fuel rocket development

South Korea is in talks with the United States over its pursuit of developing solid-fuel space vehicles for non-military purposes, Seoul's foreign ministry said Monday.Last year, the allies agreed to eliminate restrictions on the payload weight of South Korea's ballistic missiles in response to a series of North Korean provocations at that time. South Korea is allowed to develop ballistic missiles with a range of up to 800 kilometers."Currently, consultations are under way between South Korea an

Nov. 12, 2018

Peace, economic cooperation key goals of Moon's summit diplomacy with ASEAN, APEC

President Moon Jae-in is expected to use his upcoming trip to Singapore and Papua New Guinea to upgrade relations with Southeast Asian nations and drum up international support for his peace drive with North Korea.Moon is set to leave for Singapore on Tuesday for a three-day visit to attend a trio of annual summits hosted by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations -- a Korea-ASEAN summit, an ASEAN plus three summit also involving China and Japan and the broader East Asia Summit.Moon plans to

Nov. 12, 2018

S. Korean held captive in Libya for 4 months in good health: Foreign Ministry

A South Korean who has been held captive by an unidentified armed group in Libya since July remains healthy, an official from the Foreign Ministry said Monday, amid the government’s ongoing efforts to secure his release. “(The Libyan government) confirmed that the South Korea national had been safely held captive in the southern part of Libya,” the official said on condition of anonymity. The South Korean national and three Filipinos were abducted from their work site in Jabal Hasouna in western

Nov. 12, 2018

Top officials of US, China discuss N. Korea

Top officials of the United States and China met in Washington Friday to discuss their bilateral relationship and efforts to rid North Korea of its nuclear weapons.　In a press conference following the talks, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said he urged China‘s cooperation on sanctions enforcement to help achieve the denuclearization of North Korea. (AP-Yonhap)　“I expressed in our meeting today the importance of remaining united in pursuit of a final, fully-verified denuclearization of North

Nov. 10, 2018

Korea, China reach 2019 fisheries agreement

South Korea and China reached an agreement on their annual fisheries quota in each other's exclusive waters for next year, the Seoul government said Friday.The agreement was reached at the 18th round of bilateral talks held in the southeastern port city of Busan from Tuesday to Friday, according to the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries. (Yonhap)The pact allows each country to send up to 1,450 boats in the other's exclusive economic zone next year, cutting the total by 50 boats from 2018.The quota

Nov. 9, 2018