The Korea Herald

ASEAN trade, food fair showcases fresh products

Ahead of the ASEAN Community’s inauguration in December, which was announced officially during the 27th ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur on Sunday, the ASEAN-Korea Center held a trade and food fair last week to help galvanize the bilateral flow of commerce and communication between Southeast Asia and Korea.Under the banner “ASEAN Fair 2015: Touch and Taste ASEAN,” the venue at Coex from Nov. 18-21 in Seoul gathered over 100 small and medium-sized vendors from the Association of Southeast Asian Natio

Nov. 22, 2015

ASEAN trade, food fair showcases fresh products

Exhibit highlights path to German unification

The German embassy spotlighted the crucial period after the Berlin Wall fell in November 1989 to Germany’s reunification a year later in an exhibition last week at Seoul City Hall.Jointly organized by the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Federal Foundation for the Reappraisal of the SED Dictatorship, the one-week exhibit commemorated the 25th anniversary of Germany’s restored sovereignty. “In celebrating our anniversary, we felt that our experience of separation had actually strengthen

Nov. 22, 2015

Exhibit highlights path to German unification

Bulgaria, Korea celebrate 25 years of ties

The Bulgarian embassy last week marked the silver jubilee of its diplomacy with Korea with a seminar to reflect on the last 25 years of cooperation in political relations, trade and investment, education and literature.The event at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies in Seoul on Nov. 16 was jointly organized by the university’s East European and Balkan Institute. “The official visit of Bulgarian President Rosen Plevneliev to Korea in May opened a new chapter of partnership between our countries

Nov. 22, 2015

Italy promotes south marina tour program

Imagine a turquoise blue ocean that encircles a beach lined with centuries-old edifices, their facades glowing in sunlight and reddish rooftops sloped gently toward the sea. Fancy a plate full of fresh seafood, olive oil, cheese, tomatoes, pizza and legumes, on a balcony overlooking the view. Visualize artfully arranged amenities, museums and monuments that exude the depth of Italian culture condensed over centuries. These are the experiences taken in by those traveling to southern Italy on a “S

Nov. 22, 2015

Italy promotes south marina tour program

Park wraps up Asia summit tour

President Park Geun-hye held talks Sunday with more than a dozen leaders on regional and global challenges of North Korea’s nuclear ambitions, terrorism and territorial disputes, wrapping up her 10-day tour.Park asked for cooperation from the leaders of the East Asia Summit to help resolve the dispute over North Korea’s nuclear program, according to Cheong Wa Dae. 귀 기울이는 오바마 미국 대통령 (쿠알라룸푸르=연합뉴스) 백승렬 기자 = 박근혜 대통령이 21일 오후 말레이시아 쿠알라룸푸르 컨벤션센터에서 열린 동아시아정상회의(EAS) 갈라만찬에서 버락 오바마 미국 대

Nov. 22, 2015

Seoul identifying any S. Korean hostages in latest Mali attack

The Seoul government said Friday that it is examining whether any South Korean nationals are being held hostage in a hotel in the capital of Mali that was seized by unidentified gunmen.A group of attackers have occupied a luxury hotel in the Malian capital of Bamako, with about 170 taken hostage."We are checking the safety of every South Korean resident in Mali and identifying whether or not there are any nationals detained in the hotel," an official from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs told Yon

Nov. 20, 2015

Park arrives in Malaysia for regional summits

President Park Geun-hye arrived in Malaysia on Friday for a string of high-profile summits this weekend with regional leaders to discuss a wide-range of issues, including the economy and North Korea's nuclear weapons program.Kuala Lumpur is the third and last stop on her 10-day tour, which already took her to Turkey for the summit of the Group of 20 advanced and emerging economies.In Manila, Park and other leaders of the 21-member Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum strongly condemned terror

Nov. 20, 2015

Park leaves for Malaysia for regional summits

President Park Geun-hye left for Malaysia on Friday for a string of high-profile summits with regional leaders to discuss a wide-range of issues, including the economy and North Korea's nuclear weapons program.Kuala Lumpur is the third and last stop on her 10-day tour, which already took her to Turkey for the summit of the Group of 20 advanced and emerging economies.In Manila, Park and other leaders of the 21-member Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum strongly condemned terrorism and support

Nov. 20, 2015

East Asian nations vow joint effort for sustainable sea development

Coastal countries in East Asia have agreed to join hands to explore ways for sustainable maritime development, the South Korean government said Friday.The commitment was stated in the Danang Declaration adopted by 11 countries in the region, including the two Koreas, China, Japan, Singapore and the Philippines, at the 5th Ministerial Forum of the East Asian Seas Congress under way in the Vietnamese city of Danang for a six-day run that started Monday, according to the Ministry of Maritime Affair

Nov. 20, 2015

Park calls for inclusive development at APEC

President Park Geun-hye on Thursday urged leaders participating in a regional summit to encourage small and medium-sized enterprises to become more vibrant players in the global market as part of efforts to promote inclusive growth in the Asia-Pacific region.On the second day of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit held in Manila, Park also suggested SMEs join global value chains where the different stages of production are located across numerous countries. She proposed revitalizing the

Nov. 19, 2015

Abe demanded Seoul remove comfort woman statue: report

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has demanded the removal of a statue of a teenage Korean girl, a symbol of Korean victims of Japan’s wartime sexual slavery, as a condition for settling the issue involving the victims, according to a news report Thursday. President Park Geun-hye (right, back row) talks with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (left, back row) as they stand for a photo session at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Manila, the Philippines, Thursday. (Yonhap)Citing a

Nov. 19, 2015

Abe demanded Seoul remove comfort woman statue: report

'China, U.S. holding back to conserve strength'

This is the sixth installment in a series of interviews with scholars and experts on China as a resurgent Asian power that is changing the regional order. This installment looks into the intensifying Sino-U.S. rivalry and China’s revisionism. -- Ed.China and the U.S. have been restraining themselves to conserve their strength, as they are caught in a long-term geopolitical rivalry, French China expert Francois Godement said, noting the limitation of conflict is the “main zone of bilateral cooper

Nov. 19, 2015

'China, U.S. holding back to conserve strength'

Seoul would have to take U.S. side in event of collision in South China Sea: expert

South Korea would have to side with the United States if the ally collides with China over the disputed South China Sea, an expert in Asia-Pacific affairs said Thursday."In case of an emergency in the South China Sea, South Korea would have no choice but to move in accordance of the South Korea-U.S. alliance," Shin Gi-wook, a professor at Stanford University in California, said in a lecture hosted by the Korea Institute for Defense Analyses.South Korea appears to be under growing dilemma as the

Nov. 19, 2015

Korea, China seek closer people-to-people ties

South Korea and China sought to expand their people-to-people ties Thursday as they held their third conference on public diplomacy.The forum, established in 2013 under a summit agreement between Presidents Park Geun-hye and Xi Jinping, brought together some 200 people from both countries, representing the government, academia, civil society and the media.The forum's three sessions are expected to focus on ways to strengthen bilateral ties through public policy sharing, increased cultural exchan

Nov. 19, 2015

Vice FM due in D.C. for talks on economy, nuclear cooperation

Vice Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul left for the United States on Wednesday to hold a series of high-profile talks on economic and nuclear energy cooperation.His four-day trip to Washington is to follow up on a pair of agreements between the two sides to launch a high-level economic council meeting and a separate commission on nuclear energy cooperation.On Friday, Cho is scheduled to hold the inaugural economic council session with Catherine Novelli, under secretary of state for economic growth, e

Nov. 18, 2015

Park calls for strengthening ties with Canada

President Park Geun-hye called Wednesday for strengthening cooperation with Ottawa as she met Canada's new Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on the sidelines of an annual summit of Asia-Pacific leaders in the Philippines.Park also said she hopes that Trudeau will successfully "make a real change."Trudeau said in a victory speech last month that it's time for "a real change" in Canada.It marks the first time that Park has met with Trudeau, who was elected last month. Last year, Park held a summit wit

Nov. 18, 2015

Park calls for lifting of trade barriers

President Park Geun-hye urged the leaders of advanced nations to lift protective measures and expand free trade to fight the prolonged economic and trade slowdown worldwide.Citing South Korea as an example of global trade serving as a vehicle for rapid economic growth, Park said she was proposing to strengthen efforts to reduce trade barriers first to revitalize the sluggish economy.“I recommend the G20 countries to make efforts to liberalize multilateral trade through bilateral or regional free

Nov. 17, 2015

Park calls for lifting of trade barriers

Park vows to join global terror fight

President Park Geun-hye on Sunday pledged to join a global campaign against terrorism as world leaders renewed efforts at a meeting in Turkey to thwart the Islamic State and foreign jihadist fighters in the wake of the Paris attacks claimed by the extremist group. At the Group of 20 summit in Antalya, she also displayed her resolve to ramp up humanitarian assistance to Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq and countries that provide shelter to those who have fled their conflict-stricken homes, calling terror

Nov. 16, 2015

Pakistan’s Gandhara ruins to receive Korea’s Buddhists

According to some historians, Korea’s Buddhism traces its roots to the Gandharan Civilization that thrived 2,000 years ago in the territories of today’s northern Pakistan and Afghanistan. The Mahayana school of Korea’s Buddhism ― one of two main branches alongside the Hinayana school ― was introduced to the ancient Kingdom of Baekje (B.C. 18-A.D. 660) in 384 by monk Maranatha, native of Gandhara, the historical records say. The triangular tract largely to the west of the Indus River and bounded

Nov. 16, 2015

Pakistan’s Gandhara ruins to receive Korea’s Buddhists

Argentine wine rouses taste buds in Seoul

The Argentine Embassy, in collaboration with the Wines of Argentina, held a wine tasting event on Nov. 9 at the Millennium Seoul Hilton, introducing 28 wineries. The event, in its fifth run, is a government-sponsored scheme to promote national wines around the world, whose popularity has risen sharply in Korea. Since 2011, the export of Argentine wines to Korea has increased by 64 percent in volume and 90 percent in value. Argentina is the world’s fifth-largest wine producer and the largest in S

Nov. 16, 2015

Argentine wine rouses taste buds in Seoul