Senior diplomats from S. Korea, Japan, China agree to boost collaboration

Ranking diplomats from South Korea, Japan and China on Thursday agreed to ramp up their trilateral collaboration in a meeting held amid frayed ties over historical and territorial issues with Tokyo.The meeting brought together Seoul's Deputy Minister for Political Affairs Lee Kyung-soo, China's Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Liu Zhenmin and Asia Bureau Director General Shinsuke Sugiyama from Japan's foreign ministry."In the latest meeting, the three countries reaffirmed the importance of the t

Nov. 7, 2013

Park arrives in London for state visit

South Korean President Park Geun-hye arrived in London on Monday for a four-day state visit that includes an elaborate ceremonial welcome at Buckingham Palace, meetings with Queen Elizabeth II and summit talks with Prime Minister David Cameron.Park is the second South Korean president to make a state visit to Britain after the late President Roh Moo-hyun in 2004. Britain invites only about two foreign leaders for state visits to the country a year, officials said.A slew of events are set for Tue

Nov. 5, 2013

Biden to visit S. Korea in early December

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden will travel to South Korea early next month as part of his Northeast Asia swing, the White House announced Monday."The Vice President will travel to Japan, China, and the Republic of Korea the first week of December," it said in a press release. The Republic of Korea is the formal name for South Korea.In Seoul, he will meet with key leaders to "address bilateral, regional and global challenges, including in particular our close cooperation and coordination to addres

Nov. 5, 2013

Park seeks to promote Korean culture in Paris

South Korean President Park Geun-hye watched French fans of Korean TV dramas sing and dance to the tunes of theme songs of popular series in the heart of Paris on Sunday as she sought to promote Korean culture on the first full day of her visit to France.The Korean "Drama Party" was meaningful because the French fan club of Korean dramas, named "Bonjour Coree," organized the event voluntarily, officials said. It shows that not only Korean pop music, known was K-pop, but also dramas are gaining p

Nov. 4, 2013

Ethiopia, five other nations glean Korean development tips

About a dozen government officials from Asian and African countries completed a two-week training program Saturday that focused on economic development strategies, cultural exchange and networking.Sponsored by the Ministry of Public Administration and Security, in cooperation with provincial and city governments and foreign embassies, the participants from six nations, including Ethiopia, Malaysia and the Philippines, arrived on Oct. 20 for two weeks of training. The program included three days

Nov. 3, 2013

Fair to introduce Malaysian food, conference in Kuala Lumpur

Local foodies will soon get a taste of dishes among the most exotic in Southeast Asian cuisine at this year’s Korea Food Week at Coex Convention and Exhibition Center from Nov. 6-9.A Malaysian food and beverage company, Blossom View, will bring edible bird’s nest for tasting on Wednesday.Edible bird’s nest is among the most expensive of animal products, with an average nest selling for $2,500 per kilogram in East Asia. Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation and ASEAN-Korea Center arrang

Nov. 3, 2013

Latin American envoys celebrate wine, food and art

Envoys representing the diplomatic missions of as many as 10 Latin American countries commemorated the 20th anniversary of the Latin American Cultural Center in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, on Oct. 25.The celebration highlighted centenary prints of Mexican artists Jose Maria Velasco and Jose Guadalupe Posada, and collections of Mola needlework by Panamanian Cuna Indians, according to the center.The Panamanian Embassy will host a seminar in Seoul on Nov. 14, when it will celebrate its Independence

Nov. 3, 2013

Putin to visit South Korea later this month

Russian President Vladimir Putin will visit South Korea later this month for a summit with President Park Geun-hye about bilateral relations, peace and security on the Korean Peninsula, and other issues of cooperation, her office announced Friday.The Nov. 12-13 visit will mark the second time Park meets with Putin since she took office in February. In September, the two leaders met bilaterally on the sidelines of a Group of 20 major economies meeting in Russia's second-largest city of Saint Pete

Nov. 1, 2013

S. Korea re-elected as member of U.N. economic-social council

South Korea was re-elected as a member of the United Nations' Economic and Social Council, which oversees the majority of the international organization's financial resources, the foreign ministry said Thursday.In a vote at a U.N. general meeting that took place a day earlier, Seoul won the membership to the council for the 2014-15 period, along with three other Asian Pacific countries: China, Bangladesh and Kazakhstan, the ministry said. In the same vote, 14 other countries from different regio

Oct. 31, 2013

Korean FM calls for watershed in Seoul-Tokyo relations

South Korean Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se said Tuesday that Japan having an accurate perception of historical events will serve as a crucial watershed to restore frayed relations between the two countries. "A turning point is needed to make qualitative changes in Seoul-Tokyo relations," Yoon said during a seminar with S. Korean and Japanese journalists in Seoul. The minister further said the Japanese government should realize that a distorted historical view is one of the most crucial factors h

Oct. 29, 2013

U.S. passes ball to Japan on 'collective self-defense' issue

Apparently walking a tightrope between its two key regional allies -- South Korea and Japan, the Obama administration continued efforts Monday not to be drawn into a brewing controversy over Tokyo's move to expand its military role.Japan's conservative Abe government is working to change the interpretation of the pacifist Constitution to allow the nation to exercise the right to "collective self-defense."It would allow Japan, long restricted to self-defense, to use force against a military attac

Oct. 29, 2013

1,500 Koreans forced to work for Japanese firms in Sakhalin during colonial rule

Almost 1,500 Koreans were forced to work for what are now some of Japan‘s largest conglomerates during the Japanese occupation of the Korean Peninsula on Russia’s far eastern island of Sakhalin, a government report showed Monday.The report, drawn up by a government committee tasked with supporting victims of forced labor during Japan‘s 1910-45 colonial rule over the Korean Peninsula, showed that 1,469 Koreans were forced to work at plants belonging to the Japanese firms now known as Mitsubishi a

Oct. 28, 2013

Seoul asks U.S. to clarify spying allegations

The South Korean government has requested a reply from the United States on whether South Korea was one of the 35 countries whose leaders were reportedly wiretapped by the U.S. intelligence agency, an official said Sunday.“We are checking with the U.S. side for verification,” the government official said. “The government is closely following the issue and is determined to respond strictly.” The official said Seoul has not yet received any answer from the U.S. The British daily the Guardian had p

Oct. 27, 2013