The Korea Herald

‘Singapore top choice in Asia to live, work and study’

Singapore celebrates its 49th National Day on Aug. 9. The Singapore economy is holding up well amid global uncertainties. Singapore posted a 3.9 percent real GDP growth in 2013, and is expected to grow by 2-4 percent in 2014. Singapore also enjoys a low unemployment rate of around 2 percent. As a small nation lacking in natural resources, we have made remarkable progress since our independence in 1965. Singapore’s consistent economic performance has been made possible by the continued focus on t

Aug. 8, 2014

‘Singapore top choice in Asia to live, work and study’

Seoul, Beijing FMs slam N. Korea's nuke ambitions, missile launches

NAYPYITAW (Yonhap) -- The foreign ministers of South Korea and China on Friday vowed to work together in easing tension on the Korean Peninsula, saying that North Korea's recent missile launches pose a grave threat to peace and stability in the region, a Seoul official said.South Korean Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se met with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi earlier in the day on the sidelines of the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF), Asia's biggest security forum, slated for Sunday."The two foreign mini

Aug. 8, 2014

U.S. declines comment on investigation of Korean American in China

The United States declined comment Thursday on a news report that a Korean American is under investigation in China, possibly as part of a crackdown on Christian-run nongovernmental organizations near the border with North Korea.The Reuters news agency reported earlier that Peter Han, a naturalized U.S. citizen, has been under interrogation by Chinese authorities for the last three weeks and is banned from leaving the country. It quoted a source saying it is unclear what prompted the probe.The r

Aug. 8, 2014

Top diplomats from Seoul, Beijing to hold talks in Myanmar

South Korea's foreign minister plans to hold talks with his Chinese counterpart Friday on the sidelines of Asia's biggest security forum in a bid to discuss North Korea's nuclear program and other bilateral issues, government officials said.South Korean Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se is to arrive in Naypyitaw on Friday to join a series of meetings hosted by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, including the ASEAN Regional Forum. ARF will be held on Sunday.Yun plans to hold a meeting with C

Aug. 8, 2014

Japan faces pressure over sex slavery

Japan is coming under increasing pressure to atone for its wartime sexual enslavement of Korean and other Asian women. U.N. high commissioner for human rights Navi Pillay issued a statement Thursday to express “profound regret” over Tokyo’s failure to pursue a “comprehensive, impartial and lasting resolution” of the issue, saying the human rights of the so-called former comfort women “continue to be violated decades after the end of World War II.”The women face “increasing denials and degrading

Aug. 7, 2014

(Photo News) Ebola scare spreads

Guinean Police secure the area around a man who collapsed in a puddle of water on the street, while people avoid him for fear that he is infected with the Ebola virus in the city of Conakry, Guinea, Wednesday. The man lay in the street for several hours before being taken to an Ebola control center for assessment. (AP-Yonhap)

Aug. 7, 2014

U.S. urges Japan to resolve sex slavery issue

WASHINGTON (Yonhap) ― The United States urged Japan on Tuesday to resolve the issue of the country’s sexual enslavement of women during World War II as it confirmed a report that White House and State Department officials met recently with two Korean victims of the atrocity.Yonhap News Agency reported Monday that officials of the White House and the State Department held unannounced meetings last week with two elderly South Korean victims of the sexual slavery ― Lee Ock-sun, 87, and Kang Il-chul

Aug. 6, 2014

Seoul protests Tokyo’s new claim to Dokdo

Korea on Tuesday protested Japan’s renewed claim to the islets of Dokdo in its new defense white paper that added to the strain on their relations. In the annual document, Tokyo identified the windswept islets in the East Sea as its territory and said the sovereignty feud “remains unresolved.” The description has been rehashed since 2005. The paper also carries a map of Japan’s air defense identification zone, in which Dokdo is denoted by the Japanese name of Takeshima and the skies over the out

Aug. 5, 2014

Seoul protests Tokyo’s new claim to Dokdo

Korea, U.S. to hold second OPCON meeting this week

South Korea and the United States will hold a second round of talks this week on delaying the planned transfer of the wartime operational control of South Korean troops from Washington to Seoul, the Pentagon said Monday.In April, South Korean President Park Geun-hye and U.S. President Barack Obama decided that the timeline for the transition of OPCON, currently slated for 2015, can be reconsidered. They agreed to continue to work to determine the “appropriate timing and conditions for the transi

Aug. 5, 2014

Korea slams Japan's renewed claim to Dokdo

South Korea denounced Japan's repeated claim to Seoul's easternmost islets of Dokdo on Tuesday, calling it an "unjustifiable" move that would not help improve already chilled bilateral relations.Seoul's criticism came as Japan's Cabinet approved Tokyo's defense white paper for 2014 earlier in the day, in which Japan laid claim to the East Sea islets. Japan has asserted its claim to Dokdo in its defense report for the past 10 years.The Dokdo islets, which lie closer to South Korea than Japan in w

Aug. 5, 2014

White House officials meet with Korean victims of Japan's sexual slavery

Officials of the White House and the State Department have met secretly with two elderly Korean victims of Japan's wartime sexual enslavement of women, sources said Tuesday, an unprecedented move that suggests Washington's policy on the issue may change.The two -- Lee Ock-sun, 87, and Kang Il-chul, 86 -- met with White House officials last Tuesday before holding a meeting with State Department officials the following day, the sources said. It was the first time that White House and State Departm

Aug. 5, 2014

State Department calls for Senate confirmation of Mark Lippert as ambassador to Seoul

Mark Lippert, the nominee for U.S. ambassador to South Korea, has excellent qualifications to take up the job and would well serve both nations if the Senate confirms his nomination, the State Department said Monday.Lippert, chief of staff to Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel, was nominated in early May to replace Sung Kim as the top U.S. envoy to Seoul. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee held a confirmation hearing for him on June 18 and approved the nomination on June 24.But his appointment ha

Aug. 5, 2014

[Herald Interview] U.N. agency warns of weakened climate policy

This is the last installment in an 11-part series of interviews with chiefs of United Nations offices in Korea. ― Ed.Amid concerns over its dwindling commitment to climate initiatives, South Korea should muster the political will to follow through on its international pledges to curb emissions and the green growth initiative, the chief of the U.N. Office for Sustainable Development said.Seoul has taken credit for promoting “green growth” as a global agenda. In 2009, the country vowed a voluntari

Aug. 3, 2014

[Herald Interview] U.N. agency warns of weakened climate policy

[Weekender] China’s rising clout in Korea

Around B.C. 300, a Chinese widow moved house three times in search of a better place to raise her son. Living beside a cemetery, the child mimicked funeral rites. Near a marketplace, he imitated merchants. Then the mother settled on a house close to a school, where the boy was influenced by literati, soon perfected the Six Arts and became a Confucian sage. Throughout history, the tale of the mother of Mencius has served as a model for devotion to education and strict parenting in neighboring Kor

Aug. 1, 2014

[Weekender] China’s rising clout in Korea

[Weekender] Uncertainties linger over future Korea-China relations

South Korea and China have made remarkable progress in their economic, cultural and social relations since the opening of their diplomatic ties 22 years ago, with their trade volume, bilateral tourism and people-to-people exchanges on a steady rise.But uncertainty lingers over how the relationship between the former Cold War foes will evolve amid shifts in the regional security landscape that were triggered mainly by China’s reemergence as a major power in the Asia-Pacific.Geostrategic and secur

Aug. 1, 2014

[Weekender] Uncertainties linger over future Korea-China relations

[Weekender] Bound by history, cultural, social ties evolve

Stretching back two millennia, the two countries’ deeply interwoven cultural and social relations have evolved from a geohistorical, Confucianism-based bond into a mutually beneficial partnership. Though China remains a leading player in Asia’s cultural industry, region, Korea’s soft power has grown sharply in recent years thanks to the high popularity of its pop music and dramas. The influence of the world’s second-largest economy in Korea’s industry and society has prompted soaring numbers of

Aug. 1, 2014

[Weekender] Bound by history, cultural, social ties evolve

S. Korea, New Zealand to hold 8th round of FTA talks next week

South Korea and New Zealand will hold a fresh round of negotiations for a bilateral free trade agreement (FTA) in Seoul next week, the South Korean government said Friday, vowing to make "progress" in the talks that began more than five years ago."At the upcoming round of negotiations, the two sides will work to make actual progress by narrowing their differences in the area of market liberalization for products and by resolving other remaining issues, such as the country of origin, customs and

Aug. 1, 2014

S. Korea imposes travel ban on violence-ravaged Libya

South Korea on Wednesday imposed a travel ban on Libya again as spiraling violence in the African country has raised security concerns.Seoul's foreign ministry said it decided to raise its travel alert for Libya by one notch to the highest level, citing grave concerns for security in the country. The move will be effective for six months.Since mid-July, South Korea, which has a four-tier travel advisory system, has strongly recommended that local companies withdraw their staff or reduce the numb

July 30, 2014

Prosecutors continue probe into ferry owner's driver

Prosecutors continued their investigation Wednesday into the driver of the sunken ferry Sewol's owner over suspicions of helping his employer evade a massive manhunt.Yang Hoe-jeong, 55, the chauffeur of Yoo Byung-eun, turned himself in to the prosecution a day earlier. The surrender came a week after Yoo, a billionaire who owned the Sewol ferry, was confirmed dead.The Incheon District Prosecutors' Office said Yang underwent questioning for the second day mainly over whether he provided a hiding

July 30, 2014

U.S. House passes tougher sanctions bill on N. Korea

WASHINGTON -- The U.S. House of Representatives on Monday passed a bill calling for strengthening financial sanctions on North Korea and holding officials of the totalitarian nation accountable for human rights abuses.The legislation -- H.R. 1771 or the North Korea Sanctions Enforcement Act -- was unanimously approved in a plenary session of the House, Congressional officials said. The bill, introduced last year by Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA), chairman of the House foreign relations committee, won appr

July 29, 2014