S. Korea changes UN peacekeeping forum to virtual sessions on omicron concerns: official

South Korea has decided to host a major UN peacekeeping conference via video link next week, instead of an originally planned face-to-face session, due to concerns over the spread of the omicron coronavirus variant, according to Seoul officials Wednesday. The 2021 Seoul UN Peacekeeping Ministerial will be held in the form of a "full-fledged online conference" on Dec. 7-8 as scheduled, a foreign ministry official told reporters. Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong and Defense Minister S

Dec. 1, 2021

S. Korea, 5 Central Asian nations discuss post-pandemic recovery

Top diplomats of South Korea and five Central Asian nations gathered at a regional forum held in Tajikistan to explore ways on expanding cooperation for the economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, Seoul's foreign ministry said Wednesday. Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong attended the 14th Korea-Central Asia Forum held in the Tajik capital of Dushanbe on Tuesday, which was joined by representatives from Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan. In a key note speech, C

Dec. 1, 2021

S. Korea ships 539,000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccine to Philippines

South Korea has shipped 539,000 doses of AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine to the Philippines to help the Southeast Asian nation address its vaccine shortages, Seoul's foreign ministry said Tuesday. An airplane carrying the jabs departed from Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul, earlier in the day and will arrive in the Philippines on the same day, the ministry said. South Korea has already shared coronavirus vaccine shots with three other countries -- Vietnam, Thailand and Iran -- as it

Nov. 30, 2021

Education ministry project builds ICT-powered experimental classroom in Cambodia

The education ministry has launched an assistance project to build a smart classroom in Cambodia to help the country experiment with teaching and learning through up-to-date information and communications technology (ICT) devices, officials said Tuesday. Under the joint project launched with the Busan city education office and the APEC Learning Community Builders, the Ministry of Education installed an ICT-equipped experimental classroom in Wat Bo Primary School in Cambodia's Siem Reap, accordi

Nov. 30, 2021

N. Korea slams AUKUS as US 'tool for war' threatening world security

North Korea has criticized a new trilateral security partnership among Australia, Britain and the United States as an American "tool for war" that poses "serious threats" to world peace. In a commentary posted on the North's foreign ministry website Monday, the Korea-Asia Association said the international community should be wary of the initiative, called AUKUS, that "brings dark clouds of a nuclear war to the world." "(The concerns) come from the fact that

Nov. 30, 2021

US global posture review calls for allies' cooperation to counter NK, China threats

The US Department of Defense has concluded its review of the global defense posture, calling for cooperation with allies and partner countries to deter North Korean threats and potential Chinese aggression. Following months of analysis, the Pentagon released the results of the 2021 Global Posture Review (GPR) on Monday (US time) at a time when Washington has been striving to reinforce cooperation with friendly nations against an increasingly assertive China and a nuclear-ambitious North Korea.

Nov. 30, 2021

260 Sakhalin Koreans to return home

Starting Saturday, some 260 Sakhalin Koreans -- ethnic Koreans who were forced to relocate to the far-eastern Russian island by their Japanese colonizers during World War II -- are set to arrive in their ancestral homeland, the Foreign Ministry said Thursday.  The repatriation is in accordance with legislation that took effect in January, which expanded the eligibility criteria for relocation and financial support from the South Korean government for Sakhalin Koreans.  Previously,

Nov. 25, 2021

Sultanate of Oman celebrates 51st National Day of Renaissance

The following article was contributed by the Embassy of Oman in Seoul. — Ed. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- The Sultanate of Oman will mark the 51st National Day of the Renaissance, Nov. 18. The event comes around at a time when Omanis ponder about the achievements made so far and brace for further accomplishments, with firm resolve, under the astute leadership of His Majesty Sultan Haitham Bin Tarik who pledged to hold high the banner of the Rene

Nov. 25, 2021

Pandemic accelerated power shift in China’s favor: expert

In the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, the virus brought life in China to a halt. As the epicenter of the first coronavirus outbreak, China imposed unprecedented lockdown measures that caused its economy to contract by a historic amount. But in a stark turnabout, the country has seen an economic rebound and the lives of people have largely returned to normal -- despite the recent resurgence of the delta variant of the coronavirus. 　 With China expected to become the only major economy to

Nov. 24, 2021

S. Korea, US, Japan can achieve bigger success when working together: Ned Price

WASHINGTON -- The press secretary for the US Department of State reiterated the importance of trilateral cooperation between the US, South Korea and Japan on Monday, saying the countries will be more successful when working together. The remarks from Ned Price came after Japanese Vice Foreign Minister Takeo Mori boycotted a joint press event with his South Korean and US counterparts -- Choi Jong-kun and Wendy Sherman -- following their three-way talks in Washington last week. "When it com

Nov. 23, 2021

S. Korea, Japan hold working-level talks amid renewed spat over Dokdo

South Korea and Japan held working-level diplomatic talks in Seoul on Monday amid a renewed spat over the former's easternmost islets of Dokdo. The talks between Lee Sang-ryol, the foreign ministry's director general for Asian and Pacific affairs, and his Japanese counterpart, Takehiro Funakoshi, came after tensions resurfaced following Japan's protest over the recent visit to Dokdo by South Korea's police chief.    Lee said that Seoul can never accept any Japanese claim to Dokdo, a

Nov. 22, 2021

Cyberwarfare era calls for security rethink: Estonian ex-president

The evolution of technologies is changing the character of warfare. In any future war, the battle will be determined long before any bullets are fired or missiles flown. Wars may be won through cyberattacks that crash countries’ networks, causing power outages and severing military communication, says former Estonian President Toomas Hendrik Ilves. 　 The changing face of war requires countries around the world to “rethink” the entire approach to security and defense, Ilves sa

Nov. 22, 2021

[Photo News] Red crabs preparing for winter

Every year, millions of red crabs migrate from the forest toward the ocean to mate in preparation for winter. On Australia’s Christmas Island in the Indian Ocean, red crab migration season has already begun, as can be seen from the streets literally covered in crabs. A female crab can produce up to 100,000 eggs, and in some areas there can be up to 100 crabs per square meter of beach or rock.  Migration usually begins after the first rainfall. According to the Parks Australia websi

Nov. 20, 2021

Presidential hopeful Yoon vows to enhance Seoul-Beijing ties

Yoon Seok-youl, the presidential candidate of the main opposition People Power Party, vowed on Friday to enhance ties with China if he becomes president.  Yoon made the remarks during a meeting with Chinese Ambassador Xing Haiming at the party’s headquarters in Yeouido, western Seoul, during which he stressed that South Korea and China are each other’s most important trade partners and that next year marks the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between the

Nov. 19, 2021

S. Korea expands economic security TF to counter supply chain disruptions

South Korea has expanded a newly minted task force on economic security to better cope with supply chain disruptions and detect emerging risks at an early stage, the foreign ministry said Friday. Lee Seong-ho, deputy minister on economic diplomacy, will lead the task force composed of three subdivisions -- supply chain, digital and new technologies, and environmental, social and governance (ESG) -- the ministry said. The team was launched under the ministry's bilateral economic diplomacy dep

Nov. 19, 2021

Labor minister, USTR discuss enhancing intl. labor standards

Labor minister An Kyung-duk met with US Trade Representative (USTR) Katherine Tai on Friday and discussed cooperation in enhancing rights of workers and international labor standards, An's office said. Tai was on a four-day trip to South Korea for talks on pending trade issues, such as supply chains for key components and steel tariffs. During the meeting held at a regional labor office in Seoul, An pointed to the "growing significance in ties between trade and labor on a global scale&quo

Nov. 19, 2021

US, Japan reaffirm importance of trilateral cooperation with S. Korea: State Dept.

WASHINGTON -- Senior diplomats of the United States and Japan reaffirmed the importance of cooperation with South Korea on Thursday, one day after Japanese Vice Foreign Minister Takeo Mori boycotted a joint press conference over what his US counterpart called an unrelated bilateral issue. Mori and US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman also reaffirmed their commitment to the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, state department spokesman Ned Price said. "The two also dis

Nov. 19, 2021

Japan calls off joint news conference over Dokdo dispute with S. Korea

Japanese Vice Foreign Minister Takeo Mori pulled out at the last minute from a joint news conference with his South Korean and US counterparts over a territorial feud with Seoul on the Dokdo islets.  Mori and South Korea’s First Vice Foreign Minister Choi Jong-kun were scheduled to appear alongside US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman at a press conference scheduled after the three held talks over regional issues, including North Korea’s nuclear program, in Washington on

Nov. 18, 2021

Japan boycotts joint press event with S. Korea, US over Dokdo issue

Japanese Foreign Minister Takeo Mori refused to take part in a joint press conference with his South Korean and US counterparts Wednesday, citing a recent visit by South Korea's top police official to Dokdo. The joint press conference was originally set to follow their trilateral talks in Washington but was instead held alone by US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman. "We agreed to the US, the host of the trilateral talks, announcing the outcome of the South Korea-US-Japan vice minist

Nov. 18, 2021

French culture minister says to consider lending 'Jikji' to S. Korea

The French culture minister has said she will actively consider lending "Jikji," the world's oldest existing metal-printed book made in ancient Korea, for exhibitions in South Korea, Culture Minister Hwang Hee said. France's Culture Minister Roselyne Bachelot-Narquin made the remarks in response to Hwang's request to lend the item during their talks in Paris, Hwang told South Korean correspondents in Paris on Wednesday (Paris time). Hwang said he brought up the topic while discussing

Nov. 18, 2021