N. Korean apology for killing incident a 'helpful step':State Dept.

North Korea's apology over its recent fatal shooting of a South Korean government official is a "helpful step," the US State Department said Friday, while reaffirming its support for South Korea's condemnation and demand for a full explanation. The reaction came shortly after North Korean leader Kim Jong-un said he felt "very sorry" in a message sent to South Korea. "We understand that the DPRK has conveyed an explanation and apology to the ROK. This is a helpful step,

Sept. 26, 2020

US presidential envoy for arms control to visit Seoul next week

Marshall Billingslea, special US presidential envoy for arms control, will visit Seoul next week for talks with his South Korean counterpart on international arms control and nonproliferation issues, the foreign ministry said Friday. Billingslea of the US State Department will arrive here Sunday for a two-day visit. He plans to hold talks with Seoul's Deputy Foreign Minister for Multilateral and Global Affairs Ham Sang-wook on Monday. "South Korea and the United States have been closely

Sept. 25, 2020

Moon, Putin hope to deepen cooperation on 30th anniv. of bilateral ties

President Moon Jae-in and Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed their desire Friday to further develop bilateral relations, Cheong Wa Dae said, as the two countries mark the 30th anniversary of establishing diplomatic ties. The two men exchanged messages for the Sept. 30 anniversary, noting progress in various areas of cooperation, including politics, business and culture. "President Moon, in particular, hoped that the 9-Bridge cooperation projects for Eurasia's co-prosperity will bu

Sept. 25, 2020

Top diplomats of S. Korea, Ecuador hold phone talks on COVID-19 response

The top diplomats of South Korea and Ecuador held telephone talks Thursday to discuss joint responses to the new coronavirus and the ongoing campaign of Seoul's trade minister for the director-generalship of the World Trade Organization. Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha and her Ecuadorian counterpart, Luis Gallegos Chiriboga, exchanged views on how to step up cooperation in overcoming the pandemic and enhancing economic and other exchanges, the foreign ministry said. Kang said that South Korea

Sept. 24, 2020

In call with Suga, Moon urges Japan to resolve forced labor issue

President Moon Jae-in on Thursday called on the Japanese government to work together with South Korea to seek a solution to the issue of wartime forced labor. In his first telephone conversation with the new Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, Moon said that the two countries are each other‘s closest neighbors and that the issue should be resolved, according to Cheong Wa Dae spokesperson Kang Min-seok. “It is true that the two countries have differences on the forced labor i

Sept. 24, 2020

Let's live on: BTS urges the world's youth to persevere in pressing times of COVID-19

K-pop super group BTS on Wednesday presented a special message at the 75th United Nations General Assembly, urging the world's youth to remember and seek out their dreams despite the challenges that they may face from the COVID-19 pandemic. "Now more than ever, we must remember who we are and face who we are. We must try to love ourselves and imagine the future," group leader RM said in a pre-recorded speech presented during the high-level meeting of the UN Group of Friends of Solida

Sept. 24, 2020

Pompeo to visit S. Korea next month

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will likely visit South Korea next month, government sources said Wednesday. "I heard Pompeo will come to Korea early next month," a source said. "It will be probably a two-day visit starting Oct. 7." He will also travel to Japan to meet with new Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, according to another source. Seoul and Washington are in talks to set up Pompeo's South Korean schedule, including meetings President Moon Jae-in and Foreign Minist

Sept. 24, 2020

KDCA head, Bong Joon-ho included on TIME 100 list of influential people

 Two South Korean figures -- Jeong Eun-kyeong and Bong Joon-ho -- have been included on the TIME 100 list of the world's most influential people of 2020, the magazine announced Wednesday. Jeong, commissioner of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA), made the list in the leaders category, with Bong Joon-ho, director of the Oscar-winning Korean film "Parasite," chosen in the artists sector.  Jeong has been serving as the "field commander" of the c

Sept. 23, 2020

S. Korea, US hold nuclear security working group session

South Korea and the United States held a video-linked session of their Nuclear Security Working Group on Wednesday to discuss cooperation on the minimization of the use of highly enriched uranium and other issues, the foreign ministry said. The group is among the four working groups under the High-Level Bilateral Commission, which was launched in 2016 following the 2015 revision of the two countries' nuclear energy cooperation agreement. Park Il, the ministry's director-general for nonprolif

Sept. 23, 2020

New defense minister pushing to visit US next month for first talks with Esper: officials

Defense Minister Suh Wook is likely to visit the United States next month for his first talks with US Defense Secretary Mark Esper, officials said Wednesday. Discussions are under way with the US about the new minister traveling to Washington for annual defense ministers' talks between the two countries, known as the Security Consultative Meeting (SCM), defense ministry officials said. The visit, if realized, will also be Suh's first overseas trip since taking office last week to replace Jeo

Sept. 23, 2020

Moon calls for fair distribution of COVID-19 vaccine at UN

President Moon Jae-in on Monday called for the fair distribution to all countries of vaccines and therapeutics against COVID-19, stressing that “solidarity and cooperation” will prevail against the virus. Addressing the high-level meeting commemorating the 75th anniversary of the United Nations via satellite link, Moon said the COVID-19 pandemic threatens to undermine the multilateralism embodied by the UN and proposed three ideas for overcoming the crisis. Stressing the efforts

Sept. 22, 2020

[Newsmaker] Seoul mediates again in diplomat’s alleged groping of New Zealander

The Foreign Ministry has resumed mediation between one of its diplomats and a male staffer in New Zealand who accused the diplomat of groping him in late 2017. 　 The ministry said it has informed the purported victim of its mediation on the case, and is awaiting his reply.　 Under New Zealand labor law, an employee can seek a settlement for an employer’s misconduct against him through the help of a mediator.　 In this case, the administrative staffer, a New Zealander, is the employee, and

Sept. 22, 2020

BTS to deliver 'message of hope' at 75th UN General Assembly

K-pop superstar BTS will deliver a special message at the 75th United Nations General Assembly this week, returning to the annual UN gathering as a speaker in two years, according to UNICEF's South Korean committee Tuesday. According to the Korean Committee for UNICEF, BTS' "message of hope" will be broadcast at 9 a.m. Wednesday (US time) during the high-level meeting of the UN Group of Friends of Solidarity for Global Health Security. The South Korean boy band will talk about the d

Sept. 22, 2020

Trump says Samsung, LG building plants in US thanks to his tariffs on imports

WASHINGTON -- US President Donald Trump said Monday that South Korean home appliance makers Samsung and LG are building plants in the United States to avoid tariffs he imposed on imports, claiming credit for creating jobs and protecting American workers. "South Korea and China, they're dumping washing machines. They make washing machines, they dump them into our market, they put everybody out of business, then they charge a lot of money when everyone's gone," Trump said in a campaign

Sept. 22, 2020

Countries issue joint statement calling for fair distribution of coronavirus vaccines

South Korea, the European Union and 13 other countries issued a joint statement Monday calling for "a sufficient and equitable" worldwide distribution of coronavirus vaccines. The statement by the Friends of the COVID-19 Vaccine Global Access (COVAX) Facility came as part of ongoing international efforts to launch a multilateral platform aimed at securing safe and fair access and distribution of COVID-19 vaccines. "The Friends of the COVAX Facility strongly support vaccine mu

Sept. 21, 2020

Suga hopes for 'forward-looking' ties with S. Korea in letter to President Moon

Japan's new prime minister, Yoshihide Suga, expressed hope for "forward-looking" relations with South Korea as "important neighbors" in his recent letter to President Moon Jae-in, Cheong Wa Dae said Monday. Suga sent a reply to Moon on Saturday for his congratulatory message, as he was sworn in as the successor of Shinzo Abe, according to Cheong Wa Dae spokesman Kang Min-seok. Suga said he hopes that the two sides will establish forward-looking ties by overcoming "diff

Sept. 21, 2020

IHO's expected new numerical system likely to help resolve East Sea naming dispute

An international organization on maritime data is expected to adopt new guidelines later this year to refer to all seas by numbers, rather than specific names, officials said Monday, a move expected to affect a long-running dispute between South Korea and Japan over what to call the East Sea. The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) plans to brief its member states on the results of discussions about how to revise the "future of limits on oceans and seas," known as "S-23

Sept. 21, 2020

S. Korea expresses ‘deep regret’ as Japan’s Abe visits wartime shrine

South Korea’s Foreign Ministry on Saturday expressed deep regret over former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s visit to the Yasukuni Shrine for war dead. The shrine honors 14 Japanese leaders convicted by an Allied tribunal as war criminals. Visits there by ranking Tokyo officials have often provoked the ire of neighboring countries such as South Korea and China, which suffered from Japan’s brutal war crimes. “We express our deepest concern and regret that Abe paid a

Sept. 20, 2020

Russia to resume flights to and from S. Korea this month

Russia plans to allow the resumption of flights to and from South Korea late this month, Russia's state coronavirus crisis center said.  Russia banned the entry of foreign nationals and international flights in March to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and has been lifting the ban gradually since August.  The government body announced Friday that flights between Moscow and Incheon, west of Seoul, will restart on Sept. 27 on a weekly basis.  Operations to and from Belarus, Kyrgyzs

Sept. 19, 2020

FM Kang sees slim chance of US-NK talks before US election

Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha said Friday chances are slim of progress in stalled nuclear talks between the United States and North Korea before the US presidential election in November. Kang made the remarks during a meeting with South Korean correspondents in Hanoi after talks with her Vietnamese counterpart Pham Binh Minh. "Chances are small that something will happen between North Korea and the United States before the US election," she said when asked about the possibility

Sept. 18, 2020