Security forum opens in Singapore amid focus on N. Korea

Asia's key defense forum opened in Singapore on Friday, with North Korea's nuclear issue high on the agenda, at a time when regional security faces a potential turning point.Defense Minister Song Young-mooThe annual Shangri-La Dialogue comes amid cautious optimism about a historic breakthrough in efforts to denuclearize North Korea and formally end the 1950-53 Korean War with a peace treaty.As in previous years, the communist nation did not participate in the three-day dialogue.A summit between

June 1, 2018

US delegate says summit prep talks 'moving in the right direction'

The chief of the US delegation to summit preparation talks with North Korea said Friday the discussion is "moving in the right direction."Sung Kim, US ambassador to the Philippines, however, noted that there is still "much work" left before nailing down the summit between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, expected to be held on June 12 in Singapore.Sung Kim(left), US ambassador to the Philippines and South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-whaKim made the remarks du

June 1, 2018

S. Korea calls for constructive Russian role in peninsula peace efforts

South Korea's Vice Foreign Minister Lim Sung-nam called Friday for Russia to play a "constructive" role amid a flurry of diplomacy aimed at ending North Korea's nuclear ambitions and establishing a lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula.Lim made the call during a meeting with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Titov, in Seoul. Their talks came ahead of a possible June 12 summit between the United States and North Korea in Singapore over the fate of Pyongyang's nuclear program."(We) express our gra

June 1, 2018

Remains of thousands of Korean victims of Japan's forced labor yet to be repatriated

IKI ISLAND, Japan -- About 2,770 sets of remains belonging to Korean people forcibly brought to Japan to work for its factories and military during World War II have yet to be repatriated home, South Korean government officials said Friday.Japan ruled the Korean Peninsula from 1910 to 1945, a time during which historians say millions of Koreans were mobilized into forced labor.The remains have been retrieved and kept in 340 temples or cineraria across the neighboring country -- 480 in the Hokkai

June 1, 2018

[Newsmaker] Declaration of end to Korean War possible in Singapore

Experts cautiously raised the possibility Thursday that South Korea, North Korea and the US could declare an end to the Korean War in Singapore following a Pyongyang-Washington summit later this month, amid preparations in full swing for the historic summit.If the summit -- which US President Donald Trump earlier canceled only to say a day later that it could still take place -- is held as planned in Singapore, the possibility of a three-way summit involving the Koreas and the US there would be

May 31, 2018

S. Korea seeks to hold summit with Singapore in July: Cheong Wa Dae

The presidential office is pushing to hold a summit between South Korean President Moon Jae-in and his Singaporean counterpart Lee Hsien Loong in July, it said Wednesday.South Korean President Moon Jae-in (Yonhap)“Cheong Wa Dae has sent an official to Singapore on a survey mission to prepare for the South Korea-Singapore summit slated to be held in July,” the presidential office said in a released statement.The statement came after a news media outlet earlier reported that the presidential offic

May 30, 2018

Korea helps Myanmar launch new legal database system

Korea’s Legislation Ministry shared its technology to launch a new legal database access system in Myanmar, the ministry said on Tuesday.On May 24, Myanmar launched Myanmar Law Information System which allows people to search the country’s legal information via computer and mobile applications. Korea’s Ministry of Legislature cooperated with Myanmar government to establish the system, first developed here and called the National Law Information Center of Republic of Korea. Participants pose at t

May 30, 2018

Russian foreign minister 'soon' to visit NK

Russia's top diplomat will visit North Korea to meet amid ongoing preparations for Pyongyang to hold its unprecedented summit with the United States, according to the North's state-media on Wednesday.The Korean Central News Agency reported that Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov will "soon" visit Pyongyang at the invitation of North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho.It did not say when he exactly will arrive in the North and what the agenda the two will discuss will be. A Russian media comp

May 30, 2018

Trump, Abe agree to meet before N. Korea summit

WASHINGTON -- US President Donald Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe agreed Monday to meet ahead of the president's planned summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, the White House said.Trump and Abe spoke by phone after the US leader canceled his June 12 meeting with Kim, citing "open hostility" from the regime, and then put it back on track.They "confirmed they would meet again to continue close coordination in advance of the expected meeting between the United States and North K

May 29, 2018

Behind Punggye-ri explosion

After North Korea blew up tunnels, observation buildings and living quarters at its nuclear test site Punggye-ri in front of international journalists last week, more details of the trip were revealed by South Korean pool reporters Monday. Eight pool reporters from South Korea were allowed into the North at the last minute, joining some 20 reporters from the US, China, Russia and the UK to witness the destruction of the Punggye-ri site in the country’s mountainous northeast. (Joint Press Corps)T

May 28, 2018

Korea forms team to promote relations with Japan despite long-standing rows

South Korea launched a government-civilian team Monday to promote cultural and social ties with Japan despite decades of disputes between the neighboring countries over historical issues. The move reflects Seoul's efforts to expand non-political exchanges with Tokyo separately from the diplomatic stand-offs over its wartime atrocities and territorial claims.Speaking at a related ceremony here, Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha reaffirmed the government's two-track approach, saying the bilateral re

May 28, 2018

Expectations grow for US-NK talks to be held as planned

The US-North Korea summit may be back on track following North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s affirmation of his commitment to “complete denuclearization” and US President Donald Trump commenting negotiations over the summit are “going very well.”  　Kim has a firm commitment to “a complete denuclearization” and willingness to “end the history of war and confrontation” South Korean President Moon Jae-in said during a press briefing Sunday after he held talks with Kim on the border village of Panmunj

May 27, 2018

S. Korean, Vietnamese ministers discuss ways to enhance relations

Government Policy Coordination Minister Hong Nam-ki met with his Vietnamese counterpart on Wednesday and discussed ways to strengthen bilateral relations and exchanged views on the Korean Peninsula situation, Hong's office said.During the meeting with Mai Tien Dung, minister and chairman of the Government Office, Hong noted that relations between the two countries have moved rapidly forward since they established diplomatic relations in 1992 and that he looks forward to further enhancing ties un

May 23, 2018

Trump urges China to control NK border until after nuclear deal

WASHINGTON -- US President Donald Trump urged China on Monday to tightly control its border with North Korea until after he signs a nuclear deal with the regime.Trump is set to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Singapore on June 12, although Pyongyang has threatened to pull out of the summit."China must continue to be strong & tight on the Border of North Korea until a deal is made," he wrote in a tweet. "The word is that recently the Border has become much more porous and more has be

May 22, 2018

Moon arrives in Washington for talks with Trump ahead of US-N.Korea summit

South Korean President Moon Jae-in arrived in Washington on Monday for talks with US President Donald Trump about strategies for Trump's upcoming high-stakes summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.Moon is scheduled to hold talks with Trump on Tuesday, starting with a 30-minute private meeting where the leaders will be accompanied by no one else besides only their interpreters, an official from Seoul's presidential office Cheong Wa Dae said."The fact that the two leaders will hold talks with

May 22, 2018

Moon to head to US for talks on upcoming US-N. Korea summit

South Korean President Moon Jae-in was set to leave for Washington on Monday on an apparent mission to help broker a nuclear deal between the United States and North Korea ahead of their first-ever summit next month.Moon's trip follows his historic summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un at the border village of Panmunjom on April 27.He will hold talks with US President Donald Trump on Tuesday (Washington time).The trip, however, also comes after a series of old rhetoric from Pyongyang that

May 21, 2018

China denies Trump's view that Xi could be influencing N. Korea

China dismissed U.S. President Trump's assertion Friday that President Xi Jinping might be behind North Korea's sudden shift to a recalcitrant attitude.   Following a weeks-long peace offensive, the North has changed its tack. It called off scheduled high-level talks with South Korea earlier this week and threatened to reconsider the plan to hold summit talks with the U.S. in Singapore next month.   Pyongyang cited the ongoing South Korea-U.S. joint air combat drills and denuclearization-related

May 18, 2018

Trump reaffirms security assurance for N. Korea

US President Donald Trump stressed Thursday (US time) that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s regime will not be affected if a denuclearization deal is reached between the two countries in an apparent effort to appease Pyongyang.　Trump also said that the “Libyan model” -- which Pyongyang has strongly opposed -- isn’t a model he is considering for North Korea’s denuclearization, but warned that Kim could face the same fate as Libya’s former leader if the North doesn’t strike a deal on its nuclear

May 18, 2018

Moon looks to narrow gap between US, NK at summit with Trump

South Korean President Moon Jae-in will try to use his summit with US President Donald Trump to broker a nuclear deal between the United States and North Korea, a presidential aide said Friday.The meeting is scheduled for Tuesday in Washington, three weeks before the US president and North Korean leader Kim Jong-il hold their first summit in Singapore."We expect the upcoming summit to play a role as a bridge (between the US and North Korea) that will lead to the success of the North Korea-US sum

May 18, 2018

[Herald Interview] ‘Accepting migrants is in national interest’: IOM chief

For countries faced with a population decline, taking in migrants is not only necessary, but also desirable, provided that creative immigration policies are implemented, says the UN migration agency’s chief. William Lacy Swing, director general of the International Organization for Migration, warned against widespread anti-immigration and anti-refugee sentiment around the world, saying it is based on “false stereotypes and unfounded fear.” “People say … we don’t want any migrants, build a wall a

May 17, 2018