A former Japanese leader conveyed Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s message to President Park Geun-hye on Friday, an official said, a move that may pave the way for a potential summit between the two neighbors.Former Japanese Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori delivered the message to Park during their meeting in the presidential office in Seoul, the official said, though details of the message were not immediately available.The message came as South Korea and Japan are seeking to repair bilateral relations

Sept. 19, 2014

Lee Ho-yeon, a member of the Incheon Asian Games steering committee, lights the torch at Seoul Plaza two days before the event kicks off. The torch arrived in the host city of Incheon later in the day. After a 36-day pilgrimage through 17 cities in South Korea, the flame reached the city two days before the opening ceremony. The torch will be left overnight in the port city for the next two days before completing the final leg of its 6,000-kilometer journey to Incheon Asiad Main Stadium. (Yonhap

Sept. 17, 2014

South Korea is expected to support the U.S.-led fight against the Islamic State militants with additional humanitarian assistance, Seoul’s presidential national security adviser said Sunday.Kim Kwan-jin made the remark to reporters after arriving in Washington for talks with U.S. National Security Adviser Susan Rice. The fight against IS is expected to be a topic for Kim’s discussions with Rice as Washington is rallying international support for the drive.“Operations to defeat IS are expected to

Sept. 15, 2014

Hopes are rising slowly for a long-awaited thaw in relations between Korea and Japan as Seoul appears to be sending out reconciliatory signals while pressing Tokyo to come clean about its wartime atrocities. Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se sat down with Japanese Ambassador Koro Bessho for tea on the sidelines of a joint culture event on Sunday, marking their first one-on-one consultation. During the one-hour talk, the two diplomats concurred on the need for consistent efforts to shore up the relat

Sept. 15, 2014

The following is the eighth in a series of articles on Japan’s wartime sexual enslavement of Asian women on the occasion of the 61st anniversary of the foundation of The Korea Herald on Aug. 15. ― Ed.In the grueling campaign to make Japan own up to its wartime sexual slavery, South Korea has not been alone. The United States, the European Union and other countries, as well as international organizations such as the U.N., have been key drivers of the campaign.Recognizing Japan’s sexual enslavemen

Sept. 14, 2014

Papua New Guinean Ambassador to South Korea Bill Veri lauded his country’s democratic government during a reception celebrating its 39th Independence Day in Seoul on Thursday. “Thirty-nine years on, after concluding eight successful national parliamentary elections, Papua New Guinea continues to enjoy a strong and vibrant democracy,” Veri said. “We remember the peaceful transition of administrative powers from our good neighbor and friend Australia on Sept. 16, 1975, with the simultaneous procla

Sept. 14, 2014

Malaysian Ambassador to South Korea extolled the 50-plus years of bilateral ties with South Korea by underscoring her country’s renewed Look East Policy, during a reception celebrating the Southeast Asian nation’s 57th National Day at a hotel in Seoul in earlier this month. Dato Rohana Ramli, Malaysia’s ambassador here, said Malaysia’s first Look East Policy was so successful that the country reintroduced it 30 years later in 2012 in the policy’s “second wave.” “The difference from the first wav

Sept. 14, 2014

There’s no doubt that Myanmar is a country in transition. Even its harshest critics admit that many game-changing political reforms have been implemented since the country’s first civilian government took office in April 2011. Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy party participated in elections in April 2012, restrictions on the media began to be removed, hundreds of political prisoners were freed and travel restrictions eased and, more recently, a slew of cease-fire agreements were

Sept. 14, 2014

Bakhtier N. Ibragimov, charge d’affaires of the Uzbek Embassy here, underscored the role strong diplomatic ties will play in raising awareness about ethnic Koreans living in the Central Asian nation, during a reception celebrating the 23rd anniversary of his country’s Independence Day in Seoul on Wednesday.The Korean diaspora “has become an indispensable and active part of Uzbek society and it plays an important role in strengthening bilateral relations, serving as a linking element between the

Sept. 14, 2014

With a diverse portfolio of international organizations, Songdo is seeking to become a leading business, tourism and logistics destination in Northeast Asia. Long known for its seaside amusement park, the reclaimed island is the linchpin of the Incheon Free Economic Zone, which, since its 2003 inception, has been grappling with budget woes, flagging foreign investment and a moribund property market. The launch of U.N. offices and other multinational bodies in recent years was deemed a much-neede

Sept. 12, 2014

Ranking officials of Korea and Japan held talks on Friday to discuss ways to boost trilateral cooperation with China and restore bilateral relations frayed by historical and territorial brawls. Deputy Ministers Lee Kyung-soo and Shinsuke Sugiyama agreed on the need to put the three-way partnership back on track and bring about a foreign ministers’ meeting and eventually a summit, Seoul officials said. The consultations came on the sidelines of a high-level meeting on Thursday that included Liu Z

Sept. 12, 2014