Yoon, Kishida to hold phone talks following N. Korean missile launch

President Yoon Suk-yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida plan to hold phone talks this week, Yoon's office said Wednesday amid tensions caused by North Korea's recent intermediate-range ballistic missile launch. The phone conversation is set to take place Thursday, two days after the recalcitrant regime fired the missile over Japan to fall into the Pacific, marking its first launch of an IRBM in eight months. Yoon and Kishida are expected to discuss joint responses to evolving

Oct. 5, 2022

Nigeria vows to partner with Korea for sustainable development

Nigeria will seek stronger cooperation with Korea for sustainable development, Nigerian officials said at the Nigeria-Korea Business Forum at the Ambassador Hotel in Seoul, Wednesday. The forum aimed to strengthen Nigeria-Korea network capabilities, and share diverse ideas and business solutions for sectors such as oil and gas, agriculture and agro-processing, manufacturing and ICT, tourism culture, and the creative industry to reach out to investors and key figures taking lead. The Forum is par

Oct. 5, 2022

[Hwang's China and the World] The Korean entertainment industry’s public diplomacy competitiveness

On Sept. 13, the Korean drama “Squid Game” won six awards at the 74th Emmy Awards, including those for outstanding lead actor and outstanding directing for a drama series -- the first non-English TV series to do so. “Squid Game” enjoyed explosive popularity internationally, made history, and received high praise at home and abroad. It seemed like an event that deserves to sweep the world at least once. In this sense, we cannot help but recall director Bong Joon-ho&rsq

Oct. 5, 2022

S. Korea, US, Japan condemn N.Korea IRBM launch as ‘serious threat’

South Korea’s first vice minister exchanged phone calls with his US and Japanese counterparts to strongly condemn the North’s recent launch of an intermediate-range ballistic missile and agreed to meet for trilateral talks in Tokyo this month. According to Seoul’s Foreign Ministry on Wednesday, the First Vice Minister Cho Hyun-dong held a trilateral talk with US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman and Japanese Vice Foreign Minister Mori Takeo over the phone after Pyongyang

Oct. 5, 2022

Foreign Ministry audit riddled with strife over president’s overseas trip

The parliamentary inspection of the Foreign Ministry dragged on to Tuesday midnight as lawmakers across the aisle wrangled over whether President Yoon Suk-yeol’s overseas trip last month was a “diplomatic disaster” or not. From the start of the session on Tuesday, the lawmakers of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea refused to proceed, demanding Foreign Minister Park Jin to leave the session, citing last week's passage of a no-confidence motion. Less than 40 minu

Oct. 5, 2022

[Newsmaker] 3 physicists share Nobel Prize for work on quantum science

  (STOCKHOLM) -- Three scientists jointly won this year's Nobel Prize in physics Tuesday for proving that tiny particles could retain a connection with each other even when separated, a phenomenon once doubted but now being explored for potential real-world applications such as encrypting information. Frenchman Alain Aspect, American John F. Clauser and Austrian Anton Zeilinger were cited by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences for experiments proving the "totally crazy" field of

Oct. 5, 2022

U.S. condemns N. Korea's missile launch as unacceptable threat, vows to take int'l actions

The US strongly condemned North Korea's launch of an intermediate-range ballistic missile Tuesday, calling it a reckless decision that poses an unacceptable threat to regional and international security. U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan also discussed appropriate responses the international community should take in phone talks with his South Korean and Japanese counterparts. "The United States strongly condemns the Democratic People's Republic of Korea's (DPRK)

Oct. 4, 2022

Parliamentary inspection crippled as opposition demands foreign minister exit

The parliamentary inspection of the Foreign Ministry failed to proceed as it kicked off Tuesday, with the main opposition lawmaker demanding the minister leave the session, holding him to account for the president’s overseas trip it claims to have ended as a “diplomatic disaster.” The main opposition Democratic Party of Korea has taken issue with President Yoon Suk-yeol's seven-day trip to the UK, US and Canada last month, assessing that the trip was a "diplomatic fiasco&q

Oct. 4, 2022

PyeongChang to host 18th World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates in December

PyeongChang, the host city for the 2018 Winter Olympics in Gangwon Province, will hold the 18th World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates from Dec. 12-14, according to the local government on Tuesday. The World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates is a forum initiated by Mikhail Gorbachev, in which Nobel Peace Prize laureates, experts on peace and conflict resolution and representatives from peace organizations gather together for dialogue. Since its inaugural edition in Rome in 1999, the annual event

Oct. 4, 2022

Indonesia highlights dynamics of bilateral ties with Korea on 77th independence day

Indonesia embassy highlighted dynamics of bilateral ties with Korea celebrating its 77th independence day in Seoul on Sept. 28. Commemorating the independence day under the theme of ‘Recover Faster, Rise Stronger,’ the embassy invited Korean government officials, parliament members, diplomatic corps, businessmen, academics, and friends of Indonesia numbering more than 300 guests at the Floating Island Convention Center in Seoul. Dressed in traditional Javanese Jawi Jangkep, Indonesia

Oct. 4, 2022

[Newsmaker] Ukraine says key eastern town 'cleared' of Russian troops

MYKOLAIVKA, Ukraine -- Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky said Sunday that Lyman, a key town located in one of four Ukrainian regions annexed by Russia, had been "cleared" of Moscow's troops. The latest development in Ukraine's weeks-long counter-offensive against Moscow's invasion comes as Russia pushed forward with finalising the annexation of captured Ukrainian territories despite condemnation from Kyiv and the West. The recapture of Lyman -- which Moscow's forces pummelled for

Oct. 3, 2022

S. Korean envoy on NK human rights to visit US this week

WASHINGTON -- South Korea's new envoy for North Korean human rights will make her first visit to the United States this week since taking office, officials said Sunday. Lee Shin-hwa plans to meet officials of the State Department and the White House, as well as experts and activists, in Washington, DC, during her four-day trip starting Wednesday to discuss various pending issues, including Pyongyang's nuclear threat and missile provocations. Lee, a political science professor at Korea

Oct. 3, 2022

Yoon rejects motion to dismiss foreign minister

  President Yoon Suk-yeol rejected a call to dismiss South Korea's top diplomat on Friday, defying pressure from the main opposition party that controls parliament. In a note sent to the media, Kim Eun-hye, senior presidential press secretary, said Yoon will not accept a parliamentary no-confidence motion to hold Foreign Minister Park Jin accountable for what the Democratic Party (DP) claims was a disastrous overseas trip by the president. No further explanation was provided. On Thursday,

Sept. 30, 2022

President’s overseas trip was not ‘diplomatic disaster,’ political strife should end: foreign minister

South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin on Friday refuted the main opposition party’s claim that the president’s overseas trip this month was a “diplomatic disaster,” and expressed disappointment after lawmakers passed a motion calling for his dismissal. At the same time, Park said he would "carefully" take in the criticisms and do his best to carry out his duty as foreign minister. The main opposition Democratic Party of Korea and others have taken issue with P

Sept. 30, 2022

South Korea, US, Japan hold consecutive calls, strongly condemn NK missile launches

Following North Korea’s latest missile launch on Thursday, the top nuclear envoys of South Korea, Japan and the United States again held bilateral talks over the phone to reaffirm their united efforts to counter Pyongyang’s military threats, Seoul’s Foreign Ministry said Friday. North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles from the western inland town of Sunchon in South Pyongan Province toward the East Sea on Thursday, marking the third launch in less than a week. Imm

Sept. 30, 2022

Seoul, Tokyo, Washington tighten bonds as Pyongyang ramps up military provocation

South Korea, Japan and the US are tightening trilateral bonds as Pyongyang is ramping up military provocations. After North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles toward the East Sea on Wednesday evening, Seoul’s top nuclear envoy immediately held talks over the phone separately with his US and Japanese counterparts to affirm bilateral and trilateral cooperation to counter the North’s nuclear threats. According to Seoul’s Foreign Ministry, Kim Gunn, Seoul's special re

Sept. 29, 2022

[Newsmaker] Study: Heat wave led to unprecedented melt of Swiss glaciers

GENEVA -- Switzerland's glaciers are melting like never before, an academic study released Wednesday found, with their ice volume declining by 6% this year amid rising concerns about global warming and a summer heat wave that swept across Europe. The Swiss Academy of Sciences reported that the shrinkage of ice in the country's glaciers topped a previous record retreat nearly a generation ago. "2022 was a disastrous year for Swiss glaciers: all ice melt records were smashed by the great dear

Sept. 29, 2022

Unification minister to visit Germany next week

South Korea's top point man on North Korea will visit Germany next week to seek support for Seoul's regional peace and denuclearization efforts, his office said Thursday. Unification Minister Kwon Young-se plans to leave for Germany on Sunday for a four-day trip at the invitation of the German government, according to the ministry. It would be his first overseas trip since taking office in May. Kwon is scheduled to attend a ceremony in the eastern city of Erfurt on Monday to commemorat

Sept. 29, 2022

US condemns N. Korean missile launch, urges Pyongyang to engage in dialogue

WASHINGTON -- The United States condemns North Korea's latest missile launch but remains open to dialogue, a state department spokesperson said Wednesday. The remarks come hours after North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles into the East Sea. "The United States condemns the DPRK's ballistic missile launches," the spokesperson told Yonhap News Agency in an email, referring to North Korea by its official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. "T

Sept. 29, 2022

[Hwang's China and the World] Seeking new Korea-China relations: Evaluating defense and military

Now is the time for Korea and China to look back on the past, face the present and talk about the future. Over the past 30 years, Korea-China relations have developed explosively. The establishment of Korea-China diplomatic relations was an important turning point in advancing the new era of prosperity in Northeast Asia. And now both Korea and China have grown into the core countries in the international community. China has grown into a major powerhouse in the international community, and Korea

Sept. 28, 2022