Jeju peace forum set to open with focus on geopolitical security, pandemic

SEOUL/JEJU -- An annual international peace forum is set to kick off on the southern resort island of Jeju on Wednesday, with a focus on ways to promote global cooperation amid North Korea's continued saber-rattling, growing US-China rivalry, the Ukrainian crisis and the coronavirus pandemic. The three-day Jeju Forum for Peace and Prosperity comes especially as the Russia-Ukraine war poses new challenges to the global security environment, accelerated by intensifying Washington-Beijing stan

Sept. 14, 2022

Assembly speaker discusses economic cooperation with Spanish Senate leader

MADRID/SEOUL -- National Assembly Speaker Kim Jin-pyo met the leader of Spain's Senate to discuss ways to widen economic cooperation between the two countries, his office said Wednesday. During their 30-minute meeting in Madrid on Tuesday, Kim and Ander Gil Garcia, president of the Senate of Spain, discussed how they could enhance cooperation in areas like renewable energy, electric vehicles, construction and infrastructure. Kim asked for Spain's support for South Korea's bid to h

Sept. 14, 2022

Yoon's diplomatic capability to be put to test

President Yoon Suk-yeol is expected to hold talks with leaders of the US, Japan and China this month amid ongoing diplomatic challenges with the nations, putting his diplomatic capability to the test. President Yoon will leave the country on Sunday to attend the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II in London on the following day. He will then move to New York, where he plans to attend and give a keynote speech at the United Nations General Assembly. There, the president is expected to hold bilateral su

Sept. 13, 2022

Assembly speaker discusses economic cooperation with Spanish parliamentary leader

MADRID -- National Assembly Speaker Kim Jin-pyo met with the leader of Spain's Congress of Deputies to discuss ways to enhance economic cooperation between the two countries, his office said Tuesday. Kim held a 70-minute meeting with Meritxell Batet Lamana, president of the Spanish Congress of Deputies, in Madrid on Monday (local time) in the first official visit by a South Korean speaker to the country in 14 years. The meeting came as part of efforts to strengthen parliamentary cooperation

Sept. 13, 2022

Participation in US-led tech alliance 'rational' decision for S. Korea: think tank

South Korea's participation in an envisioned tech alliance led by the United States would be a "rational" decision for the country amid the intensifying competition for global technology hegemony between Washington and Beijing, a state-run think tank report showed Tuesday. South Korea is considering joining a US-led semiconductor alliance, called Chip 4, involving Japan and Taiwan. It is widely considered a grouping against China and aimed at countering Beijing's influence in

Sept. 13, 2022

Yoon plans to travel to Britain ahead of visits to US, Canada

South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol will go on a seven-day trip visiting Britain, Canada and the US, where he will attend major international events including the British monarch's funeral, the presidential office said Monday. With his departure planned on Sept. 18, Yoon will first attend Britain's Queen Elizabeth II's state funeral that is slated to take place in London on Sept. 19, according to Kim Sun-han of the national security office. Joining other world leaders, Yoon will pay tribute to

Sept. 12, 2022

IPEF members vow to boost cooperation in trade, supply chains

South Korea and 13 other member countries of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework kicked off negotiations for the US-led initiative to boost regional economic cooperation, prompting China to again question their intentions. Minister-level officials of the 14 countries attended the first in-person meeting of the IPEF held for two days from Thursday in Los Angeles. There, they agreed to start formal discussions to work out details of the four main focus areas, or “pillars” of the initi

Sept. 12, 2022

[Newsmaker] Queen Elizabeth II's coffin takes long road through Scotland

  EDINBURGH, Scotland -- In a somber, regal procession, Queen Elizabeth II's flag-draped coffin was driven slowly through the Scottish countryside Sunday from her beloved Balmoral Castle to the Scottish capital of Edinburgh. Mourners packed city streets and highway bridges or lined rural roads with cars and tractors to take part in a historic goodbye to the monarch who had reigned for 70 years. The hearse drove past piles of bouquets and other tributes as it led a seven-car cortege from Bal

Sept. 12, 2022

3 years after 'No Japan' boycott, sentiment toward Japan starts to thaw

The frozen relationship between South Korea and Japan seems to be thawing, at least among the general public. Korean people’s positive sentiment toward Japan bounced back to levels last seen in 2019, before Japan imposed trade sanctions on Korea over historical conflicts and S. Koreans responded with the “No Japan” boycott of anything Japanese. According to a report jointly released by Korean think tank East Asia Institute and Japan-based Genron NPO on Sept. 1, 30.6 percent o

Sept. 11, 2022

[Hwang’s China and the World] Seeking new Korea-China relations: Evaluating social and cultural fields

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 to the point that we may call it explosive in respective fields. 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, along with the United

Sept. 8, 2022

Yoon to meet with US Vice President Harris in Seoul on Sept. 29

President Yoon Suk-yeol will meet with US Vice President Kamala Harris in Seoul on Sept. 29 and discuss the bilateral alliance, North Korea and other issues of mutual interest, his office said Thursday. Harris's visit comes four months after US President Joe Biden visited Seoul for a summit with Yoon shortly after the South Korean president took office. Yoon and Harris plan to discuss ways to strengthen South Korea-US relations, North Korea, economic security, and key regional and internati

Sept. 8, 2022

S. Korea, US agree to launch high-level talks on US Inflation Reduction Act

WASHINGTON -- South Korea and the United States have agreed to quickly launch ministerial level talks on ways to minimize damage from the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) on South Korean carmakers, South Korean Trade Minister Ahn Duk-geun said Wednesday. Ahn made the remarks after meeting with US Trade Representative (USTR) Katherine Tai. "We will discuss specific dates and other details (of the launch) as quickly as possible, but I plan to meet USTR Tai every week, including next week and wee

Sept. 8, 2022

Hopes up for top-level negotiations on IRA, as US vice president plans Seoul visit

Anticipation is growing here for top-level negotiations on the US Inflation Reduction Act that Korean electric-vehicle makers say would hurt their business, following news of a possible visit to the country by US Vice President Kamala Harris. Harris is reportedly coordinating a visit to Seoul to meet with Korean authorities after going to Japan to attend the state funeral of assassinated former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Sept. 27, according to local government authorities. If her Seo

Sept. 7, 2022

Seoul, Tokyo, Washington top nuclear envoys affirm readiness to 'all contingencies' on NK provocations

The top nuclear envoys of South Korea, Japan and the United States reaffirmed the countries' commitment to their shared goal of complete denuclearization of North Korea, and joint efforts to deter the regime's nuclear provocations, at a meeting held Wednesday on Tokyo. The three officials, Kim Gunn, Seoul's special representative for Korean Peninsula peace and security affairs, Sung Kim, Washington's special representative for North Korea, and Takehiro Funakoshi, director general for Asian and

Sept. 7, 2022

Brazil celebrates 200th Independence Day

INDEPENDENCE DAY -- Brazilian Ambassador Marcia Donner Abreu delivers remarks to commemorate her country’s 200th anniversary of independence at the Four Seasons Hotel in Seoul on Thursday. Brazil gained independence from Portugal on Sept. 7, 1822. (Sanjay Kumar/The Korea Herald)

Sept. 7, 2022

Prime minister meets with new US ambassador

South Korean Prime Minister Han Duck-soo met with new US Ambassador to South Korea Philip Goldberg on Tuesday to discuss bilateral relations and pending issues, his office said. Han requested Washington's special interest and consideration for South Korean firms entering the US market following the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) that excludes electric vehicles assembled outside North America from subsidies. The IRA, signed by US President Joe Biden in August, gives tax credits to buyers of E

Sept. 6, 2022

Seoul’s top nuclear envoy heads to Japan for trilateral talks on North Korea

South Korea’s top nuclear envoy took off to Japan to attend trilateral talks with his US and Japanese counterparts on North Korea and its nuclear development on Tuesday. Kim Gunn, Seoul's special representative for Korean Peninsula peace and security affairs, will meet with Sung Kim, Washington's special representative for North Korea, and Takehiro Funakoshi, director general for Asian and Oceanian affairs at Japan’s Foreign Ministry, in Tokyo on Wednesday. The meeting planned for W

Sept. 6, 2022

Consultative group suggest third party take Japanese firms’ liability in wartime forced labor case

South Korea's Foreign Ministry said Tuesday it will review the various suggestions and opinions raised in the consultative group it formed to find solutions to the wartime forced labor issue involving Japanese companies and Korean workers, and vowed to come up with a solution soon. The ministry also said it has not yet set a deadline for when it would present a government solution to the legal dispute, which has risen as a major point of political friction with Japan.  The ministry's resp

Sept. 6, 2022

S. Korean trade minister arrives in US for talks on Inflation Reduction Act

WASHINGTON -- South Korean Trade Minister Ahn Duk-geun arrived in the US on Monday for talks on the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) that excludes electric vehicles assembled outside of North America from tax incentives. Ahn said the new US law, which Seoul believes violates the Korea-US free trade agreement, will be an important test for the two countries and their trade relations. "The IRA is an issue that will be a very important touchstone for trade relations between South Korea and the US

Sept. 6, 2022

Court decision is pushed back. What can Seoul do to resolve forced labor issue with Tokyo?

With the top court’s decision on wartime forced labor case being pushed back, the government is striving to come up with a diplomatic solution to a legal dispute that has risen as a major point of political friction with Japan. On Monday, the Foreign Ministry held the fourth government-private consultative meeting discussing possible solutions to the forced labor issue. The Supreme Court was expected to deliver a final ruling on the case of Korean victims seeking liquidation of Japanese f

Sept. 5, 2022