Korean-Americans petition US for use of 'East Sea' name

WASHINGTON -- Nearly 110,000 ethnic Koreans in the United States petitioned the US government Tuesday to refer to the body of water between the Korean Peninsula and Japan as "the East Sea" in addition to "the Sea of Japan," their representatives said.A Korean resident group in Virginia and other representatives said in a press conference in Falls Church, Virginia, that they submitted the petition signed by 108,300 to the White House.  A group of ethnic Korean residents attend a press conference

April 26, 2017

Lippert joins Boeing as vice president: report

Former US Ambassador to South Korea Mark Lippert has joined US aviation giant Boeing as vice president of international affairs, a news report said Monday.The Politico report did not provide any details on the timing or conditions of his new position, but his diplomatic and military experiences were likely taken into account in his appointment.Former US Ambassador to South Korea Mark Lippert (Yonhap)Boeing has longstanding ties with South Korea, not only as one of the biggest suppliers of passen

April 25, 2017

Seoul protests Tokyo’s renewed Dokdo claim

Seoul on Tuesday protested Tokyo’s intensified claim to the Korean islets of Dokdo in an annual diplomatic paper, which added to territorial and historical tension between the two countries. Japan’s Foreign Ministry reported to the cabinet its latest diplomatic bluebook, which argues Dokdo is the country’s “inherent territory” based on historical facts and international law, and calls last year’s visits to the islets by some Korean lawmakers “adamantly unacceptable.” Seoul’s Foreign Ministry ins

April 25, 2017

Nuke envoys from Korea, US, Japan meet to coordinate ways to reign in North

Senior diplomats of South Korea, the United States and Japan sat together in Tokyo on Tuesday seeking to chart ways to rein in North Korea as the communist country appears to be preparing another military provocation.The meeting brought together the three countries' chief negotiators on the North Korean nuclear issue to coordinate their responses to advancing nuclear and missile threats by North Korea.   (Yonhap)The trilateral meeting comes amid unusually heightened tension after North Korea rat

April 25, 2017

Korea, Japan divided over usage of 'East Sea' at IHO meeting in Monaco

GENEVA -- South Korea and Japan were divided over the usage of "East Sea" in naming the body of water between the Korean Peninsula and Japan as a conference of the International Hydrographic Organization opened in Monaco on Monday, South Korean officials said.Koreans claim that East Sea has been used for more than 2,000 years. But the name was not known internationally in modern times because the Korean Peninsula was under Japan's colonial rule from 1910-45. This provided photo shows the body of

April 25, 2017

S. Korea's top diplomat to attend UN meeting on N. Korea this week

South Korean Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se will attend a UN Security Council meeting on North Korea to be chaired by US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson this week, the foreign ministry here said Tuesday.The ministerial meeting on Friday in New York will bring together US Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and officials from the council's 15 members, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.  South Korean Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se (Yonhap)"It is the first-ever meeting to be held on the is

April 25, 2017

Kazakhstan health care ushers in privatization

Emerging from seven decades of state-led management of health care, Kazakhstan has embarked on an ambitious program of medical sector privatization and modernization, with a focus on attracting foreign investors and professionals. Under the “third wave” of economic modernization, health care has been identified as one of the key priorities with five objectives: system integration around patients’ needs; implementation of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development best practices; e

April 24, 2017

‘South African, Korean economies can complement each other’

With the silver jubilee of diplomatic ties slated on Dec.1 this year, South Africa and South Korea can expand cooperation by exploiting economic areas of mutual benefit, according to Ambassador Nozuko Gloria Bam. South Africa’s recently adopted National Development Plan targets economic diversification and higher competitiveness, covering mining, agriculture, manufacturing and services. To achieve these measures, the government identified 40 projects in energy, infrastructure and manufacturing,

April 24, 2017

Argentine Embassy promotes flagship Malbec wine

The Argentine Embassy last week promoted the country’s flagship Malbec wine at a tasting event in Seoul. In its seventh iteration of the annual event, “Malbec World Day” at Millennium Seoul Hilton showcased the finest wines of Argentina, whose unique flavors and properties are forming savory chemistries with Korean consumers. The event is a global initiative sponsored by Wines of Argentina, a public promotional agency supported by the Ministry of Foreign Relations and Worship and the Argentine W

April 24, 2017

Korea, US to discuss alliance issues

South Korea and the United States will hold working-level consultations later this week on a broad range of alliance issues including North Korea's military threats, Seoul's defense ministry said Monday.The two sides are scheduled to open the two-day Korea-US Integrated Defense Dialogue meeting in Washington DC on Wednesday (local time), according to the Ministry of National Defense. An image of South Korea-US alliance in a photo provided by Yonhap News TV. (Yonhap)It would be their first KIDD s

April 24, 2017

Trump defends decision to not label China currency manipulator to solve NK problem

WASHINGTON -- US President Donald Trump cited his decision to not label China a currency manipulator as an example of "flexibility," saying he made the decision against his campaign pledge because Beijing is helping solve the problem of North Korea."For me to call him a currency manipulator and then say, 'By the way, I'd like you to solve the North Korean problem' doesn't work. So you have to have a certain flexibility," Trump said in an interview with the Associated Press, according to a transc

April 24, 2017

Trump's plan to visit China, Japan taking shape: reports

WASHINGTON -- US President Donald Trump is expected to visit China in the second half of this year, Chinese Ambassador to the United States Cui Tiankai was quoted as saying.Cui made the remark during a film screening event held at his embassy on Friday, saying the envisioned visit by Trump will be the most important event in relations between the two countries in the second half, according to the China Daily.The envoy did not mention any specific dates.US President Donald Trump (L) and Chinese P

April 24, 2017

Seoul, Tokyo to face off over East Sea name

Seoul is pushing for the official identification of the waters between Korea and Japan as the East Sea at an international conference in Monaco this week in the face of robust resistance from Tokyo, officials said Sunday. The International Hydrographic Organization will kick off its triennial assembly in Monaco on Monday for a five-day run, during which its 87 member states are expected to discuss the amendment of the Limits of Oceans and Seas, its guideline for world maps and charts. For the me

April 23, 2017

Korea expresses disappointment over Japan politicians' visit to shrine

South Korea voiced its "deep disappointment" on Friday after Japanese politicians paid their respects at the controversial Yasukuni Shrine, which honors Japan's war criminals.Around 90 Japanese lawmakers visited the shrine earlier in the day to mark an annual spring festival, Japan's Kyodo News reported.(Yonhap)They included Seiichi Eto, an aide to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.Abe also sent a ritual offering, the report said. "The (South Korean) government expresses deep concerns and disappointment

April 21, 2017

Nuclear envoys of S. Korea, US, Japan to meet next week to discuss NK issue

South Korea, the United States and Japan will meet next week to discuss their coordinated approach toward North Korea's nuclear and missile threats, the foreign ministry here said Friday.Kim Hong-kyun, special representative for Korean Peninsula peace and security affairs at the South Korean foreign ministry, will meet with his US and Japanese counterparts -- Joseph Yun and Kenji Kanasugi -- in Tokyo on Tuesday, according to the ministry. Kim Hong-kyun (left), South Korea's chief envoy on North

April 21, 2017

Top diplomats of Korea, Tanzania to hold talks in Seoul next week

The top diplomats of South Korea and Tanzania will sit down together in Seoul next week to discuss bilateral collaboration on economic issues as well as the North Korean nuclear issue, the foreign ministry here said Thursday.The talks between Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se and his Tanzanian counterpart Augustine P. Mahiga are scheduled for Monday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. It will be their second meeting in about four months following one held on Dec. 7 in Ethiopia during a regional f

April 20, 2017

Trump's 'armada' gaffe stains his commitment to alliance

Mystery persists over US President Donald Trump's dispatch of an "armada" toward the Korean Peninsula, leaving many people here puzzled and concerned about defense coordination between the allies.Early this month, the US Pacific Command announced the departure of the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson and its strike group from Singapore for waters near the peninsula.On April 12, Trump said in an interview with Fox News, "We are sending an armada (to the area). Very powerful." A day later, a US Pac

April 20, 2017

Korea re-elected to UNICEF's executive board

South Korea has been re-elected to the governing body of UNICEF, the United Nations' fund for children, the foreign ministry here said Thursday.In the elections held during the UN Economic and Social Council's Coordination and Management Meetings earlier this week, South Korea retained its seat on UNICEF's 36-nation executive board, as well as its membership in the UN Commission on the Status of Women, which promotes women's rights, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.  (Yonhap)South Korean has

April 20, 2017

S. Korea's top diplomat to attend UNSC meeting on NK issue

South Korea's foreign minister will attend a United Nations Security Council meeting scheduled for next week to discuss North Korea's nuclear threats and efforts to make the North go nuclear-free, a ministry source said Thursday.Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se will join the UNSC meeting to be held in New York on April 28 that will focus on North Korea's nuclear stalemate and its denuclearization, the source told Yonhap News Agency. South Korea's Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se (Yonhap)The meeting wi

April 20, 2017