South Korea has expressed "deep" concerns over the suspected use of chemical weapons in Syria which has led to dozens of civilian deaths.Some 90 people were killed by the suspected chemical weapons Tuesday in rebel-held Khan Sheikhun in northern Syria. South Korean foreign ministry spokesman Cho June-hyuck (Yonhap)"We stress that in any case, the use of chemical weapons is not tolerable under international law," Seoul's foreign ministry said in a commentary.South Korea will closely cooperate wit

April 6, 2017

South Korea said Thursday it has decided not to accept a request by Japan's top envoy to South Korea to meet with the country's acting leader and two ministers for now.Amb. Yasumasa Nagamine has asked for the meeting with Acting President Hwang Kyo-ahn, Defense Minister Han Min-koo and Unification Minister Hong Yong-pyo amid a diplomatic row over Japan's sexual slavery.South Korea's unification and defense ministries said that they have decided not to take Nagamine's request at the current stage

April 6, 2017

South Korea's unification ministry said Thursday it has turned down a request by Japan's top envoy to South Korea to meet with Unification Minister Hong Yong-pyo, citing the minister's schedule.The ministry handling inter-Korean affairs said that the Japanese Embassy in Seoul on Wednesday delivered the request by Ambassador Yasumasa Nagamine to meet with Hong on short notice.South Korea's Unification Minister Hong Yong-pyo. (Yonhap)"The ministry told the embassy Wednesday that the minister could

April 6, 2017

The security chiefs of South Korea and the United States on Thursday condemned North Korea's latest missile test and agreed to craft a strong response to its provocations, Seoul's presidential office Cheong Wa Dae said.During a 20-minute phone call that began at 8 a.m. (Korea time), national security adviser Kim Kwan-jin and his US counterpart H.R. McMaster agreed to maintain close cooperation over the North's saber-rattling, Cheong Wa Dae said in a press release.South Korea's national security

April 6, 2017

The top nuclear envoys of South Korea, the US and Japan agreed to closely cooperate in coping with North Korea's latest missile test and jointly brace for additional provocations, the foreign ministry here said Thursday.Kim Hong-kyun, special representative for Korean Peninsula peace and security affairs at the South Korean foreign ministry, talked to his US and Japanese counterparts -- Joseph Yun and Kenji Kanasugi -- in separate telephone calls, according to the ministry. Kim Hong-kyun (L), So

April 6, 2017

US President Donald Trump has empathized that all options are on the table in dealing with North Korea and its repeated provocations amid concerns that Pyongyang may push to carry out an additional nuclear test, foreign media reports said Thursday. The remarks came in a telephone conversation earlier in the day with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, according to the reports which quoted Abe from a nationally televised press conference.(Yonhap)The North fired a ballistic missile from its easter

April 6, 2017

WASHINGTON (Yonhap) -- The ballistic missile that North Korea fired Wednesday is believed to be a medium-range Scud ER, a US defense official was quoted as saying."A Scud ER (extended range) flew about 60 kilometers before suffering an in-flight failure and crashing into" the East Sea, the official was quoted as saying by AFP. North Korea test-fires a ballistic missile in this undated file photo. (For Use Only in the Republic of Korea. No Redistribution) (KCNA-Yonhap)The US Pacific Command had e

April 6, 2017

WASHINGTON (Yonhap) -- Secondary sanctions aimed at cutting off business links to North Korea will be an "early topic" when US President Donald Trump holds summit talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping, a senior White House official said Wednesday."I'm not going to go into specifics of our approach on North Korea, but I will say this is going to be an early topic in our conversation during the summit," Matt Pottinger, senior National Security Council director for Asia, told reporters in respons

April 6, 2017

WASHINGTON (Yonhap) -- US President Donald Trump said Wednesday that tackling North Korean threats is "my responsibility," calling the communist nation "a big problem" and saying autocratic leader Kim Jong-un "is not doing the right thing."Trump made the remark during a joint news conference with Jordanian King Abdullah II bin Al-Hussein at the White House, referring to his upcoming summit meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping set for Thursday and Friday at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.

April 6, 2017

Korean animal rights activists called on Norway to stop its whale hunt in a rally in Seoul timed with the start of its annual whaling season. Members of the coalition comprising the Coexistence of Animal Rights on Earth, the Korean Animal Welfare Association and the Hotpink Dolphins staged the protest in front of the Norwegian Embassy in Seoul. A minke whale after it has been caught (Yonhap)The rally came after the North European country's six-month whaling season began on Saturday with a quota

April 5, 2017

South Korea condemned North Korea for its continued missile provocations on Wednesday, warning it would lead to toughened sanctions and eventually accelerate the "self-destruction" of the regime.The North fired off a ballistic missile earlier in the day into the East Sea from a site in the vicinity of Sinpo, South Hamgyong Province. This marked its fourth missile test using ballistic technology this year. South Korean foreign ministry spokesman Cho June-hyuck (Yonhap)"Our government strongly con

April 5, 2017

A bipartisan group of US senators on Tuesday urged President Donald Trump to use his upcoming summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping to bring an end to "unwarranted and unfair" retaliatory measures Beijing has taken against South Korea for hosting the US THAAD missile defense system.A total of 26 senators, led by Dan Sullivan (R-AK) and Benjamin Cardin (D-MD), made the appeal in a joint letter to Trump just two days before he is set to host China's Xi for high-stakes talks expected to cover al

April 5, 2017

WASHINGTON (Yonhap) -- The ballistic missile North Korea recently fired is believed to be "a KN-15 medium range ballistic missile," the US military said Tuesday."The US Pacific Command detected and tracked what we assess was a North Korean missile launch" at 6:42 Korea time, Cdr. Dave Benham, a spokesman for the command, said in a statement. "The launch of a single ballistic missile occurred at a land-based facility near Sinpo."(Yonhap)The missile was tracked until it landed in the East Sea at 6

April 5, 2017

WASHINGTON (Yonhap) -- The clock for resolving the North Korean nuclear issue "has now run out," and the United States is looking at "all options on the table" to deal with the problem, a senior White House official said Tuesday.The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to preview the upcoming summit between President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, also said that how to deal with North Korea is a "test of the relationship" between the US and China. US President Donald Tru

April 5, 2017

WASHINGTON (Yonhap) -- The commander of the US Strategic Command said Tuesday that North Korea is what he's concerned about "most nights" because it's hard to predict what the communist nation will be doing.Air Force Gen. John Hyten, commander of the US Strategic Command, told a Senate Armed Forces Committee hearing that Russia represents the "greatest threat" to the US, but the actions of Russia as well as China are predictable, compared with the North. US Air Force Gen. John Hyten, commander o

April 5, 2017

WASHINGTON (Yonhap) -- US President Donald Trump said Tuesday North Korea is a "humanity problem" and he will talk about the issue with Chinese President Xi Jinping."We're going to have a great meeting. I'm sure we're going to have a fantastic meeting and we're going to talk about a lot of things, including, of course, North Korea, a problem, and that's really a humanity problem," Trump said during a townhall meeting with business CEOs. US President Donald Trump (Yonhap)Trump is scheduled to hol

April 5, 2017

WASHINGTON (Yonhap) -- A majority of Americans support using force against China to defend South Korea or other Asian allies in the event of a military conflict, a survey showed Tuesday.The Pew Research survey, conducted among 1,505 people Feb.16-March 15, found that 58 percent back the use of force against Beijing "if an Asian ally such as Japan, South Korea or the Philippines were to become embroiled in a military conflict with China."By party, nearly two-thirds of Republicans, or 65 percent,

April 5, 2017

The chief of the International Criminal Court said Tuesday the murder case of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's half brother in Malaysia cannot be referred to the court immediately as both the countries are not state parties to its founding treaty.Silvia Fernandez de Gurmendi made the remark during a press briefing at the Supreme Court in southern Seoul during her visit to attend the ICC's high-level regional seminar.Silvia Fernandez de Gurmendi, president of the International Criminal Court, sp

April 4, 2017

South Korea is closely communicating with the United States on North Korea and other major issues ahead of the upcoming summit talks to be held between the US and China this week, the foreign ministry here said Tuesday.US President Donald Trump is to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping in their first summit on Thursday and Friday (local time) in Florida. North Korea's growing nuclear and missile threats are expected to be one of their major topics. (AP-Yonhap file photos)"We are having close

April 4, 2017