The Korea Herald

S. African envoy calls for compassion on Mandela Day

The United Nations General Assembly in 2009 proclaimed Nelson Mandela’s birthday, 18 July, as Mandela Day to commemorate the late South African president’s contributions to the anti-apartheid struggle. The day calls on individuals around the world to spend 67 minutes in the service of others ― providing food, education, shelter and volunteer work ― symbolizing the 67 years Mandela devoted to humanity. “Becoming part of the international Mandela Day movement requires an action that helps improve

July 19, 2015

S. African envoy calls for compassion on Mandela Day

Danish Ambassador highlights green growth alliance with Korea

In Denmark, renewable energy creates half of the country’s electricity. People drink water from the tap, swim in city harbors and ride bicycles everywhere. The world’s happiest nation is also one of the greenest, not accidentally, and aims to create a “fully green economy” by 2050. In a lecture on July 11, Danish Ambassador Thomas Lehmann said Denmark and Korea should invigorate their partnership for a shared sustainable future by turning the threat of climate change into resourceful opportuniti

July 19, 2015

Danish Ambassador highlights green growth alliance with Korea

U.S. second lady arrives in South Korea

U.S. second lady Jill Biden arrived in South Korea Saturday on a trip to highlight women's education and economic empowerment issues.The wife of U.S. Vice President Joe Biden was greeted by U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Mark Lippert and other U.S. and South Korean military officials on the tarmac at Osan Airbase, about 50 kilometers southwest of Seoul.She was to head to Jinkwansa, a Buddhist temple in Seoul, where she will meet with female monks and discuss the role they play in the community,

July 18, 2015

U.S. second lady says younger female workers in South Korea still face many challenges in workplace

South Korea has made big strides in promoting womens' rights over the past few decades, but there remain many difficulties and challenges for women, especially younger workers, the U.S. second lady said.Jill Biden, wife of U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, also said in an interview with Vogue Korea ahead of her visit to the country that she hopes to use her visit to South Korea to learn more about measures the country has been taking to "even the playing field for women in the workplace."Biden is s

July 18, 2015

S. Korea, France FM to have talks over Iran's nuke deal

The top diplomats from South Korea and France plan to have talks in Paris on Friday to exchange views on Iran's nuclear deal and North Korea's nuclear weapons program, Seoul's foreign ministry said.Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se will meet with his French counterpart Laurant Fabius to discuss the landmark Iranian nuclear deal and its implications on the North's nuke issue, the ministry added.Yun stopped by Paris on Friday after participating in a U.N. conference on financing for development held i

July 17, 2015

S. Korea returns stolen Korean Buddha statue to Japan

South Korea on Friday returned one of two Korean Buddha statues back to Japan, which were stolen by a Korean theft ring three years ago from a Japanese temple, a diplomatic source said.A group of seven South Korean thieves stole the two statues from the Kaijin shrine in Japan's Nagasaki Prefecture in October 2012. The two cultural artifacts were passed through Korean customs as they were mistakenly appraised as copied antiques.As South Korean cultural artifacts were looted by Japan during its 19

July 17, 2015

Japan's role in Korean Peninsula contingency would be to provide 'logistical support': Japan JCS chief

Japan's role in the event of a Korean Peninsula contingency would be to provide "logistical support" even if the country's controversial new security legislation passes through parliament, the country's military chief said Thursday.Adm. Katsutoshi Kawano, chief of the Joint Staff of the Japan Self-Defense Forces, made the remark during a discussion at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, saying the security bill is aimed at strengthening the alliance with the U.S."In that instance

July 17, 2015

‘Tokyo’s military actions on peninsula need Seoul’s consent’

South Korea’s Foreign Ministry reiterated Thursday that Tokyo must secure Seoul’s consent should it conduct any military activities that would affect the peninsular security and Korea’s national interests.The ministry’s statement came as the lower house of Japan’s legislature passed 11 controversial bills to enable its troops to fight abroad to support the military operations of its ally, the U.S., under the concept of collective self-defense. South Korea cannot accept Japanese military activiti

July 16, 2015

S. Korea urges transparency in Japan's defense policy

South Korea called on Japan Thursday to push for its new defense policy in a transparent manner, as Japan's ruling party railroaded controversial security bills through the lower house of the parliament.The bills, boycotted by opposition parties, would allow the conservative Shinzo Abe administration to reinterpret the constitution and expand the country's military role abroad.The Abe administration plans to enact the bills by Sept. 27, when the current extended parliamentary session ends. The l

July 16, 2015

U.S. welcomes Tokyo's increased defense role amid public opposition in Japan to collective self-defense right

The United States welcomes Japan to play a more active role in the region and beyond as reflected in the new defense cooperation guidelines between the two countries that include Japan exercising its "collective self-defense" right, the State Department said Wednesday.The comment came as public opposition has been growing sharply in Japan to the collective self-defense initiative that empowers Japan to fight alongside its allies even when not under attack itself. The initiative is the centerpiec

July 16, 2015

Iran deal magnifies North Korean isolation

Following Tuesday’s landmark deal over Iran’s nuclear program, questions are being raised over whether the accord would offer momentum for progress on North Korea’s denuclearization, with analysts torn over the deal’s implications for the peninsular standoff.North Korean leader Kim Jong-un meets with heads of North Korea’s overseas missions during a meeting of diplomats, the North’s official Korea Central Television reported Wednesday. (Yonhap)Some analysts say that after the U.S. took steps to

July 15, 2015

Iran deal magnifies North Korean isolation

S. Korea vows to help firms tap into Iranian market

South Korea will actively support local companies' inroads into the Iranian market after a landmark agreement was reached over the country's nuclear program, the government said Wednesday.The announcement comes a day after Iran reached a deal with the five permanent United Nations Security Council member states and Germany, easing global concerns about its nuclear program in exchange for lifting sanctions.The finance ministry said that it will take measures to set up a dedicated support center t

July 15, 2015

S. Korea vows more development aid abroad

South Korea will constantly try to expand development assistance for countries in need, capitalizing on its own experience, Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se said Wednesday."Korea is the prime example of a least-developed-country-turned-donor. As such, we know from experience what it takes to overcome poverty and promote sustainable development," he said in a keynote speech at a global summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on tackling poverty.The third International Conference on Financing for Developmen

July 15, 2015

Seoul welcomes accord to curb Iran nuclear program

South Korea welcomed the landmark agreement between world powers and Iran to curb the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program, expressing hopes for progress in international efforts to denuclearize North Korea.“Our government expects that the conscientious implementation of the measures under this accord will contribute to completely resolving the international community’s concerns over Iran’s nuclear program and to regional peace and stability and the strengthening of the non-nuclear proliferation r

July 14, 2015

Seoul welcomes accord to curb Iran nuclear program

‘Eurasia Express’ launched to boost regional ties

South Korea launched a special express railway linking Asia and Europe on Tuesday, seeking to crank up political, economic and cultural ties with the region and rally the global community behind its commitment to a peaceful reunification with North Korea. More than 200 South Koreans gathered at Seoul Station before setting out on a 20-day, 14,400-kilometer journey on the “Eurasia Express,” displaying their resolve and sharing their mission statement. They then flew to Vladivostok, the train’s st

July 14, 2015

‘Eurasia Express’ launched to boost regional ties

Railway project envisages Eurasia cooperation

More than 250 South Koreans are poised to embark Tuesday on a 20-day journey across Asia and into Europe on a pair of special express trains as part of Seoul’s initiative for greater business and sociocultural cooperation between the two continents. Under the slogan “One Dream, One Eurasia,” high-profile figures from the political, business, academic and cultural circles as well as dozens of special guests and ordinary citizens will gather in Seoul before flying to Vladivostok and Beijing for tw

July 13, 2015

Railway project envisages Eurasia cooperation

Substantial improvement in Korea-Japan ties unclear even if summit happens: CRS report

South Korea and Japan are so wide apart in their positions on historical issues that it could be difficult for the two American allies to substantially improve relations even if they hold a formal summit, a U.S. congressional report said Sunday.The Congressional Research Service issued the analysis in a report on U.S.-South Korea relations, saying the approaches of South Korean President Park Geun-hye and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to historical issues "appear to contradict one another a

July 13, 2015

Georgia, Korea save lives through liver transplant

The Seoul National University Hospital, with the support of the Georgian Embassy in Seoul, completed the first successful living donor liver transplant in Tbilisi in March, opening doors for more medical cooperation between Georgia and Korea. SNUH surgeon Dr. Lee Kwang-woong performed the operation, together with a colleague, an anesthesiologist and a nurse who were all from Georgia. In the operation, 18-year-old Mariam Gobejishvili donated 60 percent of her liver to her 55-year-old father Gocha

July 13, 2015

Georgia, Korea save lives through liver transplant

Pakistan provides Central Asian connection for Korean business

Pakistan is poised to grow as part of the global economy and a safer investment haven, the country’s Federal Minister for Commerce Khurram Dastgir Kahn told journalists last week. Khan visited Seoul to expand economic cooperation and elicit Korean investment in Pakistan, building on former Korean Prime Minister Chung Hong-won’s visit to Islamabad in April last year. He participated in the first annual meeting of the Pakistan-Korea Joint Trade Commission Wednesday, as both countries seek to launc

July 13, 2015

Pakistan provides Central Asian connection for Korean business

‘Switzerland is smart partner for sustainable future’

Switzerland and Korea can join hands to reduce the world’s carbon footprint and push sustainable use of energy, the Swiss environment minister highlighted last week. Switzerland’s minister of the environment, transport, energy and communications (DETEC), Doris Leuthard, came to Korea on a four-day visit to share her country’s sustainable policies and innovations, supported by the Institute for Global Economics, the Swiss Embassy in Seoul and the Swiss-Korean Business Council. The minister was ac

July 12, 2015

‘Switzerland is smart partner for sustainable future’