2 South Koreans kidnapped from fishing vessel off Ghana

Two South Korean nationals have been kidnapped by unidentified gunmen in waters off Ghana, Seoul officials said Saturday. A Ghanaian-flagged fishing vessel was attacked in waters 200 kilometers southeast of the coastal city of Tema on Friday (local time), according to foreign ministry officials and Dryad Global, a London-based maritime security consultancy. A total of 50 crewmen, including two South Koreans, were aboard the vessel AP 703. The pirates took only the Koreans and headed toward N

Aug. 29, 2020

Cheong Wa Dae expresses regret at Abe's resignation, expresses hope for quick health recovery

South Korea's presidential office on Friday expressed its regret at the news of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's decision to resign and wished him a speedy health recovery. "We regret the sudden resignation announcement by Prime Minister Abe, who has long played many roles for the development of South Korea-Japan relations," Cheong Wa Dae spokesman Kang Min-seok said in a statement. It noted that Abe has left "various meaningful accomplishments" as Japan's longest-ser

Aug. 28, 2020

Taiwan strengthens entry restrictions for visitors from S. Korea

Taiwan has strengthened entry restrictions for visitors from South Korea, citing the resurgence in the virus outbreak mostly in the greater Seoul area.  South Korea was taken off from Taiwan's list of foreign countries relatively less prone to coronavirus infection, and business travelers arriving in Taiwan from the South should be in self-isolation for 14 days without exception, according to the South Korean Mission in Taipei. Since late June, Taiwan had put South Korea in the low to me

Aug. 27, 2020

Trump says FDA authorizes emergency use of blood plasma for coronavirus patients

WASHINGTON -- The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Sunday authorized the emergency use of blood plasma to treat new coronavirus patients, US President Donald Trump said, calling it a very powerful therapy that he said will save many lives. "On the therapeutics front, this is what I have been looking to do for a long time. This is a great day. Today I'm pleased to make a truly historic announcement in our battle against the China virus that will save countless lives," he told

Aug. 24, 2020

Xi visit aimed at winning over Korea amid feud with US: experts

Chinese President Xi Jinping will seek to persuade South Korea to not heavily invest in anti-China initiatives led by the US if he visits here, experts said Sunday, although his trip is unlikely to happen this year due to coronavirus concerns. Cheong Wa Dae said Saturday that the two countries agreed the Chinese leader will travel to Korea “at an early date” once the COVID-19 situation stabilizes. Beijing confirmed Seoul is a “priority” for Xi to visit, it added. Earli

Aug. 23, 2020

Top S. Korean, Chinese officials have 'good' and 'enough' discussions, no announcement on Xi's visit

President Moon Jae-in's national security adviser Suh Hoon said Saturday he had "very good" and "enough" dialogue with Yang Jiechi, a top Chinese official, during their meeting in Busan. Following four hours of talks with Yang, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China's (CPC) Central Committee, at a seaside hotel in the southern port city, Suh told reporters that, "I think (we) had a very good conversation, (spending) a lot of time talking about

Aug. 22, 2020

Top Chinese official in Busan for talks on Xi's visit plan, N. Korea issue

Yang Jiechi, a top Chinese official in charge of diplomatic affairs, arrived in Busan on Friday for talks with President Moon Jae-in's top security advisor on President Xi Jinping's plan to visit South Korea, North Korea and other pending issues.    Yang, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, is scheduled to meet with Suh Hoon, director of national security at Cheong Wa Dae, in the southern port city on Saturday morning.   

Aug. 21, 2020

Biden reiterates commitment to alliances in nomination acceptance speech

WASHINGTON -- US Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden said Thursday that his election would mean that the United States will no longer cozy up to dictators, reiterating his commitment to strengthening alliances as he accepted the nomination. "I'll be a president who stands with our allies and friends, and make it clear to our adversaries that days of cozying up to dictators is over," the former US vice president said in his nomination acceptance speech at the end of the Democrat

Aug. 21, 2020

Top Chinese official to arrive in S. Korea

A top Chinese official will arrive in South Korea on Friday to discuss a range of bilateral issues, including the matter of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s planned visit. Yang Jiechi, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China’s Central Committee, is set to arrive in Busan at the invitation of Suh Hoon, the head of South Korea’s National Security Office. According to Cheong Wa Dae, Suh will meet with Yang on Saturday morning and the two will continue t

Aug. 21, 2020

S. Korea, India agree on closer cooperation on int'l security issues

South Korea and India agreed Thursday to strengthen cooperation on international affairs, including disarmament and nonproliferation, during a virtual meeting between senior diplomats, Seoul's foreign ministry said. In the session, Park Il, director of the disarmament and nonproliferation division at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, held talks with Indra Mani Pandey, India's additional secretary in charge of the matter. They had discussions on creating conditions for nuclear disarmament and t

Aug. 20, 2020

Seoul, Washington resume defense cost talks with little progress

South Korea has resumed defense cost-sharing talks with the new chief of the US negotiation team, but no meaningful progress has been reached yet.  Jeong Eun-bo, Seoul’s top negotiator for the talks, has been communicating with his new US counterpart Donna Welton via phone and email from early this month, according to the Foreign Ministry on Thursday.  But the two sides are said to have confirmed differences in their positions, while agreeing to continue communication to reso

Aug. 20, 2020

Top Chinese official to visit Busan this week

Yang Jiechi, a senior Chinese government official, will visit Busan this week to discuss issues, including Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit to South Korea. According to Cheong Wa Dae, Yang -- a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China -- will visit Busan on a two-day trip from Friday on invitation from Suh Hoon, chief of the presidential national security office. This is Yang’s first visit to Korea since July 2018, and his first meeting with Suh after S

Aug. 19, 2020

Top Chinese official to visit Busan for talks with Cheong Wa Dae director of national security

Yang Jiechi, a senior Chinese government official, will visit Busan this week for talks with Suh Hoon, director of presidential national security, with President Xi Jinping's push for a trip here likely to be discussed, Cheong Wa Dae said Wednesday. Yang, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, is scheduled to visit the southern port city from Friday through Saturday, according to Cheong Wa Dae spokesman Kang Min-seok. Yang, a former foreign mi

Aug. 19, 2020

New vice FM stresses foreign ministry's role in ensuring people's safety

Choi Jong-kun, the new first vice foreign minister, said in his inaugural address Tuesday that the foreign ministry should shoulder "unlimited" responsibility to ensure people's safety. Last week, President Moon Jae-in named Choi, former secretary for peace planning at the presidential national security office, to the post in charge of the country's bilateral ties with other nations. "When it comes to nationals' safety, the foreign ministry should shoulder unlimited responsibil

Aug. 18, 2020

Korean court dismisses appeal by Japanese firm contesting asset seizure in forced labor case

A South Korean court has dismissed an appeal filed by a Japanese steelmaker against a ruling that authorized the seizure of its assets in Korea to compensate victims of wartime forced labor. 　 The Daegu District Court’s Pohang branch said Monday that it had found “no reason” to accept the appeal by Nippon Steel, formerly known as Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal. The decision, however, is not final and the case now moves to a higher court of appeal in Daegu. 　 Nippon Steel

Aug. 17, 2020

Seoul should not give up alliance with Washington in US-China spat: Nye

Caught in a spiraling spat between the US and China, South Korea should balance its strategy to maintain the alliance with its longtime ally the US and at the same time prosper from the Chinese economy, a renowned American political scientist said Thursday.  Joseph S. Nye, Harvard University professor emeritus who served as assistant secretary of defense for international security under former US President Bill Clinton, said South Korea, sandwiched between larger countries like China and

Aug. 13, 2020

Germany says Russia hurdle to Korea’s G-7 participation

While Germany welcomes South Korea’s participation in an upcoming Group of Seven summit in the US, it opposes the expansion of the setting if Russia is readmitted, the Foreign Ministry in Seoul quoted the country’s Foreign Minister Heiko Maas as saying. 　 Maas made the remarks during his meeting in Berlin on Monday (local time) with South Korean counterpart Kang Kyung-wha. 　 The German official called South Korea an “important country in the world that shares values with Ger

Aug. 11, 2020

Trump says he wants to host G7 summit after election

WASHINGTON -- US President Donald Trump said Monday that he wants to host a Group of Seven summit after the presidential election in November, not in September as previously planned. South Korea has paid keen attention to the upcoming G7 meeting since Trump said in May that he will invite the country, along with Australia, India and Russia, to join the forum. "I'm much more inclined to do it sometime after the election," Trump said during a White House press briefing. "We wer

Aug. 11, 2020

FM in Germany to discuss G-7 invitation, COVID-19 responses

  South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha is in Berlin on her first overseas trip in six months since the coronavirus outbreak. 　 The Korean official was set to hold a meeting with German counterpart Heiko Maas on Monday morning (local time) to discuss various issues, including the two countries’ responses to the pandemic, bilateral ties, people-to-people exchanges and other international issues, according to the Foreign Ministry  　 Kang flew to the German capital Sunday

Aug. 10, 2020

S. Korea to lift restrictions on arrivals from China's Hubei from Monday

South Korea will lift restrictions on arrivals from China's Hubei province, believed to be the epicenter of COVID-19 outbreaks, starting Monday, as virus cases have eased there and China has relaxed entry bans for South Koreans, health authorities said Friday. Since Feb. 4, South Korea has imposed entry bans on foreigners who visited or traveled to Hubei province in the preceding two weeks and holders of visas issued by Hubei authorities. South Korea also has suspended visa-issuance work by i

Aug. 7, 2020