Officials from S. Korea, Germany to hold videoconference on coronavirus response

South Korean officials will hold a videoconference with their German counterparts Friday to share the country's experience in battling the new coronavirus, a foreign ministry official said. The session, set to begin at 5 p.m. (Korea time), comes after the German government voiced hope to send a delegation to take a first-hand look at South Korea's containment efforts, which have recently gained international recognition due to a slowdown in new COVID-19 cases and a relatively low fatality rate.

April 3, 2020

Defense cost-sharing deal still ongoing: US official

Despite earlier reports that a defense cost-sharing deal between South Korea and the US was imminent, a senior US official said Friday the negotiations are still ongoing and reiterated a call for an “equitable” agreement.  “What I can tell you right now is that we are still in talks with each other -- my colleagues in my bureau and then of course at the ministerial level and higher,” R. Clarke Cooper, assistant secretary of state for political-military, said in a b

April 3, 2020

Vice FM calls for 'criteria' to allow essential business trips despite coronavirus spread

Vice Foreign Minister Cho Sei-young expressed hope Friday for international efforts to craft "criteria" to allow essential trips by entrepreneurs or other entrants despite the spread of the new coronavirus, the foreign ministry said. Cho's remarks came during a weekly conference call with his counterparts from six countries, including the United States and Japan, as many countries have banned the entry of foreigners and tightened border controls to stop any influx of COVID-19. "

April 3, 2020

S. Korea implements order to restrict foreigners' activities over coronavirus

South Korea's justice ministry said Friday it has implemented an administrative order that restricts the scope of activities for all foreign arrivals for the first time over the new coronavirus pandemic. The restriction order has begun to apply to all foreign entrants who have arrived in South Korea since Wednesday as the government is struggling to curb imported cases of COVID-19. A justice minister can issue an order to limit the scope of activity for foreigners when there is a need to keep

April 3, 2020

Some 100 S. Koreans to return home from coronavirus-hit Morocco

About 100 South Koreans returned home from coronavirus-hit Morocco on Friday on a special flight that the North African nation arranged to transport medical items from South Korea. Morocco had originally planned to send a cargo plane to South Korea to pick up the medical supplies related to COVID-19, but King Mohammed VI agreed to switch to a passenger jet at Seoul's request so as to help South Koreans in the country return home, officials said. The Royal Air Maroc plane carrying 105 people,

April 3, 2020

S. Korean, Danish leaders vow cooperation on coronavirus: Cheong Wa Dae

The leaders of South Korea and Denmark had phone talks Thursday on the coronavirus pandemic and a postponed international summit on climate change, Cheong Wa Dae said. In the conversation with Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, President Moon Jae-in emphasized the importance of international coordination to terminate the COVID-19 outbreak at an early date, according to Cheong Wa Dae spokesman Kang Min-seok. Moon reaffirmed Seoul's willingness to share its relevant experience and clinical

April 2, 2020

2nd S. Korean chartered flight brings home 205 nationals from virus-hit Italy

About 200 South Koreans returned home from Italy on Thursday aboard a second chartered flight that the government arranged to bring its nationals from the European nation hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic. The Korean Air plane took off from Rome then made a stopover in Milan to pick up 92 people. It landed at Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul, at about 4:30 p.m. The government arranged the two special flights to airlift citizens stranded in Italy, a country under nationwide lockd

April 2, 2020

S. Korea seeks ASEAN+3 summit on coronavirus: Cheong Wa Dae

South Korea said Thursday it is pushing for a special video conference of the leaders of the ASEAN Plus Three (APT) member states over the coronavirus. South Korea is in "close consultations" with relevant nations to arrange the event, deputy presidential spokesman Yoon Jae-kwan said at a press briefing. The APT is comprised of the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, South Korea, China and Japan. The move is in line with President Moon Jae-in's emphasis on &quo

April 2, 2020

In phone summit, Colombia asks for supply of S. Korean medical devices

Colombian President Ivan Duque expressed hope Thursday for the importation of South Korean-made medical products, including respirators, in response to the coronavirus outbreak, Cheong Wa Dae said. Speaking on the telephone with President Moon Jae-in, Duque said he is "deeply respectful" of South Korea's handling of COVID-19 and that Colombia desires to learn from it in "the most challenging moment in its history." The virus has sickened more than 900 people in the South Ame

April 2, 2020

8 foreigners denied entry after refusing 14-day quarantine

South Korea’s Ministry of Justice on Thursday said it denied entry to eight foreign nationals who refused to quarantine themselves for two weeks upon arrival here.  “The quarantine office determined it inappropriate for the foreign nationals to enter the country, as they failed to follow the government quarantine measures, despite being notified prior to departure that they would have to self-quarantine,” the ministry said.  Starting Wednesday, Seoul implemented a

April 2, 2020

Top nuclear envoys of S. Korea, US hold phone talks on peace efforts with NK

The top nuclear envoys of South Korea and the United States held phone talks Thursday over the North Korean nuclear issue and joint efforts for lasting peace on the peninsula, the foreign ministry said. Lee Do-hoon, the ministry's special representative for Korean Peninsula peace and security affairs, and Stephen Biegun, the US special representative for North Korea and deputy secretary of state, spoke over the phone in a show of their continued coordination on peace efforts. The conversation

April 2, 2020

S. Korea calls for Japan to exempt essential business travel from planned entry ban

South Korea called Wednesday for Japan to allow essential visits by businesspeople, the foreign ministry said, as Tokyo was set to tighten entry restrictions to stem the spread of the new coronavirus. Kim Jung-han, director-general for Asian and Pacific affairs at the ministry, made the call during a videoconference with his Japanese counterpart, Shigeki Takizaki, as Tokyo was set to enforce an entry ban on foreigners from an additional 49 countries and territories, including South Korea and t

April 1, 2020

Japan bans entry of travelers from S. Korea, other countries, over coronavirus

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Wednesday announced an entry ban on foreigners coming from 49 countries and territories, including South Korea, China and the United States, in its latest move to stem the novel coronavirus outbreak. Under the new measure, those who had been staying in the designated places for two weeks will not be allowed to enter Japan. Japan previously barred the entry of people from the southeastern city of Daegu and several nearby counties that have reported large

April 1, 2020

S. Korean chartered plane returns with some 300 nationals from virus-hit Italy

A South Korean government-chartered plane with 309 citizens on board returned from coronavirus-hit Italy on Wednesday, amid the worsening virus outbreak in the European country. The Korean Air flight from Milan landed at Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul, at about 2:30 p.m. It was the first of the two flights the government has sent to airlift citizens stranded in Italy, a country under nationwide lockdown due to the virus spread. The second plane is set to depart from Rome after a

April 1, 2020

S. Korea provided $125m in loans to Hungary in 1989 for diplomatic relations

South Korea provided a massive bank loan to establish diplomatic relations with Hungary in 1989, a declassified diplomatic document revealed Tuesday. 　 Seoul pledged Budapest an economic cooperation fund of $650 million that combined direct investments, loans and other financial support, according to the agreed-upon minutes dated August 1988. 　 Of the total $250 million in bank loans, Seoul was asked to execute half of the amount, or $125 million, as a precondition to the forging of diplomati

March 31, 2020

Leaders of S. Korea, Romania exchange letters to mark 30th anniversary of bilateral ties

President Moon Jae-in and his Romanian counterpart, Klaus Werner Iohannis, exchanged congratulatory letters Monday to mark the 30th anniversary of the establishment of their countries' diplomatic ties, the foreign ministry said. In his letter, Moon welcomed the steady expansion of bilateral cooperation since the establishment of relations in 1990, while noting the recent strengthening of cooperation in the nuclear reactor, educational and cultural sectors. He also voiced expectation that the

March 30, 2020

S. Korean chartered flight departs for virus-hit Italy to bring citizens home

A South Korean government-chartered plane departed for coronavirus-hit Italy on Monday to bring home hundreds of citizens, amid growing concerns over their safety in the epicenter of the COVID-19 outbreak in Europe. The plane, bound for Milan, is one of the two flights that the Seoul government has arranged to bring about 530 citizens back to Korea. The other flight is expected to depart here for Rome on Tuesday. The first flight, with about 310 people, is set to arrive in Korea on Wednesday,

March 30, 2020

Govt. reconfirms S. Korean-made virus test kits can be exported to US

The foreign ministry reconfirmed Monday that three South Korean coronavirus test kits can be exported to the United States as they were given pre-emergency use authorization numbers from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). On Saturday, the foreign ministry issued a press release that the three unidentified companies have gained preapproval in the FDA's emergency use authorization (EUA) process and that their diagnostic devices can be sold in the US market. But the announcement created

March 30, 2020

Chartered flight carrying S. Koreans departs Bolivia amid border closure

Forty-seven South Koreans left Bolivia on a US-arranged chartered flight, the South Korean Embassy in La Paz said, after the South American nation imposed a nationwide lockdown to stem the spread of the new coronavirus. The flight departed Saturday (Bolivia time) with South Korean residents and members of the Korea International Cooperation Agency's volunteer group on board, according to the embassy. Of the 40 members of the volunteer group who applied to take the special flight, two could no

March 29, 2020

Foreign ministry calls in Chinese Amb. Xing over Beijing's abrupt decision to ban entry of foreigners

The foreign ministry called in Chinese Ambassador to South Korea Xing Haiming on Friday over Beijing's banning of the entry of foreigners without prior notice, which a senior Seoul official called "regrettable." Deputy Foreign Minister Kim Gunn met the Chinese envoy, a day after Beijing announced it would temporarily suspend the entry of foreigners, even those with visas or residence permits, starting Saturday, to help prevent any inflow of COVID-19. Appearing at the ministry, Xing

March 27, 2020