[Newsmaker] Sex slavery statue closed off from view at Aichi Triennale 2019

An exhibition of a statue representing victims of wartime sexual slavery by the Japanese military has been shut off to the public following pressure from the Japanese government and right-wing civic groups.Organizers of the Aichi Triennale 2018, a Japanese international art show, have closed off the area displaying the statue created by two South Korean artists. It was the first-ever museum exhibition of the “Statue of a Girl of Peace” in Japan. Similar statues are displayed in Seoul

Aug. 4, 2019

New US defense chief to visit S. Korea this week

US Defense Secretary Mark Esper will visit South Korea this week for talks with his South Korean counterpart, the South Korean defense ministry said Sunday.The trip comes as North Korea continues its military provocations against South Korea's joint military exercises with the United States and as Washington reportedly wants Seoul to increase its contribution to the cost of stationing 28,500 American troops in its Asian ally's territory.During his stay in Seoul, Esper will meet with South Korean

Aug. 4, 2019

Japan orders removal of sex slave statue on display at arts festival

A statue of a girl representing victims of Japan's World War II-era sexual slavery, which has been on display at an international arts festival in Aichi Prefecture, central Japan, was ordered by Japanese officials to be removed, the festival's organizers said Saturday.The statue, which symbolizes Korean women who were forced to serve as sexual slaves for front-line Japanese soldiers during the war, was created by a South Korean artist and has been on display at the Aichi Triennale international

Aug. 4, 2019

FM Kang says Japan's export curbs could pose 'serious threat' to regional prosperity

Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha said Saturday that Japan's recent export restrictions, including its removal of South Korea from a list of trusted trade partners, could pose a "serious threat" to regional prosperity.Kang made the remarks during a meeting with her counterparts from five countries around the Mekong River -- Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam -- on the last day of her four-day trip to Bangkok for multilateral talks involving the Association of Southeast Asian N

Aug. 4, 2019

Dismissing missile tests, Trump says Kim won't want to 'disappoint me'

      US President Donald Trump downplayed on Friday North Korea's missile tests, saying that while they may violate a UN resolution, Kim Jong Un will not want to "disappoint" him because he has "too much to lose."   Underlining his intense personal support for the North Korean leader, Trump fired off three tweets brushing aside the short-range missile launches.   "There may be a United Nations violation, but Chairman Kim

Aug. 3, 2019

S. Korea to reconsider military info-sharing deal with Japan: Cheong Wa Dae

Cheong Wa Dae confirmed Friday that it would review whether to continue exchanging military information with Japan, a key element in tripartite security cooperation with the United States.Kim Hyun-chong, the deputy national security advisor, said the reconsideration could be part of "comprehensive countermeasures" against Tokyo for its decision to remove Seoul from the "whitelist" of more than two dozen nations that enjoy minimized procedures when importing Japanese goods. Ja

Aug. 2, 2019

Full text of President Moon Jae-in’s statement on Japan’s latest trade curbs

Unofficial edited translation provided by Cheong Wa Dae 　This Cabinet meeting has been urgently convened to respond to the diplomatic and economic emergency situation.The Japanese government has decided to remove South Korea from its whitelist of trading partners. This is a very reckless decision that rebuffs the diplomatic efforts to resolve the problem and further exacerbates the situation. I express profound regret.Ultimately, the Japan dismissed Korea’s proposal to put our heads togeth

Aug. 2, 2019

President Moon warns of retaliation, urges Japan to negotiate

President Moon Jae-in on Friday warned that Seoul will “resolutely take corresponding measures” against Japan’s move to remove South Korea from its list of trusted trade partners. Earlier in the day, the Japanese government decided to remove Korea from the whitelist of countries that receive preferential treatment in importing materials and goods from Japan. “(I) express deep regret at the reckless decision that makes the situation worse, while refusing diplomatic ef

Aug. 2, 2019

Cheong Wa Dae to launch task force to deal with Japanese export restrictions

A task force and a situation team will be launched to deal with the recent decision by Japan to remove Korea from its “whitelist” of trusted trade partners, Seoul’s presidential office said Friday.“(Cheong Wa Dae) expresses deep regret over the Abe government’s decision to remove Korea from the whitelist,” Cheong Wa Dae spokesperson Ko Min-jung said.  Saying Seoul had continually called for dialogue with Japan, she added that efforts had been made to reso

Aug. 2, 2019

Top diplomats of S. Korea, US, Japan to meet trilaterally amid tensions over whitelist exclusion

The top diplomats of South Korea and Japan faced off Friday over Tokyo's decision to remove Seoul from its list of trusted trade partners during a regional forum in Thailand.Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha and her Japanese counterpart, Taro Kono, traded barbs at the annual gathering, involving the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations, their countries and China. The meeting was held after Japan's Cabinet approved a decision to drop South Korea from the "whitelist" of 27 coun

Aug. 2, 2019

Cheong Wa Dae says Japan's additional trade restrictions 'deeply regrettable'

Cheong Wa Dae expressed "deep regret" Friday over Tokyo's decision to impose additional export curbs against South Korea."Going forward, our government will cope with Japan's unfair measure with a resolute attitude," Cheong Wa Dae spokesperson, Ko Min-jung, said in a statement. It came in response to Japan's Cabinet approval for the removal of South Korea from the so-called "whitelist" of trade partners, which Tokyo regards as trustworthy in terms of national securi

Aug. 2, 2019

US concerned Japan will remove S. Korea from 'whitelist': report

The United States on Thursday expressed concern that Japan will follow through on its threat to remove South Korea from a "whitelist" of countries given preferential treatment in export procedures, leading to an escalation of tensions between the two sides, Reuters reported.Japan is expected to drop South Korea from the list on Friday, just weeks after it tightened controls on the export of some high-tech materials to the neighboring nation.Seoul regards the measures as retaliation for

Aug. 2, 2019

S. Korea hints at cutting defense cooperation with Japan

Seoul will be forced to reconsider its security cooperation with Tokyo, should Japan take further trade-curbing measures, South Korea’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Kang Kyung-wha said Thursday. According to Seoul’s Foreign Ministry, Kang gave the warning during her meeting with her Japanese counterpart Taro Kono in Bangkok, on the sidelines of the ASEAN Regional Forum.“If the decision (to remove South Korea from the trade whitelist) is made at tomorrow’s Cabinet meeting,

Aug. 1, 2019

Top diplomats of S. Korea, Japan fail to defuse trade, diplomatic tensions

South Korea and Japan failed to defuse a deepening trade and diplomatic row on Thursday, the eve of Tokyo's widely expected decision to strip Seoul of a preferential trade status in a move sure to aggravate the already high tensions.After the talks with her Japanese counterpart, Taro Kono, in Thailand ended with little progress, Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha warned that Seoul could reconsider a rare line of bilateral security cooperation if Tokyo presses ahead to remove South Korea from its &q

Aug. 1, 2019

Top nuke envoys of S. Korea, US hold talks in Bangkok

The top nuclear envoys of South Korea and the United States have held bilateral talks in Thailand to discuss North Korea's recent missile launches and joint efforts to resume nuclear talks with the regime, Seoul's foreign ministry said Thursday.Lee Do-hoon and his US counterpart, Stephen Biegun, met Wednesday in Bangkok on the sidelines of a series of multilateral meetings involving the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)."The two sides exchanged their analysis on recent and curr

Aug. 1, 2019

Foreign minister to hold bilateral talks with Japanese counterpart in Bangkok

The top envoys of South Korea and Japan will hold bilateral talks and a three-way meeting with the US in Bangkok this week as the East Asian neighbors struggle to resolve a diplomatic row heightened by trade restrictions imposed by Tokyo, amid concerns that the measures could hurt global semiconductor chip supply chains.Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-hwa will meet Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono on Thursday on the sidelines of gatherings of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in B

July 31, 2019

FM Kang departs for Thailand to attend ASEAN meetings amid trade row with Japan

Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha left for Thailand on Wednesday to attend a series of bilateral and multilateral talks amid a trade row with Japan and limited progress in efforts to resume nuclear talks between Washington and Pyongyang.Kang plans to attend the annual gatherings involving the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in Bangkok, such as the ASEAN Regional Forum, which are slated to take place from Thursday to Saturday.The minister will use the regional meetings to highlight the impor

July 31, 2019

New US defense chief to visit S. Korea in Aug. amid reports on burden-sharing talks

US Defense Secretary Mark Esper will visit South Korea next month as part of a trip to Asia, the Pentagon said Tuesday.Esper's trip comes as the United States reportedly wants Seoul to increase its contribution to the upkeep of 28,500 American troops stationed in its Asian ally's territory.The new defense secretary, who took office last week, will leave Friday on a trip to Hawaii, Sydney, Auckland, Tokyo, Ulaanbaatar and Seoul, the Pentagon said in a press release.  During his stay in Seoul

July 31, 2019

UN grants sanctions exemption for transfer of funds to NK for humanitarian activities

The United Nations Security Council has granted a sanctions exemption to an Italian company for the transfer of funds to support the European Union Food Security Office's humanitarian assistance projects in North Korea, its website showed Tuesday.A UN committee overseeing sanctions approved the waiver for Agriconsulting SA -- which was awarded an "EU tender for providing technical support for food-related matters" to the North - on July 1, according to the UN website.AESA plans to spen

July 30, 2019

[News focus] No easy way out for Seoul-Tokyo deadlock

The conflict between South Korea and Japan over trade and historical issues is likely to intensify in the coming days, but prospects of a diplomatic solution remain unclear. Foreign Affairs Minister Kang Kyung-wha said in a Cabinet meeting Friday that there is “significant” possibility of Japan removing Korea from its whitelist of trade partners. Such a move will result in Japanese firms requiring government approval for individual shipments to Korea of most materials and produc

July 30, 2019