A South Korean official on Wednesday denied Japanese news reports that Seoul agreed to relocate a statue symbolizing victims of Japan's wartime sexual slavery in exchange for compensation for the women.The statue of a girl, which sits across from the Japanese Embassy in Seoul, has been a source of friction between the two countries as they have sought to resolve issues related to the wartime atrocity.Historians estimate that more than 200,000 women, mostly from Korea, were forced to work in fron

Dec. 30, 2015

Chinese authorities have warned that South Korean journalists could face an unspecified "stern measure" if they report along the sensitive border between North Korea and China without prior permission, an official at the South Korean Embassy in Beijing said Wednesday. The warning came less than a week after South Korean journalists reported about activities of trade between North Korea and China in the Chinese border city of Dandong, following a sudden cancellation of a concert in Beijing by a N

Dec. 30, 2015

South Korea will sharply increase the budget allocated to beefing up security at its diplomatic missions in 2016, in the face of mounting threats to its diplomats and facilities, the government said Wednesday.According to the finance ministry, 26.5 billion won ($22.6 million) will be set aside in the new year, up more than 50 percent from 17.6 billion won earmarked for 2015.The move follows a terrorist attack against its embassy in Libya in April that left two local security personnel dead. Its

Dec. 30, 2015

North Korea has sent a letter to the United Nations, renewing its call for a peace treaty with the United States, U.N. records showed Tuesday.Amb. Ja Song-nam, chief of the North's mission to the U.N., sent the letter to the U.N. secretary-general last week, along with a statement from Pyongyang's foreign ministry calling for a peace treaty with the U.S., according to a copy of the letter released by the U.N.Ja asked that the letter and the statement be circulated as a Security Council document.

Dec. 30, 2015

U.S. Congressman Mike Honda, who has been at the forefront of efforts to help victims of Japan's wartime sexual slavery, said this week's breakthrough deal on the issue between Seoul and Tokyo is far from perfect, but is still a "historic milestone."Honda, however, expressed disappointment that the agreement lacks a commitment by Japan to "ensure they will no longer whitewash history and educate future generations" and that Tokyo's apology as part of the deal is "not a formal, and official apolo

Dec. 30, 2015

Civil society support for the Korea-Japan agreement on resolving the issue of Japan's wartime sexual slavery will be crucial to the deal's success, the State Department said Tuesday."Everyone will make their own judgments about this agreement. But I do hope, we do hope, as the United States, that others, including here in the U.S., will support this agreement and its full implementation as we do," State Department deputy spokesman Mark Toner said at a regular briefing."We believe it's an importa

Dec. 30, 2015

The Seoul government on Tuesday set the ball rolling to execute Monday’s bilateral agreement with Tokyo to settle the issue of Japan’s wartime sexual slavery, despite escalating controversy over the ambiguity of the clauses and objections from the victims and civic groups.Seoul’s Foreign Ministry began its internal preparatory work for the establishment of a fund to support the Korean victims. Under the agreement, the two countries are to form a fund with Tokyo providing 1 billion yen ($8.3 mill

Dec. 29, 2015

Japanese civic groups said Tuesday that a South Korea-Japan deal on Tokyo's wartime sex slavery is insufficient to heal the pains of Korean victims, raising doubts about whether Japan has sincerely apologized for its atrocity.South Korea and Japan reached a rare deal Monday to resolve the issue of South Korean women coerced into sex slavery for Japanese soldiers during World War II.The deal included Japan's apology for Korean victims and a 1 billion yen ($8.29 million) fund to be created with Ja

Dec. 29, 2015

Cheong Wa Dae said Tuesday that a landmark deal with Japan on the issue of Korean women forced into sexual slavery for Japanese soldiers during World War II was reached in accordance with principle.On Monday, the two countries announced the agreement on the former sex slaves that centered on Japan's admission of responsibility for the wartime crime and plans to pay reparations to the victims."(The deal) was reached in accordance with the firm principle that victims' honor should be restored, and

Dec. 29, 2015

North Korea criticized South Korea Tuesday for reaching a deal with Japan over Tokyo's wartime sex slavery, calling it a "humiliating agreement" that missed holding the Japanese state responsible for such atrocities.A day earlier, Seoul and Tokyo reached a rare deal to resolve the issue over Korean women forced into Japan's sex slaves during World War II. The agreement included Japan's apology for Korean victims and a 1 billion yen ($8.29 million) fund to be created with Japan's money, but it fa

Dec. 29, 2015

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon welcomed Monday's landmark agreement between South Korea and Japan on resolving the issue of Japan's wartime sexual slavery, expressing hope for improved relations between the two countries."The secretary-general welcomes that the governments of Japan and the Republic of Korea have reached an agreement on the issues related to 'comfort women' at the bilateral Foreign Ministers meeting held in Seoul on 28 December," Ban's spokesman, Stephane Dujarric, said in a

Dec. 29, 2015

The breakthrough deal between South Korea and Japan on resolving the issue of Japan's wartime sexual slavery was made possible thanks to "leadership," "courage" and "statesmanship" of the leaders of the two countries, U.S. experts said Monday.The experts also said that the agreement paves the way for greater trilateral security cooperation with the U.S. to deal with a rising China and a nuclear North Korea. What's important now is for Seoul and Tokyo to fight back nationalist pressure and sincer

Dec. 29, 2015

The United States on Monday praised South Korea and Japan for reaching a breakthrough deal on resolving the issue of Japan's wartime sexual slavery that has seriously plagued relations between the two key American allies for years.South Korean Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se and his Japanese counterpart, Fumio Kishida, reached the agreement in talks in Seoul earlier in the day, which centers on Japan's admission of responsibility for the wartime crime and plans to pay reparations to the victims.Th

Dec. 29, 2015

South Korean experts showed mixed reactions Monday to an agreement by Seoul and Tokyo to resolve the issue of Japan's wartime sex slavery, saying that improvement of their frayed ties hinges on how to carry out the deal.   Earlier in the day, South Korea and Japan reached a landmark deal to settle the issue of Tokyo's wartime sexual enslavement of Korean women for Japanese soldiers during World War II.   Under the agreement, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe expressed an "apology and repentance

Dec. 28, 2015

The landmark agreement between South Korea and Japan to end their dispute over Japan's wartime sexual enslavement of Korean women has already prompted questions about whether it really is the end.   The two countries' top diplomats announced the terms of the deal in a press conference Monday, wrapping up 12 rounds of bilateral working-level talks that began in April 2014.   Key features of the agreement included a personal apology from Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe for his country's wartime

Dec. 28, 2015

President Park Geun-hye expressed hope Monday that South Korea and Japan will build confidence and start bilateral relations anew based on a landmark deal on the comfort women.   South Korea and Japan "should turn the agreement into a precious opportunity to restore honor and dignity" to the comfort women and heal their scars, Park said in a telephone conversation with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, according to Cheong Wa Dae, South Korea's presidential office.   In the 13-minute conversati

Dec. 28, 2015