Uzbek leader clinches third term in landslide victory

TASHKENT, Uzbekistan -- Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev was reelected for a third term with 87.1 percent of the vote on Sunday, the Central Election Commission said Monday, citing preliminary results. Mirziyoyev, who took office in 2016 upon his predecessor’s death and was on a second term of five years, called for an early election following a constitutional change by referendum in April that resets his term count and extends presidential terms to seven years. The 65-year-old lead

July 10, 2023

Ruling party leader to visit US to discuss strengthening alliance

The leader of the ruling People Power Party was set to leave for Washington on Monday for meetings with senior US government officials and congressional leaders to discuss ways to strengthen the alliance between the two countries, his party said. Rep. Kim Gi-hyeon will lead a delegation of party members on the seven-day trip that also includes stops in New York and Los Angeles. Other lawmakers travelling together with Kim include Reps. Lee Chul-gyu, Kim Seok-ki, Yoo Sang-bum, Kang Min-kuk and Ku

July 10, 2023

New round of US-led IPEF talks kicks off in S. Korea

A new round of official negotiations for the US-led Indo-Pacific Economic Framework has begun in South Korea's southeastern port city of Busan, the industry ministry said Monday. The fourth round of talks kicked off in Busan on Sunday for a six-day run, where some 650 officials from 14 member nations are seeking to make progress in setting details on trade, a clean economy and a fair economy -- three of its four key pillars, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. In May, t

July 10, 2023

Opposition lawmakers to visit Japan to protest Fukushima water release

Opposition lawmakers were set to travel to Japan on Monday to protest Japan's plan to release radioactive water from the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant into the ocean. A team of 11 lawmakers, nine from the main opposition Democratic Party and two independents, will fly to Japan for a three-day trip that includes a protest rally in front of the official residence of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. They also plan to make a protest visit to the Japan office of the International Atomic Energy A

July 10, 2023

Yoon to embark on six-day trip to Lithuania, Poland

President Yoon Suk Yeol was set to depart for Lithuania on Monday for a North Atlantic Treaty Organization summit on a six-day trip that will take him to Poland for an official visit. This will be Yoon's second time attending a NATO summit after the previous one held in Spain last year, demonstrating his commitment to building solidarity with like-minded nations to promote values, such as freedom, human rights and the rule of law. The NATO gathering will be held in Vilnius on Tuesday and Wednesd

July 10, 2023

Yoon, Kishida to meet during NATO summit as Fukushima water debate intensifies

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol will embark on a six-day trip Monday to attend the NATO summit in Lithuania and visit Poland, but the focus will be on his meeting with the Japanese leader, where the two are expected to discuss Tokyo's plan to release treated wastewater into the sea. The South Korean presidential office confirmed Sunday that the summit between Yoon and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will take place on the sidelines of the NATO Vilnius Summit on Tuesday and Wednes

July 9, 2023

Blinken will raise N. Korea issues at upcoming ARF meetings: official

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will raise issues with regard to nuclear and missile threats posed by North Korea when he attends a regional forum next week but has no immediate plans to meet with North Korean officials there, a ranking state department official said Friday. Daniel Kritenbrink, assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, reiterated that the US remains open to dialogue with North Korea but that Pyongyang has ignored U.S. overtures. "I am confident t

July 8, 2023

First meeting of NCG to be held in Seoul this month, involving senior officials: presidential office

The inaugural meeting of the new Nuclear Consultative Group between South Korea and the United States will be held later this month in Seoul, Seoul's presidential office said Saturday. The meeting will be held July 18, co-chaired by South Korea's Principal Deputy National Security Adviser Kim Tae-hyo and US National Security Council Coordinator for Indo-Pacific Affairs Kurt Campbell. The meeting will "discuss information sharing, consultation mechanism and joint planning and execu

July 8, 2023

Ex-veteran diplomat picked to head overseas aid agency

Chang Won-sam, former veteran diplomat, has been appointed the new head of South Korea's overseas aid agency for a three-year term, the foreign ministry said Friday. Chang, a former secretary general of the Northeast Asian History Foundation (NAHF), will take office Monday as the 14th president of the Korea International Cooperation Agency. He will succeed Sohn Hyuk-sang who quit last December. Having entered the foreign service in 1984, Chang served in various key diplomatic posts, inclu

July 7, 2023

S. Korean firefighting team dispatched to Canada begins operations in Quebec

A South Korean emergency firefighting team dispatched to Canada to help the North American nation deal with raging wildfires has started carrying out on-site activities, according to Seoul's foreign ministry Thursday. According to the ministry, the Korea Disaster Relief Team of 151 workers, including firefighters, emergency workers and medical personnel, started operations in Lebel-sur-Quevillon, Quebec province, on Wednesday. The team underwent training and preparations after arriving in t

July 6, 2023

[Photo News] COMMEMORATING SACRIFICE

[COMMEMORATING SACRIFICE] A group of foreign defense attaches in South Korea pose for photo at an event held to honor the sacrifices made by South Korean troops in a fatal inter-Korean naval skirmish in 2002. Brig. Gen. Shamim Islam of the Bangladesh Air Force, head of an association of foreign attaches in Korea, donated 629,000 won ($480) to a scholarship foundation established in 2014, said the South Korean Navy in a press release Wednesday. The donation, made on behalf of the attaches, aims t

July 5, 2023

Third court blocks forced labor payment

A third South Korean court on Wednesday refused to remit government money as compensation to the family members of Korean victims forced into labor during Japan’s 1910-45 colonial rule, a process mandated by the March 6 settlement agreed by Korea and Japan. The March deal requires a state-run foundation to pay the 15 victims, not Japanese companies held liable by a 2018 Korean court ruling amid the firms’ opposition. Four victims -- two alive, two dead -- and their representatives ha

July 5, 2023

S. Korea, China deputy FMs agree on need to enhance bilateral ties

The deputy foreign ministers of South Korea and China met in Beijing on Tuesday amid mounting tensions between the two countries over the Chinese ambassador to Korea's open criticism of Seoul's foreign policy last month. South Korea's Deputy Foreign Minister Choi Young-sam and his Chinese counterpart Sun Weidong held an in-person meeting and the two agreed that meticulous efforts are necessary to enhance bilateral relations based on "mutual respect and reciprocity," Sout

July 5, 2023

[Photo News] Korean relief team to Canada

The South Korean Air Force on Wednesday shared photos of the Korean relief team heading for its overseas mission in the Canadian province of Quebec, which has been struck with massive wildfires since early June. The photos, all taken Sunday, show the Korea Disaster Relief Team members onboard a KC-330 aircraft headed to the country's capital city Ottawa. The photos also showed relief goods being unloaded at the Ottawa International Airport and members being welcomed by local figures. While

July 5, 2023

Court nixes forced labor payment

A South Korean court on Tuesday refused to remit government money as compensation to a Korean victim forced into during Japan’s 1910-45 colonial rule. She contends that the compensation should come from the Japanese companies held liable for damages as per a 2018 Korean court ruling. Yang Geum-deok, 94, is one of the four victims that have refused such deposits mandated by the March 6 settlement, which relieves the Japanese firms from having to compensate the 15 victims and requires a Kore

July 4, 2023

[Contribution] Uzbekistan's legal and institutional framework: focus on humanization

The aim of ongoing reforms in our country is to ensure guarantees of a happy and prosperous life. During the short period of time, a large-scale work has been carried out in judicial and legal spheres. In particular, the Decree "on measures for further reforming the judicial and legal system, strengthening the guarantees of reliable protection of citizens' rights and freedoms" has been adopted. As priority directions of state policy, ensuring actual independence of a judicial po

July 4, 2023

Envoy recalls Koreans' contributions to Belarus liberation

Belarusian Ambassador Andrew Chernetsky recalled the contribution of Koreans to his country while celebrating Belarus National Day in Korea last week. The liberation of Belarus from Nazi Germany occurred on July 3, 1944. The date now commemorates the victims of the patriotic war and the genocide of the Belarusian people. Extending his appreciation to nations that helped liberate his country, Chernetsky brought up the story of Innokenty Pak, a pilot who fought for Belarus against the Nazis. "

July 4, 2023

Payment in process for remaining Japan labor victims

The government is preparing to finalize the remaining payment owed to four South Korean victims of Japan’s 1910-45 forced labor who have refused to accept it because it is coming from a state-run fund and not the Japanese companies held liable, the Foreign Ministry said. Under the March 6 settlement, signed by the two countries’ leaders, Japanese companies held liable for damages by a 2018 Korean court ruling would not pay the 15 victims. A government foundation would instead make th

July 4, 2023

House committee calls for trilateral defense cooperation between S. Korea, Japan and US

The House Committee on Armed Services is seeking to encourage trilateral defense cooperation between South Korea, Japan and the United States, a committee report showed Monday. In a report on the 2024 National Defense Authorization Act, the committee also stressed the need for the US to develop and deploy more advanced missile defense systems against North Korea's evolving missile threat. "The committee recognizes the importance of defense cooperation involving Japan and the Republic o

July 4, 2023

S. Korean firefighting team arrives in Ottawa to help Canada battle wildfires

A South Korean emergency firefighting team dispatched to Canada to help the North American nation deal with raging wildfires has arrived in Ottawa, Seoul's foreign ministry said Monday. The Korea Disaster Relief Team of 151 workers, including firefighters, emergency workers and medical personnel, arrived in the Canadian capital Sunday and was received by Mona Fortier, president of Canada's Treasury Board, South Korean Ambassador Lim Woong-soon and others. Upon arrival, the team headed

July 3, 2023