South and North Korean musicians perform together in China

SHANGHAI (AP) -- A South Korean violinist and a North Korean singer held a rare joint performance Sunday in hopes of bringing the divided Koreas closer together -- especially at this time of emerging tensions amid deadlocked nuclear diplomacy.Violinist Won Hyung-joon and his North Korean soprano partner, Kim Song-mi, performed together at the Shanghai Oriental Art Center with a Chinese orchestra. Their concert took place three days after South Korea said North Korea fired two suspected short-ran

May 12, 2019

[Graphic News] Seoul’s humanitarian aid to Pyongyang

　The Moon Jae-in administration announced that it will soon initiate the procedure for providing food aid to North Korea. The South Korean government has not sent any direct humanitarian aid to the impoverished country since 2010. 　According to the Unification Ministry’s data, the total amount of assistance provided to the North by the South Korean government stands at around 2.4 trillion won ($2.03 billion) since the Kim Young-sam administration offered 150,000 metric tons of rice in 1995. The

May 12, 2019

Trump says N. Korea's missile launches didn't breach trust

US President Donald Trump has said he doesn't think North Korea's launches of short-range missiles this week were a breach of trust, although that could happen in the future.In a phone interview with Politico on Friday, Trump was asked whether he was angry or frustrated by the firings and if he considered them to be a breach of trust between himself and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. (Yonhap)"No. No. I'm not at all," he said. "They're short-range. They're short-range and I don't consider that

May 12, 2019

Pence says US will 'stand firm' with NK

US Vice President Mike Pence said the United States will "stand firm" with North Korea over its nuclear weapons program.    In an interview with Fox News aired Friday, Pence was asked about the future of denuclearization negotiations between Washington and Pyongyang following the North's renewed firing of missiles and the US seizure of a North Korean vessel earlier this week. US Vice President Mike Pence (AP-Yonhap)    "Well, look, President (Donald) Trump truly believes that Chairman Kim (Jong-

May 11, 2019

Otto Warmbier's father calls Kim Jong-un 'criminal Kim'

The father of American college student Otto Warmbier who died soon after being sent home from North Korea in a vegetative state said Friday that Kim Jong-Un should be called “criminal Kim” -- not “chairman Kim” which “makes me sick.”   Otto Warmbier (Yonhap)    Fred Warmbier told a UN symposium promoting international cooperation on abductions that calling the North Korean leader “chairman” gives him status on the world stage, and “if we're afraid to tell the truth of who we're dealing with we d

May 11, 2019

Further analysis needed to confirm NK fired ‘ballistic missiles’: Seoul

South Korea’s military reiterated Friday that more time was needed to determine whether the short-range missiles the North fired the day before were ballistic missiles, while the United States announced that they were.Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff told reporters that South Korea and the US jointly deemed the two projectiles to have been short-range missiles, and that further analysis would be needed to determine the exact nature of the missiles.In a statement Thursday, Pentagon spokesman Lt. Col

May 10, 2019

Biegun discusses NK with top South Korean officials

National Security Office deputy chief Kim Hyun-chong met with US special envoy for North Korea Stephen Biegun on Friday to discuss recent developments on the Korean Peninsula, Cheong Wa Dae said. According to Seoul’s presidential office, the meeting began at 3 p.m. and lasted 80 minutes, during which they discussed developments surrounding North Korea, as well as South Korea-US cooperation on the matter.  North Korea released a photo showing its launch of a short-range missile on Thursday. (Yonh

May 10, 2019

Biegun says door remains open for NK's return to nuclear talks

US special envoy for North Korea Stephen Biegun was quoted as saying Friday that the door remains open for North Korea to return to nuclear negotiations, despite Pyongyang's firing of two missiles the previous day.Biegun made the remarks during his courtesy call on South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha amid fears that the North's escalatory moves could derail the allies' ongoing efforts to bring a lasting peace to the divided peninsula.Just five days after firing off multiple projectiles,

May 10, 2019

NK projectile launch signals it wants more than food aid

North Korea's launch of yet more projectiles on Thursday signals that it wants more than the food aid Seoul and Washington are poised to discuss this week to lure it back to nuclear talks, analysts said.Less than a week after launching a volley of short-range projectiles into the East Sea, the North fired off a couple of presumably short-range missiles, raising pressure on the United States to show flexibility in the hitherto unfruitful negotiations.(Yonhap)The North has been escalating tensions

May 9, 2019

North Korea launches two projectiles, assumed to be short-range missiles: JSC

North Korea fired two projectiles that appeared to be short-range missiles on Thursday, less than a week after it conducted what it claimed was a “regular military drill.” Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said launches of what appeared to be short-range missiles took place at 4:29 p.m. and 4:49 p.m. in Kusong, North Pyongan Province. It had initially said they were launched at Sino-ri, some 40 kilometers below Kusong in the same province. (Yonhap)Both of the projectiles traveled east at the altitud

May 9, 2019

US won't 'intervene' if S. Korea sends food aid to North: White House

The United States won't "intervene" if South Korea decides to send food aid to North Korea, the White House said Wednesday.US President Donald Trump expressed support for South Korea's possible humanitarian assistance to the North during a phone call with President Moon Jae-in on Tuesday, the latter's office said.White House press secretary Sarah Sanders was asked at a meeting with reporters Wednesday if Trump will go along with the plan despite the North's firing of projectiles last week. (AFP-

May 9, 2019

UNC OKs opening of DMZ for hiking trails in border towns

The United Nations Command (UNC) has approved the opening of the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) separating the two Koreas for hiking trails in the border towns of Cheorwon and Paju, a military official said Wednesday, following the launch of the DMZ tour program in the eastern coastal section last month.  (Yonhap)The towns, in Gangwon and Gyeonggi provinces, respectively, are two of the three "DMZ Peace Trail" sites proposed by the South Korean government under its plan to open the DMZ to the public f

May 8, 2019

Unification Church says its leader ready to visit N. Korea next year

The Unification Church said Wednesday that its leader is preparing to visit North Korea next year, although it was cautious over the issue amid recently heightened geopolitical tensions in the region."Ms. Han Hak-ja is ready to go to Pyongyang next year," Ahn Ho-yeol, spokesperson of the religious group, said in a press meeting in Seoul. "She already received a letter of invitation from North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on Jan. 1."Han, wife of founder Moon Sun-myung, who died in 2012, now heads th

May 8, 2019

US nuke envoy heads to Seoul to discuss NK projectiles, food aid

US special representative for North Korea Stephen Biegun was set to arrive in Seoul on Wednesday evening to discuss Pyongyang’s recent firing of short-range projectiles and possibly food aid to the North.During his four-day visit, Biegun is expected to meet with his South Korean counterpart Lee Do-hoon, special representative for Korean Peninsula peace and security affairs at the Foreign Ministry, and attend a joint working group session on denuclearization and inter-Korean relations, where food

May 8, 2019

Unification minister travels to N. Korea to visit inter-Korean liaison office

Unification Minister Kim Yeon-chul crossed the inter-Korean border Wednesday to visit a joint liaison office in North Korea's border town of Kaesong in his first trip to the communist state since taking office last month.Kim plans to meet South Korean officials stationed there and check progress in their work before returning to Seoul in the afternoon."This visit is aimed at encouraging our staff working at the liaison office as it has been playing an important role in inter-Korean relations," a

May 8, 2019

Trump backs S. Korea's food aid for NK: Cheong Wa Dae

 US President Donald Trump expressed support Tuesday for South Korea's possible humanitarian food assistance for North Korea in phone talks with President Moon Jae-in, Cheong Wa Dae said. During the 35-minute conversation, Moon briefed Trump on his government's position on North Korea's launch of "short-range projectiles," including a tactical guided weapon, over the weekend.(Yonhap)And they discussed ways to keep Pyongyang on the dialogue track despite the firing, the presidential office added.

May 8, 2019

N. Korea calls self-reliance 'treasure sword' for survival and prosperity

North Korea's state media highlighted the importance of "self-reliance" on Tuesday, calling it a "treasure sword" for the communist state's survival and prosperity.North Korea has recently intensified calls for independence from outside help in building a strong economy amid little sign that global sanctions will be eased anytime soon after the breakdown of leader Kim Jong-un's summit in February with US President Donald Trump. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un (Yonhap)"The people in the DPRK rega

May 7, 2019

Moon, Trump to hold phone conversation

President Moon Jae-in and US President Donald Trump will hold a telephone conversation to discuss issues surrounding the Korean Peninsula, Cheong Wa Dae announced Tuesday.  Cheong Wa Dae spokesperson Ko Ming-jung announces the plans for President Moon Jae-in and US President Donald Trump`s telephone conversation on Tuesday. Yonhap“(Moon and Trump) will exchange views on matters related to the Korean Peninsula, and discuss ways to make progress in the current situation,” Cheong Wa Dae spokesperso

May 7, 2019

Moon, Trump to discuss N. Korea in phone talks: Cheong Wa Dae

South Korean President Moon Jae-in will have phone talks with US President Donald Trump on North Korea later Tuesday, Moon's office announced, days after Pyongyang's firing of several "projectiles" into the East Sea.In the phone conversation slated for Tuesday night (Seoul time), the leaders plan to "exchange opinions on the Korean Peninsula security conditions" following their White House summit on April 11 and discuss ways to move the denuclearization process forward, according to Cheong Wa Da

May 7, 2019

Trump says he spoke to Abe about N. Korea

US President Donald Trump said Monday that he had a "very good conversation" with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe about North Korea and trade.The phone call happened days after North Korea fired multiple short-range projectiles into the East Sea in apparent frustration over stalled nuclear negotiations with the United States."Just spoke to Prime Minister Abe of Japan concerning North Korea and Trade. Very good conversation!" Trump tweeted.(AP-Yonhap)Hours later, the White House released a sta

May 7, 2019