Moon sought to deliver North Korea’s stance in US

President Moon Jae-in on Thursday wrapped up his three-day trip to the United States with an aim at reviving momentum for the deadlocked denuclearization talks between the US and North Korea.  Including his meeting with US President Donald Trump, Moon’s public engagements were mostly devoted to convincing skeptics in Washington who doubt North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s willingness to abandon his nuclear program and open up the economy. Having met Kim three times since taking office last year,

Sept. 27, 2018

Koreas in talks over joint event to mark 2007 summit

The two Koreas are in talks over holding a joint celebration of the 11th anniversary of the 2007 summit next week in Pyongyang, a unification ministry official said Thursday.South Korean President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un agreed in Pyongyang last week to hold "meaningful events" to mark the summit declaration adopted on Oct. 4, 2007. "(The two Koreas) shared a view during last week's summit to hold a ceremony in Pyongyang to celebrate the October 4 Declaration," the minist

Sept. 27, 2018

S. Korean president urges UN not to leave N. Korea behind

NEW YORK -- North Korea is sincerely moving down the path of complete denuclearization and its acceptance and inclusion by the international community will help further accelerate the process, South Korean President Moon Jae-in said Wednesday."North Korea on April 20 officially terminated its nuclear development policy, and has been focusing all its efforts on economic development," Moon said in his address to the United Nations General Assembly in New York."North Korea has come out of its long

Sept. 27, 2018

Trump shows 'extraordinary' letter from NK leader

WASHINGTON -- US President Donald Trump on Wednesday showed a letter from North Korean leader Kim Jong-un ahead of a second summit that he said would happen "fairly quickly."Trump took out the folded piece of paper from inside his jacket as he sat down for a bilateral meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York."I just showed a letter that I received just yesterday from Chairman Kim, which is an extraordinary letter," Trump

Sept. 27, 2018

Trump sees no need to fix timeline for NK denuclearization

WASHINGTON -- US President Donald Trump said Wednesday he sees no need to set a timeline for North Korea's denuclearization as long as the regime has stopped its nuclear testing.Speaking in a press conference in New York, Trump said he doesn't want to be drawn into a "time game" over how long it will take to dismantle the North's nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs."If it takes two years, three years or five months, doesn't matter. There's no nuclear testing, and there's no testing of

Sept. 27, 2018

Pompeo to visit N. Korea in Oct., set up 2nd summit

WASHINGTON -- US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will travel to North Korea next month to set up a second summit between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, the State Department said Wednesday.The trip was announced after a meeting between Pompeo and North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho in New York earlier in the day."Secretary Pompeo accepted Chairman Kim's invitation to travel to Pyongyang next month to make further progress on the implementation of the commitment

Sept. 27, 2018

US, NK gear up for second summit

　With US President Donald Trump officially announcing his plans to hold a second meeting with North Korea’s leader Kim Jong-un, the question now is whether the news will revive the momentum for the stalled denuclearization talks.  　During his meeting with South Korean President Moon Jae-in on Monday, Trump said he will meet with Kim “in the not too distant future.” A day later, Moon told Fox News that the Trump-Kim summit could take place before the end of this year. 　Preparations are underway b

Sept. 26, 2018

N. Korean media call for Japan's apology, compensation for past wrongdoings

North Korean media on Wednesday renewed calls for Japan's apology and compensation for the island country's colonial-era misdeeds.The Rodong Sinmun, the newspaper of the North's ruling Workers' Party, made the calls amid growing talk of a possible summit between Pyongyang and Tokyo aimed at improving bilateral relations."Our people have not forgotten the past sin committed by Japan even for a moment," the newspaper said."Without repentance, apology and compensation for the past sin, (Japan) will

Sept. 26, 2018

Moon stresses need for formal end to war, economic cooperation with NK

NEW YORK -- Declaring a formal end to the Korean War will encourage North Korea to move further down the path toward complete denuclearization, while economic cooperation with the North will keep the communist state from turning back, South Korean President Moon Jae-in said Tuesday.Speaking before a group of some 200 UN opinion leaders, the South Korean leader insisted that formally ending the 1950-53 war will not affect the South Korea-US alliance."The strongest foundation for peace on the Kore

Sept. 26, 2018

Trump touts 'bold, new push for peace' with N. Korea

WASHINGTON -- US President Donald Trump on Tuesday touted his administration's efforts to achieve peace through negotiations to dismantle North Korea's nuclear weapons program.Speaking to the United Nations General Assembly in New York, Trump said his Singapore summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in June was "highly productive."The two leaders agreed that it was in both countries' interest to pursue denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, he said."With support from many countries here

Sept. 26, 2018

Opinions on human rights ‘significantly different’ among South Koreans and NK defectors: study

Almost 75 percent of North Korean defectors currently living in South Korea were unaware of the existence of the term “human rights” while living in the communist state, and they have significantly different views from South Koreans when it comes to a number of social issues such as conscientious objection, a study showed. 　“Our study suggests that many North Korean defectors are either unaware of their rights or reluctant to exercise them, especially when the violation of one’s rights is a resu

Sept. 25, 2018

US, NK head toward discussions on nuclear inspections

With the leaders of US and North Korea expected to meet soon for a second summit, the two countries are set to restart negotiations on nuclear inspections.　US President Donald Trump said Monday that the venue of his second summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un would be announced in “a pretty short period of time.”　Trump made the comments after talks with President Moon Jae-in in New York, during which Moon conveyed Kim’s proposals to Trump including the date and location for a second summi

Sept. 25, 2018

Moon, Trump discuss 'corresponding measures' for NK denucelarization

NEW YORK (Yonhap) -- South Korean President Moon Jae-in and US President Donald Trump on Monday discussed possible ways to reward North Korea for its denuclearization measures that will apparently include a second US-North Korea summit."The leaders agreed to continue communicating closely about corresponding measures," said Kim Eui-kyeom, a spokesman for South Korea's presidential office Cheong Wa Dae.US President Donald Trump speaks to the news media during a bilateral meeting with South Korean

Sept. 25, 2018

Leaders of S. Korea, US welcome revision to bilateral FTA

NEW YORK (Yonhap) -- South Korean President Moon Jae-in and US President Donald Trump welcomed the conclusion of negotiations to amend the countries' bilateral free trade agreement (FTA) on Monday, vowing efforts to implement it swiftly. South Korean President Moon Jae-in (left) and US President Donald Trump gesture after signing a revised Korea-US FTA in New York on Monday. (Yonhap)"We, the Presidents of the Republic of Korea and the United States of America, hereby reaffirm our close alliance

Sept. 25, 2018

Unification minister vows support for separated families

South Korea’s unification minister said Monday the government will beef up efforts to reconnect families separated for decades since Korean War in various ways in the follow-up negotiations with North Korea. Cho Myung-gyon was speaking to a group of divided families who jointly celebrated the Chuseok holiday at Imjingak park in Paju, just south of the demilitarized zone separating two Koreas.  (Yonhap)“For both South and North Korea, the problem of divided families is an urgent task that can’t b

Sept. 24, 2018

[Photo News] Kim Jong-un and his ‘finger heart’

THE SHAPE OF HIS HEART -- North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and his wife Ri Sol-ju, along with South Korean officials, pose for cameras with the so-called “finger heart” gesture against the backdrop of Cheonji Lake on top of Mount Paekdu on Sept. 20. The related photos, describing the last day of the inter-Korean summit in Pyongyang last week, were released by Seoul’s presidential office Cheong Wa Dae on Sunday. (Cheong Wa Dae)

Sept. 23, 2018

Kim Jong-un to visit Seoul in December: CJ chairman

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un plans to visit Seoul in December, the chief of South Korean conglomerate CJ Group has said.Sohn Kyung-shik was a member of the South Korean delegation that accompanied President Moon Jae-in this week for his three-day trip to North Korea. He joined the delegation as the head of the Korea Employers Federation, a major business lobby.During a joint press conference after the third summit, Kim said he made a promise to visit Seoul "in the near future." Moon later add

Sept. 22, 2018

Trump says he received 'beautiful letter' from NK leader

United States President Donald Trump said he received "a beautiful letter" from North Korean leader Kim Jong-un this week, stressing "very good" relations between the two sides.  In his speech in Missouri at a campaign rally on Friday (US time), Trump said, "Chairman Kim Jong-un sent me a beautiful letter two days ago," though he did not elaborate on details.The remarks came less than two weeks after the White House said Trump received a written message from Kim, in which the North Korean leader

Sept. 22, 2018

Trump says he won't rush into any deal with N. Korea

United States President Donald Trump has said he will not be hasty in making any deals with North Korea, stressing "very good" relations with the communist country's leader.In his speech in Missouri at a campaign rally on Friday (US time), Trump said, "Chairman Kim Jong-un sent me a beautiful letter two days ago," though he did not elaborate on details.Pointing to the release of Americans who had been detained in the North and the return of remains of American soldiers who went missing during th

Sept. 22, 2018

N. Korea again designated as a food-deficit country

A United Nations agency has listed North Korea as a food-deficit country in need of external assistance, a US broadcaster reported Saturday.In its latest report, the Food and Agriculture Organization put the communist country on a list of 39 countries that need external food assistance, calling for 641,000 tons of crops to be imported to sustain the people, according to the Radio Free Asia. Farmers plant rice on a paddy in South Hwanghae Province in North Korea on May 22, 2018. (Yonhap)This year

Sept. 22, 2018