Govt. to cut NK defector questioning period in half to 90 days

The Cabinet plans to approve a measure Tuesday that calls for shortening the period of interrogation North Korean defectors go through after arriving in South Korea from up to 180 days to 90 days.Upon arrival in the South, defectors from the communist nation are put under custody for questioning by intelligence and other agencies to determine whether they are truly from the North and to find out more about their background and motivations for defecting.Critics have said the period of questioning

Feb. 13, 2018

Tillerson: Up to N. Korea to choose talks with US

WASHINGTON -- US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on Monday left open the door to dialogue with North Korea, saying it will be up to Pyongyang to decide when they are ready.Tillerson was speaking at a press conference with his Egyptian counterpart in Cairo, where he was asked whether he sees the start of a diplomatic process with North Korea.Over the weekend, US Vice President Mike Pence told The Washington Post the US would be willing to talk with North Korea while continuing to put pressure on

Feb. 13, 2018

[Breaking] Kim Jong-un vows to continue reconciliation between Koreas

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un pledged efforts to continue the reconciliatory mood with South Korea as he welcomed back a high-ranking North Korean delegation from their trip to the PyeongChang Winter Olympics in South Korea, the North's state-run news agency said Tuesday."It is important to continue making good results by further livening up the warm climate of reconciliation and dialogue created by the strong desire and common will of the North and the South with the Winter Olympics as a mome

Feb. 13, 2018

Mattis: Too early to judge inter-Korean talks

US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis expressed reservations about recent talks between South and North Korea, saying it’s “too early” to say whether the talks are a positive sign from Pyongyang.Mattis was speaking to reporters Sunday on the first leg of his European trip in the wake of a flurry of rare inter-Korean diplomacy surrounding the Winter Olympics in PyeongChang, South Korea. (AP-Yonhap)North Korean leader Kim Jong-un sent a high-level delegation led by his younger sister, Yo-jong, to Friday

Feb. 13, 2018

[PyeongChang 2018] Olympics chief to visit North Korea

PYEONGCHANG, Gangwon Province -- Olympics chief Thomas Bach on Monday dismissed concerns that North Korea has tried to “hijack” the Winter Games for political purposes, as officials revealed he will visit the isolated country after the tournament in South Korea.Bach said he regarded North Korea’s participation purely in sporting terms despite the rapid round of diplomacy between the two Koreas during the opening days of the Games.“This is about sport and this the IOC made very clear,” Bach told

Feb. 12, 2018

[Herald Interview] NK defector harbors hopes of returning to North under Moon administration

A North Korean defector, who has long demanded the South Korean government allow her to return to the North, said her hopes are up that she may be able to go back under the liberal Moon Jae-in administration.Kim Ryen-hui caught the South Korean public by surprise Monday morning when ran toward a bus parked at Dorasan Customs, Immigration and Quarantine Office that was to carry a North Korean art troupe back North after two performances to mark the PyeongChang Olympics.  Kim Ryen-hui (Yonhap)Wavi

Feb. 12, 2018

S. Korea could send special envoy to NK

With the visit by the North Korean high-level delegation having set the stage for the first inter-Korea summit in more than a decade, experts say dispatching a special envoy to Pyongyang will be a key step in building the “right climate” for the meeting. Kim Yo-jong, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s sister who identified herself as a special envoy to the South, personally delivered her brother’s invitation to Pyongyang to South Korean President Moon Jae-in. She told Moon that they would like to

Feb. 12, 2018

Most N. Koreans think unification is necessary: US study

WASHINGTON -- Most North Koreans think reunification with South Korea is necessary, with many of them citing shared ethnicity as the main reason, according to a recent US study.Beyond Parallel, a project of the Center for Strategic and International Studies think tank, interviewed 36 North Koreans living in the communist state during an undefined period after 2016.It found that 34 of the respondents, or 94 percent, thought unification was necessary because the two Koreas share a common ethnicity

Feb. 12, 2018

Pence says he and his 'friend' Moon reaffirmed commitment against NK nukes

US Vice President Mike Pence said he and his "friend," South Korean President Moon Jae-in, reaffirmed their commitment to denuclearizing North Korea.Pence met with Moon in South Korea last week when he led the US delegation to the opening ceremony of the PyeongChang Winter Olympics."Honored to watch talented American & Korean athletes face off side-by-side with my friend, President Moon," the vice president tweeted shortly after leaving the country Saturday. "He & I both reaffirmed our commitmen

Feb. 12, 2018

N. Korea says high-level visit to S. Korea was meaningful

North Korean state media said Monday that its high-level delegation returned from a trip to South Korea that was “meaningful” in improving inter-Korean relations.The North Korean delegation led by its ceremonial head of state Kim Yong-nam arrived in Pyongyang late Sunday night after a three-day visit to the South to attend the opening of the PyeongChang Winter Olympics. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s sister Kim Yo-jong delivered to President Moon Jae-in her brother’s letter and invitation to

Feb. 12, 2018

NK official says 2 taekwondo bodies should host joint competition under unified rules

Two international organizations for the Korean martial art of taekwondo should co-host competitions under one set of rules, the leader of the North Korean body said Sunday.Ri Yong-son, head of the International Taekwondo Federation, made the proposal during his meeting with World Taekwondo President Choue Chung-won at the WT's headquarters in Seoul, local officials confirmed.Ri is visiting South Korea for a series of performances to be given jointly by ITF and WT taekwondo practitioners during t

Feb. 11, 2018

NK leader's sister wraps up whirlwind Olympics tour

North Korea’s high-level delegation, including the sister of the North Korean leader, wrapped-up its three-day trip in South Korea on Sunday, after extending an invitation to President Moon Jae-in for a summit in Pyongyang.President Moon Jae-in (second from right) talks with Kim Yo-jong, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un‘s sister, during a performance by North Korea’s Samjiyon art troupe at the National Theater of Korea in central Seoul on Sunday. (Yonhap)　The 22-member delegation led by the count

Feb. 11, 2018

Seoul City provides W1b for inter-Korean Olympic events

As the two Koreas have agreed to hold an array of joint events for the PyeongChang Winter Olympics, the Seoul city government has provided a total of 1.2 billion won ($1.1 million) to finance such projects. North Korea`s Samjiyon art troupe performs the Gangneung Arts Center in Gangneung on Thursday. (Yonhap)The cost will be covered with the city’s inter-Korean cooperation fund, which was established in 2004, under the liberal Roh Moo-hyun administration, said the city government on Sunday. The

Feb. 11, 2018

[PyeongChang 2018] Moon, NK leader's sister to jointly attend NK art troupe's performance

President Moon Jae-in and the sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un will jointly attend a North Korean art troupe's concert in Seoul, officials said Sunday.Attending the performance Sunday evening will mark the fourth time Moon and Kim Yo-jong have met since they greeted each other during the opening ceremony of the PyeongChang Winter Olympics on Friday. Other members of the North's high-level delegation will be present for the concert, including the North's ceremonial head of state, Kim Yon

Feb. 11, 2018

Can allies present united front to NK’s proposal of inter-Korea talk?

With North Korea’s leader Kim Jong-un having invited President Moon Jae-in to Pyongyang for a summit, the focus is now on how South Korea can coordinate with the United States to leverage the initiative as an opportunity for denuclearization talks.  　The allies appeared to agree that North Korea should make progress on denuclearization before a summit can be held. Moon said he would accept the summit meeting under the right conditions, suggesting Pyongyang should do more to open direct US-North

Feb. 11, 2018

NK media carries detailed report about meeting between Moon, NK delegation

North Korea's state media reported in detail Sunday on a meeting between the country's high-level delegation and South Korean President Moon Jae-in, saying the two sides had "a frank and candid talk about improving inter-Korean relations in "a sincere and cordial atmosphere."The meeting took place on Saturday as the North's delegation, including Kim Yo-jong, sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, and Kim Yong-nam, the country's ceremonial head of state, paid a visit to Moon at the presidenti

Feb. 11, 2018

[PyeongChang 2018] Locals infuriated over NK cheerleaders wearing ‘Kim Il-sung masks’

Members of the public have voiced outrage after seeing North Korean cheerleaders don masks appearing to resemble the North regime founder Kim Il-sung at the women’s joint hockey team’s first game against Switzerland on Saturday.Korea’s joint hockey team suffered a tough defeat against No. 6-ranked Switzerland 8-0 at Kwandong Hockey Center in Gangneung, Gangwon Province. South and North Korea are ranked Nos. 22 and 25, respectively. They were given special permission by the International Olympic

Feb. 11, 2018

FM: S. Korea to work on helping inter-Korean dialogue lead to US-NK talks

South Korea plans to make diplomatic efforts to ensure the dialogue between the two Koreas leads to talks between the United States and North Korea and other forms of dialogue aimed at denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula, Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha said.Kang made the remark during a dinner meeting Saturday with French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian while explaining the consistent efforts South Korea is making to resolve the North Korean nuclear issue and promote peace on the peninsula,

Feb. 11, 2018

PM calls for Koreas to work together to create right conditions for inter-Korean summit

Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon said Sunday that South and North Korea should work actively together to create the right conditions for a meeting between President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.Lee made the remark during lunch with a high-level North Korean delegation, including the North Korean leader's sister and special envoy, Kim Yo-jong, and the country's ceremonial head of state, Kim Yong-nam. He was referring to the North Korean leader's invitation for Moon to visit the North

Feb. 11, 2018

Kim Yo-jong wishes for closer ties with S. Korea in guest book memo

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's sister expressed a wish for closer inter-Korean relations in her writing in the visitor's book at South Korea's presidential office prior to her meeting with President Moon Jae-in there on Saturday.   Kim Yo-jong visited the office, Cheong Wa Dae, in Seoul in her capacity as a special envoy of North Korea's leader, along with the North's ceremonial head of state Kim Yong-nam.Kim Yo-jong at Cheong Wa Dae on Saturday (Yonhap)   "I expect Pyongyang and Seoul to get

Feb. 10, 2018