US pressuring S. Korea, other allies to vote against ban on nuclear weapons: report

The United States is campaigning hard against a proposed UN General Assembly resolution banning nuclear weapons, pressuring treaty allies like South Korea, Japan and NATO members to vote against the resolution, a new report said.The resolution, led by Austria, Brazil, Mexico and South Africa, calls for the formal launch of negotiations on a nuclear ban in 2017. The UN General Assembly is expected to vote on the resolution as early as next week and proponents expect it to pass easily, according t

Oct. 24, 2016

Korea ranks 24th in UN procurement market: report

South Korea provided the United Nations with $192.85 million worth of goods and services in 2015, accounting for only around 1 percent of the global body's total procurement of the year, an official report showed Sunday.The figure marks an 8.9 percent increase from the volume of the UN's procurement from South Korea, according to an annual statistical report by the UN Office for Project Services.But South Korea ranked the world's 24th in the field, which is relatively low for its economic size.

Oct. 23, 2016

Park expresses deep condolences over death of Thai king

South Korean President Park Geun-hye on Friday expressed her "deep" condolences to Thailand over the death of King Bhumibol Adulyadej, saying his leadership for the Southeast Asian country's harmony will always be remembered. The king, the world's longest-reigning monarch, died peacefully at a hospital in the Thai capital of Bangkok on Thursday, according to a statement from the country's royal household bureau. He was 88. Since he took the throne in 1946 at age 18, he had been revered as a rare

Oct. 14, 2016

Trump accuses Korea of 'laughing' at US over free trade deal

US Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has accused South Korea of "laughing at how stupid we are," as he renewed the wrong-headed claims that the free trade pact with the Asian ally ended up hurting the USTrump has long blamed free trade deals as a key cause of American economic problems in an attempt to rally support from voters struggling with economic woes and criticize his Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton, for backing such agreements. He has denounced the pact with Korea as a "jo

Oct. 7, 2016

US does not oppose Asian allies to build better ties with China:

The United States does not oppose the Philippines seeking better relations with China just as it encouraged other Asian allies South Korea and Japan to improve their ties with Beijing, the White House said Monday.White House press secretary Josh Earnest was reacting to comments reportedly made by Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, who is known for his combative rhetoric against the US, that he is willing to build closer relations with China and Russia."I've been asked this question both in th

Oct. 4, 2016

German city cancels setup of comfort women statue under Japanese pressure

The agreed setup of a girl statue, symbolizing victims of sex slavery for Japanese soldiers during World War II, in a German city has been virtually scuttled because of apparent strong obstruction and pressure by Japan, a civic organization leader said Wednesday. In a July letter sent to Suwon Mayor Yeom Tae-young, Mayor Dietor Salomon of Freiburg, Germany, notified that his city had accepted Yeom's earlier proposal to build the statue in the German city. Following that, 75 public and civic orga

Sept. 21, 2016

Korea pledges to contribute $230 mln to global support for refugees

South Korea has promised to contribute $230 million for global efforts over the next three years to join global humanitarian support for refugees, the foreign ministry said Wednesday.The contribution plan was unveiled Tuesday (local time) by Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se, who is in New York to attend the UN General Assembly, according to the ministry.In a summit hosted by US President Barack Obama to discuss ways to help refugees, Yun delivered a speech in which Seoul's three-year support plan w

Sept. 21, 2016

UN Security Council adopts statement condemning NK missile launches

The UN Security Council on Tuesday strongly condemned North Korea's latest ballistic missile tests as a "grave violation" of UN resolutions in an unusually swift move underlining the seriousness the international community attaches to the provocations.The council adopted the press statement after holding an urgent meeting to discuss the North's launches of three medium-range Rodong ballistic missiles on Monday. The statement's adoption means that even China and Russia have agreed to condemn the

Sept. 7, 2016

Opposition to THAAD shows China's belief neighbors must give priority to Chinese interests: US expert

China's opposition to South Korea's decision to host the US THAAD missile defense system shows Beijing believes neighboring countries must put China's national interests ahead of their own, a US expert said Wednesday.Mark Tokola, vice president of the Korea Economic Institute of America in Washington, made the point in an article posted at KEI's blog website, stressing that it is North Korea's nuclear and missile development that led to the decision to place THAAD in the South."China continues t

Sept. 1, 2016

Seoul to focus on inclusiveness, innovation in achieving UN development goals

South Korea will focus on seeking inclusive growth of fragile countries and innovative partnerships with the private sector as Seoul joins the international community's implementation of the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals, a vice foreign minister said Wednesday."The ratio of people living in extreme poverty on less than $1.25 per day vis-a-vis the overall population of the globe fell from 36 percent in 1990 to 12 percent in 2015," Vice Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul said during the

Aug. 31, 2016

N. Korea's SLBM test necessitates urgent discussions during regional summit: Russel

North Korea's latest submarine missile test makes it urgent for US President Barack Obama and other East Asia leaders to discuss the threat when they hold an annual regional summit next week, the State Department's top Asia official said Tuesday.Assistant Secretary of State Daniel Russel made the remark during a Foreign Press Center briefing to preview Obama's upcoming trip to China for a summit of the Group of 20 nations and then to Laos for a series of regional summits, including the East Asia

Aug. 31, 2016

Ikea threatens to cut investments in Russia after losing court battle

MOSCOW, (AFP) -- Swedish flatpack giant IKEA on Tuesday warned it could reduce its investment in Russia after a court ordered it to pay more than $7.8 million in damages in a long-running legal dispute.IKEA said it had plans to invest more than 100 bllion rubles ($1.54  billion) in Russia but "recent activities aimed at the IKEA Group related to old legal cases could slow down these investment plans."It issued the statement after a court in the western Russian city of Smolensk ordered IKEA to pa

Aug. 30, 2016