Park returns home from U.N. trip

President Park Geun-hye returned home Wednesday after a high-profile trip to New York for the U.N. General Assembly.The trip culminated in a series of addresses to the U.N. where Park urged North Korea not to go ahead with a long-range rocket launch.North Korea has defied international pressure and renewed its resolve to carry out a launch to put a satellite into orbit, calling it an exercise of its sovereign right.There is speculation that North Korea could launch a long-range rocket in October

Sept. 30, 2015

Full text of speech at U.N. General Assembly

The following is the full text of President Park Geun-hye's speech delivered on Monday at the 70th Session of the General Assembly of the United Nations.Mr. President, Mr. Secretary-General, Fellow delegates,I would like to first extend my congratulations on the 70th anniversary of the foundation of the United Nations. I would also like to congratulate you, Mr. Lykketoft, former Speaker of the Danish Parliament, on your election as President of the 70th Session of the UN General Assembly. The Un

Sept. 29, 2015

S. Korean parliamentary speaker heads to Russia, Finland

The head of South Korea's National Assembly embarked on a trip to Russia and Finland on Tuesday in an effort to enhance relations with the countries, his office said.Chung Ui-hwa will attend a reception commemorating the 25th anniversary of South Korea-Russia diplomatic relations in Moscow on Wednesday and meet with Russia's parliamentary leaders, Sergey Yevgenyevich Naryshkin and Valentina Matviyenko.Later, he is scheduled to give a speech at the Moscow State Institute of International Relation

Sept. 29, 2015

Trump vows to renegotiate military cost for U.S. troops in S. Korea

U.S. Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump said Monday that if elected president, he would try to have wealthy countries like South Korea, Germany and Saudi Arabia shoulder more of the cost for the upkeep of American troops stationed in those countries.It was the latest in a series of remarks the billionaire real estate mogul has made to accuse South Korea and other nations of relying on the U.S. for their national defense while giving the U.S. nothing in return even as they make a l

Sept. 29, 2015

Park to leave for New York for U.N. General Assembly and summits

President Park Geun-hye is set to leave for New York Friday for talks with world leaders on sustainable development, climate change and other challenges facing the world.  Park is set to address the U.N. summit for sustainable development on Saturday, a day after she arrives in New York, according to Cheong Wa Dae, South Korea's presidential office.  The summit is designed to adopt the post-2015 development agenda, a follow-up to the Millennium Development Goals meant to eradicate extreme povert

Sept. 24, 2015

China's Xi expresses firm commitment to nuclear-free Korean Peninsula

Chinese President Xi Jinping expressed a firm commitment to a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula and pledged to work closely with the United States to achieve the goal through peaceful means, according to an interview published Tuesday.  "China's position for denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula is firm and clear-cut. At the same time, we believe that the denuclearization, peace and stability of the Korean Peninsula should be achieved through peaceful means," Xi said in an interview with the Wall

Sept. 23, 2015

S. Korea says Ugandan minister covered by insurance before death

A Ugandan minister who died on his way home from an official visit to South Korea was covered by health insurance during his stay here, officials said Tuesday, refuting claims he could not receive proper medical attention.  Gen. Aronda Nyakairima, Uganda's interior minister and former army chief of staff, died Sept. 12 on a plane from South Korea to Dubai en route to Uganda. He was 56.  The minister visited South Korea from Sept. 8-11 at the invitation of the Korea Foundation. Following a postmo

Sept. 22, 2015

German president to visit S. Korea next month

German President Joachim Gauck plans to make a four-day trip to Seoul next month for talks with President Park Geun-hye, Cheong Wa Dae said Monday.  Park is set to meet with Gauck on Oct. 12 to discuss how to boost cooperation in a wide-range of issues, including trade, South Korea's presidential office said.  In 2014, Park met with Gauck during her state visit to Germany.  Trade volume between South Korea and Germany stood at $289 billion in 2014. (Yonhap)

Sept. 21, 2015

S. Korea, U.S., Japan to meet over Japan's security legislation

South Korea, the United States and Japan are pushing to convene their Defense Trilateral Talks next month to discuss follow-up steps for Japan's recent security enactment, a government source said.   Japan passed a package of security bills through the upper chamber on Saturday, which allows the country's armed forces to engage in overseas combat, even when the country is not under attack, removing limits on the military put in place after the end of World War II.  The three countries "are pushi

Sept. 21, 2015

Park vows to show S. Korea's contributions to global issues

President Park Geun-hye pledged Monday to demonstrate South Korea's commitment to contributing to global issues as she prepares to visit New York later this week for the U.N. General Assembly.  Park is also set to attend the U.N. summit for sustainable development that will adopt the post-2015 development agenda, which serves as a guideline for sustainable development over the next 15 years.  The new agenda is a follow-up to the Millennium Development Goals designed to eradicate extreme poverty,

Sept. 21, 2015

S. Korea urges transparency in Japan’s defense policy

South Korea reminded Japan on Saturday of the need for “peace spirit” and transparency in implementing its new defense policy supported by the passage of controversial security bills by its parliament.“In deciding and implementing defense and security policy down the road, Japan will have do so with transparency and in the direction of contributing to regional peace and stability, while maintaining the spirit of the pacifist constitution,” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.It was respondi

Sept. 19, 2015

U.S. lawmaker issues statement welcoming Park, her peace visions

A U.S. congressman has issued a congressional statement welcoming South Korean President Park Geun-hye's planned visit to Washington and expressing support for her visions for peace on the Korean Peninsula and in Northeast Asia.   Rep. Tom Reed (R-NY), whose father fought in the 1950-53 Korean War, said South Korea is one of "America's greatest foreign policy success stories," as well as an "indispensable ally" and the "linchpin of regional peace and stability."   "Korean President Park Geun-hye

Sept. 18, 2015

S. Korea to offer $500,000 in additional Yemen aid

South Korea will provide Yemen with $500,000 in additional assistance as it suffers a deepening humanitarian crisis caused by a drawn-out civil war, the Foreign Ministry said Friday.The aid will be delivered through the United Nation's World Food Programme. In April, South Korea also offered $500,000 to help the Yemeni people.About 80 percent of the 2.5 million people in the Arab country are in need of aid, according to the U.N., due to months of internal fighting and a blockade by a Saudi-led c

Sept. 11, 2015

S. Korea, Australia united against N. Korea's provocation

In high-level security talks, South Korea and Australia reaffirmed their unity Friday in pressing North Korea to halt provocative acts and return to the nuclear negotiations.Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se and Defense Minister Han Min-koo had a 2+2 meeting with their Australian counterparts Julie Bishop and Kevin Andrews in Sydney."The ministers strongly deplored North Korea's nuclear and ballistic missile programs, which threaten peace and security of the region and undermine the global non-proli

Sept. 11, 2015

S. Korea, Vietnam to deepen partnerships on PKO

South Korea and Vietnam agreed Friday to reinforce bilateral cooperation on international peacekeeping operations, capitalizing on their deepening security ties, the Defense Ministry said Friday.The two sides signed a related memorandum of understanding at a meeting between Vice Defense Minister Baek Seung-joo and his Vietnamese counterpart Nguyen Chi Vinh.It calls for the strengthening of "substantial cooperation' in the education, workshop, and dispatch of experts in connection with PKO, accor

Sept. 11, 2015

U.S. unlikely to allow S. Korea to use pyroprocessing after 2021: ex-Obama adviser

The United States is unlikely to allow South Korea to use the "pyroprocessing" technology to recycle spent nuclear fuel even after a joint study is completed in2021 because the technology will make no economic sense at all for decades, a U.S. expert said Thursday.Pyroprocessing refers to a new type of technology for reprocessing spent nuclear fuel. It poses fewer proliferation risks than the conventional reprocessing technology because it does not involve producing pure plutonium that can be use

Sept. 11, 2015

Absence of viable security frame necessitates military alliances in NE Asia: U.S. official

The absence of a viable security system among Northeast Asian countries necessitates the military alliances the United States maintains in the region, a former U.S. official said Thursday."From the organization perspective, we see that (security) architecture in Northeast Asia has historically been woefully underdeveloped ... we also had limited security cooperation in multilateral context," David Helvey, a former U.S. deputy assistant secretary of defense for East Asia, said during the three-da

Sept. 10, 2015

Collective action needed to handle evolving trans-national threats: UN official

Collective global action is needed to fight the latest trans-national types of conflicts, including those caused by North Korea's proliferation of nuclear weapons, a U.N. official said Thursday."When it comes to trans-national threats, it would be illusory to believe that weakened states ... even strong states would be able to deal with transnational threats alone," Edmond Mulet, assistant secretary general for peacekeeping operations, said during the Seoul Defense Dialogue in central Seoul.Seou

Sept. 10, 2015

Park calls for int'l cooperation on logistics network across Eurasia

President Park Geun-hye called Thursday for cooperation among the United States, China and Russia in building a logistics network across Eurasian countries, an ambitious project that could further boost trade in the region.South Korea is pushing for the "Eurasia Initiative" to bind Eurasian nations closely together by linking roads and railways that run from South Korea to Europe via North Korea, Russia and China.China is also seeking to build an overland and a maritime logistics network linked

Sept. 10, 2015