Japan faces demand to shed more light on dark history about Hashima Island

Japan is facing growing demand that it make more efforts to shed light on its dark history related to an island where many Korean workers were forced into labor during World War II.Hashima Island, located off the Japanese city of Nagasaki's coast, was added to the UNESCO World Heritage list in July 2015 for industrial sites used decades ago.South Korea voiced protest against the move as its people were forced onto the uninhabited island in the 1940s to work in coal mines there. UNESCO recommende

July 4, 2016

No Korean casualty confirmed in Bangladesh attack: ministry

No South Korean casualties have been confirmed in the terrorist attack in Bangladesh, South Korea's foreign ministry said Saturday, adding no South Koreans in the southeast Asian country have been reported missing.Ministry officials said the local government has not yet released the names or nationalities of victims in the terrorist attack.Still, South Korean diplomats in Bangladesh were keeping a close watch on the situation, they added.More than 20 people, including two police officers, are be

July 3, 2016

Young, promising Argentine policymaker proud of his Korean roots

For Antonio Kyore Beun, a 29-year-old assistant vice culture minister of Argentina, the fact that he is a son of immigrants from South Korea has not been a handicap at all but something that always helps him do his job.South Korea's impressive economic advance is surely a reason for people to have favorable views of anything related to the country but among other things, its popular music, dramas and movies are a yet another major factor behind less prejudice and more friendliness that he comes

July 1, 2016

Biden says Japan can go nuclear 'virtually overnight'

Japan is capable of going nuclear "virtually overnight," U.S. Vice President Joe Biden said, as he spoke about a conversation he had with Chinese President Xi Jinping in which he urged Beijing to do more to rein in North Korea.In an interview with PBS aired Monday night, Biden said that China has "the single greatest ability to influence North Korea by cutting off A, B, C, D, a whole range of things, but it also could cause the implosion of North Korea.""When I tell President Xi, you have to und

June 22, 2016

Korean students set to embark on bicycle tour cross U.S. to raise awareness of 'comfort women'

Three South Korean college students have arrived in Los Angeles on a mission to travel 6,000 kilometers across the United States by bicycle in an effort to raise awareness of Japan's wartime sexual slavery.The students -- Kim Hyun-koo, 25, of Hansung University and Kim Han-kyun, 25, and Kim Tae-woo, 24, of Kyung Hee University -- flew in to the Los Angeles airport Sunday evening, and plan to embark on the journey on Saturday.They plan to reach Chicago on Aug. 7, Washington on Aug. 22 and New Yor

June 21, 2016

Korea, China 'in principle' agree on visa exemption for school trips

South Korea and China have agreed "in principle" to exempt visa fees and even the entry visa itself for students on school trips as part of efforts to stimulate personnel exchanges between the two countries, Seoul's foreign ministry said Thursday.The tentative agreement was reached at a meeting between consular affairs representatives of South Korea and China in Beijing on Wednesday, according to the ministry. "In response to our proposal asking for an exemption of visa fees for young people on

June 16, 2016

Korea keeps membership in U.N. body for economic, social issues

South Korea has been elected as a member of a U.N. council in charge of overseeing economic and social issues, keeping its membership in the body for 12 consecutive years, the foreign ministry said Wednesday.According to the ministry, South Korea was chosen to keep its membership in the U.N. Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) from 2017-2019 in an election held in New York on Tuesday (local time).China, the United Arab Emirates and Tajikistan were other Asia Pacific countries elected as council

June 15, 2016

Park expresses deep condolences over Florida shooting victims

President Park Geun-hye on Tuesday expressed her "deep" condolences to the victims of the recent shooting rampage in Florida and their families, noting that acts of terrorism cannot be justified for any reason.In a letter to U.S. President Barack Obama, Park said that "South Korea will be with the U.S." in the process of overcoming the shock and sorrow caused by the deadly incident that killed at least 50 people."We pray for the souls of the victims, and extend my and our citizens' deep condolen

June 14, 2016

Chinese fishing boats leave neutral waters after Korean crackdown: military

All Chinese vessels have left neutral waters in the Han River's estuary between South and North Korea Monday, three days after the South Korean military and United Nations Command started their first joint crackdown in the buffer zone, the Joint Chiefs of Staff said.On Friday, four South Korean speed boats with military police teams were sent into the waters that flow from the Han River mouth to the Yellow Sea to drive away Chinese fishing boats that have intruded into the tensely monitored area

June 13, 2016

KOICA launches construction of post-harvest research institute in Myanmar

A major South Korean aid organization has begun constructing a research center in Myanmar dedicated to studying "post-harvest" techniques as the country is seeking to improve its relatively low productivity in the farming industry.The ground broke for the Post-Harvest Research Institute on June 6 in a small town located in Myanmar's capital city of Naypyidaw. Construction is expected to be completed within 12-14 months, according to the Korea International Cooperation Agency.The institute will b

June 13, 2016

Approximately 20 killed in Florida club shooting

ORLANDO -- A gunman wielding an assault-type rifle and a handgun took hostages and opened fire inside a crowded Florida nightclub, killing approximately 20 people dead and wounding 42 others before dying in a gunfight with SWAT officers, police said Sunday.Police Chief John Mina also said the shooter had some sort of “suspicious device.'' He said the suspect exchanged gunfire with an officer working at the club around 2 a.m., then went back inside and took hostages. Around 5 a.m., authorities se

June 12, 2016

Explosion injures four at Shanghai airport

SHANGHAI - A blast caused by "home-made" explosives injured four people and sparked a major security alert at the main international airport in China's commercial hub of Shanghai on Sunday, according to the operator and state media.The blast at Pudong Airport occurred near the check-in counter of Terminal Two in mid-afternoon, according to a statement on the official microblog of the Shanghai Airport Authority.The official Xinhua news agency, citing authorities, said a "home-made explosive" blew

June 12, 2016

Chinese fishing boats leave neutral waters after crackdown

South Korea's military police and Coast Guard are considering extending the crackdown on illegal Chinese fishing in neutral waters around the mouth of the Han River for the third consecutive day on Sunday, officials said, as additional Chinese fishing boats are exiting the sensitive area near the inter-Korean maritime border.The Coast Guard said it seized a 50-ton Chinese boat that allegedly caught 45 kilograms of crabs in waters off Yeonpyeong Island, a South Korean territory near the inter-Kor

June 12, 2016

U.S. House speaker says U.S. shouldn't let Asian alliances to 'atrophy'

U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan said Thursday that the U.S. should not allow U.S. alliances in Asia to "atrophy" and the top U.S. foreign policy priority in the region should be to counter the threat of North Korea."In East Asia, our allies are desperate for a greater American role. Our top priority must be to counter the threat of a nuclear North Korea. And we must respond strategically to expansionist China's rise, including checking its territorial ambitions," Ryan said in a foreign policy repor

June 10, 2016

Obama officially endorses Clinton for president

U.S. President Barack Obama on Thursday made official his endorsement of Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, saying she is "so qualified" to succeed him."I know how hard this job can be. That's why I know Hillary will be so good at it. In fact, I don't think there's ever been someone so qualified to hold this office," Obama said in a video message.Obama said Clinton has "the courage, the compassion and the heart to get the job done.""I'm with her, I am fired up, and I can't wait t

June 10, 2016

Korea condemns deadly terrorist attack in Kazakhstan

South Korea on Thursday condemned a recent terrorist killing in Kazakhstan and pledged to continue efforts to root out terrorism in the world.On Sunday, three civilians and three soldiers were killed in a rampage by gunmen in Kazakhstan's northwestern city of Aktobe.Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev said Wednesday the attackers were followers of pseudo-religious groups who had received instructions from abroad."Our government cannot hide our shock and concern over the loss of innocent lives

June 9, 2016

Korea funds project to construct multi-sports hall in Bhutan

South Korea has implemented a project to build a multi-sports hall in the Bhutanese capital of Thimphu as part of efforts to improve the sports infrastructure in the Himalayan kingdom and enhance friendship between the two countries, government officials said Tuesday.Officials from the state-run Korea Sports Promotion Foundation and the Bhutan Olympic Committee held a groundbreaking ceremony at Jungshina, Thimphu, on May 27 to mark the construction of the hall.Among participants to the ceremony

June 7, 2016

S. Korea, Cuba hold first foreign ministerial talks

South Korea and Cuba held their first foreign ministerial talks in Havana Sunday, breaking a decades-long absence of formal diplomatic exchanges between the two sides.   South Korean Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se arrived in the Cuban capital a day earlier to attend a summit of the Association of Caribbean States. But the focus of his two-day stay was widely expected to be on relations between South Korea and Cuba, which have yet to establish formal diplomatic ties. Yun is the first South Korean

June 6, 2016