UN chief 'strongly condemns' N. Korea's missile launch

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Monday denounced North Korea's latest ballistic missile launch as a violation of Security Council resolutions and urged the regime to abide by its international obligations."The secretary-general strongly condemns the launch of another ballistic missile by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea on 12 February," Farhan Haq, deputy UN spokesman, said in a statement. "This action is a further troubling violation of Security Council resolutions."In this ph

Feb. 14, 2017

US calls N.K. missile launch unacceptable, calls for consequences for Pyongyang

The US State Department said Monday that North Korea's ballistic missile launch is unacceptable and urged countries around the world to take steps to show Pyongyang consequences for its action."We call on all states to use every available channel and means of influence to make clear to the DPRK and its enablers that launches using ballistic missile technology, or efforts to advance North Korea's ballistic missile capabilities, are unacceptable," a department official said on background.(Yonhap)"

Feb. 14, 2017

Ukraine, Korea mark silver jubilee of diplomacy

Marking the silver jubilee of diplomatic ties this year, Ukraine and Korea have laid a solid foundation for a wide array of future-oriented cooperation, Ukraine’s top envoy to Korea said last week.Ukrainian Ambassador Vasyl Marmazov, who nears the end of his post after five years, said the past 25 years of bilateral cooperation have sowed the seedbeds of growth in infrastructure, agriculture, construction, energy, science and technology, education and tourism.“Looking back over the last quarter

Feb. 13, 2017

‘Curbing global warming requires more than words’

With the international community changing tack to advance the low-carbon economy, Korea should act on its promise to cut greenhouse gas emissions and muster global cooperation toward its materialization, a renowned scholar on climate change has said. In an interview with The Korea Herald, professor Chung Suh-yong of Korea University’s Graduate School of International Studies stressed the “implementation” of the country’s commitment to the Paris agreement in 2015 was essential. Also known as the

Feb. 13, 2017

Italian cartoonist draws inspiration from eclectic Korea

In the eyes of Sergio Varbella, an Italian cartoonist and graphic designer, Seoul is a city of contradictions, where hypermodernity meets antiquity at every turn of the street. With glittering skyscrapers canvasing gentrified homes, and English billboard signs jutting out from unvarnished landscapes, the Korean capital has given him plenty of visual excitement. And that is precisely what Varbella will take home when he returns to his hometown Asti in northern Italy, after completing three weeks

Feb. 13, 2017

S. Korea to closely communicate with Japan to resolve girl statue row: minister

South Korea will closely communicate with Japan to resolve the ongoing row over a statue symbolizing the victims of Japan's wartime sexual enslavement "as quickly as possible," the top diplomat said Monday.In January, Japan recalled its ambassador to Seoul in protest of the so-called girl statue recently erected in front of its consulate in the southern port city of Busan. The ambassador has not come back to Seoul. (Yonhap)The statue, along with the one standing before Tokyo's embassy in Seoul,

Feb. 13, 2017

S. Korea mulls over test-firing ballistic missile after NK launch

(Yonhap)South Korea is considering test-firing a ballistic missile in response to the North's intermediate-range missile launch, military officials said Monday. "In response to North Korea's missile launch Sunday, we are reviewing measures to discard security concerns and show our determination to retaliate against any aggression by the North," a defense ministry official told Yonhap News Agency. The official said the military is mulling over live firing the Hyunmoo-2A with a range of more than

Feb. 13, 2017

S. Korea, US, Japan call for emergency UNSC meeting on Pyongyang's missile test

South Korea, the United States and Japan have asked the United Nations Security Council to convene an emergency meeting to discuss countermeasures against North Korea's latest missile provocation, a report said Monday.Citing a spokesperson of the US mission to the world body, AFP said that the three countries requested an "urgent" meeting to have consultations after the North conducted a ballistic missile test Sunday. The meeting is expected to be held Monday afternoon (local time), it added.(Yo

Feb. 13, 2017

US senator calls for greater pressure on N. Korea after missile launch

A US senator called for President Donald Trump to increase pressure on North Korea through sanctions, military exercises with allies and other measures after the communist nation carried out its first ballistic missile launch under the Trump administration."This latest missile test is another example of why the US policy toward North Korea should never be 'strategic patience,' as it was during the Obama administration," Sen. Cory Gardner, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on

Feb. 13, 2017

Trump sends 'powerful, unmistakable signal' to N. Korea: senior adviser

US President Donald Trump sent a "powerful and unmistakable" message to North Korea when he held a news conference after the communist nation carried out a surprise ballistic missile launch, a senior presidential aide said Sunday.Trump held the impromptu conference at his Florida resort jointly with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, just hours after the North launched a ballistic missile off its east coast in the first such launch since Trump came into office last month.Trump said the United S

Feb. 13, 2017

Trump reaffirms US security commitment to Japan after N.K. missile launch

US President Donald Trump said Friday the United States stands behind Japan "100 percent" in a previously unscheduled joint news conference he held with Japan's prime minister after North Korea conducted a surprise ballistic missile launch.Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe opened the brief news conference at Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, denouncing the North's missile launch as "absolutely intolerable" and urging the communist nation to comply with all UN Security Council resolutions."D

Feb. 12, 2017

US House lawmakers call for early deployment of THAAD system

A bipartisan group of US House lawmakers has introduced a resolution condemning North Korea's development of intercontinental ballistic missiles and calling for quick deployment of the US THAAD missile defense system in South Korea.Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC) brought in the resolution (H.Res.92) on Monday, together with four co-sponsors from both the Democratic and Republican parties, amid heightened tensions on the Korean Peninsula in the wake of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's threat to test-fire

Feb. 8, 2017

Sri Lanka, Korea celebrate thriving economic ties

The Sri Lankan Embassy on Friday marked the 69th anniversary of independence from colonial Britain as well as thriving ties with Korea officially extending to 40 years.The reception at Millennium Seoul Hilton drew dignitaries from both countries, including Kang Ho-in, Korean minister of land, infrastructure and transport, Anura Priyadarshana Yapa, Sri Lankan minister of disaster management, Ranjith Madduma Bandara, Sri Lankan minister of public administration and management, and Chandrani Bandar

Feb. 6, 2017

Morocco rejoins African Union for regional peace, prosperity

More than 33 years since quitting the African Union, Morocco was readmitted to the continental club of nations, heralding a new era of regional security and economic cooperation, according to the Moroccan Embassy in Seoul.The decision was made at the 28th Summit of the African Union in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on Jan. 31, with the support of 39 countries and nine countries opposed in voting. Moroccan King Mohammed VI first signaled the country’s wish to rejoin the institution at the 27th summit in

Feb. 6, 2017

‘Belarus, Korea are partners in cutting-edge innovations’

Emerging from seven decades of Soviet rule, Belarus inherited an institutional legacy of excellence in scientific education and research, highly regarded across Eurasia. Since its independence in 1991, the country has moved toward a market economy, while preserving cardinal instruments in science and engineering. Now marking the silver jubilee of diplomatic relations with Korea on Feb. 10, Belarusian Ambassador to Korea Andrei Popkov believes cooperation in these fields is key to unlocking the t

Feb. 6, 2017

Russia likely to mull action if THAAD deployment goes ahead: envoy

Russia will consider taking countermeasures to protect its own security if the United States pushes ahead with its planned deployment of an advanced anti-missile system on South Korean soil, the country's top envoy in Seoul said Friday.Russian Ambassador to South Korea Alexander Timonin said that the stationing of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system on the Korean Peninsula will have a "dangerous" impact on ongoing efforts to secure regional peace and stability."We will have no choice

Feb. 3, 2017