The Korea Herald

Claim on Dokdo remains thorn in Japan ties

South Korea to ship instant rice, drinking water for quake victimsTokyo’s decision to restate its territorial claims on Korea’s easternmost islets in school textbooks is provoking Koreans once again, as Seoul continues to send aid supplies to its quake-stricken neighbor.Viewing the two as separate issues, the Seoul government plans to continue humanitarian aid to Japan while taking stern actions a

Politics March 29, 2011

Claim on Dokdo remains thorn in Japan ties

Chung to remain on political stage

Former prime minister to keep job as head of shared growth panelFormer Prime Minister Chung Un-chan said Monday he will continue to lead a nongovernmental panel for mutual growth of small and large companies a week after writing to President Lee Myung-bak offering to quit. Chung’s decision comes after he, the ruling party’s coveted potential election candidate, received a “response” of some sort f

Politics March 28, 2011

S. Korea bans food imports from Japan

The Seoul government on Friday imposed a temporary ban on food imports from parts of Japan contaminated by radiation from its quake-stricken nuclear power plant. Tokyo has so far advised against eating broccoli, cauliflower and leafy vegetables such as spinach produced near the Fukushima Daiichi plant. It is also limiting shipments of spinach, turnips, parsley and milk from Fukushima, Ibaraki, Toc

Politics March 25, 2011

Groups set to fly off anti-N. Korea leaflets

Groups of North Korean defectors here were set to fly anti-Pyongyang leaflets to the North on Friday and Saturday despite the communist state’s renewed threat to strike the South’s “strongholds of psychological warfare” and safety concerns raised by South Koreans living near the border.Residents of Cheorwon in Gangwon Province and Paju in Gyeonggi Province have protested the leaflet campaigns out

Social Affairs March 25, 2011

Rival parties brace for by-elections

The main opposition Democratic Party is racked by internal bickering over whether chairman Sohn Hak-kyu, one of its presidential hopefuls, should run in the by-election next month, while the ruling Grand National Party is concentrating its resources on winning the governorship in Gangwon Province.An aide to Sohn criticized a group of DP legislators calling on the party chairman to run in the by-el

Politics March 24, 2011

Book further complicates Chung’s political path

The ruling bloc’s plan to put up former Prime Minister Chung Un-chan in a by-election next month hit another snag as the woman at the center of several scandals accused him of unethical behavior. Shin Jeong-ah, a disgraced former art professor whose fabrication of her academic record, embezzlement and affair with a high-ranking government official shook the nation in 2007, returned from prison wit

Politics March 23, 2011

Book further complicates Chung’s political path

Lee says water too cheap in Korea

President Lee Myung-bak said Tuesday that Koreans appeared to be wasting water because it is “too cheap.”Lee made the remarks as he met with representatives of the International Water Association to exchange views on sustainable use of water resources and how to successfully host a biennial water congress in Busan in September.They also discussed the latest developments in the global water industr

Politics March 22, 2011

Chung confronts top officials over policy

Hint at resignation from shared growth body may be attempt to distance self from ruling blocFormer Prime Minister Chung Un-chan, sought by the ruling party as a potential candidate for next month’s by-elections, hinted that he would resign from heading an economic policy panel over criticism of his plan for “profit sharing” between conglomerates and their subcontractors.Regarding Knowledge Economy

Politics March 21, 2011

Chung confronts top officials over policy

Korea to hold interagency meeting over Libya unrest

South Korea's foreign ministry said Friday it will convene an interagency meeting on Saturday to discuss countermeasures after the United Nations authorized military actions to curb Libyan ruler Moammar Gadhafi.The meeting will also check the economic impact from the unrest in Libya and "strongly urge" some 100 Korean nationals remaining in the turmoil-torn North African country to leave there, an

Foreign Affairs March 18, 2011

Libyan forces attack last rebel-held western city

BENGHAZI, Libya (AP) -- Moammar Gadhafi's forces are bombarding the last rebel-held western city as the international community discusses how to enforce a no-fly zone and protect the Libyan people. A doctor says at least six people were killed Friday when tanks moved into Misrata and opened fire. He says a hospital and a mosque were shelled. The doctor, who spoke on condition of anonymity beca

World News March 18, 2011

Seoul to accept N.K. offer for talks on Baekdu volcano

The Seoul government said Friday it was reviewing North Korea’s proposal to hold talks on possible volcanic activity at Mount Baekdu amid reports that an eruption was near. The North said in a letter addressed to South’s weather agency Thursday that the two Koreas should discuss conducting joint research, on-site surveys and symposiums on the volcano. “It is our understanding that the North sugges

Politics March 18, 2011

Lee calls for customized aid to Japan

President reaffirms safety of Korean nuclear power facilitiesPresident Lee Myung-bak on Thursday said that Korea should provide customized assistance to Japan as the neighboring country reels from its worst-ever recorded earthquake and tsunami.“Because we are close, we can send what Japan needs in the shortest period of time,” Lee told ruling Grand National Party chairman Ahn Sang-soo at the begin

Politics March 17, 2011

Seoul to offer record aid to Japan

Korea sends drinking water, donations to quake-stricken neighborThe South Korean government is expected to provide its biggest-ever overseas disaster relief to Japan as the neighboring country suffers from the worst earthquake and tsunami in its recorded history.Including the aid supplies, the amount of Seoul’s relief for Japan is likely to exceed the $12.5 million provided to quake-stricken Haiti

Politics March 16, 2011

Seoul to seek Boeing’s help in presidential jet probe

Cheong Wa Dae said Wednesday it plans to ask the U.S. aircraft manufacturer Boeing to look into what caused the presidential jet to make an unprecedented emergency landing shortly after takeoff Saturday.The Presidential Security Service is examining the maintenance problem that forced the Boeing 747-400 leased from Korean Air to turn back, resulting in a two-hour delay of President Lee Myung-bak’s

Politics March 16, 2011

South Korea vows customized aid to Japan

Red Cross, businesses send donations, aid supplies to help victimsThe South Korean government said Tuesday that it will provide customized assistance to Japan when the quake-stricken country makes an official request through the Foreign Ministry.Seoul tries to unify the channels for assistance to Japan while the Korean Red Cross and businesses are joining in the donation campaign.“The government w

Politics March 15, 2011

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