South Korea and Turkey initialed a free trade agreement (FTA) for their investment and service sectors Thursday, which will complement a trade pact for products that went into effect last year.The new South Korea-Turkey FTA on service and investment will soon undergo reviews by each side after it is translated into their languages, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy."The two countries have agreed to officially sign the agreement in early 2015, and they plan to work for its i

Foreign Affairs Sept. 18, 2014

South Korea's main opposition party, engulfed in an internal feud over its policy toward President Park Geun-hye's handling of the aftermath of April's deadly ferry disaster, selected a five-term lawmaker as its new interim leader.Moon Hee-sang, 68, is set to be formally appointed as the interim leader of the New Politics Alliance for Democracy on Friday, party officials said."I feel a sense of heavy burden to assume the party's interim leader," at a time when the party is in a difficult situati

Politics Sept. 18, 2014

A South Korean government panel on Thursday approved the unification ministry's plan to provide North Korea with US$13.3 million in humanitarian aid via international organizations.Under the decision, the South will contribute $6.3 million to the World Health Organization's projects to help babies and pregnant women in the impoverished communist nation, who are in need of more medical services.Seoul will also offer $7 million in nutritional assistance for them through the World Food Program as t

North Korea Sept. 18, 2014

South Korea will endeavor to make a meeting on an environmental convention of the United Nations, slated for late this month, eco-friendly by building convention halls using environmentally-sound materials, officials said Thursday. The 12th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity, dubbed COP 12, takes place at Alpensia resort in PyeongChang, some 180 kilometers southeast of Seoul, from Sept. 29 through Oct. 17, with representatives from 194 countries in

Social Affairs Sept. 18, 2014

South Korea plans to ink a preliminary deal with Germany to create an advisory group in an effort to learn lessons from the European country's unification, Seoul's foreign ministry said Thursday.The two countries' foreign ministries are scheduled to sign a memorandum of understanding late Thursday (German time) to establish an advisory group consisting of mostly officials from both countries and some professors. Both sides will develop and share information and wisdom about foreign policies towa

Foreign Affairs Sept. 18, 2014

South Korea's government must revamp its outdated procurement policy to help fuel the growth of its helicopter industry that possesses good export potential, local experts said Thursday.In a meeting hosted by Korea Aerospace Industries Ltd. (KAI) in Seoul, researchers, government officials and state agencies that use choppers called for changes at the policymaking and legislative levels to streamline purchasing procedures and enhance maintenance for safe operations.South Korea was the 11th count

Social Affairs Sept. 18, 2014

South Korean President Park Geun-hye plans to meet with a former Japanese prime minister later this week, an official said Thursday, amid a recent thaw in relations between the two neighbors.Park is set to meet with former Japanese Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori on Friday, presidential spokesman Min Kyung-wook said, a move that's widely seen as a potential stepping stone for a summit between Park and her Japanese counterpart, Shinzo Abe.Mori, who is due to arrive in Seoul to attend Friday's opening

Politics Sept. 18, 2014

Polls have opened across Scotland in a referendum that will decide whether the country leaves its 307-year-old union with England and becomes an independent state.More than 2,600 polling places will be open Thursday from 7 a.m. (0600GMT, 2 a.m. EDT) until 10 p.m. (2100GMT, 5 p.m. EDT).Turnout is expected to be high, with more than 4.2 million people registered to vote _ 97 percent of those eligible.Polls suggest the result is too close to call, with the pro-independence Yes side gaining momentum

World News Sept. 18, 2014

한국전력은 서울 삼성동 부지 입찰 결과 현대차그룹이 낙찰자로 선정됐다고 18일 밝혔다.한전은 지난 29일부터 진행해 온 부지 입찰 절차를 종료하고 이날 응찰자들의 제출 가격 등을 검토한 결과 최고 가격을 써낸 현대차그룹을 낙찰자로 선정했다.낙찰 가격은 10조5천500억원이다. 부지 감정가인 3조3천346억원보다 3배 이상 높은 금액이다. 한전이 입찰 하한선인 예정가격으로 잡아 놨던 금액도 부지 감정가와 동일한  3 조3천346억원이라고 소개했다. 예정가격과 비교해도 3배 이상 되는 거액을 현대차그 룹이 써낸 것이다.이번 입찰에는 현대차그룹과 삼성전자 등 응찰자 13곳이 참여했다.하지만 현대차그룹과 삼성전자를 제외한 응찰자 11곳은 보증금을 안 냈거나  예 정가격보다 낮은 가격을 쓰는 등 자격을 갖추지 못해 무효처리됐다.한전은 "이번 매각 업무를 집행하면서 특혜시비와 헐값매각 해소에 최대 역점을 뒀다"며 "공기업인 만큼 관련 법령과 절차를 철저하게 준수하는 데 방점을 두고  매 각을

한국어판 Sept. 18, 2014

South Korea announced a double-digit increase in next year's budget for its ministry handling North Korean affairs on Thursday, emboldened by President Park Geun-hye's reunification drive.The unification ministry's total budget will jump 10.4 percent on-year to 1.4 trillion won ($1.3 billion) in 2015, according to the government's new budget plan approved by the Cabinet. It requires parliamentary endorsement.By type, the ministry's general budget will grow 5.8 percent to 230 billion won, which i

Sept. 18, 2014

The following are key points of the 2015 budget proposal endorsed by the government on Thursday.Along with its spending plan, the government also gave estimates on revenue collection and mid-term fiscal management plans.Spending:    - Expand 2015 spending by 5.7 percent to 376 trillion won ($361 billion)    - 115.5 trillion won on health, welfare and labor, an increase of 8.5 percent from 2014    - 53 trillion won on education, up 4.6 percent    - 18.8 trillion won on research and development, u

Sept. 18, 2014