President Moon Jae-in approved Monday the appointment of two new ministers, respectively in charge of unification matters and small and medium-sized enterprises, in a decision that split the political world sharply along party lines.Kim Yeon-chul, a former president of the Korea Institute for National Unification, a government-funded think tank, was appointed unification minister. Park Young-sun, an incumbent lawmaker with the ruling Democratic Party, will lead the Ministry of SMEs and Startups.

Politics April 8, 2019

China’s Guangdong Province officials presented Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon with a portrait of another politician, much to both sides’ embarrassment. Mayor Park met with a delegation from Guangdong, including Gov. Ma Xingrui, to sign an agreement on economic cooperation at Seoul City Hall on Friday. Following the signing ceremony, the two sides exchanged gifts.  (Yonhap)While Seoul presented artistic handicrafts and promotional images of Seoul city to Ma, the Chinese side presented a portrait of Gy

Social Affairs April 5, 2019

A number of Swedish officials have visited North Korea’s science institution to take part in discussions on renewable energy research, an area of focus for the communist country in recent years, according to the Swedish Embassy in Pyongyang on Monday. “EU visit to the State Academy of Sciences’ Institute for Natural Energy. Discussion on renewable energy research and solar panel production. Presentation of the Unjong Development Zone,” the embassy said on Twitter along with three images showing

North Korea April 4, 2019

An incorrect geographic term used by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs triggered a complaint from the Latvian Embassy in Seoul last month, in what appears to be the latest in a string of diplomatic blunders. In an English version of its press release published on March 19, the ministry incorrectly referred to the three Baltic States --the Republic of Latvia, the Republic of Lithuania and the Republic of Estonia – as “the Balkan states.” Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha (Yonhap)The ministry did not

Foreign Affairs April 3, 2019

(Free Joseon)The emergence of a North Korea dissident group has raised questions as to whether it could grow into a movement capable of serving as a catalyst to oust the Kim dynasty that has been ruling North Korea for more than 70 years. The Cheollima Civil Defense’s operations captured the attention -- and the imagination -- of the public when it proclaimed the birth of North Korea’s provisional government-in-exile and changed its name to Free Joseon on March 1. A screenshot of a video publish

North Korea April 2, 2019

Some 100 young Korean volunteers participated in a project to help transform the world’s ninth-largest desert in China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region into green land, as well as to exchange views regarding environmental problems with Chinese youths, said the Korea Foundation, a nonprofit public diplomacy organization, which hosted the event. During the 2019 Korea-China Green Corps project, held from Wednesday to Tuesday, the participants planted about 800 trees in the Kubuqi Desert in Inner

Diplomatic Circuit April 1, 2019

To advance the peace process on the Korean Peninsula, it is necessary for Seoul, Washington and Pyongyang to maintain bilateral and trilateral dialogues and to continue to pursue a top-down approach, a presidential aide said Saturday. “Because of the top-down approach, we were able to get results to this point,” Kim Hyun-chong, the new No. 2 deputy chief of Cheong Wa Dae’s National Security Office, said upon his arrival at Dulles International Airport in Washington. During his US trip, Kim will

North Korea March 31, 2019

South Korea affirmed its stance on a comprehensive agreement and step-by-step implementation approach for North Korea’s denuclearization process, ahead of ministerial level talks with the US. Before departing for Washington on Thursday, Lee Do-hoon, special representative for Korean Peninsula peace and security affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said he would discuss ways to rekindle the bilateral dialogue between the US and North Korea with US Special Representative for North Korea Ste

North Korea March 28, 2019

One of the suspects behind an attack on the North Korean Embassy in Spain has been revealed to be well-known human rights activist Adrian Hong Chang, according to a news outlet that specializes in North Korea issues. Hong, a Mexican passport holder who lives in the US, is believed to be the leader of a 10-member group that broke into the embassy in Madrid on Feb. 22 and tried to persuade a North Korean commercial attache to defect. The group left him tied up in the basement when he refused and t

North Korea March 27, 2019

Cyber spies suspected of working for the North Korean regime have broadened attacks against official and corporate targets in South Korea, at a time of raised attention on nuclear negotiations and as its economy suffers from international sanctions. Early morning on Jan. 7, a group of reporters covering South Korea’s ministry in charge of relations with North Korea received a suspicious email carrying malicious code.The malicious email was disguised as an invitation to a press conference to prev

North Korea March 26, 2019

King Philippe of Belgium and his wife Queen Mathilde kicked off their four-day state visit to South Korea on Monday, aimed at boost economic cooperation and cultural ties between the two countries. President Moon Jae-in and King Philippe Leopold Louis Marie will discuss ways to deepen substantive cooperation in diplomatic relations and expand business collaborations, especially in the information and communication technology, chemicals, logistics and food industries. King Philippe and Queen Math

Diplomatic Circuit March 25, 2019

Ethiopia can share its recent experience of ending a 20-year border war with longtime foe Eritrea to encourage South Korea’s initiative to create a peace regime on the Korean Peninsula. The border between Ethiopia and Eritrea reopened in September last year following a peace agreement that put an end to what once seemed an irresolvable conflict, having led to war from 1998 to 2000. Shiferaw Shigutie, Ethiopian ambassador to South Korea, poses during an interview with The Korea Herald at the Ethi

Diplomatic Circuit March 25, 2019

North Korean officials have returned to the inter-Korean liaison office, according to a Unification Ministry official on Monday, and things appear to be back to business as usual just days after Pyongyang’s abrupt announcement of the withdrawal of all its staff.“The North Koreans said that they came down (to the liaison office) for the shift as usual,” the official said. (Yonhap)He added that the North expressed unchanged commitment to run the office in accordance with the agreement signed by th

North Korea March 25, 2019

North Korea officials have pulled out from the joint liaison office with South Korea, which opened in the North’s border town of Kaesong in September 2018. The order for withdrawal came from superior authorities in the North, according to the Seoul’s Ministry of Unification on Friday. The ministry said South Korean officials will continue to work at the office as the North said it does not care whether they remain or withdraw from the place. The government regrets Pyongyang’s decision to withdra

North Korea March 22, 2019

North Korea’s propaganda outlets Friday called on the South Korean government to play an active role in implementing measures to improve inter-Korean relations as the US continues to reiterate its stance of keeping sanctions in place. The state-run online publication Meari denounced the South Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs for holding back from raising inter-Korean issues with the US by labeling itself as a mediator or a facilitator for Washington-Pyongyang dialogue. As a “core party concer

North Korea March 22, 2019