North Korean leader Kim Jong-un paid homage to his late grandfather as the country celebrated his 103rd birthday. Military and party executives and ordinary citizens vowed loyalty to the country and dozens of cannon salutes were unleashed. At midnight, flowers were laid before the embalmed bodies of national founder Kim Il-sung and his son Kim Jong-il at the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun to mark the “Day of the Sun,” according to the official Korean Central News Agency. The participants “consolidat

North Korea April 15, 2015

President Park Geun-hye on Tuesday called on North Korea to heed lessons from Hungary’s democratic transition, saying the communist state’s parallel pursuit of nuclear and economic development would never be successful. During her summit with Hungarian President Janos Ader, Park expressed hope for the Eastern European country’s cooperation in convincing Pyongyang to change course and relinquish its nuclear ambition. “North Korea continues to develop nuclear weapons and thus consistently poses a

Foreign Affairs April 14, 2015

A group of armed gunmen attacked the South Korean embassy in Tripoli on Sunday, killing two Libyan guards and injuring another officer, Foreign Ministry officials said. The incident took place at around 1:20 a.m. Libyan time when the assailants fired some 40 shots from a machine gun as they drove by the embassy, an official said. The Islamic State militant group claimed responsibility about two hours later on Twitter, saying it had “removed” two guards at the facility. The three officers who wer

Foreign Affairs April 12, 2015

With negotiations kicking into high gear for a new development agenda, sustainability and monitoring remain at the center stage to enhance the implementation of upcoming measures and the effectiveness of assistance, senior diplomats said. In an interview with The Korea Herald, three senior officials engaged in the U.N.-led process explored the significance of the new framework, which will be hammered out at a summit in September to fight poverty and achieve more environmentally friendly growth f

Foreign Affairs April 12, 2015

Testy relations with Japan are posing a major hurdle for President Park Geun-hye’s third-year diplomacy as Prime Minister Shinzo Abe walks a fine line over territorial and wartime history issues, complicating her efforts to mend ties and build a foreign policy legacy. The Abe administration has been stepping up sovereignty claims to the easternmost islets of Dokdo through diplomatic papers, school textbooks and teaching guidelines, while seeking to whitewash Japan’s atrocities during World War I

Foreign Affairs April 8, 2015

Japan again reasserted its sovereignty over the easternmost Korean islets of Dokdo in an annual diplomatic paper Tuesday, further stoking territorial tension that has dogged bilateral ties for decades. Japan’s Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida reported the 2015 edition of the Diplomatic Bluebook to the Cabinet, which claims that the islets are its “inherent territory” based on history and international law. Seoul’s Foreign Ministry instantly protested the announcement, calling in Kenji Kanasugi, a

Foreign Affairs April 7, 2015

Japan on Monday approved a batch of updated middle school textbooks carrying stronger claims than before to Korea’s easternmost islets of Dokdo, in another move that could dampen efforts to mend bilateral ties. The Korean government immediately lodged a protest, calling the decision a “provocation” against its sovereignty over its indigenous territory. Vice Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yong summoned Ambassador Koro Bessho and delivered a written complaint. “The Japanese government has once again sta

Foreign Affairs April 6, 2015

BELLY NAMARY/THIES, Senegal ― Nariel Sow, a 10-year-old resident of Belly Namary in Senegal’s northwest, had to walk around 3 kilometers several times a day to fetch water for her 14-member family due to a lack of wells in her own village.The daily routine, an obligation for girls in her rural community, posed a major hurdle for developing her knack for French and math at school. With a water tower built by the Korea International Cooperation Agency, she is now able to focus on her study, dreami

Foreign Affairs April 5, 2015

SEGUELA/ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast ― Women chatter away in twos and threes as they lean over their bedsides at the neatly arranged patient rooms in a provincial hospital in Seguela, some 592 kilometers northwest of Abidjan. Months before, most of the 25 patients entered the clinic feeling disgraced by their disease, obstetric fistula, and the resulting cold shoulder given by their family and community. Some were deserted by their husbands, and though the illness is treatable with a brief surgery, many

Foreign Affairs April 5, 2015

In the wake of a historic deal between Iran and world powers, cautious optimism has been growing that North Korean denuclearization talks could move up Washington’s foreign policy agenda. With U.S. President Barack Obama seeking to cement his diplomatic legacy, he could approach the Kim Jong-un regime afresh, buoyed by the latest agreement with Iran and ongoing efforts to normalize relations with Cuba.But the prospect of a restart of negotiations appears gloomy, as the North remains steadfast in

North Korea April 3, 2015

President Park Geun-hye on Thursday met with the U.S. House minority leader to discuss ways to deepen cooperation in bilateral issues, officials said. With Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe scheduled to make a congressional address later this month, Seoul is forecast to focus chiefly on rallying U.S. lawmakers behind its efforts to extract a sincere atonement for Tokyo’s atrocities during World War II, such as sex slavery involving Korean and other women.Rep. Nancy Pelosi, who was the first fem

Foreign Affairs April 2, 2015