Korea and New Zealand announced Saturday they had completed a free trade agreement, boosting hopes of an uptick in trade, investment and industrial and people-to-people exchanges. The announcement was made after a summit between President Park Geun-hye and New Zealand Prime Minister John Key on the sidelines of the Group of 20 summit in Brisbane, Australia. Negotiations began in June 2009. The two countries are expected to sign a preliminary deal by the end of this year and an official version e

Foreign Affairs Nov. 16, 2014

North Korea plans to dispatch leader Kim Jong-un’s top aide to Russia, Pyongyang’s state media said Friday, in apparent efforts to boost ties with its rare patron amid deepening diplomatic isolation and shriveling outside assistance. Choe Ryong-hae, a secretary of the ruling Workers’ Party, will travel to Moscow “in the near future” as Kim’s special envoy, the Korean Central News Agency reported, without elaborating. Choe’s planned trip comes one week after Hyon Yong-chol, the communist state’s

North Korea Nov. 14, 2014

While the vortex of information overload is wearing out a growing number of people, evolving technologies also make today’s breakneck life easier by helping organize things and executing time-wasting chores in a snap. Ever-smarter mobile gadgets and software help cut costs and save time. They are getting better at analyzing users’ life patterns, tastes and even habits, sorting out and providing precise information. Smartphones and tablets lead the pack. Though some may call them the very culprit

Social Affairs Nov. 14, 2014

With North Korea showing signs of change following a milestone U.N. report, the world should continue to heap pressure on the communist regime to improve its human rights record, a panel said Thursday. Dozens of policymakers, experts and activists around the world discussed the current human rights situation in North Korea and ways to generate practical improvement at the 4th Chaillot Human Rights Forum hosted in Seoul by the state-run Korea Institute for National Unification. Among the key spea

North Korea Nov. 13, 2014

South Korea’s foreign policy faces a test as signs of a thaw in China-Japan relations and North Korea’s surprise release of U.S. detainees threaten to weaken its diplomatic leverage and reduce strategic options. Nearly two years into her presidency, President Park Geun-hye is coming under increasing pressure to turn her diplomatic credentials into a feat. But her “principled” approach to relations with Japan and North Korea has so far failed to induce any meaningful change from either side. Inst

Foreign Affairs Nov. 10, 2014

PHNOM PENH ― With agriculture still the mainstay of its economy, Cambodia is seeking to reform rural communities in partnership with Korea to shore up residents’ livelihoods and boost grain exports. The Southeast Asian country is seeking to follow in the footsteps of the “Saemaeul Undong,” or New Community Movement, a rural reform drive in Korea in the 1970s and 1980s. The two countries agreed in June to build a training institute and carry out pilot projects in 30 villages by 2018, for which Se

Foreign Affairs Nov. 9, 2014

JAKARTA ― Indonesia is keen to build a more substantive political, economic and sociocultural partnership with South Korea as it consolidates democracy under a new leadership and gears up for a special ASEAN summit with Seoul, Jakarta’s point man on the regional bloc said. I Gusti Agung Wesaka Puja, the ASEAN-SOM leader at Indonesia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, displayed the resolve to play a greater role not only in the region but also in helping enhance relations between the two Koreas by, i

Foreign Affairs Nov. 9, 2014

Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se appears to be facing the biggest crisis since his swearing-in early last year, coming under fire for his reported opposition to the establishment of evacuation facilities on the Dokdo islets in the East Sea. Last Saturday, the government retracted a 3 billion won ($2.74 million) public tender for a contractor to build a shelter, power generator and desalination system in a two-story building. The Prime Minister’s Office said the project needed further review given c

Foreign Affairs Nov. 7, 2014

As a young boy during the Korean War, John Lim witnessed his father being forcibly conscripted by the North Korean People’s Army. The incident was only the beginning of a series of greater tragedies. Branded as a communist, his father, who was a fire captain in his hometown of Yeoju, Gyeonggi Province, was shot dead by South Korean authorities after the three-year conflict. The entire family was destroyed, and Lim himself nearly died from tuberculosis. His brushes with death, however, did not ki

Foreign Affairs Nov. 5, 2014

North Korea has recently launched a submarine capable of firing ballistic missiles, a news report said Sunday, adding to concerns over the evolving missile and nuclear threats posed by the communist country.Pyongyang imported, reverse-engineered and modified a Soviet-era Golf-class diesel submarine that was built in 1958 and decommissioned in 1990, Yonhap reported, citing an unnamed government source. The regime is believed to have bought the vessel in the early 1990s.“The new submarine is 67 me

North Korea Nov. 2, 2014

Fortified by expertise, experience and the trust of top U.S. leadership, Ambassador Mark Lippert is tasked with helping achieve the strategic refocus toward Asia in the face of daunting foreign policy challenges and volatile security dynamics. The former chief of staff to Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel touched down in Seoul last Thursday for a three-year term, succeeding Sung Kim, who is widely expected to soon become new deputy assistant secretary of state for East Asia and Pacific Affairs. He w

Foreign Affairs Nov. 2, 2014

Korea’s policymakers and international organizations have stressed the significance of rural development as a top priority in tackling poverty around the globe, as they assess the country’s experience and ways to promote it elsewhere. Their remarks came at a workshop hosted by the Foreign Ministry and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development at Ewha Womans University in Seoul on Friday. The session was designed to look into Korea’s Saemaeul Undong, an agricultural and rural refo

Foreign Affairs Oct. 26, 2014