The Korea Herald

GNP refers U.S. FTA bill despite opposition

Sept 16, 2011

The ruling Grand National Party referred the long-pending Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement ratification bill to the parliamentary panel, despite resistance from opposition parties.“I hereby submit the free trade bill to the foreign affairs committee,” Rep. Nam Kyung-pil, GNP lawmaker and committee ch
Free trade pact with U.S. introduced in parliamentary committee

Sept 16, 2011

SEOUL, Sept. 16 (Yonhap) - South Korea's ruling Grand National Party (GNP) presented a long-pending free trade agreement with the U.S. to a parliamentary committee Friday in the first step toward its ratification despite objections from opposition parties.The trade pact, signed in 2007 and supplemen
Health minister nominee will not raise cigarette prices excessively

Sept 16, 2011

Health and Welfare Minister-nominee Rim Che-min indicated Thursday that he will not seek to raise cigarette prices excessively during his term.In the National Assembly’s confirmation hearing Thursday,Rim said tobacco prices are closely related to everyday lives of ordinary people. Asked by Rep. Jeon
Top presidential aide offers to resign over savings bank scandal

Sept 15, 2011

SEOUL, Sept. 15 (Yonhap) -- Senior Secretary to President for Public Relations Kim Du-woo offered to step down on Thursday over allegations he had ties to a lobbyist at the center of a corruption scandal involving a troubled savings bank.Kim submitted his resignation to Presidential C
GNP turns to Na for mayoral race

Sept 15, 2011

Lawmaker fast narrowing opinion poll gap with liberal candidate ParkRep. Na Kyung-won of the Grand National Party is once again gaining momentum as the party’s likely candidate for next month’s race for Seoul mayor as the polls show her catching up with potential candidate Park Won-soon.According to
S. Korea proposes talks with Japan over comfort women

Sept 15, 2011

South Korea proposed an official bilateral discussion with Japan to address issues concerning former “comfort women” who were forcibly taken by its army for sexual slavery during World War II, officials said Thursday.It is the first time for Seoul to make such a proposal to the Tokyo government, whi
Three-way talks on gas pipeline speed up

Sept 15, 2011

South and North Korean officials visit Moscow simultaneouslyThe project to pipe Siberian gas through North Korea to South Korea, which is expected to be economically beneficial for all three countries, is shaping up as South and North Korean officials visit Moscow for working-level talks.Constructio
Health minister nominee won’t raise cigarette prices excessively

Sept 15, 2011

Health and Welfare Minister-nominee Rim Che-min indicated Thursday that he will not seek to raise cigarette prices excessively during his term. In the National Assembly’s confirmation hearing Thursday, Rim said tobacco prices are closely related to everyday lives of ordinary people. Asked by Re
Korea, Colombia agree to seal trade deal this year

Sept 15, 2011

President Lee Myung-bak and Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos on Thursday agreed to seek an early conclusion of a free trade agreement and to develop bilateral relations beyond economic interests.The two leaders agreed to upgrade their half-century-old ties to a “strategic cooperative partnersh
S. Korea proposes talks with Japan over wartime sex slaves

Sept 15, 2011

SEOUL, Sept. 15 (Yonhap) -- South Korea on Thursday proposed holding talks with Japan to discuss the issue of Tokyo's sexual enslavement of Korean women during World War II, an issue that has long been one of the thorns in relations between the two nations.The Foreign Ministry called in Nobukatsu Ka
Blue House to crack down on civil service sleaze

Sept 14, 2011

The presidential office has drawn up a list of unethical practices considered common in bureaucracy, such as personal use of official credit cards, and sent it to ministries and agencies as part of efforts to tighten discipline in officialdom, an official said Wednesday.“There are practices that min
Minister nominees grilled in hearing

Sept 14, 2011

Lawmakers on Wednesday grilled Unification Minister-nominee Yu Woo-ik and Gender Equality Minister-nominee Kim Kum-lae, both close aides to President Lee Myung-bak.In the parliamentary foreign affairs committee’s confirmation hearing, Yu was slammed for lacking professional knowledge and experience
Park takes narrow lead over Ahn

Sept 14, 2011

(From left) Park Geun-hye, Ahn Cheol-soo (Yonhap News)Former GNP chairwoman has upper hand in her home turf in southeastRep. Park Geun-hye of the Grand National Party appeared to have gained a narrow lead over Ahn Cheol-soo in polls on next year’s potential presidential candidates.In a survey condu
Lee to make state visit to U.S. next month

Sept 14, 2011

President Lee Myung-bak will make an official state visit to the United States next month for talks with U.S. President Barack Obama, Cheong Wa Dae said Wednesday, upping pressure on the parliament to ratify the Korea-U.S. free trade agreement. Lee is scheduled to hold summit talks with Obama on Oct
Cabinet approves bill on children's food safety

Sept 14, 2011

SEOUL, Sept. 14 (Yonhap) -- The Cabinet endorsed a bill on Wednesday to place all retailers suspected of selling junk food to children across the country under the monitoring of local governments.There have been mounting calls for increasing the authorities'surveillance of supermarkets or stationery