A North Korean man crossed the inter-Korean border and defected to South Korea on Tuesday, officials said Wednesday.The 21-year-old defector, identified only by his surname Kim, immediately expressed his wish to defect to the South after he crossed the Military Demarcation Line in the Demilitarized Zone and was spotted at around 5 p.m. by South Korean troops standing guard around the frontline are

South Korea is to enact laws to discourage its people from engaging in illegal activities overseas, a move seen by Christian groups here as an attempt to curb missionary work.The South Korean government has been trying to deal with the growing dangers of Christians working as missionaries in Islamic nations, especially after a young missionary was kidnapped and killed by insurgents in Iraq in 2004

South Korea and the U.S. will hold a second round of talks over how to revise their decades-old nuclear cooperation pact, sources said Tuesday. Forged in 1974, the current Seoul-Washington peaceful nuclear cooperation agreement, which bans South Korea from reprocessing spent fuel from civilian nuclear plants, will expire in 2014.Robert Einhorn, the U.S. State Department’s special adviser for nonpr

Seoul denies exercises are based on plan to deal with N.K. contingenciesSouth Korea and the U.S. will begin an 11-day joint military exercise from Feb. 28 to prepare against additional localized provocations by North Korea and other possible emergencies on the peninsula, officials said Tuesday.Along with the Key Resolve command post exercise, the two militaries will also stage the Foal Eagle field

A South Korean fishing vessel released by Somali pirates arrived in Kenya on Tuesday, its crew walking on land for the first time since being kidnapped four months ago, according to news reports. Seoul’s Keummi 305 arrived at Kenya’s Port Mombasa about a week after it was freed on Feb. 9 under the escort of a Finnish warship belonging to a fleet of the European Union.All 43 crew members of the 241

President Lee Myung-bak is rolling up his sleeves to support the country’s third attempt at hosting the Winter Olympics in the popular winter sports resort city of PyeongChang in Gangwon Province.Lee flew to the city Tuesday to host a reception for the 14-member delegation of the International Olympic Committee, which arrived here Monday to carry out an onsite inspection until Feb. 20.The presiden

A South Korean fishing vessel recently released by Somali pirates is expected to reach Kenya early Tuesday, as it heads back home after four months of captivity, the Foreign Ministry here said. Seoul’s Keummi 305 is currently passing through international waters at an 8-knot average speed after receiving fuel over the weekend, a ministry official said. The 241-ton boat is expected to arrive at Ken

   A South Korean fishing vessel, freed by Somali pirates after four months of captivity, is expected to arrive at a Kenyan port this week en route to South Korea, a government official here said Sunday.   "The ship, Keummi 305, is currently passing through international waters at 8-knot average speed after receiving fuel supply from a Finnish warship belonging to a fleet of the European Union," t

North Korea made another proposal for the resumption of talks with South Korea Friday, this time to Seoul's political parties, apparently as its chance of winning concessions from the Seoul government has nearly disappeared.The proposal came one day after the communist nation's military said it will no longer deal with the South Korean government, accusing the latter of lacking any willingness to

Seoul remains lukewarm toward assistance amid stalemate in tiesThe U.N. has said it will send experts to North Korea next week over a purported foot-and-mouth disease outbreak, in the first international move to help the impoverished state curb the fast-spreading livestock virus. While the South Korean government so far remains lukewarm toward joining the move, North Korea’s apparent call for outs