The Korea Herald

Two Koreas agree on Feb. 8 military talks

Feb 1, 2011

The two Koreas have agreed to hold working-level military talks at the South-controlled Peace House in the inter-Korean border village of Panmunjeom on Feb. 8, Seoul’s Defense Ministry said Tuesday.The agreement to talk came after a string of proposals and counterproposals between the two sides. The North made a proposal last Saturday to hold the talks on Tuesday this week, which Seoul rejected, r
Ex-official named Lee’s top aide for economic affairs

Feb 1, 2011

President Lee Myung-bak on Tuesday named former chief of Statistics Korea Kim Dae-ki as his new top aide for economic affairs.Kim will succeed Choi Joong-kyung, who was appointed minister of knowledge economy last week.Having been in charge of financial management at the Ministry of Budget and Planning, which was later merged into the Ministry of Strategy and Finance, Kim became the chief of Stati
Rescued captain remains unconscious

Feb 1, 2011

The captain of a rescued South Korean freight vessel is expected to spend the Lunar New Year holidays lying unconscious in a hospital bed, as his medical team said Tuesday he remains in a critical condition. South Korea’s 11,500-ton chemical freighter Samho Jewelry and its 21 crew members were rescued on Jan. 21 by the Navy days after it was seized in waters between Oman and India.All crewmen were
Foreign minister may add Libya to Mideast trip

Feb 1, 2011

South Korea’s foreign minister will meet his counterparts in the United Arab Emirates and Algeria next week, during which he is also seeking to visit Libya to patch up a months-long diplomatic row, the ministry here said.“We are currently discussing the details with the Libyan government so that the minister can visit the country upon his trip to the Middle East,” a ministry official said, asking
Shin vows to tackle unemployment among young attorneys

Feb 1, 2011

Shin Young-moo, a 65-year-old veteran lawyer whose election as chairperson of the Korean Bar Association was virtually predetermined, has vowed to tackle the unemployment issue facing new attorneys.“This year, the Judicial Research and Training Institute produced 1,000 new attorneys. Of the total, (nearly) 45 percent remain unemployed,” said Shin. “In the local legal market at crossroads, the live
Lee says inter-Korean summit still possible

Feb 1, 2011

South Korean President Lee Myung-bak said Tuesday that North Korea has a "good opportunity" to break its diplomatic isolation through inter-Korean talks and the six-party negotiations on its nuclear program, but it should first avert the course of military brinkmanship. "(I) can hold a summit (with the North Korean leader) if necessary," Lee said in a televised talk show. "For North Korea, now
North Korea has at least one secret nuclear site, UN report says

Feb 1, 2011

North Korea likely has at least one secret nuclear facility, in addition to a plant at Yongbyon whose existence was reported last year, according to diplomats who have read a confidential United Nations report. A UN panel of nuclear experts also said in the report that North Korea is receiving technical assistance from visiting foreign scientists, according to the diplomats who described the findi
Nobel Peace Prize nomination for Arab world protests?

Feb 1, 2011

OSLO - The vibrant protest movements across the Arab world, Russian human rights activists and WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange will all likely be in the running for the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize, observers say as the deadline for nominating candidates approaches.According to existing rules, the Norwegian Nobel Committee will only consider candidate proposals sent by February 1 for its pick, to be an
Bureaucrat-turned-professor named new presidential secretary for economy

Feb 1, 2011

President Lee Myung-bak has appointed Kim Dae-ki, a bureaucrat-turned-professor, as his new senior secretary for economic affairs, Lee's office Cheong Wa Dae said Tuesday. Kim, formerly the head of Statistics Korea and vice culture minister, replaces Choi Joong-kyung, who became the knowledge economy minister last month. Kim, 55, now serves as a professor at Seoul National University's Gradu
Captured pirates admit hijacking was planned

Jan 31, 2011

Korean crew of rescued freighter to return homeSeven South Korean crewmembers of a freight vessel recently rescued from Somali pirates are expected to return home this week following Oman’s approval of the ship to dock in the country, a Seoul official said Monday. South Korea’s 11,500-ton chemical freighter Samho Jewelry and its 21 crew members were rescued on Jan. 21 by the Navy days after it was
Lee talk show to cover N. Korea, economic policies

Jan 31, 2011

President Lee Myung-bak is to give his views on inter-Korean relations, diplomatic issues and the government’s economic policy plans for this year in a televised talk show Tuesday morning.In the 90-minute show titled “Dialogue with the President: the Republic of Korea in 2011,” Lee will discuss foreign affairs, security and economy with Hallym University of Graduate Studies professor Chung Kwan-yo
Lee may reshuffle aides, ministers

Jan 31, 2011

President Lee Myung-bak is reportedly considering replacing some of his aides and Cabinet members in February as he completes his third year in office.Lee, first of all, has to name a new senior presidential secretary for economic affairs to replace Choi Joong-kyung, who was appointed as the minister of knowledge economy last week.“As for the vacancies in Cheong Wa Dae, nominations can take place
Seoul rejects N.K. offer of earlier talks

Jan 31, 2011

Defense Ministry says it wants enough time to make preparationsSeoul’s Defense Ministry on Monday rejected North Korea’s proposal to hold working-level military talks at an earlier date, repeating that it wants to hold the meeting Feb. 11 as it originally suggested.In a faxed message sent to the ministry last Saturday, the North suggested holding the preliminary talks Tuesday without elaborating o
Gov't seeks to increase flights departing Cairo amid Egypt protests

Jan 31, 2011

South Korea's foreign ministry said Monday it is working on increasing the number of flights from Cairo to Seoul to transport South Korean nationals back home amid raging anti-government protests there. "As the situation gets worse, there aren't enough flights compared to the number of our people who would like to leave Egypt," said a ministry official. "We are in talks with Korean Air to inc
Resumption of six-party talks ‘fully up to N.K.’: Minister Kim

Jan 30, 2011

Instead of setting preconditions, South Korea will watch how much veracity North Korea shows toward denuclearization and the two deadly attacks last year in their upcoming talks to decide when to restart larger-scale peace talks, Seoul’s foreign minister said. The comments by Foreign Minister Kim Sung-hwan come as the two Koreas are preparing to hold defense talks viewed by regional powers as a st