Apology, compensation left out of settlement as widely anticipated

National Security Adviser Kim Sung-han said Sunday he plans to finalize the timing and level of President Yoon Suk Yeol's upcoming visit to Washington when he meets with officials in the US capital this week. Kim made the remark to reporters at Incheon International Airport before departing for Washington on a five-day trip that will include meetings with US government officials and academics on issues related to North Korea and global and economic security. "I plan to meet with my cou

The Bulgarian Embassy celebrated its National Day on March 3, marking the nation's liberation from the Ottoman Dominion. Bulgarian Embassy commemorated Bulgarian volunteers who fought and liberated Bulgaria during the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878, leading to the re-establishment of Bulgarian statehood. Delivering welcome remarks at the ceremony, Bulgarian Ambassador Petko Draganov recalled his country’s diplomatic relationship with Korea forged 33 years ago in acknowledgment o

WASHINGTON -- The United States supports South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol's vision for cooperative relations between Seoul and Tokyo, a state department spokesperson said Wednesday. Department Press Secretary Ned Price said the US also applauds both South Korea and Japan for their recent efforts to improve their bilateral relations. "Let me say generally that bilateral cooperation between the United States and our treaty allies is important, but so too is trilateral cooperation,&qu

WASHINGTON -- The United States and South Korea agree on the need to further strengthen US extended deterrence, a US defense department spokesperson said Tuesday, also reaffirming US commitment to deploying strategic assets to South Korea on a rotational basis. The remarks from Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder come after the countries held a Deterrence Strategy Committee Table-Top Exercise aimed at enhancing their joint deterrence against North Korean nuclear threats. "We did conduct a successful discu

Celebrating 30 years of diplomatic ties between South Korea and Slovakia, the European country's top envoy in Seoul said the country expects more cooperation in the field of battery and electric vehicle production in the near future. Noting the rapidly developing automotive industry in the country, Slovakia's Ambassador to Korea Jan Kuderjavy said Korean companies could take advantage of a regional financial incentive scheme and a preferential tax regime for research and development. &

Kuwait’s top envoy to Seoul recalled the firm stance of Korea to support Kuwait during the 1990-1991 Gulf War while celebrating his country’s 62nd National Day in Seoul last week. Korea supported Kuwait's rights during the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait in 1990 by sending troops to Kuwait to help liberate the Gulf state. Kuwait’s national day, which falls on Feb. 25, marks the commemoration of the day Sheikh Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah became the ruler of Kuwait in 1950. Al-Sabah

The Bangladesh Embassy in Seoul and the Korean National Commission for UNESCO commemorated Language Martyrs’ Day and International Mother Language Day 2023 in Seoul on Wednesday. The day is celebrated every year worldwide to promote linguistic and cultural diversity as well as multilingualism. In honoring Bangladesh’s efforts to protect their language, UNESCO also declared Feb. 21 International Mother Language Day in 1999. Delivering opening remarks at the event, Bangladesh Ambassado

WASHINGTON -- The United States has no hostile intent toward North Korea, a state department spokesperson said Monday, adding that North Korea, on the other hand, continues to make provocations. The remarks come after the North cited what it claimed to be US hostility toward the country, while warning that US provocations against the North will be considered a "declaration of war." "It is the DPRK that time and again at an unprecedented rate has engaged in provocations, including

WASHINGTON -- South Korea and the United States are making "practical" progress in enhancing the implementation of US extended deterrence, South Korean ambassador to the US Cho Tae-yong said Monday. Cho also said the allies will hold additional joint exercises to further strengthen the extended deterrence. Extended deterrence refers to US commitment to the defense of South Korea, using the full range of its military capabilities, including nuclear weapons. "We have made practical

South Korea's National Assembly adopted a resolution Monday urging Japan to withdraw its bid to register a former gold mine linked to wartime forced labor as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Last month, the Japanese government submitted a recommendation letter again to the U.N. body for the listing of the mine on Sado Island, after the initial version, delivered in February last year, was deemed incomplete. Many Koreans were forced into hard labor in the mine during World War II, while Korea w

WASHINGTON -- The United States will likely limit the level of advanced semiconductors produced by South Korean companies in China to prevent the advanced technology from falling into the wrong hands, a ranking US official said Thursday. Alan Estevez, under secretary of commerce for industry and security, said the US is also working closely with South Korean companies that produce semiconductors in China to help minimize the potential damage to their business there. South Korean semiconductor pr

Ukraine, Polish ambassador join forces in Seoul to condemn Russia's continued aggression, Kyiv envoy suggests Yoon-Zelenskyy dialogue

WASHINGTON -- North Korea's continued missile provocations and its nuclear development program are not helpful to any country, including China, a state department spokesperson said Wednesday, two days after China blocked US-led efforts to condemn Pyongyang's latest ballistic missile tests. The department spokesperson, Ned Price, also reiterated that all United Nations member countries have the obligation to fully implement UN Security Council resolutions on North Korea. "The DPRK's ballisti

South Korea on Wednesday strongly denounced Japan’s fresh claim to the Dokdo islets, calling in Tokyo’s deputy envoy in Seoul in the latest flare-up in tension. “Historically, geographically and legally speaking, the islets -- Dokdo -- clearly belong to us and we urge Japan to stop repeating its unreasonable claims and face up to the history,” Korea’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement released shortly after a high-ranking Japanese official took part in an event a