WASHINGTON -- The United States is willing to listen to any concerns North Korea may have but only if North Korea engages in dialogue, a Department of State spokesperson said Monday, urging Pyongyang to return to diplomacy. Ned Price also reiterated the North will continue to face consequences until it ceases its escalatory actions. "We are willing to listen to the full range of the DPRK's concerns, but this can only happen through dialogue and the DPRK has not yet given any concrete indica

US special envoy for North Korea travels to Seoul, urges North Korea to return to ‘path of dialogue’

Rep. Park Jin condemns North Korea’s latest missile provocations

Malaysia on Monday expressed support for South Korea's bid to join a mega free trade deal in the Asia-Pacific region, Seoul's trade ministry said. Malaysia's Senior Minister and International Trade and Industry Minister Mohamed Azmin Ali has voiced support for Seoul's envisioned entry into the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) during a virtual meeting with South Korea's Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo. Last week, South Korea announced its decision to join

      VATICAN CITY -- Pope Francis on Sunday called for peace in Ukraine during this "Easter of war" as he delivered the traditional Easter Sunday Urbi et Orbi address on St. Peter's Square at the Vatican.    "May there be peace for war-torn Ukraine, so sorely tried by the violence and destruction of the cruel and senseless war into which it was dragged," the pontiff said.    "Our eyes, too, are incredulous on this Easter

KYIV, Ukraine -- The battered port city of Mariupol appeared on the brink of falling to Russian forces Sunday after seven weeks under siege, a development that what would give Moscow a crucial success in Ukraine following a botched attempt to storm the capital and the loss of the Russian navy's Black Sea flagship.    The Russian military estimated that about 2,500 Ukrainian fighters holding out at a hulking steel plant with a warren of underground passageways provided the last pocket

South Korea's President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol plans to send a delegation to Japan later this month for policy consultations on North Korea and pending bilateral issues, his transition team said Sunday. Led by Rep. Chung Jin-suk of Yoon's People Power Party, the delegation will visit Tokyo from April 24-28 to meet officials from the Japanese government and legislature as well as those from business circles, media and academia, according to the transition team's spokesperson Bae Hyun-jin. The seven-

South Korea decided Friday to join a mega free trade agreement involving 11 Asia-Pacific nations as the country seeks to diversify its export portfolio amid heightened economic uncertainty. Late last year, the country launched the process to accede to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership. The plan to join the CPTPP was approved at an economy-related ministers' meeting Friday, and the government will submit an official application after completing domestic p

Seoul will send relief goods for Koreans under a massive mandatory COVID-19 lockdown in Shanghai, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Friday. “While Shanghai City announced to ease the lockdown measures, some areas are still in lockdown so we are closely monitoring the situation and putting effort to resolve problems for the people in those neighborhoods,” the Foreign Ministry said. The South Korean consulate general in Shanghai has obtained two vehicle passes from the Chinese g

South Korean Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong expressed “serious concerns” over Russia’s alleged killing of civilians in Ukraine and promised to provide humanitarian support during a phone call with his Ukrainian counterpart, his office said Friday. Speaking with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, Chung explained how South Korea plans to provide humanitarian assistance of worth $30 million to Ukraine, in addition to the previous $10 million in support. Chung also exp

The South Korean government made public a dossier Friday offering a glimpse into dramatic Cold-War era diplomacy by the two Koreas in connection with their historic simultaneous entry into full membership in the United Nations. The set of documents highlights Seoul's brisk efforts in 1991 to court Moscow and Beijing to support its push to join the world body, which played a key role in mobilizing US-led troops to help the South fight against the invading North in their 1950-53 war. It is part of

WASHINGTON -- North Korea is currently in a provocation cycle that may last for weeks or even months, US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said Thursday. Sullivan also said the North will continue efforts to advance its nuclear and missile programs, but that the capability to hit the US mainland has yet to be proven. "A few weeks ago, they tested an intercontinental ballistic missile, which they had not done previously, they had not done since 2017. So yes, they are in a pattern of pr

WASHINGTON -- The United States is closely monitoring North Korea for possible provocations, a US state department spokesperson said Thursday. Ned Price made the remarks as Pyongyang celebrates the 110th anniversary of the birthday of its late founding leader Kim Il-sung on Friday (Seoul time). "What I can say and what we know is that the DPRK in the past has used the occasion of holidays and other notable occasions within the DPRK to engage in provocations," the spokesperson said in a

WASHINGTON -- South Korea's incoming administration will expand the country's diplomatic efforts based on a stronger US-South Korea alliance, President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol said in an interview published Thursday. Yoon also said he will seek to improve ties with Japan, calling current Seoul-Tokyo relations "the Achilles' heel" of trilateral cooperation between South Korea, Japan and the US. "The current administration placed too much emphasis on the relationship with North Korea al

South Korea's Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo and British Ambassador to South Korea Colin Crooks on Thursday discussed ways of cooperation on joining a mega free trade deal in the Asia-Pacific region and supply chains, Seoul's trade ministry said. During the meeting in Seoul, Yeo asked for Britain's support in South Korea's push for membership to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The Seoul govern