Following its energy transition strategy, the European Union has announced that the production of petrol cars within the EU market will be halted after 2035, as confirmed by the European Parliament last week. Overall adherence to this goal among EU member states has thus far been encouraging. In 2021, 19 percent of all newly registered passenger vehicles in the EU were electric, with more than 1.2 million EV cars sold. In some countries, such as Norway, 75 percent of all newly registered cars we

Ukraine is hoping for South Korea's defense support in its fight against Russia, said the Ukrainian Embassy in Seoul on Monday. The comments came after President Yoon Suk Yeol said that South Korea could provide aid beyond humanitarian or financial support if Ukraine comes under large-scale attacks against civilians in an interview with Reuters on Wednesday. Korea can support Ukraine by providing state-of-the-art Korean-made defense equipment, said the embassy. "The continuation of tim

South Korea sent an economic delegation, including officials from Samsung Electronics Co. and other major firms, to Sweden and Norway this week to explore ways to boost cooperation on supply chains and future industries with the respective nations, the Industry Ministry said Tuesday. The delegation, led by senior ministry official Moon Dong-min, visited Sweden on Monday and held talks with ranking officials there on how to expand ties on bio, batteries, future vehicles, renewable energy and digi

WASHINGTON -- President Yoon Suk Yeol arrived in Washington on Monday for a six-day state visit expected to strengthen the allies' response to North Korea's nuclear threat and other challenges in a symbolic year marking the 70th anniversary of the alliance. Under the theme "alliance in action, toward the future," the visit comes at a time of growing concern over North Korea's evolving nuclear and missile capabilities and questions about the credibility of Washington'

South Korea evacuated its nationals from strife-torn Sudan and transported them to Saudi Arabia before heading home, the presidential office in Seoul said Monday evening. The group of 26 Koreans on board a KC-330 multi-role tanker aircraft is set to arrive at Seoul Air Base in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, on Tuesday afternoon, said Lim Jong-deuk, the second deputy director of the National Security Office. Two South Korean nationals will stay in the Saudi Arabian city of Jeddah because they did n

Agenda to focus on level of bilateral agreement on extended deterrence

South Korea on Monday put Japan back on its "white list" of trusted trading partners, three years after the removal, in a move to improve their bilateral economic and diplomatic relationship, the industry ministry said. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy issued a revision to its public notice on exports and imports of strategic items in the day that calls for restoring Japan's fast-track trade status, allowing companies that export strategic items to Japan to enjoy a short

China has continued to pounce on South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol’s remarks on the Taiwan issue, raising tensions between the two countries, especially in the run-up to the South Korea-US summit where the leaders will discuss the alliance’s role in maintaining peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region as one of the key agenda topics. China’s Foreign Ministry on Sunday belatedly unveiled that Vice Foreign Minister Sun Weidong lodged a formal diplomatic protest about the

WASHINGTON -- South Korea's new ambassador to the United States Cho Hyun-dong met the US State Department's point man on East Asia on Friday to discuss preparations for the upcoming Seoul-Washington summit and other pending issues. During his meeting with Daniel Kritenbrink, assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, Cho stressed that he will do his utmost to make the summit meeting between South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and US President Joe Biden a success.

Four crew members from a Russian fishing boat were found dead after a vessel caught fire off the southeastern coast near Ulsan on Friday morning, while the other 21 were rescued, the Russian Embassy in Seoul and South Korea’s Coast Guard said Friday. All 25 crew members were Russian nationals, and two crew members who were rescued have reportedly sustained minor burns. Russia’s Ambassador to South Korea, Andrey Kulik, was quoted saying that he would like to “express his deepest

Chinese Foreign Minister said Friday Taiwan belongs to China, vowing to fight off anyone threatening to dispute the fact, a day after South Korea summoned China’s top envoy in Seoul for Beijing’s open criticism of President Yoon Suk Yeol’s remarks on Taiwan. The Chinese Foreign Ministry said Thursday it will not allow others to “meddle in conversations involving the Taiwan issue,” in response to Yoon’s interview with Reuters this week. He opposed changing the

South Korea on Friday expressed regret over mass visits by Japanese lawmakers to the controversial Yasukuni Shrine, a move Seoul sees as an attempt to whitewash Tokyo’s wartime wrongs since the shrine honors 14 World War II leaders convicted as war criminals. Earlier in the same day, some 90 lawmakers from several political parties paid their respects, with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida sending an offering to the shrine. He has done so five times since October 2021, when he took of

ULSAN -- A Russian fishing boat carrying 25 people caught fire off the southeastern coastal city of Ulsan early Friday, leaving four of them missing, Coast Guard officials said. The 769-ton vessel was carrying 100 tons of seafood in waters off Ulsan, about 300 kilometers southeast of Seoul, toward Russia when the fire broke out at 12:43 a.m., the officials said. All crew members were Russian. After receiving a distress call, the Coast Guard sent rescue ships to the scene, but four crew members w

WASHINGTON -- The United States takes its defense commitment to South Korea "very, very seriously," a White House official said Thursday, following Russia's threat to arm North Korea if South Korea sends lethal assistance to Ukraine. John Kirby, National Security Council coordinator for strategic communications, said the US is grateful for the support South Korea has already provided to Ukraine. "I would just remind that we have a treaty alliance with South Korea. We take that com

The foreign ministry strongly denounced China for committing a "serious diplomatic discourtesy" Thursday after a Chinese official branded President Yoon Suk Yeol's recent comments on Taiwan as a verbal meddling by others. The ministry issued the statement after the Chinese foreign ministry's spokesperson, Wang Wenbin, said earlier in the day Beijing would not allow others to meddle by word, in reference to Yoon's media interview the previous day in which that he expresse