South Korea and Japan failed to defuse a deepening trade and diplomatic row on Thursday, the eve of Tokyo's widely expected decision to strip Seoul of a preferential trade status in a move sure to aggravate the already high tensions.After the talks with her Japanese counterpart, Taro Kono, in Thailand ended with little progress, Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha warned that Seoul could reconsider a rare line of bilateral security cooperation if Tokyo presses ahead to remove South Korea from its &q

The top nuclear envoys of South Korea and the United States have held bilateral talks in Thailand to discuss North Korea's recent missile launches and joint efforts to resume nuclear talks with the regime, Seoul's foreign ministry said Thursday.Lee Do-hoon and his US counterpart, Stephen Biegun, met Wednesday in Bangkok on the sidelines of a series of multilateral meetings involving the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)."The two sides exchanged their analysis on recent and curr

US suggested Seoul, Tokyo consider a ‘standstill agreement’: report

Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha left for Thailand on Wednesday to attend a series of bilateral and multilateral talks amid a trade row with Japan and limited progress in efforts to resume nuclear talks between Washington and Pyongyang.Kang plans to attend the annual gatherings involving the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in Bangkok, such as the ASEAN Regional Forum, which are slated to take place from Thursday to Saturday.The minister will use the regional meetings to highlight the impor

US Defense Secretary Mark Esper will visit South Korea next month as part of a trip to Asia, the Pentagon said Tuesday.Esper's trip comes as the United States reportedly wants Seoul to increase its contribution to the upkeep of 28,500 American troops stationed in its Asian ally's territory.The new defense secretary, who took office last week, will leave Friday on a trip to Hawaii, Sydney, Auckland, Tokyo, Ulaanbaatar and Seoul, the Pentagon said in a press release.  During his stay in Seoul

The United Nations Security Council has granted a sanctions exemption to an Italian company for the transfer of funds to support the European Union Food Security Office's humanitarian assistance projects in North Korea, its website showed Tuesday.A UN committee overseeing sanctions approved the waiver for Agriconsulting SA -- which was awarded an "EU tender for providing technical support for food-related matters" to the North - on July 1, according to the UN website.AESA plans to spen

The conflict between South Korea and Japan over trade and historical issues is likely to intensify in the coming days, but prospects of a diplomatic solution remain unclear. Foreign Affairs Minister Kang Kyung-wha said in a Cabinet meeting Friday that there is “significant” possibility of Japan removing Korea from its whitelist of trade partners. Such a move will result in Japanese firms requiring government approval for individual shipments to Korea of most materials and produc

South Korea and the United States are in talks over a possible visit to Seoul by new US Defense Secretary Mark Esper as part of his first Asia trip since taking office last week, a government official here said Tuesday.Esper is considering taking a five-nation trip to East Asia next month, which would include stops in South Korea and Japan, the official said, noting that when he visits Seoul has yet to be decided. "I understand that (the two sides) are making the final coordination (over th

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is unlikely to meet South Korean President Moon Jae-in during the United Nations general assembly in September, the Sankei newspaper reported, the latest sign of frosty relations between the key US allies.Abe will not hold talks with Moon unless Seoul takes constructive steps over World War-Two era forced labourers and other issues, the Japanese daily said on Monday.Abe will also forgo meeting Moon during other opportunities, including an Association of Southea

A senior South Korean diplomat stationed in Japan is reportedly under police investigation for allegedly molesting a female subordinate employee.The Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission has referred the case to the police after receiving a tip on the consul general's alleged sexual harassment, according to a foreign ministry official. "The commission has not revealed details of the incident to the ministry," the official said. The diplomat is known to be currently in South

US President Donald Trump said Friday he is not upset by North Korea's ballistic missile launches earlier this week, signaling a commitment to continuing nuclear talks with the regime.Trump's remarks came after North Korea test-fired two short-range ballistic missiles on Thursday (Seoul time) in the first such provocation since early May.Asked by reporters if he was upset, Trump said, "Nope, not at all.""They're short-range missiles and my relationship is very good with Chair

Lawmakers from South Korea, the United States and Japan met in Washington on Friday to help boost trilateral cooperation and resolve a trade dispute between Seoul and Tokyo.The biannual meeting, organized by The Maureen and Mike Mansfield Foundation, came at a time of tense relations between the two US allies over Japan's adoption of stricter export controls against South Korea earlier this month.The controls, which affect exports of key materials used in the production of semiconductors and dis

A bipartisan group of South Korean lawmakers arrived in Washington on Wednesday on a visit expected to focus on efforts to resolve a growing trade dispute between Seoul and Tokyo.Five members of the delegation arrived first, with the other two scheduled to arrive Thursday. The group is led by Rep. Chung Sye-kyun of the ruling Democratic Party, a former parliamentary speaker.The main purpose of the visit is to attend a biannual meeting with US and Japanese lawmakers on Friday. But noting the timi

The United States asked its partner nations last week, including South Korea, to join a US-led military coalition to protect strategically vital waters off Iran, Seoul's top envoy to Washington said Wednesday.In a briefing with reporters, South Korean Ambassador to the US Cho Yoon-je said the request was made Friday during a State Department-hosted briefing with the Washington-based diplomatic corps."The US explained its plan for ensuring the safety of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, an

South Korea and Russia will hold working-level talks this week over a recent mid-air standoff over the East Sea after the sides offered conflicting accounts of the incident, an official at Seoul's defense ministry said Wednesday, "Director-level talks between South Korea and Russia over the airspace intrusion will be held Thursday in Seoul," a ministry official said on the condition of anonymity.  On Tuesday, South Korea said a Russian warplane intruded into its airspace above the