Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon called Wednesday for international support for South Korea's efforts to reconcile with North Korea, saying peace on the Korean Peninsula will contribute to prosperity in Northeast Asia and beyond.Lee made the remark during a keynote speech at the Eastern Economic Forum in Russia's Far East city of Vladivostok, stressing that peace on the divided peninsula is a prerequisite for building a joint economic community in the region. Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon (far right). (Y

With prospects of a second summit between North Korea and the US cautiously growing, the leaders of the two countries would likely sit down for talks in a third country by October, if the meeting takes place, analysts say. Foreign policy experts interviewed by The Korea Herald all said that the summit is likely to take place by mid-October, as both North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and US President Donald Trump would like to use the meeting to appeal to their domestic audiences. 　Trump, who is emb

South Korea's Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon on Tuesday voiced optimism for three-way economic cooperation involving the two Koreas and Russia amid Seoul's stepped-up diplomacy to facilitate Pyongyang's denuclearization."On Sept. 18, there will be a third inter-Korean summit.High-level talks between the North and the United States are also expected to resume," Lee said during his speech at the South Korea-Russia Business Dialogue in the Russian far eastern port city of Vladivostok."There will be a n

South Korea's Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon on Tuesday expressed his expectation for Mongolia's cooperation on Seoul's proposal to build an East Asian railway community aimed at promoting multilateral exchanges, trust and peace. During his meeting with Mongolia's President Khaltmaa Battulga in Russia's far eastern port city of Vladivostok, Lee also voiced hope that the two countries will make progress in ongoing talks to elevate the bilateral relationship to a "strategic partnership." Prime Ministe

The US special envoy on North Korea said Tuesday that South Korea and the US need to make the most of the opportunity to achieve denuclearization amid growing momentum for a breakthrough in stalled denuclearization talks. “We have some hard work to do,” Stephen Biegun, special representative for North Korea, said in an opening speech during a meeting with his counterpart Lee Do-hoon. “But we also have a tremendous opportunity created by President Donald Trump and by President Moon Jae-in and by

The South Korean government said Tuesday it will send a delegate to the funeral of former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan this week.Choi Young-jin, the country's former ambassador to the United States, will attend the funeral, to be held in Ghana on Thursday, as the special envoy of Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha, according to her ministry. (Yonhap)Choi served as assistant secretary-general for Peacekeeping Operations at the UN while Annan was in office.He also worked as Seoul's ambassador to t

VLADIVOSTOK -- Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Tuesday he wants to improve and normalize Japan's relations with North Korea through direct talks with the North's leader Kim Jong-un.The remark, made during a meeting with South Korean Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon on the sidelines of the Eastern Economic Forum in Russia's Far East city of Vladivostok, is the latest in a series of comments Abe has made expressing hope for a summit with the North. (Yonhap)"I have a will to improve or normalize

South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha met Tuesday with the new US special envoy on North Korea amid signs of Pyongyang and Washington moving to resume dialogue.Stephen Biegun, the State Department's special representative for North Korea, arrived in Seoul on Monday as part of his Northeast Asia tour.He paid a courtesy call on Kang just before talks with his South Korean counterpart Lee Do-hoon. (Yonhap)Biegun said his visit here is meant for consultations on ways to "make progress in denu

VLADIVOSTOK -- Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon arrived in Vladivostok on Monday to attend an annual international economic forum and hold meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.About 6,000 people are expected to attend the Eastern Economic Forum, which Putin has hosted in Vladivostok every year since 2015, including Chinese President Xi Jinping, Abe and Mongolian President Khaltmaa Battulga. Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon arrives in Vladivostok on Monday. (Y

The US special envoy on North Korea began his three-day trip to Seoul on Monday to meet his counterparts here amid growing momentum for a breakthrough in stalled denuclearization talks. 　In his first visit to Seoul since his appointment last month, Stephen Biegun, special representative for North Korea, met with his counterpart Lee Do-hoon to be briefed on South Korean special envoys’ recent trip to Pyongyang and to discuss ways to achieve denuclearization.  Stephen Biegun (Yonhap)　　After arrivi

South Korean President Moon Jae-in and Indonesian President Joko Widodo were set to hold a summit Monday to discuss ways to increase their countries' bilateral and regional cooperation.Widodo arrived in Seoul on Sunday on a three-day state visit that reciprocated Moon's state visit to his country last year. The two leaders last met in Jakarta in November, in which they agreed to upgrade their countries' bilateral relationship to a "special strategic partnership." In a file photo taken on Nov. 9,

The top security adviser to South Korean President Moon Jae-in arrived in China on Saturday to explain the outcome of his recent visit to North Korea, officials said.    Chung Eui-yong flew to Beijing earlier in the day accompanied by Qiu Guohong, the Chinese Ambassador to South Korea, to meet with Yang Jiechi, a ranking member of China's Communist Party who is in charge of foreign affairs. Chung Eui-yong arrives at Beijing, China (Yonhap)    During the planned talks, Chung will share some detai

US President Donald Trump denied Friday that a former aide removed a letter from his desk to stop him from terminating a US trade deal with South Korea.    The Washington Post, citing a forthcoming book by one of its journalists, Bob Woodward, reported earlier this week that a former top economic adviser to Trump "stole a letter" off the president's desk.    The letter was intended to withdraw the US from its free trade agreement with South Korea, the book was quoted as saying.    Trump has vehe

WANJU -- South Korea's Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha said Friday that the peninsula faces a "historic moment for a lasting peace" ahead of another inter-Korean summit later this month aimed at catalyzing North Korea's denuclearization process.Kang made the remarks at a lecture two days after Seoul presidential envoys' one-day trip to the North, where they nailed down the date of the Pyongyang summit -- Sept. 18-20 -- and reconfirmed North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's commitment to denuclearizat

WASHINGTON -- A former senior adviser to US President Donald Trump removed a document from the president's desk to stop him from signing off on withdrawing the United States from a trade deal with South Korea, a news report citing an unpublished book said Tuesday.Bob Woodward, a Washington Post journalist known for his investigative reporting on the Watergate scandal, wrote up the anecdote in his new book, "Fear," set for release next week, the paper said.Woodward also wrote, based on in-depth i