In South Korea, soldiers who fought alongside the US against communist forces during the 1960-1975 Vietnam War are widely hailed as patriots whose dedication and sacrifice contributed to the nation’s rapid economic rise. Some Vietnamese, however, testify that they still have vivid memories of Korean troops killing their families, friends and neighbors and burning their homes in the US-led conflict five decades ago. “Beyond admitting that South Korea has a debt of heart to Vietnam, the country sh

Seoul proposes high-level talks on summit with North Korea ahead of summit

President Moon Jae-in on Wednesday floated the possibility of a three-way summit among the two Koreas and the United States."Holding a North Korea-US summit following a South-North Korea summit itself is a historical event. And depending on their outcomes, they may lead to a three-way summit of South, North and US," Moon said while attending a meeting of Seoul's preparation committee for the upcoming inter-Korean dialogue, held at his office Cheong Wa Dae."We must completely resolve the issues o

South Korea has agreed with China and Japan to hold a three-way summit in May to discuss ways to boost economic, environmental and cultural cooperation, Japan’s Kyodo News Agency reported Tuesday.The summit is to be chaired by Japan and attended by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, South Korean President Moon Jae-in and Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, possibly on May 8-9, the report said.The last such trilateral summit was held about two years ago in November 2015 in Seoul.  From left: South Korea

BRASILIA -- South Korean Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon had a brief encounter with Japan's Crown Prince Naruhito on the sidelines of an international conference in Brazil on Monday and talked about relations between the two countries and the situation on the Korean Peninsula, officials said.The three-minute meeting happened as Lee approached Naruhito and offered his greetings ahead of the opening of the 8th World Water Forum at Brazil's foreign ministry in Brasilia. Both Lee and Naruhito delivered k

A meeting attended by a senior North Korea diplomat, former US officials and academics from South Korea and the US is set to kick off Tuesday in Finland, which could mark a chance to explore the North’s sincerity about its denuclearization pledges and talks with the US. 　Choe Kang-il, deputy director general for North American affairs at North Korea’s Foreign Ministry, arrived in Helsinki, Finland, to attend a dinner with the Finnish government on Monday and a two-day meeting with former US offi

　With South Korea and the US scrambling to present a united front ahead of historic summits with North Korea, the allies’ top security advisers held a trilateral meeting with their Japanese counterpart to avoid “past mistakes” in dealing with the decadeslong standoff over Pyongyang’s nuclear program. 　According to Cheong Wa Dae on Monday, National Security Office chief Chung Eui-yong met with his US counterpart H.R. McMaster and Japan’s Shotaro Yachi in San Francisco for a trilateral meeting ove

The city governments of Seoul and Beijing agreed Monday to designate liaison officers tasked with exchanging information on fine dust gripping the two capital cities in what officials dubbed a "fine dust hotline."Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon and Beijing Mayor Chen Jining also agreed to form a joint air quality research team to study ways to reduce fine dust as they held a biennial meeting of the cooperation committee between the two cities.The two sides agreed to hold an air quality forum on a regu

South Korea and its four middle-power partners issued a statement Sunday welcoming the revived peace efforts driven by the PyeongChang Winter Games.(Yonhap)The foreign ministers of MIKTA, a cross-regional cooperative forum of South Korea, Mexico, Indonesia, Turkey and Australia, also celebrated the success of the Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games."The 2018 PyeongChang Winter Games brought together the global community comprising a record number of 92 countries, including the Democratic People'

South Korea’s top diplomat said that she is confident of Washington’s commitment to the alliance and the troop presence in the country during an interview with a US media outlet aired Sunday, as the allies seek to boost coordination amid a diplomatic opening with North Korea. Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha said on CBS News’ “Face the Nation” that US President Donald Trump’s apparent threat to remove US troops from South Korea over a trade dispute “raises eyebrows,” but the country remains “abso

WASHINGTON -- The top diplomats of South Korea and Japan agreed Saturday to strengthen coordination amid a flurry of diplomacy with North Korea and pending bilateral issues, the South's foreign ministry said.South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha met with her Japanese counterpart, Taro Kono, in Washington on the margins of a three-day official visit here.They exchanged views mainly on North Korea and Seoul-Tokyo ties, with both sides agreeing the planned summits between Seoul and Pyongyang

Korea will continue its efforts to tackle climate change utilizing cutting-edge technologies and is willing to fund climate change-battling projects for developing countries, a senior government official said Friday.In a meeting with Frank Rijsberman, director-general of the Global Green Growth Institute, Deputy Finance Minister Ko Hyung-kwon lauded the Seoul-based organization for playing a key role in raising global awareness of climate change.Ko said Korea is dedicated to actively participati

WASHINGTON -- South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha arrived in Washington Thursday to meet with US officials over the two nations' planned summits with North Korea.South Korean President Moon Jae-in is set to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in late April, while US President Donald Trump has said he will meet with Kim before the end of May.Both meetings are expected to focus on ways to rid the North of its nuclear weapons program."I think (South Korea and the US) will need to coo

Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha left for Washington on Thursday to meet US officials for discussions on North Korean issues as Washington and Pyongyang prepare for a historic summit in May. 　Kang plans to meet acting Secretary of State John Sullivan, Ivanka Trump, senior adviser to her father President Donald Trump, and key congressional leaders including Paul Ryan, speaker of the House of Representatives, in Washington, according to the Foreign Ministry. 　They are expected to discuss recent dev