UNESCO has delayed its review of multinational civic groups' request to register documents related to Japan's wartime sexual slavery of women on the list of "Memory of the World," the South Korean culture ministry said Tuesday.In May 2016, 15 civic groups from 8 countries, including South Korea and China, made an official request for the UNESCO listing of documents related to women, mostly Koreans, forced into sexual slavery for Japanese troops during World War II. The victims are euphemisticall

Korea is not considering any additional deployments of the US’ Terminal High Attitude Area Defense anti-missile system, Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha told lawmakers Monday. She also reiterated that the country won’t participate in the US-led missile defense networks. Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha answers lawmakers during a parliamentary audit at the National Assembly in Yeouido, western Seoul on Monday. Yonhap“We are not considering any additional THAAD deployments,” Kang told a parliamentar

SHENYANG, China -- Three local governments in northeastern China have sent home hundreds of South Korean religious people operating there since late last year and taken measures to have their churches closed, as China is expected to implement ramped-up regulations to control religious activities early next year, sources close to the situation said Monday. From late last year to the first half of this year, the authorities in the three provinces -- Liaoning, Jilin and Heilongjiang -- had hundreds

TOKYO -- Japan renewed its territorial claim to South Korea's easternmost islets of Dokdo in teaching materials posted on a government website Sunday in a move that could draw a protest from Seoul.The materials made by Saitama Prefecture claimed that Dokdo is Japanese territory and South Korea's occupation of the islets is illegal. South Korea has kept a small police detachment on Dokdo since 1956.Other materials made by Shimane Prefecture -- which claims administrative sovereignty over the rock

With President Moon Jae-in and Chinese President Xi Jinping slated for a summit next month, expectations are growing that the neighboring states, at odds for months over a US missile defense system called THAAD, may finally find a way to untangle the knotty conflict. Two governments are working to resolve their diplomatic dispute over the deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Defense Area anti-missile system on the Korean Peninsula, before the leaders meet, Seoul officials said Sunday. “We ar

South Korea will closely cooperate with the United States to bring about a peaceful resolution to the North Korean nuclear issue, South Korea’s new ambassador to the US said Thursday. He said it is crucial to find out North Korea’s true intention behind its moves and pointed to bilateral cooperation as key to the task. Ambassador to the US Cho Yoon-je (left) and Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha (right). (Yonhap)“Currently, we are in the process of seeking ways to solve the issue, as no one has a

Tehran Mayor Mohammad Ali Najafi on Friday expressed hopes for South Korean companies' investment in the country, especially in the construction, manufacturing and energy sectors.He was in Korea to attend the OECD Champion Mayors for Inclusive Growth, an international mayors' forum jointly hosted by the Seoul Metropolitan Government and OECD.(Yonhap)"I met with a dozen Korean industries to talk about business opportunities... We expect their participation in our city transportation projects, suc

South Korean Defense Minister Song Young-moo will visit the Philippines next week to attend an international security meeting led by Southeast Asian countries, his ministry said Friday.The defense chiefs of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and eight dialogue partners will huddle together in Clark, Pampanga, some 80 kilometers north of Manila, on Monday and Tuesday.The other member states are the US, China, Japan, Russia, Australia, India and New Zealand. South Korean Defense Minister S

South Korea voiced concern Tuesday over a ritual offering sent by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to a controversial war-linked shrine, urging Tokyo to show its repentance for its past wrongdoings through sincere actions."The Korean government expresses concern over responsible Japanese politicians sending offerings again to the Yasukuni Shrine, which glorifies its history of wars of aggression," Noh Kyu-duk, foreign ministry spokesman, told a regular press briefing.Japanese Prime Minister Sh

South Korea's foreign ministry on Tuesday strongly condemned the latest bombings in Mogadishu, Somalia, that killed hundreds of innocent people, calling it a "terror" act that can never be tolerated. In a statement issued in the name of its spokesman, the ministry expressed deep condolences to the victims and their heartbroken families and promised to keep working together with the international community to eradicate such terror activities. Turkish doctors transport a critically wounded man on

South Korea and Australia voiced strong concerns Friday over rising tensions caused by North Korea's continued provocations and emphasized the importance of diplomatic efforts to tackle the current nuclear stalemate.Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha and Defense Minister Song Young-moo met with their Australian counterparts, Julie Bishop and Marise Payne, in Seoul for the third biennial "two-plus-two" talks, which were launched in 2013."We shared our deep concerns that the North's nuclear threats h

Chinese police asked South Korean citizens near the North Korea-China border to evacuate the area due to risks of an attack and abduction by the North, Seoul’s Foreign Ministry said Thursday. “We are aware that Chinese authorities have suggested South Korean citizens there evacuate on the possibility of an attack by North Korea,” the ministry here said.  Border bridge connecting North Korea`s Manpo and China`s Jian. (Yonhap)Local media reports said Tuesday that Chinese police warned around 10 So

RIGA, Latvia – Latvia will participate in next year’s PyeongChang Winter Olympics despite security concerns over North Korea’s weapons of mass destruction program, its president Raimonds Vejonis has confirmed. In an interview with Korean media, the leader also confirmed his official visit to South Korea in February, timed to coincide with the sports event. Latvian president Raimonds Vejonis (Yonhap)“I will be the first Latvian president to visit your country,” Vejonis told a group of Korean repo

 U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is making his second trip to China since taking office in February, and relations between the two world powers have rarely mattered so much.    The standoff over North Korea's nuclear weapons has entered a new, dangerous phase as its leader, Kim Jong Un, and President Donald Trump exchange personal insults and threats of war with no sign of a diplomatic solution.    Even as Washington and Beijing grapple with that security crisis, Trump wants action from Ch

South Korea's new top envoy to Beijing said Friday that it is necessary to assure China both politically and technologically that a US missile defense system installed here is not targeting it.Noh Young-min, set to leave for China next month, said that he will do his utmost to remove any misunderstandings that China has about the armament called THAAD by meeting Chinese leaders and experts. (Yonhap)"I think that China will believe if we explain with sincerity that it was installed to defend agai