South Korean and Japanese parliamentary leaders met Friday and agreed on the need to develop bilateral ties in a future-oriented manner.Chung Sye-kyun, speaker of South Korea's National Assembly, held talks with leaders of the Japan-Korea Parliamentarians' Union on the last day of his three-day trip to Japan. South Korea's National Assembly Speaker Chung Sye-kyun speaks during a lunch meeting with Fukushiro Nukaga, chief of the Japan-Korea Parliamentarians' Union, in Tokyo on June 9, 2017, in th

A senior US official is to visit South Korea next week to discuss a summit likely to be held later this month between the two allies, the foreign ministry said Friday.Thomas Shannon, under secretary of state for political affairs, will land in South Korea on Tuesday for a three-day run, according to the ministry.  (Yonhap)He is expected to discuss with high-ranking government officials here, including Vice Foreign Minister Lim Sung-nam, a summit being arranged between US President Donald Trump a

WASHINGTON -- The United States believes South Korean won't reverse the decision to host the THAAD missile defense system, the Pentagon said Wednesday after Seoul suspended the deployment pending an environmental assessment.Seoul's presidential office, Cheong Wa Dae, said earlier in the day that deployment of four launchers for the THAAD battery should wait until the environmental study is over, though two, already-deployed launchers won't be withdrawn.The US could see the suspension as a setbac

As opposition lawmakers waged attacks over suspected irregularities, Foreign Minister nominee Kang Kyung-wha apologized while defending against some of their allegations and stressing her credentials as a seasoned diplomat, during her confirmation hearing Wednesday. The National Assembly grilled the former UN official together with Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister nominee Kim Dong-yeon and Constitutional Court President nominee Kim Yi-su in separate sessions. Opposition legislators rel

MUAN -- A group of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's special envoys will visit South Korea's southwestern province of South Jeolla as part of a four-day trip to South Korea, officials at the provincial government said Wednesday.The group, led by Toshihiro Nikai, secretary general of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party, will make a stopover in Mokpo, a coastal city in the province, on Saturday-Sunday before departing for Seoul to hold talks with South Korean President Moon Jae-in to convey

LOS ANGELES -- Polls opened Tuesday in a California by-election that could produce the first Korean-American member of the House of Representatives in more than 18 years.The run-off vote in California's 34th district pits Robert Ahn, a Los Angeles city planning commissioner, against California Assemblyman Jimmy Gomez. Should Ahn win the election, he would be the first Korean-American to serve in the House since Jay Kim served in the House from 1993 to 1999.(Yonhap)The election was set up after X

Former US nuclear negotiator Robert Gallucci has been appointed chief of a Washington-based think tank specializing in Korean issues.Gallucci, who served as chief nuclear negotiator with North Korea during the first nuclear crisis in the early 1990s, has taken office as chairman of the US-Korea Institute at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, the institute announced. (Yonhap)The website 38 North, known for its expertise on North Korea issues, is also run by the institute.

BEIJING -- Chinese police believe the Chinese driver of a school bus held responsible for a fatal bus fire that killed 11 children and a teacher last month posed as a victim in an apparent attempt to claim damages, diplomatic sources said Monday.The Shandong provincial police agency shared their belief with the bereaved families of the victims on Sunday when they briefed them on the completion of their investigation into the cause of the incident. This provided photo shows the bus that was gutte

As the world focuses on neutralizing North Korea’s nuclear and missile brinksmanship, equal attention should be given to grave human rights violations in the country, a former United Nations official said, stressing “there can be no security without accountability.”For Michael Kirby, former chair of the Commission of Inquiry on Human Rights in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, the issue has been close to his heart. He grew up in postwar Australia watching newsreels of Nazi concentration

Marking the 50th anniversary of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and the ASEAN-Korea Cultural Exchange Year, a culinary and tourism promotional event took place at Coex in Seoul from Thursday to Sunday. Ten celebrity chefs from the 10 member states flew to Korea for the event and showcased their national dishes, including Brunei’s ilkan goreng berkuah, Cambodia’s prahok ktiss, Indonesia’s sate maranggi, Laos’ laab kai, Malaysia’s pulut kuning and rendang, Myanmar’s shan noodle salad, t

The Eastern Economic Corridor in Thailand is an axis of industrial estates southeast of Bangkok. It is the Thai government’s flagship project to turn the country into the hub of the region’s advanced industries and commercial networks. Comprised of the Pin Thong Industrial Estate, Hemraj Eastern Seaboard Industrial Estate, Amata City Industrial Estate and Rayong Industrial Estate, the scheme integrally underpins the “Thailand 4.0” economic restructuring initiative, aimed at spurring entrepreneur

NEW YORK -- A US school for children with disabilities said Sunday it will dedicate a statue next week in memory of a South Korean boy murdered by his American adoptive father.The Linwood Center, located in Howard County, the US state of Maryland, said on its website that it will hold a ceremony marking the dedication of the sculpture called "Hyunsu's Butterfly" on the school's premises on June 12. This provided photo, taken on Feb. 24, 2014, shows flowers placed in front of a photo of Hyunsoo O

SINGAPORE -- North Korea has been in the spotlight at the forum here of top defense officials from around the world, reflecting increased global concern about its military threats, officials here said Sunday.“The biggest characteristics of the session this time is that more attention has been paid to the North Korean nuclear and missile issue than in the previous ones,” said South Korean Defense Minister Han Min-koo. This photo provided by the Seoul defense ministry shows Han Min-koo, South Kore

SINGAPORE -- A top Russian defense official on Sunday accused South Korea and the US of escalating tensions in Northeast Asia by deploying the powerful Terminal High Altitude Area Defense on the Korean Peninsula.Deputy Defense Minster Lt. Gen. Alexander Fomin claimed the missile system can be used for launching "long-distance attack missiles," and should not be viewed exclusively as a defensive system."That's why we are alarmed. It's a direct threat to Russia," he said, speaking at a plenary ses