South Korea and Iran held talks here Thursday on enhancing two-way cooperation in light of international negotiations aimed at curbing Iran's nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief.  The annual policy meeting, led by Kwon Hee-seog, director-general of the Africa and Middle East affairs bureau, and his Iranian counterpart, Abdolrassoul Mohajer, came just weeks before the June 30 target date for the nuclear deal between Iran and the P5+1 group of the United States, Britain, China, Russia

The chairman of the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee said Wednesday he understands South Korean President Park Geun-hye's decision to postpone her trip to Washington.  Park had planned to visit the U.S. next week, but put it off at the last minute earlier Wednesday in order to oversee South Korea's response to the massive outbreak of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome that has sickened 108 people and claimed nine lives.  The decision reflected her commitment to containing the viral disease ami

South Korea is considering sending a high-level official, potentially Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se, to Japan to explore ways to enhance bilateral ties and to mark the 50th anniversary of the normalization of their relationship, Seoul officials said Wednesday.“On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the normalization of the bilateral relationship, we are considering sending an ‘appropriate’ high-level official to Japan,” an official at Seoul’s Foreign Ministry said on condition of anonymity.

South Korea and Iran will hold talks this week on Tehran's pending nuclear deal with major world powers, the political situation on the Korean Peninsula and other issues of mutual concern, the Foreign Ministry said Wednesday.  The annual policy talks will be held in Seoul on Thursday, led by Kwon Hee-seog, director-general of the Africa and Middle East affairs bureau, and his Iranian counterpart, Abdolrassoul Mohajer Hejazi, the ministry said in a press release.  "During the policy talks, the tw

South Korea and Japan will meet again this week over Seoul's demand that Tokyo apologize for its wartime sex slavery, the Foreign Ministry said Wednesday.  The eighth round of talks will be held in Tokyo on Thursday, led by Lee Sang-deok, the Foreign Ministry's director-general of the Northeast Asia affairs bureau, and his Japanese counterpart, Junichi Ihara, the ministry said in a press release.  The talks come as both countries have been seeking a breakthrough in their strained ties in a year

Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se is considering visiting Tokyo to mend ties between South Korea and Japan, which have been strained over the past years for Japan's failure to apologize for its wartime atrocities, government officials said Wednesday.  The bilateral ties have soured under the current administrations of President Park Geun-hye and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe due to disputes over their shared history, including the issue of Korean women who were forced into sexual slavery for Japanese so

The new head of the U.S. Pacific Command reaffirmed  Wednesday stern responses to any provocations by the "dangerous and unpredictable" North Korea based upon the steadfast alliance with South Korea.  Adm. Harry Harris, chief of the U.S. Pacific Command, made the pledge during his visit to the South Korean Navy's 2nd Fleet Command in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, some 70 kilometers south of Seoul, where he paid tribute to sailors killed in the North's deadly attack on the South Korean warship C

U.S. senators have introduced a resolution welcoming South Korean President Park Geun-hye's upcoming visit to Washington, congressional records showed Tuesday.  Sen. Cory Gardner (R-CO) initiated the resolution (S.Res.194) on Monday, together with Sen. Benjamin Cardin (D-MD) as a co-sponsor. It was titled "a resolution welcoming the President of the Republic of Korea on her official visit to the United States and celebrating the United States-Republic of Korea relationship, and for other purpose

Seoul and Tokyo struggled Tuesday to hammer out a compromise over Japan’s bid to put its major “industrial revolution” sites, including those related to Koreans’ colonial-era forced labor, on the World Heritage list.During the second round of talks in Seoul, they engaged in another intense debate with Seoul maintaining Tokyo should exclude seven of the 23 sites of “Japan’s Meiji Industrial Revolution” ― where nearly 57,900 Koreans were forced to work during the 1910-45 colonial era ― from its ca

South Korea and Japan ended another round of talks Tuesday with no breakthrough in their sparring over Japan's bid to put some historical sites on the UNESCO World Heritage list, an official here said.Japan has applied to list 23 historical industrial facilities, including coal mines and shipyards, under the period of 1850-1910.South Korea is strongly against the bid as it includes seven sites where nearly 60,000 Koreans were forced to work especially in the 1940s during Japan's 1910-45 occupati

A former top Japanese official said Tuesday many women from Korea and other nations were forcibly recruited as "comfort women" for Japanese troops during World War II.  Former Chief Cabinet Secretary Yohei Kono cited dozens of Dutch women from a prison camp in Indonesia who were coerced into providing sexual services.  "It is a clear case that the military forcefully took them and made them serve as comfort women," he said in a discussion with former Prime Minister Tomichi Murayama.  More than 2

South Korea and Japan held their second round of talks Tuesday to settle a dispute over Japan's bid to win UNESCO World Heritage status for historical industrial sites linked to wartime Korean slave labor.  The talks, led by Choi Jong-moon, South Korean ambassador for cultural and UNESCO affairs, and Jun Shimmi, the Japanese foreign ministry's director-general for cultural affairs, came after their first meeting on May 22 failed to produce a breakthrough.  South Korea is strongly against the bid

Hundreds of Japanese pundits urged their Prime Minister Shinzo Abe Monday to offer his own apology for Japan's wartime crimes and atrocities.  The move comes a little over a month after Abe did not apologize for and ignored the issue of wartime sexual slavery in a speech before U.S. Congress, drawing condemnation from South Koreans.    South Korea and Japan will mark the 50th anniversary of the normalization of bilateral diplomatic ties on June 22. In August, Abe is also scheduled to deliver a m

North Korea is not likely to shut down an inter-Korean joint industrial park in the North due to a row over Pyongyang's unilateral wage hike, a South Korean businessman said Monday.  The two Koreas have been in dispute for over three months following the North's unilateral move to raise the minimum wage by 5.18 percent for about 53,000 North Korean workers at the Gaeseong Industrial Complex at the border city of the same name.  In what may be a relief to the drawn-out row, the North accepted the