The Korea Herald

‘Social media reshaping political debate’

Jul 1, 2014

One of the key forces challenging political orthodoxy and debate in Asia in the coming years is likely to be social media networks such as Facebook, Twitter and their regional counterparts, according to the latest issue of Global Asia, a Seoul-based quarterly journal. “What we uncovered in our assessment of social media in this region, ‘Digital Dynamite: The Power of Social Media to Transform Asia for Better and Worse,’ is that the rapidly accelerating rate of smartphone usage and Internet penet
S. Korea reaffirms stance on Japan's collective self-defense

Jul 1, 2014

South Korea reaffirmed its stance Tuesday that Japan should seek explicit consent from Seoul if Tokyo exercises the right to "collective self-defense" in cases of emergency situations related to security on the Korean Peninsula. The Japanese cabinet on Tuesday approved a proposal to reinterpret its war-renouncing Constitution that has banned Japan from exercising what is called the right to collective self-defense, a major shift in Japan's postwar security policy. The right would allow Tokyo t
Japan set for shift in postwar security policy

Jun 30, 2014

Japan is poised to set its plan in motion to allow its military to help defend other countries, which will herald a major shift in the country’s defense-oriented postwar security policy amid rising concerns over its creeping assertiveness in the region. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is expected to convene a cabinet meeting Tuesday to approve Tokyo’s right to exercise collective self-defense by reinterpreting the war-renouncing Article 9 of its Constitution. The change will allow Japan’s Self-Defense
Park-Xi summit to focus on North Korean nukes, FTA

Jun 30, 2014

Seoul meeting comes as China pushes to bolster regional clout
Seoul to publish sex slavery white paper by July 2015

Jun 30, 2014

South Korea is seeking to publish a white paper to shed light on Japan’s wartime sexual enslavement of Korean women by July 2015 in a bid to protest against Japan’s review of its 1993 key apology of such atrocities, officials said Monday.The move comes as Japan has recently said that Seoul and Tokyo officials coordinated the wording of the so-called Kono Statement that apologized for coercing women into sexual servitude for its frontline troops during World War II.The Ministry of Gender Equality
Seoul seeks to publish white paper on 'comfort women' by July 2015

Jun 30, 2014

South Korea is seeking to publish a white paper to shed light on Japan's wartime sexual enslavement of Korean women by July 2015 in a bid to protest against Japan's review of its 1993 key apology of such atrocities, officials said Monday.The move comes as Japan has recently said that Seoul and Tokyo officials coordinated the wording of the so-called Kono statement that apologized for coercing women into sexual servitude for its front-line troops during World War II.The Ministry of Gender Equalit
Korea, China, Japan build bridges

Jun 29, 2014

Secretaries-general of Korean, Chinese and Japanese ASEAN centers hold Beijing confab
Senior Irish ministers talk public sector reform in Seoul

Jun 29, 2014

Brendan Howlin (center), minster for public expenditure and reform, and Irish Ambassador to South Korea Aingeal O’Donoghue (second from right) pose for a photo with officials from the Korea Institute for International Economic Policy in Seoul on Wednesday. (Irish Embassy)Two senior Irish government ministers were in South Korea to discuss enhancing two-way ties on finance and trade with their counterparts here and also to talk about public sector reform and participate in a conference on the top
Korea, U.S. celebrate friendship in annual fete

Jun 29, 2014

The Korea America Friendship Society celebrated United States servicemen and women during its annual “Friendship Night,” at the Grand Hyatt hotel in Seoul on Thursday. As part of the annual fete, four U.S. soldiers and one U.S. Department of Defense civilian received Korea America Friendship Society awards. The awards recognize them for teaching English on a volunteer basis; holding cultural exchanges, athletic events and festivals for young Korean students; and leading other projects that promo
Azerbaijan celebrates 96th Armed Forces Day

Jun 29, 2014

Commander Elchin Jafarov (center), the Azerbaijani Embassy’s military attache, poses for a group photo with other defense attaches during a reception celebrating his country’s 96th Armed Forces Day in Seoul on Wednesday. (Azerbaijani Embassy)The Azerbaijani Embassy here celebrated the 96th anniversary of the establishment of the country’s armed forces during a reception in Seoul on Wednesday.The event was attended by members of South Korea’s Defense Ministry, members of the Azerbaijani military
Envoy celebrates Egypt’s presidential election

Jun 29, 2014

The Egyptian ambassador here celebrated the presidential election that took place in his country this month during a reception for Egypt’s 62nd National Day at his residence in Seongbuk-dong, Seoul, on Monday.Ambassador Hany Selim said that the recent presidential election in his country marks the beginning of “a new Egypt,” as he hosted Choi Sung-joo, ambassador for international security affairs; members of the foreign diplomatic community; and other VIPs at his residence in Seoul.“Apart from
Japan completes draft bill for collective self-defense

Jun 27, 2014

In a move that has triggered a backlash at home and from neighboring countries, the Shinzo Abe administration has come up with a final draft of a reinterpretation of its pacifist Constitution to make it possible to exercise its right to collective self-defense, Japanese media said Friday. The decision will mark a major shift in Tokyo’s exclusively defensive postwar security policy by allowing it to use force to defend its allies under attack. Article 9 of the constitution bans the country from w
Xi to visit Seoul next week

Jun 27, 2014

The leaders of South Korea and China, Presidents Park Geun-hye and Xi Jinping, will hold talks in Seoul next week to discuss ways to improve bilateral relations and to deal with North Korea’s nuclear program, Cheong Wa Dae said Friday.Xi will arrive in Seoul on Thursday on a two-day visit. It will be the first time a Chinese leader makes an official visit to South Korea before traveling to North Korea. Xi visited Pyongyang in 2008 when he was the vice president.“South Korea expects Xi’s trip to
Korea, U.S. discuss Japan’s review of Kono Statement

Jun 25, 2014

WASHINGTON (Yonhap) ― South Korea and the United States had high-level consultations here Tuesday on a broad range of issues, including Seoul-Tokyo stand-offs over their shared history, officials said.In the so-called strategic dialogue with U.S. Deputy Secretary of State William Burns, South Korean Vice Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yong reiterated Seoul’s strong concern over the recent review by the conservative Japanese administration of a landmark 1993 apology for wartime sex slavery, known as th
Sexual slavery victim protests Tokyo’s review of 1993 apology

Jun 25, 2014

A South Korean woman who was forced into sexual slavery for the Japanese army during World War II visited Japan’s embassy in Seoul on Wednesday to protest Tokyo’s review of its 1993 landmark apology admitting to such atrocities.Kim Bok-dong, 88, visited the Japanese Embassy to lodge a strong complaint against Japan’s recent review of the Kono Statement, which acknowledged and apologized for Japan’s coercion of women into sexual slavery for its frontline troops.A panel of experts appointed by Jap