The Korea Herald

[Graphic News] Gay marriage around the globe

Apr 24, 2013

France became the 14th country in the world to legislate for gay marriage on Tuesday, following months of bitter debate over the socially divisive issue.Europe remains the stronghold of same-sex unions, with Spain, Portugal, Iceland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Belgium and the Netherlands all having relevant laws on the books. In North America, Canada and nine U.S. states recognize gay marriage. Argentina and Uruguay and parts of Brazil and Mexico fly the flag for same-sex unions in Central and Sou
[Newsmaker] Comeback kid rattles Korea-Japan ties again

Apr 24, 2013

When Japan’s Liberal Democratic Party swept an election last December, an alarm bell rang in Seoul about its chief Shinzo Abe’s perceived desire to veer the depression-riddled country toward the right and revive revisionism. The concerns seem to be turning into reality as the prime minister’s far-right clan relays worship at a controversial war shrine and remarks denying the country’s imperialist past. At a parliamentary session Tuesday, Abe said the definition of invasion varies wildly by count
Seoul, Washington fail to revise nuclear energy pact

Apr 24, 2013

South Korea and the U.S. have agreed to extend their bilateral atomic energy accord by two years after Seoul failed to secure Washington’s consent to develop independent nuclear fuel production capability, officials said Wednesday.The two countries have been in talks since October 2010 to amend the so-called 123 agreement which was signed in 1965, last revised in 1974 and due to expire next March. Despite progress in such issues as a joint research project for a new technology called pyroprocess
Japan’s rightward shift dampens prospects of regional cooperation

Apr 24, 2013

Abe makes nationalist remarks denying past, repeating claim to Dokdo
Top diplomats of Korea, China to set up hotline

Apr 24, 2013

BEIJING (Yonhap News) ― South Korea’s Foreign Minister Yoon Byung-se said Wednesday he and his Chinese counterpart have agreed to open a 24-hour hotline for prompt policy consultations on North Korea.“With regard to North Korea’s several acts of raising tensions, the two sides agreed to closely work together to convince the North not to carry out additional provocations, while easing tensions on the Korean Peninsula,” Yun told reporters after a meeting with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi during
[Newsmaker] Yasukuni: Perennial thorn in Korea-Japan ties

Apr 23, 2013

At the very heart of bustling Tokyo, a surreally serene, spacious shrine greets hundreds of thousands of worshippers every year seeking to pay tribute to their ancestors and lost loved ones. Albeit being one of the city’s most exquisite landmarks, the temple has for decades been a source of diplomatic feuds between Japan and its neighbors such as Korea and China.Yasukuni Shrine honors nearly 2.5 million Japanese war dead including top World War II criminals and is frequented by right-wing nation
S. Korea raps Japanese leaders for shrine visits

Apr 23, 2013

South Korea scolded Japanese ministers and lawmakers Tuesday for paying homage at a controversial war shrine in Tokyo, saying such visits are evidence that Tokyo has never really repented for its wartime atrocities.Seoul's foreign ministry spokesman Cho Tai-young made the remarks a day after Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se canceled this week's planned visit to Japan in a diplomatic reprisal for visits by Japanese ministers to the Yasukuni shrine. Ignoring anger voiced by South Korea and China, nea
Japan's security chief shelves Seoul trip over shrine visit

Apr 23, 2013

Japan's security chief canceled a visit to Seoul, a day before he paid tribute to a controversial war shrine that glorifies Tokyo's wartime atrocities, a diplomatic source in Seoul said Tuesday. Keiji Furuya, the chairman of the National Public Safety Commission and chief secretary of the Parliamentarian League on the North Korean abduction issue, had planned to make a two-day visit to South Korea from next Sunday and meet with Seoul's intelligence chief and home affairs minister. Furuya is one
Japan’s lawmakers visit war shrine despite protests from Seoul

Apr 23, 2013

Japanese lawmakers visited controversial war shrine en masse Tuesday morning despite pouring criticism from South Korea and China.According to Kyoto News Agency, 168 members of the Japanese parliament visited the Yasukuni Shrine that venerates top World War criminals.Japan’s top officials, including Japan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Taro Aso and National Public Safety Commission chairman Keiji Furuya paid visits to the shrine on Sunday. The visit triggered angry response from So
Sea disputes, N.K. in spotlight at ASEAN summit

Apr 22, 2013

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN, Brunei (AP) -- Worried that long-seething rifts could escalate over the South China Sea, Southeast Asian leaders are expected this week to press China to agree to start negotiations on a new pact aimed at thwarting a major clash in one of the world's busiest waterways.Concern over North Korea's latest threats is also expected to gain attention over economic issues in the annual summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, being held Wednesday and Thursday
Foreign minister cancels Japan trip over shrine visit

Apr 22, 2013

Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se on Monday canceled his planned trip to Tokyo in protest against a visit by Japanese Cabinet ministers to a controversial war shrine venerating top World War II criminals. Japan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Taro Aso, National Public Safety Commission chairman Keiji Furuya and other ranking officials paid tribute to the Yasukuni Shrine on Sunday, while Prime Minister Shinzo Abe sent flowers. The South Korean Foreign Ministry expressed “deep concern and
Top U.S. general reminds China of commitment to Japan

Apr 22, 2013

BEIJING (AFP) -- The top U.S. military officer told China's leaders on Wednesday that Washington is committed to defending Japan, as Beijing and Tokyo engage in intensified rhetoric over a territorial row.General Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, is visiting China just as the dispute between Beijing and Tokyo over uninhabited islands in the East China Sea is again heating up.Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe vowed Tuesday to "expel by force" any Chinese landing on the islan
S. Korean FM cancels trip to Japan over Tokyo war shrine

Apr 22, 2013

South Korean foreign minister Yun Byung-se has canceled his trip to Japan this week in diplomatic protest against a series of visits by Japan's cabinet members to a controversial war shrine, a Seoul official said Monday. Yun had planned to hold his first bilateral talks with Japanese foreign minister Fumio Kishida during his two-day visit to Tokyo from Friday, but abandoned the plan after two Japanese ministers visited the Yasukuni war shrine on Sunday, the senior official at Yun's ministry said
ASEAN-Korea Center promotes Bruneian food industry

Apr 21, 2013

Korea and Brunei are increasing trade in food products by sharing industry expertise on product development and marketing.ASEAN-Korea Center held a seminar Thursday in Brunei’s capital city Bandar Seri Begawan, with the Brunei Economic Development Board and the Brunei Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade.The ASEAN-Korea Center hosted the seminar, “2013 Seminar on Developing Local Food Products for the Global Market,” in the Southeast Asian country which is a member of the Association of Southea
Irish veterans re-visit Korea for war memorial dedication

Apr 21, 2013

A group of 12 Irish Veterans of the Korean War arrived in Seoul on Monday to participate in a special dedication of a war memorial.The group will take part in commemorations and other events with veterans from Commonwealth countries, including a visit to the United Nations cemetery in Busan where many of their fallen comrades are buried, according to a statement from the Irish Embassy on Sunday.The trip was sponsored by the Ministry and Patriot Affairs.The culmination of the group’s visit takes