The Korea Herald

Libyan prospects are mixed 2 years after revolution

Mar 24, 2013

Libya’s diplomatic mission here held a reception in Seoul on Monday to mark two years since Libyan youth took up arms and defied a deadly crackdown by strongman Moammar Gadhafi.The demonstrations were part of a wave of popular discontent dubbed the “Arab Spring,” which toppled long-standing despotic regimes in Tunisia and Egypt, before spreading to Libya on Feb. 17, 2011. Gadhafi was shot dead in October of the same year. It is estimated that some 30,000 Libyans died in eight months of fighting.
Kenya one step closer to African nuclear dream

Mar 24, 2013

Korea and Kenya forged ahead with plans to build a nuclear power plant and make the East African nation the second to have nuclear power on the continent.Kenyan Ambassador to Korea Ngovi Kitau participated in a ceremony lauding the 2013 incoming class of Kenyan nuclear engineers and other professionals on March 4 at KEPCO’s school for nuclear power professionals in Ulsan.Kenyan-Korean cooperation on development in the East African country has led to the opening of this new school to train future
Foreign Ministry set for personnel shake-up

Mar 22, 2013

The Foreign Ministry is expected to undertake a major personnel shake-up in the coming few weeks including ambassadors to key partners such as the U.S., China and Japan, officials said Friday. The ministry recently instructed the heads of all 158 overseas missions to submit their resignation, they said. This is considered to be part of a customary post-presidential election process under which new President Park Geun-hye will decide whether to reappoint or replace them.In the past most incumbent
‘Korea Caucus’ begins activity for ongoing U.S. congressional session

Mar 22, 2013

A bipartisan group of U.S. lawmakers keenly interested in Korean affairs launched a "Korea Caucus" Thursday for the 113th session of Congress.It is co-chaired by Rep. Peter Roskam (R-IL), Rep. Mike Kelly (R-PA), Loretta Sanchez (D-CA) and Gerry Connolly (D-VA).Attending a ceremony at Capitol Hill, they noted the development of the South Korea-U.S. alliance since the 1950-53 Korean War."Many times it’s called the forgotten war, but it’s not forgotten for those of us who appreciate freedom," Roska
U.S. moves to offer more work visas to Koreans

Mar 21, 2013

The U.S. Congress plans to expand the annual quota for South Korean professionals who want to work in the United States. According to news reports, two U.S. congressmen jointly introduced a bill that would increase the number of E-3 visas issued annually to Korean professionals from the current 3,500 to 10,500.Eni Faleomavaega, who proposed the bill and is a member of the foreign affairs subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific, said that “Korea is the seventh-largest trading partner and strategic a
Cyprus fails to win Russia's help amid banking chaos

Mar 20, 2013

MOSCOW, (AFP) -- Cypriot Finance Minister Michalis Sarris failed to reach progress after two rounds of talks in Moscow on assistance from Russia after his island's rejection of an EU bailout that slapped a painful levy on bank deposits.Sarris met his Russian counterpart Anton Siluanov before holding talks with First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov about a possible new Moscow loan.Cyprus also hopes to ease the terms of a 2.5-billion-euro loan Moscow afforded Nicosia in 2011 that matures in 20
Senior editor of British newspaper charged over payoffs

Mar 20, 2013

LONDON (AP) -- Prosecutors say that The Sun newspaper's Deputy Editor Geoff Webster has been charged with authorizing thousands in illegal payoffs to government officials.The charges are among the most serious so-far leveled against journalists caught up in Britain's wide-ranging media ethics scandal, which has seen newspaper executives, senior journalists, and high-profile police figures get dragged before the courts.Rupert Murdoch's News International confirmed Wednesday that Webster is still
Obama in Israel for first trip as president

Mar 20, 2013

TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) -- President Barack Obama is declaring common cause with Israel, highlighting the bonds between the United States and its Mideast ally. He says he has made Israel the first stop of the first trip of his second term to restate his commitment to Israel's security.Obama arrived Wednesday in Tel Aviv, joking to Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu that he was "getting away from Congress."Israeli President Shimon Peres welcomed Obama, declaring that "A world without America's lead
Ex-Korean diplomat tapped deputy head of U.N. office

Mar 19, 2013

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has named Kang Kyung-wha, a former South Korean diplomat, as deputy head of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, Ban's office announced Monday. Kang will replace Catherine Bragg of Canada as assistant secretary general for humanitarian affairs and deputy emergency relief coordinator, it added.Kang has served as the deputy U.N. high commissioner for human rights since January 2007.Prior to joining the U.N., she worked as chief
Korea pitches for Arctic Council membership

Mar 18, 2013

Korea is seeking to boost its role in the Arctic by sharing research assets and technological knowhow on coping with climate change, energy, shipping and other key issues, Seoul officials said Monday. Nearly 100 policymakers, diplomats, scientists and industry officials from Korea and the Arctic region took part in an international symposium in Seoul to discuss their policy, research and other activities. Titled “Arctic Research & Policy in the New Age of Opening Arctic,” the one-day event was j
Foreign Ministry to regain recruitment powers

Mar 17, 2013

The Foreign Ministry is expected to regain authority of some of its special recruitment programs that were taken away upon a nepotism scandal involving the daughter of a then-top diplomat in 2010.The Foreign Ministry will exclusively oversee the recruitment process for sixth- and seventh-grade diplomats starting this year, an official told Yonhap, citing improvement in its program operation capability and transparency. The Ministry of Public Administration and Security will continue to monitor t
Envoys express pride in first Latin American pope

Mar 17, 2013

“God is an Argentine, and so is the Pope,” read the headlines of one Buenos Aires newspaper. With the elevation of Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio as the Roman Catholic Church’s first pontiff from Latin America, the pride etched on the faces and sown in the words of not only Argentines everywhere, but of Latin Americans everywhere was palpable.Among South American envoys in Korea, that positive reaction to news of the new pope slipped out from under the usual diplomatic verbiage.“I feel proud and
Czech Embassy marks opening of Brno Conservatory in Seoul

Mar 17, 2013

The Czech Republic marked the expansion of cultural relations with Korea by opening a new music conservatory in southern Seoul on Wednesday. The Czech Embassy in Korea marked expanding cultural ties in the field of music during an opening ceremony for the Korean branch of the country’s Brno Conservatory in the Yeoksam-dong neighborhood of Seoul. “We are a cultural country and it is important that we establish the first branch of the Brno Conservatory in Korea. It will be an important tool for ex
U.S. envoy lauds free trade on trip to Busan

Mar 17, 2013

United States Ambassador to Korea Sung Kim lauded the Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement during a visit to the southern port city of Busan on Thursday and Friday to mark the first anniversary of the trade pact that continues to divide politics here.The Korea-U.S. FTA went into effect on March 15 last year, reducing or removing trade barriers between the two countries.A considerable debate still rages between proponents of the agreement and its detractors, but one report by the Ministry of Strategy
Ireland celebrates St. Patrick’s by honoring its veterans

Mar 17, 2013

The Irish Embassy celebrated Saint Patrick’s Day, the nation’s official National Day, with a reception at the Regency Room of the Grand Hyatt Hotel on Thursday. St. Patrick’s Day is celebrated annually on March 17. One focus in this year’s National Day celebration was a state visit by Irish Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport Leo Varadkar, who met with Park Sung-choon, the minister for patriots and veterans affairs, to discuss the coming inclusion of a group of Irish veterans of the Korean