The US-led United Nations Command said Monday it has authorized the resumption of a civilian tour program to the inter-Korean border village of Panmunjom amid eased concern over the African swine fever, and the date of the resumption will be announced soon. Since September last year, tours to the Joint Security Area (JSA) and other sites inside the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) have been suspended as part of an effort to stem the spread of the highly contagious animal disease. "Due to the succ

South Korea’s top nuclear envoy, Lee Do-hoon, arrived in Washington on Sunday for talks with US officials, saying he plans to discuss the recent killing of a South Korean official by North Korea and the proposed declaration of a formal end to the 1950-53 Korean War.   　 Lee’s trip to Washington to meet with his US counterpart, Deputy Secretary of State Stephen Biegun, and other officials, came just days after Pyongyang shot dead a South Korean fisheries official who had drifte

An inter-Korean military communication line remained inoperative as of Monday morning, the defense ministry said, a day after South Korea called for reopening the line for communication related to a proposed joint probe into North Korea's killing of a South Korean fisheries official. On Sunday, South Korea's presidential office Cheong Wa Dae urged the North to restore the military hotline for communication about Seoul's proposal to conduct a joint investigation into the North's killing of the f

WASHINGTON -- South Korea's top nuclear envoy Lee Do-hoon said Sunday he will discuss joint efforts with the United States to deal with the recent killing of a South Korean official by North Korea. Lee also said upon arriving in Washington that his talks with his US counterpart, Deputy Secretary of State Stephen Biegun, will also include President Moon Jae-in's recent call for efforts to declare a formal end to the 1950-53 Korean War. "The reason I came this time is to discuss all related

South Korea on Sunday officially requested North Korea join a joint investigation into the killing of a South Korean fisheries official by North troops last week and reopen a military communication line for the exchange of information. 　 Cheong Wa Dae made the announcement after President Moon Jae-in presided over an emergency security-related ministers’ meeting regarding the incident in the afternoon. The top office has also requested China’s support in the search of the dead man&

South Korean military acted appropriately, expert says; retaliation would have led to dangerous escalation

North Korea's state media highlighted its rigorous border control to stave off the new coronavirus Saturday, amid tensions following the shooting death of a South Korean national floating in its waters near the inter-Korean border. The Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said the country is carrying out perfect border control and aggressive measures to "preemptively deal with the pandemic." "Well aware that key to prevention of infectious diseases in borders, coastlines and demar

South Korea will demand North Korea carry out another investigation into its recent killing of a Seoul fisheries official near the tense sea border, as the North's explanation bore some key discrepancies from Seoul's account, the presidential office said Saturday. On Tuesday, North Korean troops shot the 47-year-old man who was adrift in its waters and incinerated his body, according to the South Korean military. He went missing the previous day while on duty near the Yellow Sea border islan

North Korea warned South Korea on Sunday to stop violating its western sea border in searching for the body of a citizen shot and killed in North Korean waters, saying it will search for the body on its own and hand it over if it's found. South Korea has been searching for the body of the 47-year-old fisheries official shot and killed by North Korean soldiers earlier last week after he drifted into their waters near the Yellow Sea border between the two sides. South Korea claims the North shot

A day after South Korea’s presidential office described North Korea’s killing of a Seoul fisheries official as a violation of the “spirit” of the inter-Korean military pact and not the accord itself, experts on Friday heaped strong criticism on the top office. North Korea on Tuesday shot dead the official in the West Sea north of the inter-Korean maritime border and is thought to have burned the body there. South Korean intelligence suspects the man was attempting defect

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on Friday apologized for the developments surrounding a South Korean civil servant who was allegedly killed and incinerated by the North Korean military. The North’s Unification Front Department on Friday sent a communique addressed to Seoul’s presidential office outlining the events and including an expression of regret from Kim. “I have apologetic thoughts to President Moon Jae-in and compatriots of the South for the unfortunate incident tha

The South Korean official shot dead by North Korean troops this week was lost for two hours before he was found again and killed, lawmakers here said Friday. Citing South Korean military intelligence, Rep. Min Hong-chul of the ruling Democratic Party said the North Korean soldiers watched the fisheries official for three hours on Tuesday as he floated on a raft in waters near the western inter-Korean sea border. "(South Korea's) military reported that he was then lost, but in fact (the No

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has offered an apology to the South Korean people for the killing of a fellow citizen by its military earlier this week, Cheong Wa Dae announced Friday. In a formal notice sent to the South, the North conveyed Kim's message that he feels "very sorry" for greatly "disappointing" President Moon Jae-in and other South Koreans with the occurrence of the "unsavory" case in its waters, instead of helping them amid their suffering from the

Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha said Friday that efforts to engage with North Korea toward denuclearization and peace must continue despite the North's brutal killing of a South Korean official. The remark came as public outrage has been mounting following revelations that the North shot and killed the fisheries official drifting in waters near the western maritime border and burned his body earlier this week. The killing has exacerbated the already frosty inter-Korean relations and dealt a b

Varying assessments over the years have fuelled an ongoing debate on the capabilities and strategic impact of North Korea’s cyber operations. On the one hand, sceptics argue that there are serious limitations to North Korea’s use of cyberspace for political purposes, particularly at the strategic level. According to this view, North Korea’s cyber capabilities do not provide Pyongyang with significant strategic advantages for achieving political aims, nor are they sufficient t