Last week's summit between President Park Geun-hye and U.S. President Barack Obama lacked any grand new agreement, but the meeting was still important as it laid to rest concerns over South Korea's warming of relations with China, a U.S. expert said Monday.Bruce Klingner, a senior research fellow at the Heritage Foundation, made the remark during a discussion at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, saying the two allies had little to announce because they had already worked out a seri

Majorities of Americans, South Koreans and Japan are in support of maintaining a U.S. military presence in the Asia-Pacific region, but oppose increasing American troop strength, a survey showed Monday.The Chicago Council survey showed that 64 percent of Americans, 61 percent of South Koreans and 53 percent of Japanese favor maintaining the U.S. military presence, but only 11 percent of Americans, 14 percent of South Koreans and 9 percent of Japanese support increasing American troop levels in t

China's economic growth slowed to 6.9 percent in the third quarter, marking the weakest quarterly expansion since the first quarter of 2009, official data showed Monday. The world's second-largest economy has been struggling with falling exports amid weaker global demand and a lackluster property market at home. The third-quarter figure, released by China's National Bureau of Statistics, was lower than the second quarter's 7 percent growth and dimmed prospects about China's 2015 growth target of

The United States could link South Korea's entry into the Trans-Pacific Partnership to the resolution of issues related to the implementation of the free trade agreement between the two countries, a U.S. report showed Sunday.The Congressional Research Service made the assessment in a report on U.S.-South Korea relations, saying South Korea is a likely candidate for any future membership expansion of the 12-nation free trade deal sealed early this month."U.S. officials, who have welcomed South Ko

Seoul and Washington have shared that there is no problem in South Korea's entry into the U.S.-led Trans-Pacific Partnership deal as the two sides already have a free trade deal with high standards, an official said Sunday.An Chong-bum, senior presidential secretary for economic affairs, told reporters that the United States welcomes South Korea's participation in the world's largest trading bloc.Trade ministers of the U.S. and 11 other nations reached the TPP deal earlier this month, which acco

South Korea said Sunday it has agreed with the U.S. to hold regular talks on space development starting next year.The announcement came in line with President Park Geun-hye's visit to the U.S., where she agreed with U.S. President Barack Obama to push for exchanges in space development.Park and Obama decided to seek the signing of a space cooperation agreement in the near future, with the regular meeting starting in the first half of 2016. On Wednesday, Park visited NASA's Goddard Space Flight C

South Korea lashed out at Japan Sunday over an offering to a war shrine by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in the latest diplomatic offensive ahead of a trilateral summit with China.The Foreign Ministry also criticized Justice Minister Mitsuhide Iwaki and Internal Affairs and Communications Minister Sanae Takaichi for visiting the Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo.Takaichi told reporters the visit was meant to express her heartfelt gratitude to those who sacrificed themselves for Japan and it is "a ma

Two Japanese ministers visited a war shrine at the center of diplomatic friction with South Korea and China, shrine officials said Sunday, a move that could cast a pall on the planned summit for their leaders.Justice Minister Mitsuhide Iwaki and Internal Affairs and Communications Minister Sanae Takaichi visited the Yasukuni Shrine, a day after Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe sent a symbolic offering to the war shrine in Tokyo to mark its annual autumn festival."I expressed my heartfelt grati

President Park Geun-hye has said she could meet with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe early next month in Seoul on the sidelines of a trilateral summit with China.  Park said Thursday she is set to host the leaders of China and Japan in early November, though she did not provide a specific date.   A trilateral summit has not been held since May 2012 due to tensions mainly over Japan's attempts to whitewash its wartime atrocities and colonial occupation. Japan ruled the Korean Peninsula as a co

President Park Geun-hye and U.S. President Barack Obama are expected to adopt a joint statement on North Korea's nuclear weapons program, Cheong Wa Dae said Friday.  The two leaders are set to adopt the statement during their summit Friday, the South Korean presidential office said, adding that the two sides were working out the details.  The statement is expected to mention how to respond to North Korea's provocations and how to resume the long-stalled talks on ending Pyongyang's nuclear weapon

South Korea and Belarus have the potential to expand bilateral cooperation in the information and technology industry as the Eastern European country has relatively cheap labor in the field, Seoul's top envoy here said Thursday.  Ambassador Yang Joong-mo emphasized the need for the two sides to sign a visa waiver agreement to boost their economic partnerships.  "A big stumbling block is inconveniences for people to get visas for trips to the other nation," he said in an interview at his office i

President Park Geun-hye said Thursday that South Korea and U.S. companies will stand to benefit if Seoul joins the world's largest trading bloc.  Trade ministers of the U.S. and 11 other nations reached the Trans-Pacific Partnership deal earlier this month, which accounts for about 40 percent of global gross domestic product.  "If South Korea joins the TPP, it will bring many benefits to companies of both sides," Park said in a speech for South Korean and U.S. business leaders in Washington. Par

The U.S. Defense Department threw an elaborate honor guard parade for South Korean President Park Geun-hye on Thursday in a display of its respect for the leader of one of the country's strongest allies.  Park is the first South Korean president to attend what is known as a "Full Honor Parade" at the Pentagon, officials said. Her predecessor, Lee Myung-bak, also visited the Pentagon in 2011, but a scaled-back parade was held at the time.  Such smaller-scale ceremonies were also held when other f

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden on Thursday sidestepped a question about his presidential ambition with a joke that he'll give an answer in the Korean language.  Biden, who has been noncommittal about whether he'll run for president, was asked the question by a pool reporter while waiting for South Korean President Park Geun-hye to arrive at his residence for a lunch meeting.   "Mr. Vice President, Are you running for president?" a pool reporter asked.  "I'll answer in Korean," Biden responded.  A

U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter refused Thursday to accept South Korea's request for the transfer of key American technologies necessary for Seoul's "KF-X" indigenous jet fighter development project, officials said.  Carter stated the position when South Korean Defense Minister Han Min-koo asked him to reconsider the decision to reject the technology transfer during a meeting at the Pentagon, the South's Defense Ministry said in a statement. Han has been in Washington to accompany President Pa