President Park Geun-hye on Wednesday underscored the need for a multinational security mechanism in East Asia, saying it would help bring about not only a unification of the Korean Peninsula but also lasting peace and stability in the region. In her keynote speech to the Seoul Defense Dialogue, she pointed to what she called the Asian paradox as a threat to global peace -- regional instability stemming from the perennial standoff on the peninsula and persistent territorial and historical spats b

In the wake of President Park Geun-hye’s much-hailed visit to China, Seoul is poised to speed up its groundwork for a future unification with North Korea by intensifying diplomatic efforts with key neighbors and expediting humanitarian exchanges across the border. South Korea will initiate various discussions “in the near future” on how to bring about the peninsula’s unification, Park said, adding that the issue was also the focal point of her summit with President Xi Jinping last week. “We agre

Japan on Thursday expressed its resolve for discussions to arrange a trilateral summit with South Korea and China, while the U.S. lauded the three countries’ efforts to mend fences in the face of steadfast historical and territorial tension. Presidents Park Geun-hye and Xi Jinping announced after their meeting on Wednesday they will meet with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Seoul in late October or early November. The event is also likely to set the stage for first-ever talks between Park

The summit Wednesday between Presidents Park Geun-hye and Xi Jinping demonstrated the two countries’ evolving, increasingly multifaceted ties while building momentum for Seoul’s efforts to play a more proactive role in peninsula issues and regional diplomacy. During the meeting, Xi touted the bilateral relationship has developed to its “best-ever” in terms of politics, economy, trade, people-to-people exchanges and other areas, thanks to the two leaders’ cooperation. Park, for her part, expresse

President Park Geun-hye on Tuesday touted a recent breakthrough between the two Koreas, saying its thorough implementation starting with a fresh round of reunions of separated families would bring the peninsula closer to lasting peace and eventually a unification.The sides are scheduled for a working-level meeting on Sept. 7 at the border village of Panmunjeom to arrange the family reunions, following their three-day high-level talks that ended last Tuesday. “If we safeguard the hard-won agreeme

The number of South Korean servicemen who deserted from the military has steadily declined by more than 40 percent over the past three years, a report said Monday, reflecting ongoing efforts to improve barrack lives. According to the report submitted by the High Court for Armed Forces to Rep. Seo Young-kyo of the main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy, 415 people broke barracks last year, up about 41.4 percent from 708 in 2011. The annual figures have been nudging downward, albeit w

South Korea plans to dispatch senior military officials to China’s World War II anniversary parade next week despite lingering controversy over the two countries’ growing security cooperation, military sources said Wednesday. The three-member delegation will be led by Lt. Gen. Chung Kyung-doo, head of strategic planning at the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the sources said. Defense Minister Han Min-koo also said he would send three executives including a three-star general at a parliamentary session la

An Army staff sergeant was wounded in an explosion last weekend of a land mine presumed to have been buried by the South Korean military in the Demilitarized Zone, officials said Wednesday. The incident took place at 11:46 a.m. on Sunday in Yeoncheon, Gyeonggi Province, during a scouting mission around an area where the Army intentionally planted mines to deter a possible intrusion by North Korean troops. The staff sergeant, who was wearing galoshes and other protective gear, suffered a slight f

Following a hard-fought breakthrough, the two Koreas began taking steps Tuesday to defuse tension on the peninsula, as the South halted anti-Pyongyang broadcasts along the border as of midday and the North lifted its “quasi-state of war” and was seen reinstating some frontline military forces. The broadcasts and wartime declaration came to an end at noon, hours after the two sides clinched a six-point agreement in which Pyongyang displayed regret over a recent land mine blasts in the Demilitariz