South Korea’s entry into the U.N. Security Council will boost the country’s say in global security issues and help facilitate cooperation in addressing North Korea’s nuclear threat, officials and experts said Friday. The country was selected as a non-permanent member of the council during a vote on Thursday. It will replace India whose two-year term expires at the end of the year.Seoul beat Cambodia in the second round 149 to 43 over the slot reserved for Asia. Other newly elected members are Au

Despite the protracted economic slowdown, the world’s advanced countries should ramp up efforts to meet their aid commitments to help needy partners fight poverty, diseases and other grave challenges, senior development agency officials said. Brian Atwood, chair of the OECD’s Development Assistance Committee, a club of major patrons of poor countries, and Sigrid Kaag, assistant administrator and director of the U.N. Development Programme’s partnerships bureau, warned of a potential negative impa

South Korea is stepping up last-ditch efforts to win a nonpermanent seat in the U.N. Security Council ahead of a vote scheduled for Oct. 18.Seoul is pitching its role in Northeast Asian security and world peace stemming from its strategic location and North Korea’s threat, to achieve one of this year’s biggest diplomatic projects.The country is vying against Cambodia and Bhutan to secure a two-thirds majority required for the slot assigned to Asian countries. The winner will replace India, whose

After more than a year of fruitless job hunting, Dawin Perez no longer worries where his family’s next meal will come from. With help from the Korean government and the United Nations Development Programme, Perez took part in a month-long training session at Cemprende, a local employment and entrepreneurship support center in his hometown of Cartagena, Colombia.“I couldn’t find work for a year and a half. Raising a family isn’t easy when there’s no money, but this opportunity was given to me and

GAESEONG, North Korea (AP) ― From here, Pyongyang can seem like a dream.At what passes for rush hour on a Wednesday morning, there are few sounds in Gaeseong’s main traffic circle but the gentle squeak of bicycles and a tinny loudspeaker blaring anthems to Kim Jong-un, the baby-faced ruler who took power after his father’s December death (“The footsteps of our respected General Kim! ... Spreading the sound of a brilliant future!”).Occasionally, a solitary car goes by.There are no nightspots here

The leaders of South Korea and Myanmar agreed Tuesday to bolster business and diplomatic ties as Seoul looks to firm up its footing in the Southeast Asian country following sweeping democratic and economic reforms. During a summit in Seoul, President Lee Myung-bak and Myanmar President Thein Sein agreed to push for an investment protection pact and boost cooperation on trade, energy, resources and infrastructure. Ministers signed two agreements on Seoul’s development aid and the creation of a na

South Korea on Thursday shrugged off news reports that Japan plans to initiate international litigation over Dokdo this month. Nihon Keizai Shimbun of Japan reported that Tokyo is likely to unilaterally bring the case to the International Court of Justice in October as Seoul rejected its proposal for a joint filing. “I’d like to emphasize again that Japan must not damage Korea-Japan relations and public sentiment by repeating its unjust claim to Dokdo but should make efforts for the development