North Korea blew up an inter-Korean liaison office building just inside its border in an act Tuesday that sharply raises tensions on the Korean Peninsula amid deadlocked nuclear diplomacy with the United States. Seoul’s Unification Ministry said the building in the North Korean border town of Kaesong was destroyed at …
Read More »NKorea’s military threatens to reenter demilitarized areas
North Korea’s military on Tuesday threatened to move back into zones that were demilitarized under inter-Korean peace agreements as the country continued to dial up pressure on rival South Korea amid stalled nuclear negotiations with the Trump administration. The General Staff of the Korean People’s Army said it’s reviewing a …
Read More »North Korea warns of retaliatory actions over defectors in South
The sister of North Korea’s leader has warned of retaliatory measures against South Korea that could involve the military, in the latest escalation of tensions over defectors from the North who have been sending back propaganda and food. Kim Yo Jong, who serves unofficially as one of Kim Jong Un’s …
Read More »Samsung: Court rejects Lee Jae-yong arrest warrant request
A court has denied an arrest warrant request for Samsung heir Lee Jae-yong, after he was accused of accounting fraud and stock manipulation. The ruling provides at least temporary relief for the de facto head of the South Korean conglomerate. But Mr Lee isn’t completely in the clear yet as …
Read More »North Korea cuts all official communication lines with South
North Korea is severing all official communication links with the South, it announced Tuesday in a move analysts said was aimed at manufacturing a crisis on the divided peninsula. Since last week the North has issued a series of vitriolic denunciations of the South over activists sending anti-Pyongyang leaflets over …
Read More »Samsung leader appears in court, awaits decision on whether he’ll be jailed again
The de facto leader of Samsung Group, Jay Y. Lee, appeared before a South Korean court on Monday, awaiting a ruling on whether new allegations including accounting fraud and stock manipulation will send him back to jail after more than two years of freedom. Prosecutors on Thursday asked the court …
Read More »South Korea scrambles to contain new coronavirus outbreak threatening Seoul
The spike in cases comes just as the South Korean government was easing some social distancing restrictions and moving to fully reopen schools and businesses, in a transition from intensive social distancing to “distancing in daily life.” South Korean officials scrambled on Monday to contain a new coronavirus outbreak that …
Read More »North Korea defectors apologize for rumor about Kim’s death
Two defector-turned-lawmakers in South Korea have apologized for publicly raising suspicions over the health of Kim Jong-un after a recent appearance by the North Korean leader ended global speculation about his well-being. Thae Yong-ho, who won a parliamentary seat during last month’s general elections, in a statement on Monday apologized …
Read More »Dozens killed in South Korea warehouse blaze in Icheon
At least 36 people have been killed in a fire at a warehouse that was under construction in the South Korean city of Icheon. The blaze was caused by an explosion of flammable material being used in the installation of insulation in a basement, South Korean media reported. All the …
Read More »Video: South Korea relaxes some social distancing rules as new virus cases fall
South Korea extended its social distancing policy for another 16 days on Sunday but offered some relief for churches and sporting fixtures, as it reported just eight new coronavirus infections, the lowest in two months. The slightly relaxed guidelines mean high-risk venues like churches will face fewer restrictions, while sports …
Read More »North Korea fires cruise missiles into sea, says Seoul
North Korea launched a series of short-range cruise missiles into the sea off its east coast on the eve of the 108th anniversary of the birth of the nation’s founder, Kim Il-Sung. Fighter jets also fired several air-to-surface missiles in what appeared to be a military exercise ahead of South …
Read More »Trump asked South Korea for equipment in return for business deals, Seoul says
Donald Trump asked South Korea for medical equipment to help fight the coronavirus in return for promises to give US approval to Korean companies, the presidential office in Seoul has said. President Moon Jae-in offered to send the equipment if his country has any spare, his Blue House official said …
Read More »North Korea fires two ‘ballistic missiles’ into the sea
North Korea fired what appeared to be two short-range ballistic missiles off its east coast on Saturday, the latest in a series of such launches by Pyongyang as the world struggles with the coronavirus pandemic. The South Korean military condemned the launches as “extremely inappropriate given the difficult situation the …
Read More »China reports zero local transmissions for first time
China has for the first time reported no new locally transmitted cases of the new coronavirus at its epicenter since the country started recording infections in January. China’s National Health Commission announced on Thursday that there had been no new infections in the country’s central city of Wuhan, in Hubei …
Read More »S. Korea at ‘War’ With Coronavirus as Governments Try to Stop Spread
Finance ministers from the Group of Seven leading economies are holding talks Tuesday to discuss how to respond to a coronavirus outbreak that has brought cases to at least 70 countries. The G-7 talks come as South Korean President Moon Jae-in sought funding in his country to help with medical …
Read More »Global death toll from coronavirus outbreak nears 3,000 as US confirms 2nd fatality
Two people sickened with the novel coronavirus have died in the United States, as the global death toll from the viral outbreak that began in China nears 3,000. Both patients who succumbed to the newly identified virus, known officially as COVID-19, were residents of Washington state’s King County, officials said. …
Read More »South Koreans celebrate big wins for ‘Parasite’ at the Oscars
The film about a poor family who worms their way into the lives of a rich household became the first non-English-language film to win the best picture. South Korean President Moon Jae-in started his presidential staff meeting on Monday with a round of applause for the South Korean film “Parasite,” …
Read More »Singapore Leading the world in broadband internet: Reports
Australia is a wealthy, advanced country, yet its broadband internet is curiously slow. After previously being ranked below Kenya, a new global internet index by Speedtest has Australia ranked 68th in the world. According to the index, Australia’s internet is more sluggish than Kazakhstan’s (64th), Kosovo’s (61st) and Montenegro’s (60th). …
Read More »S.Korea, Japan, China leaders to promote N.Korea-U.S. dialogue
China, Japan, and South Korea have agreed to work together to promote dialogue between the United States and North Korea, South Korean President Moon Jae-in said on Tuesday following a summit between the three countries in China. North Korea has set a year-end deadline for the United States to change …
Read More »Dispute between Japan and South Korea overshadows G20 meetings.
Japan seized the last event of its G20 presidency on Friday to reject a South Korean warning about radiation from the ruined Fukushima nuclear plant as a dispute between the neighbors threatened to overshadow the meetings. Foreign ministers from the Group of 20 (G20) nations gathered in the central Japanese …
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