The first-ever memorial ceremony for laborers in the Sado mines, a site associated with the forced labor of Koreans during Japan's 1910-45 colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula, will be held by the end of the year, Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul said Wednesday. "The ceremony at the Sado mines will be held by the end of the year," Cho said during a parliamentary session held by the National Assembly's Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee. "We are currently negotiating

US Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump traded sharp barbs on Tuesday, spotlighting their sharply contrasting views on North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, treaty alliances and a host of pivotal foreign policy issues. The televised presidential debate, the first between these two candidates, continued past the original 90-minutes scheduled, notably sidestepping North Korea and rising tensions on the Korean Peninsula, including Pyongyang's illicit nuclear buildup and it

German Chief of Defense Gen. Carsten Breuer, reaffirmed Germany’s military cooperation in the Indo-Pacific, calling South Korea a crucial partner. “For four years now, we have increased our presence in the Indo-Pacific, and we will continue to consolidate our commitment," he said, adding that Germany’s naval and air forces were being deployed worldwide. “South Korea is once again part of our deployment,” he said appreciating South Korea as a crucial partner, an

A comprehensive framework establishing guidelines and principles for the ethical and regulated use of artificial intelligence in military operations spanning nuclear weapons systems, endorsed by 61 countries, was adopted at a high-stakes summit in Seoul. The two-day 2024 summit on Responsible AI in the Military Domain or REAIM concluded Tuesday with the adoption of a "Blueprint for Action," drawing 1,952 participants from 96 countries, including 38 ministerial-level officials, accordin

Kenya is studying South Korea's advanced technology to improve housing infrastructure and address the African country's housing challenges. “Our goal is to build 200,000 housing units annually, and we’ve already started over 100,000 units since July 2023,” Charles Hinga, principal secretary of Kenya's State Department for Housing and Urban Development, said in an interview with The Korea Herald on Saturday. Kenya plans to use Korean technology, such as aluminum f

The Indian state of Rajasthan sought to encourage Korean companies at the Rising Rajasthan Roadshow event in Seoul on Monday. The roadshow comes in the lead-up the Rajasthan's government's Rising Rajasthan Global Investment Summit, to be held from Dec. 9-11 in Jaipur, the capital city of the state. Led by Rajasthan’s Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma, the roadshow delegation highlighted the state's opportunities in renewable energy and automotive manufacturing, electronics an

Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris and her Republican rival Donald Trump are set to face off against each other in their first -- potentially only -- debate this week, with its outcome expected to substantially impact their final sprint to Election Day in November. The high-stakes 90-minute debate will take place at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia in the battleground state of Pennsylvania on Tuesday night, as recent polls have shown Vice President Harris and former

The German frigate Baden-Wurttemberg and replenishment ship Frankfurt am Main arrived in Incheon on Friday as part of the Indo-Pacific Deployment 2024, a key German maritime defense diplomacy initiative in the region. Before reaching Incheon, the ships played a role in monitoring the United Nations arms embargo against North Korea, said the German Embassy in a press release Friday. The ships leave Incheon on Tuesday, it added. According to the embassy, the deployment aligns with the mission of t

WASHINGTON-- South Korea and the US held simulation drills in Washington this week to enhance nuclear deterrence cooperation, both sides said Friday, as the allies are stepping up security coordination to counter evolving North Korean threats. Seoul and Washington held the first table top simulation of the Nuclear Consultative Group, the allies' key nuclear deterrence dialogue body, on Thursday and Friday, Seoul's defense ministry and the Pentagon said in a joint statement. The TTS

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and outgoing Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida stressed the vital importance of sustaining the momentum in bilateral cooperation and exchanges -- an effort driven by their leader-to-leader diplomacy -- during Kishida's farewell visit to Seoul on Friday. Seoul and Tokyo signed a formal agreement to strengthen cooperation in protecting their nationals abroad and pledged to boost people-to-people exchanges by streamlining immigration procedures ahead of

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is set to visit South Korea on Friday for talks with President Yoon Suk Yeol as Kishida is preparing to leave office with a legacy of improving long-frayed relations with Seoul. Yoon and Kishida are scheduled to hold summit talks later Friday, their 12th summit in just about two years. It will also be their last summit as Kishida has given up on reelection as prime minister and leader of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party after three years on the job. Durin

Tokyo has handed over a long-awaited list of Koreans who perished aboard the Ukishima Maru, a Japanese ship that exploded in 1945 while repatriating thousands of Koreans after Japan's colonial rule ended, the Seoul government announced on Thursday. The announcement by the two countries came just a day before Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida visits Seoul for a summit with President Yoon Suk Yeol before leaving his office. The transferred list is incomplete, as the Japanese government has not

South Korea will tighten export controls against Russia and Belarus by expanding its list of items subject to export restrictions, including machine tool parts and sensors, in response to Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, the industry ministry said Thursday. According to the revision to the regulations on trading strategic items, South Korea added 243 more items that can potentially be used for military purposes to the list of items that are banned from shipping to Russia and Belarus, according

A senior South Korean diplomat has called for joint efforts among the countries of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and in the Indo-Pacific to act against growing cyberthreats, the foreign ministry said Thursday. Rhee Dong-yeol, ambassador for international cybersecurity affairs, made the call during the Cyber Champions Summit held in Australia on Wednesday, as he particularly noted the need to address the spread of misinformation as a key focus for international cooperation against cybert

The United States may need to reevaluate its strategy on the expanding military ties between North Korea and Russia if Vice President Kamala Harris becomes president as Pyongyang's alleged arms support for Moscow's war in Ukraine is deeply troubling, a US senator said Tuesday. In an interview with Yonhap News Agency, Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del) said the Biden administration's North Korea policy has focused on its denuclearization and recently has been pressing the North to stop s

Uzbekistan touted deepening ties with South Korea, marking the 33rd anniversary of the country's independence and the 32nd year of their bilateral relations Friday. Uzbekistan, which became part of the Soviet Union in 1924, declared its independence on August 31, 1991. "Today, we celebrate remarkable achievements, including more than a one-and-a-half-fold increase in GDP, a doubling of business entities, and over 40 percent growth in the industry," said Uzbek Ambassador-designate

Armed Forces Day, which is celebrated annually on Oct. 1 to honor the country’s military, has been designated by the government as a temporary holiday this year to boost awareness of the new security challenges on the Korean Peninsula, officials said Tuesday. In the afternoon, President Yoon Suk Yeol approved the Cabinet's decision in the morning to pass the motion to designate Oct. 1 as a temporary holiday, according to the presidential office. "Oct. 1 is when (UN troops) crosse

Around 30 South Korean nationals who stayed in Israel after attending a religious event have now left the country, officials said Tuesday. That means all South Korean travelers who were there for the same event have exited the region, where tensions have heightened following a series of missile and air strikes exchanged between Israel and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah. The 30 people were among some 180 South Koreans who entered Israel last month to attend the event. Of them, 150 first de

Former US President Donald Trump said in a soon-to-be-published book that his summitry with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during his time in office showed "real change" was "indeed" possible, portraying it as "honest, direct and productive." The Republican presidential candidate made the remarks in the photo book, titled "Save America," reinforcing speculation that should he win the Nov. 5 general election, he could revive his personal diplomacy with the

The South Korean presidential office on Sunday unveiled a comprehensive cybersecurity plan with 100 actionable tasks, including measures for enhanced "offensive cyber defense" strategies to proactively counter and neutralize those with intentions of spreading fake information such as deepfakes in cyberspace. The presidential Office of National Security announced the "National Cybersecurity Basic Plan," a collaborative effort developed by 14 government ministries and organizat