India is turning to South Korean investment and technology to help build one of the world’s top five shipbuilding industries by 2047, Indian Ports, Shipping and Waterways Minister Sarbananda Sonowal said. The initiative followed talks between Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and South Korean President Lee Jae Myung during Lee’s state visit to New Delhi on April 20. During a four-day visit to South Korea, Sonowal told The Korea Herald that partners developing a proposed shipyard in Thoothukudi

Germany and South Korea can bolster economic and security stability through closer cooperation as middle powers amid conflicts in Europe and the Middle East, German Ambassador Georg Schmidt said, while cautioning that neither can replace the United States or China. Speaking with The Korea Herald on Wednesday ahead of German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s summit with President Lee Jae Myung in Seoul, Schmidt pointed to industrial partnerships, technological cooperation and political coordination as

South Korea and the Czech Republic aim to expand cooperation in nuclear energy, robotics and batteries, building on the Dukovany nuclear project, officials said at a national day reception Tuesday. South Korean Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan pledged government support for the project and said he hoped it would lead to further nuclear cooperation, including at Temelin. Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power signed a contract in June 2025 to build two reactors at Dukovany. The agreement includes an option f

South Korea and Turkey should expand cooperation in defense, energy and advanced technologies as bilateral ties gain fresh momentum, Turkey’s new ambassador to Seoul, Fatih Yildiz, said Monday. Speaking at an event in Seoul marking the 103rd anniversary of the proclamation of the Republic of Turkey, Yildiz highlighted the longstanding ties between the two countries and called for deeper cooperation in strategic industries. Turkey supported South Korea during the 1950-53 Korean War, and the two c

South Korea should convert its technological and industrial strengths into greater diplomatic influence while also delivering tangible benefits to its partners, officials and experts said at a meeting in Seoul on Friday. The Jeju Forum Inter-Sessional Meeting, hosted by the Jeju Peace Institute at the Korea Press Center in Jung-gu, central Seoul, examined pragmatic diplomacy, cooperation with the Global South and follow-up measures to the inaugural Korea-Central Asia summit in September. Experts

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz will visit South Korea on Oct. 29-30 for talks with President Lee Jae Myung and to attend the Asia-Pacific Conference of German Business, known as APK, the presidential office said Friday. The trip will be Merz’s first visit to South Korea since taking office and the first bilateral official visit by a German chancellor in three years. Lee and Merz will hold summit talks on the afternoon of Oct. 29, followed by a joint press statement and an official dinner, chie

Hungary called for closer investment and technology ties with South Korea at a reception in Seoul on Thursday marking the 70th anniversary of its 1956 uprising against Soviet rule. Anett Szelezsan, chargé d’affaires at the Hungarian Embassy, linked the uprising’s legacy to what she described as the countries’ shared commitment to democracy and human rights. “Our nation was brave enough to stand up for freedom,” she said. Soviet forces crushed the uprising, but it became an enduring symbol of res

Uzbekistan and South Korea called for more educational and local exchanges on Wednesday, highlighting the role of students and communities in Uzbek-Korean ties. Speaking at a reception marking Uzbekistan’s Independence Day in Seoul, Uzbek Ambassador Alisher Abdusalomov said more than 107,000 Uzbek citizens live and work in South Korea, including 22,000 students. “At the end of the day, our partnership is really about people,” he said, describing Uzbek students as a “living bridge connecting our

Rwanda is a strong market for the South Korean IT industry to seek expansion across the African continent, Yves Iradukunda, Rwanda's minister of state for ICT and innovation, said Wednesday. “We think Rwanda is a good entry point for Korean companies,” he said. “The goal is for those companies to expand into other African markets.” During his first visit to South Korea, Iradukunda met with Vice Minister of Science and ICT Ryu Je-myung to discuss artificial intelligence, digital infrastructure an

The Asia-Pacific Conference of German Business (APK) will strengthen business ties between Germany and South Korea, particularly in joint product development and industrial cooperation, according to Germany's ambassador to Seoul. German Ambassador Georg Wilfried Schmidt told reporters Wednesday that companies from both countries were increasingly developing products together, building on established trade and manufacturing ties. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz is scheduled to deliver a keynote

Seoul can learn from Quebec’s climate-conscious building design and Barcelona’s walkable neighborhoods, while Quebec and Catalonia can draw lessons from Seoul’s public transportation and urban renewal, architects attending the Catalonia-Quebec-Korea Architecture Forum say. As cities face rising temperatures and pressure for denser development, they argued that new housing should go hand in hand with better public spaces and preservation of neighborhood identity. Their comments came at the Catalo

Peru is rolling out privately managed special economic zones, also known as free zones, to attract South Korean investment in critical minerals processing and manufacturing and better connect the resource-rich country to global supply chains, Peruvian Ambassador to South Korea Paul Duclos says. According to Duclos, the new framework for special economic zones is designed to attract investment in manufacturing and processing rather than simply facilitate trade. “We are seeking to generate new lev

The Indonesian Embassy in Seoul marked the country's 81st Independence Day on Sunday in an outdoor event highlighting the "people" aspect of the Korea-Indonesia partnership. The embassy held the event at the Mulbit Stage in Yeouido, where the reception was held alongside Festival Indonesia, featuing Indonesian food, traditional games, music, dance and fashion, along with programs involving participants from both countries. The setting marked a departure from diplomatic national day receptions ty

As Korean companies reassess global supply chains and seek new growth platforms in Southeast Asia, the choice of investment location has become more strategic than ever. Cost competitiveness remains important, but successful expansion now depends equally on supply-chain resilience, infrastructure, access to skilled talent, energy security, market connectivity and the ability to move quickly from investment approval to commercial production. Malaysia already offers many of these advantages. Its m

Vaclav Havel, the dissident playwright who helped lead the former Czechoslovakia's peaceful transition from communist rule, is being remembered in Seoul at a former interrogation site that became a symbol of South Korea's own fight for democracy. A photo exhibition marking the 90th anniversary of Havel's birth opened Thursday at the National Museum of Korean Democracy in Seoul, organized by the Korea Democracy Foundation, the Czech Embassy and the Czech Center Seoul. The museum stands on the for