NEW YORK/WASHINGTON (Yonhap News) ― After a 17-month hiatus, senior North Korean and U.S. government officials resumed talks in New York on Thursday as part of efforts to revive the six-party negotiations on the communist nation’s nuclear weapons program.North Korean First Vice Foreign Minister Kim Kye-gwan described the first-day meeting as “constructive,” while Stephen Bosworth, Washington’s poi

As the devastating torrential rain came to a lull, citizens and politicians flocked to flood-stricken areas for restoration works.According to Seoul Volunteer Center, about 3,000 citizen volunteers helped out in eight districts Friday.  Volunteers help with cleanup efforts of a village damaged by a rain-triggered landslide in southern Seoul on Friday. (Kim Myung-sub/The Korea Herald)On Wednesday a

Sohn Ji-ae, former presidential secretary for overseas public relations, has been appointed the new president and CEO of Arirang TV & Radio. Sohn Ji-aeSohn, 48, a former CNN Seoul bureau chief who also served as the spokeswoman for the G20 preparation committee, will head the Seoul-based English broadcasting service that provides news and entertainment on Korea for the global audience. The broad­c

NEW YORK (Yonhap News) ― A senior North Korean official flew into New York Tuesday for highly unusual talks with U.S. officials, voicing optimism for improved Pyongyang-Washington ties. “I believe North Korea-U.S. relations will improve as now is the time for all countries to reconcile,” Vice Foreign Minister Kim Kye-gwan told reporters as he arrived at John F. Kennedy Airport.He added, “(I) am op

Women’s rights advocates called for reform in the male-dominated political system on Tuesday to help more female candidates run for election, as part of efforts to expand their presence in politics.In a forum held by the state-run Korea Women’s Development Institute, panelists pointed out that a small fraction of the National Assembly and local legislatures were made up of women, suggesting variou

The Cabinet authorized the implementation of a revised ethics code for government officials Tuesday that bans retired officials working for private firms from seeking favors from their former colleagues and handling issues they directly dealt with while in office.The revision, set to take effect after a three-month notification period, came after a series of former financial regulators were arrest

South Korea’s ruling party leader urged the government Monday to ban a group of Japanese lawmakers from entering the country as they plan to visit an island near the country’s easternmost islets of Dokdo in an attempt to lay claims to the islets.Four lawmakers of Japan’s conservative opposition Liberal Democratic Party said last week they are planning to visit Ulleung Island in the East Sea, the c

President Lee Myung-bak called Monday for South Koreans to head to domestic destinations for vacation, saying it will contribute greatly to spurring domestic demand that is key to revitalizing the country’s economy.Lee made the appeal in a biweekly radio address, saying that sluggish domestic demand is to blame for economic difficulties felt by low-income people, though South Korea’s economy is fa

Outside the classroom a hot summer day beckons, but fourth-grade teacher Yeon Eun-jung’s students are glued to their tablet PCs as they watch an animated boy and a girl squabble about whether water becomes heavier when frozen.The small scene in this rural town is part of something big: South Korea is taking a $2 billion gamble that its students are ready to ditch paper textbooks in favor of tablet

All officials in tribunal courts, both bar and bench, may now wear robes during trials, in an attempt to maintain a formal atmosphere and instill pride and esteem in attorneys, said the Seoul Bar Association on Sunday. In order to test the waters, the association plans to have its members wear the robes during opening ceremonies for law practice and other events, eventually leading to use by lawye

A top North Korean diplomat handling nuclear negotiations with the outside world plans to make a rare trip to New York later this week for talks with U.S. officials, multiple diplomatic sources said Sunday.First Vice Foreign Minister Kim Kye-gwan is expected to visit New York around July 28 on a trip that includes a meeting with Stephen Bosworth, the top U.S. envoy on Korean Peninsula affairs, the

North Koreans voted in local elections Sunday as state media stepped up calls for loyalty to the ruling Workers’ Party and leader Kim Jong-il as the totalitarian leader has been trying to hand power over to his youngest son.Kim cast his ballot at a polling station in Pyongyang, along with his heir-apparent son Kim Jong-un and a senior party official, according to the official Korean Central News A

Foreign ministers of two Koreas hold meetings to explore possible resumption of dialogueSouth Korea, the United States and Japan called on North Korea on Saturday to take action to dismantle its nuclear program before the resumption of six-party talks.In a joint statement after the trilateral meeting on the sidelines of Asia’s largest security forum in Indonesia, South Korean Foreign Minister Kim

President Lee Myung-bak named technocrats as the new vice ministers for agriculture and environment Thursday in a minor reshuffle that also affected three other vice ministerial posts.Lee also named actor-turned-former culture minister Yu In-chon as his special adviser.Lee Sang-kil, a senior agriculture ministry official, was tapped as the ministry’s first vice minister, while Yoon Jong-soo of the

BALI (Yonhap News) ― The foreign ministers of South Korea and China reaffirmed their joint stance that improvement in inter-Korean relations is a prerequisite to moving toward reopening multinational talks on North Korea’s nuclear program, officials said Thursday. South Korean Foreign Minister Kim Sung-hwan (left) shakes hands with his Chinese counterpart Yang Jiechi ahead of their meeting on the

The world’s population will hit 7 billion people later this year, the U.N. estimates. With this, comes the challenge of feeding a population that has increased by 40 percent in just over 20 years.Just this week, the U.N. declared a famine in parts of Somalia with neighboring countries also affected by the worse drought to hit the horn of Africa in 60 years.To find ways to respond to the greater ne

Kim Seon-man is more than a pastor working to spread the gospel.He has also been working as an agricultural advisor to North Korea for more than a decade. It started in July 2000, when the North’s Geumgangsan Tourist Region, only recently opened to South Korean tourists, had the need for an agricultural expert to teach the locals how to grow vegetables to satisfy the palates of their Southern visi