The US Treasury Department on Friday said it had allowed nongovernmental organizations to provide coronavirus-related humanitarian aid to sanctioned North Korea, including testing kits and respiratory devices.  The department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control released the list of items that have gained exemptions for countries like North Korea, Iran and Venezuela to assist in their battle against COVID-19.  OFAC said it is authorizing NGOs to provide items for the civilians o

Commemorating the sixth anniversary of the Sewol ferry tragedy that claimed 304 lives, President Moon Jae-in on Thursday said the lessons learned from the 2014 sinking are embedded in his government’s responses to the novel coronavirus outbreak.  　 ‘We cried with the Sewol ferry tragedy, shared a sense of the responsibility (for the lives lost) and realized how deeply interconnected we are with each other,” he wrote via social media. “As we overcome COVID-19, we ar

The 21st National Assembly will have two members originally from North Korea who have been vocal about their native country’s dictatorship and human rights abuses.  　 One of them is Tae Ku-min, better known here by his North Korean name, Thae Yong-ho, who became the first defector to be directly elected to South Korea’s unicameral parliament.  　 Running on the ticket of the conservative opposition United Future Party, the former North Korean diplomat, who settled down he

All voters must wear plastic gloves at the polling stations during Wednesday’s general election as a precaution against the coronavirus, but many people are voicing concerns about their impact on the environment. 　 Mask-clad voters, upon arriving at one of 14,330 polling stations across the nation, first have to disinfect their hands with the hand sanitizer that is provided by election officials and then put on disposable gloves before casting their ballots. After voting, the plastic glo

In Wednesday’s general elections, even those in quarantine can vote.   　 South Korea will pick 300 members of the National Assembly in the first nationwide election to take place during the pandemic.   　 According to the National Election Commission, there are about 50,000 eligible voters under self-quarantine.   　 Not all can vote. Only those who express their intent to vote by 6 p.m. Tuesday will be allowed to step outside their places of isolation to visit polling sta

South Korea’s quick and preemptive response to the coronavirus outbreak stems from the painful experience of the Sewol ferry disaster in 2014, said Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha in an interview with foreign media.   “We acted quickly and preemptively and that is not just our philosophy but is a reflection of our recent experience,” Kang said during an interview with French news channel France 24 on Monday. “You may know that in 2014, we had a terrible ferry boat a

North Korea’s rubber-stamp parliament held a session Sunday, two days later than scheduled, the country’s state media reported Monday. 　 The 14th Supreme People’s Assembly gathered for a third session in Pyongyang. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un was absent, so No. 2 leader Choe Ryong-hae chaired the parliamentary session, the Korea Central News Agency and Rodong Sinmun reported. While Kim’s attendance is not required at the Assembly, he has often appeared in the past a

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un reinstated his sister as an alternate member of the Politburo, the ruling party’s top policymaking body, at its meeting Saturday, the North’s state media said Sunday. 　 The Worker’s Party meeting also addressed countermeasures to COVID-19, other personnel reshuffles and organizational matters, according to the Korea Central News Agency. 　 A joint resolution was adopted to take “more thorough state measures to protect life and safety of o

South Korea on Thursday said it will invalidate short-term visas for all foreign nationals starting Monday. It will also temporarily halt visa waiver programs for 90 countries that bar entry to Koreans, amid concerns over a growing number of coronavirus infections coming from overseas. 　 The new restrictions are due to come into effect at midnight on April 13 at the port of departure, according to a joint press release from the foreign and justice ministries. 　 The officials said the number o

North Korea is among the 49 countries that are at high risk of food shortage and poverty due to the global coronavirus pandemic, the United Nation’s World Food Program said Thursday. 　 In its report, titled “COVID-19: Potential Impact on the World’s Poorest People,” the WFP analyzed the economic and food security implications of the pandemic, stressing “for many poor countries, the economic consequences will be more devastating than the disease itself.” 　 Th

North Korea continues to insist it has no confirmed cases of coronavirus infection, despite mounting skepticism while the global pandemic is spreading. 　 The reclusive nation has tested 709 people -- 11 foreigners and 698 North Koreans -- for COVID-19, with no positive test results, according to Reuters on Tuesday, citing the North’s weekly updates submitted to the World Health Organization. 　 It said the country has the capacity to test for the virus at its national reference laborator

South Korea will temporarily stop visa waiver programs for countries that bar entry to Koreans, Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun announced Wednesday, amid concerns over a growing number of coronavirus infections coming from overseas.   The government will also step up entry restrictions on foreigners traveling for reasons that are not essential or urgent, the prime minister said.  　  “While we maintain the principle of openness, the government will strengthen (entry) re

Amid drawn-out negotiations on military cost-sharing between South Korea and the US, the defense chiefs of both countries spoke by phone and discussed the importance of reaching an “equitable” agreement quickly. 　 US Defense Secretary Mark Esper called Korean Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo at around 8:30 p.m. on Monday evening, and discussed the ongoing negotiations for about 20 minutes, according to Seoul’s Defense Ministry on Tuesday. 　 “I appreciate Korean Defen

North Korea is set to convene a session of the Supreme People’s Assembly, the country’s rubber-stamp parliament, on Friday, spawning speculation about what message it will deliver amid the global novel coronavirus pandemic.  It will be the 14th SPA’s third session, following the last in August. Around 700 officials will arrive in the capital for the meeting, during which the North revises its constitution, reviews the budget and conducts personnel reshuffles, among othe

Chinese travelers were totally absent from South Korean airports Saturday, amid toughened entry restrictions due to the novel coronavirus outbreak. 　 According to immigration data released by the Justice Ministry, not a single Chinese national went through immigration for the first time in 28 years. The two countries established bilateral relations in August 1992. 　 The average number of Chinese entering Korea per day was around 15,000 until January, when it began declining. It reached 464 on

Despite earlier reports that a defense cost-sharing deal between South Korea and the US was imminent, a senior US official said Friday the negotiations are still ongoing and reiterated a call for an “equitable” agreement.  “What I can tell you right now is that we are still in talks with each other -- my colleagues in my bureau and then of course at the ministerial level and higher,” R. Clarke Cooper, assistant secretary of state for political-military, said in a b

Students of Yeomyung School, an alternative high school for young North Korean defectors, had high hopes for the school’s relocation plan.   　 In a new location with a new building, they would have more spacious classrooms and a real playground with enough space to kick a ball during recess.   　 But those dreams were dashed late last year.   　 Met with strong resistance from residents in Eunpyeong-gu, a largely residential district in northern Seoul where the school was

South Korea’s Ministry of Justice on Thursday said it denied entry to eight foreign nationals who refused to quarantine themselves for two weeks upon arrival here.  “The quarantine office determined it inappropriate for the foreign nationals to enter the country, as they failed to follow the government quarantine measures, despite being notified prior to departure that they would have to self-quarantine,” the ministry said.  Starting Wednesday, Seoul implemented a

South Korea has deported two North Korean fishermen accused of killing 16 crew members in November, after concluding that their intentions to defect were disingenuous, according to local news reports Wednesday. 　 The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights said the South Korean government had responded to letter sent by UN special rapporteur for North Korea’s human rights Tomas Ojea Quintana in January to inquire the repatriation of two fishermen to North Korea. 　 Seoul expl

South Korea provided a massive bank loan to establish diplomatic relations with Hungary in 1989, a declassified diplomatic document revealed Tuesday. 　 Seoul pledged Budapest an economic cooperation fund of $650 million that combined direct investments, loans and other financial support, according to the agreed-upon minutes dated August 1988. 　 Of the total $250 million in bank loans, Seoul was asked to execute half of the amount, or $125 million, as a precondition to the forging of diplomati