Lee calls top security meeting to discuss N.K., regional tensionTerritorial tension is brewing again between Korea and China after Beijing reportedly devised a plan to mobilize drones to monitor areas outside its jurisdiction, including Korea’s island of Ieodo. Ieodo, or Socotra Rock, has often been a source of diplomatic spats in recent years as it lies in the overlapping section of the exclusive economic zones of Korea and China. “We’re currently verifying the news reports. While the U.N. Conv

North Korea’s rubber-stamp parliament on Tuesday approved legislation to extend its compulsory education by one year to 12 years on Tuesday, the Korean Central News Agency reported. There was no announcement on agricultural reforms and other economic measures widely expected to top the agenda of the meeting.“The DPRK Supreme People’s Assembly unanimously endorsed a decree on universal 12-year compulsory education at the session,” the KCNA said, referring to the acronym of the country’s official

Korea needs strategies for sustaining and expanding cultural phenomenonOver the past few years, Korean popular culture, often abbreviated as “K-pop,” has gained immense popularity in many countries. Following the initial surge of interest in Korean television dramas and popular music, nowadays all things Korean ― from food, movies and dances to fashion and language ― are quite the rage. The cultural wave, or hallyu, is establishing itself as a global phenomenon that has already washed over East

Tension is escalating around the skirmish-prone western maritime border as Pyongyang vowed retaliation against South Korea’s firing of warning shots Friday at North Korean fishing vessels that violated the territorial waters. The communist regime Saturday accused the South of a “shooting rampage” against boats owned by another country. “What remains to be done now is a powerful strike of our front units which know no bounds,” Pyongyang’s official news agency said. On Friday around noon, South Ko

Worrying about their livelihood and longing for political reform, people in their 40s, especially those who are middle class and reside in the Seoul metropolitan area, are emerging as a decisive section of the electorate for the close presidential race. Their potential to determine the December election was pronounced in last week’s opinion polls.Polls show that the age segment has sharply shifted toward Ahn Cheol-soo, a liberal-minded independent, following his much-awaited announcement of his

A robbery suspect who earned the nickname “Korean Houdini” after breaking out of prison through a very narrow cell window was nabbed Saturday after six days on the run, police said.Choi Gab-bok, 50, was caught on the rooftop of an apartment building in Milyang, 386 kilometers southeast of Seoul, earlier in the day, said Daegu’s Dongbu Police Station. Milyang is about 30 kilometers south from Daegu.Upon a tipoff from a villager in Milyang, police raided an apartment building and arrested the susp

Chief Justice Yang Sung-tae said Sunday that a provision of law should be repealed to ensure sex offenders can be punished without the need for a complaint from their victims.The provision in the current law stipulates that those suspected of sexual offenses are prosecuted only when victims file formal complaints.The loophole could allow sex offenders to get off scot-free as many victims are reluctant to make a complaint because they are afraid of having to confront their assailants and concerne

Shows Koreans’ interaction with islets over 1,500 yearsA state-run history institute opened a museum dedicated to Dokdo in Seoul on Friday to showcase its 60 years of research findings and help promote understanding of the strategic and ecologic significance of the tiny East Sea islets. The facility, runs by the Northeast Asia History Foundation, presents maps, historical documents, charts, images and press records in chronological order. They were categorized into history and natural environmen

North Korea on Wednesday refused South Korea’s offer of flood relief aid, crushing emerging hopes for a thaw in tense relations between the two Koreas. The North changed its position only two days after expressing its intention to accept Seoul’s proposal for assistance made on Sept. 3.The Unification Ministry said it sent a list of items for shipment Tuesday including 10,000 tons of flour, 3 million packets of noodles, and medical equipment. The North sent a letter on Wednesday afternoon saying,

Japanese government uses newspaper advertisment to reiterate its claim to DokdoAfter a couple weeks of letup, tension is rekindling between Seoul and Tokyo over Dokdo as the two governments gear up for an advertisement blitz in Japanese newspapers.The Japanese Foreign Ministry ran an advertisement in local newspapers Tuesday which reiterates its long-standing claim to Korea’s easternmost islets. In response, Seoul’s Foreign Ministry announced its plan to launch an ad campaign countering Japan’s

Korea and Greenland plan to step up cooperation for environmentally friendly development projects as Seoul seeks a slice of the resources-rich region’s research and business boom. President Lee Myung-bak and Kuupik Kleist, prime minister of Greenland, a Danish autonomous territory, forged four agreements Sunday on mineral and resources exploration, geological survey and science and technology. They also agreed to work together on green growth and Arctic shipping lanes.Earlier in the day, Lee lan

People for Successful Corean Reunification, a non-profit group, said it launched a campaign against North Korea’s rights abuses in Geneva on Monday to coincide with a United Nations Human Rights Council session. North Korean human rights is not on the agenda for the U.N. session that runs through Sept. 28, but past meetings have taken up a resolution condemning the repressive regime’s public executions, prison camps and torture.Based in Seoul and Washington, PSCORE was founded in 2006 by a group

The successor to Moon Sun-myung, the deceased founder of the Unification Church, made a surprise visit to North Korea on Friday, his spokesman said.Moon Hyung-jin, Moon’s youngest son and successor as church leader, crossed the border early Friday, spokesman Ahn Ho-yeol told journalists.Moon Sun-myung, the self-styled messiah who founded the church famed for its mass weddings and business empire spanning cars to sushi, died Monday at the age of 92 due to complications from pneumonia. Although a

South Korea has proposed sending emergency relief aid to North Korea, the first such offer since relations sank into a deep freeze after the death of the North’s leader last December.The South’s Red Cross chief sent a proposal on Monday, calling for talks with North Korea on aid shipment, the Unification Ministry, which handles cross-border affairs, said Friday.Official aid from the South to the North often goes through the Red Cross as a matter of formality.South Korea last sent such aid two ye

Thursday’s revelation of a blackmail attempt by a Saenuri official targeting Ahn Cheol-soo has triggered mayhem throughout the ruling party scrambling to prevent the fallout affecting the chances of presidential candidate Park Geun-hye. Jeong Joon-gil, a former prosecutor and communication officer with Park’s campaign, offered to resign about two hours after Geum Tae-seop, an attorney close to Ahn, accused him of threatening to expose bribes and “women problems” involving the professor if he run

Seoul City’s plan to introduce a “rain tax” scheme to promote a better use of rainwater and improve flood control is stoking debate as civic groups and experts raise concerns about the additional burden on property owners. The envisioned tax, modeled on a German scheme, would be collected based on the area of impervious surface on a property that generates storm runoff directed to local drains. The greater the impervious area, the less landowners would be charged. The plan comes as part of the m

South Korea on Wednesday urged China to reinvestigate the alleged torture by Chinese investigators of a prominent North Korean human rights activist. Kim Young-hwan, 49, was released on July 20 along with his three colleagues after 114 days of detention in China. Kim claimed upon return that he was tortured with beatings and electric shock. Beijing has denied the claims. Consular affairs officials of the two countries held their first talks since Kim’s freedom in Beijing. Ahn Young-jip, the dire

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un sent condolences Wednesday over the death of Unification Church founder Moon Sun-myung, fueling speculation he might send a rare delegation to South Korea for the funeral.Moon, a self-styled messiah who gathered a global following behind his church and spawned a multi-billion business empire, died on Monday at the age of 92.His funeral will be held September 15 at the church’s headquarters in Gapyeong, east of Seoul.Although a staunch anti-communist, Moon began bu

In another unconventional public appearance, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un visited the homes of working people in Pyongyang, the North’s state news media said Wednesday.Accompanied by his wife Ri Sol-ju, Kim visited the homes of three ordinary families who recently moved into the newly-built apartments in Pyongyang’s Changjon Street, a new town project celebrating the centenary of North Korean founder Kim Il-sung’s birth this year, said the (North) Korean Central News Agency.In the meeting wit

Moon Sun-myung, the deceased founder of the Unification Church, had developed ties with North Korea over the past two decades through a raft of industrial and aid projects. Born in Jeongju, North Pyeongan Province, Moon made a foray into the reclusive country after a 1991 meeting with Kim Il-sung, its late founding father. While Moon also urged the resumption of inter-Korean talks and reunions of separated families during the meeting, Kim reportedly asked him to arrange a meeting with George H.W