A South Korean woman in her 30s has gone missing in Laos while traveling alone in the country's popular waterfall area, the foreign ministry here said Monday. The woman, whose name was not given by the ministry, went to see the Kuang Si Waterfalls in Laos' Luang Prabang region on May 22 before going missing, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. The hotel she was staying at reported her disappearance to the police after she did not show up.In collaboration with the Laos police, the South Korean

North Korea on Monday strongly condemned the leftist Moon Jae-in government's move to maintain a specific presidential panel, set up by its predecessor, asserting the idea is "against public sentiment expressed by candlelight rallies." "The incumbent South Korean authorities are raising great concerns at home and abroad as they are trying to keep intact the puppet the Presidential Committee for Unification Preparation, which (former President) Park Geun-hye had cooked up and exploited for impure

Bulgaria, the Czech Republic and Romania have suspended imports of workers from North Korea amid criticism that Pyongyang is extorting money earned by their people overseas, according to a recent report by a North Korean human rights advocacy group. "Bulgaria, the Czech Republic and Romania set a precedent by ceasing their labor imports after realizing the conditions of North Korean overseas laborers," the Seoul-based Database Center for North Korean Human Rights said.The report was presented jo

South Korea's political parties on Monday condemned North Korea's ballistic missile launch, saying the communist state would only face deeper isolation and stronger sanctions unless it ceases its provocations.The North fired off a short-range ballistic missile from its eastern coast in the morning, the third provocation since Seoul's new President Moon Jae-in was sworn in on May 10. This photo, taken on May 26, 2017, shows Back Hye-ryun, spokeswoman for the ruling Democratic Party, speaking duri

The South Korean government on Monday acknowledged the widespread public disapproval of the controversial deal to end bilateral feuds over Japan's wartime sexual enslavement of Korean women and expressed hopes to resolve the issue through joint efforts."The government wishes to overcome the problem wisely through joint efforts between South Korea and Japan while accepting the reality that the majority of our public do not approve of the comfort women agreement sentimentally," the Ministry of For

South Korea's candlelight protests that called for the impeachment of former South Korean President Park Geun-hye boosted the spread of the public sentiment for the ouster of US President Donald Trump, a North Korean paper claimed Monday. "The protests against Trump took place one after the other in many places in the US in February. ... Participants there cried out slogans, such as 'Trump should step down,' while saying they gained confidence that they could change their government from the imp

Top nuclear envoys of South Korea, the United States and Japan strongly condemned North Korea's latest missile test Monday, vowing to maintain close cooperation and seek stern action against Pyongyang's "reckless" and "continued" provocations, the foreign ministry said.Kim Hong-kyun, special representative for Korean Peninsula peace and security affairs at the foreign ministry, discussed the North's missile test conducted early in the day in separate telephone conversations with his US and Japan

The foreign ministry Monday started an anti-hacking exercise that simulates an infiltration into its computer systems in cooperation with the National Intelligence Service, a government source said. The five-day training is part of efforts to beef up its cybersecurity ability amid growing hacking threats. Employees monitor possible WannaCry ransomware attacks at the Korea Internet and Security Agency in Seoul on May 17, 2017. (Yonhap)The cybersecurity center of the spy agency plays a role as an

The much talked about impeachment of US President Donald Trump is "very unlikely" to come true, famous American columnist Thomas Friedman said Monday, calling the talk of impeachment "way, way premature."It is "very unlikely because we are not your grandfathers' America. This is not your grandfathers' Republican Party," the New York Times columnist said in a lecture in Seoul to showcase his new book "Thank You for Being Late." The event was arranged by the Asan Institute for Policy Studies.Ameri

The South Korean government said Monday six dammed reservoirs set aside for irrigation will remain open from Thursday as part of an effort to prevent water quality from deteriorating further.Six out of 16 dammed pools on the "four rivers" built for irrigation will be opened from 2 p.m. in a move to help resolve their serious green algae problems. But they will maintain set water levels in order to provide agricultural water for nearby farmers during the rice planting season which has just begun,

The daughter of former President Park Geun-hye's close friend will be extradited from Denmark this week after avoiding the prosecution's summons for months, officials said Monday.Chung Yoo-ra, the 21-year-old daughter of Choi Soon-sil, has been held at a detention center in Denmark since January on suspicion of illegal stay. South Korean prosecutors have demanded her extradition in connection with a massive corruption scandal centered on her mother, which eventually led to the ouster of Park in

Opposition parties on Monday ramped up their offensive against President Moon Jae-in over his prime minister nominee, pressuring him to directly apologize over the designate dogged by a string of allegations involving his family.Observers, however, said that Moon's apology, should it be made, could help address the political standoff and pave the way for a parliamentary vote on Prime Minister-designate Lee Nak-yon this week.The opposition bloc's criticism centered on Moon's failure to deliver on

The minor opposition People's Party on Monday pledged to cooperate with the parliamentary confirmation of Prime Minister-nominee Lee Nak-yon despite a string of allegations against his family.The center-left party was largely expected to support Lee, the former governor of South Jeolla Province, the main support base of the party.The party that has 40 seats in the 299-member parliament is seen as holding a "casting vote" in important legislative decisions. (Yonhap)

South Korean President Moon Jae-in stressed the importance of good relations with Asian and European nations, including Russia, vowing to further improve Seoul's diplomatic ties with the countries in a meeting with his special envoys to the regions."I applaud you and also congratulate you on your return after successfully fulfilling all your duties as special envoys," the president told the envoys in the meeting held at the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae.The meeting involved Rep. Song Young-g

The land ministry said Monday it will start using drones for inspections of high pylons, cliffs, and other hard-to-reach facilities and locations.The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport has purchased four drones for 60 million won ($53,580) that will be used by the Korea Railroad Corp. on a six-month trial basis starting this month. The drones will inspect more than 40 locations, including bridges, tunnels and power line towers, as well as cliffs for potential mudslides.  (Yonhap)Phot

South Korea's foreign ministry strongly condemned North Korea's latest missile test Monday, vowing to take stern action against any provocation.The North fired a ballistic missile believed to be a Scud type early Monday morning. It was launched eastward from near Wonsan before landing in the East Sea.  South Korean foreign ministry spokesman Cho June-hyuck (Yonhap)"This is a clear violation of the UN Security Council's relevant resolutions and poses a serious threat not only to the Korean Penins

The head of South Korea's National Security Council was set to visit the National Assembly on Monday to brief ruling and opposition party leaders about the latest missile provocation by North Korea.Chung Eui-yong, the chairman of the NSC's standing committee, was set to meet with National Assembly Speaker Chung Sye-kyun and floor leaders of four major political parties, according to an official from the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae. Chung Eui-yong, the chairman of the NSC's standing committ

The National Assembly is set to hold a confirmation hearing on National Intelligence Service director-designate Suh Hoon on Monday, with opposition parties focusing on his stance on North Korea and NIS reform, and ethical qualifications.The hearing for Suh comes amid a growing controversy over President Moon Jae-in's high-level nominees, including Prime Minister-designate Lee Nak-yon, who came under fire for his wife's use of a false home address to get assigned to a school in southern Seoul. Th

South Korea's young women are increasingly becoming either overweight or underweight, while men are gaining in abdominal obesity, a medical report said Monday.The research results showed that among women in their 20s and 30s, prevalence for becoming underweight increased from 8.8 percent in 1998 to 14 percent in 2012. Prevalence for becoming overweight also increased from 1.9 percent to 4.3 percent during the period. (Yonhap)The findings were based on five separate national health and nutritiona

Senior officials of South Korea and the United Nations will meet in Seoul this week to discuss a wide range of cooperative issues including the growing North Korea nuclear threat, the ministry said Sunday. (Yonhap)The meeting will be held on Monday between Lee Jang-keun, who is in charge of the ministry's international organizations bureau, and Miroslav Jenca of the UN Department of Political Affairs, according to the ministry. This marks their first policy dialogue in which both are expected to