By Hwang Sunghee in Seoul and Sebastien Berger in Pyongyang Agence France Presse PYONGYANG, North Korea (AFP) — North and South Korea are radically different societies, one ruled by the same family for decades and the other a freewheeling democracy and thrusting economy. But one thing unites them — their love of fermented cabbage. Kimchi, originally a means of preserving the vegetable during winter and which can vary from mild to fiery, has been a […]
Tag: South Korea
K-pop stars carry singer’s coffin after suicide
SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — Six of K-pop’s biggest stars carried the coffin of fellow singer Kim Jong-Hyun to a hearse Thursday, after he died leaving behind a suicide note that spoke of his battle with loneliness and depression. Kim’s body was taken to his funeral from the Asan Medical Centre in Seoul where it had been lying at rest. The procession was led by one of Kim’s bandmates from SHINee — one of the […]
Canada, US to host N. Korea crisis talks in January
OTTAWA, Canada (AFP) — Canada and the United States announced Tuesday they will host a summit of foreign ministers in Vancouver on January 16, including envoys from Japan and South Korea, to seek progress on the North Korean nuclear crisis. “We believe a diplomatic solution to the crisis is essential and possible,” Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland told a joint press conference with visiting US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. © Agence France-Presse
N. Korean incomes improving but far below South: Seoul
SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — North Koreans enjoyed the fastest improvement in their incomes for five years in 2016, Seoul’s statistics agency has said — but Southerners are still more than 20 times better off. Per capita incomes averaged 1.46 million won ($1,340) in the North last year, Statistics Korea said in statement, up five per cent. It was the fastest expansion since 2011, when incomes rose by more than seven percent, a graph issued […]
China, S. Korea eye warmer ties following tensions
by Becky Davis Agence France Presse BEIJING, China (AFP) — The presidents of China and South Korea sought Thursday to repair ties strained over a US anti-missile defense system, but the beating of a South Korean photojournalist by Chinese security cast a pall over the summit. Relations between Beijing and Seoul have been icy since South Korea allowed the United States to install the THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense) system to guard against threats […]
Chinese, S. Korean leaders meet hoping to smooth tensions
BEIJING, China (AFP) — South Korean President Moon Jae-In will hold talks with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Beijing on Thursday, seeking to repair a relationship strained over Seoul hosting a US missile system. Moon’s office has said he hopes to “normalize” ties during the visit after Beijing was angered by the deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD), installed earlier this year to protect South Korea against threats from the nuclear-armed North. Beijing, which […]
South Korean leader starts fence-mending trip to China
BEIJING, China (AFP) — South Korean President Moon Jae-In began his first state visit to China on Wednesday to soothe relations strained by the US deployment of an anti-missile system that has angered Beijing. Moon is also expected to discuss the North Korean nuclear crisis during his four-day trip, which includes talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday. The US military installed the powerful THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense) system in the South […]
US, S. Korea, Japan start missile-tracking drill, irking China
SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) – The US, South Korea and Japan carried out joint exercises Monday to track missiles from North Korea, as China warned that such manoeuvres fuel tensions following nuclear-armed Pyongyang’s longest-range test launch to date. The trilateral drill comes less than two weeks after Pyongyang test-fired a new intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) and declared it had achieved nuclear statehood, escalating global alarm over its weapons push. The two-day exercise — the sixth since […]
Olympics chief seeks North Korea visit – report
SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — Olympics chief Thomas Bach is hoping to visit North Korea as early as this month to discuss Pyongyang’s participation in the 2018 Winter Games, a report said Friday. South Korean organizers of the Pyeongchang Olympics are pushing for the North to compete as they hope to portray the event as a symbol of peace on the flashpoint peninsula. The North missed the October 30 deadline to confirm its participation, although […]
S. Korea voices regret over Russia Winter Olympics ban
SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — South Korea on Thursday voiced regret over the decision to ban Russia from the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, saying the participation of the country’s athletes was crucial to the success of the event. The South Korean sports ministry urged Russian athletes to compete as neutrals following the International Olympic Committee’s unprecedented ban, saying in a statement it had “worked hard over the past seven years to make meticulous preparations” for a […]
South Korea’s Moon to visit China for talks on N. Korea
SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — South Korean President Moon Jae-In will visit China next week for talks on North Korea and other issues, his office said Wednesday, amid tentative signs of diplomatic movement after months of high tensions over Pyongyang’s nuclear and missile threats. The announcement came as a high-level United Nations representative held talks with a senior North Korean official during a rare trip to Pyongyang. Jeffrey Feltman, UN undersecretary general for political affairs, […]
US, South Korea begin largest-ever joint air drill
SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — The US and South Korea on Monday kicked off their largest ever joint air exercise, an operation North Korea has labelled an “all-out provocation”, days after Pyongyang fired its most powerful intercontinental ballistic missile. The five-day Vigilant Ace drill — involving 230 aircraft, including F-22 Raptor stealth jet fighters, and tens of thousands of troops — began Monday morning, Seoul’s air force said. Pyongyang over the weekend blasted the drill, […]





