US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken arrived in Beijing on Sunday on a high-stakes two-day mission to cool off growing tensions with China, with neighboring countries such as South Korea closely monitoring developments. On the first day of his tour, Blinken was expected to meet with Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang and top diplomat Wang Yi ahead of a possible meeting with President Xi Jinping the following day, according to US officials. The rare trip was a follow-up on what Xi and US Presiden

Foreign Affairs June 18, 2023

President Yoon Suk Yeol oversaw the largest joint live-fire exercises ever conducted by the South Korean and US military, as the two allies marked the last day of their three-week drills Thursday meant to openly deter North Korea’s growing aggression. The show of force, which took place at Asia’s largest military training field in Pocheon, Gyeonggi Province, involved mobilizing the South Korean F-35A fighter jets and K9 howitzers and the US F-16 jets and Gray Eagle drones. About 2,50

Politics June 15, 2023

Japan has to persuade South Koreans that the wastewater it will release this summer from the destroyed Fukushima nuclear power plant is safe, South Korean Ambassador to Japan Yun Duk-min said in an interview with a Japanese outlet. In the interview with Jiji Press published Wednesday, the envoy said there are difficulties even if “such persuasion were to take place with scientific evidence presented” because the issue itself is a “highly sensitive matter concerning the health

Foreign Affairs June 14, 2023

The Chinese ambassador to South Korea “intentionally” criticized South Korea’s foreign policy using “inaccurate information,” the Foreign Ministry in Seoul said Tuesday, openly rebuking the top envoy over his remarks that heightened tension between Seoul and Beijing. “We are not faulting the ambassador for meeting with our opposition leader,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lim Soo-suk said at a briefing, referring to a meeting last week between Ambassador

Foreign Affairs June 13, 2023

South Korea’s chief nuclear envoy, Kim Gunn, and his US counterpart, Sung Kim, reaffirmed their commitment to respond sternly to North Korea’s aggression, including blocking illicit funds from bankrolling North Korea’s weapons programs. “We have agreed to step up our efforts to cut off funds to the North’s nuclear and missile programs,” Kim Gunn said of his meeting with the US special representative in Washington. The North is refusing to comply with internati

Foreign Affairs June 13, 2023

South Korea’s chief nuclear envoy, Kim Gunn, and his US counterpart, Sung Kim, will meet in Washington on Monday to review joint work on disarming North Korea, the Foreign Ministry in Seoul said in a statement Friday, amid heightened inter-Korean tensions. Last week, Pyongyang failed to put into orbit what it claimed was a military reconnaissance satellite, a launch that some believe was actually meant to test a ballistic missile. United Nations Security Council resolutions ban the isolate

Foreign Affairs June 9, 2023

Kim Tae-hyo, President Yoon’s deputy national security adviser, reaffirmed the country’s push to prioritize diplomacy with countries that value freedom -- the administration’s signature foreign policy that has essentially put the country in a US-led coalition against China and Russia. At a forum Friday to mark Yoon’s first anniversary of taking office in May 2022, Kim described freedom as a “core interest” that will determine whether the country will have a se

Politics June 9, 2023

South Korea will manage relations with China to foster a “healthy relationship,” President Yoon Suk Yeol’s national security adviser said, suggesting Seoul would not give in to Beijing’s demands as easily as the previous administration. Cho Tae-yong said the Yoon administration is seeking to advance Korea’s global status with a “principled approach and reciprocity,” meaning Beijing would have to reciprocate what it asks Seoul to do. China has been trying

Politics June 9, 2023

The competition in the chip industry is an “all-out war,” President Yoon Suk Yeol said Thursday, vowing to back local chipmakers with interagency support amid the intensifying tech competition between the US and China. “The government and the private sector should come together to ride out challenges ahead. … The government will closely work with allies like the US to resolve issues involving the industry,” Yoon said at a meeting attended by senior officials, lawma

Politics June 8, 2023

South Korea is stepping up efforts to lead global peace initiatives, emboldened by winning a two-year term on the United Nations Security Council at an election Tuesday, as it doubles down on fighting security challenges -- the biggest of which is North Korea. Beginning in January next year, Seoul will serve as one of the 10 nonpermanent members of the UN’s most powerful body, which also includes five permanent members with veto power: China, France, Russia, the UK and US. The annual elect

Foreign Affairs June 7, 2023

President Yoon Suk Yeol praised a recent deal between South Korea and the US that allows for a joint nuclear response to North Korea’s potential nuclear attacks, at an annual Memorial Day ceremony Tuesday, as he called the change an upgrade to the 70-year-old alliance. The Washington Declaration, announced at a White House summit in April between Yoon and President Joe Biden, dramatically reinforces a US pledge to deliver on deterring North Korea amid its growing nuclear threats, according

Politics June 6, 2023

A new agency that will be exclusively in charge of representing the interests of 7.5 million overseas Koreans will help Incheon rise as a global business hub, President Yoon Suk Yeol said Monday, launching the body he promised a year ago to advance the country’s business ties. The Overseas Koreans Agency offers one-stop services for Koreans who have acquired permanent residency in a foreign country, who once held Korean nationality or who are lineal descendants of someone who once held Kor

Politics June 5, 2023

South Korea is preparing to play a bigger role on the international stage as it aims to secure a seat on the United Nations Security Council at an election Tuesday, an opportunity for Seoul to serve as a two-year term member on the UN’s most powerful body. Running unopposed, the South is expected to get approval from two-thirds of the General Assembly, ending the country’s 10-year hiatus from the 15-member body that includes five permanent members with veto power: the US, UK, France,

Foreign Affairs June 4, 2023

South Korea and the US issued a warning about a state-backed North Korean hacking group in a joint statement Friday, with Seoul slapping a ban on the group -- the first time for any single country to do so. The group Kimsuky is known for collecting intelligence on national security and foreign policy issues involving the Korean Peninsula from individuals and institutions, and has been providing such intelligence to the North while helping the isolated country to develop what it claims are &ldquo

North Korea June 2, 2023

South Korea’s Supreme Court on Thursday dismissed a complaint demanding the government disclose negotiations that led to a 2015 agreement between South Korea and Japan meant to settle the issue of Korean sex slaves, a contentious deal that fell short of putting on record whether Tokyo had directly forced the victims into sex slavery. The pact, signed in December 2015 when the Korean and Japanese foreign ministers released statements vowing never to revisit the issue without mentioning coer

Foreign Affairs June 1, 2023