WASHINGTON, Jan. 9 (Yonhap) -- The White House said Monday the U.S. military has "significant capability" to defend itself, apparently reiterating a willingness to shoot down a North Korean intercontinental ballistic missile if it comes toward the country or allies.White House press secretary Josh
Ambassador Thura Thet Oo Maung of Myanmar in Seoul said that the Myanmar government has introduced significant political and economic reforms since 2011 after decades of isolation. “Notably,” he said, “Madam Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy Party has won a landslide victory in Novemb
SEOUL, Jan. 9 (Yonhap) -- Upon arriving in his home country this week, former U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, a potential presidential contender, will strive to reach out to citizens and listen to them, a source said Monday, in an apparent move to build grassroots support ahead of a presidential
SEOUL, Jan. 9 (Yonhap) – The South Korean Navy on Monday will name the top U.S. envoy an honorary member for his contributions to promoting bilateral naval ties between the two countries.The Navy said it plans to appoint U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Mark Lippert as its 19th honorary member i
SEOUL, Jan. 9 (Yonhap) -- The Japanese ambassador and consul general in South Korea returned to Tokyo on Monday as a diplomatic row deepened over a recently erected statue that condemns Japan's wartime atrocities.Ambassador Yasumasa Nagamine boarded a flight to Japan at Gimpo International Airpo
SEOUL, Jan. 9 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's parliamentary committee on the influence-peddling scandal involving President Park Geun-hye and her confidante held its last hearing Monday, with only a few of the 20 summoned witnesses having actually appeared before the National Assembly.The ad hoc panel
SEOUL, Jan. 9 - Director Kim Kwan-jin of the National Security Office of the Republic of Korea said Sunday that North Korea's nuclear and missile programs pose threats not only to the South but also to the United States. Yonhap and other Korean-language news media reported Monday.Kim made the re
THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense) missiles deployed in Korea will be no harm to China and therefore she has nothing to worry about the United Stated defense missiles in Korea. In order to convince China of this, Korea could invite Chinese missile experts to visit Korea and inspect the targ
(ATTN: RECASTS headline, lead; CORRECTS figures throughout)SEOUL, Jan. 6 (Yonhap) -- Choe Ryong-hae, a ranking North Korean party official, has visited a steel factory in North Korea's central and west province, Pyongyang's state media said Friday, marking his first on-site inspection in nea
SEOUL, Jan. 6 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's main opposition party on Friday called on the government to mend ties with China, defending its lawmakers' visit to Beijing to discuss diplomatic tension over Seoul's plan to deploy a U.S. missile defense system.Seven Democratic Party members visit
Ambassador Mark Lippert might stay on in Seoul for the time being as United States ambassador to Korea.This speculation was reported by Korean language dailies this morning.This came in the wake of cancellation by the US Embassy in Seoul of a scheduled meeting between Ambwassador Lippert and Korean
WASHINGTON, Jan. 5 (Yonhap) -- The United States is improving "our nuclear and conventional deterrent capabilities" in the face of North Korea's nuclear and missile threats, U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter said Thursday.Carter made the remark in his "exit memo" before stepping down as defe
LAS VEGAS, Jan. 4 (Yonhap) – South Korean tech giant Samsung Electronics Co. aims to connect more products to the Internet this year, company officials said Wednesday, bolstering its push for the next major evolution of the Internet that could change how people live and work.Samsung unveiled i
SEOUL, Jan. 5 (Yonhap) -- The floor leader of South Korea's minor opposition People's Party on Thursday invited former U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to join in the party's in-house competition to pick its presidential candidate.In an interview with Yonhap News Agency, Rep. Joo Seung
BEIJING, Jan. 5 (Yonhap) -- China's top diplomat called Wednesday for South Korea to halt the planned deployment of the U.S. THAAD missile defense system when he met with a group of South Korean opposition lawmakers, according to the legislators.Foreign Minister Wang Yi made the appeal, saying C
SEOUL, Jan. 5 (Yonhap) -- Rep. Yoo Seong-min, a presidential hopeful from the proposed New Conservative Party for Reform, condemned the visit by opposition lawmakers to China on Thursday, stressing that talks with Beijing on the deployment of an advanced U.S. missile defense system is tantamount to
(ATTN: CHANGES deployment timing in 3rd para)SEOUL, Jan. 4 (Yonhap) -- A group of seven South Korean opposition lawmakers on Wednesday embarked on a three-day trip to Beijing to discuss diplomatic tension between the two countries over Seoul's plan to deploy a U.S. missile shield.The delegation
By Chang Jae-soonWASHINGTON, Jan. 3 (Yonhap) -- The U.S. is fully capable of defending against North Korean missiles, the White House said Tuesday, after the communist nation said it's in the final stage of preparations to test-fire an intercontinental ballistic missile."For years, the United S
(ATTN: ADDS more in 4-5th para, photo)SEOUL, Jan. 3 (Yonhap) -- The South Korean government has ordered the daughter of Choi Soon-sil, the woman at the center of a massive presidential scandal, to turn in her passport in a bid to pressure her to return home and face an investigation, diplomatic sour
SEOUL, Jan. 3 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's parliamentary committee looking into the influence-peddling scandal surrounding President Park Geun-hye and her confidante Choi Soon-sil on Tuesday accused the incumbent and former cultural ministers of perjury during hearing sessions.The committee decided