Yoon seeks tighter coalition on Ukraine, drawing support as well as concerns

President Yoon Suk Yeol was seen bolstering a push to insert South Korea into a tighter coalition of Western countries decrying Moscow for its war in Ukraine during a surprise trip to Ukraine’s capital Kyiv last week, following his participation in the NATO summit and visit to Poland. The tour Saturday that covered the towns of Bucha and Irpin outside Kyiv, the alleged sites of Russian massacres, included a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy -- the culmination of Yoon&rsq

July 18, 2023

Time to reset S. Korea-China ties ahead of summit: experts

South Korea and China should use this year’s three-way summit with Japan as momentum to reshape their somewhat rocky ties, experts said Sunday following the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Regional Forum, Asia’s biggest security gathering attended by foreign ministers in the region. Talks held on the sidelines of the two-day forum that ended Friday between South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin and Wang Yi, China’s top diplomat, came at a time when Seoul and Beijing were

July 16, 2023

Yoon concludes weeklong trip to Europe, returns to Seoul

WARSAW, Poland -- President Yoon Suk Yeol is set to depart for Seoul on Sunday, concluding a weeklong visit to Lithuania, Poland and Ukraine, with an emphasis on global security, business reinforcement with NATO members and Ukrainian reconstruction. Yoon made an unexpected stop in Ukraine on Saturday, where he promised military supplies and financial aid. Yoon’s journey involved a mix of air, land and train travel, totaling 27 hours for the round trip. He stayed in Ukraine for 11 hours. Th

July 16, 2023

In Kyiv, S. Korean leader pledges increased military aid to Ukraine

WARSAW, Poland -- South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol pledged increased military aid as well as humanitarian support to Ukraine, a nation ravaged by war, during his surprise visit to Kyiv on Saturday. Yoon had a 65-minute private meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to discuss pending issues between the two countries and a 45-minute extended meeting with key officials from both governments. At a joint press conference held following the summit, Yoon vowed to increase Korea&rsquo

July 15, 2023

Yoon makes surprise visit to Ukraine to meet Zelenskyy

WARSAW, Poland -- President Yoon Suk Yeol and first lady Kim Keon Hee are in Kyiv to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in a highly secretive visit made after the Korean president's official visit to Poland, the presidential office said Saturday. The couple arrived in Kyiv on Saturday morning, and traveled to Bucha, a town on the outskirts of Kyiv where Russian troops carried out atrocities early on in the war. He also visited nearby Irpin, where civilian areas were subjected to c

July 15, 2023

Korea, Poland ink 33 high-tech, energy deal, pledge support for Ukraine’s reconstruction

WARSAW, Poland -- South Korean and Polish businesses formalized 33 memorandums of understanding across the high-tech, energy and service industries during a business forum held in Poland's capital Warsaw on Friday. The deal was reached in the presence of South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, who also committed to bolstering the private sector's involvement in Ukraine's post-conflict reconstruction efforts. The South Korean and Polish firm's 33 deals include 11 within high-t

July 14, 2023

S. Korea imposes new sanctions on NK following Hwasong-18 ICBM launch

South Korea announced another round of unilateral sanctions on North Korea including on the high-profile director of the army politburo, shortly after a UN Security Council meeting on North Korea's illicit launch of a Hwasong-18 intercontinental ballistic missile ended without producing collective agreement to condemn it. The Yoon Suk Yeol government on Friday imposed new financial sanctions on four North Korean individuals and three entities in response to North Korea's firing of the

July 14, 2023

Top diplomats of S. Korea, US, Japan to hold talks after N. Korea's ICBM launch

The top diplomats of South Korea, the United States and Japan are scheduled to hold three-way talks Friday to discuss ways to deal with North Korea's evolving threats highlighted by this week's test-firing of an intercontinental ballistic missile, according to Seoul's foreign ministry. South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin and his US and Japanese counterparts, Antony Blinken and Yoshimasa Hayashi, respectively, were visiting Jakarta to attend annual regional meetings led by the A

July 14, 2023

S. Korea, US agree to strengthen cooperation against N. Korean nuke, WMD threats

Defense officials of South Korea and the United States have agreed to reinforce joint efforts to address threats from North Korea's nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction during their talks in Washington, Seoul's defense ministry said Friday. Kim Sung-koo, deputy chief of the ministry's policy planning bureau, and Richard C. Johnson, US deputy assistant secretary of defense for nuclear and countering WMD Policy, led the Counter WMD Committee session on Wednesday and Thursda

July 14, 2023

US calls for UNSC action against N. Korean ICBM test, but China, Russia veto

WASHINGTON -- The United States and 12 other members of the United Nations Security Council unsuccessfully sought to hold North Korea accountable for its recent long-range missile test Thursday due to opposition from China and Russia. North Korea, making its first appearance at a UNSC meeting since 2017, also rejected international condemnation of its missile launch, insisting that it was a legitimate test that had no effect on the security of any neighboring nation. Thursday's UNSC meeting

July 14, 2023

S. Korea eyes $52b Ukraine reconstruction project

WARSAW, Poland -- South Korea will offer comprehensive support from both the public and private sectors for Ukraine reconstruction projects valued at $52 billion, according to the presidential office. "Ukraine has requested the involvement of Korean companies in approximately 5,000 construction projects, estimated at $20 billion, through an intergovernmental cooperation channel in May," said Choi Sang-mok, economic secretary for President Yoon. According to Choi, the government will b

July 14, 2023

First ladies of S. Korea, Poland visit art exhibition, meet scouts

WARSAW, Poland -- The first ladies of South Korea and Poland visited an exhibition on Mexican artist Frida Kahlo at Warsaw's Royal Lazienki Museum and met scout members in the country as part of friendly engagements, the presidential office said Thursday. Kim Keon Hee and her Polish counterpart, Agata Kornhauser-Duda, have met twice at NATO summits since last year. Thursday was their third meeting, during President Yoon Suk Yeol's official visit to the European country. "I hope th

July 14, 2023

Doosan, Hyundai, Daewoo to ink nuclear power MOUs with Polish firms

WARSAW, Poland — Korean companies are expected to formalize nuclear power collaborations with their Polish counterparts, taking the South Korean leader's official visit to the country as an opportunity, according to the senior presidential secretary on the economy on Thursday. "Nuclear-related firms such as Doosan Enerbility, Hyundai Engineering and Construction and Daewoo Engineering and Construction are poised to sign six memoranda of understanding with Polish companies tomorro

July 14, 2023

[From the Scene] Uzbek leader clinches third term in reform push

TASHKENT, Uzbekistan -- Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev was reelected for a third term in a much expected landslide victory paving the way for another seven years of rule amid his push for reforms. The 65-year-old leader won with 87.1 percent of the vote on Sunday, according to preliminary results released by the Central Election Commission. The snap election took place following a constitutional change by referendum in April that reset his term count and extended terms from five to seve

July 13, 2023

Yoon vows support for Ukraine reconstruction with Poland

WARSAW, Poland -- President Yoon Suk Yeol said South Korea will continue to support Ukraine's reconstruction in partnership with Poland, while also expanding strategic cooperation with Warsaw in defense and high-tech sectors including clean energy, next-generation batteries, electric vehicles and information technology. In a summit with his Polish counterpart Andrzej Duda on Thursday, the two leaders discussed cooperation on a wide range of issues between the two countries, which have see

July 13, 2023

Top diplomats of S. Korea, Japan to hold talks on Fukushima water release

The top diplomats of South Korea and Japan were set to hold bilateral talks Thursday over Tokyo's plan to discharge treated radioactive water from the crippled Fukushima plant. The planned meeting between South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin and his Japanese counterpart, Yoshimasa Hayashi, in Jakarta comes on the heels of a bilateral summit between the leaders of the two countries held a day earlier in Lithuania. During the summit held in Vilnius, Lithuania, on the sidelines of a North At

July 13, 2023

Vice defense minister visits S. Korean Akh unit in UAE

Vice Defense Minister Shin Beom-chul has visited a South Korean military contingent in the United Arab Emirates to encourage troops for their service there, Seoul's defense ministry said Thursday. Shin met with members of the Akh unit on Wednesday after he arrived in the country for talks with his Emirati counterpart, Mattar Salem Ali Al Dhaheri, the previous day. Launched in 2011, the Akh unit has been carrying out various missions in the country, including training UAE troops and protecti

July 13, 2023

Yoon says S. Korea to open embassy in Lithuania

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol met with Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda on Wednesday and formally informed him of Seoul's decision to open an embassy in Vilnius, his office said. The two held a summit in Vilnius on the sidelines of a gathering of leaders from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, which South Korea was invited to as a partner nation. Yoon called for expanding cooperation with Lithuania -- a leading nation in laser technology -- in bio and other cutting-edge indu

July 13, 2023

Yoon arrives in Poland for 3-day official visit

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol arrived in Poland on Wednesday for a three-day official visit aimed at deepening cooperation in strategic sectors such as arms and nuclear power and facilitating South Korean participation in reconstruction projects in Ukraine. Yoon is scheduled to hold a summit with Polish President Andrzej Duda on Thursday and discuss ways to further develop the bilateral strategic partnership established in 2013. Talks will focus on expanding ties not only in trade and inv

July 13, 2023

FM to rally support against NK at ASEAN Forum

Foreign Minister Park Jin will seek to rally allies and countries to step up efforts for North Korea’s denuclearization at the ASEAN Regional Forum, the biggest security gathering in the region set to be held from Thursday to Friday in Jakarta, Indonesia. Having repeatedly stressed a united coalition on the isolated country defying international sanctions prompted by its nuclear ambitions, the top South Korean diplomat will in particular double down on curbing the North’s illegal cyb

July 12, 2023