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East Asia
Trump says 3rd summit with N.K. leader would be good
U.S. President Donald Trump said Saturday that the third summit with Kim Jong-un would be “good,” after the North Korean leader expressed openness to another meeting. Trump’s tweet came in response to Kim’s speech to the North’s parliament on Friday, during which he said he would be willing to hold…
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East Asia
Free education
Success will depend on how to secure outlays The country can no longer delay providing free education for high school students. That is why the Moon Jae-in administration has decided to begin this program for seniors in the fall semester this year. The government and ruling party made the decision…
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East Asia
S. Korea: Constitutional Court rules against abortion ban after 66 years
The Constitutional Court ruled Thursday that the country’s strict abortion ban is unconstitutional, a landmark decision that signals major change in various aspects of society. The nine-justice panel made the ruling in a 7-2 vote, in response to a 2017 complaint filed by an obstetrician standing trial for performing multiple…
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East Asia
N.K. leader re-elected as chairman of State Affairs Commission
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has been re-elected as chairman of the State Affairs Commission, the communist state’s highest decision-making body, in a key parliamentary meeting, state media reported Friday. The North’s Premier Pak Pong-ju has also been replaced with Kim Jae-ryong, a senior member of the ruling Workers’ Party…
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East Asia
European scholars of Korean studies open conference in Rome to discuss Korean phenomena
European scholars of Korean studies opened their biennial conference in Rome, Italy, on Thursday to discuss the latest Korean political, social and cultural phenomena. The 29th conference of the Association for Korean Studies in Europe (AKSE), hosted by the Italian Institute of Oriental Studies at Sapienza University of Rome, will…
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East Asia
Seoul to install fine dust signal lamps in public parks
The government of Seoul said Thursday it will install signal lights to display levels of fine dust air pollution at all riverside parks in the capital to caution citizens against health hazards. A total of 12 fine dust signal lamps will be installed at major entrances to all of the…
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East Asia
S. Korea: Moon notes need for extra budget to battle fine dust, natural disasters
President Moon Jae-in on Tuesday highlighted the need for an extra budget to address growing issues of fine dust air pollution and public safety. Following a report from the finance minister, the president told the government to swiftly push for a supplementary budget so necessary funds can reach where they…
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East Asia
S. Korea eyes extra budget of less than 7 tln won: finance minister
South Korea’s finance minister said Wednesday he expects to introduce a supplementary budget worth less than 7 trillion won (US$6.1 billion) to boost domestic demand and create jobs. Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki told reporters that the size of the extra budget has not been confirmed yet, but he expects that…
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East Asia
Seoul cancels construction permit for new Japanese Embassy building
The construction permit for a new Japanese embassy building in central Seoul has been revoked due to construction delays, municipal officials said Wednesday. Seoul’s Jongno Ward Office said it notified the Japanese Embassy on March 4 of the cancellation of the building permit issued in 2015. The revocation came as…
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East Asia
Scholar discovers original copies of 1919 Swiss resolution calling for Korean independence
A South Korean scholar said Wednesday he has discovered the original copies of a resolution adopted at the 1919 International Socialist Conference in the Swiss town of Lucerne that show the Korean provisional government’s diplomatic efforts to call for Korean independence from Japan. Although the resolution itself has been known…
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