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East Asia

Park willing to talk with NK leader

Rep. Park Geun-hye, the presidential candidate of the ruling Saenuri Party, said Monday that if elected, she was willing to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong-un without any conditions. But Park stood firm against North Korea’s bellicose attacks on South Korea’s sovereignty and territory, such as crossing the Northern Limit…
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East Asia

Foreign students at SNU up 27%

The number of foreign students at Seoul National University (SNU) has increased by more than 20 percent in three years, the school said Monday. According to the office of international affairs at the state-run university, there were 2,401 foreign students enrolled as of October, up 27 percent from 1,891 in…
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East Asia

Special prosecutor to question first lady

First lady Kim Yoon-ok will be questioned by the special prosecutor’s team over a controversial property deal for the first family’s now-scrapped retirement home project. A decision on when and how to question Kim will be made soon. Assistant special counsel Lee Chang-hoon said Monday that the team has decided…
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East Asia

‘Dancing together’ with Dokdo issue

This is the 13th in a series of contributed articles by international and Korean experts shedding light on Japan’s claim to Korea’s easternmost islets of Dokdo and other affairs that illustrate Japan’s lack of remorse over misdeeds it has committed. ― ED “Dancing together” is a skill of diplomacy that…
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A narrower divide

Living in North Korea, Lee Gwang-cheol’s family background gave him advantages that normal citizens could never dream of. After he defected to the South in 1997, and these privileges were stripped away, he vowed never to take any opportunity for granted. Lee says his grandfather was an anti-Japanese guerilla who…
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East Asia

‘Arirang’ recommended for UNESCO Heritage

Korea’s traditional folk song “Arirang” has been recommended to be listed as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by a UNESCO subsidiary body that has examined nominations from countries around the world. The subpanel of the UNESCO Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage recommended Arirang be placed…
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East Asia

GS to expand business in Singapore

GS Group, Korea’s eighth largest conglomerate by assets, is seeking to expand its energy, retail and construction businesses in Singapore in line with the company’s growth strategy focusing on Southeast Asian nations. GS Group Chairman Huh Chang-soo convened a meeting of heads of affiliates in Singapore from Sunday to Monday,…
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East Asia

Ancient Chinese Townlet Heshun Featuring Time-Honored Temples, Houses Emerges As New Tourists Attraction

People visit the ancient townlet Heshun in Tengchong County, southwest China’s Yunnan Province, on Nov. 3, 2012. The townlet, featuring time-honored temples and houses, is located three kilometers away from the county seat of Tengchong, where live 6,000 people. People walk under a stone archway in the ancient townlet Heshun…
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East Asia

Dalai Lama In Japan For Giving Lecture, Taking Part In Symposium

Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, center, prepares to give a religious talk in Yokohama, near Tokyo, Sunday, Nov. 4, 2012. The Dalai Lama waves to devotees as he arrives to give a religious lecture in Yokohama, near Tokyo, Sunday, Nov. 4, 2012. The Tibetan spiritual leader arrived in Japan…
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East Asia

Clash of two languages

A Japanese professor was introducing himself to his new class at a university in Seoul. “I’m professor Seki and I’m going to teach you…” All the Korean students burst into uncontrollable laughter. “Is anything wrong?” Seki asks. “Your name, sir,”replies came from the still chuckling audience. The newcomer to Seoul…
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