• N. Korea flexes muscles ahead of nuclear summit

    North Korea is back in the spotlight. On Wednesday, it launched a verbal assault at South Korea for its scheduled hosting of the Seoul Nuclear Security Summit slated for March 26 and 27. The North’s Central News Agency characterized the global gathering as a grave threat to the Stalinist state,…

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  • The Death of Kim Jong Il: Now What?

    After 17 years at the helm of North Korea, the Dear Leader is no more, and suddenly we are faced with a reality on which so much “contingency planning” has been based. So, what can we expect of the next chapter in the North’s political history? And how should the…

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  • Politics

    Power shift to Asia: no need to panic

    On Feb. 15, just as Chinese Vice-President Xi Jinping arrived in the United States for a four-day visit, U.S. President Barack Obama told an audience of American workers in Milwaukee: “Manufacturing is coming back!” Coming back from China, that is. But while the Master Lock Company of Milwaukee has indeed…

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  • PoliticsTrade Minister Bark Tae-ho (Photo: News 1)

    Korea-US FTA to take effect on March 15

    The free trade agreement between Korea and the United States (KORUS FTA) will go into effect on March 15, six years after the two countries kicked off talks on the trade pact in June 2006.   Trade Minister Bark Tae-ho (Photo: News 1)  Trade Minister Bark Tae-ho announced Tuesday that…

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  • Politics

    Park Chung-hee memorial hall opens amid dispute

    Park Geun-hye, right, interim emergency committee leader of the ruling Saenuri Party, looks at a giant black-and-white photograph of her late father, President Park Chung-hee, on display at a memorial hall for the late leader in Seoul, Tuesday. A memorial hall for the late former President Park Chung-hee opened Tuesday,…

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  • Politics

    Kim Jong-un likely to grab key titles in April

    North Korea will convene a rare conference of its ruling Workers’ Party in April, its state media said Monday, during which analysts expect the Stalinist state will cement the power of its new leader, Kim Jong-un. The announcement by Pyongyang’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) of the conference, the…

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  • More Assets for Assembly v More Debts for Public

    Korean lawmakers have 2.9 billion won (approx. 2.6 million USD) on average Every two out of three Members of the National Assembly of Korea have increased wealth over the past three years and especially nineteen (6.7%) of them have increased twofold. AsiaN investigated asset changes of 266 Members (except by-election…

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  • Politics

    Mr Ban Ki-moon, Show Your Strong Leadership

    UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon outlined a series of actions he believes the global community must take over the next five years to build “the future we want”. Mr Ban presented five imperatives and they are sustainable development, preventing and mitigating conflicts, human rights abuses and the impacts of natural disasters,…

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  • Politics

    Russia to suspend children adoption by U.S. citizens

    The Russian Foreign Ministry on Saturday signaled that Moscow may temporarily suspend adoption of Russian children by U.S. citizens following a series of mistreatment allegedly committed by American adoptive parents. In a statement posted on its website, the ministry listed a string of cases about U.S. adoptive parents’ abuses of…

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  • Politics

    Maldives assure safety for tourists

    Former Maldives President Mohamed Nasheed (2nd, R Front) gestures during a rally in Male, the capital of Maldive, on Feb. 11, 2012. (Xinhua/Che Hongliang) Ending a week of political turmoil, the Maldives Saturday invited tourists to its world’s top luxury resort destinations assuring complete safety and protection, according to a…

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