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Kang Seung-woo

Korea Times Business Reporter

Kang Seung-woo is the Business Desk editor at The Korea Times. Prior to this position, he covered politics, national affairs, finance and sports.

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South Korea

Park hints at broader inter-Korean exchanges

By Kang Seung-wooPresident Park Geun-hye said Tuesday that South and North Korea can advance toward a peaceful unification should Pyongyang uphold their recent joint agreement.Her remark hints that the South is willing to resume exchanges and cooperation with the North depending on the latter’s sincerity.On Aug. 25, the two Koreas reached a six-clause deal, aimed at defusing tension on the Korean Peninsula and improving strained inter-Korean ties after four days of marathon talks at the border village of Panmunjeom.“We can move toward the path of cooperation for peace and unification on the Korean Peninsula if we implement this hard-won agreement well,” Park said during a Cabinet meeting at Cheong Wa Dae.Her reference to the peace accord follows North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s comments Friday describing the agreement as a landmark occasion that could put inter-Korea relations back on track for reconciliation and trust.This was the first time for Park to openly mention the peace accord.Hours after the agreement was struck, Park said through her spokesman Min

Sep 1, 2015By Kang Seung-woo
South Korea

Japan upset over Ban's visit to China

Ban Ki-moonBy Kang Seung-woo United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon’s plan to travel to China this week to attend its massive military parade has drawn protests from the Japanese government.Ban will join leaders from about 30 countries, including President Park Geun-hye and Russian President Vladimir Putin, at a ceremony to mark the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II at Tiananmen Square in Beijing on Sept. 3.However, most Western leaders, including U.S. President Barack Obama and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, will not attend.“The secretary general believes it is important to reflect on the past, look at the lessons we have learned, and move ahead to a brighter future,” his office told Japan’s Kyodo News.“That is why he is participating in the commemorative events in China, as he did at other ceremonies marking the end of the war in Poland, Ukraine and Russia.”He also said China’s contribution, sacrifices and suffering during the war were greatly recognized and appreciated around the world, according to China’s

Aug 30, 2015By Kang Seung-woo
Japan upset over Ban's visit to China
South Korea

Koreas swiftly shifting to dialogue

Seoul, Pyongyang agree to family reunion talks on Sept. 7 By Kang Seung-woo South and North Korea will hold Red Cross talks early next week to discuss family reunions after Pyongyang accepted Seoul’s proposal for the meeting, the Ministry of Unification said Sunday.Separately, the two Koreas plan to hold inter-governmental talks as part of follow-up measures they agreed to Tuesday to defuse tensions after an exchange of fire across the border on Aug. 20.Seoul and Pyongyang agreed to hold this meeting soon in Seoul or Pyongyang.“The North sent a notice om Saturday that it would accept the South’s proposal to hold a Red Cross meeting on Sept. 7 at the truce village of Panmunjeom,” the ministry said in a statement.The North’s quick response to the South’s offer is seen as rare, given the secretive regime’s record of often cancelling meetings at the last minute, citing aggression from the South.Before the 2014 reunions, the two Koreas initially planned to hold them from Sept. 25-30, 2013, but the North postponed them four days before th

Aug 30, 2015By Kang Seung-woo
Koreas swiftly shifting to dialogue
South Korea

Park needs to focus on economy

President Park Geun-hye attends a festival for the opening of Creative Economy Innovation Center at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology in Daejeon, Thursday. / YonhapFollowing is the second in a series of articles on President Park Geun-hye's tasks for the second half of her presidency. ― ED.By Kang Seung-wooFor President Park Geun-hye, Korea’s first female head of state, the first half of her five-year presidency has been less impressive than expected.Despite unveiling ambitious plans to help the nation take a leap forward, her efforts were often frustrated by unexpected incidents such as the outbreak of Middles East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) and the Sewol ferry sinking. Then there were several scandals involving her aides and younger brother, as well as her own personal deficiencies of course, poor communication skills being among them.Passing the halfway point of her term on Aug. 25, political analysts advised Park to produce tangible results to burnish her legacy and gain strong public support.“To pursue her main policies, President Park needs to

Aug 27, 2015By Kang Seung-woo
Park needs to focus on economy
South Korea

Follow-up steps hold key to inter-Korean summit

A North Korean border village in Gaepung, North Hwanghae Province is seen from the Odusan Unification Observatory on the southern side of the Demilitarized Zone in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, Wednesday.  / Korea TimesFollowing is the first in a series of articles on President Park Geun-hye’s tasks for the second half of her presidency. ― ED.By Kang Seung-wooThe Aug. 25 agreement between South and North Korea should be the first step toward a summit between the two Korean leaders, analysts said Wednesday.An inter-Korean summit would help to distinguish President Park Geun-hye’s presidency, which passed its half-way point the previous day with no major achievements, they added.Whether the two leaders will meet or not will depend on how fast an agreement can be put into practice by the two Korean authorities, they said.“I think Park and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un will sit down with each other should the Aug. 25 agreement lead to follow-up steps, and achieve tangible results,” said Yang Moo-jin, a professor at the University of North Korean Studies.&ld

Aug 26, 2015By Kang Seung-woo
South Korea

President will attend military parade in Beijing

President Park Geun-hye, left, shakes hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping while visiting Beijing to participate the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation on Nov. 10, 2014. / YonhapPark to hold summit with Xi JinpingBy Kang Seung-woo, Jun Ji-hyePresident Park Geun-hye has decided to observe a military parade marking the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II on Sept. 3 in Beijing, Cheong Wa Dae said Wednesday.“Considering friendly and cooperative relations with China, President Park has decided to observe the parade,” presidential spokesman Min Kyung-wook said in a statement.Min also said that China’s potential role in the peaceful unification of the Korean Peninsula and its contribution to the South’s independence movement against Japanese colonial rule also factored into the decision.The parade, seen as the highlight of China’s war anniversary events, plans to show off its military strength to the rest of the world, but due to the sensitiveness of the issue ― a potential protest from the United States ― Park did not make the decision unti

Aug 26, 2015By Kang Seung-woo
President will attend military parade in Beijing
South Korea

Park's hardline stance pays off

By Kang Seung-wooPresident Park Geun-hye’s “no-retreat” attitude in a tense military standoff with North Korea has been thrust into the limelight, with the inter-Korean deal to defuse tension being seen as a triumph for her firmness against Pyongyang’s threats.After four days of marathon talks, the two sides issued a joint statement that center on the North expressing regret over landmine detonations in the demilitarized zone (DMZ) that seriously wounded two South Korean soldiers.Despite the absence of a clear apology, the expression of regret is widely viewed as a de facto one from the North, according to analysts.In exchange, the South stopped broadcasting anti-North propaganda along the border.While the two sides were locked in talks Monday, President Park showed that she remained resolute in the face of the North’s increasing threats, urging the repressive state to apologize for the Aug. 4 landmine explosions.“South Korea will take corresponding measures and continue the loudspeaker broadcasts unless North Korea offers a clear apology and promi

Aug 25, 2015By Kang Seung-woo
  • South-North relations enter new phase
South Korea

Pyongyang deploys 20 amphibious landing vehicles

A North Korean military parade is seen in the photo published by the Rodong Shinmun, the official newspaper of the North's Workers' Party, Monday. / YonhapNorth Korea increasing military threats amid high-level talksBy Kang Seung-wooNorth Korea is sending contradictory messages as it holds inter-Korean talks while increasing threats to the South.The military said Monday that North Korea has deployed landing craft air cushions (LCACs) near the border with South Korea.“Some 20 amphibious landing vehicles, from Cholsan, North Pyongan Province, have been moved to 60 kilometers north of the Northern Limit Line (NLL) in the West Sea,” a military official said.The NLL is a de facto maritime border between the two Koreas.According to the defense ministry, Kim Jong-un has dispatched special forces to the border tasked with destroying loudspeakers set up by the South that are relaying anti-Pyongyang propaganda. In addition, 70 percent of its submarines, numbering approximately 50, have left their bases and their movements are currently untraceable, the ministry added.“The LCA

Aug 24, 2015By Kang Seung-woo
Pyongyang deploys 20 amphibious landing vehicles
  • Park urges NK to apologize
North Korea

South continues loudspeaker psyops

A North Korean border post is seen behind a South Korean post on the western inter-Korean border, Friday. / YonhapBy Kang Seung-woo Despite North Korea’s threats to attack loudspeakers along the border, South Korea continued broadcasting propaganda Friday.According to the military, it aired the messages across the border from 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. and did so again for four hours in the afternoon.After the exchange of fire between the two Koreas, the Kim Jong-un regime threatened to take military action unless the South Korean government stopped the propaganda and dismantled the speakers by 5 p.m. Saturday.“We plan to go ahead with the propaganda broadcasts if the North does not apologize for its attacks and punish those responsible,” Vice Defense Minister Baek Seung-joo told lawmakers during a parliamentary session.In the wake of the North’s landmine attack in the Demilitarized Zone that seriously injured two South Korean soldiers on Aug. 4, the South demanded that the North make an apology for the attack and punish those in charge of the provocation. How

Aug 21, 2015By Kang Seung-woo
South continues loudspeaker psyops
  • N. Korea declares 'quasi-state of war'
  • North Korea positions its artillery inside DMZ
South Korea

N. Korea declares 'quasi-state of war'

President Park Geun-hye receives a briefing about North Korea’s attack and troop movements during a visit to the Third Army’s headquarters in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, Friday. Park called for the military to deal sternly with any additional provocations. At right is National Security Office chief Kim Kwan-jin and at left is Defense Minister Han Min-koo. / Joint Press CorpsROK, US troops ready for joint operationsBy Kang Seung-woo North Korean leader Kim Jong-un ordered border troops to maintain full combat readiness against the South, Friday, threatening to launch another attack over the weekend.Kim held an emergency meeting of chief commanders and told them to enter “a quasi-state of wartime” and prepare for military operations, the North’s Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said.“Commanders of the Korean People’s Army were hastily dispatched to front-line troops to command military operations to destroy psychological warfare tools if the enemy does not stop propaganda broadcasts within 48 hours, and prepare against the enemy&rsquo

Aug 21, 2015By Kang Seung-woo
N. Korea declares 'quasi-state of war'
  • 'NK heightening tensions to test-fire missiles'
  • South continues loudspeaker psyops
  • Parties condemn North Korea over shelling attack
  • North Korea positions its artillery inside DMZ
  • Two Koreas reopen talks Sunday 3: 30 p.m.
  • Two Koreas resume talks
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