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CEO & Publisher: Oh Young-jinDigital News Email: webmaster@koreatimes.co.krTel: 02-724-2114Online newspaper registration No: 서울,아52844Date of registration: 2020.02.05Masthead: The Korea TimesCopyright © koreatimes.co.kr. All rights reserved.

S. Korea, Japan face head-on collision as last-minute talks collapse

Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha and her Japanese counterpart Taro Kono head to their seats after shaking hands ahead of a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the ASEAN Regional Forum in Bangkok, Thailand, Thursday. YonhapUS role eyed to mediate deepening Korea-Japan feudBy Do Je-hae The meeting Thursday between the top diplomats of Korea and Japan in Bangkok failed to halt or delay Tokyo's additional trade sanctions on Korea expected to be announced Friday. Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha held a meeting with her Japanese counterpart Taro Kono, on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Regional Forum, with the aim of finding common ground to resolve the deepening trade row between the neighboring countries.For Korea, the immediate aim of the meeting was to get Japan to halt its planned removal of Seoul from its “whitelist” of countries receiving preferential treatment in trade. “We made a clear request to halt the whitelist action,” Kang told reporters after the talks with Kono. “We also made it clear there would be grave co

Aug 1, 2019By Do Je-hae
S. Korea, Japan face head-on collision as last-minute talks collapse
  • Japan's ruling party leader snubs Korean delegation
  • Korean man set himself ablaze to protest Japan
  • Assembly to pass extra budget bill

Man sets fire to self in protest of Japan's trade curbs

Police officers set up a police line at a park near the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts in central Seoul, Thursday, where a man set fire to himself presumably in protest against Japan's export curbs. / YonhapBy Kim RahnA man set himself on fire in central Seoul, Thursday, presumably in protest of Japan's economic retaliation against Korea's court rulings over wartime forced labor.According to police and fire authorities, the man, 72, set fire to himself at a park near Sejong Center for the Performing Arts at 8:34 a.m.Rescue workers arrived there following reports from witnesses that a man was burning, and took him to a nearby hospital. They found inflammables near him.He sustained serious burns all over his body and is in critical condition, according to police.The police found a bag there that seemed to belong to him. Along with personal belongings such as a cell phone, there was a note that said “Japan should retract its economic retaliation.” Also found in the bag was a book about the late former sex slave Kim Bok-dong, and leaflets that read “Koreans will

Aug 1, 2019By Kim Rahn
Man sets fire to self in protest of Japan's trade curbs

Kang, Kono to discuss trade dispute

Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha, right, talks with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo before an expanded summit between South Korean President Moon Jae-in and U.S. President Donald Trump at Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul on June 30. YonhapUS Secretary of State Pompeo to mediate Korea-Japan row at ARFBy Lee Min-hyungForeign Minister Kang Kyung-wha and her Japanese counterpart Taro Kono will meet today on the sidelines of the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) in Bangkok, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Wednesday.This is the first time for the top diplomats of the two countries to meet since Japan implemented restrictions on its exports of some high-tech materials used by Korean manufacturers earlier this month, the ministry said. On her trip to Bangkok, she said she would focus on drawing international consensus on the unfairness of Japan's export restrictions on South Korea.“I will point out Japan's export curbs are not fair and urge Japan to stop the action immediately,” she told reporters Wednesday before leaving for Bangkok.The ARF will also be an occasion for the U.S.

Jul 31, 2019By Lee Min-hyung
Kang, Kono to discuss trade dispute
  • Moon administration fails to help companies on Japan row
  • 'Boycott Japan' campaign moving to anti-Japan marketing
  • Taskforce urges Japan to cancel trade curbs

Assembly delegation in Tokyo

A National Assembly delegation to Japan led by Rep. Suh Chung-won holds a press briefing after a meeting with Japanese politicians including Fukushiro Nukaga of the Japanese ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), co-head of the Japan-Korea Parliamentarians' Union, at the Hotel New Otani in Tokyo, Wednesday. Rep. Kang Chang-il, the South Korean head of the Japan-Korea Parliamentarians' Union, was also visiting Tokyo. Yonhap

Jul 31, 2019
Assembly delegation in Tokyo

Taskforce urges Japan to cancel trade curbs

Hong Nam-ki, second from right, minister of economy and finance, speaks before holding a bipartisan meeting on tackling Japan's trade regulations against Korea at the National Assembly, Wednesday. YonhapBy Park Ji-wonThe bipartisan consultative body on tackling Japan's trade curbs pledged to urge Japan to withdraw the “unfair” trade measure against Korea and hold a bilateral negotiation with Korea.“All participants of the consultative body shared the understanding that Japan has implemented 'unfair and inappropriate' trade regulations against Korea by turning a diplomatic issue created by the past historical issues, into an economic measure,” Hong Nam-ki, the minister of economy and finance, told reporters Wednesday after having the first meeting of the organization consisting of representatives from the government, political parties and private sector.The meeting was attended by Hong; Kim Sang-jo, senior presidential secretary for policy; Cho Sei-young, vice foreign minister; Sung Yoon-mo, industry minister; policy chiefs of five political parties and busines

Jul 31, 2019By Park Ji-won
Taskforce urges Japan to cancel trade curbs
  • Kang, Kono to discuss trade dispute

Korea strongly warns against 'whitelist' action

Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha speaks during a National Assembly Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee session, Tuesday. YonhapBy Do Je-haeJapan's potential removal of Korea from its list of trusted trade partners is fast emerging as another flashpoint in already tense bilateral relations.During a session at the National Assembly Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee, Tuesday, Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha said that Japan is expected to remove Korea from its “whitelist” of countries for preferential treatment in trade as early as Aug. 2. “If Japan makes a Cabinet decision to exclude Korea from the whitelist, bilateral relations will crumble out of control,” Kang said. “We strongly call on Tokyo to withdraw the restrictions that have already been implemented and stop going forward with the whitelist action, and sternly warn it of the negative impact these moves will have on bilateral relations,” the foreign minister said. Ahead of the imminent approval, Korea is going all out to prevent the move through diplomacy at various levels of gove

Jul 30, 2019By Do Je-hae
Korea strongly warns against 'whitelist' action
  • 'Boycott Japan' weighs on card issuers
  • Prime Minister's role as special envoy in spotlight
  • Ruling party leader urges caution on GSOMIA
  • Foreign Minister departs for Thailand for ASEAN meetings
  • Pompeo plans to meet South Korean, Japanese ministers in Bangkok
  • FMs of South Korea, Japan to meet in Bangkok on Thursday

Ruling party leader urges caution on GSOMIA

Rep. Lee Hae-chan, chairman of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), speaks during a press conference at the National Assembly, Tuesday. By Park Ji-wonRep. Lee Hae-chan, chairman of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), stressed the necessity of the military information-sharing agreement with Japan for peace in Northeast Asia regardless of the trade spat between the neighboring countries, during a press conference, Tuesday.Regarding the proposed abolition of the General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA), Lee said, “I think the pact is necessary to maintain peace in Northeast Asia. Some claim it is absurd to seek military cooperation with Japan when the two neighboring countries have strained economic relations. I think it should be seen in a more comprehensive and considerate manner.”The minor parties have been claiming that leveraging the cancellation of the GSOMIA could be a negotiation card with Japan while the main and second-larges

Jul 30, 2019By Park Ji-won
Ruling party leader urges caution on GSOMIA
  • Korea strongly warns against 'whitelist' action
  • Foreign Minister departs for Thailand for ASEAN meetings
  • Pompeo plans to meet South Korean, Japanese ministers in Bangkok
  • FMs of South Korea, Japan to meet in Bangkok on Thursday

Prime Minister's role as special envoy in spotlight

Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon, right, attends a Cabinet meeting at the Government Complex in Seoul, Tuesday. YonhapBy Lee Min-hyungSpeculations are rising over Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon's possible role as a presidential envoy in resolving tensions with Japan. President Moon Jae-in has reiterated his determination to push for a “two-track” diplomacy by partnering with the prime minister, giving more weight to the speculations. In the past, special envoys have played decisive roles in mending Korea-Japan relations. The 1961 summit between former President Park Chung-hee and Japanese Prime Minister Hayato Ikeda was realized after a mutual exchange of special envoys. As a former correspondent in Japan with an extensive network in the country, Lee is seen as a valuable asset in negotiations, according to some experts. Rep. Lee Sang-don of the minor opposition Bareunmirae Party, said Monday that the Japanese side confirmed such sentiments during a three-way meeting with lawmakers from South Korea and the United States in Washington, D.C. “The Japanese delegation clearly sha

Jul 30, 2019By Lee Min-hyung
Prime Minister's role as special envoy in spotlight
  • Korea strongly warns against 'whitelist' action
  • Foreign Minister departs for Thailand for ASEAN meetings
  • Pompeo plans to meet South Korean, Japanese ministers in Bangkok
  • FMs of South Korea, Japan to meet in Bangkok on Thursday

Condemning Japan

Officials from 52 local governments and members of civic groups nationwide condemn Japan's export restrictions vow to support and continue the boycott of Japanese goods during a protest in front of Seodaemun Prison History Hall in Seoul, Tuesday. During Japan's 1910-45 colonial rule of Korea, the hall was a prison where Korean independence fighters were confined. / Yonhap

Jul 30, 2019By Kim Hyun-bin
Condemning Japan

Parties to establish body to tackle disputes with Japan

Secretary-generals of five political parties hold hands before their meeting at the National Assembly, Monday, on the establishment of a bipartisan body to win the ongoing trade war with Japan. From left are Rep. Lim Jae-hun of the minor opposition Bareunmirae Party, Rep. Park Maeng-woo of the main opposition Liberty Korea Party, Rep. Yun Ho-jung of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea, Rep. Kim Kwang-soo of the minor opposition Party for Democracy and Peace, and Kwon Tae-hong of the Justice Party. Yonhap By Park Ji-wonRepresentatives of the nation's major political parties agreed Monday to establish a bipartisan consultative body this Wednesday, to tackle Japan's trade restrictions on the export of certain goods to Korean companies. The move comes about two weeks after President Moon Jae-in and the leaders of the parties agreed, July 18, to establish a pan-national taskforce to build cooperation to respond to the ongoing trade war with Tokyo.In addition, the floor

Jul 29, 2019By Park Ji-won
Parties to establish body to tackle disputes with Japan
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