The Gangneung city government said more than 2,500 residents were ordered to flee Saturday as a wind-fed forest fire spread in the eastern city.About 300 residents are known to have fled from their homes after the blaze started on a hill near Daegwallyeong, a mountain pass close to the east coast, a
The worst fine dust of 2017 blanketed much of South Korea on Saturday, as the authorities issued health warnings against the sandy, chemical-laden wind from China.The National Institute of Environmental Research (NIER) said fine dust warnings have been issued in 12 cities and counties nationwide as
A record number of South Koreans have taken part in early voting in the presidential election, attesting to high voter attention, the election management office said Friday.As of 5 p.m., about 10.34 million people, or 24.34 percent of the electorate, had cast their ballots since the two-day advance
Hundreds of thousands of South Koreans cast their ballots Thursday in advance voting for the presidential election set to be held next week, the election watchdog said.More than 590,000 voters have already voted as of 9 a.m., according to the National Election Commission (NEC), with many more expect
Presidential front-runner Moon Jae-in of the main opposition party maintained his strong lead over the other contenders in the latest surveys published Wednesday with less than a week before the election.Moon of the liberal Democratic Party garnered 42.4 percent, while Hong Joon-pyo of the conservat
China on Tuesday warned of stern measures against the ongoing deployment of an advanced U.S. missile defense system in South Korea."China calls for an immediate stop to the THAAD deployment on the Korean Peninsula," China's foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said during a regular press bri
South Korea's foreign minister held a meeting with top U.S. and Japanese envoys to Seoul on Tuesday to discuss cooperation in dealing with North Korea's growing nuclear and missile threats.Yun Byung-se hosted Acting U.S. Ambassador Marc Knapper and Japanese Ambassador Yasumasa Nagamine in hi
Prosecutors on Tuesday indicted a man who broke the news on a corruption scandal involving former President Park Geun-hye on charges of influence-peddling.Ko Young-tae, a former associate of Park's close friend Choi Soon-sil, is accused of receiving some 22 million won (US$19,500) from an offici
South Korea on Monday ruled out renegotiation of the cost for the deployment of the U.S. missile defense system, called THAAD, responding to pressure from the Donald Trump administration to share the financial burden."Our view is that it can't be an issue for renegotiation," Moon Sang-gyun, a
A high-profile politician on Sunday accepted centrist presidential nominee Ahn Cheol-soo's offer to lead his campaign panel to prepare for a reformist government as the hopeful struggles to shore up declining voter support.During a press conference, Kim Chong-in, a former interim leader of the D
The national security chiefs of South Korea and the United States on Sunday reaffirmed their initial agreement that Seoul will only provide land for the U.S. deployment of a high-tech missile defense system here without further costs as demanded by President Donald Trump. National Security O
Nam Jae-joon, a minor presidential candidate who formerly served as the head of the National Intelligence Service, has decided to drop out of the race and declare support for Hong Joon-pyo of the conservative Liberty Korea Party, a person close to Nam said Saturday. "Nam tendered a letter of withdr
The USS Carl Vinson, a U.S. aircraft carrier, on Saturday started a joint naval drill with the South Korean Navy in the East Sea amid heightened tensions from North Korea's failed ballistic missile launch earlier in the morning, defense officials here said. "South Korea and U.S. strike
The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO), agreed Friday to form an unofficial consultation group to discuss South Korea's proposal to use "East Sea" alongside "Sea of Japan" when referring to the waters between the two countries, Seoul officials said.The decision was made on the las
Centrist presidential candidate Ahn Cheol-soo on Friday announced his vision for a new government marked by transparent policies and a cooperative relationship with parliament in running state affairs.In a press conference at his party's headquarters, the nominee of the center-left People's
Acting President and Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn on Thursday ordered the election watchdog to "sternly" deal with illegal electioneering as the presidential campaign heats up with the vote just 12 days away.During a regular Cabinet meeting on pending state affairs, Hwang voiced concerns over inte
U.S. troops in South Korea began installing the equipment for an advanced missile defense system at a site in a southeastern region of the country, facing fierce protests from local residents.The overnight, unannounced operation came just six days after U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) secured the land in S
More than one half of the people in the Republic of Korea (south) want the THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense) anti-missile system of the United States deployed in the ROK and a little over 30% others are opposed to it.However, many Koreans feel that THAAD alone is not sufficient to protect
U.S. President Donald Trump cited his decision to not label China a currency manipulator as an example of "flexibility," saying he made the decision against his campaign pledge because Beijing is helping solve the problem of North Korea."For me to call him a currency manipulator and then say,
South Korea's presidential campaign turned nasty Sunday as candidates focused on attacking rivals during their third TV debate over alleged wrongdoings, from kowtowing to North Korea to assisting in an attempted rape and fanning malicious rumors.The five candidates met in a joint debate hosted b