SouthKorea

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  Three urban areas to be selected for establishment of hydrogen fuel ecosystem SEOUL -- South Korea will have three urban areas based on a state-funded full hydrogen fuel ecosystem equipped with production, storage and transport by 2022 in an effort to speed up a campaign aimed at utilizing hydrogen as a new power source. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said Thursday that three sites would be selected in December from an urban area of up 10 square kilometers (1,000 hectares) to 2019-10-10
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  Front-line soldiers ordered to shoot down boars in inter-Korean border A file pictures show quarantine officials gathering for disinfection at a pig farm affected with African swine fever in Paju. SEOUL -- Wild boars have been regarded as an indicator of a sound ecological system in a no man's zone that forms the world's last Cold War frontier guarded by South and North Korean troops. Not anymore as frontline soldiers were ordered to shoot them down on sight near iron fences erected along the Demilitarized Zone, which splits t 2019-10-04
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  Lifer designates himself as serial killer responsible for 14 murder cases Lee Choon-jae SEOUL -- A 56-year-old lifer has designated himself as the serial killer of a cold case by confessing to 14 cases of brutal homicide raping as well as 30 other sex crimes. The man provided illustration and explanation on how he killed innocent and defenseless women as described in "Memories of Murder", a 2003 film directed by Bong Joon-ho. Confession came last week from Lee Choon-jae, who is serving life imprisonment for raping and killing his 2019-10-02
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  Moon proposes turning DMZ into U.N.-backed global peace zone: Yonhap NEW YORK -- South Korean President Moon Jae-in on Tuesday proposed transforming the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), which bisects the Korean Peninsula, into an international peace zone with the help of the United Nations. He put forward the idea while addressing the 74th session of the U.N. General Assembly in New York. The DMZ, which cuts across the middle of the peninsula, is a "colossal green zone" that stretches 250 kilometers from east to west and 4 km 2019-09-25
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  S. Korea ends preferential treatment for exports of strategic goods to Japan SEOUL -- In a retaliatory move that would have a minor impact on overall bilateral trade, South Korea put an end to preferential treatment for Japan and downgraded its status as a trusted trading partner to tighten procedural regulations on exports of strategic goods such as semiconductor material equipment, semiconductor optical materials and chemical products. Revised rules took effect at midnight on Tuesday. South Korea has regrouped trading partners into 2019-09-18
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  Nuclear researchers hail IAEA's designation of home-made reactor SEOUL -- South Korea's only home-made multi-purpose research reactor and related facilities were designated by an international nuclear watchdog as one of its International Centres based on Research Reactors (ICERRs), demonstrating the international status of nuclear technology accumulated by a state research center. The Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI) said Wednesday that it has received a signboard 2019-09-18
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  Pig farm near inter-Korean border reports second case of African swine fever SEOUL -- The second case of African swine fever was reported at a pig farm near the inter-Korean border, a day after the first confirmed case triggered a nationwide standstill for sterilization, raising concerns about the spread of the deadly and highly contagious animal virus. Quarantine officials detected the virus of African swine fever (ASF) Wednesday from a pig which was found dead the previous day at a farm in the frontline town of Baekhak in Yeoncheon County, wh 2019-09-18
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  S. Korea reports first case of African swine fever near inter-Korean border SEOUL -- South Korea imposed a 48-hour standstill on all pig farms, slaughterhouses and feed factories for sterilization after a farm near the inter-Korean border reported the first confirmed case of African swine fever, four months after North Korea claimed to have detected the deadly and highly contagious animal virus. The lockdown was enforced from 6:40 a.m. (2140 GMT) on Tuesday after health officials discovered the virus in blood samples collected from pigs which 2019-09-17
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  Moon, Trump to hold summit in New York this month: Yonhap SEOUL -- South Korean President Moon Jae-in and U.S. President Donald Trump will hold summit talks in New York late this month on the sidelines of a U.N. session, Cheong Wa Dae announced Friday. The allies have agreed to hold the meeting to coincide with Moon's visit to the U.S. city for the 74th General Assembly session of the United Nations from Sept. 22-26, according to Cheong Wa Dae spokesperson, Ko Min-jung. But the two sides are still in consultations on a 2019-09-13
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  Seoul files complaint with WTO over Tokyo's export curbs: Yonhap SEOUL -- South Korea filed a complaint with the World Trade Organization (WTO) on Wednesday over Japan's export curbs, upping the stakes in the unprecedented trade row between the two Asian neighbors. The move came more than two months after Tokyo started restrictions of exporting three key industrial materials to Seoul, which are essential for the production of chips and displays, potentially dealing a harsh blow to Seoul's backbone technology industry. &qu 2019-09-12
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  Seoul proposes joint investment fund with Moscow to foster material and parts industries Finance and Strategy Minister Hong Nam-ki speaks at a forum in Vladivostok, Russia. SEOUL -- South Korea's top economic official called for a joint investment fund between Seoul and Moscow to foster materials, parts and equipment industries, saying the two countries should lead the establishment of a strong Eurasian value chain in Northeast Asia. The proposal from Finance and Strategy Minister Hong Nam-ki came at the Eastern Economic Forum, an international 2019-09-05
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  CJ Group chairman's son arrested for smuggling American cannabis products through airport SEOUL -- The troubled son and heir apparent of CJ Group Chairman Lee Jae-hyun was arrested on drug charges at his insistence after he appeared voluntarily at the office of state prosecutors, four days after airport customs officers discovered marijuana, banned in South Korea as a harmful and addictive substance, from his traveling bag. Lee Sun-ho, 30, was put into custody after he arrived in the prosecutors' office in the western port city of Incheon by taxi 2019-09-05
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  Supreme Court asks appeals court to review suspended sentence for Samsung's virtual head SEOUL -- In a decision that shook the business community, South Korea's highest court asked an appeals court to review a suspended jail term which was handed down to Samsung Group's de facto leader Jay Y. Lee on bribery charges stemming from a corruption scandal involving a jailed ex-president. The Supreme Court's order for retrial of ex-president Park Geun-hye, her crony, Choi Soon-sil, and the 51-year-old only son of Samsung's bed-r 2019-08-29
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  Fuel cell-powered SUV makes debut as official presidential car President Moon Jae-in inspects Nexo, a hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicle manufactured by South Korea's Hyundai Motor, at the presidential Blue House on Tuesday. Nexo was adopted as an official presidential vehicle. SEOUL -- Nexo, a fuel cell-powered sport utility vehicle developed by Hyundai Motor, made its debut as a new presidential car, carrying President Moon Jae-in in a brief run across the presidential compound. This would be the fir 2019-08-27
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  President Moon makes unprecedented investment in stock fund to support companies President Moon Jae-in speaks after joining a stock fund at the headquarters of NH Nonghyup Bank in Seoul on August 26. SEOUL -- President Moon Jae-in, who is a shining example of frugal living, made a difficult choice to draw money out of a bank account for an unprecedented investment in a stock fund to spearhead a campaign aimed at enhancing the competitiveness of South Korean companies which are striving to reduce their dependence on raw materials and equipment from Jap 2019-08-26
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  Top economic official concerned about prolonged conflict and Japan's 'arbitrary' judgement SEOUL -- South Korea's top economic official expressed concerns about a prolonged conflict with Japan due to the termination of a hard-won military pact on sharing sensitive military information, saying Tokyo can make "arbitrary judgment" to impose export restrictions further at any time. Japan has yet to take any concrete steps after South Korea refused to extend the General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA) in a decision reached at the 2019-08-23
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  U.S. expresses 'strong concern,' 'disappointment' at termination of military pact: Yonhap WASHINGTON -- The United States expressed "strong concern" and "disappointment" after South Korea withdrew from a military intelligence-sharing pact with Japan. Earlier, Seoul announced its decision to end the General Security of Military Information Agreement amid a bilateral dispute over trade and history. In a rare public rebuke of its South Korean ally, the U.S. State Department and the Pentagon expressed their displeasure with the move. 2019-08-23
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  Seoul gets tough over trade restrictions to ditch crucial military pact with Tokyo Kim You-geun, deputy director of South Korea's presidential national security office, announces the termination of a military pact with Japan on August 22 after a high-level security conference at the presidential office. SEOUL -- In apparent retaliation for trade restrictions, South Korea ditched a crucial pact with Japan on sharing sensitive military information, risking a full-blown trade war between the two U.S. allies which have taken a common position aga 2019-08-22
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  Seoul asks Japan to make clear answer about contaminated water in Fukukshima SEOUL -- South Korea's foreign ministry called in a Japanese diplomat to ask for Tokyo's official position on the possible discharge of contaminated water stored in the Fukushima nuclear plant hit by a meltdown in 2011 amid growing concerns about its limited storage space. The foreign ministry said Monday that Kwon Se-jung, director-general in charge of climate change and environmental affairs, delivered a diplomatic document through Tomofumi Nishinag 2019-08-19
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  S. Korean cement producers stop importing raw materials from Japan SEOUL -- South Korean cement producers made an inevitable choice to stop using imported coal ashes, bowing to concerns about contamination and a widespread "no Japan" campaign that followed trade restrictions pushed by the government of Japanese Prime Minister Shinjo Abe. They promised to use domestic products or develop alternative materials. The Korea Cement Association said Monday that it would actively increase the use of mat 2019-08-19