N. Korea's attempt to launch another spy satellite fails

SEOUL, May 28 (AJU PRESS) - North Korea's attempt to launch a space rocket carrying a military spy satellite ended in failure, the renegade country said Tuesday. The attempt came just several hours after Pyongyang informed of its plan to launch a satellite into orbit by June 4. "The launch of the new satellite carrier rocket failed when it exploded in mid-air during the flight of the first stage," the North's state-run Korean News Agency reported. Earlier,

May 28, 2024

Opinion: Norway, Spain and Ireland have recognized a Palestinian state – what's stopping NZ?

SEOUL, May 28 (AJU PRESS) - Norway, Spain and Ireland will formally recognize the state of Palestine today (May 28). While 143 of the 193 United Nations member states already recognize Palestine, this is a significant moment – and leaves New Zealand in an even smaller group of countries yet to follow suit. The latest move is important because it makes a clear statement that members of the international community can no longer wait for the Middle East peace process to conclud

May 28, 2024

New chief of ASEAN-Korea Centre vows to spur exchanges between two sides

SEOUL, May 27 (AJU PRESS) - Kim Jae-shin, the new chief of the ASEAN-Korea Centre, expressed his commitment to enhancing exchanges between Korea and Southeast Asian nations during his inauguration ceremony on Monday. The veteran diplomat took the helm of the intergovernmental organization on April 16, which aims to promote exchanges between Korea and the 10 member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). An official ceremony for his inauguration was held Mond

May 27, 2024

North Face releases limited-edition Hangeul T-shirts

SEOUL, May 27 (AJU PRESS) - To raise awareness of the importance of preserving the Korean language, the North Face launched a special limited-edition T-shirt collection featuring old Korean letters. The North Face Hangeul collection draws inspiration from design concepts by Pulitzer Prize-winning photojournalist Hyungwon Kang. Earlier this month, Kang spoke at a forum, emphasizing the need to revitalize obsolete Hangeul letters. He highlighted the historical and phonetic significanc

May 27, 2024

Leaders from Korea, China, and Japan agree to boost cooperation at trilateral summit

SEOUL, May 27 (AJU PRESS) - Leaders of Korea, China and Japan reaffirmed their commitment to promote peace and prosperity in the East Asian region during their trilateral summit in Seoul on Monday. The summit, attended by Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, Chinese Premier Li Qiang and Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio, came in about four years and five months since it was halted due to the COVID-19 and historical spats and other issues among the Asian neighbors. At a press con

May 27, 2024

Hanwha Aerospace, Hanwha Ocean to jointly develop hydrogen fuel cells for ships

SEOUL, May 27 (AJU PRESS) - Hanwha Aerospace and Hanwha Ocean, both affiliated with Hanwha Group, Korea's seventh-largest business group, will jointly develop hydrogen fuel cells for ships as part of a government-led green energy project. The aerospace company announced on Friday that it has been selected by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy to conduct a research and development project for 200-kilowatt-class hydrogen fuel cell power packs for ships. "We will ex

May 27, 2024

Korean equivalent to NASA sets sail with ambitious space initiatives

SEOUL, May 27 (AJU PRESS) - The Korea AeroSpace Administration (KASA), the Korean equivalent of the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), commenced operations Monday. Located in Sacheon, South Gyeongsang Province, KASA will integrate policy functions spread across various ministries and agencies, including overseeing research and development, promoting industries and safeguarding Koreans from space-related risks. The agency aims to land a spacecraft on the moon

May 27, 2024

N. Korea to launch another satellite this week

SEOUL, May 27 (AJU PRESS) - North Korea is poised to launch a space rocket carrying a military spy satellite sometime this week, Japan's news agency Kyodo News and public broadcaster NHK reported Monday, citing the Cabinet Secretariat of Japan. The launch plan came just hours before President Yoon Suk Yeol is about to hold a trilateral meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Chinese Premier Li Qiang in Seoul on Monday. Japan has confirmed that North Korea inf

May 27, 2024

Convenience store chain GS25 opens 300th branch in Viet Nam

SEOUL, May 27 (AJU PRESS) - GS25, a leading convenience store chain in Korea, has opened its 300th store in Viet Nam, six years after entering the Southeast Asian country in 2018. GS Retail, the operator of GS25, announced on Sunday that the 393-square-meter mega store, located near a university in Ho Chi Minh City, began operations Thursday. The store sells a variety of Korean food, including ramyeon (instant noodles) and kkwabaegi (twisted doughnuts), as well as Vietnamese snacks.

May 27, 2024

Local governments arrange blind dates to address Korea's record-low birth rate

SEOUL, May 27 (AJU PRESS) - As more young Koreans put off marriage, local governments are rolling up their sleeves to arrange blind dates to tackle Korea's super-low birth rate. These include various events from group meetings to recreational games to give a chance of romance in hopes of reversing the country's dwindling population. A district office in Daegu, southeastern Korea made its first foray into a dating project in 2016. The program called "GoGo meeting"

May 27, 2024