ID :
38303
Wed, 12/31/2008 - 14:14
Auther :
Shortlink :
http://m.oananews.org//node/38303
The shortlink copeid
Yonhap News Summary
The following is the summary of major stories moved by Yonhap News Agency on
Wednesday.
-----------------
(LEAD) U.S. food aid soon to arrive in N. Korea despite visa problem: State Dept.
WASHINGTON -- The latest batch of humanitarian food aid will arrive in North
Korea later this week despite friction over the issuance of visas for Korean
speaking U.S. staff monitoring food distribution, the State Department said
Tuesday.
"The latest shipment of food aid totaling 21,000 metric tons, which was expected
to arrive by the end of December, is now expected to arrive in the DPRK on
January 2, due to recent rough seas," the department said in a statement. DPRK
stands for North Korea's official name Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
-----------------
(LEAD) N. Korea to receive no aid from South if boycott continues
SEOUL -- South Korea will help rebuild North Korea's moribund economy if
Pyongyang accepts its offer of dialogue, Seoul's unification minister said
Wednesday, renewing calls for a change in the North's current attitude.
Kim Ha-joong, however, did not openly link inter-Korean relations to Pyongyang's
denuclearization as he did last year, a toned-down gesture to repair frayed ties.
-----------------
(LEAD) N. Korea to promote young economic elite in 2009: report
SEOUL -- North Korea will refresh its parliament with promotions of young
economic elite in 2009, laying the groundwork for the post-Kim Jong-il era, a
South Korean state-run think tank said.
Economic pragmatism may emerge in the North to replace the military-first policy,
a ruling philosophy promulgated by current leader Kim Jong-il, according the
latest report by the Institute for National Security Strategy, which is an arm of
the National Intelligence Agency.
-----------------
S. Korea to seek progress in nuke talks, stronger ties with U.S.
Seoul -- South Korea will focus diplomatic efforts next year on making
"substantial progress" in six-way talks on the North Korean nuclear program and
bolstering its "strategic alliance" with the United States, the foreign ministry
said Wednesday.
Briefing President Lee Myung-bak on its policy goals for 2009, the ministry also
said it would pursue free trade pacts with Australia, Peru, New Zealand, Turkey
and Colombia, as well as India and the European Union, with which negotiations
are in their final stage.
-----------------
Seoul to spend W7 trillion on defense goods in first half of 2009
SEOUL -- South Korea will spend over 7 trillion won (US$5.4 billion) in the first
half of next year on purchasing weapons or other defense articles as well as new
apartments for its military servicemembers to help boost the country's slumping
economy, the defense ministry said Wednesday.
The amount accounts for over 60 percent of the ministry's budget for next year
that is earmarked for domestic purchases. The plan came under the ministry's key
policy goals for 2009 that were briefed to President Lee Myung-bak.
-----------------
(LEAD) BOK chief vows to prioritize economic recovery next year
SEOUL -- South Korea's central bank will focus its 2009 monetary policy on
bolstering the fast slowing economy as inflationary pressure is expected to ease,
its chief said Wednesday.
The Korean economy is feared to lose momentum sharply next year as the deepening
global economic downturn is widely expected to further hit exports, or the
mainstay of its growth. Most analysts predict economic growth will fall to the
1-percent range.
-----------------
S. Korea pushing to ink trade deal with EU by March
SEOUL -- South Korea will seek to clinch a free trade deal with the European
Union (EU) by March and launch trade talks with Australia and five other
countries next year, the trade ministry said Wednesday.
In a 2009 policy report to President Lee Myung-bak, the ministry said it will
strive to seal a free trade agreement (FTA) with the 27-nation economic bloc by
the end of the first quarter with the aim of implementing it in 2010.
-----------------
S. Korea to make on-site survey of Afghanistan for its future role
SEOUL -- South Korea plans to send a senior government official to Afghanistan
next month to seek ways of expanding its contributions there, a foreign ministry
official said Wednesday.
The dispatch is aimed at preparing for the incoming U.S. administration's
possible request for its allies to do more in the troubled campaign to stabilize
post-war Afghanistan, the official added on condition of anonymity.
-----------------
Ban urges Korea to take lead in global crusade against climate change
WASHINGTON -- United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon Tuesday urged his
fellow South Koreans to take the lead in international efforts to reduce
emissions of greenhouse gases that cause global warming.
In a New Year's message in Korean, Ban called on the South Korean government to
actively work with the United Nations, which has designated 2009 as the year
focusing on the issue of climate change
Wednesday.
-----------------
(LEAD) U.S. food aid soon to arrive in N. Korea despite visa problem: State Dept.
WASHINGTON -- The latest batch of humanitarian food aid will arrive in North
Korea later this week despite friction over the issuance of visas for Korean
speaking U.S. staff monitoring food distribution, the State Department said
Tuesday.
"The latest shipment of food aid totaling 21,000 metric tons, which was expected
to arrive by the end of December, is now expected to arrive in the DPRK on
January 2, due to recent rough seas," the department said in a statement. DPRK
stands for North Korea's official name Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
-----------------
(LEAD) N. Korea to receive no aid from South if boycott continues
SEOUL -- South Korea will help rebuild North Korea's moribund economy if
Pyongyang accepts its offer of dialogue, Seoul's unification minister said
Wednesday, renewing calls for a change in the North's current attitude.
Kim Ha-joong, however, did not openly link inter-Korean relations to Pyongyang's
denuclearization as he did last year, a toned-down gesture to repair frayed ties.
-----------------
(LEAD) N. Korea to promote young economic elite in 2009: report
SEOUL -- North Korea will refresh its parliament with promotions of young
economic elite in 2009, laying the groundwork for the post-Kim Jong-il era, a
South Korean state-run think tank said.
Economic pragmatism may emerge in the North to replace the military-first policy,
a ruling philosophy promulgated by current leader Kim Jong-il, according the
latest report by the Institute for National Security Strategy, which is an arm of
the National Intelligence Agency.
-----------------
S. Korea to seek progress in nuke talks, stronger ties with U.S.
Seoul -- South Korea will focus diplomatic efforts next year on making
"substantial progress" in six-way talks on the North Korean nuclear program and
bolstering its "strategic alliance" with the United States, the foreign ministry
said Wednesday.
Briefing President Lee Myung-bak on its policy goals for 2009, the ministry also
said it would pursue free trade pacts with Australia, Peru, New Zealand, Turkey
and Colombia, as well as India and the European Union, with which negotiations
are in their final stage.
-----------------
Seoul to spend W7 trillion on defense goods in first half of 2009
SEOUL -- South Korea will spend over 7 trillion won (US$5.4 billion) in the first
half of next year on purchasing weapons or other defense articles as well as new
apartments for its military servicemembers to help boost the country's slumping
economy, the defense ministry said Wednesday.
The amount accounts for over 60 percent of the ministry's budget for next year
that is earmarked for domestic purchases. The plan came under the ministry's key
policy goals for 2009 that were briefed to President Lee Myung-bak.
-----------------
(LEAD) BOK chief vows to prioritize economic recovery next year
SEOUL -- South Korea's central bank will focus its 2009 monetary policy on
bolstering the fast slowing economy as inflationary pressure is expected to ease,
its chief said Wednesday.
The Korean economy is feared to lose momentum sharply next year as the deepening
global economic downturn is widely expected to further hit exports, or the
mainstay of its growth. Most analysts predict economic growth will fall to the
1-percent range.
-----------------
S. Korea pushing to ink trade deal with EU by March
SEOUL -- South Korea will seek to clinch a free trade deal with the European
Union (EU) by March and launch trade talks with Australia and five other
countries next year, the trade ministry said Wednesday.
In a 2009 policy report to President Lee Myung-bak, the ministry said it will
strive to seal a free trade agreement (FTA) with the 27-nation economic bloc by
the end of the first quarter with the aim of implementing it in 2010.
-----------------
S. Korea to make on-site survey of Afghanistan for its future role
SEOUL -- South Korea plans to send a senior government official to Afghanistan
next month to seek ways of expanding its contributions there, a foreign ministry
official said Wednesday.
The dispatch is aimed at preparing for the incoming U.S. administration's
possible request for its allies to do more in the troubled campaign to stabilize
post-war Afghanistan, the official added on condition of anonymity.
-----------------
Ban urges Korea to take lead in global crusade against climate change
WASHINGTON -- United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon Tuesday urged his
fellow South Koreans to take the lead in international efforts to reduce
emissions of greenhouse gases that cause global warming.
In a New Year's message in Korean, Ban called on the South Korean government to
actively work with the United Nations, which has designated 2009 as the year
focusing on the issue of climate change
