By Kurt Achin Seoul 03 June 2008 United States Defense Secretary Robert Gates has reaffirmed that Washington's military commitment to South Korea will remain strong, well after the South makes a key move toward autonomy in its command structure. VOA...
By Kurt Achin Seoul 22 May 2008 South Korea's president has become personally involved in damage-control efforts against a public scare about American beef imports. Althougth he remains critical of his country's panic regarding U.S. beef, Lee Myung-b...
By Kurt Achin Seoul 20 May 2008 South Korean lawmakers from mainly liberal parties say they will block ratification of a major free-trade deal with the United States amid a panic about American beef imports. The political stalemate ends hopes for a s...
By Kurt Achin Seoul 06 May 2008 South Koreans are drawing political battle lines about the government's plan to resume imports of American beef. Officials and scientists in both countries say consuming U.S. beef is safe. But a media campaign, driven...
By Kurt Achin Seoul 17 April 2008 The chairman of one of the world's biggest and best-known corporations is facing criminal charges for tax evasion and other alleged misdeeds. Samsung Chairman Lee Kun-hee, arguably the most powerful businessman in So...
By Kurt Achin Seoul 14 April 2008 South Korean President Lee Myung-bak has departed South Korea for a week of summit diplomacy aimed at turning a new page in ties with Japan and the United States. Lee administration officials say the president is par...
By Kurt Achin Seoul 04 March 2008 South Korea President Lee Myung-bak's administration is calling for improvement in North Korea's human rights situation and pledging cooperation with the United Nations on the issue. The move is a departure from prev...
By Kurt Achin Seoul 28 February 2008 This week's New York Philharmonic performance in the North Korean capital was more than just a night at the symphony. It was also a chance for several unofficial U.S. envoys to talk extensively with senior North K...
By Kurt Achin Seoul 25 February 2008 New South Korean President Lee Myung-bak got straight to diplomacy on his first afternoon in office. As VOA Seoul Correspondent Kurt Achin reports, he promised the visiting U.S. Secretary of State he would improve...
By Kurt Achin Seoul 21 February 2008 Independent investigators have cleared South Korea's president-elect of fraud and stock manipulation allegations. Lee Myung-bak has been relieved of what could have been a serious obstacle to his administration ju...