This photo, taken on July 19, 2017, shows a monument dedicated to victims of Japan’s wartime sexual slavery erected in front of Trinity Episcopal Church in Bergen County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. A group of South Korean residents in Bergen installed the monument the same day in remembrance of “comfort women,” referring to those who were forced into sexual slavery by Japan’s military during World War II. (Yonhap)
It will be interesting to see if the anti-US leftists try to bring back the US beef issue as a way to further drive a wedge between the US and the ROK:
The government said Thursday it has strengthened inspections on U.S. beef imports following the detection of mad cow disease in the United States.
The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs held a quarantine committee meeting to share information on the outbreak of mad cow disease in the U.S. and gather expert opinion. The ministry has boosted quarantine measures, increasing the ratio of the U.S. beef going through inspections to 30 percent from the current 3 percent.
The step follows the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announcing that an 11-year-old cow in Alabama was found to have an “atypical” variety of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), commonly known as mad cow disease.
The USDA said that it is not the classic variety that is linked to Creutzfeldt Jakob disease in people. Cattle are known to be infected with “typical” BSE through feed contaminated with infectious prion agents, such as meat-and-bone meal containing protein derived from rendered infected cattle.
Atypical BSE, meanwhile, generally occurs in older cattle, usually over eight years old, and is known to arise rarely and spontaneously in all cattle populations.
The USDA emphasized that atypical BSE cases do not impact official BSE risk status recognition.
“Therefore, this finding of an atypical case will not change the negligible risk status of the United States, and should not lead to any trade issues,” it noted, making clear that it has no plan to stop beef exports. [Korea Times]
Should not lead to any trade issues? Tell that to an anti-American leftist:
Lawyers for a Democratic Society, an NGO, claimed that the government should stop U.S. beef imports “to protect the people’s health.” Korea can suspend imports under U.S. beef “import requirements” which the two countries agreed upon if it is necessary for public health and safety.
Chinese Ambassador Qiu Guohong speaks during a forum held by the Korea Chamber of Commerce & Industry held on Jeju Island on July 22, 2017. (Yonhap)
China’s top envoy to South Korea called Saturday for a solution to quickly end a monthslong diplomatic row over the deployment of an advanced U.S. missile defense system in South Korea.
Chinese Ambassador Qiu Guohong said the deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system had a “serious impact” on the mutual trust between the two countries, calling it “the biggest hurdle” for the development of bilateral relations.
“Many South Koreans say Beijing is retaliating against Seoul. But exchange and cooperation between countries call for political common ground, and we need to quickly find ways to resolve the issue,” Qiu said in a business forum in South Korea’s southern resort island of Jeju.
China has imposed restrictions on South Korean imports and banned the sale of group tour packages to its neighbor in protest of the U.S. missile system in South Korea.
Seoul and Washington said the missile system is only meant to counter North Korea’s evolving nuclear and missile threats. But China has repeatedly pressed South Korea to withdraw the THAAD system out of concern that the deployment could hurt Beijing’s security interests. [Yonhap]
Army soldiers use landmine detectors to search bushes along the Imjin River that runs across the inter-Korean border in the South Korean border town of Paju on July 20, 2017, for wood-box landmines that may have floated down from North Korea. The box mines are frequently found near the inter-Korean border area after summer floods cause them to wash down from North Korea. (Yonhap)
I guess the Kim regime is too busy building ICBMs and nuclear weapons and don’t have time to talk to the Moon administration:
North Korea ignored South Korea’s proposal to hold military talks Friday, complicating President Moon Jae-in’s plan to improve relations starting with some kind of dialogue.
On Monday the South Korean military proposed talks on Friday to ease tensions along the demilitarized zone (DMZ), one of the most heavily fortified zones in the world. Seoul also proposed a meeting to discuss holding reunions for families separated by the 1950-53 Korean War on Aug. 1. Pyongyang has said nothing about either proposal.
“The North has yet to state its position [on our proposal for today]. As such, it has become effectively impossible to hold talks today,” said Moon Sang-gyun, the Defense Ministry spokesman, during a regular press briefing on Friday. The defense ministry continued that “restoring a communication channel in the military field” and “easing military tensions” on both sides of the border were tasks that required “a sense of urgency.” [Joong Ang Ilbo]
It is going to be interesting to see how useful these robots will be for travelers in such a busy airport:
The rise of robots hasn’t exactly gone smoothly, but companies are determined to get it right. Today, LG announced that it’s deploying a fleet of robots at Incheon International Airport in Seoul, South Korea.
This isn’t the first we’ve heard of these adorable robot friends. LG announced them earlier this year, and they’ve been hanging out in the Seoul airport for the last five months as part of a beta test. During that time, LG engineers have been testing and improving their performance, while the robots presumably loitered and caused trouble. But now that they’re out of their rebellious teenage years, they’re ready to be pressed into service. This is still considered a trial — after all, LG doesn’t want the robots becoming suicidal and launching themselves into a fountain to end it all.
There are two robots that are in service: an Airport Guide Robot and an Airport Cleaning Robot. The Airport Guide Robot is in place to interact with passengers. It can understand four languages — Korean, English, Chinese and Japanese — thanks to LG’s voice recognition software. It can tell you where a restaurant is located or escort late passengers straight to their gate with a quick boarding pass scan. The Cleaning Robot is in place to make sure the airport stays tidy by monitoring the areas that need the most frequent cleaning — so in other words, you’ll probably see this little guy in the bathroom the next time you’re at the Seoul airport. [Engadget]
I guess in Brazil they haven’t gotten the memo that you are not supposed to make slit eye jokes about Asians:
Raul Gil, host of “Turma Do Vovo Raul” on SBT, makes slit eyes at the audience with K-pop band KARD and an interpreter behind him. / Screen capture from YouTube
Fans of a rookie K-pop band have criticized a Brazilian TV show host for disrespecting them on his program by making a “joke” derogatory to Asians.
Raul Gil, host of musical and variety TV show “Turma Do Vovo Raul” broadcast on SBT, angered fans after four-member band KARD were guests on the show on July 15.
The joke was sparked after Gil asked the DSP Media band that debuted this month if there was a romantic relationship among the band of two men and two women. They all said no, which drew shouts from the excited audience.
The host then jokingly asked the crowd whether they would marry the Koreans, adding, “Your eyes will become smaller if you date these Koreans,” making slit eyes with his both hands. [Korea Times]
