hankyoreh

U.S. representative for North Korea policy

Stephen Bosworth, US special representative for North Korea policy, arrived at Incheon International Airport Tuesday and told reporters that serious negotiations must be at the heart of any strategy to deal with the communist nation.

“We look forward to being able to launch those at a reasonably early time,” he added.

Bosworth said he plans to spend more time listening to the other member countries’ views on dealing with North Korea’s nuclear program. He met with South Korean chief nuclear negotiator Wi Sung-lac and is scheduled to meet with Foreign Minister Kim Sung-hwan before flying to Beijing for the second leg of his trip.

South Korea and Japan are considering signing their first military agreement by the end of this year.

South Korean Defense Minister Kim Kwan-jin and his Japanese counterpart Toshimi Kitazawa will discuss agreements on mutual military support and the sharing of military secrets to boost bilateral military ties in a meeting, scheduled to be held in Seoul on Jan. 10 and 11.

The defense ministry, however, refuted the report, saying little progress has been made regarding the sensitive issue.

Chief Pastor Kim Jie-chul of Somang Presbyterian Church, one of the nation’s biggest churches in affluent southern Seoul, was assaulted by the former and current vice pastors who protested against their dismissal or lack of duties, police said Tuesday.

According to Gangnam Police Station, the two suspects, surnamed Choi and Cho, attacked the 63-year-old pastor at his office on Sunday, breaking the bone around his left eye and inflicting other minor injuries. But they denied the physical assault against Kim, only admitting that they engaged in a brawl and pushed him on the floor.

It is reported that the churchgoers have been in discord since Kim became the chief pastor of the church after the church’s founder Kwak Sun-hee stepped down in 2003. The church has been in the spotlight as President Lee Myung-bak served as an elder before he won the presidential election in 2008 and appointed many of his fellow believers to minister-level positions and key aides.

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