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National Assembly Speaker Cho Jeong-sik has met with Italian parliamentary leaders and senior Vatican officials on his four-nation trip to Europe to discuss bilateral cooperation, his office said Thursday. During his meeting with Italian Chamber of Deputies President Lorenzo Fontana in Rome on Wednesday (local time), Cho discussed ways to expand people-to-people and parliamentary exchanges and step up economic and industrial cooperation. "Following the elevation of the two countries' relations to a 'special strategic partnership,' cooperation has also expanded rapidly in future industries, including artificial intelligence, semiconductors, space and defense," Cho said. Cho also invited Fontana to visit Korea next year on the occasion of the country's hosting of World Youth Day 2027. Separately, the speaker met with Gian Marco Centinaio, vice president of the Italian Senate, to discuss expanding exchanges between the countries' parliaments and strengthening economic cooperation. "As the two countries are manufacturing powerhouses, we can become even stronger by combining our strengths," he

North Korea is building a festive mood and stirring public loyalty ahead of the 81st founding anniversary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPA), with various events under way. The Union of Agricultural Workers of Korea, one of the country's four labor organizations, held its celebration Wednesday, the Rodong Sinmun reported. Participants at a debate session called for stronger party leadership and more rigorous ideological education. They also stressed the need to meet the party's grain production targets, the paper said. Art events have also taken place ahead of the Oct. 10 anniversary. A performance by the Youth Central Art Propaganda Team took place Wednesday. On the same day, party cadres and artists attended the opening ceremony of the National Art Exhibition at the Korean Central Art Gallery. The paper ran a front-page article urging readers to carry on the party's history, ideology and founding spirit. It also reported that crowds of people have been visiting the Party Founding Museum in the capital in time for the anniversary. The Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported Thursday t

President Lee Jae Myung was set Thursday to hold a summit with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi in Seoul to discuss ways to expand economic cooperation between the two countries. El-Sisi arrived in Korea the previous day on a three-day state visit, his first trip to the country since 2016. Following an official welcoming ceremony, the two leaders will hold summit talks, attend an agreement signing ceremony, a joint press briefing and a state luncheon, according to Cheong Wa Dae. The two sides are expected to discuss economic cooperation, such as trade and investment, infrastructure and supply chains, as well as expanding people-to-people exchanges, the regional political situation and international issues. "We expect President El-Sisi's state visit to serve as an important opportunity to develop South Korea-Egypt ties into a strategic partnership and further strengthen our country's cooperation with Africa and the Middle East," presidential spokesperson Kang Yu-jung said earlier. The two leaders last met in November during Lee's visit to Egypt.

North Korea's Kim Yo-jong said on Thursday that South Korea's preparations to provide medical equipment aid to Pyongyang amounted to a political provocation and a violation of its sovereignty. In a statement carried by state media KCNA, Kim said the hostile nature of inter-Korean relations and South Korea's "identity" could not change, and reiterated that North Korea saw no need to deal with Seoul.

Korea is strictly enforcing its export controls on Russia, the foreign ministry said Thursday, stressing that no exports of commercial petroleum products to Russia have been confirmed through customs clearance procedures. Currently, Korea prohibits exports of strategic items to Russia and subjects an additional 1,402 non-strategic items that could potentially be used for military purposes to case-by-case export authorization, according to the ministry. "The controlled items are determined through interagency discussions after comprehensively considering their potential military use, economic impact and international coordination," the ministry said in an explanatory note jointly issued by the industry ministry and the customs agency. Outbound shipments to Russia dropped to $4 billion in 2025 from $10 billion in 2021 as South Korea joined international efforts to maintain peace through export controls "despite the economic burden on companies and the public," the ministry noted. The comments came after a report by the Britain-based Guardian on Tuesday that more than 176,000 tons of petrol

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