(ATTN: ADDS details and background in paras 3, 9-14) SEOUL, March 28 (Yonhap) -- Three South Korean-made COVID-19 test kits have obtained a preliminary approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the foreign ministry said Saturday. The initial FDA approval will immediately allow South Korean manufacturers of the three virus test kits to sell the products in the United States, where confirmed coronavirus cases have surpassed 100,000, an official at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said over the phone. The official didn't provide the names of the three approved test kits. The ministry expected the approval to accelerate exports of the test kits to U.S. markets. In a phone conversation with President Moon Jae-in on Tuesday, U.S. President Donald Trump expressed hope that South Korea could provide medical equipment support to help contain the spread of the respiratory illness in the U.S. Moon replied that his government would provide "maximum support

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(ATTN: CHANGES headline and lead; ADDS U.S. approval on Abbott's test kit in last para) SEOUL, March 28 (Yonhap) -- Three South Korean COVID-19 test-kit companies have obtained preliminary approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the foreign ministry said Saturday. The initial FDA approval will allow the Korean test-kit makers to sell the products in the United States, where the number of confirmed coronavirus cases has surpassed 100,000, an official at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said over the phone. The official did not provide the names of the three approved test kits or a time frame for their sales in the U.S. The ministry expected the U.S. emergency-use authorization for the South Korean test devices to pave the way for the kits to be exported to the U.S. market. In a phone conversation with President Moon Jae-in on Tuesday, U.S. President Donald Trump expressed hope that South Korea could provide the medical devices to help contain the s

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SEOUL, March 28 (Yonhap) -- Three South Korean-made COVID-19 test kits have obtained a preliminary approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the foreign ministry said Saturday. The initial FDA approval will allow South Korean manufacturers of the three virus test kits to sell the products in the United States, where confirmed coronavirus cases have surpassed 100,000, an official at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said over the phone. The ministry expected the approval to accelerate exports of the test kits to U.S. markets. In a phone conversation with President Moon Jae-in on Tuesday, U.S. President Donald Trump expressed hope that South Korea could provide medical equipment support to help contain the spread of the respiratory illness in the U.S. Moon replied that his government would provide "maximum support" if available as the two leaders discussed bilateral cooperation in the fight against the novel coronavirus pandemic. He then pointed

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SEOUL, March 29 (Yonhap) -- North Korea fired at least one unidentified projectile into the East Sea on Sunday, the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said. Other details were not immediately available, including how many and what type of projectiles were launched. It marked the fourth round of such launches this month. The last round came on March 21, when the North fired two short-range ballistic missiles believed to be its version of the U.S.' Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) from its western county of Sonchon in North Pyongan Province. graceoh@yna.co.kr

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(ATTN: ADDS more details in paras 2, 8, 18-23) By Oh Seok-min SEOUL, March 29 (Yonhap) -- North Korea fired what appeared to be two short-range ballistic missiles toward the East Sea on Sunday, South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said, the latest in a series of projectile launches even as the country is on high alert against the coronavirus. Both were fired northeastward from the eastern coastal city of Wonsan at 6:10 a.m. within a 20-second interval and flew around 230 kilometers at a maximum altitude of around 30 km, the JCS said, adding that South Korean and U.S. intelligence authorities are analyzing other specifics. "In a situation where the entire world is experiencing difficulties due to COVID-19, this kind of military act by North Korea is very inappropriate and we call for an immediate halt," JCS said. The military is closely monitoring the situation while maintaining a readiness posture, it added. North Korea has carried out a series of weapons tests and

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(ATTN: UPDATES with S. Korea's cure rate of 52.5 pct and other details in paras 5-7) SEOUL, March 29 (Yonhap) -- South Korea reported 105 new cases of the coronavirus Sunday, bringing the nation's total to 9,583, but the number of fully recovered cases rose more than twice as fast as new infections to top 5,000 in total, officials said. The death toll rose by eight to 152, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC). South Korea's southeastern city of Daegu and neighboring North Gyeongsang Province -- the nation's two worst-affected regions -- reported 25 of the 105 new cases. An additional 222 patients have been released following full recovery, bringing the number of total cured people to 5,033, the KCDC said. The KCDC said South Korea's cure rate for people infected with the virus is 52.5 percent, an achievement that South Korean officials hailed in their fight against the contagious respiratory illness. On Saturday, the number of cu

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(END)

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(ATTN: UPDATES with quote of official in 7th para; CORRECTS figures to 34 from 44 in para 10) SEOUL, March 28 (Yonhap) -- South Korea reported 146 new cases of the novel coronavirus Saturday, bringing the nation's total infections to 9,478, the public health agency said. The death toll rose by five to 144, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC). South Korea's southeastern city of Daegu and neighboring North Gyeongsang Province -- the nation's two worst-affected regions -- reported 73 of the 146 new cases. South Korea had released 4,811 fully recovered novel coronavirus patients from hospitals as of Saturday, up 283 from a day earlier, the KCDC said. It marked the first time the number of cured people exceeded the number of quarantined patients since Jan. 20, when the virus was first detected on South Korean soil. South Korea's cure rate for people infected with the virus is 50 percent, an achievement that South Korean officials ha

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SEOUL, March 29 (Yonhap) -- Two military personnel, who had been reported to have fully recovered from the new coronavirus, have tested positive again, the defense ministry said Sunday. An Army officer based in Yongin, some 50 kilometers south of Seoul, and an Air Force contractor in the southeastern city of Daegu have tested positive while in a preventive quarantine after leaving the hospital, according to the ministry. Both were reported to have fully recovered from the virus on March 20. They have been in quarantine again at a hospital since Friday, it said. The military has so far reported 39 infections in barracks, including 30 people who have fully recovered from the virus. As a preventive measure, around 1,920 service members are being quarantined at their bases. Among them, about 180 have either shown symptoms or had direct contact with infected patients. The remainder recently visited the southeastern city of Daegu, the surrounding North Gyeongsang Province or

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(ATTN: ADDS details throughout, photo) SEOUL, March 29 (Yonhap) -- South Korea will enforce a two-week mandatory coronavirus quarantine for all entrants from overseas starting Wednesday, Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun said Sunday, amid a steady inflow of virus cases from abroad. All entrants to the country, regardless of their nationality, should stay in quarantine, the prime minister said. Visitors without local addresses here should stay in government-designated facilities at their own expense, he said. "The government has strengthened quarantine measures on entrants from Europe and the United States, but considering the unprecedented speed the virus is spreading globally, we need additional measures," Chung said during a government meeting on COVID-19. South Korea has been already enforcing both a two-week quarantine period and virus tests for all long-term arrivals from Europe, regardless of symptoms. Entrants from the U.S. were also required to self-isolate at home for

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