President Yoon Suk-yeol called Wednesday for stronger measures against the inflow of monkeypox after the country reported its first two suspected cases the previous day, an official said. Yoon instructed health authorities to strengthen quarantine measures for foreign arrivals and to thoroughly monitor the possibility of additional cases, the presidential official told reporters. Yoon also told...

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo has called for drastic reform of the loss-making Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO), saying that the state-run electricity firm's self-rescue plans are insufficient. Han made the remarks at a meeting with Korean reporters on Tuesday after delivering a presentation on South Korea's bid to host the 2030 World Expo at a general assembly of the Bureau International des Ex...

The ethics committee of the ruling People Power Party (PPP) on Wednesday was scheduled to look into allegations that party Chairman Lee Jun-seok tried to destroy evidence related to an alleged sexual bribery case. The PPP ethics committee will hold a meeting at 7 p.m. at the National Assembly to decide whether to seek disciplinary action against Lee. Lee has been facing allegations that he rece...

North Korea's new suspected COVID-19 cases remained below 20,000 for the fourth consecutive day, according to its state media Wednesday. More than 15,260 people showed symptoms of fever over a 24-hour period until 6 p.m. the previous day, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said, citing data from the state emergency epidemic prevention headquarters. It did not provide information on ...

Hong Kong will include Korean as one of the foreign languages in its university entrance exam starting in 2025, Seoul's education ministry said Wednesday. The ministry said its National Institute for International Education and Hong Kong's state examination board, Hong Kong Examinations and Assessment Authority, will soon sign a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on the arrangement. Under the MO...

als said Wednesday. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said two probable cases were found Tuesday and diagnostic tests are being conducted. KDCA said one of the suspected patients was a foreigner, who arrived in the country on Monday, and another was South Korean, who arrived on Tuesday. According to officials, the foreigner visited a hospital in Busan, 450 kilometers south...

Unification Ministry will ask N.Korea to cooperate in revealing truth of S.Korean official‘s death

Seoul's sanctions would be largely symbolic, experts say

Korea will see a twofold increase of renewable energy production at environmental facilities within five years, the Ministry of Environment said Tuesday while announcing its renewable energy expansion road map. The ministry shared its plan to expand renewable energy production at environmental facilities, setting an annual production goal of 5,764 gigawatt-hours by 2026. The goal currently stand...

Korean language has no shortage of insults, but “kkondae” seems to hold a special place in the country right now. While the term‘s definition and usage have expanded over the years from condescending seniors at work to people of older generations in general who come into conflicts with younger people over values and resources, the fear of being labeled as such has grown in tandem. At Kyobo Book...

South Korea may revisit another controversial North Korea decision made during the Moon Jae-in administration, President Yoon Suk-yeol hinted Tuesday. Speaking to reporters, Yoon said his administration may look into the 2019 repatriation of two North Korean fishermen who sailed into South Korean waters. The two, aged 22 and 23, said they wished to defect to South Korea in handwritten statements...

Ethics panel set to meet Wednesday over party head’s alleged sexual misconduct

Chilean Embassy and Korea Herald co-host Chile Day on sidelines of Global Biz Forum

Parties wage in fruitless negotiations over who should take key committee chair posts

President Yoon Suk-yeol called Tuesday for bold measures to reform public institutions and cut back their growing debts. Yoon issued the call during a Cabinet meeting, saying the debts of public institutions have soared over the past five years to reach 583 trillion won ($452 billion) as of the end of 2021. "Public institution reform is a task that cannot be delayed any further," he said, lamen...