Seoul's presidential office is facing mounting pressure as controversial remarks regarding Japan by President Yoon Suk Yeol's foreign policy aide have prompted criticism from the opposition for bringing humiliation to South Korea. Labeling the aide's remarks as carrying the intention of a "pro-Japanese traitor" -- or "chinil" in Korean, describing those overly favorable to Japan to the extent of betraying national interests -- the liberal main opposition Democratic Party of K

Politics Aug. 20, 2024

The Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise of the military forces of South Korea and the United States jointly kicked off on Monday with South Korean civilians, with the primary focus on addressing North Korea's nonkinetic operations, such as public opinion warfare, cyberattacks and the spread of fake news. The annual summertime joint military exercise that runs through Aug. 29 is the third such exercise since President Yoon Suk Yeol took office in May 2022, as Pyongyang increasingly blends unconven

Politics Aug. 19, 2024

  The Ministry of Justice on Thursday reportedly prepared a list of high-profile politicians convicted of crimes who would be eligible to be granted either special amnesty or rehabilitation by President Yoon Suk Yeol next week. Among them on the list is liberal bigwig Kim Kyoung-soo, formerly a lawmaker and South Gyeongsang Province governor. The 56-year-old Kim, convicted for his involvement in the high-profile "Druking" opinion-rigging scandal in July 2021, is likely to be rehab

Politics Aug. 8, 2024

President Yoon Suk Yeol's office on Wednesday called on the National Assembly to abandon a plan to implement the "financial investment income tax" scheme that is to come into effect in January 2025 in the face of the heightened domestic capital market volatility in recent days. The political standoff is expected to linger, as the liberal main opposition Democratic Party of Korea has insisted that the plan for taxation on investors' sales proceeds must proceed as planned. Desc

Politics Aug. 7, 2024

South Korea's law to ban the act of breeding or slaughter in dog farms, as well as the distribution of dog-sourced meats, came into effect Wednesday, as the country is working to compensate over 5,600 shops in the domestic dog farm industry on the verge of the shutdown. With the implementation of the law, the government will map out support packages to those involved in the dog meat industry, including dog farms and dog meat restaurants. According to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural A

Social Affairs Aug. 7, 2024

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo on Tuesday advised President Yoon Suk Yeol to strike down four bills sponsored by the main opposition that are designed to curtail Yoon's influence over the boardroom reshuffle of South Korea's public broadcasters or their highest direct authorities. This comes as the latest in a prolonged tit-for-tat in South Korea's political landscape, where Yoon's political opponents continue to ram bills -- including ones similar to those already vetoed -- thr

Politics Aug. 6, 2024

President Yoon Suk Yeol is considering delivering a speech to the nation over a set of domestic reform agendas to address crises in the fields of education, labor, medicine, and population, as well as the public pension's sustainability later this month, according to the presidential office Monday. According to the presidential office, Yoon will make public remarks after he returns to his post from his summer vacation next week, and before the first regular session of the 22nd National Asse

Politics Aug. 5, 2024

The number of patients hospitalized after being diagnosed with COVID-19 surged fivefold in three weeks to late July, government data showed Friday. According to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, the number of inpatients diagnosed with COVID-19 during the fourth week of July reached 465, up over five times from the first week of the month at 91. Through the first four weeks of July, 929 patients were hospitalized for the highly contagious disease affecting the human respiratory sys

Politics Aug. 2, 2024

A bill to dole out cash-equivalent vouchers universally to every South Korean citizen gained parliamentary approval at the opposition-controlled National Assembly on Friday, about four months after opposition leader Rep. Lee Jae-myung proposed the scheme. The 13 trillion-won ($9.4 billion) bill, designed to offer 250,000 won cash coupons to the entire 50 million population across the country, won 186 votes from 187 lawmakers present at the National Assembly. In South Korea's political lands

Politics Aug. 2, 2024

Han Dong-hoon, chair of the ruling People Power Party, nominated four-term lawmaker Rep. Kim Sang-hoon as the new policy chief of the ruling party, which would also make him one of the nine members of the party's supreme council, in an apparent move to tighten his grip on the party's decision-making body. The nomination of Kim will likely be confirmed at a general assembly of the People Power Party lawmakers next week. Han told reporters Friday that Kim is "highly competent."

Politics Aug. 2, 2024

President Yoon Suk Yeol told the ruling People Power Party Chair Han Dong-hoon to embrace his political allies as they sat down for closed-door talks for about 1 1/2 hours Tuesday morning, the president's office said Wednesday. It was among the agenda items discussed at the highly anticipated meeting of Yoon and Han that took place in the presidential office from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. -- 30 minutes longer than initially planned. Yoon's chief of staff Chung Jin-suk was also in attendanc

Politics July 31, 2024

President Yoon Suk Yeol nominated Kim Moon-soo, a seasoned conservative politician and a former labor activist who recently served as the governor of Gyeonggi Province, as the new labor minister on Wednesday. Kim, who is currently a chair of the presidential advisory body the Economic, Social and Labor Council, will succeed Lee Jung-sik once he gets Yoon's final approval after going through a parliamentary hearing. Yoon is likely to push for appointing the former Gyeonggi governor without t

Politics July 31, 2024

Kim Ju-ae, the 12-year-old daughter of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, is seen as being groomed for succession, a lawmaker who attended a meeting of the intelligence committee of the National Assembly told reporters Monday. "(According to the National Intelligence Service,) Kim Ju-ae is being suggested as the most likely successor in the regime, as her succession training is currently underway," said Rep. Lee Seong-kweun of the ruling People Power Party, who attended the meeting Monda

Politics July 29, 2024

Controversy has rekindled in South Korea over whether the government's decision to support Japan's bid for the UNESCO World Heritage listing of the Sado Island gold and silver mines will compel Tokyo to acknowledge the forced labor of Koreans there. Among the criticisms is Japan's failure to recognize an estimated over 1,500 workers from the Korean Peninsula at the Sado mine as forced labor, as well as its omission of a museum featuring exhibitions on the Korean workers and the harsh, discrimina

Foreign Affairs July 28, 2024

The International Olympic Committee apologized to President Yoon Suk Yeol, the government, and the country's athletes for the error made during the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics Friday afternoon local time, at which the South Korean delegation was mistakenly identified as representing North Korea, with which South Korea is technically still at war. According to the Sports Ministry on Sunday, IOC President Thomas Bach apologized for the "mistake in the audio broadcast of the op

Politics July 28, 2024