[Editorial] Legal reprieve for Lee

Lee Jae-myung clears one legal hurdle, still confronts scrutiny of leadership Lee Jae-myung, leader of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea, was acquitted on appeal of violating election law on Wednesday — a dramatic reversal of a lower court’s ruling that had threatened to derail his political ambitions. The Seoul High Court ruled that Lee’s public statements in 2021, previously deemed violations of the Public Official Election Act, did not constitute the dissemination of false informa

March 28, 2025

[Editorial] Response to tariffs

Hyundai unveils large US investment amid fears of investment, job loss in Korea Hyundai Motor Group was promised a tariff exemption in return for a large investment in the US. Alongside US President Donald Trump and Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry at the White House on Monday, Hyundai Chairman Chung Euisun announced a plan to make an additional $21 billion investment in the US over the next four years. It would be the group's largest investment in the US to date. Hyundai has become the first Korean c

March 27, 2025

[Editorial] Tough challenges ahead

On his return to office, Han Duck-soo needs to tackle a host of national issues Prime Minister Han Duck-soo returned to office as acting president on Monday after the Constitutional Court dismissed his impeachment, a closely-watched ruling for its impact on state affairs of South Korea that has been mired in political turmoil, economic obstacles and social division. The Constitutional Court’s ruling on Han drew keen attention as it could offer a clue over the court’s forthcoming verdict on the i

March 26, 2025

[Editorial] Keep up cooperation

Top diplomats from South Korea, China, Japan meet amid closer NK-Russia ties The top diplomats from South Korea, China and Japan met in Tokyo on Saturday. Their meeting came a year and four months after their last gathering in Busan, South Korea, in November 2023. It is noteworthy that they met a day after top Russian security official Sergei Shoigu visited Pyongyang, demonstrating the cozy relationship between Russia and North Korea. South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul said in a joint pre

March 25, 2025

[Editorial] Enough is enough

Opposition parties must rethink motion to impeach acting President Choi Sang-mok How many impeachment motions does South Korea need to stabilize its political turmoil? In the eyes of the opposition parties, filing a 30th impeachment motion seems to be okay — a questionable stance at a time when the country badly needs to address a protracted leadership vacuum in the face of challenges both at home and abroad. On Friday, the main opposition the Democratic Party of Korea and four minor opposition

March 24, 2025

[Editorial] Economic crosswinds

South Korea needs a well-calibrated response to tackle growth woes, US tariff-related shocks South Korea confronts a growing list of economic challenges, as demonstrated by a series of warning signs about its growth outlook that reflect the intensifying trade war triggered by the US Trump administration. One of the main factors that darkens the country’s economic outlook is the Trump administration's plan to impose country-by-country "reciprocal tariffs" next month, which is feared to deal a blo

March 21, 2025

[Editorial] Tighten discipline

UAV-helicopter collision comes after accidental fighter bombing A South Korean military drone crashed into a helicopter parked at an airfield in Gyeonggi Province. This accident occurred 11 days after Korean fighter jets accidentally bombed civilian homes in a village in Pocheon, near the inter-Korean border, on March 6. An Israeli-made Heron reconnaissance uncrewed aerial vehicle belonging to an Army aviation group collided with the parked helicopter while landing on a military airfield in Yang

March 20, 2025

[Editorial] Beef up crypto security

Cryptocurrency theft at Wemix underscores need to step up security for virtual assets Wemade, a Kosdaq-listed gaming company in South Korea, has suffered a major cryptocurrency theft targeting its Singapore-based subsidiary, Wemix Foundation, amid criticism about delaying publicly disclosing the hacking incident. Kim Seok-hwan, CEO of Wemix Foundation, apologized for the hacking incident at a press conference on Monday, pledging to get to the bottom of the cryptocurrency theft and setting up pre

March 19, 2025

[Editorial] Sensitive trade issue

Lifting US beef import restrictions could awaken anxiety about health The Trump administration is likely to put pressure on South Korea to further open its import market to US beef. The National Cattlemen's Beef Association is said to have recently submitted an opinion letter on unfair trade practices by US trading partners to the Office of the US Trade Representative. In the letter, the US livestock lobby proposed that South Korea should start importing US beef regardless of what age the cattle

March 18, 2025

[Editorial] Diplomatic lapse

US designation of South Korea as ‘sensitive country’ feared to hit bilateral cooperation The US Department of Energy’s decision to list South Korea as a “sensitive country” has belatedly been confirmed, sparking controversy about the Korean government’s diplomatic failure and concerns about repercussions for bilateral US cooperation in the science and technology sector. The US Department of Energy put South Korea in the lowest category of its “sensitive and other designated countries list” (SCL)

March 17, 2025

[Editorial] Stop divisive protests

Ahead of verdict on Yoon’s impeachment, Korea’s political tensions hit fever pitch Since Dec. 3 of last year when President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law, South Korea has suffered an extended period of political confrontation and economic uncertainties. Regrettably, the chaotic situation shows no sign of abating amid concerns about deepening fractures within Korean society. All eyes are now on the Constitutional Court’s imminent verdict on Yoon’s fate, as more than two weeks have passed sin

March 14, 2025

[Editorial] Recession fears

Trump's tariffs cloud US economy, while Korea is mired in political turmoil Recession fears escalated as US President Donald Trump declined to explicitly rule out a recession in the US economy this year. "I hate to predict things like that. There is a period of transition, because what we're doing is very big," he said, responding to question about whether he was expecting a recession in the US this year in a Fox News interview Sunday, "And there are always periods of, it takes a little time." T

March 13, 2025

[Editorial] Red-hot real estate

Seoul’s property market heats up, raising fears of a debt-fueled bubble At a time when South Korea’s economy faces downside risks on multiple fronts, policymakers are now required to deal with two, interrelated challenges — a spike in property prices in Seoul and the ballooning of household debt. The resurgence of Seoul’s housing market is prompting renewed concerns over financial stability. Since the Seoul Metropolitan Government eased land transaction restrictions in key districts last month,

March 12, 2025

[Editorial] Back to school

Government not to increase medical admissions, yet reform should go on The government will reduce the number of new students entering medical schools next year back to 3,058, which is the same as the admission quota for the 2024 academic year. Last year, as part of its medical reform agenda, the government increased the medical school admission quota for the 2025 school year by about 1,500 despite strong opposition from the medical community. The 3,058-student admission quota had been frozen for

March 11, 2025

[Editorial] Impact of Yoon’s release

Court ruling underscores importance of due process for Yoon’s impeachment case President Yoon Suk Yeol was released from jail Saturday after a court accepted his request to overturn his arrest over his short-lived imposition of martial law in early December. Yoon had been held in detention since Jan. 15 on insurrection charges related to his Dec. 3 declaration of martial law that plunged South Korea into political turmoil, national division and economic uncertainty. On Saturday, a special invest

March 10, 2025