Most Popular
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N. Korea fires multiple short-range ballistic missiles toward East Sea
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Samsung’s yearly dilemma looms: Exynos vs. Snapdragon
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Yoon to visit Prague next week to forge 'nuclear energy alliance'
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Is NewJeans leaving Hybe?
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1 in 4 Korean workers extend Chuseok holiday with paid leave: survey
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Life sentence finalized for killer in Sillim rampage
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Hit with lifetime ban, football player Son Jun-ho claims innocence, says China forced him to admit fake charges
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What comes after love? Ex-lovers cross paths in new Coupang Play series
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Hyundai Motor, GM join hands to shake up EV landscape
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Why is NK back to firing missiles after monthslong hiatus?
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Busan is most popular destination among foreign tourists
The number of foreign tourists visiting South Korea is nearing 90 percent of pre-pandemic levels, with around 9.1 million visitors from January to July this year, according to the Korea Tourism Organization. As travel recovers, more tourists are opting to explore the country by train or rental car. The number of foreign tourists using trains surged by 50.2 percent year-over-year, with 2.32 million travelers opting for the rail network. Popular destinations include Busan, Daegu and Gyeongju, wi
Social AffairsSept. 13, 2024
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Court suspends prison sentence of man for attempted rape of daughter-in-law
A man in his 80s charged with attempted rape of his Vietnamese daughter-in-law was released Wednesday, after a court suspended the 2-year jail term he was issued by a lower court. Gwangju High Court’s 1st Jeju Criminal Division ruled on Wednesday that the two year prison sentence should be suspended for four years in an appellate trial. He had been in prison following the lower court’s ruling. The man was also ordered to attend 40 hours of sexual violence treatment and banned from
Social AffairsSept. 13, 2024
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Yoon's approval rating sinks to lowest point since taking office
President Yoon Suk Yeol's approval rating fell to 20 percent, marking its lowest level since he took office in May 2022, a poll showed Friday. The survey, conducted by the polling agency Gallup Korea, showed that the positive assessment of Yoon's performance plunged 3 percentage points from the previous week, while his negative assessment reached an all-time high of 70 percent, up 3 percent from a week earlier. Yoon's handling of medical school quotas, the economy, and lack of com
PoliticsSept. 13, 2024
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Presidential security official arrested for alleged fraud in presidential office relocation
A high-ranking official at the Presidential Security Service has been arrested on charges of illegally taking personal profits while supervising the relocation of the presidential office, sources said Friday. The Seoul Central District Prosecutors Office arrested a presidential security official, identified by his surname Jeong, and a construction broker, surnamed Kim, after obtaining arrest warrants the previous day, the legal sources said. In October last year, the Board of Audit and Inspectio
PoliticsSept. 13, 2024
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N. Korea publicly discloses uranium enrichment facility for 1st time
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has called for increasing the number of centrifuges for uranium enrichment in order to increase its nuclear weapons for self-defense, the state media said Friday. Kim made the call during a visit to the Nuclear Weapons Institute and the "production base of weapon-grade nuclear materials," according to the Korean Central News Agency. The dispatch did not release the location of the facility or date of the visit. "He went round the control room of the
North KoreaSept. 13, 2024
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Appellate court overturns ruling on Deutsche Motors case
The Seoul Central District Court on Thursday overturned the lower court's ruling on a man surnamed Son, who in 2023 was acquitted of charges of providing scammers linked to a 63.6 billion won ($47.4 million) investment fraud in the early 2010s with a trust account, allowing them to manage assets on behalf of himself or the trust's beneficiary. The case has been drawing public attention as President Yoon Suk Yeol's opponents claim that first lady Kim Keon Hee was also suspected to
PoliticsSept. 12, 2024
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Yoon to visit Prague next week to forge 'nuclear energy alliance'
President Yoon Suk Yeol will visit the Czech Republic Thursday next week to forge the so-called "nuclear energy alliance," the presidential office said Thursday. The official visit comes ahead of next year's signing of South Korean firms' nuclear power plant construction bid valued at around 24 trillion won ($17.9 billion). It is the first visit by a South Korean leader to Central Europe's manufacturing powerhouse in nine years. Yoon will "convey the strong willingn
PoliticsSept. 12, 2024
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1 in 4 Korean workers extend Chuseok holiday with paid leave: survey
Chuseok is one of South Korea’s two biggest traditional holidays, bringing families together under the full moon to wish for a bountiful harvest and honor ancestors. But for hardworking ordinary people in Korea, the holiday's true significance perhaps lies in the rare opportunity it offers for people to escape the daily grind of their jobs. A recent survey conducted by a recruitment platform found that approximately one in four employees -- 25.7 percent -- plan on strategically sandwi
Social AffairsSept. 12, 2024
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Why is NK back to firing missiles after monthslong hiatus?
North Korea fired multiple short-range ballistic missiles into the East Sea from the Pyongyang area Thursday morning, the South Korean military said, marking its first missile launch since July 1 and breaking a more than two-month lull in missile provocations. The timing -- coinciding with weeklong Russia-China military exercises, just one day after the US presidential debate, and as North Korea shifts its focus from flood recovery back to weapons development -- signals what analysts view as a c
North KoreaSept. 12, 2024
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Seoul mulls removing W110b Sewoon walkway
The Seoul Metropolitan Government is mulling removing an elevated walkway at Sewoon Shopping Center in central Seoul, which cost the city government 110 billion won ($82 million) for its construction. The walkway which opened only two years ago has sparked "public discontent," said the city government, citing issues like inadequate sunlight underneath the walkways and problems such as water leaks. By removing the walkway, the city plans to enhance the ground-level pedestrian pathways.
Social AffairsSept. 12, 2024
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PM vows stern action over 'blacklist' of nonstriking doctors
Prime Minister Han Duck-soo on Thursday vowed to take stern action against those behind a "blacklist" of nonstriking doctors and medical students, amid intensifying tensions between the government and the medical community. During a central disaster response meeting, Han discussed allegations of a blacklist created by striking doctors to mock colleagues who have refused to participate in the strike, which has been ongoing since February. Calling it a "cowardly act," Han descr
Social AffairsSept. 12, 2024
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Life sentence finalized for killer in Sillim rampage
The Supreme Court on Thursday finalized life imprisonment for 34-year-old Cho Seon who carried out a stabbing rampage near Seoul's Sillim Station in 2023, leaving one person dead and three others injured. The top court upheld lower courts' decision to sentence Cho to life in prison, finding him guilty on multiple charges including murder, attempted murder and contempt. The court also ordered him to be tracked via an electronic ankle monitor for 30 years, with or without parole. "
Social AffairsSept. 12, 2024
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S. Korea asked to join Latvia-led drone coalition for Ukraine
Latvia has asked South Korea to join a global coalition to supply Ukraine with thousands of drones, according to officials in Seoul on Thursday, as military drones are becoming increasingly critical in its ongoing war against Russia. The invitation was made during a bilateral meeting between the visiting Latvian Foreign Minister Baiba Braze and her South Korean counterpart Cho Tae-yul, held Monday in Seoul. “I have invited the Republic of Korea to join the Drone Coalition established by
Foreign AffairsSept. 12, 2024
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S. Korea to provide $2m to typhoon-hit Vietnam
South Korea will provide Vietnam with $2 million in humanitarian assistance to help cope with the aftermath of a strong typhoon that killed more than 150 people, the foreign ministry said Thursday. The government hopes that the provision will help with the recovery efforts and help the affected residents be able to quickly return to their daily lives, the ministry said in a release. Typhoon Yagi, Asia's most powerful typhoon this year, swept through the northern part of Vietnam, bringing he
Diplomatic CircuitSept. 12, 2024
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Bail granted to SPC chairman under trial for anti-labor charges
A court on Thursday approved a bail request by Hur Young-in, the chair of bakery giant SPC Group, who is currently standing trial on charges of coercing bakers to quit their labor union. The 74-year-old bakery mogul was arrested in April and has since been standing trial in detention on charges of pressuring some 570 union members at an SPC subsidiary to quit their union between early 2021 and mid-2022 over their labor activities critical of the company. The Seoul Central District Court approved
Social AffairsSept. 12, 2024
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Iraq expected to conclude deal to buy S. Korea's missile defense system next week: reports
Iraq is set to buy South Korea's homegrown medium-range, surface-to-air missile defense system, called Cheongung-II, with a deal expected to be concluded next week, according to Iraqi media reports Thursday. The reports said that Iraq's defense ministry is expected to sign a US$2.5 billion contract with Korean defense firms to purchase eight units of the Cheongung-II system, which is designed to defend against aircraft, cruise missiles and ballistic missiles. The decision is part of Ir
Foreign AffairsSept. 12, 2024
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Biden nominates Lieut. Gen. Xavier Brunson as new US Forces Korea commander
US President Joe Biden has nominated Lieut. Gen. Xavier Brunson, the commander of I Corps, to lead the South Korea-US Combined Forces Command, the Pentagon said Wednesday, a nomination ahead of the Nov. 5 presidential election. If confirmed, Brunson would replace Gen. Paul LaCamera who has led CFC, United Nations Command and US Forces Korea since July 2021. His Senate confirmation hearing is slated for Tuesday next week. The position for the top US general in South Korea leads the three commands
Foreign AffairsSept. 12, 2024
