WASHINGTON -- The United States is prepared to work with South Korea and other countries to address their concerns over the US Inflation Reduction Act, a state department spokesperson said Monday. Ned Price also highlighted the need to keep offshore investment between South Korea and the US robust. "Just as we have said with our European allies, this is a consequential piece of legislation. It'...

Jose Fernandez, the U.S. under secretary of state for economic growth, energy and the environment, arrived in South Korea on Monday for consultations on a range of bilateral economic issues. Fernandez is the first senior U.S. official to visit Seoul this year, which marks the 70th anniversary of the South Korea-U.S. alliance. He plans to meet Lee Do-hoon, Seoul‘s second vice foreign ministe...

Elite defector-turned-lawmaker says ‘one Korea’ may not be far-off dream

Complaints grow over 'invasive, annoying' emergency text messages

S. Korean military to revive long-delayed project to develop drones to spy enemy rear areas

South Korean men seek new options to avoid their two-year mandatory military service, and the number of draft dodgers continues to grow. According to data provided by Rep. Song Gab-seok of the Democratic Party received from the Military Manpower Administration, 578 people were turned over to prosecution for intentional draft dodging from 2012 until Nov. 30 last year. Recently, volleyball player...

K-pop composer Kim Min-su, better known by his stage name Don Spike, was handed a three-year suspended jail sentence on Monday for buying 45 million-won ($36,100) worth of methamphetamine and abusing it for recreational purposes for at least 14 times. The Seoul Northern District Court ordered the 45-year-old to serve five years of probation and 80 hours of drug awareness classes for treatment. H...

BUSAN -- A fire engulfed a parking tower in the southern port city of Busan on Monday, but no injuries were reported, fire officials said. The fire broke out at 6:32 a.m. at the parking structure connected to a building with residential and commercial units in downtown Busan, according to the Busan Metropolitan City Fire Disaster Headquarters. The fire agency said no injuries have been reported...

South Korea's new COVID-19 cases fell to the lowest in nine weeks Monday amid the government's efforts to contain the inflow of the virus from China. The country reported 19,106 new COVID-19 infections, including 109 cases from overseas, bringing the total caseload to 29,539,706, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said. Monday's tally marked a decrease since Nov. 7, when the countr...

North Korea has called for strengthening quarantine measures against the COVID-19 pandemic, citing the fast spread of the virus in such neighboring countries as South Korea and China, according to its state media Monday. The state-run Korean Central Television reported Sunday that virus cases shot up in the winter season in the South, China and Japan due to the fast spread of omicron subvariants...

The South Korean science ministry on Monday warned that a retired U.S. satellite could possible fall on the Korean Peninsula and its vicinities later this day. Launched in 1984, the Earth Radiation Budget Satellite is falling to Earth after completing its decadeslong mission to study how the Earth absorbed and radiated energy from the sun. The Ministry of Science and ICT said the ERBS is foreca...

A 3.7 magnitude earthquake struck off the western county of Ganghwa early Monday, the first quake stronger than 3.0 magnitude to hit South Korea this year, but no damage was reported, the state weather agency said. The quake occurred at 1:28 a.m. and was centered in waters 25 kilometers west of Ganghwa with a depth of 19 km, the Korea Meteorological Administration said. The earthquake was earli...

The monthslong investigation into the Itaewon crowd crush is coming to a close, with police planning to refer Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency chief Kim Kwang-ho and other officials to the prosecution this week for possible indictment. Kim is expected to be charged with professional negligence in connection with the Oct. 29 tragedy that killed 159 people, mostly those in their 20s. He is expecte...

More than 70 percent of South Koreans use online streaming services last year amid the protracted pandemic, a government survey showed. According to the annual poll conducted by the Korea Communications Commission, 72 percent of 6,708 respondents said they are using at least one over-the-top media service in 2022, up slightly from 69.5 percent last year. Among them, 95.7 percent said they use t...

The government and the ruling People Power Party agreed Sunday to transfer the education ministry's authority related to financial support for local universities to provincial governments by 2025 as part of education reform measures under the Yoon Suk Yeol administration. Top government and senior PPP officials also agreed to ease regulations on the operation of universities nationwide to allow ...