The Ministry of Justice is set to push to expand the "medical treatment and custody" of child sex offenders, Thursday. Medical treatment and custody refers to detaining offenders with high risk of recidivism, such as pedophiles or drug addicts, at state facilities and providing them with psychiatric treatment. According to the current law, sex offenders with psychological disorders including pe...

South Korea's new COVID-19 cases fell to the lowest number in nearly three months for a Thursday count, as the virus wave is slowing down at a steady pace. The country reported 33,009 new COVID-19 infections, including 255 from overseas, bringing the total caseload to 24,535,940, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. The latest tally is down by more than 8,200 from the pr...

NEW YORK -- President Yoon Suk-yeol asked US President Joe Biden to resolve South Korea's concerns over the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), and Biden responded he was well aware of the concerns, Yoon's office said Wednesday. Biden also said the two sides should continue serious discussions about the matter, the office said in a press release summarizing the presidents' three encounters over the l...

North Korea's military said Thursday it has never exported weapons to Russia and does not plan to do so, according to its state media, rejecting accusations of arms trade between the two countries. Earlier this month, a US state department spokesperson said Russia may be in the process of purchasing "millions of rockets and artillery shells" from North Korea, which would violate multiple U.N. Se...

NEW YORK -- South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz held a summit in New York on Wednesday and agreed to work to deepen their countries' bilateral relationship at every level, the presidential office said. The two held their first summit on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly and assessed how the countries have developed their friendly and cooperative relation...

WASHINGTON -- A recent satellite imagery of North Korea's main submarine shipyard showed possible preparations to launch a new submarine, a US monitor reported Wednesday. The satellite imagery, taken Sunday, showed six barges and other vessels gathered around the submarine launch quay at Sinpo South Shipyard, according to 38 North. "While barges and a dry dock have been occasionally observed ar...

WASHINGTON -- US President Joe Biden on Wednesday named North Korea as one of a few major reasons why the United Nations and its members must work to strengthen the nuclear nonproliferation regime. The US leader also said the US is prepared to pursue "critical arms controls measures" no matter what is happening in the world. "A nuclear war cannot be won, and must never be fought. The five perma...

President Yoon Suk-yeol held talks with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida for the first time in New York on Wednesday, where the two agreed on the need to improve relations by resolving pending issues between the two countries. The presidential office said in the afternoon, "President Yoon had a brief meeting with Prime Minister Kishida at a conference building near the United Nations Genera...

Seoul court sides with plaintiff's claim for compensation for side effects from COVID-19 vaccine

Russia’s arms procurement from countries subject to UN sanctions defies UNSC resolutions

The prosecutors' office is to launch a task force on the Sindang Station murder, with the suspect now in prosecution custody. The suspect, 31-year old former Seoul Metro employee Jeon Joo-hwan, was transferred to the prosecution Wednesday, accused of murdering a Seoul Metro employee on Sept. 14. Meeting the press at Seoul Namdaemun Police Station, Jeon repeated he was sorry for his actions. Je...

Yoon office avoids comment on reports Kishida unhappy with summit announcement

Washington said it is reviewing "all possible measures" to address Seoul's concerns regarding the US' Inflation Reduction Act hurting Korean electric vehicle makers, and reaffirmed that it will maintain an open channel for communication, South Korea's Foreign Ministry said Wednesday. On Tuesday (US time), South Korean Second Vice Foreign Minister Lee Do-hoon met with Jose Fernandez, the under se...

According to Korea-Arab society secretary general Ma Young-sam, the festival, particularly the theme of the World Cup in Qatar, is creating awareness about Qatar and broadening Koreans’ view of the Arab world. “Koreans, especially MZ generation and Coex visitors, are showing great interest apart from diplomatic corps, foreign tourists, international students, and foreign residents from Arab coun...

Yoon’s not mentioning NK is a deliberate disregard, critics say