Yoon returns home from 3-nation Southeast Asia trip

President Yoon Suk Yeol returned home Friday from his trip to the Philippines, Singapore and Laos that focused on diplomacy to strengthen ties with Southeast Asian nations and draw support for his policy on North Korea. During the six-day trip, Yoon attended a series of annual summits involving the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Laos on Thursday and Friday, and made state visits to the Philippines and Singapore. It marked Yoon's third consecutive year attending

Oct. 11, 2024

Early voting begins for Seoul education superintendent by-election with low turnout

As early voting kicked off Friday in the by-election to fill the Seoul education superintendent post, polling stations across Seoul remained relatively quiet, with public interest in the election low on the weekday. According to the Election Commission, voter turnout by 3:40 p.m. was 2.48 percent, with 206,317 ballots cast out of 8.32 million eligible voters. The election, featuring four candidates, is expected to influence the future of education in South Korea. While the superintendent's

Oct. 11, 2024

Yoon expresses S. Korea's appetite for Australia's Project Sea 3000

VIENTIANE, Laos -- President Yoon Suk Yeol on Friday expressed South Korean companies' appetite for Australia's frigate replacement project known as Project Sea 3000 to upgrade its maritime defense capability, during his talks with Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. At the bilateral meeting on the margins of the ASEAN Summit, Yoon "highlighted South Korean firms' willingness" to participate in Australia's program to acquire 11 general-purpose frigates

Oct. 11, 2024

Yoon unveils $23m humanitarian aid to Myanmar

VIENTIANE, Laos -- President Yoon Suk Yeol on Friday unveiled plans to provide $23 million to Myanmar in humanitarian aid this year, as he attended the East Asia Summit before ending his Southeast Asia trip. According to Yoon's office, the president said in the closed-door multilateral meeting that Myanmar could provide a proving ground for East Asia Summit members from across the Indo-Pacific region, saying their collaborative efforts and dialogue could contribute to tackling the humanitar

Oct. 11, 2024

Ex-Industry Minister Bang to be named ambassador to Indonesia: sources

Former Industry Minister Bang Moon-kyu is expected to be appointed the new South Korean ambassador to Indonesia, diplomatic sources said Friday. An internal personnel review process is under way for Bang to fill the post that has been vacant since July, sources said. The previous ambassador, Lee Sang-deok, left the position after he was tapped to lead the state agency for overseas Koreans. Bang's likely appointment would reflect the importance South Korea attaches to its partnership with th

Oct. 11, 2024

Literature honor marks S. Korea’s 2nd Nobel Prize

Author Han Kang became the second South Korean to win a Nobel Prize on Thursday, as she was recognized with the laureate honor in literature by the Swedish Academy. Preceding Han was Kim Dae-jung, the late South Korean president who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2000 to honor his efforts to revive democracy in South Korea and improve relations with North Korea. The Nobel Prize committee said the award motivation was “for his work for democracy and human rights in South Korea and in East Asi

Oct. 10, 2024

Rival parties clash over first lady's alleged involvement in nominations

Lawmakers of the ruling People Power Party and the main opposition Democratic Party clashed Thursday over allegations that first lady Kim Keon Hee was involved in nominating candidates for a 2022 by-election and the April 2024 parliamentary elections. During a parliamentary audit of the National Election Commission, the state election watchdog, the People Power Party lawmakers dismissed the allegations, which have been raised by the media and the opposition bloc, as having nothing to do with the

Oct. 10, 2024

Yoon, Ishiba discuss travel agreement

VIENTIANE, Laos -- President Yoon Suk Yeol and Japan's newly elected Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba discussed a new bilateral travel agreement that would allow their citizens' free movement between the two countries through a streamlined immigration process, according to Yoon's office on Thursday Kim Tae-hyo, first deputy director of the presidential National Security Office, said in a briefing in Vientiane, Laos that Yoon and Ishiba pledged to accelerate discussions for the new tr

Oct. 10, 2024

Cabinet approves bill revision to punish possessing, watching deepfake porn

The Cabinet on Thursday approved the revision of a bill to punish both the possession and viewing of deepfake pornography. The revision of Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Sexual Crimes calls for punishing individuals who are caught possessing, purchasing, storing or viewing sexually explicit deepfake content with up to three years in prison or a fine of up to 30 million won ($22,200). The law has recently faced criticism following a recent chain of deepfake pornography crimes f

Oct. 10, 2024

Yoon mulling 1-on-1 meeting with Han after by-election

President Yoon Suk Yeol and ruling People Power Party Chair Han Dong-hoon might hold talks after the Oct. 16 by-election next week, according to the presidential office on Thursday. The Yoon administration and the ruling party "are communicating with each other over the matter," a source at the presidential office said on condition of anonymity. Also, the presidential office is reportedly open to a one-on-one meeting with Han, a format Yoon has long disapproved of. The meeting would oc

Oct. 10, 2024

Leaders of S. Korea, ASEAN agree to elevate ties to highest level

VIENTIANE, Laos -- South Korea and ASEAN inked the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Thursday, with ASEAN placing South Korea alongside superpowers such as the United States and China in the organization's hierarchy of diplomatic relationships. South Korea has become the sixth country that ASEAN is in dialogue partnership with, after the United States, China, Japan, India and Australia. ASEAN, or the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, is comprised of 10 countries: Brunei, Cambodia, Indone

Oct. 10, 2024

Yoon, Japan's Ishiba to hold 1st summit in Laos on sidelines of ASEAN

President Yoon Suk Yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba are set to hold their first summit on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit in Laos on Thursday, Yoon's office said Wednesday. Yoon arrived in Vientiane, the Lao capital, for a three-day visit until Friday to attend the regional gatherings of the ASEAN. Last week, Yoon and Ishiba held their first phone talks, where they shared the need for bilateral cooperation as well as trilateral coope

Oct. 10, 2024

Yoon to hold bilateral talks with leaders of Japan, Canada, Australia

VIENTIANE, Laos -- President Yoon Suk Yeol is to hold bilateral talks with the leaders of six countries attending the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Summit and related events on Thursday and Friday, after having arrived in Vientiane, Laos, Wednesday evening. According to the presidential office, Yoon will meet leaders representing Japan, Canada and Australia. At 10 p.m. Wednesday Laos time, Seoul announced that Yoon would sit down for talks with Japan's newly elected Prime Minister

Oct. 9, 2024

Security issues to take center stage at ASEAN summit

VIENTIANE. Laos -- International and regional security concerns will take center stage at the Association of Southeast Asian Nation Summit this week, as leaders will likely apply pressure on China and Russia over ongoing geopolitical conflicts. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Japan's newly elected Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba both confirmed their trip to Vientiane, Laos, Tuesday. Beijing also confirmed that Chinese Premier Li Qiang will attend the multilateral meetings. President Yoon

Oct. 9, 2024

Unified Korea would be massive market: Yoon

SINGAPORE -- President Yoon Suk Yeol said Wednesday that a unified Korean Peninsula that is free and at peace would unlock massive economic opportunities in the Indo-Pacific region. "A unified Korean Peninsula that is free and open will also create a strong impetus for economic development and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific," Yoon said at the 47th Singapore Lecture, organized by the ISEAS Yusof Ishak Institute that was formerly known as the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies. "A

Oct. 9, 2024

New orchid hybrid in Singapore named after Yoon, his wife

SINGAPORE -- A new orchid hybrid in Singapore was named after President Yoon Suk Yeol and his wife Kim Keon Hee while Yoon was on a state visit to the Southeast Asian country, according to the presidential office on Wednesday. The orchid was named "Dendrobium Yoon Suk Yeol Kim Keon Hee" on the occasion of their visit to the Singapore Botanic Gardens on Tuesday. Dendrobium refers to one of the genera of the Orchidaceae family, according to Yoon's office. According to Singapore�

Oct. 9, 2024

Who is pollster roiling politics with claims of government string-pulling?

Allegations that first lady Kim Keon Hee interfered with the ruling party's candidate nominations ahead of April's legislative general election are stirring up the political landscape in South Korea -- and at the center of it all is a pollster who claims he "advised" President Yoon Suk Yeol. Myeong Tae-gyun became the center of attention after online media outlet Tomato News reported that he had connections with the presidential couple, and played a role in the ruling People

Oct. 8, 2024

S. Korea, Singapore seal supply chain agreement

SINGAPORE -- The leaders of South Korea and Singapore on Tuesday agreed to ensure resilience in the supply chain as the two countries signed a new bilateral arrangement to weather supply chain crises especially in advanced manufacturing, biotechnology and energy. The nonbinding supply chain partnership arrangement was signed during President Yoon Suk Yeol's state visit to the city-state as part of a weeklong trip to Southeast Asia. In a press conference held Tuesday at the Parliament House of Si

Oct. 8, 2024

[Exclusive] Youth shun military academy as armed forces lose luster

South Korea’s once prestigious military academies are fast losing appeal for potential candidates, with about two in three applicants dropping out despite qualifying for final interviews this year. Despite an increase in applicants to academies of all three armed services over the first three years of Yoon Suk Yeol’s administration in 2022-24, the steep rise in dropout rates during the admissions process reveals the underlying challenges the South Korean military faces recruiting for

Oct. 7, 2024

Assembly audit kicks off with bitter clashes

This year’s annual National Assembly audit kicked off Monday with the rival parties locking horns over a slew of legal issues surrounding Democratic Party of Korea Chair Rep. Lee Jae-myung and multiple allegations against first lady Kim Keon Hee. Seventeen parliamentary standing committees will audit a total of 802 government institutions over 26 days. Ten of the 17 standing committees were scheduled to hold hearings Monday, including the Legislation and Judiciary Committee, the Foreign Af

Oct. 7, 2024