Most Popular
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Conflict erupts over ruling camp's takeover plan
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Motion to impeach Yoon Suk Yeol scrapped
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Can Yoon be suspended without impeachment?
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Bill to investigate Kim Keon Hee fails to pass
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[Breaking] Majority of ruling party lawmakers exit after vote on first lady probe
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[Breaking] Yoon to step back from state affairs, diplomacy: ruling party leader
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Singing K-pop, chanting slogans, masses fill Seoul streets for and against impeachment
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KG leaves VCHA citing 'abuse and mistreatment'
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Uncertainty looms over Yoon's plans to delegate power to party
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Bumpy road ahead for Korean economy
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Amid turbulence, Yoon to address nation in news conference Thursday
President Yoon Suk Yeol will hold a news conference on Thursday at 10 a.m., as the South Korean leader approaches the halfway point of his five-year term on Nov. 10, watchful of challenges at home and abroad. Yoon's news conference comes at a turbulent time due both to heightened external uncertainties -- as the US begins counting ballots from Wednesday here that will determine its next president as well as control of the US Congress -- as well as scandals here involving him and his wife. T
Nov. 5, 2024
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[Bills in Focus] Strengthening workplace safety, minority shareholders
Proposed Bill: Partial Amendment to the Act on the Collection of Insurance Premiums for Employment Insurance and Industrial Accident Compensation Insurance Proposed by Rep. Cho Ji-yeon (People Power Party) ● In response to the tragic fire at a lithium battery factory in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province, which resulted in the loss of 23 lives -- 18 of whom were residents of foreign nationality — this proposed amendment aims to tighten the accountability of risk assessment certifications for wo
Nov. 5, 2024
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Yoon to hold news conference on Thursday
President Yoon Suk Yeol will hold a news conference on Thursday at 10 a.m. as the South Korean leader approaches the halfway point of his five-year term, Yoon's office announced on Monday. According to the presidential office, Yoon will map out his administration’s policy direction for the future and engage in a sincere discussion of topics that have drawn public interest. Yoon’s aides proposed that he take the opportunity to communicate with the public before he departs for an
Nov. 4, 2024
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Ruling party leader condemns North Korea troop dispatch as crime against humanity
Han Dong-hoon, the leader of the ruling People Power Party, on Monday condemned North Korea for participating in Russia’s war in Ukraine. At a meeting of the party's leadership, Han said North Korean leader Kim Jong-un sending troops to Russia was a “serious challenge to international peace” and a “crime against humanity.” “The Kim Jong-un regime, with its decision to enter the war, has made it seem like the Korean Peninsula has something to do with the o
Nov. 4, 2024
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Amid record-low approval rating, Yoon forgoes Assembly budget address
President Yoon Suk Yeol skipped his 2025 budget address at parliament on Monday as he faces record-low popularity with his domestic agenda now overshadowed by the main opposition party having ramped up the pressure on him based on the recent revelation of a phone conversation suggesting he interfered in an election. On Monday, Yoon's approval rating fell 2.2 percentage points to the lowest point of 22.4 percent since his inauguration in May 2022, according to a poll by Realmeter. The poll o
Nov. 4, 2024
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PPP leader urges Yoon to issue public apology over allegations surrounding first lady
Ruling party leader Han Dong-hoon on Monday called on President Yoon Suk Yeol to issue a public apology and reshuffle aides at the presidential office to address growing concerns over allegations surrounding the first lady. Han of the People Power Party made the remarks during a meeting of the party's supreme council, calling for a "complete" personnel overhaul of the presidential aides. "The president should publicly and thoroughly address the concerns of the people, issue a
Nov. 4, 2024
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PM to deliver 2025 budget speech at National Assembly
Prime Minister Han Duck-soo will deliver the government's 2025 budget speech at the National Assembly on behalf of President Yoon Suk Yeol on Monday, Han's office said. It marks the first time in 11 years that a sitting president has not addressed parliament on the annual budget. Yoon presented the budget speech the past two years after taking office in May 2022. Since 1988, it has been customary for presidents to outline their key priorities to lawmakers before submitting the governme
Nov. 4, 2024
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Presidential Bio Committee to launch in December
South Korea's Presidential Bio Committee will hold its inaugural meeting in December, with President Yoon Suk Yeol chairing the committee of roughly 20 experts in the field of biotechnology, to bolster the nation's push to achieve a biotechnology breakthrough. Park Sang-ook, senior presidential secretary for science and technology, said in a briefing Sunday that Lee Sang-yup, vice president for research at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, will serve as the vice c
Nov. 3, 2024
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Scandal-hit ex-lawmaker denies corruption claims as pressure on Yoon mounts
Former lawmaker and veteran politician Kim Young-sun, a central figure in allegations that President Yoon Suk Yeol meddled in the June 2022 by-elections, denied accusations that she paid for Yoon's political forecasting and alleged poll manipulation expenses in exchange for the ruling party's nomination to run for her seat in the National Assembly. The prosecution interrogated Kim on Sunday regarding what they consider a violation of the Political Funds Act, namely Kim's wiring of
Nov. 3, 2024
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Ruling, opposition parties expected to wrangle over 2025 budget deliberations
The National Assembly is set to begin deliberations on the 2025 budget proposal this week, with ruling and opposition parties expected to wrangle over spending on controversial projects. On Monday, the National Assembly is set to begin deliberations on next year's budget of 677.4 trillion won ($509.7 billion), a 3.2 percent increase from the previous year. The ruling People Power Party is expected to advocate the government's focus on discretionary spending due to fiscal deficit, while
Nov. 3, 2024
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Govt. to designate 3 cities as nation's first 'hydrogen complexes'
The government said Friday it will designate three cities as the nation's first hydrogen-specialized complexes and support their growth into hydrogen industry hubs. The designation comes after the three cities -- Donghae and Samcheok of Gangwon Province and Pohang of North Gyeongsang Province -- passed preliminary feasibility surveys to carry out hydrogen cluster projects, the government said following a meeting of the government-led Hydrogen Economy Committee. The Donghae-Samcheok project
Nov. 1, 2024
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Opposition accuses Yoon of favoritism, election meddling
South Korea’s main opposition Democratic Party of Korea on Thursday accused President Yoon Suk Yeol of favoritism and unlawful interference in the 2022 by-election, disclosing a private call between Yoon and his former political consultant Myung Tae-kyun. The party claims the recording reveals Yoon’s involvement in election matters while serving as the incumbent president. In the May 2022 phone recording disclosed to media by the Democratic Party, Yoon, then the president-elect, told
Oct. 31, 2024
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Ruling party calls for swift revision of espionage laws
The ruling People Power Party called Thursday for a swift revision of espionage laws to outlaw spying not only for "enemy countries" but for all "foreign countries." PPP leader Han Dong-hoon issued the call during a Supreme Council meeting days after a South Korean national was found to have been detained by China on espionage charges while working for a Chinese chipmaker. "Because the espionage law applies only to North Korea, in the event that a Chinese national is sus
Oct. 31, 2024
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Defense minister calls S. Korean observer team dispatch to Ukraine military's 'obvious' task
Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun said Wednesday that the dispatch of a South Korean team of observers or analysts to Ukraine would be the South Korean military's "obvious" task, as he stressed there would be lessons to be learned. Kim made the remarks, saying that if such a team is not sent to Ukraine, it would constitute a "dereliction of duty." "Throughout the history in many different wars, including the Iraq war, there have been many cases where we have sent monit
Oct. 31, 2024
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S. Korean, US defense chiefs condemn N.K. troop dispatch to Russia in 'strongest' terms 'with one voice'
The defense chiefs of South Korea and the United States condemned North Korea's troop deployment to Russia in the "strongest" terms with "one voice" as they held the allies' annual defense talks at the Pentagon on Wednesday. Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun and US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin issued the condemnation at the 56th Security Consultative Meeting (SCM) as Seoul and Washington have confirmed the troop deployment, which is feared to escalate Russia'
Oct. 31, 2024
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Seoul on alert for possible Russia-backed North Korean cyber attacks
The military cyber security authorities in Seoul said Wednessday they are on the lookout for North Korea possibly colluding with Russia in its cyber attacks against pro-Ukraine countries. According to Rep. Lee Seong-kweon, who was briefed by the Cyber Operations Command, North Korean attempts to infiltrate institutions affiliated with the South Korean military have increased significantly in the past couple of years. The military’s cyber security authorities are “on alert” for
Oct. 30, 2024
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Han says controversies surrounding first lady must be resolved in November
Ruling People Power Party Chair Han Dong-hoon on Wednesday said that the controversies surrounding first lady Kim Keon Hee must be resolved by the end of next month, as he stressed the need to regain public trust in the conservative bloc. Han’s remarks made at a press conference marking his first 100 days in office came as a widening rift is observed within the ruling party over how to deal with multiple allegations regarding the president's wife, including her alleged involvement in
Oct. 30, 2024
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Seoul weighs monitoring team in Ukraine, affirms no artillery shell supply plans
South Korea on Wednesday acknowledged the need to send a "monitoring team" to the Ukraine battlefield, but it denied allegations that it was considering supplying 155 mm artillery shells upon Ukraine's request. "We are obliged to look into, analyze and monitor North Korean armed forces' activities (in the Russia-Ukraine war) while taking a defensive posture," an official of the presidential office said on condition of anonymity Wednesday. "We feel the need to create and
Oct. 30, 2024
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North Korea prepared for nuclear test, possibly before US election: Seoul defense intel agency
The Defense Intelligence Agency in Seoul said Wednesday that North Korea may conduct its first nuclear weapons test in seven years ahead of the US presidential election, in what would be its seventh such test. In a closed-door briefing to the National Assembly intelligence committee, the Defense Intelligence Agency said North Korea will attempt to draw Washington’s attention by staging a major provocation such as a nuclear test ahead of the election that is less than a week away. “No
Oct. 30, 2024
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150 new K2 tanks to feature domestically produced power packs
The state-run Defense Acquisition Program Administration on Monday announced its bid to make 150 new K2 tanks' power packs -- which comprise a 1,500-horsepower engine and transmission -- fully homegrown. The tanks with South Korean-made 1,500-horsepower engines and gear shifts will be manufactured by 2028, according to the plan. A notable change in the manufacturing plan, according to DAPA, is the adoption of a transmission system produced by a South Korean company SNT Dynamics. Currently,
Oct. 30, 2024