Yoon urges readiness for NK's 'hybrid warfare'

The Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise of the military forces of South Korea and the United States jointly kicked off on Monday with South Korean civilians, with the primary focus on addressing North Korea's nonkinetic operations, such as public opinion warfare, cyberattacks and the spread of fake news. The annual summertime joint military exercise that runs through Aug. 29 is the third such exercise since President Yoon Suk Yeol took office in May 2022, as Pyongyang increasingly blends unconven

Aug. 19, 2024

Yoon calls for bolstering readiness against N. Korea's 'gray zone' provocations

President Yoon Suk Yeol called for bolstering readiness against North Korea's "gray zone" provocations and hybrid warfare as South Korea and the United States kicked off their annual joint exercise on Monday. Yoon said during a Cabinet meeting that this year's Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise will focus on integrating the allies' capabilities under various crisis scenarios to deter North Korea's evolving military threats, psychological warfare and cyberattacks. "W

Aug. 19, 2024

PPP leader welcomes opposition leader's offer of talks

The leader of the ruling People Power Party said Monday he welcomes an offer of talks that opposition leader Lee Jae-myung extended upon his reelection as leader of the main opposition Democratic Party the previous day. PPP leader Han Dong-hoon made the remark at a party meeting while congratulating Lee on his reelection and voiced hope their envisioned meeting could lead to "substantial progress" on several stalled livelihood-related issues. "I hope we can set a time and place as

Aug. 19, 2024

Lee Jae-myung reelected as leader of main opposition party

Democratic Party of Korea Rep. Lee Jae-myung was reelected to lead the country's main opposition party on Sunday, cementing his power within the National Assembly. Lee, who had served his first term as Democratic Party chair from August 2022 to June this year, won 85.4 percent of the votes from registered party members, confirming his second term as party leader, in a convention at the KSPO Dome in southeastern Seoul in the afternoon. His second term is due to end August 2026. Lee was widely exp

Aug. 18, 2024

NSC discusses ways to beef up cybersecurity for defense contractors

The presidential National Security Council (NSC) held a meeting Friday to discuss measures to enhance cybersecurity for defense contractors to address concerns about hacking attacks targeting military technology. Shin Yong-seok, the presidential secretary for cybersecurity, led the meeting with officials from the state-run arms procurement agency, the spy agency, the police and the Defense Counterintelligence Command, following recent reports of alleged hacking attempts on local defense companie

Aug. 16, 2024

South Korea anticipates North Korea’s response to Yoon’s ‘Unification Doctrine’: minister

South Korean Minister of Unification Kim Yung-ho on Friday said he believes North Korea will be responsive to the doctrine on the Korean Peninsula unification announced by President Yoon Suk Yeol the day before. “I believe that North Korea will carefully consider our proposal,” the minister told a news briefing held at the Government Complex in Seoul. The “Aug. 15 Unification Doctrine,” unveiled by the president during his Liberation Day remarks, entails reunifying Korea

Aug. 16, 2024

Ex-President Moon's bank accounts probed over son-in-law's hiring

  Prosecutors are reportedly investigating the bank accounts of former President Moon Jae-in and his wife in connection with allegations that his son-in-law received an unfair advantage in being hired by an airline company. According to legal sources Friday, the Jeonju District Prosecutor's Criminal Division 3 recently executed a search warrant to trace the financial accounts of former President Moon Jae-in and his wife Kim Jung-sook. This comes about four years after a complaint was filed

Aug. 16, 2024

Yoon vetoes prolabor, universal cash payment bills

President Yoon Suk Yeol on Friday vetoed two controversial bills designed to strengthen workers' rights and distribute cash payments to the entire population. One of the bills, known as the "Yellow Envelope Bill," aims to restrict companies from seeking damages against workers involved in legitimate labor disputes, as well as requires contracting employers to respond to requests for collective bargaining by subcontractor labor unions. The other bill proposes distributing cash pa

Aug. 16, 2024

Unification minister calls on N. Korea to accept S. Korea's offer for dialogue channel

Unification Minister Kim Yung-ho on Friday called on North Korea to respond to South Korea's offer for an official dialogue platform and resume suspended inter-Korean communication channels. Kim made the call a day after President Yoon Suk Yeol proposed to North Korea the establishment of a working-level dialogue channel that can "take up any issue" in an address marking Liberation Day. Yoon unveiled a vision for freedom-based unification with North Korea and pledged to expand the

Aug. 16, 2024

Yoon's new foreign policy adviser visits US to discuss alliance, US election

Chang Ho-jin, new foreign policy adviser to President Yoon Suk Yeol, arrived in Washington, D.C., on Thursday to meet with officials and discuss the countries' alliance, the upcoming US election and other bilateral issues. Chang's trip came days after he was replaced as South Korea's top national security adviser and assigned to the newly created position of Yoon's special adviser for foreign and security affairs in a surprise reshuffle. "It has been nearly a year since

Aug. 16, 2024

Defense minister nominee says open to all means to respond to NK threats

Defense Minister nominee Kim Yong-hyun said Friday he was open to all means to respond to North Korea's nuclear threats, while reaffirming that the alliance with the United States remains the basis in dealing with such threats. Kim made the remarks after being questioned on the possibility of South Korea developing nuclear weapons of its own amid persistent domestic calls for such arms to deter North Korea. "Responding to North Korean nuclear threats based on extended deterrence and th

Aug. 16, 2024

Yoon unveils unification vision in split celebration of Liberation Day

President Yoon Suk Yeol on Thursday unveiled a new vision for unification, stressing that "complete liberation remains an unfinished task" as long as the Korean Peninsula remains divided, during his speech commemorating Korea's liberation from Japanese colonial rule from 1910 to 1945. However, his vision for a unified Korea, presented at the 79th Liberation Day ceremony, was overshadowed by internal discord within South Korea. Independence activist groups and opposition parties

Aug. 15, 2024

Yoon visits former first lady Yook Young-su's grave

President Yoon Suk Yeol on Thursday paid his respects at the grave of former first lady Yook Young-su, the assassinated wife of ex-President Park Chung-hee, on the 50th anniversary of her death, the presidential office said. Yoon, accompanied by first lady Kim Keon Hee, visited the grave at Seoul National Cemetery in southern Seoul a day after making a phone call to former President Park Geun-hye, Yook's daughter, to express his condolences, according to presidential spokesperson Jeong Hye-

Aug. 15, 2024

North Korean defector becomes governor of home province

North Korean defector Ji Seong-ho, who completed his term as a lawmaker with the ruling People Power Party in May, took office as the governor of his hometown North Hamgyong Province on Wednesday. South Korea appoints heads of offices to govern areas north of the inter-Korean border. Their affairs are overseen by the Ministry of Interior and Safety’s Committee for the Five Northern Korean Provinces. These largely symbolic roles are intended to keep in line with Article 3 of the Constitutio

Aug. 14, 2024

Century after ancestors' sacrifice, descendants become Korean citizens

On Monday, ahead of the 79th anniversary of National Liberation Day celebrated on Aug. 15, a special ceremony took place at the National Memorial of the Korean Provisional Government, which opened in 2022 to commemorate the China-based Korean government in exile during Japanese colonization from 1910-45. A total of 27 descendants of 14 independence activists -- 14 from Russia, 11 from China, one from Kazakhstan and one from Cuba -- became Korean nationals upon receiving citizenship certifica

Aug. 14, 2024

Yoon picks for national security, defense chiefs draw opposition ire

Opposition lawmakers on Tuesday called on President Yoon Suk Yeol to retract his nominations for national security advisor and the defense minister announced the day prior. The lawmakers of the main and minor opposition parties on the National Assembly defense committee held a joint press conference Tuesday, slamming the president as “damaging national interest at the key diplomatic moment” with his picks. In a surprise shake-up, Yoon on Monday tapped Shin Won-sik, who is serving as

Aug. 13, 2024

Yoon restores ex-governor's political rights, pardons Park's aides

President Yoon Suk Yeol on Tuesday officially restored the rights to hold public office for former South Gyeongsang Gov. Kim Kyoung-soo, who had served in jail until late 2022 for illegally conspiring to manipulate online opinions in favor of former President Moon Jae-in ahead of the 2017 presidential election. The reinstatement of Kim's political rights came as part of Yoon's decision to grant special pardons for a total of 1,219 convicts on the occasion of Liberation Day which fall

Aug. 13, 2024

Cabinet asks Yoon to veto controversial cash handout bill

The Cabinet on Tuesday voted to ask President Yoon Suk Yeol to veto the Democratic Party of Korea bill for handing out 250,000 to 350,000 won ($182 to $255) to every South Korean as economic relief. Earlier this month, the bill was passed in the Assembly by the majority-holding Democratic Party despite the ruling People Power Party pushback. Speaking at Tuesday’s meeting, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo said the Cabinet was “once again forced to consider bills that passed the Assembly i

Aug. 13, 2024

Govt. demands parliamentary reconsideration of pro-labor, cash handout bills

The Cabinet on Tuesday demanded the National Assembly reconsider two contentious bills aimed at enhancing the rights of workers and providing cash handouts to the entire population. A motion demanding parliamentary reconsideration was approved during a Cabinet meeting and will be sent to President Yoon Suk Yeol for endorsement. Yoon is widely expected to endorse the motion. One bill, known as the "yellow envelope bill," seeks to limit companies from making damage claims against workers

Aug. 13, 2024

Yoon hosts dinner for former President Lee Myung-bak

President Yoon Suk Yeol held a dinner meeting with former President Lee Myung-bak and his wife Monday, in what marked their first official dinner since Yoon took office. First lady Kim Keon Hee and Chung Jin-suk, Yoon's chief of staff who had served as a senior secretary to Lee for political affairs, also attended the dinner. The meeting came around a year after Yoon and Lee, who served as president from 2008 to 2013, briefly met at the funeral of Yoon's father in August 2023. In Decem

Aug. 12, 2024