Opposition calls for investigation of Yoon's wife over texts with spy chief

The Democratic Party of Korea on Friday pressed for President Yoon Suk Yeol's wife Kim Keon Hee to be investigated over her possible role in the president's martial law declaration. The calls for Kim's investigation came after the National Intelligence Service Director Cho Tae-yong on Thursday admitted to having received text messages from the first lady the day before martial law was declared. Cho said he does not remember what the first lady said in the messages. "No matter how you put it, the

Feb. 14, 2025

Anti-CCP themes ring through rallies against Yoon's impeachment

Yoon's rhetoric on China resonating with supporters, expert says Animosity toward China, more precisely the Chinese Communist Party, has become a central theme in the recent string of rallies supporting South Korea's suspended President Yoon Suk Yeol, who is currently undergoing his impeachment trial. Outside the Chinese embassy in Seoul on Friday afternoon, a crowd gathered for a rally protesting Yoon's impeachment under the slogans, "Annihilate communism" and "Get the CCP out of Korea." Interm

Feb. 12, 2025

Ruling party apologizes over martial law, slams rival party leader as 'instigator' of political turmoil

Democratic Party head Rep. Lee Jae-myung 'threat to alliance with US' Rep. Kweon Seong-dong, the ruling People Power Party's floor leader, on Tuesday apologized for President Yoon Suk Yeol's martial law declaration on Dec. 3 last year and the ensuing fallout. "The People Power Party, as the ruling party, apologizes and accepts responsibility for the crisis following the Dec. 3 declaration of martial law and the president's arrest and indictment," Kweon said in an address to the National Assembly

Feb. 11, 2025

Opposition leader floats 4-day workweek, extra W30tr for economic recovery

Democratic Party of Korea Chair Rep. Lee Jae-myung, considered one of the front-runners for the presidency, on Monday presented his chief policy ideas, including the introduction of a four-day workweek, as well as pumping 30 trillion won ($20.6 billion) in extra budget to lift the economy out of the fallout from suspended President Yoon Suk Yeol's martial law bid. In a speech delivered before the National Assembly, Lee painted the Democratic Party as the party that will steer South Korea out of

Feb. 10, 2025

South Korean intel agency warns against DeepSeek privacy risks

Chinese AI app collects extensive personal info, to be stored in servers in China possibly forever: NIS South Korea's National Intelligence Service on Sunday issued a warning against using open-source large language model DeepSeek-R1, saying the Chinese service collects extensive amounts of private data and stores them on servers in China indefinitely. The NIS, which oversees cybersecurity operations, said in a release that DeepSeek was found to track and collect "excessive" data from its users,

Feb. 9, 2025

Thousands of North Korean workers sent to Russian construction sites: NIS

North Korea sent a large number of workers to Russia last year, as well as troops, according to the National Intelligence Service in Seoul. The NIS said Sunday that North Korea has sent "thousands of workers to construction sites in various parts of Russia" over the past year — a number that has grown since the estimate given last October. In October last year, the NIS had said in a briefing that about 4,000 North Korean workers were already believed to be in Russia, with each worker being paid

Feb. 9, 2025

Acting president says he 'ignored' Yoon's 'martial law note'

Acting President Choi Sang-mok said Thursday he received a note from President Yoon Suk Yeol during a Cabinet meeting just before the enactment of martial law in the evening of Dec. 3, 2024, but that he ignored it. Appearing as a witness at a National Assembly hearing for the first time, Choi said he was handed the note, which was folded in half, by an official after Yoon summoned him just before martial law was declared. Choi said it was hours later at around 1:50 a.m. on Dec. 4 that he read th

Feb. 6, 2025

South Korean speaker to hold high-level talks during China trip

Eyes on whether Woo will meet with President Xi Woo Won-shik, the speaker of South Korea's National Assembly, is meeting with high-level officials in China this week, possibly including Chinese President Xi Jinping. The speaker's office on Wednesday said Woo was slated to hold a series of meetings with top Chinese officials, including Zhao Leji, the chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress of China. The speaker's office said Woo would be discussing ways to strengthen

Feb. 5, 2025

Bill seeks to boost South Korea's AI competitiveness after DeepSeek shock

Resolution, signed by entire ruling party, calls for combined South Korea-US efforts for economic security, North Korea's denuclearization Rep. Kim Gunn of the ruling People Power Party on Wednesday introduced a bill seeking to expand investment in the country's artificial intelligence and to boost innovation. Kim said he proposed the bill to boost South Korea's competitiveness amid the accelerating global race for AI supremacy, particularly after Chinese startup DeepSeek sent shock waves throug

Feb. 5, 2025

S. Korea's main opposition party cozies up to Trump with Nobel nomination

Seoul's Democratic Party aligns closely with Trump, Republican Party The main opposition Democratic Party of Korea has submitted a proposal to nominate US President Donald Trump for a Nobel Peace Prize for his Korean Peninsula peace efforts. The party in Seoul said Tuesday it had submitted a proposal nominating Trump for the prestigious prize with the Norwegian Nobel Committee on Jan. 27, and it had informed the "US side" about the nomination. The Democratic Party cited Trump's "efforts to denuc

Feb. 4, 2025