[코리아헤럴드=김아린 기자] 김여정 북한 노동당 부부장이 최근 담화에서 ‘남조선’ 대신 ‘대한민국’이라는 정식 국명을 사용한 배경을 두고, “분명한 비방 목적”이라는 정보당국의 분석이 나왔다. 김 부부장은 지난 10일, 11일 그리고 17일 세 차례 발표한 담화에서 한국을 두고 그 동안 사용해 온 ‘남조선’이 아닌 ‘대한민국’이라고 지칭했다. 25일 본지 취재를 종합하면, 정보당국은 북한이 대남 비난 담화에서 ‘대한민국’이라는 국호를 사용한 것은 “비방 의도가 분명”하며 “용어 공작”을 통해 우리 사회 내 혼란을 빚으려는 목적이라고 분석했다. 김 부부장 담화에서 미국은 그대로 ‘미국’으로 기재한 반면, 한국은 겹화살괄호(≪≫)를 사용해 ‘≪대한민국≫’으로 표현했는데, 북한

한국어판 July 25, 2023

Former national security chief Suh Hoon, who is already a defendant in two separate North Korea-related controversies from the previous Moon Jae-in administration, may face yet another criminal investigation for allegedly destroying key presidential records. The bereaved family of Lee Dae-jun -- a South Korean fisheries official killed by North Korean troops at sea in September 2020 -- filed a criminal complaint against Suh on Friday over destroyed and lost records pertinent to then-President Mo

Politics July 21, 2023

Travis King, the US soldier who fled to North Korea on Tuesday, had been convicted earlier for aggression against the South Korean police, a court ruling reveals. According to the Seoul Western District Court ruling obtained by The Korea Herald, the American had damaged a police car and shouted expletives at officers who were called to a nightclub in Seoul, where King was reported for assaulting a man. At 3:46 a.m. on Oct. 8, King was arrested for acts of aggression against the police that inclu

Politics July 20, 2023

A US soldier is believed to be in North Korean custody after crossing the demilitarized zone that divides North and South Korea while on a tour of the border village of Panmunjom, the United Nations Command said Tuesday. The soldier has since been identified as Travis King, a private in his early 20s who had just been released from a South Korean prison after serving about two months on assault charges. But long before King there was Charles Jenkins, who was accused of leaving his post with the

Newsmaker July 19, 2023

South Korea on Tuesday passed a bill punishing abandonment and killing of infants more severely, a revision that comes 70 years since the relevant sections of the criminal code were first enacted. Before the revision, penalties for abandoning an infant or an infant dying as a result of abandonment were mitigated under certain circumstances. The mitigating circumstances included when the offender -- the mother, her parents or her partner -- is believed to be unable to raise or look after the infa

Politics July 18, 2023

South Korean parties on both sides of the aisle on Monday headed to regions that have been hit the hardest by the lethal floods, taking a respite from the usual National Assembly duties in Seoul. Ruling People Power Party leader Rep. Kim Gi-hyeon, who returned from about a weeklong US trip on Sunday, met with survivors in North and South Chungcheong provinces where the damage from the monsoon rains was most severe. He then honored victims who died after being trapped in a flooded tunnel in Osong

Politics July 17, 2023

A bill to increase the penalty for the criminal offense of abandoning an infant passed a preliminary review of the National Assembly’s legislation committee on Thursday with bipartisan support, following revelations on a series of deaths of abandoned infants that fanned public outrage. The criminal code currently mitigates the penalty for abandoning an infant or an infant dying as a consequence of abandonment in cases where there is a reasonable cause to believe the offender -- more specif

Politics July 14, 2023

North Korea may be beginning to officially re-define its relations with South Korea as two separate nations, according to Rep. Tae Yong-ho of the ruling People Power Party on Thursday. Tae said that Kim Yo-jong, the sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, referring to South Korea by its official name, Republic of Korea, in recent statements may be an attempt to recognize it as an independent nation. Speaking at a plenary session of the National Assembly’s unification committee, Tae said

Politics July 13, 2023

The National Intelligence Service of Korea is seeking steps to make up for the pending loss of its authority to investigate espionage and other crimes against the state, such as anti-communism investigations. The state intelligence agency on Wednesday proposed a presidential decree that will allow it to continue to have a role in investigations of espionage and national security-related crimes. Starting next year, the intelligence agency will lose its investigative authority as a result of a set

Politics July 13, 2023

The South Korean opposition’s escalation of combative rhetoric on Japan’s plan to release treated wastewater from the crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant is “unseemly,” the ruling party's floor leader said Wednesday, Eastern European Time. “My colleagues across the aisle have chosen to abandon the longstanding courtesy of stepping back from domestic political attacks on the president while he is on a trip meeting foreign leaders,” Rep. Yun Jae-ok of th

Politics July 12, 2023

South Korea’s main opposition party on Sunday asked the International Atomic Energy Agency director general to halt Japan’s plan to discharge treated wastewater from the Fukushima nuclear power plant and to find alternatives to the ocean disposal. In a meeting with IAEA chief Rafael Grossi, five Democratic Party of Korea lawmakers accused the United Nations atomic watchdog of bias and described its final assessment on the safety of the Japanese plan as “shoddily concluded&rdquo

Politics July 9, 2023

The South Korean government released the English version of its report on North Korean human rights Friday, but it omitted a controversial clause included in an earlier edition that stated it would not bear responsibility for the report’s accuracy. In April, the English report by the Ministry of Unification was taken down from the website after wide criticism over the disclaimer, which denied responsibility for the report's accuracy. The original Korean report did not contain such dis

Politics July 7, 2023

South Korean inquiry found Japan’s plan to discharge treated wastewater from the tsunami-wrecked Fukushima nuclear power plant to be “consistent with international safety standards,” the government announced Friday. Bang Moon-kyu, the government policy coordination minister, said the plan proposed by the Japanese government met international standards, including those of the International Atomic Energy Agency. “If the plan is kept as outlined, no violation of safety stand

Politics July 7, 2023

A government plan to build a highway connecting Seoul with a county near the capital city was rescinded Thursday, after the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea raised allegations of possible favors having been granted to the family of the first lady. Earlier this week, the Democratic Party suggested the construction plan was tweaked so that the highway passes by a piece of land owned by the first lady’s family. After a meeting with ruling People Power Party lawmakers Thursday morning

Politics July 6, 2023

South Korean opposition rejected the International Atomic Energy Agency approval of the Fukushima water discharge on Tuesday, warning of a series of actions at home and abroad to stop the water from flowing. In a joint statement, Democratic Party of Korea lawmakers said “the IAEA report is no excuse for Japan dumping radioactive waste into the sea.” “The Japanese government must retract its plan to discharge the Fukushima radioactive wastewater immediately,” the statement

Politics July 5, 2023