The ruling People Power Party has formally proposed that the government designate Oct. 2 as a one-off public holiday. The day, which falls between Korea's major mid-autumn festival holiday, Chuseok, and National Foundation Day, aims to provide a six-day extended break, allowing families to reunite after lengthy COVID-19 restrictions and also to stimulate domestic consumption, according to the party. On Monday, ruling party leader Rep. Kim Gi-hyeon said at a Supreme Council meeting

Politics Aug. 28, 2023

The South Korean government announced plans to more than double the number of foreign workers in key industries such as manufacturing, agriculture and services to address the country's growing labor shortages. During the public-private joint regulatory innovation strategy meeting at Guro Digital Complex in Seoul on Thursday, Yoon called for deregulations on hiring foreign workers. “There are people who can work, and there are companies that want and need them. If regulations that do

Politics Aug. 24, 2023

President Yoon Suk Yeol visited Command Post Theater Air Naval Ground Operations, known as CP Tango, to inspect the situation of the Ulchi Freedom Shield exercises on the third day of the joint South Korea-US military drill on Wednesday. During a briefing, Yoon received a report on the exercise situation. "Since the establishment of the ROK-US Combined Forces Command in 1978, CP Tango has served as the brain directing the military forces of both nations on land, sea and air," Yoon sa

Defense Aug. 23, 2023

A South Korean government-sponsored video asserting the safety of the Fukushima contaminated water discharge came under fire, with opposition figures and political analysts questioning the motive behind the video production. On July 7, a video lasting 4 minutes and 25 seconds titled "Telling the Truth of Fukushima Contaminated Water by Top Experts in Korea" was uploaded on the government’s official YouTube channel. It turned out that the video was produced at a cost of 38 million

Politics Aug. 23, 2023

President Yoon Suk Yeol nominated Seoul High Court Senior Judge Lee Gyun-yong as the new chief justice of the Supreme Court, and Bang Moon-kyu, a minister in the Office for Government Policy Coordination, as industry minister, in a reshuffling Tuesday. Vice Finance Minister Bang Ki-sun replaces the policy coordination minister while Kim Byoung-hwan, the presidential secretary for economy and finance, was named to fill Bang’s vacancy. In addition, Yoon nominated Sejong Metropolitan City M

Politics Aug. 22, 2023

North Korea's provocations will only strengthen South Korea's trilateral cooperation with the United States and Japan, President Yoon Suk Yeol said Monday, urging full-fledged preparations against any military threats from the North. Speaking at the Cabinet meeting on the first day of 11-day joint exercises with the US, Yoon touted the three-way partnership on security and economy as a "solid structure" that would lower the risk of North Korea's provocations and transform the growing g

North Korea Aug. 21, 2023

In a coordinated effort, the South Korean police and the US military investigative agency have uncovered a malicious cyber attack by the North Korean hacking group "Kimsuky," aimed at the Korea-US combined military exercise battle simulation center, according to the police on Sunday. According to the Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police Agency, the North Korean hacking group has carried out continuous malicious email attacks targeting a domestic battle simulation company for military eng

North Korea Aug. 20, 2023

US President Joe Biden sent his condolences and a bouquet of flowers to South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, whose father recently passed away, the presidential office said on Friday. The flowers and message were delivered to Yoon's accommodations in Washington, D.C., before his arrival there. The leaders of the two countries are expected to speak by phone shortly. President Biden and first lady Jill Biden wrote in the card, "You are in our prayers and we wish you peace as you mourn

Politics Aug. 18, 2023

  President Yoon Suk Yeol on Thursday has departed to attend the first standalone trilateral summit with US and Japanese leaders, a high-profile gathering widely expected to formalize a new three-way cooperation on security and economy to deter the growing aggression from North Korea and to brace for economic uncertainty. At the US presidential retreat Camp David, the leaders are set to adopt the "Camp David Principles" and the "Spirit of Camp David," documents laying ou

Politics Aug. 17, 2023

North Korea has not yet offered condolences to President Yoon Suk Yeol over his father's death, unlike previous instances when Pyongyang passed on its sympathies upon news of the deaths of South Korea's liberal-leaning leaders and their family members. Yoon's father, Yoon Ki-jung, an emeritus professor of applied statistics at Yonsei University, died Tuesday. This is the second time an incumbent president has lost a parent during his or her term. When former left-wing President

Politics Aug. 16, 2023

President Yoon Suk Yeol labeled Japan as South Korea's partner, sharing universal values and common goals, while underscoring the importance of trilateral security cooperation with Tokyo and Washington in deterring North Korea on the annual Liberation Day holiday that marks the end of Japan's 35-year colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula. In a nationally televised address, Yoon also cautioned that South Korea remains under constant threat from "anti-state forces" aligned with

Politics Aug. 15, 2023

President Yoon Suk Yeol will depart Thursday for a landmark summit with the leaders of the United States and Japan at Camp David, Maryland, which aims to create a framework for trilateral security cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region. The wives of the three leaders will not accompany them to event. It will be the first standalone summit involving South Korea, the US and Japan. There have been 12 three-way summits in the past, but all have been held on the sidelines of a larger gathering. "

Politics Aug. 13, 2023

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has called for proactive military readiness in a move seen as a show of willingness to respond to an upcoming joint South Korea-US military exercise scheduled from Aug. 21 to 24. In response, the South Korean government has accused the North of making false claims and insisted that the nation's resources be directed toward the livelihood of its people, instead of military pursuits. The state news agency, the Korean Central News Agency, reported Thursday t

North Korea Aug. 10, 2023

  Escorted by police helicopters and patrol cars, some 37,000 World Scout Jamboree attendees from 156 nations left the campsite on reclaimed land in Buan, North Jeolla Province, on Tuesday, for alternative accomodation offered by eight municipalities across the country. For the massive departure of Scouts, over 1,000 buses were mobilized with the government deploying four police helicopters and 273 patrol cars to ensure their safety, according to the interior minister. “The evacuation

Social Affairs Aug. 8, 2023

Saemangeum is a reclaimed tidal flat area of Buan, North Jeolla Province, which was dammed by the government’s Saemangeum Seawall Project in 2006. The area was first introduced as a potential location to host the event in 2015 when the Korea Scout Association chose Saemangeum over Goseong, Gangwon Province, in its bid to host the 2023 World Scout Jamboree. In 2015, the Park Geun-hye administration pushed for Korea’s victory in the bid, saying that the government will provide the su

Social Affairs Aug. 7, 2023