A sandstorm that swept across Beijing and China's northern provinces is forecast to partially affect South Korea on Thursday, sending fine dust levels to "very bad" in parts of the country, a research institute said. The severe yellow dust that blanketed China over the past two days is expected to pass north of South Korea, but part of it is expected to move southeast into the country Thursday a...

South Korea's state arms procurement agency is seeking to sign a contract next year to mass-produce the homegrown KF-21 Boramae fighter, its officials said Thursday, in what could be a key milestone for the jet acquisition project. The Defense Acquisition Program Administration briefed lawmakers during a session of the National Assembly's defense committee on the development plan, including its ...

South Korea's new COVID-19 cases fell below 12,000 Thursday, as the coronavirus has been slowing down for months. The country reported 11,400 new COVID-19 infections, including 21 cases from overseas, bringing the total caseload to 30,739,457, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said. The Thursday figure declined from the 13,081 reported the previous day. It went up slightly from th...

WASHINGTON -- There is no indication that North Korea may use its nuclear weapons to attack the United States or its allies in the near future, a spokesperson for the US National Security Council said Wednesday. John Kirby, NSC coordinator for strategic communications, made the remarks after North Korean leader Kim Jong-un reportedly stressed the need for the country's military to take an "immed...

WASHINGTON -- South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol will host a leader-level discussion on economic growth and shared prosperity during the Summit for Democracy next week, the US state department announced Wednesday. The meeting will be one of five leader-level plenary sessions to be held virtually during the two-day summit. The upcoming summit will mark the second of its kind, following the fir...

6th missile launch in two weeks came before US amphibious warship docked in Busan

The National Assembly Sunfull Committee and the Sunfull Foundation said they will hold a launching ceremony for the "Respect for Multicultural Families and All Ethnic Groups in Korea" campaign at the National Assembly Hall on March 27. The campaign aims to promote equal treatment for multicultural families and ethnic minority groups living in Korea, according to the organizers. It will shed ligh...

Suspicions of cult leader Jeong Myeong-seok abusing lawyer visits have risen, with records showing that he had visits from his legal representative on average of 1.7 times a day during his detention since October, a lawmaker revealed Wednesday. According to Rep. Park Bum-gye of the main opposition Democratic Party, Jeong had met lawyers 265 times during his current detention as of March 3. He wa...

Lee claims allegations are fabricated, lobs criticism at Yoon’s Japan deal

A man in his 40s was sentenced to 18 months in prison for multiple counts of fraud, which he tried to get away with by faking his own death, Gwangju District Court said Tuesday. Some additional charges were dismissed because the statute of limitations has already passed, the court said. From 2008 to 2013, he swindled 375 million won ($287,000) out of five people under the pretense of finding th...

The Yoon Suk Yeol administration is preparing for joint forums and military exercises starting next month to commemorate 70 years of relations with the US, as South Korea looks to cement ties with its biggest ally to counter North Korea’s nuclear threats and a more assertive China. Seoul-Washington ties date back to October 1953, when they signed a mutual defense treaty following the end of the ...

The government unveiled a five-year plan aimed at improving emergency medical services throughout the region on Tuesday. Under the new plan, paramedics will play a vital role in determining the severity of patients' conditions and directing them to the appropriate emergency room. This approach is expected to reduce wait times and improve patient outcomes. To help optimize resources and ensure pa...

South Korean prosecutors on Wednesday said they are reviewing allegations of illicit funds surrounding late ex-President Chun Doo-hwan’s family, sparked by Chun’s grandson’s recent confession on social media that his family was “living off black money.” According to the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office, the case has been allocated to the Criminal Proceeds Recovery Department to see if ...

Georgia and South Korea have more in common than meets the eye. The sheer size of the economy and population aside, fundamentally, both countries share a long-lasting historical experience of struggle for independence and freedom. Nowadays, both Georgia and South Korea find themselves in a complex geostrategic regional environment, yet their adherence to the rule-based international order and sha...

The government will offer free COVID-19 vaccinations to all Korean nationals and residents with foreign registration numbers in the final quarter of the year to better control the spread of the disease that the authorities believe is under control. The vaccine will likely be offered once a year for free, similar to flu shots. While it has yet to be officially confirmed, once-a-year vaccinations ...