North Korea on Sunday fired four suspected shots from multiple rocket launchers into the Yellow Sea, South Korean military officials said, the latest in a series of provocations that could heighten tensions on the Korean Peninsula. “There were shots believed to be that of North Korea’s multiple rocket launchers this morning,” an official of the South Korean military said. “We are maintaining our defense readiness posture while closely following related developments,&rdq

North Korea March 20, 2022

The first luncheon between President Moon Jae-in and President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol was canceled about four hours before they were to sit down together, with the transition getting off to a rocky start. This is the first case in which a meeting between the incumbent president and president-elect was canceled after plans were made public. “We decided to reschedule the meeting because working-level consultations have not been completed,” a Cheong Wa Dae spokesperson said in a statem

Politics March 16, 2022

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol appears on course to fulfill his pledge to relocate the presidential office, with two locations in Seoul being discussed as potential candidates. Initially, he proposed setting up the presidential office in the Gwanghwamun area, but due to practical challenges, the Defense Ministry building in Yongsan-gu has emerged as a strong alternative, officials said. During the election, Yoon pledged to relocate the presidential office from the isolated Cheong Wa Dae to th

Politics March 15, 2022

President Moon Jae-in will hold a luncheon meeting with President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol at Cheong Wae Dae on Wednesday, the presidential office said Tuesday. Yoon will ask for a pardon for former President Lee Myung-bak. The meeting between the two is the first time in seven days since the presidential election and 21 months since Yoon visited Cheong Wa Dae to attend the Anti-Corruption Policy Council in 2020, when he served as the prosecutor general. “This luncheon will be held without

Politics March 15, 2022

Many are now watching to see whether former President Lee Myung-bak will be granted a special pardon before the end of the Moon Jae-in administration, as President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol is expected to demand Lee’s pardon. Moon and Yoon are expected to meet at Cheong Wa Dae early next week, and the issue of special amnesty for politicians, including Lee, is likely to be discussed at the meeting. Yoon is in favor of pardoning Lee, who was president from 2008-2013. Earlier, he said Lee shou

Politics March 14, 2022

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol has told leaders of neighboring Japan and China to develop relations further. The leaders agreed to strengthen ties with South Korea. On Friday morning, Yoon met with the Chinese Ambassador to South Korea Xing Haiming in Seoul, saying he is confident that Korea-China relations will develop further. “China is Korea‘s largest trading partner, and we are China’s third-largest trading partner,” Yoon told Xing. “This year is the 30th ann

Foreign Affairs March 11, 2022

Former top prosecutor Yoon Suk-yeol rose to the presidency in less than a year, entering politics with a promise to restore fairness following a regime marred by runaway housing prices and corruption scandals. The political neophyte now needs to prove his presidential capacity by addressing the mounting political and diplomatic challenges the nation faces. Public frustration grew under the administration of Moon Jae-in, who once won in a landslide with great expectations, but who was rocked by

Politics March 10, 2022

   On June 29, 2021, a political novice declared his bid for the presidency, vowing to achieve a transfer of power away from the administration that took him to the peak of his profession. Riding on the back of a public desire for the same goal, it took him only nine months to make good on his promise. Yoon Suk-yeol was an aggressive, hard-nosed prosecutor, helping to convict former presidents and business tycoons on corruption charges. His unyielding reputation eventually led Pres

Politics March 10, 2022

The main opposition People Power Party’s Yoon Suk-yeol confirmed his place as South Korea's next president after his opponent, Democratic Party of Korea candidate Lee Jae-myung, conceded defeat in the early hours of Thursday morning.  He will become the first former prosecutor to be elected president and the first president without any political experience. As of 3:55 a.m. on Thursday, with 98 percent of votes counted by the National Election Commission, Yoon had 48.6 perc

Politics March 10, 2022

Wednesday’s presidential election came down to a neck-and-neck race, with exit polls placing the two front-runners at less than 1 percentage point apart. At 7:30 p.m., the three terrestrial broadcasters KBS, MBC and SBS released the result of an exit survey conducted from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Wednesday. The Korea Election Pool commissioned three investigative agencies -- Hankook Research, Korea Research and Ipsos Korea -- to conduct exit surveys. And 1,480 investigators were dispatched

Politics March 9, 2022

US President Joe Biden sent a letter of appreciation to President Moon Jae-in for the South Korean government’s measures against Russia, including export controls and financial sanctions, over the Ukraine crisis, Cheong Wa Dae said Tuesday. Biden said in a letter that “Korea’s determined measures will be a strong message that it supports Ukraine’s sovereignty,” Cheong Wa Dae spokesperson Park Kyung-mi said in a written briefing on the same day. Biden stated in t

Foreign Affairs March 8, 2022

Marking the 8th International Women’s Day, President Moon Jae-in said there is still a culture that prevents gender equality in Korea and expects the next government to make progress. Moon posted a congratulatory message with a photo of a rose on his social networking services accounts, including Facebook and Twitter, on Tuesday. “The courageous voices of female workers who shouted human rights 114 years ago continue to this day,” he said. “I would like to thank ever

Politics March 8, 2022

Rep. Song Young-gil, head of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea, received hospital treatment Monday after being struck by an object wielded by an unidentified man while campaigning for the presidential election in the streets of Sinchon in Seoul. The suspect, arrested at the scene and transferred to a nearby police station, was seen wearing a hanbok-like outfit and was reportedly a YouTuber. He hit Song with a blunt weapon covered several times with a black bag,

Politics March 7, 2022

President Moon Jae-in opened the way for emergency financial support for the wildfire-hit areas of Uljin, North Gyeongsang Province, and Samcheok, Gangwon Province, by declaring them a special disaster zone Sunday. Accompanied by Minister of the Interior Jeon Hae-cheol and Lee Jin-seok, presidential secretary for state affairs, Moon visited the Uljin National Sports Center shelter where about 500 Uljin residents were staying after being urgently evacuated. Moon told residents at the site tha

Social Affairs March 6, 2022

South Korea will provide emergency humanitarian aid of $10 million for Ukrainian citizens and refugees, President Moon Jae-in said after a 30-minute phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy Thursday night. “We are on the phone again under a very unfortunate situation,” Moon was quoted as saying during the call, and expressed his deepest condolences to the victims and their bereaved families of the war in Ukraine. “We pay tribute to the courage and sacrifice o

Politics March 3, 2022