Korea confirms first rare blood clot case linked to AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine

South Korean health officials said Monday that a rare blood clotting condition associated with the COVID-19 vaccines from AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson -- thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome, or TTS -- was confirmed in a man in his early 30s. The Seoul man, a “worker in a sector prone to COVID-19 exposure,” received his first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine April 27, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency. Roughly 10 days later, he started

Social AffairsMay 31, 2021

Korea says it can vaccinate up to 14 million by end June

The South Korean government said Monday the country could vaccinate up to 14 million people by the end of June, 1 million more than the goal it made earlier this month. Son Young-rae, the Ministry of Health and Welfare’s spokesperson, told reporters in a closed-door briefing that the extra Johnson & Johnson vaccines provided by the US were “sufficient to surpass the goal set for the year’s first half by at least a million.” “The ministry will strive to get

Social AffairsMay 31, 2021

[Newsmaker] Seoul’s smoking rate drops to record low amid COVID-19 pandemic

The smoking rate in Seoul dropped to its lowest level ever in 2020 as more smokers quit amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The Seoul Metropolitan Government said Monday that the smoking rate for adult residents of Seoul was 15.5 percent in 2020, down 1.2 percentage points from a year earlier. It is the lowest figure ever recorded since the city began collecting the data in 2008. The smoking rate for adult men in Seoul fell below 30 percent for the first time, hitting 28.9 percent, down 2.0 percent fr

Social AffairsMay 31, 2021

NK brands end to missile range limits as hostile policy

North Korea on Monday slammed the US for terminating guidelines that have restricted Seoul’s development of ballistic missiles as a “stark reminder” of Washington’s hostile approach to Pyongyang.  This marked Pyongyang’s first reaction to the May 21 summit between President Moon Jae-in and US President Joe Biden, during which the US decided to abolish the decadeslong guidelines that had put limits on Korea’s missile development program, allowing Seoul t

North KoreaMay 31, 2021

‘Assembly speaker strengthens ties with Russia, Czech Republic’

National Assembly Speaker Park Byeong-seug has wrapped up an official visit to Russia and the Czech Republic, conducting extensive diplomacy focusing on peaceful settlement on the Korean Peninsula and nuclear power plant exports, officials said Monday. Park’s nine-day trip that ended Sunday came at the official invitation of Russian House Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin and Czech Senator Milos Vystrcil. During the first five days, Park visited Russia to focus on deepening friendship and co

PoliticsMay 31, 2021

Thai Embassy to promote esports on Thailand Game Day

  The Thai Embassy in South Korea will broadcast a special esports friendly match live on Facebook for Thailand Game Day on June 11. The event -- the first of its kind to promote Thailand’s gaming industry in Korea -- will feature a League of Legends: Wildrift friendly match between two up-and-coming esports teams from Thailand and Korea. Thailand and Korea both have large domestic game markets. In 2020, Korea’s market was estimated to be worth $16 billion -- the fourth-highe

Foreign AffairsMay 31, 2021

S. Korea to send air tanker to US this week to bring COVID-19 vaccines

South Korea plans to send a military air tanker to the United States this week to bring coronavirus vaccines that Washington pledged to provide to the country, the defense ministry said Monday. The US plans to provide Johnson & Johnson (J&J)'s Janssen vaccine doses for 1 million people after President Joe Biden vowed to help South Korea with vaccine supplies to fully inoculate all 550,000 Korean troops. "We are scheduled to send a (KC-330) air refueling tanker on Wednesday, which

Social AffairsMay 31, 2021

N. Korean leader out of public eye for longest time this year

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has not made any public appearances for the past 24 days, marking his longest absence this year, the unification ministry said Monday. Kim was last seen in public on May 6 when he held a photo session with families of the North's army after watching their performance the previous day. "This marks the longest period there have been no reports of (Kim's) public activities this year," Lee Jong-joo, spokesperson of the unification ministry, told a regular

North KoreaMay 31, 2021

Unification minister to meet biz leaders to discuss inter-Korean exchanges

Unification Minister Lee In-young will hold meetings this week with the leaders of businesses that participated in the long-suspended tourism project at North Korea's Mount Kumgang to discuss cross-border cooperation and exchanges, his office said Monday. Lee will meet Tuesday with Chairwoman Hyun Jeong-eun of Hyundai Group that used to run tours to the scenic mountain on the North's east coast while a meeting with Lee Joong-myung, chairman of Ananti, which used to run a golf course at the moun

North KoreaMay 31, 2021

S. Korea vows to improve working environment of Indonesian crewmen

South Korea and Indonesia agreed Monday to rev up monitoring on the working environment of Indonesian crewmen boarding local fishing boats and root out possible violations of human rights. Oceans Minister Moon Seong-hyeok held a virtual meeting with his Indonesian counterpart Ida Fauziyah and inked a memorandum of understanding to increase transparency in the recruitment process of workers, according to the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries. The agreement came as Indonesia takes up around 36 pe

Social AffairsMay 31, 2021

Jeju's tourist arrivals top 1 million in May amid spike in COVID-19 cases

JEJU -- Jeju Island attracted more than 1 million tourists this month alone, industry data showed Monday, as the southern resort island raised its anti-COVID-19 social distancing measures by one notch to Level 2 on the same day to cope with growing local transmissions of the coronavirus. According to the data from Jeju's tourism association, 1,089,690 tourists arrived on Jeju from May 1-30. With an additional 31,000 visitors expected on the last day of May, the monthly tally is estimated to top

Social AffairsMay 31, 2021

DP unilaterally adopts confirmation report on top prosecutor

The ruling Democratic Party (DP) on Monday unilaterally adopted a parliamentary confirmation report on the top prosecutor nominee despite protest from opposition lawmakers. The parliamentary Legislation and Judiciary Committee, where DP lawmakers command a majority, adopted the report on the result of the confirmation hearing on Prosecutor General nominee Kim Oh-soo, held last Wednesday. The committee session was, however, boycotted by lawmakers of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP)

PoliticsMay 31, 2021

S. Korea to develop diverse space launch platforms

South Korea will push to develop diverse platforms to fire off space launch vehicles from air and sea, the defense ministry said Monday, after the United States lifted all restrictions on the country's missiles. Earlier this month, South Korea and the US announced their decision to scrap the 1979 bilateral guidelines that ban Seoul from developing or possessing missiles with a maximum flight range greater than 800 kilometers. "In order to beef up our defense capabilities following the ter

DefenseMay 31, 2021

Military to begin vaccinating troops under 30 next week

The military will begin administering coronavirus vaccines to service members aged under 30 next week, the defense ministry said Monday. "We plan to begin vaccinating those aged under 30 next week, with Pfizer's vaccines expected to be provided," ministry spokesman Boo Seung-chan said during a regular press briefing. The military has completed providing the first doses of AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccines to some 117,000 service members aged 30 and older who have agreed to be inoculate

DefenseMay 31, 2021

USFK cooperating with police over servicemembers' alleged no-mask parties

US Forces Korea (USFK) said Monday it is cooperating with local authorities over allegations some of its members were involved in no-mask parties on a Busan beach over the weekend in violation of social distancing rules. According to police, around 2,000 foreigners, including US soldiers, set off firecrackers and held parties without masks at Haeundae Beach in the southeastern city of Busan, marking US Memorial Day. "USFK is aware of the alleged behavior at Haeundae Beach and is cooperat

Social AffairsMay 31, 2021

[Newsmaker] Moon's approval rating rebounds substantially on US summit deal: poll

President Moon Jae-in's job approval rating rebounded to nearly 40 percent for the first time in nearly three months thanks to positive reception toward his recent summit deal with US President Joe Biden, according to a new poll released Monday. In the survey conducted by Realmeter on 2,512 people over the age of 18 from May 24-28, Moon's job approval rating was recorded at 39.3 percent, up 4.4 percentage points from the previous week. The result marked Moon's highest performance in public pol

PoliticsMay 31, 2021

New infections in 400s for 2nd day, vaccinations to rev up on increased shipment

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases remained in the 400s for the second consecutive day Monday partly due to fewer tests over the weekend, while health authorities are grappling with sporadic cluster infections across the nation. The country reported 430 more COVID-19 cases, including 411 local infections, raising the total caseload to 140,340, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. The daily caseload was down from 480 on Sunday, when the figure fell below 500 for t

Social AffairsMay 31, 2021

N. Korea says lifting of 'missile guidelines' on S. Korea reminder of US hostility

North Korea on Monday slammed the US lifting of all restrictions on South Korean missiles as a "stark reminder" of Washington's hostile approach to Pyongyang, saying the recently unveiled US policy on the North is "just trickery." This marked the North's first reaction after South Korean President Moon Jae-in and US President Joe Biden agreed at their May 21 summit to use diplomacy to resolve the North's nuclear standoff and to terminate all "missile guideline" res

North KoreaMay 31, 2021

Buddhists around the world celebrate Vesak

　Global leaders touch on relevance of Buddha’s message amid COVID -19. 　UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres sent his warmest greetings to Buddhists around the world on Wednesday in honor of Vesak, a holiday that honors the life and legacy of Buddha.   “Today, we recognize the contributions Buddhism has made to human spirituality and culture for more than two and a half millennia. All of us, Buddhists and non-Buddhists alike, can find inspiration in the Buddha’s

Social AffairsMay 31, 2021

S. Korea, Denmark forge 'comprehensive green strategic partnership' in virtual summit

South Korea and Denmark agreed Sunday to elevate their ties to a "comprehensive green strategic partnership" as part of efforts to further deepen cooperation on the climate and environment. The accord was reached during virtual summit talks between President Moon Jae-in and Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen held just before the 2021 P4G Seoul Summit opens. It marks South Korea's first bilateral green partnership with a foreign country. The two sides commemorate the 10th anniversary

Foreign AffairsMay 30, 2021