Seoul-Tokyo relations at lowest, affecting three-way cooperation with US: CRS

WASHINGTON -- Bilateral relations between South Korea and Japan have dipped to their lowest ebb, also affecting the countries' three-way cooperation with the United States, a congressional report said. The Congressional Research Service (CRS) report noted the new Biden administration may be mulling ways to rebuild trust between the two US allies. "Japan's relations with South Korea are perennially fraught due to sensitive historical issues from Japan's colonization of the Korean Peninsula

Foreign AffairsFeb. 10, 2021

NK leader specified policy direction for inter-Korean, external matters

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un specified the direction for polices related to inter-Korean relations as he held a Workers' Party meeting to discuss follow-up measures on plans set forth at last month's party congress, state media said Wednesday. Kim attended the second day of the plenary meeting of the party's eighth Central Committee held on Tuesday and reported on domestic economic issues and other external matters, including relations with South Korea, according to the Korean Central News A

North KoreaFeb. 10, 2021

N. Korea continues wintertime drills, no unusual moves ahead of late leader's birthday: JCS

North Korea has been conducting regular wintertime military drills without showing any unusual moves ahead of the birthday of late leader Kim Jong-il, the South Korean military said Tuesday. North Korea celebrated the 73rd anniversary Monday of the foundation of its army and has another key national holiday coming up, which is the Feb. 16 birthday of its late leader, the father of current leader Kim Jong-un. "North Korea's military is continuing wintertime exercises and has not shown any

North KoreaFeb. 9, 2021

Two clusters in Bucheon report 53 COVID-19 cases

As many as 53 coronavirus infections were reported in a single day from two virus clusters in a city in the Seoul metropolitan area, municipal officials said Tuesday. The latest infection clusters occurred at a religious facility and a cram school in Bucheon, a Gyeonggi Province city on the southwestern outskirts of Seoul, the officials said. The religious facility, whose name was withheld, reported 20 coronavirus cases among its believers and others, while 33 students and lecturers from the s

Social AffairsFeb. 9, 2021

S. Korea's top nuke envoy asks for Russia to play role in advancing peninsula peace efforts

South Korea's chief nuclear envoy, Noh Kyu-duk, asked Tuesday for Russia to play a role in advancing Seoul's renewed drive to lay the groundwork for a lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula, the Foreign Ministry said. Noh made the call during his meeting with Russian Ambassador to South Korea Andrey Kulik, as Seoul seeks to enlist international cooperation in resuming dialogue with North Korea and restart nuclear diplomacy with it. "Noh assessed Russia's will to play a constructive role on

Diplomatic CircuitFeb. 9, 2021

National Medical Center preps for mass vaccinations

The National Medical Center, which will be administering South Korea’s first COVID-19 jabs, conducted a trial run of their rollout on Tuesday in Seoul, with the goal of achieving up to 600 vaccinations a day. Once prospective vaccine takers step into the hospital’s vaccination center, they will be first checked for symptoms and be required to sanitize their hands. Then they will be asked to present their IDs and be verified for eligibility at the reception. The medical staff wil

Social AffairsFeb. 9, 2021

New FM bets on firm relations with Washington for Pyongyang’s denuclearization

New Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong on Tuesday voiced confidence in working together with the US on North Korea’s nuclear issue, highlighting that the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula is a shared goal between the two allies.  “Achieving complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula at an earliest date is a shared goal between the US and South Korea, Chung told reporters after taking office earlier in the day. “Therefore, I believe coordinating opinio

North KoreaFeb. 9, 2021

[News Focus] Number of foreigners in Korea declines by 440,000 in 10 months

SEJONG -- The tally of foreigners staying in South Korea -- both as long-term residents and short-term visitors -- has dropped to its lowest point in about three years amid the pandemic. Previously it climbed 116 percent in a decade, from 1.16 million in 2009 to 2.52 million in 2019. According to the Korea Immigration Service, the number of foreigners staying in Korea posted 2.07 million as of October 2020. It was 2.18 million in December 2017 and 2.04 million in December 2016. The 2020 figur

Social AffairsFeb. 9, 2021

Ruling party accelerates legislation drive to curb fake news

The ruling Democratic Party (DP) on Tuesday vowed to legislate a set of bills that would increase the burden of responsibility of news media, internet portals, YouTubers and bloggers for fake or false news. "We decided to push for legislation under the principle that news media and internet portals should be included among the subjects of punitive compensation," DP spokesman Rep. Choi In-ho told reporters after a meeting of the party's task force on media reform. The party will make e

PoliticsFeb. 9, 2021

Moon to hold video call with 8 citizens on Lunar New Year holiday

President Moon Jae-in will talk with eight South Korean citizens via a popular mobile messenger app on the occasion of the Lunar New Year holiday this week, Cheong Wa Dae said Tuesday. The video call scheduled for Thursday is part of Moon's stated efforts to rev up "direct public communication," as the people are going through difficulties from the COVID-19 crisis. Moon has set "recovery, inclusiveness and resurgence" as key policy goals of 2021. The eight, selected to repr

PoliticsFeb. 9, 2021

Couple arrested for inflicting fatal abuse on live-in niece

A couple from Yongin, just south of Seoul, has been put under emergency arrest for allegedly having maltreated their live-in niece to death, police said Tuesday. The man and his wife, both in their 40s, are accused of having beaten their 10-year-old niece with a plastic broom and other objects and repeatedly throwing her into their home bathtub until she stopped breathing Monday. According to the Yongin Dongbu Police Station, the girl lost consciousness after being forcibly put in and out of b

Social AffairsFeb. 9, 2021

Caution remains high as new cases jumps back above 300

Local authorities remain cautious over a potential uptick in virus cases as South Korea approaches its second Lunar New Year holiday under COVID-19 pandemic. While the daily addition of new cases has been staying comparatively low for the past week, officials are keen on preventing people from traveling across regions this week as possibilities still remain high for the virus to stay strong during and after the holiday weekend. The government has also remained vigilant on maintaining its antiv

Social AffairsFeb. 9, 2021

Moon strives to win back public support in polls

President Moon Jae-in, whose job approval rating fell again this week, is striving to win back public support, making more frequent on-site contact with the public ahead of the Lunar New Year’s holiday that starts Thursday. According to a recent poll by Realmeter on Monday, his approval rating marked 39.3 percent, down 3.2 percentage points from a week ago. The fall came after his approval bounced back starting this year to remain in the 40 percent range for weeks. Realmeter said polit

PoliticsFeb. 9, 2021

26 more cases of COVID-19 variants confirmed, total now at 80

South Korea's health authorities said Tuesday they have identified 26 more cases of COVID-19 variants, vowing to step up monitoring on foreign arrivals to better detect potential cases. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said 24 people were confirmed to have been infected with the variant from Britain, while one person was infected with the South African variant and another with the one from Brazil. Among them, four were domestically infected cases after coming in contact w

Social AffairsFeb. 9, 2021

Negotiations under way with Indonesia over fighter jet project: official

South Korea is in talks with Indonesia about a joint project to develop a next-generation fighter jet, the head of the arms procurement agency said Tuesday, amid speculation that the Southeast Asian nation wants to quit the project. Indonesia agreed to partner in South Korea's KF-X project aimed at developing a new fighter jet by 2026, and promised to shoulder 20 percent of the total development cost of 8.8 trillion won ($7.3 billion), or about 1.7 trillion won. But Indonesia stopped making pa

DefenseFeb. 9, 2021

Ruling party speeds up efforts to weaken prosecution’s power

The ruling Democratic Party is speeding up the process of weakening the power of the prosecution. Now it is moving to create a new investigative agency, on the heels of the establishment of an agency to investigate corruption. On Tuesday, 14 lawmakers led by Rep. Hwang Woon-ha of the ruling party proposed a bill to create an investigative agency tentatively called the serious criminal investigation agency, which would be dedicated to investigating serious crimes -- currently the purview of the

PoliticsFeb. 9, 2021

Over 60% of S. Korean youth say unification with NK necessary: survey

Over six out of 10 South Korean youth think that unification with North Korea is necessary, a survey showed Tuesday. In a survey conducted by the education and unification ministries on 68,750 students enrolled in elementary, middle and high schools nationwide from Nov. 2-30 of last year, 62.4 percent said that the two Koreas need to reunify. The finding marks a 6.9 percentage point jump from a similar poll conducted a year ago. Among students who saw the need for unification, 28.4 percent cit

North KoreaFeb. 9, 2021

Culture minister nominee vows efforts to recover COVID-19-hit culture, sports, tourism sectors

Culture Minister nominee Hwang Hee pledged efforts Tuesday to help recover the culture, sports and tourism sectors hit particularly hard by the brunt of the COVID-19 pandemic. "Those who work in the culture, sports and tourism fields have been under bigger and graver pain from the COVID-19 pandemic," the nominee said in his speech to the parliamentary culture committee during a confirmation hearing. "I will pour my utmost efforts to helping them recover rapidly if I am appointed

PoliticsFeb. 9, 2021

Prosecutors drop charge against top prosecutor over illegal surveillance of judges

Prosecutors dropped a charge on Tuesday against Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl that he ordered the illegal surveillance of judges hearing politically sensitive cases. The Seoul High Prosecutors Office said it concluded that the abuse of power accusation against Yoon was unfounded, after questioning multiple people involved in the case and going over similar cases. The Ministry of Justice in February ordered the Supreme Prosecutors Office (SPO) to investigate the allegation. The SPO later re

PoliticsFeb. 9, 2021

NK leader blasts self-protectionism in assembly

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un chastised self-protectionism and the passiveness of state agencies during a full session of the Central Committee of the Workers’ Party on Monday, Pyongyang’s state media said Tuesday. The meeting was convened to discuss economic projects for this year, the first of its five-year national development plan presented at the eighth party congress held early last month, the North’s Korean Central News Agency said. Kim presided over the meeting, dur

North KoreaFeb. 9, 2021