Most Popular
-
1
Signs point to N. Korean troops in Russia-Ukraine combat zone
-
2
Rose's 'Apt.' redefines K-pop's global appeal
-
3
Two years on, thousands mourn Itaewon tragedy, calling for accountability
-
4
[Herald Interview] Love for K-drama, food defines 'Secret Ingredient'
-
5
Hanwha, HD Hyundai vie for Poland’s $2.7b submarine program
-
6
First lady’s controversies to top agenda at meeting of party leaders
-
7
Seoul aims to halve current suicide rate by 2030
-
8
4 in 10 young South Koreans take up 'irregular' jobs: data
-
9
[Photo News] Rallying against LGBTQ+
-
10
103 autumn foliage paths in Seoul
-
Over 70% of S. Koreans support Seoul's role as 'facilitator' in nuclear talks in Biden administration
A majority of South Koreans agree that Seoul should play the role of a "facilitator" to push the stalled nuclear negotiations forward between the United States and North Korea, a survey showed Friday. According to the Nov. 20-21 survey of 1,000 adults by the National Unification Advisory Council, 73.9 percent said South Korea should serve as a "facilitator" in nuclear talks between Washington and Pyongyang after US President-elect Joe Biden takes office. Among them, 35.3 pe
Foreign AffairsNov. 27, 2020
-
Moon names new secretary for foreign policy
President Moon Jae-in on Friday named a career diplomat as his new presidential secretary for foreign policy, Cheong Wa Dae said. Kim Yong-hyon, who previously served as the consul general in Boston, will replace Park Chul-min, who has been in the post since last year. Park has been tapped as ambassador to Hungary. Kim's past assignments have included posts at the diplomatic missions in Beijing; Erbil, Iraq; and New York, as well as at the foreign ministry's North American Affairs Bureau and K
PoliticsNov. 27, 2020
-
Supreme court orders desert cafe chain to return licensing fee to Chinese company
South Korea's top court said Friday it has upheld a lower court's ruling in favor of a Chinese company in a dispute with a Korean desert cafe chain over a licensing fee. The Supreme Court confirmed the previous ruling that ordered Sulbing, one of the country's biggest dessert cafe chains, to return the licensing fee of 956 million won ($864,000) to the Chinese company. The Chinese company signed a contract with Sulbing to open a chain in Shanghai in 2015, which would be directly managed by th
Social AffairsNov. 27, 2020
-
Military bans troops from vacationing, off-base trips over resurgent virus
The military enforced a tighter social distancing scheme on Friday banning troops from vacationing and taking off-installation trips as it is striving to stem the spread of the new coronavirus at barracks. Under the Level 2.5 social distancing guidance at barracks, all service members are not allowed to leave their bases for the next two weeks. Officers are restricted from having private meetings, while in-person religious gatherings and business trips are also banned. As for drills, necessar
DefenseNov. 27, 2020
-
COVID-19 cases top 500 for 2nd day amid third wave
South Korea’s new daily COVID-19 case count topped 500 for the second consecutive day Friday, prompting health authorities to consider further tightening social distancing measures amid a full-blown third wave of infections across the country. The country reported 569 new cases -- 525 locally transmitted cases and 44 imported from overseas -- in the 24 hours ending Thursday at midnight, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency. A day earlier, Korea saw the daily cas
Social AffairsNov. 27, 2020
-
PM says new daily virus cases over 500 again, warns of full-fledged resurgence
Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun said Friday that South Korea has confirmed more than 500 COVID-19 infections for the second consecutive day and warned that the virus appears to be spreading again in earnest nationwide. "As the number of newly confirmed COVID-19 patients reached above 500 for the second straight day (as of the start of Friday), it's a situation in which a resurgence is getting into full swing in our country as well," Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun said during a meeting of
Social AffairsNov. 27, 2020
-
S. Korea identifies remains of two Korean War soldiers
South Korea has identified the remains of two soldiers killed in the 1950-53 Korean War through DNA analysis after they were recovered from fiercely fought battle sites, the defense ministry said Friday. The remains of Song Hae-kyung were excavated last month from Arrowhead Ridge inside the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) separating the two Koreas in Cheorwon, according to the ministry. He is presumed to have died in July 1953 just 16 days before the armistice was signed. Excavation inside the DMZ b
DefenseNov. 27, 2020
-
Deputy FM Kim holds talks with senior Myanmarese officials to deepen bilateral ties
Deputy Foreign Minister Kim Gunn has held talks with senior Myanmarese officials in Naypyidaw to discuss bilateral cooperation on the occasion of the 45th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between the two countries, the foreign ministry said Friday. His four-day trip to Myanmar that ends Friday focused on laying the groundwork for stronger cooperation ahead of next year's launch of Myanmar's new administration and expanding practical exchanges despite COVID-19, the ministry sa
Foreign AffairsNov. 27, 2020
-
‘No one is happy’: Contact tracers in S. Korea report burnout
Months into the pandemic, contact tracers in South Korea are battling burnout and psychological distress, according to a recent study. Yoo Myoung-soon, a public health communications professor at Seoul National University, reported the findings after conducting five rounds of group interviews with 20 contact tracing officials in Gyeonggi Province between Oct. 24 and Nov. 7. The study published Thursday showed over 80 percent of surveyed contact tracers were experiencing “high level
Social AffairsNov. 26, 2020
-
Wang Yi says Xi visit requires 'complete control' of COVID-19
Chinese President Xi Jinping will visit South Korea “as soon as the conditions are ready,” Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said Thursday, stressing that the two sides must focus on containing the COVID-19 pandemic. “I believe that (Xi’s) visit will be realized as soon as the conditions are ready,” Wang said after his meeting with South Korean Minister of Foreign Affairs Kang Kyung-wha. When asked about the conditions for Xi’s visit, Wang said the pandemic
Foreign AffairsNov. 26, 2020
-
Justice minister, top prosecutor headed toward legal showdown
Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl, on his second day of being suspended from work, filed a lawsuit against Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae on Thursday, claiming the minister’s disciplinary action is unjust and groundless. The lawsuit was filed with the Seoul Administrative Court. Yoon on Wednesday night also filed for a pretrial injunction to quash the suspension order. The move came as the Justice Ministry asked its disciplinary committee to convene Dec. 2 to deliberate on allegations level
Social AffairsNov. 26, 2020
-
Calls grow over further heightened virus curbs as worst COVID-19 outbreak yet to land in S. Korea
A new coronavirus flare-up in South Korea is creating a sense of crisis that the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic has yet to come in the winter season, given the faster-than-expected spread of the virus and continued sporadic infections across the nation, and calls are growing over the implementation of further enhanced virus curbs. The number of new cases spiked to 583 on Thursday, the highest in over eight months, raising the total caseload to 32,318, according to the Korea Disease Control and
Social AffairsNov. 26, 2020
-
Unification minister calls for food, fertilizer aid to N. Korea
Unification Minister Lee In-young said Thursday that South Korea should provide food and fertilizer aid to North Korea next spring at the latest to help the impoverished nation address chronic food shortages. "There are warnings that the coronavirus is crippling production and supply chains for crops, and climate change is making things worse, which will likely cause extreme famine and difficulty in securing food," Lee said at an international forum in Seoul to discuss ways to realize
North KoreaNov. 26, 2020
-
[Newsmaker] ‘Loose screws on border fence sensors disabled alarm’
A North Korean refugee was able to jump over the 3-meter fence along the inter-Korean border to the South without triggering the alarm because screws were loose on the fence’s sensors, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said Thursday. The military revealed the initial finding of its internal investigation into the event early this month, in which a former gymnast in his 20s crossed the border on foot. Sensors on the border fences along the general outposts, south of the demarcati
DefenseNov. 26, 2020
-
Military bans all off-base travel for soldiers amid COVID-19 spike
South Korea’s military said Thursday it has banned all off-base travel for soldiers until Dec. 7. Officers are instructed to cancel or delay all non-duty meetings and outside activities. Vacations are suspended from Friday. The military’s antivirus rules, announced Tuesday for soldiers in the Greater Seoul area, were expanded to cover the rest of the nation after a cluster infection involving 70 service members -- mostly conscripts -- at a boot camp in northern Gyeonggi Province al
DefenseNov. 26, 2020
-
Minister's remark on sharing vaccines with NK an expression of 'sincerity': official
Unification Minister Lee In-young tried to convey his "sincerity" about inter-Korean cooperation when he called for sharing coronavirus vaccines with North Korea, an official said Thursday, following criticism the appeal was inappropriate as South Korea has yet to secure enough vaccines. Last week, Lee said that the South should share coronavirus vaccines with the North even if the country runs short of its own supplies. The remark came under fire from conservatives as it came at a ti
North KoreaNov. 26, 2020
-
Education minister asks for help safely carrying out nationwide exam amid COVID-19 spike
The education minister on Thursday asked citizens to temporarily suspend their usual gatherings ahead of next week's nationwide college entrance exam so it won't be affected by the recent spike in new coronavirus cases. "(I) earnestly ask all South Korean people to suspend their usual gatherings for a week starting today with the hearts of parents with children who are taking the exam in mind," Education Minister Yoo Eun-hae said during a news conference held at the government complex
Social AffairsNov. 26, 2020
-
DP, government discuss post-jail rehab facility for violent criminals
The ruling Democratic Party and the government on Thursday discussed legislation to isolate violent criminals in a rehabilitation facility for a while after their release from prison. DP floor leader Kim Tae-nyeon said in a meeting Thursday morning that over 120,000 South Koreans have agreed to making a so-called “Cho Doo-soon isolation law” in an online petition as the country’s most notorious child rapist is set to be freed from jail next month. “In order to prevent r
PoliticsNov. 26, 2020
-
Prosecutors' backlash intensifies against justice minister's suspension of prosecution chief
Prosecutors around the country held emergency meetings to discuss the justice minister's unprecedented move to suspend and discipline the chief prosecutor over allegations of his interference in sensitive investigations, legal sources said Thursday. Earlier in the day, six top district prosecutors pleaded with Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae to rethink the decision in a statement posted on the online bulletin board of the prosecution. They expressed concerns over perceived risk of political neutra
Social AffairsNov. 26, 2020
-
Seoul city seeks to toughen antivirus measures amid surge in cases
The Seoul city government plans to toughen antivirus measures following consultations with experts amid a surge in coronavirus cases in the capital, an official said Thursday. Park Yoo-mi, a disease control official at the city government, made the remark during a virtual press briefing shortly after the city reported a new high of 213 cases on Wednesday. "There appear to be blind spots that require further attention in the recent (coronavirus transmission) trend," Park said. "W
PoliticsNov. 26, 2020