Yoon, PPP chief look around salvaged warship together after reported clash

President Yoon Suk Yeol and ruling People Power Party (PPP) chief Han Dong-hoon looked around a salvaged warship together Friday, in an apparent show of their bond following signs of discord ahead of the general elections, a presidential official said. Yoon and Han met to tour the warship Cheonan at the Navy's 2nd Fleet Command in Pyeongtaek, 60 kilometers south of Seoul, after both attended a memorial ceremony there to mark West Sea Defense Day. The Cheonan is a corvette that sank in a Nor

PoliticsMarch 22, 2024

Congenital diseases of children born from mothers working at Samsung recognized as industrial accidents

A government-affiliated agency recognized Friday the risks of unsafe work environments on a fetus after employees who worked at Samsung Electronics Co. during their pregnancy claimed their children's congenital diseases should be covered by workplace accident compensation. Following a deliberation process, a committee that oversees the compensation concluded that the cases of three women who worked as operators at the chipmaker should be acknowledged as industrial accidents, the Korea Worke

Social AffairsMarch 22, 2024

New Reform Party rattled by internal fissures ahead of election

The New Reform Party, a "big tent” aimed at capturing voters disaffected with the main two parties, has been rattled by another round of internal rift ahead of the April 10 legislative election. The party’s Floor Leader Rep. Yang Hyang-ja on late Thursday pledged to continue supporting the New Reform Party, two days after she hinted at leaving. Yang had expressed disagreement with the list of candidates selected by the other leadership members for the upcoming election, and was

PoliticsMarch 22, 2024

S. Korea summons Japanese envoy to protest historical distortion in textbooks

South Korea's Foreign Ministry on Friday summoned Japanese Ambassador to South Korea Koichi Aiboshi to formally protest Japan's approval of history textbooks asserting sovereignty over the Dokdo islets and watering down the coercive nature of its wartime forced labor and sexual slavery. The Foreign Ministry in Seoul also expressed “deep regret” over the Japanese government’s approval of textbooks for middle schools that distort historical facts in a statement issued u

Foreign AffairsMarch 22, 2024

Anti-corruption agency defers interrogation of troubled envoy Lee

South Korea's anti-corruption investigation agency on Friday announced its decision not to summon Ambassador to Australia Lee Jong-sup for interrogation for a while. The decision comes amid escalating attention on the investigation into Lee, particularly regarding allegations of his unjust meddling in a military inquiry into the death of a young Marine on duty. The Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials said "the investigation team of the CIO is in the position that

PoliticsMarch 22, 2024

Attorney who defended sex criminals withdraws Democratic Party candidacy

A human rights lawyer who was nominated by the main opposition party to run as a candidate in the upcoming legislative election decided to withdraw her bid on Thursday, facing mounting criticism that she has provided legal defense to multiple convicted sexual offenders, including a child rapist. Cho Soo-jin announced she would not run in the April 10 general election through a Facebook post merely three days after she won a primary against two-term lawmaker Rep. Park Yong-jin in a key district i

PoliticsMarch 22, 2024

Heavy spring rain to fall until Saturday morning

Up to 40 millimeters of rain is set to fall in most regions of South Korea from Friday afternoon, to persist nationwide through Saturday morning, the Korea Meteorological Administration said Friday. As a pressure trough approaches from the northwest, the KMA forecast that rain will begin to fall from Friday afternoon in Greater Seoul -- which includes the capital alongside Incheon and Gyeonggi Province -- Gangwon Province, the Chungcheong Provinces, western regions of the Jeolla Provinces and Je

Social AffairsMarch 22, 2024

Korea stays course: 40 KF-21 fighter jets set for first mass production

The South Korean government on Friday greenlit the initial mass production plan for KF-21 fighter jets on Friday, totaling 40 units, but with signing contracts set for the production of only 20 units this year. The Defense Acquisition Program Administration emphasized the necessity of producing 40 KF-21 fighter jets, citing what it said was an urgent need to address the military capability shortfall resulting from the retirement of outdated F-4 and F-5 aircraft. "This project is anticipated

DefenseMarch 22, 2024

Doctors split over allocation plan

The Korean government’s plan to distribute the 2,000 new medical school places across the country appears to have split doctors, who have generally held a united front in opposing the expansion. While the announcement received a cold response from the country’s biggest doctors’ group, the emergency committee representing professors from 20 medical schools shared its willingness to talk with the government. The emergency committee of medical professors at Yonsei University issue

Social AffairsMarch 22, 2024

Cho Min, ex-justice minister's daughter, fined for admissions fraud

Cho Min, the daughter of disgraced former Justice Minister and current Korea Innovation Party leader Cho Kuk, was found guilty of university admission fraud Friday. The Seoul Central District Court sentenced Cho to a fine of 10 million won ($7,500). She was indicted for document forgery and obstruction of business for allegedly collaborating with her mother to submit fabricated documents, including an admission form, a cover letter and a commendation letter, to Pusan National University's G

Social AffairsMarch 22, 2024

N. Korean international department head meets China's No. 4 in Beijing

The Chinese Communist Party's No. 4 official Wang Huning met Kim Song-nam, who serves as North Korean director of the international affairs department of the Party Central Committee and is recognized as a China expert, on Thursday in Beijing, the Chinese Embassy in North Korea said Friday. The meeting focused on enhancing bilateral relations and cooperation, coinciding with the commemoration of the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between the two countries, which fal

Foreign AffairsMarch 22, 2024

Govt. agencies probed for alleged neglect in NK guard post verification

The South Korean Board of Audit and Inspection has initiated an inquiry into allegations that the Defense Ministry and other government agencies neglected to verify the demolition of front-line guard posts, which North Korea was supposed to undertake according to the 2018 inter-Korean military agreement. According to both the BAI and the Defense Ministry on Friday, an inspection began Monday, following an earlier audit request from the nonprofit organization Korean Retired Generals and Admirals

North KoreaMarch 22, 2024

‘Love you, darling’: Last message sent by captain found in ship's wreckage

"I love you, darling” was the final text message sent by the 60-something captain of a South Korean chemical tanker to his wife, before the ship capsized in rough seas off Japan's west coast on Wednesday. He was among nine later found dead of the ship’s crew of 11, with one still missing. The captain's wife, speaking at Keoyoung Shipping's headquarters in Busan on Thursday, said she received the love message from her husband at around 7:30 a.m. on Wednesday, to wh

Social AffairsMarch 22, 2024

N. Korea's ruling party delegation embarks on trip to China, Vietnam, Laos

North Korea's ruling party delegation has arrived in Beijing on a three-nation tour, state media reported Friday, in a move seen aimed at strengthening ties with countries sharing the socialist ideology. The delegation, led by Kim Song-nam, director of the international department at the Workers' Party, was greeted by the assistant to the head of the International Liaison Department of the Chinese Communist Party at an airport Thursday, the Korean Central News Agency said, without prov

North KoreaMarch 22, 2024

Additional military surgeons, public health doctors to be deployed: PM

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo said Friday that the government will deploy additional military surgeons and public health doctors to help cope with the prolonged walkout by junior doctors. Over 90 percent of the country's 13,000 junior doctors have been on mass resignations for more than a month, protesting against the government's decision to increase the medical school quota, leading to the cancellation of crucial surgeries and crippling the medical system. "(The government) will p

Social AffairsMarch 22, 2024

US official notes Korean firms' move not to sell used chip equipment to China as 'encouraging'

A senior US official on Thursday portrayed South Korean companies' reported move to stop selling used semiconductor manufacturing equipment to China as "encouraging," as Washington has been seeking tighter export controls on key technologies amid an intensifying Sino-US rivalry. Alan Estevez, under secretary of commerce for industry and security, made the remarks in his written statement to a hearing of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, entitled "Countering China on the Worl

Foreign AffairsMarch 22, 2024

FM says S. Korea can negotiate defense cost sharing with US on 'favorable conditions'

South Korea should be able to engage in negotiations on defense cost-sharing with the United States under "favorable conditions," its top diplomat said Thursday, promising efforts to ensure the new deal will be reached at a reasonable level. Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul made the remarks as the allies are expected to soon launch the negotiations on determining Seoul's share of the costs for the upkeep of the 28,500-strong US Forces Korea. The two countries announced their respect

Foreign AffairsMarch 21, 2024

Police officer arrested on suspicion of leaking drug probe info over late actor Lee Sun-kyun

A police officer was arrested Thursday for allegedly leaking information on a drug probe into late actor Lee Sun-kyun, who took his own life late last year, police said. The Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police's anti-corruption and financial crime unit arrested the officer at the Incheon Metropolitan Police Agency earlier in the day on suspicion of leaking a report on the investigation regarding Lee, according to investigative officials. In January, police began looking into how the informat

Social AffairsMarch 21, 2024

Seoul rises one spot to 10th in Global Financial Centres Index

Seoul ranked 10th out of 133 cities in the 35th edition of the Global Financial Centers Index report, released Thursday afternoon, overtaking Paris, Beijing and Tokyo. The index has been published biannually since 2007 in March and September by the Z/Yen Group, a London-based think tank, in collaboration with the China Development Institute, to evaluate the international financial competitiveness of cities globally. The GFCI report is compiled based on five evaluation criteria -- human capital,

Social AffairsMarch 21, 2024

Mailman dumps thousands of pieces of mail, says he was 'overworked'

A South Korean mailman recently received a six-month prison sentence, suspended for two years, for dumping 16,003 pieces of mail due to stress from an excessive amount of work, a court said Thursday. The 37-year-old defendant surnamed Lee, who was delivering mail in Gangseo-gu, western Seoul, was found to have discarded the mail between January 2021 and September 2022. The Seoul Southern District Court found Lee guilty of violating the Postal Service Act, Article 48 of which stipulates that any

Social AffairsMarch 21, 2024