N. Korean leader guides military drills of paratroopers, calls for war preparations

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has guided military drills involving the country's paratroopers and called for full preparations for war, state media said Saturday, in an apparent protest of the latest joint military exercise staged by South Korea and the United States. The training of air-borne military units held Friday was aimed at inspecting paratroopers' readiness to be mobilized for any military operation plan in "surprise wartime circumstances," according to the Korean

North KoreaMarch 16, 2024

Medical professors to submit resignations starting March 25 in support of trainee doctors' walkout

Medical professors across the nation have decided to submit resignations starting March 25 in collective action pressuring the government to seek a breakthrough in the prolonged walkout by trainee doctors, a medical professors' group said Saturday. But even if they resign, medical professors said they will faithfully treat patients at hospitals as more than 90 percent of the country's 13,000 trainee doctors have walked off the job since last month to protest the government's decis

Social AffairsMarch 16, 2024

N. Korean leader uses car gifted by Putin in public event: KCNA

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un used a Russian-made private car, gifted by Russian President Vladimir Putin, during a public event for the first time this week in "clear proof" of the two nations' friendly ties, his sister said Saturday. Last month, North Korea said Putin sent a Russian-made car for personal use to the North's leader as a gift demonstrating special bonds between the two leaders. Russia said the car is the Aurus Senat limousine. Kim Yo-jong, the powerful siste

North KoreaMarch 16, 2024

Uproar as ex-spy chief, accused of negligence in North Korea killing, is named to run as lawmaker

The Democratic Party of Korea’s decision to nominate the former National Intelligence Service chief Park Jie-won to run in the upcoming general election has provoked uproar from the bereaved family of the South Korean fisheries official, Lee Dae-jun, who was killed by North Korean soldiers in September 2020. As the chief of the NIS at the time, Park is a key defendant in the ongoing trial over South Korean authorities’ alleged negligence during the time between Lee’s capture by

PoliticsMarch 15, 2024

S. Korea to host 3rd Summit for Democracy, first apart from US

The South Korean government will host the third Summit for Democracy next week, becoming the first foreign country to lead the US key initiative aimed at rejuvenating democracy and defending against authoritarianism. The three-day summit, themed "Democracy for Future Generations," is set to commence on Monday, with a ministerial conference and multistakeholder roundtable discussion on "Artificial Intelligence, Digital Technology and Democracy," the South Korean presidential o

Foreign AffairsMarch 15, 2024

'Squid Game' star Oh Young-soo gets suspended term for sexual misconduct

South Korean actor Oh Young-soo, star of the 2021 hit drama series "Squid Game," was given an eight-month prison sentence, suspended for two years, for sexually harassing a woman in 2017. The 79-year-old defendant was accused of hugging the victim while on a walking trail and kissing her on the cheek in 2017. The women filed charges against Oh in December of 2021, after the elderly actor rose to stardom for his part in the Netflix series. Prosecutors pressed charges against him in No

Social AffairsMarch 15, 2024

Yoon aide under fire for remarks over press freedom, Gwangju Uprising

President Yoon Suk Yeol's senior secretary Hwang Sang-moo has come under fire for controversial remarks about the freedom of the press and the spirit of the Gwangju Democratic Uprising. An association representing journalists from South Korean television network MBC on Friday demanded Hwang, the senior presidential secretary for civil society, apologize publicly and immediately step down. It described Hwang's stance on journalism as "shocking." Rep. Ko Min-jung of the main op

PoliticsMarch 15, 2024

Parents with higher education levels spend more on children’s private education: study

Parents with higher levels of education spend more on their children’s private education, data showed on Friday. Parents holding master’s degrees spent an average of 600,000 won ($450) to 640,000 won per child per month on private education last year, according to Statistics Korea. This is 3.8 times more than the monthly average of 170,000 won to 200,000 won spent per child by parents with educational backgrounds below middle school. Mothers with a high school degree spent an avera

Social AffairsMarch 15, 2024

Pastor expelled for blessing LGBTQ+ couples continues fight

Lee Dong-hwan, the pastor who was recently expelled by the Methodist Church of Korea for blessing same-sex couples, is now turning to the secular court in his continued battle for reinstatement. The 43-year-old is planning to file legal charges against the Methodist Church's decision after its tribunal confirmed his disfellowship last week. "I did not launch the fight for reinstatement so that I can regain my title as a Methodist pastor. I'm (going to the court) because I did not

Social AffairsMarch 15, 2024

S. Korean, US warplanes stage live-fire drills against NK threats

South Korean and US warplanes staged a combined live-fire exercise against North Korean cruise missile and long-range artillery threats in waters off the west coast this week, the South's Air Force said Friday. The five-day drills began Monday, mobilizing some 40 aircraft, including South Korean F-35A, F-15K and F-4E jets, as well as A-10 and F-16 aircraft from the US 7th Air Force stationed in the country. Pilots trained on staging precision strikes against simulated enemy cruise missiles

DefenseMarch 15, 2024

Health minister makes last-minute appeal to medical professors as resignations loom

Health Minister Cho Kyoo-hong on Friday made a last-minute appeal for medical professors not to resign en masse in support of a prolonged walkout by junior doctors, as their threat to resign is expected to further disrupt services at major hospitals. More than 90 percent of the country's 13,000 trainee doctors have walked off the job for nearly four weeks in the form of mass resignations to protest the government's decision to increase enrollment at medical schools by 2,000 spots. The labor acti

Social AffairsMarch 15, 2024

Power outage disrupts operations on Goyang section of Seoul Subway Line 3

A power outage disrupted subway operations on a Line 3 section in Goyang, northwest of Seoul, on Friday morning, causing massive congestion for commuters during the morning rush hour. Korea Railroad Corp. said the power outage happened at 4:30 a.m. between Wondang Station and Wonheung Station, leaving trains on both directions having to use only one track alternately in the northern end section of the line. Southbound trains heading to Seoul experienced delays during the morning rush hour, and m

Social AffairsMarch 15, 2024

US general voices concerns over 'increasingly advanced' long-range NK missiles

A US general took note of military threats from "increasingly advanced" long-range North Korean missiles on Thursday, while highlighting evolving security challenges from China, Russia and Iran. Gen. Gregory Guillot, the commander of US Northern Command and North American Aerospace Defense Command, attended a hearing of the Senate Armed Services Committee to testify about the posture of his commands and discuss security risks facing the United States. "North Korea continues its be

North KoreaMarch 15, 2024

S. Korea closely eyeing China's push to add Mt. Paekdu as UNESCO global geopark

South Korea is keeping close eyes on China's push to list Mount Paekdu as one of UNESCO's new global geoparks in the name of "Mount Changbai," the foreign ministry said Thursday. The issue of evaluating and approving the "Mount Paekdu area" nominated as one of the new global geoparks will be discussed at the 219th session of the UNESCO Executive Board to be held later this month, foreign ministry spokesperson Lim Soo-suk told a press briefing. In 2020, China applied

Foreign AffairsMarch 14, 2024

S. Korea says it does not recognize N. Korea as nuclear state

South Korea on Thursday renewed its stance that it does not recognize North Korea as a nuclear state. The foreign ministry made the comments in response to Putin's remarks that the North has its "own nuclear umbrella" and has not asked for Russia's help during a recent interview with Russia's RIA state news agency and Rossiya-1 state television. "There is no change in the government's position that it does not recognize North Korea as a nuclear state," a f

North KoreaMarch 14, 2024

North Korean defectors eye Assembly bids with Seoul’s conservative party

At least three North Korean defectors are seeking to debut in Seoul’s political scene with the People Power Party, the ruling conservative party in South Korea. According to the People Power Party, three North Korean defectors in their 30s are running for a National Assembly seat through proportional representation in the upcoming general election slated for April 10. One of them is Kim Gum-hyok, 32, who says as a young millennial from North Korea, he wishes to represent “the younger

PoliticsMarch 14, 2024

Drug ring members jailed for smuggling W160b worth of meth

The Busan High Court on Thursday handed down a 30-year prison sentence to the leader of a crime ring that smuggled 165.6 billion won ($125.7 million) worth of methamphetamine into the country. The man's accomplices were also given jail terms. The man in his 60s was also given a fine of 770 million won for smuggling the drugs and 65,000 cartons of cigarettes into Korea, while his accomplice, also in his 60s, was given a 25-year prison sentence and a 778.7 million won fine. Three other acc

Social AffairsMarch 14, 2024

11 Moon aides indicted on charges of falsifying house price data

Prosecutors on Thursday indicted 11 aides of former President Moon Jae-in, accusing them of manipulating government data on housing prices from June 2017 to November 2021. The Daejeon District Prosecutors' Office accused the suspects, including former Land Minister Kim Hyun-mi and Moon’s ex-Chief Presidential Secretaries for Policy Kim Sang-jo and Kim Soo-hyun, of manipulating the data released by the state-affiliated real estate data provider a total of 125 times to create the appear

Social AffairsMarch 14, 2024

Provincial colleges to get 80% of new med school spots

Of the 2,000 new seats for medical schools being floated by the South Korean government, universities in provincial areas are to get 80 percent, with the rest for schools in Seoul and the vicinity, officials said Thursday, reaffirming the policy decision that has been facing fierce opposition from doctors since last month. According to the government, the plan is to develop competitiveness in regional universities by increasing the number of medical students at those schools with relatively few

Social AffairsMarch 14, 2024

Superhighway with no speed limit planned for South Jeolla Province

President Yoon Suk Yeol on Thursday reaffirmed his commitment to introducing a 47-kilometer superhighway with no speed limit in South Jeolla Province worth 2.6 trillion won ($1.97 billion), in a bid to construct a "Korean-style Autobahn." The new highway will connect the city of Gwangju with the Korea International Circuit in Yeongam-gun, South Jeolla Province, enabling cars to operate at speeds above 200 kilometers per hour along its 47-kilometer length. Yoon said his conservative adm

PoliticsMarch 14, 2024