Phone recordings become potholes for presidential hopefuls

Potentially damaging phone call recordings of presidential candidates and their family members continue to plague the election campaigns across the aisle, with the latest revelation hitting Lee Jae-myung of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea. Lee responded quickly, apologizing for the contents of his phone calls with his late brother, which were filled with insults. The recording transcripts were made public on Tuesday. “Although there is a difficult background that I cannot reveal,

PoliticsJan. 19, 2022

S. Korea’s daily COVID-19 cases surpass 5,000 for the first time in 20 days

South Korea’s daily coronavirus cases surpassed 5,000 for the first time in 20 days as the omicron variant began to spread rapidly. According to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency’s announcement on Wednesday, the country added 5,805 new COVID-19 infections as of midnight Tuesday, raising the total to 705,902. The figure was 1,733 up from that of the previous day. The figure went over 5,000 for the first time in 20 days since it reached 5,034 on Dec. 30. The number

Social AffairsJan. 19, 2022

S. Korea's spy agency detects malware infection in over 100 local IoT devices

South Korea's state intelligence agency said Wednesday it has identified more than 100 sets of Internet of Things (IoT) equipment in the country that have been infected with malware. The National Intelligence Service (NIS) said it has detected the Mozi botnet infection after cooperating with Russian authorities in December last year. It has found a total of around 12,000 devices exposed to the malware in 72 countries. The infected equipment, which can be used in distributed denial-of-service (

Social AffairsJan. 19, 2022

[KH Explains] Mysteries, scandals surround whistleblower’s death

Democratic Party presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung’s campaign has been marred by a level of drama unusual even by the standards of Korea’s convoluted and chaotic politics -- deaths of three individuals with links to allegations involving the candidate. The latest death was reported on Jan. 12, when the police found the body of lawyer named Lee Byung-chul in a motel room in Yangcheon-gu, western Seoul. He was found about three days after his sister reported him missing. His death

PoliticsJan. 19, 2022

Ex-FM Kang to face public hearing for ILO leadership bid Thursday

Former Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha, who is running to be the next director general of the International Labor Organization, will face a public hearing to present her candidacy and take questions from the organization’s governing body on Thursday in Geneva, Switzerland. 　 The ILO on Wednesday said public dialogues with five candidates for its top job will be held on Thursday and Friday. A Foreign Ministry official said Kang’s meeting will begin at 1:30 p.m. (Geneva time) on Thur

Foreign AffairsJan. 19, 2022

US calls for new UN Security Council meeting Thursday on NK’s missile launch

The US has called for a new UN Security Council meeting to discuss North Korea’s fourth missile launch this month, as Washington seeks to ratchet up pressure on the reclusive regime to curb its prohibited weapons program.   Closed-door consultations of the UN’s most powerful body are expected to take place on Thursday, at the request of the US, along with the UK, France, Albania, Ireland and Mexico, according to Agence France-Presse. 　 “We will continue to ramp up the pre

Foreign AffairsJan. 19, 2022

Ahn up in arms against one-on-one debate

The minor opposition People’s Party presidential candidate Ahn Cheol-soo on Wednesday filed an injunction to stop the airing of the TV debate between presidential candidates of the Democratic Party of Korea and People Power Party, protesting the decision to exclude him. On Wednesday, Lee Tae-kyu, the head of the election committee at People’s Party, filed an injunction in Ahn’s name at the Seoul Western District Court to suspend three terrestrial TV stations KBS, MBC and SBS

PoliticsJan. 19, 2022

[Newsmaker] Forensic psychologist quits Yoon Suk-yeol campaign over his wife's remarks

Lee Soo-jung, a criminal psychology professor at Kyonggi University, stepped down as an advisor to the main opposition People Power Party’s election camp after apologizing to a victim of a #MeToo scandal for remarks made by presidential candidate Yoon Suk-yeol’s wife Kim Keon-hee about the matter. She told a local media outlet that apologizing to the victim Kim Ji-eun ”was my conscience,” adding, “I resigned in advance because there was a difference between my pos

PoliticsJan. 19, 2022

Heavy snow covers parts of South Korea

Heavy show fell in Seoul, Gyeonggi and Gangwon provinces on Wednesday, prompting authorities to issue alerts over potential traffic disturbances and frozen roads. According to the Korea Meteorological Administration, Seoul received 3.5 centimeters of snow while Gangwon Province‘s Seoraksan and the southeastern Ulleung Island saw heavy snow of 18.5 centimeters and 19.5 centimeters, respectively, as of 2 p.m. The weather agency lifted a heavy snow alert, which indicates that snow of at le

Social AffairsJan. 19, 2022

Assembly speaker to visit Sri Lanka for talks on cooperation

National Assembly Speaker Park Byeong-seug will visit Sri Lanka this week for talks on expanding cooperation in mineral resources, his office said Wednesday. Park will depart Wednesday and meet with his Sri Lankan counterpart Mahinda Abeywardena, as well as the country's President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa during the four-day trip. The two sides are expected to discuss potential agreements on securing Sri Lanka's rare minerals, preventing double taxation, aviation

PoliticsJan. 19, 2022

Lee vows legalization of virtual asset industry

Ruling party presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung said Wednesday he will institutionally recognize the virtual asset industry and guarantee various business opportunities. Lee of the Democratic Party made the remarks in a meeting with heads of the nation's four major cryptocurrency exchanges and industry experts in Seoul, apparently targeting voters in their 20s and 30s who have a relatively strong interest in virtual asset investments. Lee said he will prepare objective listing standards and

PoliticsJan. 19, 2022

Yoon pledges to ease tax burden on cryptocurrency investment profits

Main opposition presidential candidate Yoon Suk-yeol pledged Wednesday to ease the tax burden on profits from cryptocurrency investments by raising the threshold from the current 2.5 million won ($2,097) to 50 million won. Yoon of the conservative People Power Party announced the pledge at the party's headquarters, saying he will raise the bottom limit to the same level as stocks and give tax exemptions for returns of up to 50 million won. The candidate also said he will introduce a digital as

PoliticsJan. 19, 2022

Military reports 70 more COVID-19 cases

South Korea's military on Wednesday reported 70 additional COVID-19 cases, including 69 breakthrough infections, raising the total caseload among its personnel to 3,727. Of the new cases, 53 are from the Army, 12 from the Air Force, two from the Navy, two from the Marine Corps, and one from a unit under the direct control of the defense ministry. The Army infection count included 29 trainees at the KATUSA training academy located in Pyeongtaek, 70 kilometers south of Seoul, according to an inf

Social AffairsJan. 19, 2022

HDC Hyundai Development raided in connection with Gwangju apartment building collapse

Investigators on Wednesday raided the headquarters of HDC Hyundai Development Co. in connection with a recent accident at its construction site in Gwangju that left one worker dead and five others missing. Officials from the Ministry of Employment and Labor and the National Police Agency conducted a joint raid of the real estate developer's headquarters in central Seoul to search for evidence in connection with the accident that occurred on Jan. 11. Search operations have continued for a week

Social AffairsJan. 19, 2022

[Graphic News] Seoulites pick infectious diseases as most dangerous health hazard: survey

　People in Seoul picked infectious diseases, such as COVID-19, as the most dangerous health hazard they face, followed by fine dust and climate change, a survey showed. 　Infectious diseases topped the list of dangerous health and environmental factors with 4.21 points on a 5-point scale in an online survey of 1,000 Seoul residents and 321 experts on public health and the environment, according to the Seoul Research Institute of Public Health and Environment. 　Fine dust came in second at 4.02

NationalJan. 19, 2022

Greater Seoul area braces for heavy snow, central region also expecting heavy snowfall: KMA

Authorities in Seoul and nearby areas remained on alert Wednesday as the greater capital region was expecting heavy snow throughout the day. The Seoul metropolitan government mobilized about 9,000 workers and 1,200 snow-removing cars and other equipment as a heavy snow alert has been issued across the city as of 9 a.m. More buses and subway trains have also been allocated during commuting hours to prevent transportation inconveniences. Heavy snow alerts were also issued throughout most of the

Social AffairsJan. 19, 2022

S. Korea, US discuss new economic framework, supply chains

The top trade officials of South Korea and the United States on Wednesday agreed to strengthen their strategic partnership to actively respond to supply chain issues, new technologies and other major trade issues, Seoul's industry ministry said. South Korean Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo and US Trade Representative (USTR) Katherine Tai held a teleconference earlier in the day ahead of Yeo's planned visit to the US next week. During the talks, Tai stressed the importance of regional cooperation th

Foreign AffairsJan. 19, 2022

US takes N. Korea's 'improving' missile programs seriously: Pentagon

The United States takes very seriously the threat posed by North Korea's "improving" missile programs, Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby said Tuesday. He, however, said the US is still assessing the nature North Korea's recent missile launches, apparently to learn their exact capabilities. "We will continue to take this threat and this improving program of Pyongyang's very, very seriously," he told a press briefing when asked about North's recent missile launches. North

Foreign AffairsJan. 19, 2022

Moon arrives in Saudi Arabia for talks with crown prince

South Korean President Moon Jae-in held talks with Saudi Arabia's de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Tuesday and agreed to work together in areas related to the hydrogen economy. After holding the talks at the Al-Yamamah palace in Riyadh, the two nations signed preliminary deals to jointly develop green hydrogen, which is produced from renewable energy sources, especially solar and wind, and jointly build a hydrogen ecosystem, Moon's office said in a statement. Under the deals,

PoliticsJan. 18, 2022

DP candidate Lee argues for shift to 4-yr presidential term, renewable once

Ruling party presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung on Tuesday argued for a shift to a four-year presidential term, renewable once, from the current single five-year term, saying he is willing to opt for a shorter term if elected. "For responsible politics, (South Korea) needs a double, four-year term under which power is decentralized," Lee of the Democratic Party said during an interview with cable channel MBN. "Five years is not a span (sufficient for a president) to plan, ena

PoliticsJan. 18, 2022