S. Korea, US to launch new dialogue on semiconductor partnership next month: minister

WASHINGTON -- South Korea and the United States will launch new bilateral talks next month on enhancing their cooperation on the semiconductor supply chain, Industry Minister Moon Sung-wook said Wednesday. The inaugural meeting will be held Dec. 8, involving director-level officials from the two countries, as well as officials and representatives from businesses and other related organizations. Moon said he and his US counterpart, Gina Raimondo, have also agreed to consider upgrading the count

Foreign AffairsNov. 11, 2021

Govt. to place emergency controls, cut tariffs on urea solution: PM

South Korea will cut tariffs and place emergency controls on the production and provision of urea solution, Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum said Thursday, to ease the ongoing supply crunch of the material used to reduce emissions in diesel vehicles. Kim unveiled the plans during an extraordinary Cabinet meeting called to discuss measures to address urea shortages. During the meeting, the Cabinet was set to approve a government notice that allows authorities to control production, shipments and sale

PoliticsNov. 11, 2021

No decision made on timing of OPCON transfer to S. Korea: Pentagon press secretary

WASHINGTON -- The United States and South Korea have yet to make any decision on the timing of wartime operational control (OPCON) transfer to Seoul, US Department of Defense Press Secretary John Kirby said Wednesday. The press secretary also said the countries continue to make progress toward the proposed OPCON transition, but that they still have more work to do. "The other thing important to remember is that the OPCON transition is going to be conditions-based in accordance with bilate

Foreign AffairsNov. 11, 2021

Yoon apologizes for defending ex-President Chun on visit to Gwangju

Main opposition presidential candidate Yoon Seok-youl traveled to the liberal stronghold of Gwangju on Wednesday and apologized in person for remarks seen as praising a former authoritarian president accused of bloodily quelling a democracy uprising in the southwestern city. Yoon of the conservative People Power Party was met by protesters as he arrived to pay his respects to victims of the 1980 massacre at the May 18th National Cemetery in Gwangju, 329 kilometers south of Seoul. Blocked by th

PoliticsNov. 10, 2021

Ruling party candidate questions security alliance with Japan

Lee Jae-myung, presidential nominee for the ruling Democratic Party of Korea, expressed caution toward forming a military alliance among South Korea, the United States and Japan, voicing concerns over Japan being an ally on trust issues. The presidential nominee of the ruling party said in a press conference in Jung-gu, central Seoul, that Japan should be questioned as a trustworthy partner for alliance, citing the historical importance of keeping the Dokdo islets under South Korean sovereignty

PoliticsNov. 10, 2021

Health workers’ strike over COVID-19 workload averted, but protest to continue

Hundreds of health workers at hospitals and care homes across South Korea said Wednesday they would be staging a protest rally Thursday, retracting their plan to walk off the job, saying their calls for a manageable pandemic workload have gone unheeded by the government.　 Kim Han-byul, one of the representatives of the health care workers’ union, comprising more than 7,600 health and care workers around the country, said the strike was “poised to be averted” after members at

Social AffairsNov. 10, 2021

S. Korea says it can secure over 2-month stockpile of urea solution for vehicles

South Korea said Wednesday it can secure a two-and-a half month stockpile of urea solution for vehicles through various means amid a short supply of the key fluid needed in diesel cars to cut emissions. The government said the estimated stockpile is calculated based on planned imports from Australia, Vietnam and China, as well as secured amounts through crackdowns and the military's reserves. "Given the unspecified amount of domestic reserves, there will be no problem in securing urea sol

Social AffairsNov. 10, 2021

S. Korea, Pacific Alliance agree to boost cooperation in green sectors

South Korea and a group of Latin American countries agreed to respond preemptively to the climate change crisis and seek ways to deepen cooperation in green sectors, the foreign ministry said Wednesday. At the Korea-Pacific Alliance Green Economy Forum, held both online and offline in Seoul, the two sides discussed cooperation on the hydrogen economy and other energy transition efforts, as they acknowledged the need for a shift to a low-carbon and eco-friendly economy, according to the ministry

Social AffairsNov. 10, 2021

South Korea, Colombia vow to expand ties in health care, climate change

South Korea and Colombia vowed to deepen ties and step up cooperation in the areas of health care, digital transformation and climate change, as the top envoys of the two countries met Wednesday. 　 Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong held talks with visiting Colombian Vice President and Foreign Minister Marta Lucia Ramirez in Seoul, discussing a wide range of bilateral and regional issues. Ramirez was in Seoul to attend the Korea-Pacific Alliance Green Economy Forum held earlier in the day, joined

Foreign AffairsNov. 10, 2021

Foreign ministry discloses documents on college student's 1989 visit to N. Korea

The foreign ministry has disclosed classified documents about a 1989 visit to North Korea by a then South Korean college student, including Pyongyang's demand that Seoul should not punish her for making the unauthorized trip. Lim Su-kyung, a member of a pro-unification group of college students, made the trip to attend a youth event in Pyongyang without the government's permission and returned to Seoul through the inter-Korean border village of Panmunjom. She was arrested upon return and sente

North KoreaNov. 10, 2021

China to ship 18,700 tons of urea to South Korea

About 18,700 metric tons of urea that China was holding back will be shipped to South Korea soon, temporarily alleviating an acute shortage of an essential additive used to cut emissions from diesel vehicles. 　 China has confirmed that it will proceed with the export process for 18,700 tons of solid urea that was previously contracted to Korean firms, the Foreign Ministry said Wednesday. 　 Of the total, about 300 tons of urea has cleared customs and will be able to leave the Chinese port arou

Foreign AffairsNov. 10, 2021

Korean War veterans honored in annual ceremony

The annual ceremony honoring UN veterans of the 1950-53 Korean War will be held in Busan on Thursday. The “Turn Toward Busan” event -- attended by Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum, Colombian Vice President Marta Lucia Ramirez, UN Command Commander Gen. Paul LaCamera -- takes place in the city housing the first UN cemetery with 2,311 war dead from 11 countries. About 2 million UN troops participated in the war. The ceremony, which has invited veterans and their families as well as top d

DefenseNov. 10, 2021

Parties contemplate Seoul by-election picks

With Seoul by-elections set to take place on the sidelines of the presidential election on March 9, the two main parties are looking to use their candidate selections to boost their chances in the main event. Two Assembly seats are up for grabs in Seoul, and political heavyweights who fell in the presidential primaries are being eyed as possible candidates there, as party unity becomes a priority. The two seats have been vacant since their lawmakers -- one from each of the two main parties --

PoliticsNov. 10, 2021

Key presidential candidates promise cash, but govt. calls both plans unfeasible

As key presidential candidates competitively promise pandemic relief funds to win over voters, the government is saying the pledges are unfeasible. Other candidates accuse them of populism and of trying to buy support. The ruling Democratic Party presidential candidate, Lee Jae-myung, is seeking to provide additional national disaster support funds to overcome the difficulties caused by the pandemic. His contender Yoon Seok-youl of the main opposition People Power Party has a plan to invest

PoliticsNov. 10, 2021

All high schools go remote ahead of Suneung

High schools across South Korea are turning to remote classes from Thursday to prevent the spread of the coronavirus among teenagers ahead of the country’s once-a-year college aptitude exam a week later. In the Greater Seoul area, where majority of COVID-19 infections have been reported since the beginning of the fourth virus wave in July, high school seniors switched to remote classes last Thursday. The Ministry of Education has made it clear that this year’s Suneung will take p

Social AffairsNov. 10, 2021

Teenagers account for quarter of suppliers of sexually exploitative online materials: police

Teenagers accounted for a quarter of offenders recently caught by police over allegedly supplying sexually exploitative materials across the internet, authorities said Wednesday. The cyber crime division of the National Office of Investigation said 1,625 alleged offenders were rounded up during its special crackdown campaign period against offenses connected to sexually exploitative online material between March and October. They included 919 producers and distributors, and 706 consumers of su

Social AffairsNov. 10, 2021

[Interactive] Can Korea cure its refugee unease?

 

Foreign AffairsNov. 10, 2021

N. Korean spy indicted over allegedly working to return defectors home

A North Korean spy in South Korea has been indicted for allegedly working to send defectors from her country back home, according to legal sources Wednesday. The 40-something female North Korean security ministry agent, whose name was kept private, was indicted by prosecutors in Suwon, south of Seoul, in May on charges of violating the national security law. The agent, who arrived in the South guised as a defector in December 2018, is suspected of having provided contact information of another

North KoreaNov. 10, 2021

Lee says he is open to independent counsel probe into Seongnam development scandal

Ruling party presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung said Wednesday he is open to an independent counsel investigation into a massive corruption scandal implicating one of his former aides. Lee of the ruling Democratic Party has previously rejected the main opposition People Power Party's calls for a special counsel probe into allegations that the former aide colluded with a private investor to reap astronomical profits from an apartment development project undertaken in Seongnam, south of Seoul,

PoliticsNov. 10, 2021

Moon to hold TV town hall meeting Sunday

President Moon Jae-in plans to hold a televised town hall meeting Sunday evening, in which he will discuss virus containment measures and people's livelihoods, a presidential spokesperson said Wednesday. The town hall meeting, which will be broadcast live on KBS TV from 7:10 p.m. for 100 minutes Sunday, marks Moon's second appearance on a TV talk show since 2019. "President Moon Jae-in plans to have candid discussions with the public on the subjects of containment to overcome the coronavi

PoliticsNov. 10, 2021