S. Korea's top nuclear envoy says Russia's role 'important' in restarting N. Korea talks

South Korea's chief nuclear envoy said Wednesday that Russia has an "important" role to play to restart denuclearization talks with North Korea, as he departed the country to meet with his Russian counterpart. Noh Kyu-duk, the special representative for Korean Peninsula peace and security affairs, made the remarks at Incheon International Airport before leaving for Moscow to meet with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Igor Morgulov on Thursday. "The peace process on the Korean Pen

Foreign AffairsOct. 13, 2021

Unification minister says Han River estuary is space for inter-Korean cooperation

Unification Minister Lee In-young on Wednesday visited an estuary of the Han River near the border with North Korea and urged Pyongyang to respond to Seoul's call for dialogue to jointly use the waterway as agreed earlier. Under a military agreement signed at a 2018 summit between President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, the two sides agreed on the joint use of the estuary along their western border and conducted joint waterway research in November that year. The project, how

North KoreaOct. 13, 2021

Ruling party's top decision-making body to meet over disputed primary results

The ruling Democratic Party (DP)'s top decision-making body was set to meet Wednesday to discuss an appeal against the party's choice of Gyeonggi Gov. Lee Jae-myung as its presidential nominee amid widespread indications that the decision is unlikely to change. The DP party affairs committee was scheduled to meet later in the day after former Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon, the runner-up in the primary, demanded the panel convene to discuss whether the votes in the primary were counted according to

PoliticsOct. 13, 2021

S. Korea extends overseas travel advisory until Nov. 13

South Korea has extended its special advisory against overseas travel for another month due to the continued spread of COVID-19, the foreign ministry said Wednesday. Citizens are recommended to cancel or postpone non-essential trips abroad until Nov. 13, as the rise of variant cases in many countries poses risks to their health, the ministry said. The travel advisory was first imposed in March and has been extended every month as many countries struggle with the outbreaks of various COVID-19

Foreign AffairsOct. 13, 2021

New cases stay in 1,000s for 5th day on increased tests

South Korea's daily new COVID-19 cases stayed in the 1,000s for the fifth straight day Wednesday as more people took virus tests after an extended weekend. The country added 1,584 more COVID-19 cases, including 1,571 local infections, raising the total caseload to 335,742, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). Health authorities had predicted that newly confirmed cases would rise after the extended weekend that ended Monday, a substitute holiday for Hangeul Day

Social AffairsOct. 13, 2021

[Graphic News] Over 42% of people in their 30s unmarried in 2020

More than 42 percent of 30-somethings in South Korea remained unmarried last year, census data showed, underscoring the trend in which many young people delay or give up on marriage, amid a prolonged economic slowdown. Out of 13.7 million single people aged 15 and older, 2.82 million people were in their 30s last year, up from 2.68 million five years prior, according to the 2020 census by Statistics Korea. The percentage of unmarried people in their 30s reached 42.5 percent last year, up 6.2 p

NationalOct. 13, 2021

S. Korea, US agree to mull new defense dialogue on regional policy cooperation

South Korea and the United States have agreed to consider establishing a new bilateral working-level defense dialogue aimed at promoting cooperation between their regional policy initiatives, an informed source said Wednesday. The US floated the idea of instituting the unofficial dialogue channel during the allies' biannual defense talks, called the Korea-US Integrated Defense Dialogue, last month, as Washington pushes to rally its regional democratic allies to counter China's growing assertive

DefenseOct. 13, 2021

Govt. to consider introducing vaccine pass for 'gradual return to normalcy': PM

South Korea will consider introducing a "vaccine pass" for people's gradual return to normal life, Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum said Wednesday, as the country prepares to adopt a "living with COVID-19" scheme. Kim hinted at easing virus prevention measures under the new scheme, which is expected to begin Nov. 9, but he stressed that does not mean that the country should let its guard down against the virus. Under the scheme, COVID-19 will be treated as an infectious respirat

PoliticsOct. 13, 2021

N. Korea's ballistic missiles constitute a threat to US: State Dept

WASHINGTON -- North Korea's nuclear and ballistic missile programs pose a threat to the US and its allies, a State Department spokesperson said Tuesday. The remark comes after North Korean leader Kim Jong-un claimed North Korea's enemy is not South Korea nor the US while calling for efforts to further advance the North's military capabilities. "The DPRK's WMD and ballistic missile programs constitute a threat to international peace and security and the global nonproliferation regime,"

Foreign AffairsOct. 13, 2021

S. Korea, US reaffirm efforts to engage with N. Korea

WASHINGTON -- The top national security advisers of South Korea and the United States on Tuesday reaffirmed their commitment to engaging with North Korea, also vowing to work together in bringing the North back to the dialogue table. US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan also reaffirmed that the United States holds no hostile policy toward the North during a bilateral meeting with his South Korean counterpart, Suh Hoon, in Washington, according to the South Korean National Security Council

Foreign AffairsOct. 13, 2021

Prosecutors seek arrest of key suspect in Seongnam development scandal

Prosecutors sought an arrest warrant Tuesday for the owner of an asset management firm at the center of a snowballing regional development corruption scandal over allegations his firm received massive business favors in exchange for bribes. Kim Man-bae, a former journalist, is facing a series of allegations in connection with how his previously little-known firm, Hwacheon Daeyu, was selected as a civilian partner for the 2015 development project in the city of Seongnam, south of Seoul, and reap

NationalOct. 12, 2021

Four-term lawmaker chosen as presidential nominee of Justice Party

The minor progressive Justice Party on Tuesday chose four-term lawmaker Sim Sang-jeung as its candidate for the March presidential election. Sim won a runoff against former party leader Lee Jeong-mi, with 51.12 percent of the vote, the party said. The 62-year-old is a household name within the progressive camp and has made three previous bids for president. In the last presidential election in 2017, Sim earned 6.17 percent of the vote, the most ever for a progressive candidate. In accepting

PoliticsOct. 12, 2021

Lee denies allegations, Moon calls for probe

Gyeonggi Gov. Lee Jae-myung, the ruling Democratic Party’s presidential candidate, on Tuesday denied allegations surrounding a housing development project and said he would use the parliamentary audit to clarify the issue. Lee has been embroiled in controversy over a corruption scandal surrounding his reelection as mayor of Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province in 2014.  The main opposition People Power Party has accused Lee of giving preferential treatment to asset management company Hwache

Social AffairsOct. 12, 2021

Assembly speaker visits Egypt to strengthen partnerships in economy, security

National Assembly Speaker Park Byeong-seug asked for Egypt’s help in engaging with North Korea, and for the push to officially end the 1950-53 Korean War, in his meeting with Egypt’s President of the Senate Abdel-Wahab Abdel-Razeq and Speaker of the House of Representatives Hanafy Ali El Gebali. Park, who is current on an official visit to Egypt, is the first National Assembly speaker to visit Egypt since Speaker Lee Man-seop in 2002. The meeting with his Egyptian counterparts wa

PoliticsOct. 12, 2021

Kim vows to boost military capability, but says South Korea or the US are not the enemy

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has vowed to build a powerful military to strengthen war deterrence, but insisted that the country’s main enemy is “war itself,” and not South Korea or the US. 　 Kim made the remarks Monday as he gave a rare speech at a defense development exhibition to mark the previous day’s 76th founding anniversary of the ruling Workers’ Party, the North’s official Korea Central News Agency said Tuesday. 　 It was the first time the North

North KoreaOct. 12, 2021

[Newsmaker] Stalker, murderer of three sentenced to life in prison

A South Korean man who murdered three women in the same family was sentenced to life in prison Tuesday, with the court concluding that the crime had been premeditated and planned in advance. The Seoul Northern District Court passed the sentence against Kim Tae-hyun, 25. He was indicted in April and later convicted of murder, theft, harassment, breaking and entering, and misusing communications networks. Kim was arrested at the victims’ home in Nowon-gu, northeastern Seoul, in March, days

Social AffairsOct. 12, 2021

S. Korea calls for talks with N. Korea after NK leader cites 'double standards'

The South Korean government proposed Tuesday North Korea resume inter-Korean dialogue in order to narrow differences and promote mutual understanding after its leader accused Seoul of being "hypocritical" and having "double standards." In a speech Monday at a defense development exhibition to mark the 76th founding anniversary of the ruling Workers' Party, the North's leader Kim Jong-un condemned Seoul for continuing efforts to boost its military capabilities while talking p

North KoreaOct. 12, 2021

Nigeria, Korea to boost cooperation on climate change, strengthen economic ties

The Nigerian government is responsively taking steps to address climate change, establishing a ministry for environment and advancing cooperation with Korea on climate change, Ali Magashi, Nigerian envoy to Korea, said in an interview with The Korea Herald. According to the Nigerian ambassador, Africa is the “greatest victim” of climate change. Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country, has seen increases in drought and extreme flooding in recent years that has damaged agricult

Diplomatic CircuitOct. 12, 2021

Rapper NO:EL arrested over allegedly assaulting police officer, refusing breathalyzer

Rapper NO:EL was arrested Tuesday on charges of driving without a license, refusing to take a breathalyzer test and headbutting a police officer last month. Police took the 21-year-old, whose real name is Chang Yong-jun, into custody after the Seoul Central District Court issued an arrest warrant for him, saying that investigations have found the allegations to be likely true and there is a flight risk. The incident took place on the night of Sept. 18 when Chang caused a fender bender while driv

Social AffairsOct. 12, 2021

South Korea seeks to live with pandemic

South Korea is seeking to live with the pandemic by relaxing its social distancing rules and launching an expert committee for a return to normalcy. “If the situation in October is managed stably, the recovery that the people desire can be accelerated. And the pain of small-business owners and self-employed people can be relieved a little more,” said Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum on Tuesday. Kim said increasing the vaccination rate is the most important thing for a step-by-step r

Social AffairsOct. 12, 2021