[Diplomatic Circuit] Embassies mark anniversaries of Bengali poets

  Celebrations were held online Saturday to mark two anniversaries in Bengali poetry -- the birth of Rabindranath Tagore and the publishing of Kazi Nazrul Islam’s revolutionary work “Bidrohi.” The embassies of Bangladesh and India, Seoul’s Indian Art Museum, Tagore Society of Korea, Bengali Association of Korea and expatriate Bangladeshis jointly took part in the event. This year marks the centenary of Kazi Nazrul Islam’s poem “Bidrohi” and the 16

Diplomatic CircuitAug. 2, 2021

Korea’s scarce COVID-19 vaccines not going to people who need them most

Korea’s scarce COVID-19 vaccines are not reaching people who most need the protection, while people at lower risk are getting first dibs on the jabs, experts say. Dr. Eom Joong-sik, an infectious disease specialist at Gachon University Medical Center, a government-designated COVID-19 hospital in Incheon, said people who are medically frail or otherwise at risk have fallen through the cracks in the national vaccine rollout. “People whose health conditions put them

Social AffairsAug. 2, 2021

Cheong Wa Dae says inter-Korean hotlines should be kept

The office of President Moon Jae-in stressed the need Monday for the two Koreas to maintain their direct communication channels. It was responding to the warning Sunday by Kim Yo-jong, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's sister who is in charge of inter-Korean affairs as a senior Workers' Party official. She pressed South Korea to cancel its annual joint military exercises with the United States scheduled to kick of next week. Kim stated that the plan for the drills could undermine efforts to re

PoliticsAug. 2, 2021

Pool parties, secret hangouts taunt semi-lockdown

Virus or not, a growing number of people have been caught attending parties in violation of COVID-19 rules, with some business owners opting to open and pay a fine than not open at all. South Korea has experienced a surge in COVID-19 infections in recent weeks, with more than 1,000 new cases daily since July 7. To contain the outbreak, which has been blamed on increased travel during the summer vacation season and the spread of the highly contagious delta variant, authorities have placed the ca

Social AffairsAug. 2, 2021

N. Korea sends S. Korea detailed info on illegal fishing in Yellow Sea via restored hotlines: sources

North Korea has sent detailed information to South Korea on fishing boats operating illegally in the Yellow Sea via inter-Korean military hotlines restored last week, government sources said Monday. Last week, the two sides reopened all cross-border communication lines, including military hotlines, 13 months after Pyongyang cut them off in protest over anti-regime propaganda leaflets flying in from the South. "The North has sent a fax message at 9 a.m. every day, which carries details abo

North KoreaAug. 2, 2021

Top nuclear envoys of S. Korea, Japan hold phone talks on cooperation for peninsula peace

South Korea's chief nuclear envoy, Noh Kyu-duk, held phone talks with his Japanese counterpart, Takehiro Funakoshi, on Monday to discuss cooperation to foster lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula, the foreign ministry said. The talks came after last week's restoration of inter-Korean communication lines raised hopes for the resumption of nuclear diplomacy with Pyongyang, though Kim Yo-jong, the sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, warned Sunday the planned summertime military drills betw

Foreign AffairsAug. 2, 2021

Moon says 36 million people to get vaccine shots by end of September

President Moon Jae-in said Monday that the number of people in South Korea who are either fully or partly vaccinated would soon top 20 million. He was emphasizing that the nation's vaccination campaign is on track despite the unrelenting spread of COVID-19. "By tomorrow, a total of more than 20 million people will have received at least one dose of vaccine," he said during a weekly meeting with senior Cheong Wa Dae secretaries. There is no problem in the government's scheme to give

PoliticsAug. 2, 2021

Let them eat trash: Yoon slammed for ‘substandard food’ remark

Former prosecutor general and presidential frontrunner Yoon Seok-youl is under fire for saying during a media interview last month that poor people should be allowed to eat foods that don’t meet legal standards, as long as they don’t kill you. Yoon made the remarks as he spoke about economist Milton Friedman’s book “Free to Choose: A Personal Statement,” in a video clip of the interview released on YouTube. “Poor people should be allowed to choose food below

PoliticsAug. 2, 2021

[Newsmaker] Police to summon KCTU head for holding mass rally in violation of Level 4 virus rules

Police in the coming days will summon the head of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions as they investigate the umbrella labor group’s rally last month for violating COVID-19 rules. Yang Kyung-soo, head of the KCTU, is scheduled to appear at Seoul Jongno Police Station by 2 p.m. on Wednesday for questioning, according to police on Monday. The timing of the meeting was reportedly at the request of Yang. Police asked Yang to appear for the investigation three times last month, but Yang

Social AffairsAug. 2, 2021

South Korea, US still in talks over drills: Defense Ministry

South Korea and the US are still discussing the joint military exercises set for later this month, the Ministry of National Defense said Monday, amid growing speculation they could skip the drills to make room for South and North Korea to rebuild strained ties. On Sunday, Kim Yo-jong, the sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, issued a statement warning Seoul against the exercises, a week after the two Koreas reopened communications lines. A year ago, Pyongyang cut them and demolished

DefenseAug. 2, 2021

S. Korea, Singapore agree to enhance defense cooperation

South Korea and Singapore held defense strategy talks in Seoul on Monday and agreed to expand their defense exchanges and cooperation, the defense ministry said. During the meeting, Deputy Defense Minister Kim Man-ki and his Singaporean counterpart Teo Eng Dih agreed to boost exchanges in the fields of defense technology, humanitarian activities and cyber security, according to the ministry. Monday's meeting marked the first time in eight years for the strategy talks between the two countries

Foreign AffairsAug. 2, 2021

Main opposition party snaps back after six-week fall in public support: Realmeter poll

Public support for the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) has bounced back after declining for six consecutive weeks, a poll showed Monday. The Realmeter survey results came as Yoon Seok-youl, a former top prosecutor who is the front-runner in various polls on presidential hopefuls, joined the conservative party Friday. His decision ended months of uncertainty over whether and when he would become a member of the PPP with hopes of winning the presidential election slated for March next y

PoliticsAug. 2, 2021

Govt. cut W560b won of defense budget, including for F-35A plan, for COVID-19 extra budget

Around 560 billion won ($485.8 million) was slashed from this year's defense budget to fund an extra budget in the wake of the pandemic, but the measure will not affect the country's major arms procurement plans, the defense ministry said Monday. Last month, the National Assembly passed a 34.9 trillion-won extra budget bill aimed at propping up the economy battered by the pandemic and to support smaller businesses. For the measure, 562.9 billion won earmarked for 22 defense projects has been s

PoliticsAug. 2, 2021

Rival parties on collision course over a DP-led media reform bill

A controversial media reform bill being pushed by the ruling Democratic Party (DP) is running into fierce resistance from the opposition bloc, putting the rival parties on a possible collision course at the National Assembly. Having unilaterally passed the bill through a subcommittee of the parliamentary Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee last week, the DP aims to advance it through the National Assembly in the upcoming provisional parliamentary session later this month. The bill aims to re

PoliticsAug. 2, 2021

Top South Korean diplomat to attend ASEAN meetings this week

South Korean Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong will attend a series of virtual talks led by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations this week, with all eyes on whether North Korea will attend one of the meetings. 　 Chung plans to take part in four virtual meetings from Tuesday through Friday, including the South Korea-ASEAN meeting, the ASEAN Plus Three meeting that also involves China and Japan, the East Asia Summit and the ASEAN Regional Forum, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Foreign AffairsAug. 2, 2021

4 S. Koreans, abducted in waters off West Africa, have been released: foreign ministry

Four South Koreans who were kidnapped in waters off West Africa about two months ago have been freed, following the release of another Korean national in a separate abduction in the same region, the foreign ministry said Monday. The four were released at 10 p.m. Sunday (Korea time) after being abducted by an apparent group of pirates while aboard a fishing boat near the Gulf of Guinea on June 1. They all remain in good shape, the ministry said. "They are under protection at a safe place t

PoliticsAug. 2, 2021

[Newsmaker] Ex-Prosecutor General Yoon hustles to bolster support from main opposition after party entry

Ex-Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl, a leading opposition presidential contender, is moving toward strengthening connections and support within the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) after becoming a member last week. Yoon, who resigned in March as prosecutor general over an extended feud with the ruling bloc over prosecution reform, signed up with the PPP on Friday after having campaigned as an independent for about a month. The PPP leadership and key members courted Yoon to join the pa

PoliticsAug. 2, 2021

No. of households with minors falls below 5m in 2019: data

The number of households with children under 18 years old fell below 5 million for the first time in 2019 amid a chronically low birthrate, data showed Monday. The number of households with children under 18 came to 4.87 million in 2019, down from 5.04 million the previous year, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. Such households made up 23.3 percent of the total 20.9 million households in 2019, down 1.3 percentage points from 2018, the data showed. As of Nov. 1, 2019, the num

Social AffairsAug. 2, 2021

Unification ministry stresses wise, flexible approach to joint military drills after N. Korea's warning

South Korea will deal with the issue of joint military drills with the United States in a "wise and "flexible" manner so as to not heighten tensions on the Korean Peninsula, the unification ministry said Monday after North Korea warned against such exercises. On Sunday night, Kim Yo-jong, the sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, warned that annual summertime military drills between South Korea and the US will cloud inter-Korean relations and that Pyongyang will closely watch

PoliticsAug. 2, 2021

No decision yet on annual military exercise with US: defense ministry

South Korea and the United States have not yet decided when and how to conduct an annual summertime exercise, the defense ministry said Monday, after North Korea warned the drills will cloud the future of inter-Korean ties. On Sunday, Kim Yo-jong, the powerful sister of the North's leader Kim Jong-un, issued a statement saying that the combined exercise could undermine efforts to improve inter-Korean relations at "such a crucial time" after the long-severed cross-border communication

Foreign AffairsAug. 2, 2021