Moon cancels summer holiday for third consecutive year

President Moon Jae-in has canceled his summer holiday for a third consecutive year as COVID-19 cases surged again recently, according to Cheong Wa Dae sources on Sunday. “The president had planned to take his holiday in early August but the plans were canceled,” a Cheong Wa Dae official said on condition of anonymity. Even though Moon might take time off “later,” she said, that seems unlikely for now with COVID-19 showing no immediate signs of abating here. This is the

PoliticsJuly 25, 2021

More foreign diplomats exit North Korea amid COVID-19

More foreign diplomats stationed in North Korea, including from Indonesia and Bulgaria, have fled the reclusive regime due to dire living conditions amid prolonged COVID-19 restrictions. 　 Japanese broadcaster NHK on Saturday reported that about 30 people believed to be diplomats and their family members arrived by bus at the Chinese border city of Dandong on Friday after leaving the North. The report said Indonesian Embassy vehicles were there to pick them up. 　 Indonesia’s Foreign Mini

North KoreaJuly 25, 2021

NLCS Jeju students excel in IB Diploma exam again

North London Collegiate School Jeju’s Class of 2021 scored an average of 39 points in the International Baccalaureate diploma program, demonstrating academic excellence even with the virus-ridden year. The IB diploma program is a two-year educational assessment that provides internationally accepted qualification for entry into top universities across the globe. According to NLCS, it marked the second year in a row for the school’s graduate class to post an average score of 39. T

Social AffairsJuly 25, 2021

[Newsmaker] Jeju governor joins presidential election race

Jeju Province Gov. Won Hee-ryong announced Sunday that he will run for presidency in the election slated for March next year. In a video speech, Won, a former three-term opposition lawmaker, vowed to upend "everything" the Moon Jae-in government has done. "I declare my bid for the 20th presidential election to make the Republic of Korea a country of a different class and different dimension," he said in the virtual press conference. "I would like to propose a vision o

PoliticsJuly 25, 2021

New cases under 1,500 on fewer tests; non-Seoul areas under toughened curbs

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases fell below 1,500 Sunday due to fewer tests over the weekend, but infections outside the capital area continued to pile up, triggering toughened restrictions. The country added 1,487 COVID-19 cases, including 1,422 local infections, raising the total caseload to 188,848, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). Daily infections fell from 1,629 on Saturday, 1,630 on Friday and a record high of 1,842 on Thursday, when 270 infec

Social AffairsJuly 25, 2021

Speculations swirl over potential amnesty for ex-President Park, Samsung heir Lee

Rumors that former President Park Geun-hye and Samsung Group heir Lee Jae-yong may receive presidential pardons or paroles are increasingly making the rounds in political circles as of late amid growing calls for amnesty for the two figures jailed over corruption-related charges. Such speculations are being circulated widely with the Aug. 15 Liberation Day, an anniversary on which South Korea's presidents have often used their right to special pardon as part of efforts for promoting national un

PoliticsJuly 25, 2021

Pet owners scramble to protect animals from scorching summer heat

Pet owners in the country appear to be doing everything they can to keep their animals cool in the sweltering summer weather. Temperatures have climbed to the high 30s in many regions, putting dogs and cats, in particular, at risk of danger if they are left alone at home. A 29-year-old office worker who lives in Yongsan, central Seoul, said he bought a marble mat and a cooling pillow for his two dogs. He also put ice packs under the sofa and in other parts of the house where the dogs like to b

Social AffairsJuly 25, 2021

Despite heat wave, beaches nationwide quiet amid tough anti-COVID-19 restrictions

Despite an extended heat wave scorching South Korea for nearly a week, almost all popular beaches nationwide were noticeably quieter than usual on Saturday, apparently due to growing public jitters over the spread of COVID-19. Unrelenting hot weather continued in most parts of the country for the sixth consecutive day, with daily maximum temperatures reaching 36 C in Seoul and elsewhere, according to the state weather agency. Contrary to expectations, however, many public beaches and other pop

Social AffairsJuly 24, 2021

Military reports 4 more COVID-19 cases

The South Korean military on Saturday reported four additional COVID-19 cases among its personnel, including two enlisted soldiers, bringing its total caseload to 1,485. A draftee of an Army unit in Bupyeong, just west of Seoul, contracted the virus after going on vacation to Cheongju, 120 kilometers south of the capital. He tested positive even though he got two shots of Pfizer's vaccine. A conscript of a Navy unit in Jinhae in the southeastern city of Changwon also tested positive. The late

DefenseJuly 24, 2021

3 lawmakers cleared of land speculation charges: police

Local police have cleared charges against three lawmakers who had been suspected of illegal real estate dealings, officials said Saturday. The Gyeonggi Nambu Police Agency in Suwon, just south of Seoul, said it dropped charges against Rep. Yang Hyang-ja, an independent lawmaker, and two ruling Democratic Party members -- Rep. Kim Kyung-man and Rep. Seo Young-suk -- in relation to alleged property speculation. Yang was under probe over a violation of the anti-corruption law and the Farmland Ac

PoliticsJuly 24, 2021

New cases above 1,600 amid stepped-up fight against 4th wave of pandemic

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases remained above 1,600 Saturday, as the authorities struggled to stem the fourth wave of COVID-19 with the extension of the toughest virus curbs in the greater Seoul area. The country added 1,629 COVID-19 cases, including 1,573 local infections, raising the total caseload to 187,362, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency. The latest tally was down from 1,630 on Friday and a record high of 1,842 on Thursday, when 270 infected member

Social AffairsJuly 24, 2021

National Assembly endorses W34.9tr extra budget to fight COVID-19

The National Assembly on Saturday gave the nod to a 34.9 trillion-won ($30.3 billion) extra budget bill aimed at propping up the economy battered by the COVID-19 pandemic. The bill was passed at a plenary parliamentary meeting in a 208-17 vote, with 12 abstentions. The second extra budget this year came as the country is in a semi-lockdown under the toughest Level 4 social distancing rules amid the worst, fourth wave of mass COVID-19 infections nationwide. Through the supplementary budget,

PoliticsJuly 24, 2021

NK leader expresses support for China's flood recovery efforts in message to Xi: state media

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un sent a message of sympathy to Chinese President Xin Jinping over damage from recent flooding in the neighboring country, state media reported Saturday. In the verbal message, Kim expressed profound sympathy to Xi and deep condolences to the victims of the recent flood that "claimed heavy casualties and material losses in several areas including Henan Province of China," the official Korean Central News Agency said. He also expressed full support for Xi

North KoreaJuly 24, 2021

Seamen from COVID-hit warship blame food supplies

Seamen on South Korea’s unvaccinated anti-piracy mission who returned home from Africa this week because of a massive COVID outbreak aboard their warship said Friday that the coronavirus could have spread onto the vessel from food supplies they loaded from a nearby port. A seaman from the 301-strong Cheonghae Unit, which arrived here Tuesday with more than two-thirds of its crew infected, exhibited cold symptoms on July 2, a day after the destroyer made a four-day supply stop at a port. M

DefenseJuly 23, 2021

Troubled by pandemic, Tokyo Olympic Summer Games open with scaled-back ceremony

It has been eight years in the making, and the 32nd Olympic Summer Games finally kicked off in Tokyo on Friday, with a sobering, toned-down opening ceremony held at the National Stadium without spectators during the global coronavirus pandemic. Some 11,000 athletes from 205 countries, plus a team of refugees, will compete for 339 gold medals in 33 sports until Aug. 8, while having to abide by strict health and safety protocols, the likes of which haven't been in place at any of the previous Oly

Foreign AffairsJuly 23, 2021

Korea is delaying second Pfizer, Moderna shots -- is it safe?

Korea’s top health agency decided Friday to delay the second doses of Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines by up to six weeks, deviating from the recommended protocol of a shorter time span, amid a tight supply and uncertainties in the delivery schedule. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency’s deputy chief Kwon Jun-wook told a briefing that depending on vaccine availability, an inter-dose interval of six weeks will be permitted for the two mRNA-type vaccines from next M

Social AffairsJuly 23, 2021

Moon to hold interagency meeting on coronavirus

President Moon Jae-in will chair an interagency meeting on COVID-19 this weekend to be joined by the heads of 17 local governments, Cheong Wa Dae said Friday. He plans to preside over the session at Cheong Wa Dae on Sunday via video links, according to Cheong Wa Dae spokesperson Park Kyung-mee. It is the first time for the president to chair a meeting of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters in seven months. It is usually done by Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum. Earlier Frid

PoliticsJuly 23, 2021

Korea keeps wider Seoul under tight social distancing for another two weeks

Seoul and nearby cities -- the epicenter of Korea’s current, largest wave of COVID-19 yet -- will stay under strict social distancing rules for another two weeks, health officials said Friday, as cases continue to break records. The Ministry of Health and Welfare’s spokesperson Son Young-rae said in a briefing that the strictest social distancing tier would remain in place at least until Aug. 8, after two weeks of the same restrictions failed to squash the surge in cases. &ldqu

Social AffairsJuly 23, 2021

Inspection into COVID-hit warship brings doubt

The military’s decision to launch an inspection into the COVID-19 outbreak that forced its anti-piracy unit to return home from Africa has sparked concerns, as the military plans to run the examination itself without outside experts that critics say are needed for an independent inquiry. The Cheonghae Unit, which cut short its mission, was found to have been sidelined from the vaccine priority list. It was left out from the March vaccination campaign because of supply constraints; it

DefenseJuly 23, 2021

[Newsmaker] US looks forward to 'reliable, predictable, constructive' way forward with N. Korea: Sherman

The United States looks forward to a "reliable, predictable and constructive" way forward with North Korea, Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman said Friday, redoubling calls for Pyongyang to respond to Washington's overtures for dialogue. Sherman made the remarks after talks with First Vice Foreign Minister Choi Jong-kun in Seoul, amid uncertainty over the resumption of nuclear diplomacy following Pyongyang's rejection of dialogue last month. "We are looking forward to a rel

Foreign AffairsJuly 23, 2021