[Contribution] Korea needs new diplomacy

As seen at the recent US-South Korea Summit and G7 Summit, Korea is an attractive country in terms of its advanced economies equipped with high technology, organized democracy, diverse cultural content, stable disease control systems, and strong military capabilities. Korea has accumulated its capabilities and built trust by creating something out of nothing in such a short period. Korea is gradually becoming a key member of the international community. However, Korea’s diplomacy is n

Foreign AffairsJuly 4, 2021

GCF board endorses $500m for new projects to support climate action

SEJONG -- The Green Climate Fund (GCF), the South Korea-based United Nations climate fund aimed at helping poor nations fight global warming, has approved $500 million in funding for new projects and programs, according to Seoul's finance ministry Sunday. During a virtual meeting held from June 28 to July 2, the GCF's board discussed new funding and accreditation proposals. Launched in late 2010, the GCF aims to channel money from industrialized nations to developing countries to help them tac

PoliticsJuly 4, 2021

N. Korea not cooperating with global vaccine distribution program: report

North Korea has not been cooperating with a United Nations-led global vaccine distribution program, failing to complete necessary paperwork to receive help against the coronavirus pandemic, a report said Sunday. Citing an anonymous source, Voice of America (VOA) reported on talks between North Korea and Gavi, a vaccine alliance that helps run COVAX, an international initiative aimed at global distribution of COVID-19 vaccines. According to the report, North Korea has completed only two of the

North KoreaJuly 4, 2021

Police probe organizers of massive rally in Seoul

Police have set up a special team to investigate the organizers of Saturday’s rally held by the umbrella labor union, Korean Confederation of Trade Unions. Police said they plan to seek charges against organizers and key participants of the KCTU on suspicion of holding illegal rallies and marches, traffic obstruction and violation of the Infectious Disease Control and Prevention Act. The Seoul Metropolitan Government also plans to file a criminal complaint against the KCTU for violatin

Social AffairsJuly 4, 2021

New cases over 700 for 2nd day; wider Seoul on alert over upsurge

South Korea's daily new virus cases stayed in the 700s for the second day Sunday, while authorities tighten their guard against a virus resurgence in the greater Seoul area. The country reported 743 more COVID-19 cases, including 662 local infections, raising the total caseload to 160,085, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. The latest figure is down from 794 on Saturday and 826 on Friday, a nearly six-month high due to the sharp spike in new cases in the Seoul metropo

Social AffairsJuly 4, 2021

Seoul reports largest population drop in 5 yrs: data

Seoul has suffered its largest population decline in five years, with the soaring housing prices likely driving people out of the capital city, data showed Sunday. According to figures compiled by the Ministry of Interior and Safety and provided to People Power Party Rep. Tae Young-ho, Seoul had a population of just over 9.56 million as of June. Compared to a year ago, that represented a drop of 154,856, or 1.59 percent. It is the largest annual drop in five years. Seoul had almost 9.99 millio

Social AffairsJuly 4, 2021

Umbrella labor union holds street rally despite virus concerns

South Korea's major umbrella labor union pressed ahead with a massive street rally Saturday in central Seoul despite the government's warning of a stern response. Around 8,000 members of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions gathered in the Jongno district, ignoring the government's call to cancel the assembly feared to affect the fight against COVID-19. The country is struggling to contain a resurgence of coronavirus cases. They had planned to hold it in the western Seoul area of Yeouido

Social AffairsJuly 3, 2021

[Eye Plus] Ironware culture of Goguryeo reborn in Blacksmith’s Village

Stretching from Seoul to Guri, Gyeonggi Province, Achasan Mountain is one of the best places to see traces of the Goguryeo dynasty, a period when Korea had the largest territory in its 5,000-year history, with its Achasanseong Fortress and over 80 sentry posts.  Located at the entrance of the mountain, the Goguryeo Blacksmith Village offers a glimpse into the lives of Goguryeo people and its flourishing ironware culture from some 1,500 years ago.  The folk village shows an actual bla

Social AffairsJuly 3, 2021

S. Korea reports 794 additional COVID-19 cases

South Korea has confirmed 794 new COVID-19 cases, local health authorities announced Saturday, amid worries about a potential fourth wave of large-scale infections nationwide. The latest figure is down from 826 recorded the previous day, but it marked the second consecutive day that the nation's daily new virus cases stayed at around 800. Among the additional infections, 748 were locally transmitted and 46 imported, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency. The total case

Social AffairsJuly 3, 2021

S. Korea to launch national committee to ensure unwavering long-term education policy

A new act will enable South Korea to establish a national committee in charge of ensuring the country follows a stable, long-term education policy regardless of a change of government, officials said Saturday. Earlier this week, the National Assembly's plenary meeting passed a relevant act on the establishment and management of the envisioned national education committee. The launch of the committee was part of President Moon Jae-in's election campaign, aimed at ensuring that the country's e

Social AffairsJuly 3, 2021

[Newsmaker] N. Koreans overtake S. Koreans in TOEFL score in 2020: report

North Koreans surpassed South Koreans in the Test of English as a Foreign Language, one of the leading English language proficiency tests, last year, a report showed Saturday. According to a report from the U.S.-based Education Testing Service, the administrator of TOEFL, the average score in the internet-based TOEFL by North Korean nationals was 87 out of 120 in 2020. North Koreans' average TOEFL score, up four points from 2019, was the same as the global average and one point higher than S

North KoreaJuly 3, 2021

Probe into reactor shutdown wrapped up amid dispute over additional indictment charge

A high-profile criminal investigation into an early shutdown of the country's second-oldest nuclear reactor has wrapped up, along with indictments of former Cheong Wa Dae and energy ministry officials on power abuse charges. State prosecutors have looked into the circumstances surrounding the closure of Wolsong-1, which was shut down some three years earlier than scheduled in late 2019, by the state-run Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co. based on an economic viability survey. The decision wa

PoliticsJuly 3, 2021

Korean autobiography of Bangladesh’s ‘father of the nation’ unveiled

The Bangladesh Embassy in Seoul on Thursday unveiled the Korean translation of “The Unfinished Memoirs” -- an autobiography of Bangladesh’s first President Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in an event at Lotte hotel in central Seoul. The event was hosted to celebrate the birth centenary of Bangabandhu, also known as “the father of the nation” in Bangladesh. Bangabandhu’s autobiography reflects his political vision and unremitting support for humanism and

Diplomatic CircuitJuly 2, 2021

New US general stresses team spirit amid disputes

PYEONGTAEK, Gyeonggi Province -- Gen. Paul LaCamera, the new US military chief in South Korea, said he is looking to work with Seoul as one team and take the Seoul-Washington alliance to new heights in his first public address after taking office on Friday. The change of command ceremony -- which took place at Camp Humphreys, the US military headquarters in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province -- comes as the two allies seek to resolve disputes involving South Korea’s plan to retake wa

DefenseJuly 2, 2021

‘Consumption will lead to more consumption’

Gov. Lee Jae-myung of Gyeonggi Province asserted his determination to root out unfairness and inequality in a recorded speech released Thursday, in which he announced his presidential bid. The video was made public on social media. Reiterating his signature policy, universal basic income, Lee vowed to turn a crisis into an opportunity to make Korea a world-leading economy, with the public sector paving the way for the private sector to increase investment and innovation. Similarly, the Gyeon

PoliticsJuly 2, 2021

[Newsmaker] Poll shows former prosecution chief Yoon slightly ahead of Gyeonggi Gov. Lee

A new poll on prospective presidential contenders released Friday showed former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl with a slight edge over his ruling party rival, Gyeonggi Province Gov. Lee Jae-myung. In the survey by Gallup Korea, Yoon received 25 percent of support, up 4 percentage points from a month before. He overtook Lee, whose rating stayed put at 24 percent. The survey conducted from Tuesday to Thursday was the first opinion poll after Yoon, with no party allegiance, announced his inte

PoliticsJuly 2, 2021

[KH Explains] Who is Lee Jae-myung?

The life story of Gyeonggi Province Gov. Lee Jae-myung, one of the top contenders for the presidential election next March, is a quintessential rags-to-riches tale in South Korea. His policy initiatives and past works, as well as his political philosophy, have been controversial and criticized by many, but to call the path that he has walked to date as simply dramatic could be an understatement. From being a young factory worker to assuming the top gubernatorial post of this country, Lee is on

PoliticsJuly 2, 2021

Unification ministry says it does not know about Moon-Kim letter exchanges

The unification ministry on Friday said it is not aware of anything in connection with a news report that President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un exchanged letters to discuss the possibility of a video summit. On Friday, a local newspaper reported that Moon and Kim exchanged personal letters and discussed ways to resume inter-Korean talks via a virtual summit around the time of Moon's summit meeting with US President Biden in May. "We do not know in regard to the conten

North KoreaJuly 2, 2021

Army officer tests positive for COVID-19

An Army officer has tested positive for the new coronavirus, the defense ministry said Friday. The officer based in Yongin, 49 kilometers south of Seoul, was confirmed to have contracted COVID-19 after a support mission at a local coronavirus treatment center, according to the ministry. The latest case raised the total number of infections reported among the military population to 1,026. Nationwide, South Korea added 826 new infections Friday, marking a near six-month high as infections in t

DefenseJuly 2, 2021

Ex-prosecutor general's mother-in-law gets 3-year prison term

The mother-in-law of former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl, a leading presidential hopeful, was sentenced to three years in prison Friday, kicking off a political firestorm ahead of the 2022 election. The local district court in Uijeongbu, 23 kilometers north of Seoul, convicted the 74-year-old, surnamed Choi, of collaborating with three business partners to establish a medical foundation and open a long-term care hospital for senior citizens in February 2013, despite having no medical quali

PoliticsJuly 2, 2021