Moon to receive policy briefing on vaccine, antivirus efforts

President Moon Jae-in is set to receive a policy briefing on the country's vaccination plans and ongoing efforts to fight the new coronavirus this week, a presidential official said Sunday. Moon will hold a teleconference at Cheong Wa Dae on Monday with relevant ministers -- including Welfare Minister Kwon Deok-cheol, Food and Drug Safety Minister Kim Ganglip and Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency chief Jeong Eun-kyeong, according to the official. The officials are expected to report

PoliticsJan. 24, 2021

S. Korean, US defense chiefs reaffirm alliance in phone talks

South Korea's Defense Minister Suh Wook held telephone talks Sunday with newly confirmed US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, where the two reaffirmed the importance of their alliance and agreed to closely cooperate on developing it, Seoul's defense ministry said. During the dialogue, which took place upon Washington's request, the two defense chiefs agreed that the Seoul-Washington alliance is more important than ever and promised to cooperate on improving the relationship, as well as openly com

Foreign AffairsJan. 24, 2021

SFS appoints Tom Alexander as new assistant head of school

The Seoul Foreign School has appointed a financial expert in the education sector as its new assistant head of school - finance and operations, the school announced Sunday. Tom Alexander assumed the position this month after serving in various financial positions for independent schools across several major metropolitan areas. SFS is an international independent school in Seoul with more than 1,450 students aged 2 to 18. Alexander’s 35 years of financial experience, 17 years of them bein

Social AffairsJan. 24, 2021

[Feature] ‘Lost decade’ possible for South Korea as employment prospect dims among young job seekers

Landing a full-time job, climbing up the corporate ladder, complaining about higher-ups and being constantly bothered by team dinners is what 28-year-old Jang Hyeon-seok has dreamed of since graduating college in 2017. But the closest he has ever been to these dreams was just a three-month-long internship at a marketing startup last summer. Jang said he has submitted applications to hundreds of companies for a full-time job, but all he received were emails starting with “We are sorry to i

Social AffairsJan. 24, 2021

New virus cases under 400 again, alert in place against potential upticks

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases fell back below 400 on Sunday, following a brief rise a day earlier, but health authorities remain vigilant against possible upticks amid an apparent slowdown. The country added 392 more COVID-19 cases, including 369 locally transmitted infections, raising the total caseload to 75,084, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). Sunday's daily caseload was down from 431 cases reported the previous day. The third wave of COVID-

Social AffairsJan. 24, 2021

Watchdog set to announce results of probe into ex-Seoul mayor's alleged sexual abuse

The state human rights watchdog is set to announce the results of its investigation into former Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon's alleged sexual abuse of a secretary as early as this week. The National Human Rights Commission of Korea has been looking into allegations Park sexually harassed the former municipal government employee over several years until his death in an apparent suicide in July. The results will be discussed during a plenary meeting of the watchdog's members on Monday, according to

Social AffairsJan. 24, 2021

[Newsmaker] 3 missing as fishing boat capsizes near Geoje Island

GEOJE -- Search operations were under way off the southern island of Geoje after three crew members of a capsized fishing boat went missing on Saturday, authorities said. The 339-ton vessel capsized at around 4 p.m. in waters 1.11 kilometers southeast of the island, located some 400 km south of Seoul, with 10 crew members aboard -- nine South Koreans and one Indonesian -- according to the Coast Guard. Seven of them, including the Indonesian, have been rescued, but search operations were still

Social AffairsJan. 24, 2021

Korea calls new variants big risk in pandemic fight

South Korea's health authorities warned Saturday that their efforts to contain COVID-19 face a potentially major challenge from the spread of new variants. Kwon Joon-wook, deputy director of the Central Disease Control Headquarters, even raised the possibility that the nation will be drawn back into a "nightmare" similar to that in December last year, when the daily number of infections exceeded 1,000. "Mutant viruses are more contagious than existing ones," he said during

Social AffairsJan. 23, 2021

[Feature] Dispute rages over ban on propaganda leafleting

It all began in June. North Korea threatened retaliation over the cross-border launch of anti-North propaganda leaflets. Municipal leaders representing residents of border towns demanded a halt to the leafleting. A lawmaker drafted legislation that would ban the practice. The fate of the law, which was approved in the National Assembly in December and is set to take effect in late March, is hanging in the balance as critics have petitioned the Constitutional Court to review it, saying it infrin

North KoreaJan. 23, 2021

S. Korean, US security chiefs discuss Korea peace, global issues: Cheong Wa Dae

The top national security officials of South Korea and the United States agreed on the need for close bilateral cooperation in advancing the Korea peace process and the handling of global issues during their phone call Saturday, Cheong Wa Dae said. It was the first formal conversation between Suh Hoon, director of national security at Cheong Wa Dae, and his new American counterpart, Jake Sullivan, since the launch of the Joe Biden administration this week. Suh congratulated Sullivan on his ina

Diplomatic CircuitJan. 23, 2021

PM directs ministry to mull expanding in-person classes

Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun directed the education ministry Saturday to consider expanding in-person classes in schools in the new semester. South Korean schools mostly offered remote learning or limited physical attendance last year to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus. "This year should be somewhat different," Chung said at a meeting of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters in Seoul. "The Ministry of Education is directed to consult with healt

Social AffairsJan. 23, 2021

3 more service members diagnosed with coronavirus: defense ministry

Three South Korean service members have been newly confirmed to have been infected with COVID-19, bringing the total caseload in the military to 543, the defense ministry announced Saturday. Two Air Force soldiers in a base in Gapyeong, Gyeonggi Province, have been diagnosed with the virus while in quarantine following a report of confirmed cases, the ministry said. A total of 15 infections have been reported so far in the installation. Another solider at an Army unit in Suncheon, South Jeolla

DefenseJan. 23, 2021

New COVID-19 cases back above 400 as authorities warn of danger of variants

South Korea's daily new COVID-19 cases rose back to above 400 on Saturday, health authorities said. The country added 431 more COVID-19 cases, including 403 locally transmitted infections, raising the total caseload to 74,692, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). The number of new infections was tallied at 404 on Wednesday and 401 the following day. It then fell to 346 on Friday in the midst of weeks of toughened social distancing restrictions. Seoul, Gyeonggi

Social AffairsJan. 23, 2021

S. Korea confirms another case of highly pathogenic bird flu

South Korea confirmed another case of highly pathogenic bird flu in poultry Firday, raising the total caseload to 69. The latest case of the H5N8 strain of avian influenza (AI) came from an egg farm in Icheon, just south of Seoul, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. All poultry within a 3-kilometer radius of the infected farm were culled, officials said. The farm was raising 478,000 chickens. The country has discovered 69 cases of highly contagious bird flu since

Social AffairsJan. 22, 2021

Japanese FM says Tokyo won't appeal Seoul court ruling over wartime sexual slavery

The Japanese government will not appeal a Seoul court order to compensate South Korean women who were forced to work in military brothels during World War II, its foreign minister said Friday. Toshimitsu Motegi made the remarks hours before a midnight deadline to file an appeal against the landmar ruling, which rekindled diplomatic tensions between the two neighbors. On Jan. 8, the Seoul Central District Court ordered Tokyo to pay financial reparations of 100 million won ($91,300) each to 12 s

Foreign AffairsJan. 22, 2021

US govement isses movement restriction order for Kunsan base over virus cases

US Forces Korea (USFK) on Friday imposed movement restrictions on all individuals affiliated with its air base in the western city of Gunsan due to the recent coronavirus outbreak there. Under the order, travel to and from Kunsan Air Base is prohibited until Monday, though members can be granted exceptions “to perform assigned and authorized duties and missions only,” USFK said in a Facebook post. The directive came a day after three service members on the base tested positive for

Social AffairsJan. 22, 2021

Moon to accept Britain's invitation to G-7 summit, official says

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has formally invited South Korean President Moon Jae-in to an in-person G-7 summit, scheduled to be held in June, via a personal letter, Cheong Wa Dae said Friday. Moon plans to reply it, expressing his commitment to making contributions so that this year's summit of the G-7 nations can produce a significant accomplishment, according to Cheong Wa Dae spokesman Kang Min-seok. A presidential official later told reporters that they may construe the message as

PoliticsJan. 22, 2021

Seoul education office’s push for LGBT students protection faces opposition

Seoul education office’s push to protect LGBT students and eradicate discrimination at schools is facing opposition after the office released its 2021-23 draft plan to protect the human rights of students. In the draft plan, the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education included its plan to support and protect minority pupils –- from multicultural to LGBT students -- to make sure schools are free from hatred and discrimination for their safety and welfare. The education of

Social AffairsJan. 22, 2021

S. Korean, Costa Rican leaders discuss partnerships on coronavirus, green projects

South Korean President Moon Jae-in and his Costa Rican counterpart, Carlos Alvarado, had phone discussions Friday on the COVID-19 pandemic and other major issues including efforts to promote a green and emissions-free economy, Cheong Wa Dae said. Alvarado expressed his gratitude to South Korea for support related to the antivirus fight. The government has provided the Central American nation with high-efficiency KF-94 face masks, worth a total of around $1 million, and shared its virus control

Foreign AffairsJan. 22, 2021

Appellate court approves 7-year sentence for late Hanbo founder's son

An appellate court on Friday upheld a lower court's seven-year prison sentence for a son of Chung Tae-soo, the late founder of the now-defunct Hanbo Group, who was convicted of embezzlement and other crimes last year after 21 years on the run abroad. The Seoul High Court also ordered Chung Han-keun, the fourth son of the late Hanbo founder, to forfeit 40.13 billion won ($32.6 million) after finding him guilty of embezzlement, illicit capital flight and violating the foreign exchange law. The j

Social AffairsJan. 22, 2021