W13tr cash handout likely top agenda for Yoon's 1st meeting with Lee

Democratic Party of Korea Chair Rep. Lee Jae-myung's proposal to dole out 250,000 won ($182) to every South Korean appears to be the top agenda item in a highly anticipated meeting between Lee and President Yoon Suk Yeol, likely to take place this week after the opposition party's sweeping victory in the general election. Lee said Friday in a live streamed meeting with his party members that he "spoke briefly with President Yoon over the phone and accepted his offer to hold a meet

PoliticsApril 21, 2024

Paraguay introduces Korean as 2nd foreign language subject

Starting this year, middle and high school students in Paraguay can learn Korean at schools as a second foreign language subject, according to the Ministry of Education on Saturday. The Education Ministry disclosed the signing of a memorandum of understanding with its Paraguayan counterpart, which officially added the Korean language to its second foreign language list for schools in Paraguay. Amid growing demand for Korean studies in Paraguay due to the popularity of Korean cultural content, th

Social AffairsApril 21, 2024

Opposition blames Yoon’s ‘China-exclusionary’ policies for South Korea’s G7 summit exclusion

The Democratic Party of Korea said Sunday that President Yoon Suk Yeol’s foreign policies, which it perceives as isolating China, were the reason behind South Korea's exclusion from this year’s Group of Seven summit scheduled for July in Italy. The major opposition party said the exclusion in the forthcoming G7 summit “comes as South Korea, under Yoon, has been strengthening its solidarity with Western countries including the US and Japan at the expense of our relations wi

PoliticsApril 21, 2024

Court orders business suspension for pharmacy opened by former employee in same building

A court ruled in favor of a pharmacy that took legal action against a former employee who opened a competing business in the same building, on the grounds that such action goes against good morals and social order. A court in Ulsan said Sunday that the plaintiff applied for an injunction to prohibit the business operations of a new pharmacy, which was opened in the same building in January by its former part-time pharmacist. The plaintiff claimed that its former employee, after working there f

Social AffairsApril 21, 2024

Over 700 civilians visit military hospitals amid doctors' walkout

Military hospitals nationwide have treated more than 700 civilians since opening their doors to the public at a full scale in mid-February, the defense ministry said Sunday, amid the protracted walkout by trainee doctors. Military hospital emergency rooms became fully accessible to civilians to help address concerns of health care disruptions after thousands of trainee doctors began the walkout on Feb. 19 in protest of a government plan to sharply increase medical school seats next year. As of F

Social AffairsApril 21, 2024

Top N. Korean agriculture official departs for Russia

North Korea's top agriculture official has embarked on a trip to Russia, Pyongyang's state media said Sunday, amid chronic food shortages in the North. A state agriculture commission delegation led by chairman Ri Chol-man, who doubles as a cabinet vice premier, left for Russia by plane Saturday, according to the Korean Central News Agency. In a Facebook post, the Russian Embassy in Pyongyang said Ri is scheduled to hold talks with Russia's Agriculture Minister Dmitry Patrushev and

North KoreaApril 21, 2024

Blinken to discuss N. Korea, Taiwan, Middle East during China visit next week: official

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel to China next week to discuss an array of issues, including North Korea's "threatening" rhetoric and "reckless" actions, a senior US official has said. Blinken plans to visit Shanghai and Beijing from Wednesday to Friday for talks with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and other senior officials in an endeavor, which the official said builds on America's push to "responsibly" manage the Sino-US relationship t

Foreign AffairsApril 21, 2024

Doctors' association rejects govt. proposal on flexible expansion of med school quota

The Korean Medical Association, the country's biggest lobby group for doctors, on Saturday rejected the government's proposal to grant universities autonomy in deciding their medical school quota by a range of 50 to 100 percent for the 2025 academic year. "We recognize that the government's announcement is a deliberate attempt to address the current situation," the KMA said in a statement after its emergency committee meeting. "But it is not a fundamental solution." The gover

Social AffairsApril 21, 2024

Vice FM visits UAE for talks on economic, energy cooperation

First Vice Foreign Minister Kim Hong-kyun has visited the United Arab Emirates for discussions on strengthening cooperation in core areas of mutual interest, his office said Saturday. Kim met with Khaldoon Khalifa Al Mubarak, chairman of the Executive Affairs Authority of Abu Dhabi, and Ahmed Ali Al Sayegh, minister of state at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on Friday for talks on boosting cooperation in the areas of economy, peaceful nuclear power, the defense industry and energy, according t

Foreign AffairsApril 20, 2024

S. Korean adults read books less than ever before: report

Nearly 6 out of 10 South Koreans read less than one book in a year, a recent report by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism showed Thursday. According to the report, 43 percent of the population read at least one book between September of 2022 and August of 2023. This was down 4.5 percentage points compared to the previous results of the biennial study released in 2021, and was the lowest figure since the government commenced the study in 1994. The survey was conducted on 5,000 adults a

Social AffairsApril 20, 2024

Details of meeting between Yoon, opposition leader undecided: presidential office

Details, including the time and form, of a proposed meeting between President Yoon Suk Yeol and main opposition leader Lee Jae-myung have yet to be set, the presidential office said Saturday. In a message to the press, Yoon's office also dismissed media reports that the date for what would be their first-ever meeting has been confirmed. On Friday, the presidential office said Yoon proposed holding the meeting next week after congratulating Lee of the Democratic Party and other party members

PoliticsApril 20, 2024

Chinese man behind drug scam targeting teens nabbed in Cambodia

A Chinese national suspected of supplying drugs that were used for a high-profile scam case, where young students were deceived into consuming drug-laced drinks, has been arrested in Cambodia, South Korea's spy agency said Friday. The National Intelligence Service, which has been probing the case in cooperation with the Cambodian police, said the 38-year-old charged with supplying methamphetamine to the drug ring that produced and distributed the beverages was apprehended in Phnom Penh on

Social AffairsApril 19, 2024

Seoul envoy for N.K. human rights urges solidarity in Argentina, Mexico

South Korea's envoy for North Korean human rights visited Argentina and Mexico for discussions on improving the rights situation in Pyongyang, the foreign ministry said Friday. Ambassador Lee Shin-wha met government officials, experts and activists from nongovernmental organizations during her four-day trip to the Latin American countries, according to the ministry. In Buenos Aires, she called for the international community's support and attention to the North's human rights viol

North KoreaApril 19, 2024

Yoon, Romanian president to hold summit in S. Korea next week

Romanian President Klaus Iohannis will visit South Korea next week to hold a summit with President Yoon Suk Yeol and discuss cooperation in arms and nuclear energy, among other sectors, Yoon's office said Friday. Iohannis will pay an official visit to South Korea from Monday to Thursday, during which the leaders will meet to discuss areas of "strategic cooperation" between the two countries, the presidential office said. The two held talks last July on the sidelines of a North Atl

Foreign AffairsApril 19, 2024

S. Korea voices strong regrets over Japanese textbooks distorting wartime history

South Korea lodged a strong protest against Japan on Friday after Tokyo approved new school textbooks that downplay the coercive nature of its wartime atrocities and reinforce its territorial claims to Dokdo. The foreign ministry also called in Japanese Ambassador to South Korea Koichi Aiboshi to deliver the formal protest message after Tokyo's education ministry approved two history textbooks for middle school students. The textbooks were said to have been approved last month, but the anno

Foreign AffairsApril 19, 2024

Local govts. seek to attract foreign residents amid population decline

A number of South Korea's local governments are actively seeking to attract long-term foreign national residents by offering region-specific work visas, amidst the country's population decline. The city of Busan announced on Friday that it will accept applications from international students who graduated from universities in the Busan area for its F-2-R region-specific visas until May 10. Under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Justice, the F-2-R visa allows foreign nationals to liv

Social AffairsApril 19, 2024

Yoon offers first one-on-one meeting with opposition leader next week

President Yoon Suk Yeol has invited main opposition leader Lee Jae-myung to their first one-on-one meeting through a brief phone call, the presidential office said Friday. In a surprise 5-minute phone call between the two, Yoon asked Lee to meet him next week at Yongsan, where the presidential office is located, an official at the presidential office told reporters. In his first phone call to Lee, Yoon added that he hoped to frequently meet from now on to discuss national affairs “over tea

PoliticsApril 19, 2024

Main opposition seeks to railroad more pending bills ahead of new parliament

The main opposition said Friday it was looking to railroad more contentious bills before the new parliament members are sworn in, a day after it passed an amended version of the revision to the Grain Management Act that was vetoed by President Yoon Suk Yeol last year. Democratic Party of Korea leader Lee Jae-myung emphasized the urgency of passing key bills, including an amendment to the law that strengthens protection for victims of real estate fraud, before the current assembly term concludes

PoliticsApril 19, 2024

Only 1 in 4 assembly election winners made climate policy pledges: report

Only 25 percent of 254 directly elected National Assembly representatives during the April 10 general election made climate-related policy pledges, according to a report issued by a coalition of 16 non-profit environmental organizations, including Local Energy Lab, on Thursday. Out of the 63 elected representatives who have presented climate policies, 53 belong to the liberal main opposition Democratic Party of Korea and 10 belong to the conservative ruling People Power Party. Additionally, one

Social AffairsApril 19, 2024

Korean Muslim YouTuber's plan to build mosque already in trouble

South Korean Muslim YouTuber Daud Kim, who announced his plan to build a mosque on land he purchased in Incheon, faces myriad challenges, including a request to terminate the land contract, difficulties in obtaining permission due to road conditions, and resistance from the local neighborhood. Kim, a content creator in his 30s with more than 5.52 million YouTube subscribers, uploaded a post on his Instagram on April 11 announcing his plans to build a mosque, a Muslim place of worship, on land th

Social AffairsApril 19, 2024