Yoon's pre-recorded interview could be aired on Feb. 7: report

President Yoon Suk Yeol is considering holding a pre-recorded interview with public broadcaster KBS as pressure builds to address the alleged graft scandal involving first lady Kim Keon Hee, according to news reports on Friday. KBS is reportedly considering airing the interview next Wednesday, shortly before the Seollal holiday, or Korea's Lunar New Year, which falls on Feb. 10. The presidential office declined to confirm the reports as of Friday morning. KBS is currently led by Park Min, who th

PoliticsFeb. 2, 2024

N. Korea fires several cruise missiles off west coast: JCS

North Korea fired several cruise missiles off its west coast Friday, the South Korean military said, in the latest in a series of the North's cruise missile launches this year. The Joint Chiefs of Staff said it detected the North's launch at around 11 a.m. from its west coast. It did not specify the number of missiles. "While strengthening our monitoring and vigilance, our military has been closely coordinating with the United States to monitor additional signs of North Korea's provocations

North KoreaFeb. 2, 2024

N. Korean leader calls for bolstering navy's war readiness during visit to shipyard

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has called for strengthening the country's navy to step up war preparations and protect maritime sovereignty during a visit to a shipyard for warships, state media said Friday. Kim made the remarks as the North has been dialing up tensions on the Korean Peninsula in the new year -- an election year for South Korea and the United States -- with weapons tests and harshly worded rhetoric. North Korea recently conducted three cruise missile launches in a week, in

North KoreaFeb. 2, 2024

US admiral says 'symbiotic' NK-Russia cooperation runs counter to global peace principles

The nominee for US Indo-Pacific Command chief expressed deep concerns Thursday over the burgeoning military partnership between North Korea and Russia, portraying it as a "symbiotic" one that goes against the principles of global peace. During a confirmation hearing of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Adm. Samuel Paparo, currently US Pacific Fleet commander, also noted that Russia might have given "potentially high-end" technology to the North in return for the North'

Foreign AffairsFeb. 2, 2024

Japan removes monument for Korean forced labor victims despite criticism

A Japanese local government has taken down a memorial stone for Korean victims of Japan's wartime forced labor at a public park earlier this week despite opposition from activist groups. Authorities from Gunma Prefecture began pulling down the stone on Monday and finalized the removal on Wednesday, Japan's Asahi Shimbun newspaper reported the next day. Aerial photographs taken by the news outlet showed the remains of what appeared to the base of the memorial stone smashed into pieces

Foreign AffairsFeb. 1, 2024

N. Korean delegation to visit Moscow on Feb. 13: Russian lawmaker

A North Korean delegation may visit Moscow later this month and a Russian delegation plans to make a reciprocal trip to Pyongyang in March, a Russian lawmaker said Thursday. The North Koreans are expected to visit the lower house of the Russian parliament on Feb. 13, and Russian lawmakers plan to reciprocate their visit the next month, Kazbek Taysaev, a deputy of the Communist Party, told Russia's Sputnik news agency. The delegations' planned visits come as the two nations have been se

North KoreaFeb. 1, 2024

Main opposition decides not to delay expansion of workplace safety law

The main opposition party on Thursday rejected the proposals from both the Cabinet and the ruling party to temporarily halt the enforcement of the wider implementation of the workplace safety law, which seeks to add accountability for small and medium-sized business owners for serious industrial accidents. The Democratic Party of Korea has decided not to accede to the request for a two-year extension of the grace period for companies with fewer than 50 employees. Following an initial two-year gr

PoliticsFeb. 1, 2024

Parties look underground for solution to train noise

The main opposition leader on Thursday rolled out a set of pledges aimed at reducing subway and railway noise pollution, a day after the ruling party announced its own plans to resolve similar issues. Visiting Sindorim Station in Seoul, Democratic Party of Korea Chair Lee Jae-myung pledged to launch a renovation project that would relocate several elevated railways across the country underground. The parties' pledges aim to win over voters suffering from noise from train and subway lines in

PoliticsFeb. 1, 2024

Court finds teacher guilty of abusing popular cartoonist’s son

A South Korean court on Thursday handed down the suspended sentence of a 2 million won ($1,500) fine to a special education teacher for abusing the autistic child of a popular cartoonist and internet celebrity, Joo Ho-min. Suwon District Court found the defendant guilty of child abuse, based on a tape recording of a conversation between the teacher and Joo's son. The defendant was recorded telling the 10-year-old child during class, "bad manners are nasty, that means you. Oh, I hate yo

Social AffairsFeb. 1, 2024

Seohyeon Station killer sentenced to life in prison

Choi Won-jong, the 23-year-old man whose stabbing rampage near Seohyeon Station in Gyeonggi Province last year killed two and injured a dozen people, was sentenced to life in prison Thursday by the Suwon District Court. The court found Choi guilty on multiple charges of murder, attempted murder, and intent to commit murder, and ordered him to be tracked via an electronic ankle monitor for 30 years if he is released on parole. "(The defendant) sparked fear that anyone could be a victim of

Social AffairsFeb. 1, 2024

Seoul's Han River water-bus service to launch in October

A water-bus service that runs along the Han River will commence in October, announced the Seoul Metropolitan Government on Thursday. During its press briefing, the city government said that the “Hangang River Bus” will operate a water route through seven docks in Magok, Mangwon, Yeouido, Jamwon, Oksu, Ttukseom and Jamsil. The Seoul Metropolitan Government also added that it plans to add a route that connects Gimpo and Seoul next year after consulting with officials from Gimpo to impr

Social AffairsFeb. 1, 2024

Seoul’s defense chief to head to Middle East in first overseas trip

Shin Won-sik, the South Korean Minister of National Defense, on Thursday embarked on a trip to three Middle Eastern countries of the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Qatar. He will begin the trip with a meeting with his UAE counterpart, Mohamed Mubarak Fadhel Al Mazrouei on Friday. He will also visit the Akh unit, one of whose chief aims is to protect Korean nationals in the region in contingencies. He will then travel to Saudi Arabia on Saturday to attend the second World Defense Show in

PoliticsFeb. 1, 2024

Yoon touts doctors' immunity to salvage shortage sectors

President Yoon Suk Yeol on Thursday said the government would pursue legislation to alleviate the legal risks from medical accidents for medical staff. The conservative administration said that doctors' immunity from prosecution in relation to medical accidents could help doctors and other medical staff focus on their duty to take care of their patients. South Korea is suffering a chronic shortage of medical staff, including doctors. While restricting lawsuits seeking criminal punishment for med

PoliticsFeb. 1, 2024

S. Korea, EU, others condemn Myanmar atrocities

Eight countries including South Korea, together with the European Union, joined forces on Thursday to denounce the atrocities and human rights violations committed by Myanmar's junta in a joint statement on Thursday. A joint statement was issued on the same day Myanmar's military seized power in a dawn coup on Feb. 1, 2021, and overthrew the democratically elected government. "We condemn in the strongest possible terms the military regime’s ongoing atrocities and human right

Foreign AffairsFeb. 1, 2024

Growing number of young civil servants quit

South Korea has been seeing a consistent increase in the number of young government workers quitting, indicating a rapid change in the perception of what had once been considered a dream job. In 2021, 3,123 government employees quit in their first year, more than triple the 951 in 2018, according to the recent figures by the Government Employees Pension Service. A total of 12,076 civil servants who worked less than three years before resigning in 2021, which was more than double the 5,166 in 201

Social AffairsFeb. 1, 2024

Teenager who attacked lawmaker claims to have thrown coffee at Yoo Ah-in

The 14-year-old middle school student suspected of attacking ruling party lawmaker Bae Hyun-jin has claimed he was the person who threw coffee at actor Yoo Ah-in last year, according to local media reports, Wednesday. According to Yonhap News, the teenage suspect called the media outlet in December and said he was the one filmed throwing coffee and a bottle at Yoo in May 2023, as the 37-year-old actor exited a police station after being questioned over drug use allegations. The assailant, who wa

Social AffairsFeb. 1, 2024

Seoul to transform 8-lane highway into floating park

The Seoul Metropolitan Government on Thursday unveiled a set of plans to overhaul a portion of Seoul city’s eight-lane highway, Olympicdaero, with a public park that covers a subterranean roadway by 2027. This proposal is part of a wider project to make the city more pedestrian-friendly. Currently, it is difficult to access Banpo Hangang Park on foot because it is blocked by Olympicdaero. People have to use a pedestrian flyover to reach the park by walking. “The plan is to create a p

Social AffairsFeb. 1, 2024

2 firefighters die battling blaze at meat packing plant

Two firefighters who were trapped while responding to a fire at a four-story meat processing factory in Mungyeong, North Gyeongsang Province, late Wednesday were found dead early Thursday, fire authorities said. The Gyeongbuk Fire Service Headquarters said that officials retrieved the bodies of the two firefighters at 1:01 a.m. and 4:14 a.m., respectively, adding that they were around five to seven meters from each other at the time of the discovery. The two firefighters -- reportedly a 27-year-

Social AffairsFeb. 1, 2024

Midnight street race crash at Seoul highway injures 3

A recent street race between two drivers on the Olympicdaero highway in Seoul resulted in an accident injuring three people, Gangnam police officials said Thursday. According to Gangnam Police Station, a three-way collision involving a BMW, Mercedes sedan and taxi occurred on the Seoul highway near the southern end of Seongsu Bridge in Gangnam-gu, southern Seoul, at around 12:20 a.m. Tuesday. Investigators found that the accident was caused by the drivers of the BMW and Mercedes, driven respecti

Social AffairsFeb. 1, 2024

Cuba's new envoy to NK assumes post amid Pyongyang's move to resume diplomacy

Cuba's new ambassador to North Korea has begun his duties, according to the North's state media Thursday, as countries having friendly ties with North Korea have ramped up diplomatic activities in the secretive regime since the opening of its border. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un was presented with the credentials of Cuban Ambassador Eduardo Luis Garcia Correa from Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel, according to the Korean Central News Agency. The letter of credence was received by C

North KoreaFeb. 1, 2024