S. Korea's new COVID-19 cases dip below 300,000 as omicron wave tops out

South Korea's new daily COVID-19 cases dipped below 300,000 on Friday as the omicron wave that gripped the country for months appears to be topping out with one in every four people having had the virus. The country reported 280,273 new COVID-19 infections, including 48 cases from overseas, bringing the total caseload to 13,375,818, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. South Korea has seen a downward trend in daily COVID-19 infections for the first time in about three mon

Social AffairsApril 1, 2022

S. Korea, Bangladesh seek closer ties on ICT, infrastructure

Senior diplomats of South Korea and Bangladesh held policy consultations on strengthening cooperation in technology, infrastructure and other fields, Seoul's foreign ministry said Friday. First Vice Foreign Minister Choi Jong-kun met with his Bangladesh counterpart, Masud Bin Momen, in the Bangladesh capital of Dhaka on Thursday (local time) to discuss ways to expand substantive economic cooperation between the two nations, according to the ministry. The two sides agreed to broaden their economi

Foreign AffairsApril 1, 2022

NK leader urges 'ideological offensive' by propaganda officials

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un took a commemorative photo in person with the participants of a workshop of the ruling party's propaganda officials and called for accelerated "revolution through a powerful ideological offensive," according to the country's state media Friday. Apparently, Kim paid keen attention to the workshop, which opened in Pyongyang on Monday and brought together officials in the "information field" of the Workers' Party of Korea. He sent a letter to the

North KoreaApril 1, 2022

Yoon to meet with ambassadors from 6 Arab nations

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol will meet with the ambassadors from six Arab nations Friday, his spokesperson said. The six countries -- Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates -- are the member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council and supply 68 percent of South Korea's crude oil imports. Yoon and the ambassadors will discuss cooperation in energy, construction and infrastructure at a time of increasing volatility in the energy market, Kim Eun-hye said during a pr

PoliticsApril 1, 2022

[Graphic News] Number of new marriages in S. Korea hits all-time low

　The number of South Koreans getting married tumbled to a new all-time low in 2021 amid the coronavirus pandemic and young people’s changing attitude toward marriage, government data showed.  　The number of couples tying the knot in Asia’s fourth-largest economy came to 193,000 last year, down 9.8 percent from the previous year, according to the data from Statistics Korea.  　The number is the lowest since 1970, when the statistical agency began compiling related data, an

NationalApril 1, 2022

[Interactive] Monthly salary of wage workers up 3.6%

   The average monthly salary of wage earners rose 3.6 percent on-year in 2020 from a year earlier despite the COVID-19 pandemic, a government report showed.  South Korean wage workers earned a monthly average of 3.2 million won ($2,669) in December 2020, up from 3.09 million won a year earlier, according to the report from Statistics Korea.  The figure for workers with large companies stood at 5.29 million won, with those in smaller firms earning 2.59 million won.  &n

NationalApril 1, 2022

As it happened: South Korea’s deadly omicron experiment

South Korea retreated from its pandemic response strategy known as “test, trace, treat” on the premise that with omicron, COVID-19 had transformed into a more flu-like disease. Omicron’s emergence called for a new strategy “attuned to the changes in the characteristics of the virus” and a departure from the earlier ways of handling the pandemic, health officials have said. The touted promise of a milder virus is fading by the day so far into Korea’s omicron

Social AffairsMarch 31, 2022

S.Korea, US approve directive to rewrite war plan, begin process in earnest

Seoul and Washington have agreed on a planning directive to develop a new operational war plan to address North Korea’s mounting threats and a changing security environment, allowing their militaries to begin the process in earnest. Chairman of South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Won In-choul and his US counterpart Gen. Mark Milley made the decision during their in-person bilateral meeting held on Wednesday afternoon (local time) at the US Indo-Pacific Command Headquarters, Ca

DefenseMarch 31, 2022

US calls for China to support holding N.Korea accountable for missile launches

A senior US diplomat called for China to lend its support and join the US-led move to hold North Korea responsible for its ballistic missile launches amid growing concern over the UN Security Council’s continuous failure to take concerted actions. US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield held a rare face-to-face meeting with China’s Special Representative for Korean Peninsula Affairs Liu Xiaoming on Wednesday in New York. “Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield emphasized the

North KoreaMarch 31, 2022

S. Korea’s severe cases hit another record high

South Korea’s severe cases reached another record high for the 24 hours of Wednesday, the country’s health authorities reported Thursday. According to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, the number of critically ill patients reached 1,315 on Wednesday, up 14 from the previous record set a day earlier. The number of severe cases has spiked in the last few days. The figure remained at around 1,100 in the third week of March, but the figure surpassed 1,200 on Saturday a

Social AffairsMarch 31, 2022

Ban on single-use plastics returns

　After a two-year hiatus during the pandemic, Korea has brought back the ban on in-store use of single-use products at food service businesses, causing mixed reactions from employees, customers and environmental activists. 　Starting Friday, customers dining in at restaurants, cafes, food stalls, and bars cannot use single-use products, including plastic cups, containers, wooden chopsticks, and toothpicks. The products will only be available for takeout or delivery service customers. 　The ba

Social AffairsMarch 31, 2022

Han Duck-soo touted as possible pick for prime minister as talented trade, diplomacy expert

Former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, armed with years of experience in trade and public affairs, is touted as a strong pick for prime minister of President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol’s coalition government. The 72-year-old trade expert had served as a prime minister during the Roh Moo-hyun administration from April 2007 to February 2008, being praised by many as a highly skilled talent in terms of administration from his 44-year-long career in the public sector. Born in Jeonju, North Jeolla Prov

PoliticsMarch 31, 2022

Transition team strongly denounces appointment of Moon brother's friend as DSME CEO

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol's transition team said Thursday it will ask the state auditor to look into the recent appointment of a friend of President Moon Jae-in's brother as CEO of a local shipbuilder under government control. Transition committee deputy spokesperson Won Il-hee made the remark after Park Doo-sun was named CEO of Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) earlier this week, denouncing the appointment as "irrational" and "shameless." "Da

PoliticsMarch 31, 2022

No discussions on S. Korea-US-Japan military training: ministry

South Korea, the United States and Japan have not discussed the idea of holding a trilateral military training "at all," a Seoul official said Thursday, dismissing a new report that Seoul has recently rejected a proposal for such combined drills. The local daily, Hankyoreh, reported Washington and Tokyo had repeatedly suggested the training in waters off the Korean Peninsula during high-level three-way consultations but that the liberal Moon Jae-in administration did not agree. "T

DefenseMarch 31, 2022

Space for cultural events eyed for Cheong Wa Dae after public opening

Cheong Wa Dae, South Korea's presidential office surrounded by vast green areas in the heart of Seoul, will likely turn into a space for various cultural events as well as a public park under President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol's incoming government, transition team officials said Thursday. Yoon's transition committee is considering transforming Cheong Wa Dae into a space for K-pop and Korean traditional music performances and various other cultural events, the officials said. Yoon has vowed to reloca

PoliticsMarch 31, 2022

Yoon considering visit to Camp Humphreys next week

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol is considering visiting the US military base Camp Humphreys in Pyeongtaek next week, sources said Thursday. The base is located some 70 kilometers south of Seoul and serves as the headquarters of the 28,500-strong US Forces Korea. Yoon will likely make the visit at the end of next week and meet with USFK Commander Gen. Paul LaCamera and other military leaders. Yoon's spokesperson, Kim Eun-hye, refused to confirm the plan but said it should be considered from the poi

PoliticsMarch 31, 2022

Suspended jail term finalized for ex-Busan vice mayor in bribery case

The Supreme Court on Thursday finalized a suspended prison sentence for a former vice Busan mayor accused of taking bribes from businessmen during his earlier stint at a financial watchdog. Yoo Jae-soo, who served as vice Busan mayor for economy from 2018-2019, was indicted in 2019 for taking cash and goods worth nearly 50 million won ($41,322) in bribes from four people, including heads of financial firms, between 2010 and 2018 while serving at the Financial Services Commission. A regional cour

PoliticsMarch 31, 2022

Yoon's spokesperson draws line at trilateral military exercise with US, Japan

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol's spokesperson said Thursday the incoming administration will likely seek stronger security cooperation with the United States and Japan but drew the line at trilateral military exercises. Kim Eun-hye's remark came after the Hankyoreh newspaper reported the same day the US and Japanese governments recently made repeated proposals to hold trilateral military exercises in waters around the Korean Peninsula but were rejected by Seoul. "South Korea-US-Japan combine

PoliticsMarch 31, 2022

Cheong Wa Dae voices regret over speculation on clothes of first lady

Cheong Wa Dae on Thursday expressed regret over what it called "indiscriminate" speculation that first lady Kim Jung-sook might have used taxpayer money to buy her clothes during President Moon Jae-in's five-year term. Park Soo-hyun, senior secretary for public communication, made the remarks a day after the presidential office denied the speculation that Kim might have used off-the-record expenses for her clothes. "We express regret over indiscriminate speculation raised by polit

PoliticsMarch 31, 2022

Yoon to meet with young exporters at KITA event

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol will visit the Korea International Trade Association (KITA) on Thursday and encourage young trade specialists, his spokesperson said. Yoon is scheduled to attend the graduation ceremony of KITA's Global Trade Experts Incubating Program (GTEP) and meet with the graduates of the program, according to Kim Eun-hye. It will mark Yoon's first visit to a business organization since his election. "Through the meeting with 'the national team of young exporters,' he will

PoliticsMarch 31, 2022