Fare boxes in 171 Seoul buses to be removed under all-digital payment test program

The Seoul city government said Sunday it will remove fare collection boxes from more than 170 Seoul city buses starting in October to test the operation of an all-digital fare payment system. Fare boxes from 171 buses on eight Seoul city lines run by two companies will be removed from October until March, while new mobile QR codes will be placed at stations to allow purchases of digital bus cards, according to city officials. The number of bus units subject to the all-digital trial program rep

Social AffairsAug. 22, 2021

US considers American bases in S. Korea housing site for Afghan evacuees: report

The United States is considering using American military bases in South Korea as one of the housing sites for evacuees from Afghanistan, along with other overseas bases, including those in Japan, the Wall Street Journal has reported. The Pentagon is "looking at American bases in Japan, Korea, Germany, Kosovo, Bahrain and Italy" as existing housing sites in Qatar and elsewhere are filling up quickly, the paper reported Saturday (US time), citing unidentified officials. The report also

DefenseAug. 22, 2021

Pope Francis thanks Korean Catholics for vaccine share drive, prays for Korean peace

Pope Francis on Saturday thanked the South Korean Catholic community for sharing donations to provide COVID-19 vaccines to poor countries and prayed for the continued efforts toward the reconciliation of the Korean Peninsula. In a special papal message delivered by South Korean archbishop Lazzaro You Heung-sik, Pope Francis praised the generosity of Korean Catholics' vaccine-related donations recently delivered to the Vatican, saying, "This is a strong invitation for a greater commitment t

Foreign AffairsAug. 22, 2021

New COVID-19 cases dip to 1,600s, virus curbs extended for 2 weeks

South Korea's daily new coronavirus fell back to the 1,600s on Sunday due to fewer tests over the weekend, health authorities said, yet tough restrictions are to be extended to battle the fast surge of the outbreak driven by the more transmissible delta variant. The country added 1,628 more COVID-19 cases, including 1,590 local infections, raising the total caseload to 236,366, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). Sunday's tally was down from 2,052 on Friday and

Social AffairsAug. 22, 2021

S. Korea in vaccine swap talks with Romania: foreign ministry

South Korea is in vaccine swap talks with Romania, the foreign ministry said, denying a news report that the European country plans to provide the South with coronavirus vaccines for free. Romanian national news agency Agerpres reported earlier that the country decided to give South Korea 450,000 doses of Moderna's vaccine on humanitarian grounds. Seoul's foreign ministry said the two countries are in talks about vaccines but denied that vaccines will be provided for free. "Reports about

Foreign AffairsAug. 22, 2021

DP's presidential hopefuls launch online campaign in metaverse camp

Six presidential hopefuls from the ruling Democratic Party (DP) have embarked on a collective online campaign following the opening ceremony of their metaverse camp last week. Metaverse, a combination of meta (meaning beyond) and verse (from universe), refers to a three-dimensional virtual shared world in which all activities can take place with the help of augmented- and virtual-reality services. The DP has leased parts of "Metropolis," a metaverse program developed by South Korea's

PoliticsAug. 22, 2021

Ex-President Chun diagnosed with blood cancer: sources

Former President Chun Doo-hwan has been diagnosed with multiple myeloma, a type of blood cancer that affects plasma cells, sources familiar with the matter said Saturday. The 90-year-old former military strongman has been hospitalized in Yonsei Severance Hospital in western Seoul since he returned from a 660-kilometer round trip to the southwestern city of Gwangju to attend an appellate court hearing on a defamation case. The gaunt-looking Chun appeared at the Gwangju District Court's appellat

PoliticsAug. 21, 2021

[Photo News] Jeju Island sees influx of travelers despite strong social distancing measures

Beachgoers play in the water at Geumneung Beach, Jeju Island, on Thursday despite the Level 4 social distancing rules, South Korea’s most stringent of a four-tier system, being in effect. Vacationers donning masks keep a safe distance from each other while enjoying the beach. According to the Level 4 social distancing rules on Jeju Island, all twelve beaches are to be closed and no more than two people can meet for personal reasons after 6 p.m. from August 19th to August 29th. In addit

Social AffairsAug. 21, 2021

[Weekender] Laid to rest, freedom fighter puts veterans in limelight

Hong Beom-do, a highly revered independence fighter against the Japanese occupation of Korea, was laid to rest at home Wednesday, 78 years after his death in Kazakhstan. The previous day, President Moon Jae-in posthumously awarded him the highest national order of merit. At a burial ceremony held at Daejeon National Cemetery, Moon called Hong a war hero and the commander-in-chief of the Korean Liberation Army, whose return he said “gives hope to South Koreans working together to find thei

DefenseAug. 21, 2021

Moon says vaccinations 'faster than expected' as half of population gets first shots

President Moon Jae-in said Saturday that South Korea's vaccinations are proceeding at a faster pace than expected as over half of the population has received at least one shot as he vowed to speed up the inoculation drive to curb the COVID-19 pandemic. A total of 25.7 million people have received their first shots of COVID-19 vaccines as of 11 a.m., accounting for around 50 percent of the country's population, while those who are fully vaccinated reached 11.5 million, according to the Korea Dis

Social AffairsAug. 21, 2021

New cases below 2,000 for first time in 2 days, virus curbs extended for 2 weeks

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases fell below 2,000 for the first time in two days Saturday, while authorities are set to extend the tough restrictions to battle the fast surge of the virus driven by the more transmissible delta variant. The country added 1,880 more COVID-19 cases, including 1,814 local infections, raising the total caseload to 234,739, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). The daily caseload was down from 2,152 on Thursday and 2,052 on Fr

Social AffairsAug. 21, 2021

New cases over 2,000 for 2nd day; virus curbs extended for 2 weeks

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases remained in the 2,000s for the second straight day Friday amid little signs of letup, triggering the extension of the toughest level of virus restrictions for two more weeks. The country added 2,052 more COVID-19 cases, including 2,001 local infections, raising the total caseload to 232,859, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). The daily caseload reached 2,152 the previous day, the second-largest number recorded since th

Social AffairsAug. 20, 2021

Can we ‘live with COVID-19?’ Korea may be able to find out after Chuseok

Korea may be able to find out whether it can “live with COVID-19” after Chuseok, the national holiday falling later in September this year, when more than 70 percent of the population will have received at least one dose of a vaccine. The Ministry of Health and Welfare’s senior official Lee Ki-il told a news briefing Friday that discussions were underway to shift Korea’s strategy away from community mitigation that aims to prevent spread and protect all people. “

Social AffairsAug. 20, 2021

Korea to ease COVID-19 rules for vaccinated people

South Korea will start easing social distancing rules for fully vaccinated people starting next week, with tougher rules reserved for those that are yet to be vaccinated. The Ministry of Health and Welfare announced Friday that after full vaccination -- 14 days after a single-dose vaccine or the second dose of a two-dose regimen --, people will be exempt from the two-people rule in the evening hours.  After 6 p.m., no more than two people can gather at a time under the curr

Social AffairsAug. 20, 2021

Top nuke envoys of S. Korea, US to hold talks on N. Korea next week

The chief nuclear envoys of South Korea and the United States will hold talks next week to discuss efforts to resume dialogue with North Korea, the foreign ministry said Friday. Sung Kim, the US special representative for North Korea, will arrive in Seoul on Saturday for a four-day visit and will hold talks with his South Korean counterpart, Noh Kyu-duk, on Monday, the ministry said in a release. It will mark his second trip to South Korea since taking office as the US nuclear envoy under the

DefenseAug. 20, 2021

Vaccine reservation rate for under-50s lower than expected

The reservation rate for COVID-19 vaccines among people between the ages of 18 and 49 has been lower than expected, creating an obstacle in the government’s plan to achieve herd immunity by November. According to the Central Disease Control Headquarters, the vaccine reservation rate for the age group, about 15.37 million people, was 61.3 percent as of Thursday at midnight. Online reservations for the age group opened on August 9 with a 10-day rotational booking system, in which people

Social AffairsAug. 20, 2021

S. Korea to talk N. Korea with US, Russian envoys

South Korea’s chief nuclear negotiator, Noh Kyu-duk, will meet separately with his US and Russian counterparts to discuss North Korea’s denuclearization next week, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Friday. The South and US are seeking diplomacy with the North to resume nuclear talks, amid Pyongyang’s strong protest against the Seoul-Washington military drills that are due to end next week. The North, which routinely describes the drills as a rehearsal for invasion, warned t

North KoreaAug. 20, 2021

Vice FM Choi discusses bilateral ties, maritime security with Nigerian FM

First Vice Foreign Minister Choi Jong-kun has met with Nigeria's top diplomat during a visit to the African nation and agreed to work together to move forward economic and other ties between the two countries forward, the foreign ministry said Friday. In Thursday's meeting with Foreign Minister Zubairu Dada, Choi said that the relations between the two countries have steadily developed based on decadeslong economic cooperation and offered to further strengthen the ties to that end, the ministry

Diplomatic CircuitAug. 20, 2021

Ex-Finance Minister Kim announces presidential bid as independent

Former Finance Minister Kim Dong-yeon announced Friday he will run in the presidential election slated for March as an independent. "I will run in next year's presidential election," Kim said during a press conference in his hometown of Eumseong, North Chungcheong Province. He added he would win the race outside of the political establishment, explaining the ruling and main opposition parties are only interested in maintaining their vested rights rather than improving the livelihoods

PoliticsAug. 20, 2021

Biden reaffirms commitment to S. Korea’s defense amid Afghan withdrawal

US President Joe Biden said Thursday in the US that his country is committed to the mutual defense treaty with South Korea, noting the situation in South Korea is different from Afghanistan, where the Taliban swiftly took over the government after the withdrawal of US troops. The US, whose military still has wartime operational control of South Korea’s armed forces, has been pressed over its commitment to collective security as chaos grips Afghanistan. “We are in a situation where

Foreign AffairsAug. 20, 2021