Military to raise troops' daily meal cost next month

The military will raise the average daily meal cost for service members by 14 percent to 10,000 won ($9) next month, the defense ministry said Thursday, amid criticism soldiers, especially those under coronavirus quarantine, are poorly fed. The decision was announced as the government launched an interagency task force to come up with measures to improve troops' living conditions following a series of complaints over inconveniences. The quality of military meals, in particular, gained attentio

DefenseJune 3, 2021

JCS chief, US Indo-Pacific commander vow to back diplomacy for denuclearization

Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) Chairman Gen. Won In-choul and US Indo-Pacific Command chief Adm. John C. Aquilino held talks in Seoul on Thursday and agreed to work together to back diplomatic efforts for denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, the military said. Aquilino flew here from Japan on Wednesday for a two-day visit as part of his first overseas trip to strengthen ties with allies since taking office in late April. "Gen. Won and Adm. Aquilino agreed to provide military support to

Foreign AffairsJune 3, 2021

N. Korea faces food shortage of 1.35m tons: think tank

North Korea is expected to face a food shortage of about 1.35 million tons this year affected by last summer's typhoons, flooding and a lack of farming materials amid the global pandemic, a state-run think tank said Thursday. According to a report by the Korea Development Institute, North Korea is presumed to have produced about 4.4 million tons of grains last year, down around 240,000 tons from a year earlier. Given that the North is thought to be in need of at least 5.75 million tons of food

North KoreaJune 3, 2021

[Graphic News] Nearly 7 out of 10 Koreans willing to take vaccine: poll

　Nearly 7 out of 10 South Koreans are willing to take vaccine shots to combat the coronavirus, a poll showed. 　According to the survey conducted from April 25-27 jointly by the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters and the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, 69.2 percent of 912 unvaccinated respondents said they would like to get vaccinated, up by 7.8 percentage points from a month ago. 　About 16.1 percent answered they would not take vaccine shots, while 14.7 perce

NationalJune 3, 2021

New cases stay in 600s for 2nd day; vaccination drive on roll

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases stayed in the 600s for the second consecutive day Thursday due to continued cluster infections, while the country's inoculation drive gains pace on a smooth vaccine supply. The country reported 681 more COVID-19 cases, including 672 local infections, raising the total caseload to 142,157, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. Daily infections remained in the 400s for the past three days partly due to fewer tests over the weekend.

Social AffairsJune 3, 2021

N. Korea urges youth to play leading role in achieving economic goals

North Korea's largest youth group on Thursday urged its members to play a leading role in the economic field to help achieve the country's economic goals. The Socialist Patriotic Youth League (SPYL) made the appeal at an enlarged meeting of the 10th congress Wednesday via a teleconference system, according to the official Korean Central News Agency. Mun Chol, chairman of the Central Committee, delivered a report saying that the SPYL is faced with the "honorable task" of developing th

North KoreaJune 3, 2021

Will Moon pardon Samsung chief?

President Moon Jae-in, who has so far excluded businesspeople when exercising his power to pardon criminals, may be mulling an exception for Lee Jae-yong, the imprisoned de facto leader of Samsung Group. According to Cheong Wa Dae sources, a subtle shift in the president’s tone was detected Wednesday at a luncheon meeting at the presidential office with the heads of the nation’s four largest conglomerates -- Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Kim Ki-nam, Hyundai Motor Chairman Chung

PoliticsJune 2, 2021

[Herald Interview] Vaccination only way out of COVID crisis: Israeli envoy

Vaccines are the only way of the coronavirus pandemic and an aggressive inoculation campaign is essential, the Israeli ambassador to South Korea says. Israel -- where 59 percent of the population has been fully vaccinated as of this week, far outstripping the rest of the world -- has lifted most of its COVID-19 restrictions. “Early on a decision was made that Israel would pursue several tracks vis-a-vis several pharma companies and would be willing to pay above market cost,” Ambas

Foreign AffairsJune 2, 2021

Student activists again burn Japanese flag in Seoul over Dokdo

South Korean university students burned a Japanese flag in Seoul for the second consecutive day on Wednesday in protest of the Tokyo government's claim to South Korea's easternmost islets of Dokdo. Members of the Korean Progressive University Student Union set the Rising Sun Flag, formerly used by the Japanese imperial army, on fire in front of Dongnimmun (independence) Gate in central Seoul in the afternoon after condemning the Japanese government and Tokyo Olympics organizers for claiming Dok

Foreign AffairsJune 2, 2021

NK leader's powerful sister likely to fill new 'first secretary' post in case of emergency: expert

The newly created No. 2 position at North Korea's ruling Workers' Party likely remains vacant and could be filled by leader Kim Jong-un's powerful sister Yo-jong in case of health issues or other emergencies, an expert said Wednesday. The North's ruling party revised its rules at a rare congress in January to include a new "first secretary" post right after leader Kim, drawing keen attention on who will assume the position. The revised rule stipulates that the first secretary is the

North KoreaJune 2, 2021

Declassified US document reveals US saw Choi Kyu-ha as ‘helpless president’

A host of newly declassified US documents was released to the South Korean government on Wednesday, revealing Washington’s assessment of Choi Kyu-ha as a “helpless president” against military general Chun Doo-hwan. Chun took power after a military coup in 1979, leading to the nationwide democracy movement the following year. 　 The State Department released 14 documents related to the May 18 Gwangju Democratic Uprising, including the full text report sent from the US Embassy i

Foreign AffairsJune 2, 2021

Yoon expresses willingness to run for president, lawmaker says

Former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl has privately expressed his willingness to run in next year's presidential election, an opposition lawmaker said Wednesday. Yoon is one of two leading potential presidential candidates, according to various opinion polls, though he has yet to declare his intent to run. "(Yoon) suggested that he will take the lead in the change of government with all his heart and soul," Rep. Kwon Seong-dong of the conservative People Power Party (PPP) told a r

PoliticsJune 2, 2021

Govt. probe team arrests 20 people, refers 529 others to prosecution over property speculation

The government said Wednesday its special probe team has arrested 20 people and reported over 529 others to the prosecution for further investigation after looking into various allegations of real estate speculation for about three months. Announcing an interim result of the probe, Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum said the team, involving the police, and tax and financial authorities, has so far investigated 646 cases and some 2,800 individuals. It has also seized profits worth some 90.8 billion w

PoliticsJune 2, 2021

Over half of Koreans agree to lower legal minimum age for presidential candidacy: poll

Over half of South Koreans are in favor of lowering the constitutional minimum age required for someone to run for president, a poll said Wednesday. According to Realmeter's poll of 500 adults nationwide, 50.3 percent consented to the need to revise the Constitution to bring down the minimum age for presidential candidacy currently set at 40. The survey found 44.8 percent of the respondents opposed the revision of the minimum candidacy age, the Seoul-based pollster said. Under the Constitutio

PoliticsJune 2, 2021

Indonesian ambassador to S. Korea awarded honorary Seoul citizenship

Indonesia's Ambassador to South Korea Umar Hadi was awarded honorary citizenship of Seoul Wednesday in recognition of his contributions to facilitating friendly exchanges between the two countries, the city government said. Since taking office as Indonesia's top envoy to South Korea in 2017, the ambassador has worked tirelessly to promote bilateral ties and enhance Seoul citizens' understanding of multiculturalism, according to the city government. Hadi, in particular, played a leading role i

Foreign AffairsJune 2, 2021

[Newsmaker] Moon’s goal to curb workplace deaths gets more elusive

President Moon Jae-in’s election campaign promise to halve the number of fatal industrial accidents during his term appears to be increasingly out of reach, data showed. In the first three months of this year, 238 workers died from industrial accidents, down 5.9 percent on-year, according to data from the Ministry of Employment and Labor and the Korea Occupational Safety and Health Agency released Wednesday. Some 49.2 percent of deaths occurred in the construction sector, followed by 18.

Social AffairsJune 2, 2021

Rapper indicted over marijuana use

Kilagramz, a rapper who appeared on a popular hip-hop audition television show, has been indicted for marijuana use, prosecutors said Wednesday. The Seoul Southern District Prosecutors Office referred the case of the 29-year-old rapper, whose legal name is Lee Jun-hui, to a court on charges of violating the Narcotics Control Act last month. In March, the Korean American rapper was arrested at his home in southern Seoul for allegedly possessing and smoking marijuana, which is classified as an i

Social AffairsJune 2, 2021

DP chief apologizes over scandal involving former justice minister

The chairman of the ruling Democratic Party (DP) apologized Wednesday over an investment and academic fraud scandal involving the family of a former justice minister, blamed as a major reason for the party's recent landslide by-election defeats. The apology by Rep. Song Young-gil came as the DP is struggling to reclaim voters' confidence following its crushing defeats in the Seoul and Busan mayoral by-elections in April, blamed largely on the party and its members' "hypocritical" cond

PoliticsJune 2, 2021

[Feature] Wheelchair woes still blight Seoul

Going to a new restaurant and eating out is not a big deal for most Seoulites, but it is a challenge for Lim Sung-hee, 42, who has used a wheelchair for about 20 years since being diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis. Many restaurants, coffee shops and convenience stores in Seoul remain inaccessible to her because of stairways and raised door thresholds. In her wheelchair, she can’t get over steps higher than 5 centimeters. To avoid frustration, Lim tries to visit only those restaurant

Social AffairsJune 2, 2021

Govt. to expand in-person school classes this month amid concerns about education gap

Many South Korean students were found to have fallen behind in Korean, math and English, research showed Wednesday, confirming pandemic learning loss amid yearlong remote learning. The Ministry of Education unveiled the results of the educational achievement research, conducted together with the Korea Institute of Curriculum and Evaluation in November for around 3 percent of the country's high school second graders and middle school seniors. The results were the first official confirmation th

Social AffairsJune 2, 2021