Yoon says NK's recent artillery firing a violation of inter-Korean military agreement

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol said Tuesday that North Korea's recent artillery firing was a violation of an inter-Korean military tension reduction agreement. Yoon made the remark during a meeting with members of his transition team, two days after South Korea's military said North Korea fired four shots from multiple rocket launchers into the Yellow Sea. (Yonhap)

March 22, 2022

58.1% oppose Yoon's plan to relocate presidential office

About 58 percent of South Koreans are against President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol's plan to move the presidential office out of Cheong Wa Dae, while some 33 percent support the idea, a poll showed Tuesday. According to the poll of 1,018 adults, conducted by pollster Mediatomato on Saturday and Sunday, 58.1 percent said the presidential office should remain at Cheong Wa Dae and 33.1 percent said they back the relocation plan. On Sunday, Yoon officially announced his decision to move the presidential of

March 22, 2022

Assembly Speaker shares Korea’s experience on administrative city relocation with Jokowi

National Assembly Speaker Park Byeong-seug met with Indonesian President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo and shared his knowledge on South Korea’s experience on building an administrative capital, and discussed ways for the two countries to enhance bilateral cooperation, Sunday. Their meeting came during Park’s trip to Bali, Indonesia to attend the 144th Inter-Parliamentary Union General Assembly, which kicked off Sunday and runs to Tuesday. As Indonesia is currently preparing

March 21, 2022

More than 400,000 people sign petitions against move to relocate Blue House

More than 400,000 people have signed petitions against President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol’s plans to move the presidential office from the current location to the National Defense Ministry’s building in Yongsan, central Seoul. “The term of office for president is only five years…the public cannot accept spending billions of taxpayer’s money on President-elect Yoon’s office for his single five-year term,” read one petition on the president office’s web

March 21, 2022

[Newsmaker] Cheong Wa Dae raises concern over Yoon’s office relocation causing ‘security vacuum’

Incumbent President Moon Jae-in’s office on Monday raised concerns over the plans to relocate the presidential office, adding to the controversy surrounding the plans. “President Moon Jae-in pledged to open the Gwanghwamun era in the past presidential election, and we do agree on the idea of returning Cheong Wa Dae to the public,” Park Soo-hyun, senior presidential secretary for public communication for Moon, said after the government’s National Security Council meetin

March 21, 2022

[KH Explains] How parties are preparing for next election in June

South Korea's political parties are readying for another key election in June, with the Democratic Party of Korea looking to stage a comeback following its narrow defeat in the presidential election. For the local elections set for June 1, parties are competing to win 17 gubernatorial and metropolitan mayoral posts and thousands more local administrative, legislative and educational chief posts. All Koreans born before June 2, 2004, are eligible to vote. The last local elections ended in a lan

March 21, 2022

Yoon names ex-Washington correspondent as spokesperson for foreign press

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol on Monday named a former Washington correspondent as his spokesperson for foreign press. Kang In-sun, former chief of the Washington bureau for the Chosun Ilbo newspaper, is expected to help promote Yoon's administrative philosophy overseas, based on her diverse experience covering political, social and cultural affairs, Yoon's spokesperson Kim Eun-hye said during a press briefing. Yoon also named Kim Il-bum, former vice president at SK Supex Council Global Growth C

March 21, 2022

Moon, Yoon expected to discuss relocation of presidential office

 President Moon Jae-in is expected to hold comprehensive discussions about successor-elect Yoon Suk-yeol's plan to relocate the presidential office out of Cheong Wa Dae when they hold a meeting, a senior aide to Moon said Monday. Park Soo-hyun, senior presidential secretary for public communication, made the remark to YTN radio, stressing that Cheong Wa Dae remains unchanged in its position to respect Yoon's election pledges and the direction he's going to steer state affairs. "If th

March 21, 2022

PM says he plans to meet with Yoon's transition team

Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum said he plans to meet with officials of President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol's transition team to ensure a smooth transfer of the administration. Kim made the remark to reporters before departing from Doha for Seoul following a five-day visit to Turkey and Qatar when asked what he is going to take care of first after returning home. Kim, who is scheduled to arrive back home later Monday, did not provide details on how he is going to meet them and when, but he is expected to

March 21, 2022

Yoon confirms presidential office to relocate to Yongsan by May

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol on Sunday confirmed the relocation of the presidential office to the Defense Ministry compound in Yongsan-gu, central Seoul, vowing to put an end to the "imperial" presidency. In a press briefing held at the transition team’s office, Yoon said his team has decided to relocate the presidential office from the current Cheong Wa Dae compound in Jongno-gu, central Seoul, to fulfill his promise of returning the area to the general public and communicatin

March 20, 2022

Yoon visits candidate sites for relocation of presidential office

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol on Saturday visited the foreign ministry building and the defense ministry compound, which are candidate sites for his planned relocation of the presidential office. He met with ministerial officials there and discussed the advantages and disadvantages of the two places as locations for the next presidential office, according to Yoon's secretariat. Yoon is expected to announce his choice as early as Sunday, sources said. The former prosecutor general was elected

March 19, 2022

Yoon sets pandemic crisis management as top priority as transition team kicks off

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol on Friday stressed that managing the COVID-19 pandemic is the utmost priority for the presidential transition team, as the committee began its 53-day run. Speaking in the first general meeting of the committee, Yoon requested the special committee in charge of handling the COVID-19 crisis to focus on the damage compensation system for sole proprietors, and preventive measures to control the spread of the disease, citing the surging COVID-19 cases here. “No

March 18, 2022

Yoon aims to open Cheong Wa Dae to public 'before spring flowers wither'

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol aims to open Cheong Wa Dae to the public "before spring flowers wither," Yoon's spokesperson said Friday, suggesting that the compound would be turned into a public place before Yoon's inauguration in May. Kim Eun-hye, Yoon's spokesperson, made the remarks as Yoon and his transition team is considering relocating the presidential office to either the foreign ministry building in Gwanghwamun or the defense ministry compound in Yongsan. "We will return

March 18, 2022

PM says opening of Turkish bridge good opportunity to display S. Korea's technology

Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum said the opening of a landmark bridge in Turkey will serve as a good opportunity to display South Korea's technology and financing system as he arrived in the transcontinental country to strengthen diplomatic and economic ties. The 1915 Canakkale Bridge, which straddles the Dardanelles strait in northwestern Turkey, is the world's longest suspension bridge, with a 2,023-meter span between its towers, built by a consortium comprised of South Korea's SK ecoplant and DL

March 18, 2022

Relocating the presidential office emerges as ‘tall order’

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol is pushing hard with his plan to relocate the presidential office, with transition committee officials now saying there is zero possibility of him going to the current Cheong Wa Dae, also known as the Blue House due to its iconic blue-tiled roof. From the start of his presidential campaign, Yoon has vowed to relocate the presidential office for “better communication” with the public, seeing Cheong Wa Dae as closed off from the public and a symbol of em

March 17, 2022

Moon voices concerns over disruption of global supply chains

President Moon Jae-in on Thursday expressed concerns over further disruption of global supply chains, as China's COVID-19 lockdowns sent ripples through the global auto industry. Moon instructed officials to come up with thorough measures to prepare for disruptions of supply chains after being briefed about difficulties facing South Korea's auto-parts industry from lockdowns in some Chinese regions, presidential spokesperson Park Kyung-mee said in a statement. A sharp rise in COVID-19

March 17, 2022

PM embarks on trip to Turkey, Qatar

Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum embarked on a five-day trip to Turkey and Qatar on Thursday to discuss ways to strengthen diplomatic ties and expand economic cooperation. Kim will visit Turkey from Thursday to Saturday during which he will attend the opening ceremony of the 1915 Canakkale Bridge following an invitation from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The 1915 Canakkale Bridge in northwestern Turkey is the world's longest suspension bridge with a 2,023-meter span between its towers, buil

March 17, 2022

Yoon's scheduled meeting with Japanese ambassador postponed

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol's scheduled meeting with the Japanese ambassador to South Korea on Thursday has been postponed after the envoy tested positive for the coronavirus, Yoon's spokesperson said. Yoon had been scheduled to meet with Koichi Aiboshi at 2 p.m., but the meeting has been postponed, Yoon's spokesperson Kim Eun-hye said, without elaborating on when the meeting will be rescheduled for. The meeting with Aiboshi was supposed to be Yoon's third encounter with a foreign envoy in Seo

March 17, 2022

Cheong Wa Dae stresses Moon's right to personnel appointments until end of term

President Moon Jae-in has the right to make personnel appointments until his term ends, a senior official said Thursday, amid speculation the issue is one of the reasons for the cancellation of Moon's planned meeting with his successor-elect Yoon Suk-yeol. "It is not right to argue about the president's right to personnel appointments," Park Soo-hyun, senior secretary for public communication, told MBC radio, a day after Moon's first meeting with Yoon was called off. Park also denied a

March 17, 2022

Yoon completes composition of transition team

The remaining members of President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol's transition team were announced Thursday, including members of the subcommittees for the economy and science and three spokespeople. Lee Chang-yang, a professor of management engineering at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, was appointed to lead the second subcommittee for economic affairs, Yoon's spokesperson, Kim Eun-hye, said during a press briefing. Also named to the subcommittee were Wang Yun-jong, a professor a

March 17, 2022