Moon sends congrats message to Biden, vows cooperation in peace drive

South Korean President Moon Jae-in has sent a congratulatory message to new US President Joe Biden on his inauguration, stressing Seoul's commitment to unswerving coordination for regional peace and prosperity, Cheong Wa Dae said Thursday. In the note delivered to Washington, Moon expressed hope for a meeting with Biden in the near future to build "trust and friendship" as well as to have "candid dialogue" on issues of mutual concern, according to Cheong Wa Dae spokesman Kan

Jan. 21, 2021

Moon’s security adviser tapped as top diplomat amid stalled peace talks

President Moon Jae-in’s longtime aide who has served as his top security adviser since the presidential campaign, Chung Eui-yong, 74, has been nominated to serve as foreign minister. Chung has long helped shape Moon’s engagement policy for North Korea as well as his vision for the peace process on the Korean Peninsula. When Moon took office in 2017, Chung was picked to lead the presidential National Security Office at Cheong Wa Dae and held the post for three years.

Jan. 20, 2021

Marking 1-yr fight against coronavirus, PM vows full effort to overcome it

Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun said Wednesday the government will continue all-out efforts to end the COVID-19 crisis, a year after South Korea confirmed its first infection case. Chung pledged to place top policy priority on turning 2021 into the "original year" of overcoming the pandemic and thanked the people for related cooperation so far. "Today marks exactly one year since the first COVID-19 patient in the nation was reported. Public cooperation has always filled up the def

Jan. 20, 2021

Watchdog opposes disadvantages against NCO candidates with juvenile criminal records

Records of juvenile delinquency should not stand in the way of a person's aspiration to pursue professional careers in the military, a state human rights watchdog said Wednesday. The National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRCK) said the Marine Corps' disqualification of a non-commissioned officer (NCO) candidate due to his history of juvenile offenses violates his freedom of occupation and rights to equality. The NHRCK expressed such an opinion in response to a petition from an applicant

Jan. 20, 2021

[Newsmaker] Ex-President Park tests negative for COVID-19 after being exposed to patient

Former President Park Geun-hye, now serving a 22-year prison term on corruption convictions, tested negative for COVID-19 on Wednesday after coming into contact with an infected person, the Ministry of Justice said. According to the ministry, Park came into close contact with a prison officer diagnosed later with COVID-19 while traveling by bus to a medical facility on Monday outside the Seoul Detention Center, where she has been imprisoned since March 2017. The prison officer tested positive

Jan. 20, 2021

Ex-national security adviser tapped as top diplomat amid stalled NK diplomacy

Chung Eui-yong, President Moon Jae-in's pick for foreign minister, is known for his role as national security adviser in spearheading Moon's engagement policy for North Korea that led to the first-ever summit between the United States and North Korea. Chung's nomination, announced just ahead of the inauguration of US President-elect Joe Biden, is seen as reflecting Moon's will to revive his peace drive and help resume the nuclear diplomacy between Washington and Pyongyang in his remaining time

Jan. 20, 2021

Moon replaces foreign minister as Biden takes office

President Moon Jae-in on Wednesday named three ministerial nominees, including his former top security adviser Chung Eui-yong as foreign minister, in the first Cabinet reshuffle this year. Chung, 74, replaces Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha, the nation’s first female foreign minister and the longest-serving minister in Moon’s Cabinet. Kang’s replacement comes as a surprise, as she had been widely expected to stay until the end of Moon’s presidency in May 2022. A C

Jan. 20, 2021

Moon meets Amb. Harris, vows close cooperation with Biden administration

President Moon Jae-in received a farewell courtesy call from outgoing US Ambassador Harry Harris on Tuesday and reaffirmed that his government will cooperate closely with the new US administration. During the half-an-hour meeting at his office, Moon pledged close coordination with the Joe Biden administration for a stronger alliance and progress in the Korea peace process as well as in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change and other pending global issues, according to Cheong Wa Dae

Jan. 19, 2021

Scholars cast doubt on acquittals of executives in deadly humidifier cleaner case

Last week's acquittals of 13 corporate executives in a deadly humidifier sterilizer case were caused by the court's wrong interpretation of the causal relations between chemicals contained in sterilizer products and victims' lung-related illnesses, a group of scholars argued Tuesday. The Seoul Central District Court ruled last Tuesday that Hong Ji-ho, former CEO of SK Chemical; Ahn Yong-chan, former CEO of Aekyung Industrial; and 11 other corporate executives are not guilty of professional negl

Jan. 19, 2021

Moon taps professors as top advisors on economy, science

President Moon Jae-in has picked Lee Keun, an economics professor, as vice chairman of the presidential advisory panel on the economy, Cheong Wa Dae announced Tuesday. Lee is an expert on the innovation economy, having won the Schumpeter Prize in 2014, according to Cheong Wa Dae spokesman Kang Min-seok. He is expected to contribute to efforts for a quick and strong economic recovery from the COVID-19 crisis and the move toward a pacesetting economy, Kang said. The National Economic Advisory Co

Jan. 19, 2021

Partial Cabinet shake-up looms ahead

President Moon Jae-in is expected to carry out a Cabinet reshuffle as early as this week to affect Park Young-sun, minister of SMEs and Startups, and a few others, an informed source said Tuesday. Park, a former reporter and ruling Democratic Party (DP) lawmaker, is apparently seeking to run in the April 7 by-election for the Seoul mayorship. She plans to quit the job Wednesday in consideration of the schedule for the ruling party's race to pick its candidate for the all-important election, ac

Jan. 19, 2021

Anti-corruption watchdog chief nominee vows neutrality, independence

The inaugural chief nominee for a high-profile corruption investigative body vowed Tuesday to sternly investigate any high-ranking officials in accordance to the law without being politically influenced. The remark was made during a confirmation hearing at the National Assembly for Kim Jin-wook, a former judge picked by President Moon Jae-in to serve as the inaugural chief of the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials. “The establishment of the CIO is a historic event

Jan. 19, 2021

[Newsmaker] Moon in hot water over adoption comments

Cheong Wa Dae on Tuesday was busy correcting President Moon Jae-in’s recent comments about adoption as civic groups and opposition lawmakers called for an official apology. On Monday, the president was hosting a New Year’s press conference when a reporter asked him what the government was doing to prevent child abuse, in light of the recent death of a 16-month-old toddler who allegedly suffered months of abuse at the hands of her adoptive parents. After unveiling a new set of gui

Jan. 19, 2021

Moon to join WEF's virtual meeting next week

President Moon Jae-in will attend an online meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) next week and deliver a keynote speech on responding to the global health care and economic crisis, Cheong Wa Dae said Tuesday. The WEF, an international body for public-private cooperation, has invited Moon to its Davos Agenda event to be held from Jan. 25-29, along with the leaders of more than 10 other countries. They include Chinese President Xi Jinping and German Chancellor Angela Merkel. The Geneva-base

Jan. 19, 2021

PM urges public to maintain vigilance amid drop in virus infections

Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun on Tuesday called for the public to adhere to strict social distancing rules despite a downward trend in the number of new daily coronavirus cases nationwide. "We seem to have recovered a small level of normalcy of our daily lives, but COVID-19 still continues to threaten us from unseeable places," Chung said during an interagency meeting on the COVID-19 response held at the government complex in Seoul. The current third wave of COVID-19 here reached its

Jan. 19, 2021

Moon hopes Biden will turn tide of talks with NK

President Moon Jae-in on Monday expressed high expectations in working with the upcoming Joe Biden administration, saying the launch of the new US government will become a “turning point” in resuming the stalled US-North Korea and inter-Korean talks. “I think the launch of the Biden administration is a turning point for beginning US-North Korea, inter-Korean talks anew. The talks should inherit and develop from the achievements from the Trump administration,” Moon sai

Jan. 18, 2021

Discussions on corporate profit sharing heat up amid pandemic-driven economic polarization

The ruling Democratic Party (DP) has set out to find ways to get lucrative companies to share some of their profits with small businesses vulnerable to losses amid the coronavirus pandemic, but it is facing vehement objection from the business community and opposition lawmakers. Last week, a DP task force addressing the growing economic bipolarization from the pandemic began discussions on how to promote profit sharing between the supposed corporate winners and losers amid an economy weighed do

Jan. 18, 2021

Race for Seoul mayor heats up as political heavyweights announce bids

The race for the upcoming Seoul mayoral by-election is all but set, with the ruling and opposition parties likely to finalize their candidates by the end of this week. The competition has heated up with the addition of each new runner, the latest being former Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon, who declared his candidacy on the ticket of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) on Sunday. All eyes are now on the decision of Park Young-sun, minister of SMEs and Startups, who is widely expected to throw

Jan. 18, 2021

Moon rules out immediate pardons for ex-presidents, divides parties

President Moon Jae-in on Monday ruled out pardoning two former presidents in the near future, but left open the possibility of pardons down the line when backed by public consensus. Moon said Monday during a New Year’s press conference that he is not considering pardoning the previous two presidents, Park Geun-hye and Lee Myung-bak, both of whom are serving prison sentences for corruption. “Two former presidents being incarcerated is a lamentable situation for the country, and as t

Jan. 18, 2021

Moon says S. Korea will seek dialogue with Japan over solution to wartime sexual slavery

President Moon Jae-in said Monday that South Korea will seek dialogue with Japan to find a solution to Tokyo's wartime sexual slavery amid renewed tensions following a recent court ruling on the thorny issue. During his New Year's press conference, Moon also renewed his call for a diplomatic solution to the issue of Japan's colonial-era forced labor, while stressing his two-track approach separating historical issues from efforts to forge "future-oriented" bilateral ties. His remarks

Jan. 18, 2021