Yoon says opposition-led grain bill unhelpful to farmers

President Yoon Suk-yeol said Thursday that an opposition-led bill mandating government purchases of excess rice is unhelpful to farmers, suggesting he would veto the bill if it passes through the National Assembly. The main opposition Democratic Party railroaded a revision to the Grain Management Act through a standing parliamentary committee Wednesday, making it mandatory for the government to purchase rice when supply is at least 3 percent in excess of demand. Yoon told reporters as he arrived

Oct. 20, 2022

[Hwang's China and the World] We still need new multilateral cooperation in this region

There are not many cases when Northeast Asia was under stable security. As China's path toward a military power and Japan's normalization are recognized as the regional arms race, mutual checks and confrontations are intensifying among countries in the region. Recently, North Korea launched multiple missiles and the regional security is fluctuating again at a time we cannot rule out the possibility of another nuclear test. At least, we could somewhat reduce the threat posed by North

Oct. 19, 2022

Yoon says global challenges should be overcome with Olympic spirit

President Yoon Suk-yeol said on Wednesday that the spirit of freedom and solidarity pursued by the Korean government is no different from the spirit of the Olympics, adding that global challenges should be overcome with the Olympic spirit. “We will do our best to bring the spirit of freedom and solidarity into the overall sports field and do our best to contribute to the international community through sports,” Yoon said in a keynote speech at the 26th General Assembly of the Associa

Oct. 19, 2022

Ruling party steps up criticism of Kakao over unprecedented outage

The ruling People Power Party (PPP) stepped up criticism Wednesday of Kakao Corp, the operator of the nation's dominant messaging app, saying the recent unprecedented service outage revealed the company's poor crisis response system. "I was shocked that Kakao, with nine out of 10 citizens as its customer, managed data so poorly and was not prepared for such a disaster," PPP floor leader Joo Ho-young said in a policy consultation meeting with the government. KakaoTalk, South K

Oct. 19, 2022

Ex-presidential chief of staff questioned in N. Korean fishermen repatriation case

Prosecutors on Wednesday questioned former presidential chief of staff Noh Young-min as part of an investigation into the previous Moon Jae-in government's repatriation of two North Korean fishermen in 2019. Prosecutors are looking into the case on suspicions that the Moon government deported the two North Korean fishermen back home despite their wishes to defect to South Korea. Noh who served as the presidential chief of staff at that time presided over a meeting at Cheong Wa Dae where the

Oct. 19, 2022

Iranian athlete who defied hijab rule in Seoul competition flown back

Iranian sport climber Elnaz Rekabi, who competed in a climbing championship in Seoul on Sunday without wearing a hijab, has flown back to Iran, the Iranian Embassy in Seoul said Tuesday. “Ms. Elnaz Rekabi, who has participated in the final round of the Asian Climbing Competitions in Seoul, departed from Seoul to Iran in the early morning of October 18, 2022, along with the other members of the Team,” the embassy said in a statement. “The Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran

Oct. 18, 2022

Yoon expresses concerns about KakaoTalk failure in case of war

President Yoon Suk-yeol expressed concerns about the service failures of the nation's most popular message app KakaoTalk in an emergency such as war, according to local media outlets Tuesday. During a meeting of the president's chief secretaries on Monday, Yoon expressed concerns, asking what would happen KakaoTalk becomes unavailable in an emergency such as war as the majority of members of the public and public organizations use the service, according to Yonhap News agency, citing a

Oct. 18, 2022

Yoon likely to move to Hannam-dong this month

President Yoon Suk-yeol is likely to move into the new presidential residence in Hannam-dong, Yongsan-gu, Seoul, within this month after a monthslong delay. Yoon has been commuting to work from his home in Seocho-gu, southern Seoul since his inauguration in May. An official from the presidential office said at a briefing on Monday, "We are currently conducting a final inspection of the security and safety (for the relocation)." Most of the construction at his official residence in Hann

Oct. 18, 2022

Yoon attends groundbreaking ceremony for express railway connecting Chuncheon, Sokcho

President Yoon Suk-yeol on Tuesday attended the groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of an express railway connecting the northern cities of Chuncheon and Sokcho. The ceremony was held in Sokcho, a coastal city 158 kilometers northeast of Seoul, with the participation of some 400 government and railway officials and local residents. Construction is expected to cost around 2.4 trillion won ($1.7 billion) over six years. Once the railway is completed in late 2027, the segment will extend t

Oct. 18, 2022

PM calls for measures to prevent recurrence of Kakao service outage

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo on Tuesday instructed Cabinet ministers to come up with measures to prevent a recurrence of a service outage of Kakao Corp, the operator of the nation's dominant messaging app. Most online services provided by Kakao, including KakaoTalk, suffered a massive malfunction over the weekend due to a fire at a data center near Seoul. "If a problem happens in networks, it could paralyze people's daily lives and be fatal to national security," Han told a Ca

Oct. 18, 2022

Penalties for drunk driving toughened against officials at public institutions

The state anti-corruption commission said Tuesday it has toughened disciplinary measures for public institution officials caught drunk driving to allow for their dismissal. Under the move, public institution officials can be fired if they are arrested on suspicion of drunk driving with a blood alcohol level above 0.2 percent, even if they are first-time offenders, according to the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission. The tougher penalty came as the commission reviewed the internal regula

Oct. 18, 2022

Kakao outage prompts monopoly probe

KakaoTalk's outage over the weekend has spilled over into the political arena, with the president and political parties honing in on the nation's largest messaging app operator. On Monday, President Yoon Suk-yeol said that the state would respond to revamp the system, considering communication networks as a part of the national infrastructure. The government is also looking at whether a Kakao monopoly could distort the communication network services market. Lawmakers hurriedly promis

Oct. 17, 2022

Prosecutors raid Ssangbangwool Group over currency smuggling allegations

Prosecutors raided Ssangbangwool Group on Monday over allegations the underwear maker smuggled a huge sum of foreign currency out of the country about three years ago. The Suwon District Prosecutors Office sent prosecutors and investigators to the Ssangbangwool headquarters in the central Seoul district of Sindang in the morning to secure documents and materials related to the currency smuggling allegations. Prosecutors have been investigating the allegations that Ssangbangwool secretly sent sev

Oct. 17, 2022

Yoon's office on 24-hour standby against possible NK nuclear test

The office of President Yoon Suk-yeol has been on 24-hour standby as North Korea has been expected to conduct its seventh nuclear test at any time, officials said Sunday. North Korea's recent series of missile launches and other provocations are believed to be part of the regime's preparations for a seventh nuclear test, according to the officials. "As North Korea's provocations have become more frequent, we're putting all of our effort into maintaining a readiness posture with a sense o

Oct. 16, 2022

With Russian airspace shut, long-haul crews at risk of breaching maximum hours

South Korean airlines are considering ways to extend the maximum working hours for crew on board to avoid layovers for long-haul flights such as the New York-Incheon route. Korean Air and Asiana Airlines, two of South Korea’s largest full-service carriers, said the move comes after Russia's airspace was shut down after its invasion of Ukraine, prompting Korean airlines to take a detour for safety. “We are looking to lift the cap on the maximum flying hours for pilots with discus

Oct. 16, 2022

[Herald Interview] ‘Warmbiers’ win pivotal in fight against North Korean abuses’

The family of Otto Warmbier has set an important precedent for North Korea victims all over, according to Rep. Ha Tae-keung of the ruling People Power Party. Speaking with The Korea Herald, the ruling People Power Party Rep. Ha Tae-keung said, “The Warmbier family has played a pivotal role in the fight against North Korea human rights abuses, and their efforts have marked a significant turning point in accountability-seeking.” About a month ago, Ha met with Cindy and Fred Warmbier

Oct. 16, 2022

[Photo News] At long last, freedom

Bibongi, the last Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphin held in captivity in South Korea, was returned to the wild after 17 years. The government said on Sunday it had released Bibongi, at 9:40 a.m. in the sea after 70 days of training. There were a total of eight in domestic aquariums in 2012, but seven returned to nature from 2013 to 2017.

Oct. 16, 2022

BTS holds concert in Busan to promote 2030 World Expo bid

Boy band BTS is set to hold a concert in Busan on Saturday night to support the city's bid to host the 2030 World Expo. The free show will be the group’s first performance in South Korea since March, when they staged the Permission to Dance on Stage shows in Seoul. It will also be the first BTS concert at a fully packed stadium, where most of the 50,000 seats will be taken by its fans, in three years. The singers are expected to perform their hit singles, such as "Butter,"

Oct. 15, 2022

US calls on N. Korea to cease all provocations and engage in dialogue

A state department spokesperson called on North Korea to cease all provocative actions on Friday, hours after the recalcitrant country fired hundreds of artillery shells into an agreed buffer zone with South Korea. Vedant Patel, principal deputy spokesperson for the department, also urged Pyongyang to engage in dialogue. "We are aware of those reports and we call on the DPRK to cease all these provocations and these threatening actions," the spokesperson said when asked about North Kor

Oct. 15, 2022

Ex-vice Gyeonggi governor indicted for taking bribes from underwear maker

Prosecutors on Friday indicted former Vice Gyeonggi Province Gov. Lee Hwa-young on charges of taking bribes from an underwear company in return for business favors related to inter-Korean economic projects. Lee, a confidant of opposition leader Lee Jae-myung, was accused of pocketing some 260 million won ($180,000) worth of bribes from SBW Inc. in the forms of a corporate credit card and luxury vehicles between 2018 and early 2022, when he was serving as vice Gyeonggi governor for peace.

Oct. 14, 2022