Yoon defends first lady taking friend to Bongha village

President Yoon Suk-yeol defended his wife Wednesday after she drew criticism for taking a friend along on a visit to pay respects at a former president's grave earlier this week. First lady Kim Keon-hee traveled to Bongha village, some 300 kilometers southeast of Seoul, on Monday to visit the grave of former President Roh Moo-hyun and meet with his widow, Kwon Yang-sook, at her home. Photos later revealed that Kim was joined by other women on the trip, sparking speculation on who they were.

June 15, 2022

Yoon says 'nothing finalized' on potential meeting with Japan PM

President Yoon Suk-yeol said Wednesday that nothing has been finalized regarding a potential summit with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on the sidelines of a NATO gathering in Spain later this month. "With diplomatic issues, it's a bit difficult for me to confirm anything before it's decided, but nothing has been finalized," Yoon told reporters as he arrived for work. The president is set to travel to Madrid to attend a NATO summit on June 29-30, which has led to specu

June 15, 2022

DP lawmakers propose bill for greater parliamentary clout

Lawmakers of the main opposition Democratic Party on Tuesday proposed a bill aimed at strengthening parliamentary oversight of the government despite objections from the ruling People Power Party. Rep. Cho Eung-chon and 13 other DP lawmakers proposed revising the National Assembly Act in a way that empowers parliamentary standing committees to request revisions to presidential decrees or enforcement ordinances if they are deemed incompatible with the law. "The National Assembly, as a consti

June 14, 2022

Govt. to push for speedy influx of immigrant workers to alleviate COVID-19 labor shortage

The government will push for a speedy influx of immigrant workers to help alleviate labor shortages in farming, fishing and other industries in the wake of COVID-19, officials said Tuesday. Farms, fisheries and small-size firms, often reliant on immigrant workers, have been experiencing labor shortages in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, as heightened border controls curbed the inflow of immigrant laborers. The Ministry of Labor and Employment said that it will bring in some 26,000 immigrant w

June 14, 2022

PM urges truckers to end strike

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo on Tuesday called for truck drivers to end their strike causing widespread disruptions in the country's logistics networks, saying their "illegal" actions cannot be supported by people. Han made the remarks at a Cabinet meeting, as the nationwide walkout of truckers entered its eighth day, paralyzing operations at auto, steel, petrochemical and other sectors. "Please keep in mind that illegal actions, such as obstruction of transportation by the Ca

June 14, 2022

Yoon names 3rd deputy director of NIS

President Yoon Suk-yeol tapped a cybersecurity expert to be the third deputy director of the National Intelligence Service (NIS) on Tuesday, his office said. Baek Jong-wook, a professor of computer engineering at Gachon University, was nominated after previously serving as chief of the NIS national cybersecurity center, it said. The position of third deputy director is responsible for science and cyber intelligence operations. Baek's nomination completes the lineup of NIS leadership positio

June 14, 2022

Presidential office likely to get new name Tuesday

The presidential office is likely to get a new name Tuesday, an official said. Five names are currently in the running, after they were chosen from among 30,000 entries in a public contest. The five are The People's House, Itaewon-ro 22, The People's Government Office, Mineum Government Office and Bareunnuri. "I believe (the naming committee) will make a final decision today on which name to use," the presidential official told reporters, saying the committee will meet in the

June 14, 2022

Yoon to preside over new meeting on regulatory reforms: PM

The government will set up a new regular meeting to be presided over by President Yoon Suk-yeol to speed up regulatory reforms, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo said Tuesday. The Regulatory Innovation Strategy Meeting is aimed at swiftly cutting red tape and preventing promising projects from becoming bogged down in bureaucracy, Han told reporters. The meeting will serve as the "top decision maker of government regulatory innovation," Han said. Yoon will serve as a chairperson of the new me

June 14, 2022

Yoon declines comment on whether NK nuclear test is imminent

President Yoon Suk-yeol declined to comment Tuesday on whether a North Korean nuclear test was imminent, as his top diplomat was in Washington to discuss the allies' response should the test occur. Officials in Seoul and Washington have prepared for weeks against the possibility that Pyongyang will stage its first nuclear test since 2017 despite repeated warnings it would be met by a firm response from the allies. Yoon was asked by a reporter as he arrived for work whether the test appeared

June 14, 2022

Seoul Mayor and Gyeonggi Governor meet for the first time, pledge to cooperate beyond politics

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon of the ruling People Power Party met with Gyeonggi Governor Kim Dong-yeon of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea on Monday to discuss cooperation between the two regions. The two leaders of the Greater Seoul area pledged to work together for mutual benefits. Oh and Kim both stressed that their political backgrounds should not matter in dealing with issues related to local residents and introducing policies that can improve quality of life in the area. Oh reque

June 13, 2022

Is the first lady gearing up for official activities?

President Yoon Suk-yeol’s spouse Kim Keon-hee could be starting her public activities in earnest, recently visiting the late President Roh Moo-hyun’s grave and speaking on animal rights in an interview. In a scheduled event announced by the presidential office, Kim visited Roh’s grave in the village of Bongha in Gimhae, South Gyeongsang Province, on Monday and met with his wife Kwon Yang-sook, in her first official activity without accompanying Yoon. Yoon told reporters in

June 13, 2022

Yoon says opposition’s push for greater parliamentary power ‘highly unconstitutional’

President Yoon Suk-yeol and the ruling People Power Party are set on a collision course with the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea over the Democratic Party’s push to revise the National Assembly Act, which would give lawmakers the right to amend presidential and prime ministerial decrees. When asked by reporters on his way to work on Monday about how he sees the opposition party’s push to amend the act, he said, “It is highly unconstitutional (for the National Assembl

June 13, 2022

Yoon defends watching movie on day NK fired artillery shots

President Yoon Suk-yeol said Monday that there was nothing wrong with him and first lady Kim Keon-hee watching a movie the previous day shortly after North Korea fired artillery shots because the government took necessary steps in response. Yoon and the first lady watched the Cannes award-winning film "Broker" at a movie theater in Seoul on Sunday. But some critics said it was inappropriate for the president to watch a movie at a time when the North had fired shots from a presumed mult

June 13, 2022

Yoon advises against reading too much into first lady's visit with ex-President Roh's widow

President Yoon Suk-yeol told reporters Monday to not read too much into first lady Kim Keon-hee's planned visit with the widow of former President Roh Moo-hyun, saying it was something she had wanted to do since last year. Kim is scheduled to pay a visit to Kwon Yang-sook, the widow of the former president who took his own life in 2009 amid a sprawling corruption probe, at her home in the southeastern village of Bongha later Monday. "She's been planning to visit since last year, b

June 13, 2022

Yoon says opposition push for greater parliamentary clout could be unconstitutional

President Yoon Suk-yeol said Monday that an opposition push to strengthen parliamentary oversight of the government could be "unconstitutional." Rep. Cho Eung-chon of the main opposition Democratic Party is reportedly planning to introduce an amendment to the National Assembly Act to enable parliamentary standing committees to request a revision to a presidential decree or a prime minister's ordinance if they deem it to be incompatible with the law. Critics said the amendment, if

June 13, 2022

Yoon has dinner with Cannes-winning Park Chan-wook, Song Kang-ho

President Yoon Suk-yeol had dinner on Sunday with director Park Chan-wook and actor Song Kang-ho to celebrate their honors at this year's Cannes International Film Festival. Park won the Best Director prize at the 75th edition of the film festival last month for his romance thriller "Decision to Leave." It was his third Cannes award following the Grand Prix for "Oldboy" (2003) and the Jury Prize for "Thirst" (2009). For his performance in the drama "Broker,&

June 12, 2022

Yoon says labor, management should resolve disputes themselves

President Yoon Suk-yeol said Friday that disputes between labor and management should be resolved among themselves without government intervention. Yoon made the remark as thousands of unionized cargo truckers continued a nationwide strike for the fourth day to demand basic wage guarantees amid soaring fuel prices. "Only when the government sticks to the law and principles and remains neutral, do I believe labor and management will be able to build the capacity to freely resolve their iss

June 10, 2022

Seoul mayor to shake up city-run media TBS

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon said he would bring changes to the Seoul City-run media company Traffic Broadcasting System, which has often been accused of political bias in favor of the Democratic Party of Korea in one of its flagship radio shows. Oh, revealing the plan regarding TBS during an interview with Korean Broadcasting System on Wednesday night, said TBS would focus more on education programs in the future. “People no longer listen to TBS to get traffic information, and that’s

June 9, 2022

Feud brewing in People Power Party over nomination overhaul moves

A feud is deepening within the ruling People Power Party over plans to overhaul the candidate nomination process ahead of the legislative elections in 2024. Rep. Chung Jin-suk has been publicly resisting party chairman Lee Jun-seok’s move to install a special committee to reform the party’s nomination guidelines, and include figures close to him. Chung argues that Lee is trying to tilt nominations in his favor at the cost of the party’s long-term interests. Highlighting that

June 9, 2022

Parties lock horns over key legislative posts

National Assembly proceedings are in a gridlock, with the ruling and main opposition parties locking horns over control of key legislative posts. The ruling People Power Party wants to take the Legislation and Judiciary Committee chair post, as part of the compromise it reached with the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea last year. In the compromise, the two parties agreed on which party would take certain chair posts in the latter half of the 21st National Assembly. “If the Demo

June 9, 2022