Yoon delegation to depart for Washington on Sunday

A delegation for President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol led by Rep. Park Jin will depart for the United States on Sunday, before the US Congress breaks for recess. “The delegation team is to depart on April 3, and it will be a five-night, seven-day trip,” Yoon’s spokesperson Kim Eun-hye said in a press briefing Friday. The delegation is expected to meet with leading officials of the US administration, members of the US Congress and think tanks to discuss a wide range of topics, inc

April 1, 2022

55% expect Yoon to do good job: survey

Fifty-five percent of South Koreans expect President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol to do a good job after taking office, a survey showed Friday. The Gallup Korea survey of 1,001 adults conducted between Tuesday and Thursday also showed that 41 percent do not expect Yoon to do well on state affairs. The survey had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points at a 95 percent confidence level. Compared with a week ago, positive responses on expectations of Yoon's job performance were unchanged, w

April 1, 2022

BOK chief nominee says policy direction to be determined after analyzing current risks' impact on growth, inflation

The nominee for South Korea's central bank chief said Friday that he will determine the direction of monetary policy after analyzing how existing risks, including the Ukraine crisis and the pandemic, will affect economic growth and inflation. Rhee Chang-yong, picked for the next governor of the Bank of Korea (BOK) last week, made the remarks in a brief interview with reporters in Seoul as he prepares for a parliamentary confirmation hearing. The remarks came amid speculation that he might adjust

April 1, 2022

Yoon to visit Jeju to attend memorial for 1948 massacre victims

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol will visit the southern island of Jeju this weekend to attend a memorial for victims of a 1948 civilian massacre, his spokesperson said Friday. Yoon plans to attend the memorial ceremony Sunday, keeping a promise he made during the campaign, Kim Eun-hye said during a press briefing. "Whatever the reason, regarding the fact that civilians were innocently sacrificed, President-elect Yoon has stressed it is the obligation and duty of a liberal democracy to honor t

April 1, 2022

Cheong Wa Dae demands apology from transition team for raising speculation over DSME CEO appointment

Cheong Wa Dae on Friday demanded an apology from President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol's transition team for accusing the outgoing administration of interfering with the appointment of a new CEO of Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME). Park Soo-hyun, senior secretary for public communication, told TBS radio the Moon Jae-in government "has never been involved in personnel appointments of private companies." On Thursday, transition committee deputy spokesperson Won Il-hee said the

April 1, 2022

Yoon to meet with ambassadors from 6 Arab nations

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol will meet with the ambassadors from six Arab nations Friday, his spokesperson said. The six countries -- Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates -- are the member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council and supply 68 percent of South Korea's crude oil imports. Yoon and the ambassadors will discuss cooperation in energy, construction and infrastructure at a time of increasing volatility in the energy market, Kim Eun-hye said during a pr

April 1, 2022

Han Duck-soo touted as possible pick for prime minister as talented trade, diplomacy expert

Former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, armed with years of experience in trade and public affairs, is touted as a strong pick for prime minister of President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol’s coalition government. The 72-year-old trade expert had served as a prime minister during the Roh Moo-hyun administration from April 2007 to February 2008, being praised by many as a highly skilled talent in terms of administration from his 44-year-long career in the public sector. Born in Jeonju, North Jeolla Prov

March 31, 2022

Transition team strongly denounces appointment of Moon brother's friend as DSME CEO

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol's transition team said Thursday it will ask the state auditor to look into the recent appointment of a friend of President Moon Jae-in's brother as CEO of a local shipbuilder under government control. Transition committee deputy spokesperson Won Il-hee made the remark after Park Doo-sun was named CEO of Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) earlier this week, denouncing the appointment as "irrational" and "shameless." "Da

March 31, 2022

Space for cultural events eyed for Cheong Wa Dae after public opening

Cheong Wa Dae, South Korea's presidential office surrounded by vast green areas in the heart of Seoul, will likely turn into a space for various cultural events as well as a public park under President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol's incoming government, transition team officials said Thursday. Yoon's transition committee is considering transforming Cheong Wa Dae into a space for K-pop and Korean traditional music performances and various other cultural events, the officials said. Yoon has vowed to reloca

March 31, 2022

Yoon considering visit to Camp Humphreys next week

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol is considering visiting the US military base Camp Humphreys in Pyeongtaek next week, sources said Thursday. The base is located some 70 kilometers south of Seoul and serves as the headquarters of the 28,500-strong US Forces Korea. Yoon will likely make the visit at the end of next week and meet with USFK Commander Gen. Paul LaCamera and other military leaders. Yoon's spokesperson, Kim Eun-hye, refused to confirm the plan but said it should be considered from the poi

March 31, 2022

Suspended jail term finalized for ex-Busan vice mayor in bribery case

The Supreme Court on Thursday finalized a suspended prison sentence for a former vice Busan mayor accused of taking bribes from businessmen during his earlier stint at a financial watchdog. Yoo Jae-soo, who served as vice Busan mayor for economy from 2018-2019, was indicted in 2019 for taking cash and goods worth nearly 50 million won ($41,322) in bribes from four people, including heads of financial firms, between 2010 and 2018 while serving at the Financial Services Commission. A regional cour

March 31, 2022

Yoon's spokesperson draws line at trilateral military exercise with US, Japan

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol's spokesperson said Thursday the incoming administration will likely seek stronger security cooperation with the United States and Japan but drew the line at trilateral military exercises. Kim Eun-hye's remark came after the Hankyoreh newspaper reported the same day the US and Japanese governments recently made repeated proposals to hold trilateral military exercises in waters around the Korean Peninsula but were rejected by Seoul. "South Korea-US-Japan combine

March 31, 2022

Cheong Wa Dae voices regret over speculation on clothes of first lady

Cheong Wa Dae on Thursday expressed regret over what it called "indiscriminate" speculation that first lady Kim Jung-sook might have used taxpayer money to buy her clothes during President Moon Jae-in's five-year term. Park Soo-hyun, senior secretary for public communication, made the remarks a day after the presidential office denied the speculation that Kim might have used off-the-record expenses for her clothes. "We express regret over indiscriminate speculation raised by polit

March 31, 2022

Yoon to meet with young exporters at KITA event

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol will visit the Korea International Trade Association (KITA) on Thursday and encourage young trade specialists, his spokesperson said. Yoon is scheduled to attend the graduation ceremony of KITA's Global Trade Experts Incubating Program (GTEP) and meet with the graduates of the program, according to Kim Eun-hye. It will mark Yoon's first visit to a business organization since his election. "Through the meeting with 'the national team of young exporters,' he will

March 31, 2022

Moon sells private home for W2.6b

President Moon Jae-in has recently sold his private home in the southern rural city of Yangsan for 2.6 billion won ($2.1 million), 1.7 billion won higher than the price he bought it 13 years ago, government data showed Thursday. The gains were spent on the construction of a new home in Yangsan, South Gyeongsang Province, which Moon plans to move into after leaving office on May 9, according to Cheong Wa Dae. Moon bought the old home in 2009 for 900 million won and lived there before his 2017 ele

March 31, 2022

Yoon strongly considering ex-PM Han as first PM: sources

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol is strongly considering nominating former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo as his first prime minister, sources said Thursday. Han, 72, has held a number of high positions in government, including finance minister, prime minister under former President Roh Moo-hyun, and ambassador to the United States. In those capacities, he played a key role in negotiating a free trade agreement with the US Han is considered a trade specialist with expertise in foreign affairs, making

March 31, 2022

More than 80% of lawmakers saw assets increase in 2021: data

More than eight in 10 lawmakers saw their personal assets grow in value last year amid the pandemic, data showed Thursday. As of December 2021, 240 lawmakers, or 83 percent of the 289 legislators who disclosed their assets, said their assets expanded compared with a year earlier, according to the National Assembly data. Of them, 147 reported that their assets increased by between 100 million won ($82,610) and 500 million won. Six lawmakers said their assets jumped by 1 billion won over a one-yea

March 31, 2022

Over 8 in 10 senior public officials declare wealth increase last year

More than eight in 10 ranking public officials mandated by an ethics law to annually disclose their personal wealth reported an asset increase last year, the government gazette showed Thursday. A total of 1,978 senior government and public officials had declared an average of 1.62 billion won ($1.34 million) in personal assets as of the end of last year, marking a rise of 166.3 million won from a year earlier, the gazette said. It found that 83 percent, or 1,641, of the officials reported an inc

March 31, 2022

Controversy surrounding first lady and her clothes still at large

Controversy surrounding first lady Kim Jung-sook and the presidential office continues despite Cheong Wa Dae’s denial that state funds were spent on her outfits. On Tuesday, the presidential office said that recent rumors that Kim used special activity expenses to buy costumes and accessories for herself were “groundless assertions,” saying only “personal expenses” were used for purchases. The office added Kim’s clothes sponsored for overseas visits and inter

March 30, 2022

Ahn Cheol-soo says will not join Yoon’s Cabinet

Presidential transition committee Chairman Ahn Cheol-soo announced Wednesday he will not take a post in the Cabinet of the incoming government, to “take the pressure off” President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol. “I have thought a lot about my next move (after the transitional committee). ... And I made the personal decision that it would be better to open up room for the president-elect to spread his wings,” Ahn said in a press briefing at the presidential transition committee hea

March 30, 2022