Moon orders dispatch of medical staff, goods to treat Korean troops abroad infected with coronavirus

President Moon Jae-in on Thursday ordered the mobilization of an aerial refueling and transport aircraft to provide swift medical support for the South Korean troop members abroad infected with COVID-19, his office said. The president issued the message in connection with the report that six crew members in a mission aboard the country's naval destroyer operating off the coast of Africa have tested positive for the virus. They belong to the anti-piracy and counterterrorism Cheonghae Unit, of wh

July 15, 2021

[Newsmaker] Support rating for ex-top prosecutor Yoon dips below 30% for 1st time in 4 months: poll

The support rating for former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl, the front-running presidential contender, dived below the 30 percent level for the first time in four months over a series of allegations raised against his wife and mother-in-law, the latest poll on major hopefuls showed Thursday. The fall diminished Yoon's opinion poll lead over runner-up Gyeonggi Gov. Lee Jae-myung to within the poll's margin of error of 2.2 percentage points. According to the poll by Realmeter, the support ra

July 15, 2021

Ex-chief state auditor joins main opposition party in apparent bid to run for presidency

A former head of the state audit agency joined the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) on Thursday in a move widely seen as a step toward running for the presidency. Choe Jae-hyeong, the former chairman of the Board of Audit and Inspection (BAI), expressed his intention to join the biggest conservative party during his meeting with party Chairman Lee Jun-seok earlier in the day and officially became a member in a following ceremony. The move came less than one month after Choe stepped dow

July 15, 2021

[Newsmaker] Yoon jittery over falling poll ratings

A weekly presidential preference poll that showed higher support ratings for former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl compared with other surveys was stopped this week, prompting Yoon to blame political pressure from other candidates and their supporters. PNR Research, the pollster that had conducted the survey every week since April, said its clients told it last week that they would no longer commission it for the poll. Yoon said in a statement on Tuesday that the PNR poll was stopped becaus

July 14, 2021

Uncertainty of extra budget grows amid conflicting views on emergency handouts

The fate of the extra state budget currently under review at the National Assembly is growing more and more uncertain amid a widening political rift among rival parties and the government over the direction and scope of COVID-19 relief handouts. In late June, the government proposed an extra budget of 33 trillion won ($28.9 billion) in an agreement with the ruling Democratic Party (DP) to finance the fifth round of COVID-19 aid packages. The handouts were set to be given to people in the bottom

July 14, 2021

Cheong Wa Dae reports 1st coronavirus infection among its staffers

Cheong Wa Dae said Wednesday that one of its officials has been diagnosed with COVID-19. The official tested positive for the virus earlier in the day while working from home due to their spouse's fever symptom, according to Cheong Wa Dae spokesperson Park Kyung-mee. It is the first known coronavirus infection directly linked with the office of President Moon Jae-in. Park said the official holds the rank of assistant secretary to the president but stopped short of revealing personal informati

July 14, 2021

Moon says Korean New Deal investment to be expanded to W220tr

South Korea will increase its investment in the Korean-version New Deal project to 220 trillion won ($191 billion) by 2025, President Moon Jae-in said Wednesday. He announced the scheme to expand the scale of government-private investment from the originally planned 160 trillion won, marking the first anniversary of the launch of the campaign. It is aimed at creating a massive amount of jobs and spurring mid-to long-term economic growth with a focus on promoting the digital infrastructure and

July 14, 2021

Former PM Lee ahead of front-runner Yoon in hypothetical two-way matchup, poll shows

Former Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon, who was a distant third in recent polls on presidential hopefuls, surprisingly topped conservative front-runner Yoon Seok-youl in a hypothetical two-way matchup, a survey showed Tuesday. Lee, who also served as the chief of the ruling Democratic Party (DP), scored 43.7 percent compared to former Prosecutor General Yoon's 41.2 percent in the poll conducted by WinGKorea Consulting. The result came as Yoon, a leading conservative candidate, is facing growing att

July 13, 2021

Youngest opposition chief's leadership hits snag over controversial steps

The leadership of the country's youngest-ever main opposition chief is being brought into question over a string of controversial political steps, one month after he rose to the party's top seat with a big media splash. Lee Jun-seok, chairman of the People Power Party (PPP), drew a major backlash not only from the ruling bloc but also inside his own party over a misguided agreement with his ruling party counterpart a day earlier to provide COVID-19 relief funds to all citizens. Lee and Rep. So

July 13, 2021

[Newsmaker] Yoon unlikely to join opposition party soon

Ex-chief prosecutor and presidential contender Yoon Seok-youl appears more focused on bringing together centrists than joining the main opposition People Power Party, while former chief state auditor Choe Jae-hyeong is likely to join the party as another presidential hopeful, according to figures in close contact with the two men. Political critic Chin Jung-kwon said he met with Yoon last week and it seemed like the former prosecutor general “intends to stay outside the PPP for a while.&r

July 13, 2021

Park Jin from opposition party to run for president

With the race for the presidential election kicking into gear, a string of senior lawmakers from the main opposition People Power Party are announcing their candidacies one after another. Four-term lawmaker Park Jin on Tuesday declared his bid, becoming the third current lawmaker from the People Power Party to enter the fray, following Ha Tae-keung and Yun Hee-suk. Considered a diplomacy expert in the National Assembly, Park is known to be close to US President Joe Biden. He visited the US

July 13, 2021

Main opposition lawmaker tests positive for COVID-19

A sitting lawmaker affiliated with the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) tested positive for COVID-19 on Tuesday, party officials said. Rep. Jeong Jeom-sig based in the southern coastal city of Tongyeong was confirmed to have contracted the new coronavirus after attending a meeting last week with a journalist who tested positive for the virus, PPP floor leader Rep. Kim Gi-hyeon said. "Jeong attended a meeting of (PPP) lawmakers representing South Gyeongsang Province last Thursday,

July 13, 2021

Moon taps former judge as vice justice minister

President Moon Jae-in on Tuesday nominated Kang Sung-kook, a former judge currently serving as a senior justice ministry official, as his new vice justice minister, Cheong Wa Dae said. Kang, head of the ministry's legal affairs bureau, will fill the vacancy left when former Vice Justice Minister Lee Yong-gu resigned in early June after he was embroiled in a controversy over his unpunished assault of a taxi driver last year, according to presidential spokesperson Park Kyung-mee. Kang's term will

July 13, 2021

Moon meets Korean archbishop headed for Vatican

President Moon Jae-in on Monday met with archbishop Lazzaro You Heung-sik, the first South Korean appointed to a secretary position at the Vatican, Cheong Wa Dae said.    You is set to leave for the Vatican later this month to serve as the new prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy, the Vatican arm overseeing matters regarding priests and deacons as well as seminaries.    Pope Francis appointed You to the position last month.    "I wish for Pope Franci

July 12, 2021

[Newsmaker] Yoon says his heart aches for jailed ex-presidents

Former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl, now a presidential contender, said his heart aches when he thinks about ex-Presidents Park Geun-hye and Lee Myung-bak, who were jailed for corruption as a result of investigations that he led. “No matter the reasons, (I) offer consolation and express regrets to all who have gone through pain because of me,” Yoon said in an interview with the Dong-A Ilbo published Monday, about the political corruption probes that he led as chief of the Seoul

July 12, 2021

Moon says very sorry for asking people to endure toughest social distancing rules

President Moon Jae-in apologized publicly Monday for requesting the public put up with the strictest level of social distancing restrictions. He pledged to mobilize every possible resource to bring the fourth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic here under control as early as possible. He was speaking at the outset of an emergency interagency meeting on the rapid spread of the coronavirus, especially the delta variant, in Seoul and nearby areas. "I am very sorry to ask the people once again to

July 12, 2021

Opposition chief doubles down on call for gender, unification ministries' abolition

The head of the main opposition People Power Party on Monday reiterated his call for the abolishment of the gender equality and unification ministries, claiming they have outlived their lifespans as special missions ministries or had no roles from the outset. "The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family and the Ministry of Unification are given special missions, and it is time to evaluate the missions as more than 20 years have passed since their establishments," Lee Jun-seok, chairman

July 12, 2021

Preliminary candidate registration opens for presidential election

Registration for preliminary presidential candidates opened Monday, kicking off what appears to be one of the most crowded presidential races in the nation's history. The National Election Commission (NEC) began the seven-month early registration period for candidates hoping to run in the March 9 election to pick a successor to President Moon Jae-in, whose term ends on May 9. Registrants are allowed to conduct limited campaign activities ahead of an official registration set for mid-February.

July 12, 2021

Pope awaiting invitation to visit North Korea

Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican’s second in command, said Pope Francis wants to visit North Korea and is waiting for an official invitation. He conveyed the message during talks with National Assembly Speaker Park Byeong-seug, who visited last week, officials said Monday. Park met with Parolin at the Vatican Apostolic Palace on Friday, the last day of his 10-day visit to Greece and Italy, according to the statement released by the National Assembly. During the talks with Parolin,

July 12, 2021

[Newsmaker] Moon's approval rebounds back to above 40% for 1st time since early March: poll

President Moon Jae-in's job approval rating climbed back to above 40 percent for the first time in 18 weeks, thanks to increased support from 30-something voters and independents, a poll showed Monday. In the survey conducted by Realmeter on 2,519 people over the age of 18 from July 5-9, Moon's job approval rating was recorded at 41.1 percent, up 3.1 percentage points from the previous week. The result marked Moon's highest performance in public polls since the 40.1 percent figure in the first

July 12, 2021