Most Popular
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[Exclusive] Korean adoptee sisters meet for the first time in 39 years
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Signs point to N. Korean troops in Russia-Ukraine combat zone
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Rose's 'Apt.' redefines K-pop's global appeal
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Two years on, thousands mourn Itaewon tragedy, calling for accountability
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Yoon calls for measures to protect Koreans amid escalating Iran-Israel conflicts
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Civil servant’s death linked to workplace bullying
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[Weekender] Walk around Korea to really get to know the country
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[Herald Interview] Love for K-drama, food defines 'Secret Ingredient'
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Hanwha, HD Hyundai vie for Poland’s $2.7b submarine program
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[Photo News] Rallying against LGBTQ+
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Prospect grows for opposition coalition
Prospects are growing for a conservative coalition, as two opposition parties seek ways to challenge the mammoth ruling Democratic Party of Korea, which holds the biggest majority ever claimed by a single party in the history of the National Assembly. Cooperative moves gained traction since the right-wing United Future Party, the largest opposition party with 103 lawmakers, and center-right People’s Party with three lawmakers launched a joint study program called the People’s Futu
July 5, 2020
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Ruling party chief to retire next month, write memoir
Ruling Democratic Party of Korea leader Lee Hae-chan will retire from politics next month. A memoir recapping his 50 years of involvement in local politics, spanning from his days participating in pro-democracy student activism in the 70s, to turbulent partisan politics and the inner workings of the liberal Cabinet, is in the works. Lee, 67, whose two-year term as the chief of the liberal party ends next month, will not be taking any official post in politics after that, as Lee pledged during
July 5, 2020
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Main opposition party to return to National Assembly
The main opposition United Future Party (UFP) will return to the National Assembly this week, its floor leader said Sunday, after boycotting all proceedings for weeks in protest of the ruling Democratic Party's unilateral formation of standing committees. "Starting Monday, we will attend the plenary and standing committee sessions and carry on with our fight in earnest inside the assembly," Rep. Joo Ho-young told reporters. The DP controls 176 out of 300-seat parliament after its la
July 5, 2020
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Lawmaker tests negative for virus, parliament to review extra budget
A ruling party lawmaker who had contact with a COVID-19 patient earlier this week tested negative for the coronavirus Friday, prompting the National Assembly to move forward with a plenary session to review the government's extra budget as planned. "I was notified that my test result came back negative. I apologize for causing concerns today," Rep. Oh Yeong-hwan of the Democratic Party told reporters through a text message. Oh underwent testing and quarantined himself earlier in t
July 3, 2020
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Nat'l Assembly on alert after lawmaker's contact with COVID-19 patient
South Korea's National Assembly was placed on high alert Friday and even rescheduled a plenary session to pass an extra budget after learning that a ruling party lawmaker had contact with a coronavirus patient earlier this week. Rep. Oh Yeong-hwan of the Democratic Party, who attended an evening event in his constituency of Uijeongbu, Gyeonggi Province, on Wednesday, told reporters through text message that a citizen who he shook hands with at the event was confirmed to be infected with COVID-
July 3, 2020
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Spy agency chief nominee Park, champion of inter-Korean reconciliation, cooperation
National Intelligence Service (NIS) director-nominee Park Jie-won is known for his role in arranging the historic first-ever inter-Korean summit in 2000 and fostering engagement with North Korea while in government service from the late 1990s to early 2000s. Park, a former lawmaker of the opposition Party for People's Livelihoods, was a close confidant to late ex-President Kim Dae-jung credited with promoting reconciliation with North Korea through his "sunshine policy," for which Ki
July 3, 2020
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Moon names spy chief as top security adviser
President Moon Jae-in on Friday replaced his top foreign policy and national security officials, naming Suh Hoon director of the National Security Office, top security adviser to the president. Suh, incumbent spy chief, is a longtime veteran on North Korea policy who helped to orchestrate the three inter-Korean summits in 2018. Park Jie-won, a former special envoy to North Korea who met both Kim Jong-un and his late father Kim Jong-il, was named to head the spy agency. The four-term lawmake
July 3, 2020
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Four-term ruling party lawmaker named unification minister
Unification minister-designate Lee In-young is a four-term lawmaker known for leading the pro-democracy student movement in the 1980s as the inaugural leader of what was then the country's biggest college student organization. Lee's designation is widely seen as reflecting President Moon Jae-in's intention to seek a breakthrough in the long-stalled inter-Korean relations amid North Korea's anger over anti-Pyongyang propaganda leaflets and Seoul's overall policy on cross-border relations. Born
July 3, 2020
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[Breaking] Four-term ruling party lawmaker nominated as unification minister, NIS chief as national security adviser
President Moon Jae-in nominated Lee In-young, a four-term ruling party lawmaker, as South Korea's new unification minister Friday in a shake-up of his security team aimed at providing fresh momentum to troubled efforts to improve inter-Korean ties and revitalize the peace process. Moon also tapped Suh Hoon, head of the National Intelligence Service (NIS), as new director of national security. Lee, known for brisk involvement in peace-related activities as a lawmaker with the Democratic Party,
July 3, 2020
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Moon calls for heavier tax burden on owners of multiple homes to curb housing price surge
President Moon Jae-in instructed his land minister Thursday to push for ways to raise tax burdens on owners of two or more houses, as he received an emergency report on South Korea's real estate market viewed by many as being overheated. He called in Kim Hyun-mee, minister of land, infrastructure and transport, for the debriefing, with his government confronted with fierce public criticism over its unsuccessful policies in tackling skyrocketing home prices especially in Seoul and adjacent cit
July 2, 2020
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In snub to prosecution chief, justice minister exercises authority in suspected collusion case
In snub to prosecution chief, justice minister exercises authority in suspected collusion case Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae on Thursday ordered Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl to suspend the convening of an expert advisory panel to review a suspected collusion case that involves a prosecutor deemed close to Yoon, invoking her authority to command the prosecution's investigation. "With the investigation going on, experts' assessment on the case might bring out a hasty conclusion, which in
July 2, 2020
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Young, moderate adults ebb away from Moon’s support base
President Moon Jae-in’s approval rating dropped to the lowest in three months, while the gap between the ruling and main opposition parties narrowed, a poll showed Thursday. According to a poll conducted by Realmeter, Moon’s approval rating came to 49.4 percent in the first week of July. This is the first time the figure has dropped below 50 percent in Realmeter polls since the third week of March. A Gallup Korea poll for the final week of June also showed similar results, puttin
July 2, 2020
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Moon urges legislation on raising property ownership taxes against soaring housing prices
President Moon Jae-in instructed his aides Thursday to push urgently for legislation on imposing more taxes on property ownership, especially on those with high-priced or multiple apartments, as his government has come under ferocious public criticism over unrelenting hikes in housing prices in Seoul and its adjacent cities. Moon's call represents the government's resolve to tackle the problem, according to Cheong Wa Dae spokesman Kang Min-seok, The president is scheduled to receive a related
July 2, 2020
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Main opposition to end boycott, return to assembly next week
Ending its monthlong boycott of the ruling party-controlled National Assembly, the main opposition party will return to the chamber early next week, party leaders said Thursday. Protesting against the ruling Democratic Party's (DP) unilateral formation of parliamentary standing committees since early June, the main opposition United Future Party (UFP) has been boycotting the assembly's plenary session votes as well as the review of an extra budget bill. While the UFP has stayed away from the
July 2, 2020
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Ex-PM Lee to bid for party chairmanship next week
Former Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon said Wednesday he would announce his bid for the chairmanship of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea next week, which could help the key potential presidential candidate consolidate his position and stamp his authority on the liberal faction. Lee said he would make an announcement on his future course of action on Tuesday, about eight weeks before the Democratic Party’s Aug. 29 convention where a new chairman and other leaders will be elected. &ldqu
July 1, 2020
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Moon hopes Trump to meet NK leader before November election: Cheong Wa Dae
South Korean President Moon Jae-in hopes that US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un will meet each other again ahead of the Nov. 3 US presidential election in order to reactivate the Korea peace process, a senior Cheong Wa Dae official said Wednesday. Cheong Wa Dae has already conveyed Moon's idea to the White House in their "close communication" especially following the North's demolition of an inter-Korean liaison office in its border city of Kaesong in mid-
July 1, 2020
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Former justice minister's nephew sentenced to 4 years in prison
A Seoul court on Tuesday sentenced a relative of former Justice Minister Cho Kuk to imprisonment of four years in the first court ruling on corruption allegations surrounding Cho's family. The Seoul Central District Court handed down the jail sentence and a fine of 50 million won ($41,570) on Cho Beom-dong for embezzlement and violation of capital market law. The court, however, cleared him of most charges linked to the former minister's wife, Chung Kyung-sim, rejecting the prosecution's clai
June 30, 2020
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W3b extra budget proposal clears first hurdle in National Assembly
The country’s third and largest-ever extra budget plan cleared a minor hurdle Tuesday as the ruling Democratic Party forges ahead with the review process despite the absence of the main opposition party following fierce strife between the rival political groups. Sixteen parliamentary standing committees completed the budget review sessions by adding 3.13 trillion won ($2.61 billion) to the government’s initial budget of 35.3 trillion won, the third extra budget to support indust
June 30, 2020
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[News Focus] With 20 months left, what are prospects of liberals winning next presidency?
SEJONG -- The next presidential election will be conducted in about 20 months, under which South Korea is to see the president-elect in March 2022. While President Moon Jae-in finishes his term at midnight May 9, 2022, the new presidential transition committee -- being formed after the scheduled March 9 election in the year -- will carry out preparation activities during Moon’s final weeks in office. A viewpoint for the coming 20th president of Korea is whether the majority of vote
June 30, 2020
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Ruling party unilaterally takes chairman posts of all standing committees
The ruling Democratic Party of Korea has strengthened its grip on the National Assembly, already heavily tilted to the left, by taking the chair posts of nearly all standing committees, after talks with the main opposition party on sharing them fell apart. In a plenary session held on Monday, 181 lawmakers, including 176 from the Democratic Party, completed casting votes for the mainstream liberal party to secure 17 committee chairmanships out of 18. The chief of the Intelligence Committee w
June 29, 2020