Most Popular
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Signs point to N. Korean troops in Russia-Ukraine combat zone
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[Exclusive] Korean adoptee sisters meet for the first time in 39 years
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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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First lady’s controversies to top agenda at meeting of party leaders
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Over 170,000 overseas Koreans eligible to vote in April general elections
More than 170,000 overseas Koreans in 119 countries will be allowed to vote in the April 15 general elections, the National Election Commission said Tuesday. The number of eligible overseas voters stood at 171,959, up 11.5 percent from 154,217 four years ago, according to the NEC. It will be the third time for Korean citizens to participate in parliamentary elections from abroad. The first was in 2012, when a total of 123,571 overseas voters were registered. Residents in the United States ha
March 17, 2020
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Moon calls for ‘unprecedented’ economic measures
President Moon Jae-in said Tuesday that he will chair an emergency economic conference, and that all available resources and methods will be mobilized to deal with the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. “Special responses and measures will be decided on quickly, and (the situation) will be dealt with firmly through the emergency economic meeting presided over by the president,” Moon said at Tuesday’s Cabinet meeting, calling the current economic situation more grievou
March 17, 2020
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S. Korea's COVID-19 test kits exported to UAE: Cheong Wa Dae
South Korea has sent 51,000 coronavirus test kits to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in "emergency exports," Cheong Wa Dae said Tuesday. So far, 17 countries have formally requested the items from South Korea, it added, amid the global attention being paid to the country's rapid testing regime that is apparently behind a lower-than-average mortality rate. The UAE is the country South Korea can ship the kits to the fastest, according to a Cheong Wa Dae official, who added that the mov
March 17, 2020
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S. Korea to launch 'emergency economic council' over coronavirus impact
President Moon Jae-in announced plans Tuesday to establish an "emergency economic council" that will be headed by himself and push for additional bold steps to shore up South Korea's economy in response to the coronavirus pandemic. The move reflects a growing sense of alarm over what he called "unprecedented emergency economic conditions," which are more serious than the 2008 global financial crisis. Speaking at a weekly Cabinet meeting, he raised the possibility that the i
March 17, 2020
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Parliament set to handle extra budget bill over coronavirus
The National Assembly is set to handle an extra budget bill Tuesday that is designed to strengthen quarantine measures and minimize the economic fallout from the new coronavirus. Rival parties earlier agreed to handle the proposal by Tuesday, the last day of the current extraordinary parliamentary session, amid an urgency to back up the government's efforts to contain the spread of COVID-19. The government submitted an 11.7 trillion-won ($9.53 billion) supplementary budget bill to the Nationa
March 17, 2020
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Liberal proportional coalition off rocky start
The ruling Democratic Party’s efforts to launch a liberal coalition party to win more parliamentary seats via the new proportional representation system in next month’s general election got off to a rocky start as only minor parties with no seats in the legislature are expected to join. The Democratic Party said it would bring together all parties seeking to join the coalition by Wednesday, but it is yet to figure out its relationship with minor parties should it decide not to take
March 16, 2020
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National security advisers of S. Korea, US discuss coronavirus response in phone talks
South Korea's national security adviser, Chung Eui-yong, spoke by phone with his US counterpart Robert O'Brien on Sunday and discussed ways of cooperation to tackle the new coronavirus, the presidential office said Sunday. In particular, Chung explained President Moon Jae-in's proposal to hold a special video teleconference among the leaders of the Group of 20 nations and asked O'Brien to relay the offer to US President Donald Trump, Cheong Wa Dae said in a statement. Moon proposed the idea d
March 15, 2020
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PM calls for parliament to approve extra budget amid coronavirus jitters
Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun on Sunday urged lawmakers to promptly approve the extra budget bill of 11.7 trillion won ($9.6 billion) currently pending at the parliament, amid the growing concerns over the economic fallout from the spread of the new coronavirus. "South Korea will actively review further necessary measures by closely monitoring the economic situation," Chung said during a meeting with related ministers. "We also urge the National Assembly to promptly pass the ext
March 15, 2020
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Moon declares virus-hit Daegu, part of North Gyeongsang Province as special disaster zones
President Moon Jae-in declared the southeastern city of Daegu and three nearby regions in North Gyeongsang Province as special disaster zones Sunday, paving the way for state support for the regions hit hard by the new coronavirus. It was the first time that the government has designated a certain area as a special disaster zone for reasons unrelated to natural disasters. Daegu is the epicenter of South Korea's coronavirus outbreak, accounting for some 77 percent of the total cases. The three
March 15, 2020
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Coronavirus rattles S. Korean politics 30 days before April elections
The new coronavirus is rattling South Korean politics just a month before the April 15 parliamentary elections, changing the way candidates campaign and shifting the overall focus to how the government has handled the outbreak. With COVID-19 infections totaling more than 8,000, experts say the elections are widely expected to be polls on the government's response to the outbreak as the current assessment is sharply divided between supporters of the ruling Democratic Party and opposition partie
March 15, 2020
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Moon urges 'unprecedented' special steps for pandemic-hit economy
South Korean President Moon Jae-in called Friday for "unprecedented" policy measures to counter the economic fallout of the coronavirus pandemic, speaking at a rare Cheong Wa Dae meeting with the country's finance minister and central bank chief. Moon received an emergency briefing on the real economy and the financial market jolted by growing worries about the global spread of COVID-19. It marked Bank of Korea Gov. Lee Ju-yeol's first official visit to Moon's office since he was re
March 13, 2020
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Ruling party votes in favor of proportional coalition
The ruling Democratic Party will join a coalition proportional representative party in the April 15 general election, the party said Friday. In the vote to decide whether to join the coalition, nearly three-quarters of party members with voting rights supported the idea. According to the party, 74.1 percent of those who voted approved of the plan. Of the party’s 789,868 members with voting rights, 30.6 percent or 241,559 took part in the vote. The idea of joining the proportional re
March 13, 2020
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Ruling party to join proportional representation coalition
The ruling Democratic Party (DP) voted Friday to take part in a liberal political bloc designed to win more parliamentary seats via the proportional representation system in next month's general elections, a controversial countermeasure to the main opposition party's similar step. The DP's move is seen as a reversal of its stated protest against the formation of such a political organization often called a paper party. DP lawmakers have strongly criticized the conservative United Future Party
March 13, 2020
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Govt. preparing to declare virus-stricken Daegu a special disaster
The South Korean government is preparing to designate Daegu and nearby North Gyeongsang Province, hard hit by massive coronavirus infections, as "special disaster zones" in a bid to facilitate emergency relief and administrative and financial support, according to Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun on Friday. "Procedures are under way in relation to the declaration" of Daegu, 300 kilometers southeast of Seoul, and the province as special diaster zones," he said at an intera
March 13, 2020
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Govt. orders scheduled remote working for public servants
In its latest efforts to fight the new coronavirus, South Korea on Thursday introduced a flexible working scheme, including flexible working hours and remote working, for public servants. Under the guidelines, public servants across the country are expected to take turns working remotely, either at home or at so-called smart work centers run by the government, according to the document distributed to 50 government organizations by the Ministry of Personnel Management. The heads of each organi
March 12, 2020
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NSC decides to actively join global efforts to contain new coronavirus
South Korea's National Security Council (NSC) decided Thursday to actively join global efforts to contain the spread of the new coronavirus as the UN health agency has declared the virus outbreak a pandemic. Chung Eui-yong, the top national security advisor at the presidential office, presided over a weekly standing committee meeting earlier in the day to discuss responses to the coronavirus. "Taking into consideration the World Health Organization's (WHO) pandemic declaration, standing
March 12, 2020
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Moon makes first visit to virus control headquarters
President Moon Jae-in visited the disease control headquarters Wednesday to encourage health officials fighting the new coronavirus. Moon visited the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) in Cheongju, 140 kilometers south of Seoul, for the first time since the nation reported the outbreak of COVID-19 on Jan. 20. Moon commended the health authorities' fast testing and treatment, pointing out that Korea's containment efforts are receiving international recognition, his spokesma
March 11, 2020
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Ruling bloc wants larger supplementary budget
Cheong Wa Dae and the ruling party will look into increasing the supplementary budget that was recently drawn up in response to the COVID-19 outbreak. According to the ruling Democratic Party, plans to increase the supplementary budget and launch new support programs were discussed at Wednesday’s meeting among high-level officials from the presidential office, the ruling party and the government. The supplementary budget put to the National Assembly’s review is about 11.7 trilli
March 11, 2020
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Ruling party to vote on joining proportional representation coalition
The ruling Democratic Party will hold an online vote for all its members to decide whether to participate in a coalition proportional representative party. The coalition proportional representative party is a proposed political party that will field only proportional representatives in the April 15 general elections. If Democratic Party members approve the resolution, the new party would include the ruling party, the Justice Party and left-leaning parties that do not at present have represent
March 11, 2020
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Govt. to toughen air quality rules for public transport
The government will strengthen its air quality monitoring efforts for trains and buses from next month to minimize ultrafine dust particles inside public transportation vehicles, the Ministry of Environment said Wednesday. Beginning April 1, operators of subways, trains and inter-city buses will be advised to keep the amount of ultrafine particles smaller than 2.5 micrometers in diameter, known as PM 2.5, inside their vehicles below 50 micrograms per cubic meter, the ministry said. Currently,
March 11, 2020