[Editorial] No hurry

North Korea continues to turn a cold shoulder to a series of rapprochement overtures by the administration of President Moon Jae-in, who was elected with a pledge to achieve reconciliation and peace on the Korean Peninsula. The North’s attitude calls on Moon and his aides to be patient and rethink their strategy. Patience and rethinking are necessary mainly because North Korea has consistently ignored all the olive branches held out by Moon since he took office in early May – offers of humanitar

July 24, 2017

[Editorial] Prerequisites for tax hike

A debate on tax increases has been ignited.The government and ruling party raised the necessity of a tax hike. It came just a day after the unveiling of 100 policy tasks President Moon Jae-in will endeavor to do during his presidency. The team that listed them said they would be implemented without a tax raise.Moon said Friday, “The time has come to decide on the issue of a tax hike. Even if we raise taxes, it will affect only the highest income earners and the largest companies.”Choo Mi-ae, cha

July 23, 2017

[Editorial] Problems of policy tasks

The 100 policy tasks recently revealed by President Moon Jae-in’s de facto transition team form a blueprint of what he will endeavor to do during his five-year presidency.They can be summarized into job creation creation, strengthening welfare and eliminating “evils.”The No. 1 policy task is the eradication of evils, including the reinvestigation of the corruption scandal that brought down the previous administration.As one of the most important tasks, the team demanded the prosecution prove the

July 21, 2017

[Editorial] Not much time left

It is safe to say that there is strong public consensus that the nation needs to rewrite the current Constitution, which was last revised three decades ago. One good case in point is a recent survey that found about 75 percent of Koreans want a revision. A majority of Koreans believe that the current Constitution, which was written in the wake of the 1987 pro-democracy movement, is outdated.The corruption scandal involving ousted President Park Geun-hye and her confidante Choi Soon-sil has also

July 20, 2017

[Editorial] Conditions for talks

The US has responded negatively to the South Korean government’s proposals to hold military and Red Cross talks with North Korea.White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer said at a briefing, “Any type of conditions that would have to be met are clearly far away from where we are now.”Asked about Trump’s reaction to the offers for talks, Spicer said, “Those comments came out of the Republic of Korea (South Korea) and I would refer you back to them.”The US State and Defense departments reportedly al

July 19, 2017

[Editorial] Endless cycle

The state auditor’s latest findings about defects in an indigenous Army helicopter is yet another reminder that it is never easy to end corruption in weapons acquisition programs. The Board of Audit and Inspection’s findings about the Surion transport utility helicopter -- there are about 60 of them already in operation by the Army -- is indeed scary: It lacks protection from lightning and anti-icing capability, which means it cannot operate normally in winter. Furthermore, developers of the hel

July 18, 2017

[Editorial] Surge in minimum wage

The sharp increase in the hourly minimum wage for next year is expected to have widespread repercussions.The minimum wage committee voted to raise the hourly minimum wage from the current 6,470 won ($5.73) to 7,530 won next year.The year-on-year increase rate is 16.4 percent, the largest rise in 17 years after September, 2000.The minimum wage increase is seen by both employers and laborers as a reflection of President Moon Jae-in’s election pledge to raise the minimum wage to 10,000 won by 2020.

July 17, 2017

[Editorial] Big questions

There are two big questions about President Moon Jae-in’s push for ceasing nuclear power: one is whether his nuclear-free energy policy is good for the nation or not and the other is about the heavy-handed way he handles the issue. As you may know, renunciation of nuclear power was one of the liberal president’s election promises. That should not and cannot, however, give Moon -- who only has a mandate for five years -- a free hand in determining a policy shift the effects of which will last lon

July 16, 2017

[Editorial] Take US on squarely

The official US request for a meeting on the Korea-US free trade agreement should convince President Moon Jae-in and his aides that the time has come for them to stop being evasive and take on the issue squarely. Most of all, they should no longer try to play with words. The letter -- written by US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and addressed to Trade Minister Joo Hyung-hwan -- did not use the word “renegotiation,” but made clear the US’ intention to revise the five-year-old trade pact.

July 14, 2017

[Editorial] Duty-free licensing

State audit findings that irregularities took place in the selection of duty-free shop operators in 2015 and 2016 are enough of a shock to question the rationale of the government.The public cannot help but feel ashamed that the president of the time issued special orders and that government officials committed illicit acts to carry them out.The findings are expected to create a sensation as they may shed light on an unknown side of the Choi Soon-sil scandal, which led to the collapse of the Par

July 13, 2017

[Editorial] No time for walkouts

The Korean auto industry is yet again bracing for big trouble, with major unions moving to launch strikes over pay raises, bonuses and other benefits. There are several good reasons why they shouldn’t. Most importantly, Korean automakers are in too bad a situation to suffer further losses. Their competitiveness and profits are falling due to weak domestic demand and sluggish exports. The combined output of the nation’s five carmakers declined to 2.2 million in the first half of this year, the lo

July 12, 2017

[Editorial] Find breakthrough

Just about two months after the Moon Jae-in administration was inaugurated, activity in the legislature seems to have died, and cooperation with the administration looks nonexistent.　An extra session began Tuesday, but the first meeting was not held. Opposition parties boycotted it, and the ruling party gave up on opening the meeting alone. 　Speaker Chung Sye-kyun met with floor leaders of the ruling and opposition parties Monday to resolve the conflict over minister nominations, but their meeti

July 11, 2017

[Editorial] Tough road ahead

President Moon Jae-in returned home Monday from the G-20 meeting in Germany, where he highlighted North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats. The meeting of the world’s 20 biggest countries came shortly after North Korea test-fired what it claimed to be an intercontinental ballistic missile. The leaders’ discussions on the issue, however, fell short of expectations. The G-20 leaders did not include North Korea in their joint statement, and instead the chair -- German Chancellor Angela Merkel -- m

July 10, 2017

[Editorial] Strengthen defense

Two US B-1B strategic bombers conducted live-fire drills with South Korean fighter jets over the Korean Peninsula on Saturday.The drill was a simulated attack on a North Korean missile launcher, and signaled a warning message to the North for test-launching an intercontinental ballistic missile Tuesday.It is the first time for B-1B bombers to have publicly conducted a drill over the Korean Peninsula.South Korea and the US forces in Korea fired ballistic missiles into the South Korean waters in a

July 9, 2017

[Editorial] More active role

President Moon Jae-in held his first summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Berlin, Germany, Thursday. At the meeting with Xi, Moon recognized China’s contributions to global efforts to resolve North Korea’s nuclear and missile threat, and demanded the country do more. But he failed to get Xi’s consent.Xi reportedly said, “China has a blood alliance with North Korea. It has kept diplomatic relations with South Korea for 25 years.“Many changes have happened, but the basic relationship does n

July 7, 2017

[Editorial] Pressure initiative

North Korea said Wednesday an intercontinental ballistic missile it had test-fired a day earlier had achieved successful re-entry into the atmosphere.Atmospheric re-entry is a difficult technology in developing ICBMs. The North also said its missile could carry a large nuclear warhead. Although its announcements are not credible, South Korea and the US have acknowledged the missile as an ICBM.In light of the development, their responses should be entirely different from the past. Therefore, the

July 6, 2017

[Editorial] Opposition in disarray

The opposition as a whole has been thrust into crisis -- which is obviously a boon to President Moon Jae-in and the ruling party. If the situation continues, it would cost the country dearly. One need look no further than the latest popularity ratings to see what the situation is. One recent public survey shows Moon’s approval rating running at 75 percent, and the support rating of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea at 53 percent. The same survey put the support rating of the largest oppositio

July 5, 2017

[Editorial] Call for dialogue in vain

It is not rare for South Korean presidents returning from important summit talks with foreign leaders to blow their own trumpet over the outcome. President Moon Jae-in also listed several achievements from his summit with US President Donald Trump in Washington last week. Among other things, Moon highlighted the success in building personal friendship with Trump, reaffirming the South Korea-US alliance and support for his reconciliatory approach toward North Korea.Trump also mentioned “good rela

July 4, 2017

[Editorial] Prepare for renegotiation

Seoul and Washington have a trade deal issue left to resolve after their recent summit.US President Donald Trump said as he met with President Moon Jae-in, “We are renegotiating a trade deal right now as we speak with South Korea.” His remark effectively made the renegotiation of the free trade agreement an established fact.After meeting wth Moon, he told reporters that he will work to create “a level playing field” for US exporters. He demanded Korea give US automakers “a fair shake” to sell mo

July 3, 2017

[Editorial] After the summit

Like other such talks, the first summit meeting between President Moon Jae-in and US President Donald Trump had both ups and downs. The biggest upside is that, dispelling presummit worries, the two leaders reaffirmed the security alliance between their two countries and agreed to work together to end North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats, which Moon called “the world‘s most urgent and most dangerous threat.”Their agreement was summed up in a joint statement they issued after their talks in W

July 2, 2017