In this series, The Korea Herald sits down with newcomers chosen by South Koreans to serve on the National Assembly for the next four years, to talk about their visions and takes on issues in Seoul and beyond. -- Ed. The possibility of Donald Trump returning to the White House may prompt South Korea to consider bolstering its security beyond the protection of its alliance with the US, according to ruling People Power Party lawmaker-elect, Yu Yong-weon. Speaking to The Korea Herald on Friday, Yu

Politics May 13, 2024

Cho Tae-yul, the South Korean minister of foreign affairs, will visit Beijing on May 13-14 at the invitation of his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi. The Foreign Affairs Ministry in Seoul said Friday that a meeting between Cho and Wang is expected to take place May 13. According to the ministry, the two ministers will exchange views on South Korea-China bilateral relations, issues affecting the region, and other “matters of mutual interest.” At the meeting, they may also discuss the deta

Politics May 10, 2024

President Yoon Suk Yeol apologized Thursday for first lady Kim Keon Hee’s alleged acceptance of a Dior bag as a gift, while dismissing the continued calls for a special probe into the controversy as a political attack by the opposition. In a press conference marking his two years in office, the president said he “offers a deep apology to the South Korean people for causing concern due to (his) wife’s unwise conduct.” In undercover camera footage released last year on a Yo

Politics May 9, 2024

South Korea is leaning toward accepting the proposed cuts by Indonesia in its share of KF-21 fighter development costs, according to the government’s Defense Acquisition Program Administration on Wednesday. The DAPA said that the reduction in the Indonesian contribution to the joint project was expected to translate into less of a financial burden than speculated by the press, explaining that expenses could be cut down considerably over the process. At its onset, the project was calculated

Defense May 8, 2024

Indonesia’s latest proposal to slash its share of the costs for the joint project to develop the South Korean KF-21 fighter jet appears to have left South Korea with no option but to cover the remainder. According to South Korea’s Defense Acquisition Program Administration on Tuesday, the Indonesian side has proposed to pay one-third of its agreed share -- which is about 600 billion won ($441 million) -- by the deadline about two years from now. The proposal came after Indonesia ha

Defense May 7, 2024

National Assembly Speaker Kim Jin-pyo criticized former Democratic Party of Korea colleagues who said the parliamentary leader does not need to maintain political neutrality. In a radio interview late Sunday, Kim said that the Democratic Party “ought to be ashamed” of its criticisms that he was “not picking a side” as the party pushes for its post-Assembly election agenda. “The speaker of the Assembly remains unaffiliated with any party for a reason. The speaker, wh

Politics May 6, 2024

Kim Jin-pyo, the speaker of South Korea’s National Assembly, told a meeting with overseas Koreans in Los Angeles that he would try to push laws to permit multiple citizenships, according to the speaker’s office. “Allowing people to hold multiple citizenships has gained considerable consensus in the Assembly as well as the government,” he said during a meeting with members of organizations representing Koreans in the US at the Intercontinental Hotel in LA on Saturday. He s

Politics May 6, 2024

[코리아헤럴드=김아린 기자] “조국신당은 검찰개혁에 대해 민주당이 앞서 얘기했던 것 이상의 명확한 아젠다를 제시하지 못 하고 있습니다.” 김용민 더불어민주당 의원은 2일 코리아헤럴드와 인터뷰에서 조국혁신당의 4·10 총선 약진에 대해 “개혁 현안에 있어서 선명성 때문이겠지만, 선명성 경쟁에서 오히려 민주당이 더 비교 우위에 있다”며 이같이 말했다. 김 의원은 “민주당에 실망했던 시민들이 조국혁신당이 내건 정책적 선명성에 기대를 하신 것 같다”고도 진단했다. 그러면서도 조국혁신당의 검찰개혁 정책들에 대해선 “이미 민주당에서도 다 제시했던 것이고, 그 당만의 독특한 특색은 아니다”라고 했다. 이어 ‘김건희 여사 특검법’과 ‘윤석열 대통령 거부권 행사 제한법’ 등을 예로 들면서 “민주당에서 다 발의했던 것”이라고도 했다. 김 의

한국어판 May 2, 2024

In this series, The Korea Herald sits down with newcomers who were chosen by South Koreans to serve on the National Assembly for the next four years, to talk about their visions and takes on issues in Seoul and beyond. -- Ed. The complete denuclearization of North Korea is not only the ultimate goal but also a viable aim of the security efforts of South Korea and the US, according to Kim Gunn, who was until recently Seoul’s top nuclear envoy. Kim, who was elected by proportional representa

Politics May 1, 2024

Hwang Woo-yea, who was deputy prime minister for former President Park Geun-hye, was tapped Monday as the temporary leader of the ruling People Power Party that is still reeling in the aftermath of its painful defeat in the April 10 general election for the National Assembly. Hwang, 77, is to take the helm of the People Power Party leadership until a new one is picked at a party convention that remains at least a few months away. The new ruling party leader-to-be was a judge in Seoul before he s

Politics April 29, 2024

President Yoon Suk Yeol on Friday named a new chief prosecutor of the Corruption Investigation Office for High-Ranking Officials, after a vacancy of about three months. Oh Dong-woon, formerly a judge and attorney, was nominated to lead the CIO, which is currently spearheading a high-profile investigation into the death of a Marine in July last year. Cpl. Chae Su-geun died at the age of 20 when he was swept away in moving water during a search and rescue operation to find people who had gone miss

Politics April 26, 2024

South Korea is preparing to establish a center for space security under the National Intelligence Service. Under the revisions to the presidential decree that took effect Tuesday, the NIS is set to operate the National Space Security Center, dedicated to intelligence activities concerning the space sector. With the center’s launch, the country’s spy agency will have the authority to respond to threats to space assets and systems of the country and other enemy threats in the space dom

Defense April 26, 2024

President Yoon Suk Yeol and Rep. Lee Jae-myung, the leader of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea, have finally decided on a date for their first-ever meeting, after days of back and forth since the National Assembly election on April 10. The Democratic Party said Friday Lee is set to speak with the president over tea at 2 p.m. on April 29, in what will be the first meeting between the two rivals since the Yoon administration took office nearly two years ago. Lee’s chief secretar

Politics April 26, 2024

North Korea said Tuesday that its leader Kim Jong-un has overseen the country’s first nuclear drills against a potential attack by an enemy. The Workers’ Party of Korea-owned daily Rodong Sinmun said the live-fire drills involving “new” and “super large” rocket launchers were held a day prior on Monday under Kim’s guidance. According to the report, Monday’s drills are the first demonstration of North Korea‘s central nuclear weapons management

North Korea April 23, 2024

South Korea spotted several short-range ballistic missiles fired from North Korea toward the sea west of the Korean Peninsula on Monday. The South’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a release that the missiles, the launch point of which is believed to be around Pyongyang, flew for more than 300 kilometers before landing in the sea at 3:01 p.m. The JCS said the missiles were “immediately detected, tracked and monitored” as they were launched and that the related information was &ld

Defense April 22, 2024