South Korea expressed its commitment to continuing aid to war-torn Ukraine at an international peace summit in Switzerland last weekend, the Office for Government Policy Coordination said. Government Policy Coordination Minister Bang Ki-seon attended the Summit on Peace in Ukraine in Burgenstock, Switzerland, on Saturday and Sunday, as South Korea's chief representative, according to his office. Bang told a meeting Sunday that as a global pivotal state, South Korea has continued to express

The ruling People Power Party and government officials on Sunday agreed to provide energy vouchers to 1.3 million vulnerable households as the country braces for a hotter-than-average summer. The support scheme was announced during a meeting of senior officials of the government, the presidential office and the ruling party, according to Rep. Jang Dong-hyuk, the party's chief spokesperson. The decision to provide support of up to 53,000 won ($38), up 10,000 won from last year, comes as Sout

A memorial altar set up for victims of the 2022 Itaewon crowd crush was moved to a new site Sunday from its original location outside Seoul City Hall. The altar, which commemorates the 159 people killed in a crowd crush in Seoul's Itaewon neighborhood during Halloween weekend in 2022, was relocated to Burim Building near Seoul Plaza after operating on the plaza for 16 months. The relocation agreement was reached between families of the victims and the Seoul metropolitan government following

From 2000 detente to 2024 alienation, drastic shift in climate surrounds impending North Korea-Russia summit

The government on Sunday rejected the doctors' final proposal to abandon plans to increase medical school enrollment quotas, stating that it does not consider it appropriate for doctors to make such a demand. The Korean Medical Association -- the largest coalition of doctors' groups with approximately 140,000 members, mostly private practitioners -- sent a "final ultimatum" to the government Sunday saying its members will shut down their services and rally starting Tuesday if

Amid a relentless heat wave sweeping across South Korea, Seoul has seen a significant surge in mosquito populations over the past two weeks, turning a seasonal nuisance into a widespread concern. According to the Seoul Mosquito Forecast System, the average mosquito activity index in the capital city has increased to its highest level of 100, in its four-tier system, for two consecutive weeks from June 2. The highest level, "unpleasant," means outdoor mosquito larval habitats are formed

Back home, president faces possible medical disruption due to doctors' strike this week

President Yoon Suk Yeol returned to Seoul early Sunday morning as the couple wrapped up the state visits to three Central Asian countries. Yoon on Saturday flew from the ancient city of Samarkand, about 270 kilometers southwest of Uzbekistan's capital city Tashkent, for his final engagement with his counterpart, Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev. Mirziyoyev formerly served as the governor of the Samarkand region from 2001 to 2003. They visited historical sites that used to be the center of

SAMARKAND, Uzbekistan -- President Yoon Suk Yeol visited ancient city of Samarkand before wrapping up the state visits to three Central Asian countries, according to the presidential office on Saturday. Flying about 270 kilometers southwest of Uzbekistan's capital city Tashkent, Yoon and his counterpart, Uzbek President President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, visited historic sites of what served as the center of the Timurid Empire in the 14th century, such as a public square Registan and Gur-e-Amir,

When excessive work and exhaustion leave them drained, intravenous vitamin infusions become lifeline for relief

A 70-something-year-old man caused an accident while driving the van of a local day care center and is being investigated for operating the vehicle without a valid driver's license, local media outlets reported Thursday. No injuries occurred outside of the driver, as the car had no passengers at the time. Officials of the Seoul Seongdong Police Station are investigating the man for violating Article 43 of the Road Traffic Act, which prohibits driving a motor vehicle without a valid licens

Opposition leader Lee Jae-myung on Saturday said the two Koreas should sit together and communicate to ease the escalating tensions over Pyongyang's trash-carrying balloon campaign and Seoul's response. On social media, Lee said the peace built up on the Korean Peninsula is at risk as the two Koreas have been engaged in tit-for-tat measures. Referring to the North's sending of balloons carrying trash across the border, South Korean civic group's sending of anti-Pyongyang leaf

North Korea's military has been carrying out unexplained construction activities inside the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) separating the two Koreas, according to a military source Saturday. "Recently, the North Korean military has been erecting walls, digging the ground and constructing roads in some areas between the Military Demarcation Line (MDL) and the Northern Limit Line in the DMZ," the source said. The source added it was unclear whether these activities indicate an intention t

South Korea's top envoy to the UN on Friday criticized as "bizarre" and "deplorable" North Korea's claim that its sending of trash-filled balloons to the South was an exercise of freedom of expression. Ambassador Hwang Joon-kook made the remarks during a UN Security Council meeting as the North has sent waste-loaded balloons to the South in a tit-for-tat response to South Korean activists' sending of anti-Pyongyang leaflets across the inter-Korean border. In a sarcastic state

TASHKENT, Uzbekistan -- South Korea, the United States and Japan will join forces to analyze the process and the outcome of Russian President Vladimir Putin's upcoming visit to North Korea for the first time in 24 years. According to an official of the presidential office who spoke on condition of anonymity, South Korea will "together analyze the process and the outcome" of Putin's visit to Pyongyang to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, in line with its "close and frequent com