The heads of medical schools nationwide on Sunday urged the government to freeze the medical school enrollment quota for next year and start a new set of negotiations for the class of 2026 by forging a joint consultative body with the medical community. The Korean Association of Medical Colleges, consisting of 40 medical schools nationwide, released a proposal calling for the government to draw up a "more scientifically based number" for the enrollment quota hike plan. The proposal com

Former presidential rivals may talk about Marine's death, medical standoff, PM nomination

Starting this year, middle and high school students in Paraguay can learn Korean at schools as a second foreign language subject, according to the Ministry of Education on Saturday. The Education Ministry disclosed the signing of a memorandum of understanding with its Paraguayan counterpart, which officially added the Korean language to its second foreign language list for schools in Paraguay. Amid growing demand for Korean studies in Paraguay due to the popularity of Korean cultural content, th

Presidential office says this year’s invitation based on Africa, Mediterranean theme

A court ruled in favor of a pharmacy that took legal action against a former employee who opened a competing business in the same building, on the grounds that such action goes against good morals and social order. A court in Ulsan said Sunday that the plaintiff applied for an injunction to prohibit the business operations of a new pharmacy, which was opened in the same building in January by its former part-time pharmacist. The plaintiff claimed that its former employee, after working there f

Military hospitals nationwide have treated more than 700 civilians since opening their doors to the public at a full scale in mid-February, the defense ministry said Sunday, amid the protracted walkout by trainee doctors. Military hospital emergency rooms became fully accessible to civilians to help address concerns of health care disruptions after thousands of trainee doctors began the walkout on Feb. 19 in protest of a government plan to sharply increase medical school seats next year. As of F

North Korea's top agriculture official has embarked on a trip to Russia, Pyongyang's state media said Sunday, amid chronic food shortages in the North. A state agriculture commission delegation led by chairman Ri Chol-man, who doubles as a cabinet vice premier, left for Russia by plane Saturday, according to the Korean Central News Agency. In a Facebook post, the Russian Embassy in Pyongyang said Ri is scheduled to hold talks with Russia's Agriculture Minister Dmitry Patrushev and

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel to China next week to discuss an array of issues, including North Korea's "threatening" rhetoric and "reckless" actions, a senior US official has said. Blinken plans to visit Shanghai and Beijing from Wednesday to Friday for talks with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and other senior officials in an endeavor, which the official said builds on America's push to "responsibly" manage the Sino-US relationship t

The Korean Medical Association, the country's biggest lobby group for doctors, on Saturday rejected the government's proposal to grant universities autonomy in deciding their medical school quota by a range of 50 to 100 percent for the 2025 academic year. "We recognize that the government's announcement is a deliberate attempt to address the current situation," the KMA said in a statement after its emergency committee meeting. "But it is not a fundamental solution." The gover

First Vice Foreign Minister Kim Hong-kyun has visited the United Arab Emirates for discussions on strengthening cooperation in core areas of mutual interest, his office said Saturday. Kim met with Khaldoon Khalifa Al Mubarak, chairman of the Executive Affairs Authority of Abu Dhabi, and Ahmed Ali Al Sayegh, minister of state at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on Friday for talks on boosting cooperation in the areas of economy, peaceful nuclear power, the defense industry and energy, according t

Nearly 6 out of 10 South Koreans read less than one book in a year, a recent report by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism showed Thursday. According to the report, 43 percent of the population read at least one book between September of 2022 and August of 2023. This was down 4.5 percentage points compared to the previous results of the biennial study released in 2021, and was the lowest figure since the government commenced the study in 1994. The survey was conducted on 5,000 adults a

Details, including the time and form, of a proposed meeting between President Yoon Suk Yeol and main opposition leader Lee Jae-myung have yet to be set, the presidential office said Saturday. In a message to the press, Yoon's office also dismissed media reports that the date for what would be their first-ever meeting has been confirmed. On Friday, the presidential office said Yoon proposed holding the meeting next week after congratulating Lee of the Democratic Party and other party members

A Chinese national suspected of supplying drugs that were used for a high-profile scam case, where young students were deceived into consuming drug-laced drinks, has been arrested in Cambodia, South Korea's spy agency said Friday. The National Intelligence Service, which has been probing the case in cooperation with the Cambodian police, said the 38-year-old charged with supplying methamphetamine to the drug ring that produced and distributed the beverages was apprehended in Phnom Penh on

South Korea's envoy for North Korean human rights visited Argentina and Mexico for discussions on improving the rights situation in Pyongyang, the foreign ministry said Friday. Ambassador Lee Shin-wha met government officials, experts and activists from nongovernmental organizations during her four-day trip to the Latin American countries, according to the ministry. In Buenos Aires, she called for the international community's support and attention to the North's human rights viol

Romanian President Klaus Iohannis will visit South Korea next week to hold a summit with President Yoon Suk Yeol and discuss cooperation in arms and nuclear energy, among other sectors, Yoon's office said Friday. Iohannis will pay an official visit to South Korea from Monday to Thursday, during which the leaders will meet to discuss areas of "strategic cooperation" between the two countries, the presidential office said. The two held talks last July on the sidelines of a North Atl