South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol initiated a significant cabinet reshuffle Wednesday, appointing new defense, culture and gender equality ministers in a bid to rejuvenate his administration's momentum. Yoon named Rep. Shin Won-sik of the ruling People Power Party as the defense minister, reappointed former Culture Minister Yu In-chon under the former Lee Myung-bak to the same role, and selected Kim Haeng, a spokesperson for the former Park Geun-hye administration as the gender equalit

The ruling People Power Party on Wednesday confirmed that it will continue to pursue a ban on the consumption of dog meat through the so-called "Kim Keon Hee Law," named after the president's wife, who is an active animal welfare advocate. In a social media post, Rep. Park Dae-chul of the conservative People Power Party, rejected media reports that claimed the party had decided not to pursue the law. He further expressed his hope for thorough discussions during the parliamentary b

Rep. Shin Won-sik of the ruling People Power Party was nominated as the minister of national defense on Wednesday. He is a former three-star general with 35 years of military service who built an extensive experience in both policy crafting and operations. President Yoon Suk Yeol’s chief of staff Kim Dae-ki said in a briefing on this day he was the “most qualified candidate to complete building South Korea’s security capabilities against escalating nuclear and missile threats.&

A lawmaker from South Korea’s ruling People Power Party is leading a resolution to mourn the lives lost in the recent Morocco earthquake​ and to mobilize support for recovery efforts in devastated communities. Rep. Jung Hee-yong, who heads the ruling party’s committee for natural disaster preparedness, said Tuesday he had introduced a resolution to recognize the victims of the the 6.8 magnitude earthquake that struck Morocco on Friday night, and to support their recovery. The resolut

Opposition leader Lee Jae-myung was grilled by prosecutors again Tuesday over allegations of his involvement in a company's illegal remittance to North Korea in 2019. Lee, chair of the main opposition Democratic Party, left the Suwon District Prosecutors Office after around five hours of questioning on charges of third-party bribery, three days after he underwent the first round of questioning on Saturday. "I don't know why (investigators) called me again, as they again failed to

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un was spotted Monday traveling by his family train on his way to a summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin. The third-generation Kim diverged from his famously flight-phobic father in his past summit trips, in June 2018 flying Air China to get to Singapore for the landmark meeting with then-US President Donald Trump. This time he chose to travel 20 hours on the train that is speculated to be bulletproof and multifunctional, with luxurious decors. Rep. Tae Yong-

South Korea's Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup reportedly expressed his intention to resign on Tuesday, amid increasing demands from the opposition to remove him, citing allegations of his interference in a probe into the death of a Marine. Lee, a 63-year-old retired Army lieutenant general who has served as the defense minister since President Yoon Suk Yeol's inauguration in May 2022, expressed his intent during a Cabinet meeting at Yoon's office on Tuesday, according to news report

President urges swift passage of bills on protection of teachers' rights

The state anti-corruption agency said Tuesday it will look into virtual asset holdings of all lawmakers to see if any irregularities are involved, after suspicions arose earlier this year over a lawmaker's once-massive cryptocurrency assets. The Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission said it will conduct a 90-day inspection starting next Monday at the request of the National Assembly and a special team of 30 investigators will be mobilized for the inspection. Earlier this year, the rul

The government and the ruling People Power Party decided Tuesday to push for a set of legal revisions aimed at safeguarding teachers' rights during child abuse investigations. The move comes after a series of suicide deaths of teachers sparked massive demands for the protection of teacher rights. Some argue the current child abuse crimes act could hold teachers accountable for child abuse allegations stemming from what they consider necessary disciplinary actions. The proposed revisions wou

The main opposition Democratic Party of Korea on Monday demanded that President Yoon Suk Yeol replace his entire Cabinet, starting with Minister of National Defense Lee Jong-sup, who the party is accusing of being behind the alleged cover-up of the death of a marine soldier in July. Rep. Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party’s chair who is on day 12 of his hunger strike against what he calls “Yoon's tyranny,” said in a statement released Monday that the president, by refusin

Proposed bill: Act on Protection of Digital Service Users Proposed by Rep. Jung Pil-mo (Democratic Party of Korea) ● The rapid advancement of digital services has led to new forms of user rights infringement, highlighting the need for a new act to protect the rights of digital service users. This bill requires business operators planning to deliver personalized services to clearly inform users about how their browsing and search history is used. It also requires digital service providers that us

Second Deputy National Security Adviser Lim Jong-deuk departed for Britain on Monday to discuss cooperation in the cybersecurity and defense sectors, according to the Office of National Security. During his six-day visit to London, Lim plans to hold meetings with ranking officials in the defense, foreign and national security sectors, as the two countries prepare to mark the 140th anniversary of diplomatic ties. "We expect his visit to Britain will strengthen cybersecurity cooperation and a

President Yoon Suk Yeol's approval rating inched up to 36.7 percent, primarily due to positive public assessments of his recent overseas trip to attend summits involving the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and the Group of 20, according to a poll Monday. In the survey of 2,515 eligible voters conducted by Realmeter from Monday to Friday last week, the positive assessment of Yoon's performance increased by 1.3 percentage points from the previous week, while disapproval of Yoon�

President Yoon Suk Yeol returned home Monday after visiting Indonesia and India to attend summits involving the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and the Group of 20. Yoon traveled to Jakarta on the first leg of the trip to attend a South Korea-ASEAN summit, an ASEAN Plus Three summit and an East Asia Summit, demonstrating his commitment to strengthening ties with the 10 ASEAN member states and the wider Indo-Pacific region. From Jakarta, Yoon traveled to New Delhi, where he attended the G2