South Korea, the US and Japan agreed to bolster security and economic cooperation at a Camp David summit Friday that sought a stronger coalition on China and North Korea, signing for the first time a pledge to jointly respond to common security threats. The summit US President Joe Biden held with President Yoon Suk Yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida at his presidential retreat condemned China’s “dangerous and aggressive behavior” in the South China Sea, reaffirming

President Yoon Suk Yeol’s domestic political opponents have blasted the trilateral agreement reached at a summit at Camp David, saying it would deepen the country’s alignment with Japan. The main opposition Democratic Party of Korea, which has traditionally taken a hard-line stance toward Tokyo, slammed the outcomes of the summit as a “de facto military alliance with Japan.” The party’s chief spokesperson Rep. Kwon Chil-seung said over the weekend that the document

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol arrived at the Camp David presidential retreat in Maryland on Friday to attend a trilateral summit with US President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. Yoon and Biden sat down for a bilateral meeting before going into the trilateral summit scheduled for later in the day. The three leaders are expected to discuss ways to enhance security and economic cooperation in the face of North Korea's nuclear threat and China's growing militar

Confirmation hearing for Korea's broadcasting watchdog chair nominee, Lee Dong-kwan, devolves into heated exchange

The top court finalized a seven-year prison term for Rep. Jung Chan-min of the ruling People Power Party on bribe charges Friday, a sentence that automatically stripped him of his parliamentary seat. Jung was charged with taking some 352 million won ($263,650) worth of bribes from a real estate developer between 2016 and 2017 in return for business favors while he was serving as the mayor of Yongin in Gyeonggi Province. The Supreme Court on Friday upheld a lower court's seven-year sentence

US President Joe Biden sent his condolences and a bouquet of flowers to South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, whose father recently passed away, the presidential office said on Friday. The flowers and message were delivered to Yoon's accommodations in Washington, D.C., before his arrival there. The leaders of the two countries are expected to speak by phone shortly. President Biden and first lady Jill Biden wrote in the card, "You are in our prayers and we wish you peace as you mourn

Opposition leader Lee Jae-myung returned home early Friday after more than 13 hours of questioning by prosecutors over suspicions surrounding a land development project in Seongnam, located just south of Seoul, during his previous term as the city's mayor. Lee of the main opposition Democratic Party is facing allegations that he facilitated business favors for a private developer in connection with a property development project in Seongnam's Baekhyeon-dong district during his term as

Documents set to institutionalize trilateral partnership; Yoon to hold separate meetings with Kishida, Biden

South Korea’s intelligence agency believes North Korea is planning a number of military provocations around this week’s trilateral summit with the US and Japan, or the joint drills with US troops later this month. Rep. Yoo Sang-bum, the executive secretary of the National Assembly intelligence committee, told reporters Thursday signs of North Korea preparing an imminent ICBM launch were detected by the National Intelligence Service. There has been an unusual increase in activities ar

Prosecution continues to pursue allegations against DP figures over land corruption, campaign financing scandals

A funeral ceremony was held for President Yoon Suk Yeol's late father on Thursday, with only close family members, the deceased's former students and senior officials in attendance. Yoon Ki-jung, an honorary professor at Seoul's Yonsei University, died Tuesday at the age of 92. He was known as an expert on studying economic inequality using statistical methods and dedicated his career to teaching applied statistics from 1973 to 1997. The funeral was held at Seoul's Severance

President Yoon Suk Yeol is set to depart for the United States on Thursday to attend a trilateral summit with US President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on ways to enhance security cooperation in the face of North Korea's nuclear threat. The summit will be held at the Camp David presidential retreat in Maryland on Friday, marking the first time the three countries' leaders will meet for a stand-alone trilateral summit that's not on the sidelines of a multilat

A blame game is brewing over the World Scout Jamboree, as Korea’s state auditor said it would look into how the event was organized from the day Korea was announced as the host country. “The inspection will look into the entire event, from the bidding stage to the planning process to the actual operation until the last day. All of the concerned parties, including central and municipal governments, will be subject to inspection,” an official at the Board of Audit and Inspection

North Korea has not yet offered condolences to President Yoon Suk Yeol over his father's death, unlike previous instances when Pyongyang passed on its sympathies upon news of the deaths of South Korea's liberal-leaning leaders and their family members. Yoon's father, Yoon Ki-jung, an emeritus professor of applied statistics at Yonsei University, died Tuesday. This is the second time an incumbent president has lost a parent during his or her term. When former left-wing President

Land Minister Won Hee-ryong met with incoming Paraguayan President Santiago Pena Palacios and discussed South Korean companies' participation in the South American country's light rail project, Won's office said Tuesday. Won paid a visit to Pena on Monday, local time, and asked for support for efforts to enact a special bill helping South Korean companies win the $600 million project to build a 45-kilometer light rail line between Asuncion, Paraguay's capital, and Ypacarai. S