Ending dispute over forced labor a work in progress amid Japan’s reluctance

  A new state-run agency dedicated to providing consolidated administrative support to some 7.3 million South Korean diaspora across the world will likely to be set up in June this year. The new government body will be carved out of the Foreign Ministry and be tasked with creating and implementing state policies aimed at supporting Korean diaspora, according to the bill to revise the Government Organization Act, endorsed by the Cabinet at a meeting on Tuesday. This means the first governmen

President vows to provide full support to develop biohealth industry

A 30-year-old incumbent local councilor began his alternative military service last week, portending a legal dispute over whether people should be allowed to hold public office while serving. Kim Min-seok, a councilor of Seoul’s Gangseo-gu, was elected to the office through the local elections on June 1 last year on the People Power Party’s ticket, with his mandatory military service still pending. All able-bodied men in South Korea are required to serve in the military for 18-22 mon

The National Assembly on Monday approved a bill on upgrading the state agency on veterans affairs to a ministry-level body and establishing a new government agency to handle policies on overseas Koreans. The revised Government Organization Act is expected to be endorsed by the Cabinet on Tuesday and take effect as early as June. As part of the revision, a sub-ministry-level agency will be created under the foreign ministry and replace the Overseas Koreans Foundation. The envisioned launch is a

After some DP lawmakers vote in favor of arrest warrant, is Lee Jae-myung losing his grip on the party?

President Yoon Suk Yeol has pledged to combat school violence and promote greater social justice after having to cancel a key personnel appointment when the chosen official was found to have defended his son in a school bullying case instead of holding him accountable. During a meeting with his secretaries on Monday, Yoon directed the Education Ministry to “collaborate with relevant organizations such as local offices of education to develop measures for eradicating school violence as qui

The National Assembly was set to vote on the government's request for consent to arrest opposition leader Lee Jae-myung over corruption charges Monday amid widespread views his Democratic Party will use its majority power to reject the request. The DP, which holds 169 seats in the 299-member National Assembly, has denounced the prosecution's attempt to arrest Lee as political revenge by President Yoon Suk Yeol against his presidential election rival and vowed to reject the request. By law, parli

Disgraced investigation chief appointee revealed to have defended son's bullying

A prosecutor-turned-lawyer appointed to head the National Office of Investigation offered to resign Saturday, just a day ahead of assuming his post, amid a bullying controversy involving his son at school. Chung Sun-sin, appointed as the new chief the previous day, found himself in hot water after it was belatedly revealed that his son had verbally abused one of his peers for eight months in high school and was ordered to transfer schools. "Many have been concerned due to my son's problem,

The South Korean government said Friday it would resume radiation testing for defectors from near North Korea’s nuclear test site in Punggye-ri to check for possible exposure. Lee Hyo-jung, the Ministry of Unification’s deputy spokesperson, said in a briefing that from this year testing will be offered to North Koreans who lived in Kilju or nearby regions after North Korea’s first nuclear test in 2006, if they are willing. There are 881 defectors who would be eligible for the t

Twenty-five lawmakers on Thursday together signed a bill to investigate the war crimes of South Korean troops during the Vietnam War. “For years the Vietnamese victims have asked for the South Korean government’s acknowledgement of the civilian killings linked to South Korean soldiers, as well as an official apology and compensation. No such steps have been taken by the South Korean government to date,” Rep. Kang Min-jung, one of the lawmakers who authored the bill, said in a p

The Democratic Party of Korea’s legally troubled Chairperson Rep. Lee Jae-myung went on a lengthy rant at a press conference Thursday, just days ahead of a National Assembly vote that could send the arrest warrant filed for him to court. Lee, once again denying any wrongdoing, called the prosecutors’ investigations into corruption controversies from his time as Gyeonggi Province governor and Seongnam mayor “political propaganda.” “What prosecutors said in the warran

Ukraine, Polish ambassador join forces in Seoul to condemn Russia's continued aggression, Kyiv envoy suggests Yoon-Zelenskyy dialogue

President Yoon Suk Yeol has set a target of exporting $685 billion this year, an increase of 0.2 percent year-on-year, vowing to mobilize all the nation's capabilities to achieve this goal at an export strategy meeting Thursday. The meeting was attended by related ministers and leaders of major exporters, including CJ CheilJedang, LG Energy Solution, HMM and CJ ENM. Despite difficult economic conditions, Yoon noted that the country had achieved record-high exports of $683.6 billion last yea