The Yoon Suk-yeol administration's first ruling party-government consultative meeting is expected to take place Wednesday to discuss an extra budget bill aimed at compensating pandemic-hit small merchants, an official with the now ruling People Power Party (PPP) said Tuesday. The meeting between the PPP and the new government is likely to be held at 7:30 a.m. at the National Assembly one day after Yoon takes office, according to the official. "Since the extra budget bill is the most urgent

Cheong Wa Dae was set to open to the public later Tuesday, immediately after incoming President Yoon Suk-yeol's inauguration ceremony, ending its 74-year-old role as the site for the presidential office and residence in line with Yoon's pledge to relocate the top office. The compound, including the main office building, the Nokjiwon garden and the state guest house of Yeongbin-gwan, will be open to visitors who have made online reservations in advance from noon to 8 p.m. and then from 7 a.m. to

Yoon Suk-yeol is set to be sworn in as South Korea's new president Tuesday, marking the start of a tough battle to avert an economic crisis, win the cooperation of an opposition-controlled parliament and rein in an increasingly menacing North Korea. Yoon kicked off his five-year term at midnight in the underground bunker of the new presidential office building in Yongsan by receiving a briefing from the Joint Chiefs of Staff. "President Yoon Suk-yeol expressed his appreciation for the hard

WASHINGTON -- The United States looks forward to continuing to work with South Korea under President Yoon Suk-yeol in tackling various challenges facing the US-South Korea alliance, a state department spokesperson said Monday. "The US-ROK alliance is the linchpin of peace, security and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific and we look forward to continuing US-ROK cooperation in tackling the most pressing global challenges," the spokesperson told Yonhap News Agency, asking not to be identified

New South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol began his five-year term at the start of Tuesday in an underground bunker set up at his office building by receiving a briefing from the Joint Chiefs of Staff as the commander-in-chief. Yoon was briefed at midnight in the situation room of the national crisis management center of the new presidential office in Yongsan, joined by top security officials, including new National Security Adviser Kim Sung-han and Defense Minister nominee Lee Jong-sup. Outgoing

Outgoing President Moon Jae-in appealed for the resumption of inter-Korean dialogue Monday as he delivered a farewell address on his last day in office amid heightened tensions over North Korea's repeated tests of weapons. "Peace is a condition of survival for us, a condition of prosperity," Moon said. "I sincerely hope that efforts for denuclearization and institutionalization of peace will continue with the resumption of dialogue between the South and the North." Taking

Outgoing president proud of pandemic measures, industrial competitiveness but has regrets on NK

The two walk similar, yet different paths after losing big elections

First Cabinet meeting scheduled for Thursday as hearings remain unfinished

South Korean Industry Minister nominee Lee Chang-yang vowed Monday to utilize nuclear power as a tool for the country's energy security and zero-emission goals and to actively support its exports. During a parliamentary confirmation hearing, Lee, a professor at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, stressed his vision of seeking balanced energy use for the best interest of the people and nurturing such key industry fields as chips and batteries by easing regulations and support

The incoming Yoon Suk-yeol government is likely to hold its first Cabinet session this week to approve an extra budget proposal aimed at compensating pandemic-hit small merchants, officials said Monday. The meeting will likely be held at the new presidential office in Yongsan in Seoul with the participation of a mix of outgoing and incoming Cabinet members due to delays in the parliamentary confirmation process. "We're working to make a Cabinet meeting possible on Thursday in order to pass

The National Assembly on Monday adopted a confirmation hearing report on Defense Minister nominee Lee Jong-sup, a day before President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol takes office. The parliamentary defense committee unanimously approved Lee's nomination following last week's hearing, saying he has leadership and plenty of experience and expertise on national defense policies and military operations. Lee, a former three-star Army general, graduated from the Korea Military Academy and served as the Joint Chi

Incoming President Yoon Suk-yeol will hold meetings Monday with foreign delegates visiting South Korea to attend his inauguration this week, his office said. Yoon will meet separately with British Minister of State for Asia and the Middle East Amanda Milling; Sodiq Safoyev, first deputy chairperson of Uzbekistan's Senate; and former Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama. The meetings will come a day before Yoon is set to be sworn in as South Korea's new president. Other high-level guests attend

Incoming President Yoon Suk-yeol will begin his term at midnight Monday at an underground bunker set up at his office building by receiving a briefing from the Joint Chiefs of Staff as the commander-in-chief, an official said. Yoon will be briefed by phone in the underground bunker of the new presidential office in Yongsan, which will serve as the situation room of the national crisis management center. "He will receive his first phone briefing from the JCS command and control center upon t

His term highlighted with real estate troubles, prosecution reform and COVID-19 response