Opposition leader Lee Jae-myung's wife, Kim Hye-kyung, was indicted without detention on Wednesday on charges of violating the election law by offering meals to party figures ahead of the 2022 presidential election, the Suwon District Prosecutors Office said. Kim is accused of providing meals worth 104,000 won ($78) to six people, including three figures related to the then-ruling Democratic Party, at a Seoul restaurant on Aug. 2, 2021, ahead of the party's presidential primary, in vio

President Yoon Suk Yeol on Wednesday expressed his intention to ease regulations and extend more incentives to further foster an investor-friendly environment. The government will "offer policies and regulatory environments favoring (foreign-invested enterprises) to the extent of the global standard, or even more favorable than the global standard," Yoon told participants comprising foreign-invested company representatives at a luncheon meeting held Wednesday. "We should spare no

President says rebalancing national growth key to recovery in fertility rate

Former star law professor Cho Kuk announces election run after court ruling of 2-year prison sentence

President Yoon Suk Yeol appointed former Industry Minister Joo Hyung-hwan as vice chairman of the Presidential Committee on Aging Society and Population Policy, presidential chief of staff Lee Kwan-sup said Monday. Joo is a policy expert known for his drive to get things done and is expected to lead the committee in a way that produces visible results in a swift manner, Lee said. Yoon is the ex-officio chairman of the committee. "With the recognition that society's survival is at stake

Proposed Bills: Partial Amendment to the Special Act on Public Housing Proposed by Rep. Kim Byung-wook (Democratic Party of Korea) ● This amendment revises the pre-sale housing subscription system to decrease risks for prospective tenants. It ensures that pre-subscription for housing begins only after the approval of the housing construction project plan and mandates the notification of fixed housing sale prices during the pre-sale housing subscription period. It also limits the increase of ho

President Yoon Suk Yeol's approval rating rose slightly to 39.2 percent from a week earlier, a survey showed Monday. According to the Realmeter survey, the positive assessment of Yoon's performance rose 1.9 percentage points from the week earlier, while the negative assessment fell 1.7 percentage points. The survey was conducted on 2,011 adults from Monday to Thursday last week and had a margin of error of plus or minus 2.2 percentage points, with a confidence rate of 95 percent. The r

Four political parties and factions led by politicians who have left the ruling People Power Party (PPP) and the main opposition Democratic Party (DP) have agreed to merge into one new party ahead of the April general elections, officials said Friday. The envisioned party, named the Reform Party, will be jointly led by former Prime Minister and DP leader Lee Nak-yon and former PPP leader Lee Jun-seok, according to the officials. Lee, the former DP leader, will lead the new party's election

President Yoon Suk Yeol held a breakfast meeting with sanitation workers of a Seoul ward Friday to wish them a happy Lunar New Year and thank them for their hard work, his office said. During his meeting with street sweepers of Dongjak Ward in southern Seoul, Yoon asked them about their working conditions over bowls of "tteokguk," a soup made with rice cakes, often eaten on the holiday. Yoon thanked them for starting work in the early morning hours, even on holidays, and stressed that

President Yoon Suk Yeol's public characterization of the nuclear-armed North Korean regime as an "irrational force," coupled with his emphasis on the imperative of bolstering defense readiness against threats posed by the regime, signals a further tumultuous path for inter-Korean relations. The conservative president's prerecorded interview with the state-run Korea Broadcasting System aired Wednesday night amid simmering tensions on the Korean Peninsula, in the face of North

Interviewer's choice to label the controversial luxury bag as a 'pouch' sparks debate among critics

President Yoon Suk Yeol pledged on Thursday to implement various policy support measures aimed at assisting small business owners and vulnerable groups struggling with loan repayments due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Yoon made the remarks during a government-public debate, the 10th in a series of sessions addressing people's livelihood issues, with business owners in Seoul. "During the COVID-19 period, small business owners and self-employed individuals suffered from restric

President Yoon Suk Yeol on Wednesday opened up about a scandal involving first lady Kim Keon Hee that has shaken up South Korean politics, about two months after a video of Kim receiving a purse by luxury brand Christian Dior worth 3 million won ($2,260) on a hidden camera was released. "(The visitor who gifted the pouch) attached a hidden camera to a wristwatch, so we can say the scheme was deliberately arranged," Yoon said, referring to Korean-American pastor Choi Jae-young as the vi

President Yoon Suk Yeol's approval rating inched down to 34 percent from a month ago, according to a survey conducted jointly by Yonhap News Agency and Yonhap News TV on Wednesday. The survey also indicated that the ruling People Power Party and the main opposition Democratic Party would secure 33 percent and 35 percent of the vote, respectively, if the scheduled April 10 parliamentary elections were held tomorrow. Yonhap News Agency and Yonhap News TV jointly commissioned the survey to gau

SK executive vice chairman, LIG chairman to have criminal record erased