President Yoon Suk Yeol's office on Friday hinted at establishing an office dedicated to first lady Kim Keon Hee, reneging on a campaign pledge not to operate such an office during his term. The president is "considering the option to set up the office in case it wins public consent over the matter," said a source from the presidential office who declined to be named. The source did not elaborate on how to gauge public approval of the establishment. Earlier Friday, Yoon vetoed a specia

First lady not seen publicly in 3 weeks

The unpaid fines of former President Chun Doo-hwan, who died in November 2021, are likely to be set at 86.7 billion won ($66.2 million), following a lawsuit that enabled authorities to confiscate an additional 5.5 billion won, marking the final indemnity payment from the former dictator. This would bring the total collected fines to 132.72 billion won out of the 220.5 billion won imposed in relation to his 1997 conviction for rebellion and bribery. Local media outlets and legal sources reporte

Yoon says short selling ban would continue if 'side-effects persist'

'Korea needs to update its perspective on immigration,’ says Kim Jin-pyo

Yoon labels stabbing of Lee Jae-myung ‘act of terrorism’

President Yoon Suk Yeol will hold a series of policy debates instead of receiving New Year briefings from each ministry, ditching formalities to lay out policy items aimed at improving people's livelihood, his office said Wednesday. The key agendas for Yoon's 2024 policy planning encompass housing, jobs, small- and medium-sized enterprises, public safety, caregiving, public transit, medical reform, media policy, low birth rate and energy. To touch upon these areas, at least 10 sessions

Latest report marks departure from NIS’ previous stance that doubted daughter was heir

Cho Tae-yong, who was nominated by President Yoon Suk Yeol as the National Intelligence Service director on Dec. 19, once had his driver’s license suspended for driving under the influence. According to the police report The Korea Herald obtained exclusively through the National Assembly on Tuesday, Cho was caught drunk driving on Feb. 23, 1999, and received a license suspension. On Aug. 10 of the same year, the court sentenced him to a fine of 700,000 won ($536). Until recently, Cho was n

In a key year-end message, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un described the two Koreas as “warring countries,” and vowed to “mobilize all physical means and other capabilities to cause a big stir” in the South. The anticipated rise in North Korean provocations will likely include cyberattacks, experts and officials in Seoul say. At the end of five days of Workers’ Party of Korea meetings, the North Korean leader said his country should “no longer commit the error

President Yoon Suk Yeol on Tuesday proposed to withdraw South Korea's plan to introduce a net investment income tax scheme beginning in 2025. This came about a year after plans to impose the "financial investment income tax" on investors had been deferred for two years, meaning the new tax rule would go into effect in January next year. The rule, under the revision of the Income Tax Act, was initially passed in 2020 with bipartisan agreement. "Our plan to introduce the financ

Tuesday's stabbing of Lee Jae-myung, the leader of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea, showed that South Korea's politicians remain vulnerable to physical attacks despite several high-profile cases in the recent past. Lee, 59, had been visiting the site of the new airport in Busan and was speaking to members of the media when an unidentified man approached him asking for an autograph before lunging to stab him in the neck, undetected and undeterred by anyone. Lee is one of t

Assailant confesses murder attempt; Lee transferred to Seoul for surgery due to bleeding risk

Proposed Bill: Partial Amendment to the Act on Labeling and Advertising of Foods Proposed by Rep. Hwang Hee (Democratic Party of Korea) ● An increasing number of food manufacturing companies have been reducing the volume of their products while maintaining or raising their prices. However, these changes in quantity are not as easy for consumers to notice as price increases. Therefore, this amendment aims to protect the consumer’s right to information by requiring companies to clearly i

Yoon points out 'excessive competition' as one of causes of S. Korea's low birth rate