Korea Times Business Reporter
Kang Seung-woo is the Business Desk editor at The Korea Times. Prior to this position, he covered politics, national affairs, finance and sports.
A statue of the late Korean War hero Paik Sun-yup is unveiled at the Dabudong War Memorial Museum in Chilgok County, North Gyeongsang Province, Wednesday. Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup, Veterans Affairs Minister Park Min-shik and other dignitaries attended the unveiling ceremony. Paik was South Korea's first four-star general and most renowned war hero, who led key battles during the 1950-53 war. He died on July 10, 2020. Yonhap
By Kang Seung-woo Kurt Campbell, the White House Indo-Pacific coordinator, said, Thursday, South Korea, Japan and the United States will explore ways to boost trilateral cooperation ― probably on North Korea's nuclear program and China's assertiveness ― in an envisaged three-way summit.Kurt Campbell"President Biden extended an invitation to both Prime Minister Kishida and President Yoon to come to Washington later this summer for a three-way summit between the leaders," he said in a video speech for a forum hosted by Yonhap News Agency and the unification ministry."(In the envisioned summit), we will celebrate the remarkable progress that's been made in the bilateral relationship between Japan and South Korea, and see what steps we can take to make sure we lock that progress in and to see what's possible to 'trilateralize' areas of cooperation going forward.”Biden proposed such a summit when he met with Yoon and Kishida on the sidelines of the Group of Seven summit in Hiroshima, Japan last month, to bolster deterrence against the North and strengthen the free and open internati
Lee Jun-il, the foreign ministry's director-general for North Korean nuclear affairs, briefs reporters on South Korea's unilateral sanctions on North Korea's weapons-financing activities at the ministry in Seoul, Wednesday. YonhapBy Kang Seung-wooSouth Korea added a Russian national of Korean descent to its unilateral sanctions list for his alleged involvement in the illegal financing of North Korea's weapons of mass destruction (WMD) programs, an act that violates United Nations Security Council sanctions, the foreign ministry said, Wednesday.This is the first time that the South Korean government has imposed unilateral sanctions on an individual of Korean descent, the ministry added. The Russian national, named Choi Chon-gon, was one of two individuals as well as two organizations that are subject to the Seoul-led sanctions concerning Pyongyang's military development plan. The other three set to face sanctions are So Myong, head of the North's Foreign Trade Bank branch in Vladivostok, and two companies owned by Choi ― Hanne Ulaan LCC and Epsilon. “Our government's unilateral
Members of the Korea Military Song Choir (KMSC) pose in front of a Korean War Memorial in an army compound in Chonburi, Thailand, Thursday, after paying respects to fallen Thai soldiers who fought in the 1950-53 Korean War. On the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the armistice that halted the conflict, the KMSC performed at the Royal Thai Army Club in Bangkok the following day. Thailand dispatched a total of 6,326 troops to help South Korea, with 129 killed and 1,139 wounded. Courtesy of Korea Military Song Choir
From left, Charge d'Affaires Tony Greubel of the U.S. Embassy in Fiji, USAID Deputy Mission Director Betty Chung, KOICA Fiji Office Director Ra Kap-chae and Ambassador of Korea to Fiji Park Young-kyu attend an MOU signing ceremony for a partnership between KOICA and USAID in the Pacific Islands region at the KOICA Fiji Office, Monday (local time). Courtesy of KOICABy Kang Seung-wooThe Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) has teamed up with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to strengthen cooperation in the Pacific Islands region, with goals to enhance medical systems, clean up the marine environment and manage waste, and transition to renewable energy. KOICA Fiji Office held a memorandum of understanding (MOU) signing ceremony with USAID for comprehensive cooperation in key development areas in the Pacific Islands region including health care, the environment and renewable energy, Monday (local time), at the KOICA Fiji Office. This MOU is based on the Korean government's Indo-Pacific Strategy, and is also closely related to the U.S. government's Strategic
By Kang Seung-wooColin Kahl, the U.S. undersecretary of defense for policy, is scheduled to visit South Korea later this week to discuss pending bilateral issues between Seoul and Washington, such as U.S. extended deterrence and the envisaged Nuclear Consultative Group (NCG). Colin Kahl / Courtesy of Department of DefenseAccording to the Ministry of National Defense, Monday, Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup plans to hold a meeting with Kahl, Wednesday, during which they are expected to talk over follow-up measures for last month's summit between President Yoon Suk Yeol and U.S. President Joe Biden, including U.S. commitment to extended deterrence.The U.S. Department of Defense also issued a release, Sunday (local time), to announce a senior official's trip to South Korea as well as the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command and Japan.“In the Republic of Korea (ROK), he will meet with senior officials and counterparts from the ROK government, visit the Joint Security Area (JSA) within the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) and attend a U.S.-ROK combined exercise,” it said. The Republic of Korea ref
By Kang Seung-wooThere are no signs yet of efforts in the Yoon Suk Yeol administration to de-escalate rising tensions with North Korea despite the northern neighbor's escalation in provocations, including an expansion of its nuclear capabilities.The Kim Jong-un regime ended 2022 with a record number of ballistic missile launches, firing missiles on 38 separate occasions. Last September, it also legalized the use of its nuclear weapons preemptively against foes threatening its leadership. Entering this year, its saber-rattling has continued as Pyongyang test-fired a new solid-fuel Hwasong-18 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) in April and it launched a military spy satellite, Wednesday ― although its rocket crashed into the sea. It vowed to conduct another launch as soon as possible. The satellite launch is seen as a disguised ballistic missile test because both use the same technology. Amid growing North Korean threats, the South Korean government has responded by strengthening extended deterrence with the United States, as evidenced by the deployment of U.S. strategic assets
Actor Yoo Ah-in answers questions from reporters at the Seoul Central District Court, Wednesday, after the court's hearing to decide whether to issue an arrest warrant for him over allegations of illegal drug use. He is accused of illegally using five different drugs for nonmedical purposes since 2020. Yonhap
Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) CEO Kang Goo-young, left, shakes hands with Dato' Sri Muez bin Abd Aziz, fourth from left, secretary general of the Malaysia defense ministry, during a signing ceremony in Malaysia, Tuesday, for KAI's export of the FA-50 light combat aircraft to Malaysia. In February, Malaysia agreed to purchase 18 FA-50s worth $920 million. Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup, second from left, and his Malaysian counterpart Dato' Seri Utama Haji Mohamad bin Haji Hasan, third from left, were also present. Courtesy of Korea Aerospace Industries