Society
Sand festival in Busan
A woman takes a picture of a sand sculpture at the 2023 Haeundae Sand Festival in Busan, Friday. The annual event will run through Monday. Yonhap
May 19, 2023
Kang Seung-woo
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.
Read more
Foreign Affairs
KOICA Exhibition Hall opens
The interior of the KOICA Exhibition Hall / Courtesy of KOICABy Kang Seung-wooThe Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) Exhibition Hall, which offers information and activities on development cooperation, was opened at the agency's headquarters in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, with an opening ceremony, Wednesday.The KOICA Exhibition Hall was established to promote official development assistance (ODA) and KOICA to the Korean people and emphasize the role of development cooperation in addressing global challenges. The hall seeks to raise interest in sustainability and encourage people's participation. The KOICA Exhibition Hall consists of five sections: Prologue, Permanent Exhibition, Special Exhibition, Multimedia Experience and Epilogue. The space is designed to display KOICA's growth along with the ODA history of Korea, global issues linked to KOICA's main sectors and the importance of values, the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and international development cooperation in solving global problems. The KOICA Exhibition Hall was previously operated since June 2010 a
May 18, 2023
Politics
Black Eagles depart for Malaysia
The Black Eagles, an aerobatic display team of the Republic of Korea Air Force comprised of KAI's T-50B Golden Eagle supersonic advanced trainer jets, take off from an air base in Wonju, Gangwon Province, Wednesday, to participate in the Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace Exhibition (LIMA), scheduled for May 23 through 27. The Air Force has mobilized nine T-50B jets and three C-130 transport planes. Courtesy of Republic of Korea Air Force
May 17, 2023
Society
Massive rally
Members of the Korean Construction Workers Union, an affiliate of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, hold a rally in central Seoul, Tuesday, protesting the government's suppression of the construction union. They will also stage another demonstration Wednesday that will include a march toward Samgakji Station near the presidential office. Yonhap
May 16, 2023
Defense
Civil defense drill
Children at a daycare center inside the Government Complex Seoul participate in a civil defense drill, Tuesday. The drill was resumed after a six year suspension. Yonhap
May 16, 2023
Politics
Yoon tries his hand at umpiring
President Yoon Suk Yeol, dressed in umpire gear, calls a strike ahead of a youth baseball game at a stadium inside Yongsan Children's Garden near the presidential office in Seoul, Sunday. He is known to be an avid baseball fan. Yonhap
May 14, 2023
Defense
Air Force celebrates Korea-US alliance
Three KF-16 fighter jets carry a logo celebrating the 70th anniversary of the Korea-U.S. alliance on their vertical tails at Gwangju Air Base, in this photo provided by the Republic of Korea Air Force, Wednesday. As part of marking the seven-decade alliance, four KF-16s and three U.S. Air Force F-16s are decorated with the logo. Courtesy of ROK Air Force
May 10, 2023
Foreign Affairs
KOICA, US Peace Corps sign MOU to strengthen cooperation
Lee Yun-young, left, acting president of KOICA, poses with Peace Corps Chief of Operations and Administration Thomas Peng at a ceremony for an MOU in Washington, D.C., Thursday (local time). Courtesy of KOICE By Kang Seung-wooThe Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the U.S. Peace Corps in Washington, D.C., Thursday (local time), under which the two sides will normalize overseas volunteer dispatch activities, which were largely limited due to COVID-19.Since 2013, the two organizations have strived to collaborate on global volunteer programs and strengthen exchanges between volunteers of the two nations in developing countries. The key contents of this MOU include developing common cooperation measures focusing on the Indo-Pacific region, climate response and cooperation on the open exchange of information and technological resources. The ceremonial signing of the MOU was attended by Acting KOICA President Lee Yun-young, Peace Corps Chief of Operations and Administration Thomas Peng, along with some 20 related personnel. &ldquo
Apr 30, 2023
Politics
Yoon-Biden summit unlikely to address military aid to Ukraine
President Yoon Suk Yeol and first lady Kim Keon Hee arrive at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, Monday (local time), for a six-day state visit. Joint Press CorpsBy Kang Seung-wooIn the lead-up to President Yoon Suk Yeol's trip to the United States for a summit with U.S. President Joe Biden, there has been growing speculation that Yoon may arrive at an “ill-advised” decision to extend Korea's support for Ukraine beyond humanitarian and economic aid to encompass the much-heralded provision of lethal weaponry in return for his state visit, the first time in 12 years by a Korean president. However, according to a statement from the presidential office, Wednesday, the issue is not likely to be discussed during the summit.The conjecture seems backed up by Yoon's hinting in a recent interview with foreign media at the possibility of providing arms to the war-torn nation. Ahead of the interview, the Korean government had stuck to a stance of offering only humanitarian and economic assistance despite growing calls from the United States and the European Union as well as Ukraine itse
Apr 25, 2023
Foreign Affairs
Japanese PM willing to visit Korea: report
President Yoon Suk Yeol, shakes hands with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida during their summit at the latter's office in Tokyo, Japan in this March 16 photo. Korea Times fileBy Kang Seung-wooJapanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has hinted at a reciprocal trip to Korea, according to a media report, amid growing signs that bilateral relations between Seoul and Tokyo have been improving.Japan's Nihon Keizai Shimbun reported, Wednesday, that Kishida expressed his willingness to visit Korea, being quoted as saying that he has to go this time. However, it did not specify when he will travel to Korea.His remark, made during a dinner with local newspaper executives in Tokyo, Wednesday, came a month after President Yoon Suk Yeol traveled to Japan for a summit with Kishida on March 16. Prior to his trip, the Korean government drew up a resolution on compensating victims of Japan's wartime forced labor by using a public foundation funded by Korean companies without direct payment from Japan. During last month's summit, the two heads of state agreed to resume the so-called shuttle diploma
Apr 20, 2023