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.
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
From left, KIS director Michelle Quirin, student Je-young, U.S. Ambassador to Korea Philip Goldberg, student Lily and KIS Headmaster Min Sun-shik pose during the school's Human Rights Week 2023 at its Pangyo Campus in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, April 7. Courtesy of Korea International School By Kang Seung-wooKorea International School (KIS) held an event to mark Human Rights Week (HRW) last week, highlighting the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and featuring expert guest speakers who addressed current global issues. The annual event took place from April 3 to 7 at KIS Pangyo Campus in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province. HRW is organized by the Korea Human Rights Initiative (KHRI), a group of high school students who work yearlong to raise awareness and encourage action on important issues such as peace and justice, LGBTQ rights, gender equality and environmental sustainability. KIS requested for participating students who gave comments to be identified only by their first names.A KIS student and KHRI member named Je-young said he believes that events in the news are not so dista
Lee Yun-young, acting president of KOICA, delivers a congratulatory speech at a Digital Innovation Day event in the agency's headquarters in Seongnam, Tuesday. Courtesy of KOICABy Kang Seung-wooThe Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) held a Digital Innovation Day event, Tuesday, highlighting the organization's digital transformation efforts to promote advanced official development assistance (ODA) in the post-pandemic era. Following the establishment of its digital transformation strategy in 2021, KOICA is striving for efficiency through digital means in its projects and management for outcome-oriented development cooperation. To strengthen capacity and bolster digital innovation, KOICA has set the period of April 17 to 28 as Digital Innovation Week. Various events will take place during the span, including the Digital Innovation Day event, lectures on digital innovation and an employee hackathon for digital transformation ideas. The 2023 Digital Work Innovation Roadmap was announced at the event. The roadmap includes work automation, internal system improvements, the intr
Kim Gunn, center, South Korea's special representative for Korean Peninsula peace and security affairs, join hands with his U.S. and Japanese counterparts Sung Kim, right, and Takehiro Funakoshi ahead of their talks at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Seoul, Friday. Yonhap By Kang Seung-wooSouth Korea, Japan and the United States urged member states of the United Nations, Friday, to repatriate all North Korean overseas workers that they believe are key sources of foreign currency and revenue for the development of Pyongyang's nuclear program. The call came from a joint statement after the top nuclear envoys of the three countries ― Kim Gunn, South Korea's special representative for Korean Peninsula peace and security affairs, Sung Kim, the U.S. special representative for North Korea, and Takehiro Funakoshi, Japan's director general for Asian and Oceanian affairs ― held a meeting in Seoul ― the first time since December last year. “We underscore that in accordance with UNSC resolution 2397, U.N. Member States are required to repatriate all DPRK laborers earning income in their