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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.

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Foreign Affairs

Seoul reiterates that '3 Nos' policy is not commitment to China

Foreign Minister Park Jin speaks during a press conference in Qingdao, China, Wednesday. Yonhap By Kang Seung-wooForeign Minister Park Jin reaffirmed, Wednesday, that the so-called “Three Nos” policy concerning the deployment of a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery in South Korea is not a commitment to China amid growing pressure from Beijing over the U.S. anti-missile defense system. “I made it clear to the Chinese side that the THAAD deployment is a matter of our security and sovereignty against North Korea's nuclear and missile threats,” Park said during a press conference in Qingdao, China. Park and his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, held talks, Tuesday, where they exchanged views on the THAAD issue, according to the both countries' foreign ministries. The meeting, the second of its kind since Park took office in May, took place as the Chinese government had urged the new South Korean administration to uphold the Three Nos policy from the previo

Aug 10, 2022By Kang Seung-woo
Seoul reiterates that '3 Nos' policy is not commitment to China
  • China wary of South Korea's US-centered policy
Foreign Affairs

China wary of South Korea's US-centered policy

Foreign Minister Park Jin, left, and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi pose during their meeting in Qingdao, China, Tuesday. Courtesy of Ministry of Foreign AffairsBy Kang Seung-wooChinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi pressed South Korea, Tuesday, to act independently as the United States ramps up pressure on Seoul to side with Washington amid an intensifying U.S.-Sino rivalry. Foreign Minister Park Jin and Wang held the talks during his first trip to China since taking office in May and the meeting was widely seen as being crucial to setting the tone for Seoul-Beijing relations under the conservative Yoon Suk-yeol administration.“While the two countries head toward the 30th anniversary of the establishment of South Korea-China diplomatic ties, both sides should maintain independence without being affected by the outside,” Wang said, adding that the two countries should consider each other's interests.“We have to adhere to a win-win to ensure a stable and smooth supply chain,” he added.Wang's remarks came as thorny issues between the two neighboring countries are e

Aug 9, 2022By Kang Seung-woo
China wary of South Korea's US-centered policy
  • Seoul reiterates that '3 Nos' policy is not commitment to China
Politics

Ex-President Lee Myung-bak unlikely to be released

By Kang Seung-wooFormer President Lee Myung-bak and former South Gyeongsang Province Governor Kim Kyoung-soo are not likely to make the list of people that President Yoon Suk-yeol will grant special amnesty to due to concerns that such pardons might negatively affect his declining approval ratings.However, Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong and other business leaders may be among those pardoned as part of the government's aim to overcome economic challenges.Former President Lee Myung-bak / Korea Times file According to ruling party officials, President Yoon received various opinions, Tuesday, on the eve of the pardon committee meeting, and he has made a decision to minimize the number of politicians to be pardoned on the occasion of National Liberation Day, which falls on Monday, Aug. 15.The final amnesty list will be announced on Friday.Each administration has used national holidays to grant paroles or presidential pardons under the pretext of national unity. Yoon's decision is a shift from his previous indication that the jailed former president could be freed.In June,

Aug 9, 2022By Kang Seung-woo
Ex-President Lee Myung-bak unlikely to be released
Politics

Foreign ministers of South Korea and China to meet to address thorny issues

Foreign Minister Park Jin, left, shakes hands with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi during the ASEAN Plus Three Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, Thursday. Yonhap THAAD expected to be most explosive issue: expertsBy Kang Seung-wooThe foreign ministers of South Korea and China sit down for talks Tuesday to address a heap of thorny issues amid Beijing's growing displeasure with Seoul over its policies involving the United States, a staunch ally of the South.The meeting in Qingdao, China is the second of its kind between Foreign Minister Park Jin and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi since Park's inauguration in May and comes as the Chinese government has warned against South Korea's possible participation in the U.S.-proposed anti-China chip alliance, believed to be a platform aimed at countering Beijing's rising influence in global supply chains.In addition, China has urged the Yoon Suk-yeol administration to uphold the previous government's so-called “Three Nos” policy, which refers to no additional deployments of U.S. Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (

Aug 8, 2022By Kang Seung-woo
Foreign ministers of South Korea and China to meet to address thorny issues
  • Taiwan begins live-fire artillery drill simulating defence against China attack
Defense

Egypt emerges as new market for Korean arms exports

The Black Eagles, the Korea Air Force's aerobatic flight team, stages a performance during the Pyramid Air Show over the Giza Pyramids in Giza, Egypt, Thursday (local time). Courtesy of ROK Air ForceNorth African country interested in Korean military hardware By Kang Seung-woo, Joint Press Corps Following a massive arms deal with Poland, Korea has now set its eyes on Egypt, a new potential suitor seen as the next biggest market for defense products after the United States.According to Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI), Friday, a delegation comprised of the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA), the Air Force and KAI flew to Cairo to promote the company's FA-50 light attacker, a variant of the T-50 supersonic trainer jet, co-developed with Lockheed Martin. Ahead of a stop in Cairo, the delegation also visited Britain and Poland. “We have laid the groundwork for cooperation in various fields with Egypt in the medium to long term,” said Lee Bong-keun, vice president and general manager of KAI's International Business Division.Egypt, one of the largest military pow

Aug 5, 2022By Kang Seung-woo
Egypt emerges as new market for Korean arms exports
Foreign Affairs

Yoon, Pelosi talk over phone, without meeting in person

U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi talks with South Korean National Assembly Speaker Kim Jin-pyo during their meeting at the National Assembly in Seoul, Thursday. YonhapPresidential office says Yoon-Pelosi meeting was not held due to time conflictBy Kang Seung-wooPresident Yoon Suk-yeol spoke with U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi over the phone, Thursday, opting for an alternative that dispelled worries he was snubbing the No. 3 official in the U.S. government by not meeting her in person. Pelosi arrived in Seoul on Wednesday night following a controversial stop in Taiwan as part of her Asian trip. According to Deputy National Security Adviser Kim Tae-hyo, Yoon and Pelosi spoke by phone for 40 minutes to discuss pending issues, such as North Korea's nuclear challenge and the alliance between Seoul and Washington. Referring to Pelosi's visit to the Joint Security Area near the heavily fortified inter-Korean border, Yoon was quoted as saying, “Her visit will become a sign of deterrence between South Korea and the United States against North Korea.” In response, Pelosi told Yoon

Aug 4, 2022By Kang Seung-woo
Yoon, Pelosi talk over phone, without meeting in person
  • Korean, US parliamentary leaders vow to expand alliance amid mounting tensions near Taiwan
  • Pelosi's visit triggers debate about Yoon's diplomacy
  • Presidential office says Yoon, Pelosi couldn't meet due to scheduling conflict
  • Pelosi says her trip to S. Korea reaffirmed strong US-S. Korea relationship
Foreign Affairs

Seoul wary of 'Pelosi effect' on ties with Beijing

Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen, right, and U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi wave during their meeting in Taipei, Taiwan, Wednesday. EPA-YonhapNo meetings planned between No. 3 US politician and South Korean president, foreign minister By Kang Seung-wooA visit by U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to South Korea is likely to perplex Seoul further in the handling of its relations with China, which are already at an inflection point due to pending bilateral yet volatile issues.Pelosi is widely expected to urge longtime ally South Korea to respond to the U.S.-led campaign against China's authoritarianism, according to diplomatic observers.The U.S. house speaker, the third-highest official in the U.S. government, arrived here, Wednesday, for a two-day trip following her visit to Taiwan. Her visit to South Korea, the first time since 2015, comes as the United States has been seeking more coordination among its allies and partners to counter China, as evidenced by its proposal for Seoul to join the Chip 4 or Fab 4, an envisaged chip alliance with Japan, Taiwan and South Korea. But the Chinese

Aug 3, 2022By Kang Seung-woo
Seoul wary of 'Pelosi effect' on ties with Beijing
  • Nancy Pelosi vs. Lee Jun-seok
  • Pelosi to meet Nat'l Assembly speaker amid heightened regional tensions over Taiwan visit
  • Yoon to speak by phone with US House Speaker Pelosi
  • Kim, Pelosi agree to support efforts for denuclearization of North Korea
Foreign Affairs

Chip 4, '3 Nos' complicate Korea-China ties

gettyimagesbankPelosi visit another ticking bomb for bilateral relations By Kang Seung-wooKorea is at a critical juncture over its ties with China as it faces increasing pressure to choose a side amid the intensifying Sino-U.S. rivalry, with any decision potentially causing further uncertainties in bilateral relations. Currently, Korea has been asked to respond to the U.S. invitation by the end of August to participate in the envisaged strategic alliance of four global chip powerhouses that also includes Japan and Taiwan, also known as the Chip 4 or Fab 4, a platform apparently aimed at countering China's growing influence in global supply chains.In addition, Beijing has urged Seoul to stick to the previous Korean government's commitment to the “Three Nos” policy on the U.S. Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) deployment, which called for no additional THAAD deployment, no Korean integration into a U.S.-led regional missile defense system and no trilateral alliance with the United States and Japan. Foreign Minster Park Jin admitted during the first interpellation

Aug 2, 2022By Kang Seung-woo
Chip 4, '3 Nos' complicate Korea-China ties
North Korea

Upcoming combined drill to heighten inter-Korean tensions

Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup, left, and U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin inspect an honor guard before their bilateral talks at the U.S. Department of Defense in Washington, D.C., Saturday (local time). Courtesy of Ministry of National Defense Expanded exercise may also irk China By Kang Seung-wooPlans to expand a combined military drill between South Korea and the United States against North Korea's growing threats are expected to bring the Korean Peninsula back to a state of confrontation, ratcheting up cross-border tensions, Pyongyang watchers said, Monday.The prediction comes as the allies seek to enhance their overall capabilities to deal with a possible all-out war on the peninsula through the Ulchi Freedom Shield (UFS) exercise, scheduled for Aug. 22 to Sept. 1, according to Seoul's defense ministry. In addition, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un also threatened last week to annihilate the new South Korean administration he claimed is pursuing a U.S.-led hostile policy against the North. “It is inevitable that inter-Korean confrontation will deepen as North Korea h

Aug 1, 2022By Kang Seung-woo
Upcoming combined drill to heighten inter-Korean tensions
Defense

No breakthrough yet in Indonesia's KF-X payments

President Yoon Suk-yeol and Indonesian President Joko Widodo hold a joint press conference at the presidential office in Seoul, Thursday, following their summit. Joint Press CorpsKF-21 conducts second flight test successfully By Kang Seung-wooDespite last week's summit between Korea and Indonesia, concerns over Jakarta's possible default on the KF-X joint fighter jet program still remain, after the meeting failed to come up with a clear-cut solution to the Southeast Asian country's overdue payment problem. The KF-X, aimed at producing an advanced multirole fighter jet, was initiated in 2001 and the two nations signed a deal in 2010 to cooperate on the project. Indonesia agreed to finance 1.6 trillion won, amounting to 20 percent of the total development cost of 8.8 trillion won ($6.71 billion), in exchange for a number of planes to be manufactured there for the Indonesian Air Force as well as technology transfers. But Indonesia has been defaulting on the deal since 2017, failing to pay 800 billion won it promised so far. In the lead-up to the summit, Thursday, there were expectatio

Jul 31, 2022By Kang Seung-woo
No breakthrough yet in Indonesia's KF-X payments
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