The Korea Times

North Korea, China challenges ahead for Moon despite successful summit in US

President Moon Jae-in smiles with U.S. President Joe Biden ahead of their summit at the White House in Washington, Friday. YonhapBy Kang Seung-wooPresident Moon Jae-in arrived home, Sunday, satisfied with the results of his “successful” first meeting with U.S. President Joe Biden. But the South Korean leader is expected to face challenges that could arise from North Korea and China, according to diplomatic observers, Sunday.Moon and Biden sat down with each other at the White House, Friday (local time), and forged tangible partnerships in several categories, including advanced technology, and re-strengthening the alliance between Seoul and Washington.However, the two leaders fell short of coming up with detailed measures in terms of bringing North Korea back to the dialogue table, while South Korea indicated that it was siding with the U.S. over China amid the intensifying rivalry between the two superpowers.“It is positive that the Biden administration's North Korea policy will be built on the Singapore Joint Statement,” said Cheong Seong-chang, director of C

May 23, 2021By Kang Seung-woo

North Korea, China challenges ahead for Moon despite successful summit in US

South Korea-US alliance expands beyond security

Politics

Politicians see parallels to Gwangju in Myanmar uprising

President Moon Jae-in's Facebook message on the commemoration of May 18 Gwangju pro-democracy movement. Moon expressed support for anti-military junta protests in Myanmar. YonhapRival parties rush to Gwangju for commemoration of pro-democracy movementBy Kang Seung-wooOn the occasion of the 41st anniversary of the 1980 pro-democracy movement in Gwangju, Tuesday, politicians, including President Moon Jae-in, showed support for the citizens of Myanmar in their continued fight against a military junta to restore democracy and freedom. The Gwangju uprising against the military regime of Chun Doo-hwan, who seized control of the country in a Dec. 12, 1979, coup, began in the southwestern city, May 18, 1980. Over 10 days, more than 200 civilians were killed in a bloody military crackdown that included attacks by helicopter gunshipsWatching the Myanmarese people staging protests against the military, which seized power in a Feb. 1 coup, Koreans have seen that the unrest, including a nationwide crackdown and the shooting of protesters, bears similarities to what happened in Gwangju more than f

May 18, 2021By Kang Seung-woo

Politicians see parallels to Gwangju in Myanmar uprising

Foreign Affairs

Korea leans toward partially joining Quad

U.S. President Joe Biden, left, participates in a Quad summit remotely with Indo-Pacific nation leaders at the White House, Washington, D.C., March 12. Reuters-YonhapBy Kang Seung-wooAhead of the summit between President Moon Jae-in and U.S. President Joe Biden later this week, Korea appears to be leaning toward participating in the U.S.-led Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad) partially, as the country is allegedly reviewing how to cooperate with the strategic forum's working groups in non-military sectors. Given that the Quad has been regarded as a means to contain China, Korea has been reluctant to accept the U.S.'s repeated calls to join, due to Beijing being Seoul's largest trading partner. However, Washington has begun to promote the Quad as an informal strategic network for cooperation, suggesting that it is not targeting China, leaving room for Korea to join the forum. The Quad, established in 2007, is comprised of Australia, India, Japan and the U.S.Lee Soo-hyuck, the Korean ambassador to the U.S., told reporters last week that the government was carefully reviewing cooper

May 17, 2021By Kang Seung-woo

Korea leans toward partially joining Quad

Society

INTERVIEW P4G Seoul Summit to highlight Korea's commitment, efforts toward climate change

Yoo Yeon-chul, executive director of the 2021 P4G Seoul Summit Preparatory Office, poses at his office in Seoul, Thursday. Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chulBy Kang Seung-wooCalls for accelerated action concerning the climate crisis, fueled by the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic, have been growing steadily. Korea's hosting of an international summit on the environment later this month is expected to serve as an opportunity to show the nation's commitment to and efforts toward containing climate change in accordance with those of the international community, according to the executive director of the event. The 2021 P4G Seoul Summit is the first-ever multilateral environmental summit to be hosted by the Korean government. It is scheduled to take place on May 30 and 31, and is themed, “Inclusive Green Recovery towards Carbon Neutrality.” The upcoming event was originally planned for June 2020, but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.P4G, which stands for “Partnering for Green Growth and the Global Goals 2030,” is an international initiative to accelerate

May 16, 2021By Kang Seung-woo

[INTERVIEW] P4G Seoul Summit to highlight Korea's commitment, efforts toward climate change

Health

COVID-19 affecting dating, marriage, childbirth rates

gettyimagesbank By Kang Seung-wooCOVID-19 has had an influence on dating, marriage and childbirth, a study showed on Thursday, as pandemic-caused social distancing prevents people from meeting and starting relationships, and thus reduces the marriage rate and birthrate. The research by Choi Seul-ki, a professor at the KDI School of Public Policy and Management, and Kye Bong-oh, a professor of sociology at Kookmin University, was based on interviews with 2,000 adults between the ages of 25 and 49. Among the 602 adults in the survey who are single, 78.1 percent have not gone on a blind date since the outbreak of the coronavirus in February last year. Also, 48.7 percent of those surveyed said that the frequency of getting new dates has fallen compared with the pre-pandemic era, with only 0.5 percent saying that it has increased.The study also found that the pandemic greatly affected perspectives on marriage among women, with 20.7 percent saying they were more reluctant

May 15, 2021By Kang Seung-woo

COVID-19 affecting dating, marriage, childbirth rates

Defense

New KDVA member

Korea Defense Veterans Association (KDVA) Korea Chapter President Lee Seo-young, second from right, gives a KDVA membership card to outgoing U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) Commander Gen. Robert Abrams, fourth from right, during a farewell event in Seoul, Thursday. The KDVA, founded in 2017, is a nonprofit organization based in Virginia that advocates the Korea-U.S. alliance by supporting former and current military service members. Courtesy of KDVA

May 14, 2021By Kang Seung-woo

Society

Migrant workers work 50 hours per week on average: report

A migrant worker work on a fishing boat at a port in North Jeolla Province. Korea Times fileBy Kang Seung-wooThe weekly average working hours of migrant workers in Korea is 50 hours, and female foreign workers face worse working conditions than their male counterparts, a recent report showed.A study by the Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs (KIHSA) found that foreign laborers holding one of three categories of visa ― E9 (non-professional employment visa), H2 (working visit visa) and F4 (overseas Korean visa) ― work 50 hours per week on average. The report was based on interviews with 1,427 migrant workers.But 20.7 percent said their weekly working hours surpassed 60 hours. The Labor Standards Act stipulates that employers must ensure employees work no more than an average of 52 hours a week for up to six months.The survey also disclosed that 19.3 percent of male immigrants and 24.1 percent of female immigrants said their weekly work reached 60 hours. Their monthly wage on average was 2.11 million won ($1,870) in 2019, but that of foreign workers who started working in 2020

May 13, 2021By Kang Seung-woo

Migrant workers work 50 hours per week on average: report

Politics

Ruling party's presidential hopefuls gear up for primary race

From left are former Democratic Party of Korea Chairman Lee Nak-yon, former Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun and Gyeonggi Province Governor Lee Jae-myung. Korea Times fileBy Kang Seung-wooWith 10 months left before the presidential election, the “race for Cheong Wa Dae” has begun among potential candidates of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), with some declaring their bids for the presidency and a dozen others planning to do so soon.As the presidential election is scheduled to take place on March 9, 2022, the ruling camp plans to officially kick off its primary race in late June to pick its official standard bearer by September. President Moon Jae-in's term ends two months after the March election.Led by the so-called “Big Three” presidential hopefuls ― Gyeonggi Province Governor Lee Jae-myung, former DPK leader Rep. Lee Nak-yon and former Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun ― 10 high-profile politicians are regarded as potential candidates.Rep. Park Yong-jin, a two-term lawmaker, has become the first DPK national assemblyman to officially declare his bid for

May 12, 2021By Kang Seung-woo

Ruling party's presidential hopefuls gear up for primary race

Young opposition politician emerges as strong party chief candidate

Health

Man mistakenly given COVID-19 vaccine instead of shingles shot

People head to an inoculation center to receive COVID-19 vaccine shots in Gwangju, Monday. YonhapBy Kang Seung-wooA man received a COVID-19 vaccine injection instead of a shingles shot due to a nurse's mistake at a general hospital in Sejong City, local government officials there said, Monday.According to the special self-governing city, the 54-year-old man visited the hospital on May 4 to get a shingles vaccine. But after the injection, the nurse said a single dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine was administered instead. After receiving the shot, the man experienced muscle pain, one of the side effects found among people who receive coronavirus vaccine injections.Recognizing the administrative error, the hospital told the man to be hospitalized for close monitoring. Luckily, he did not have any other symptoms. The local government found that the hospital failed to confirm the prescription and check it with the patient before administering the vaccine.Despite the blunder, the hospital will not be subject to any punishment as the man did not suffer any further ill effects from the medical

May 11, 2021By Kang Seung-woo

Man mistakenly given COVID-19 vaccine instead of shingles shot

Politics

Critics say Moon's special address far from public sentiment

President Moon Jae-in speaks during a press conference at Cheong Wa Dae, Monday. Joint press corpsBy Kang Seung-wooPresident Moon Jae-in's special address, Monday, on the occasion of the fourth anniversary of his inauguration, left critics believing that he still does not recognize the current situation that the public is facing, according to political watchers. “I think the President is not on-point regarding what the public are complaining about,” Hangil Research director and political analyst Hong Hyeong-sik said. “It seems that his aides might be failing to recognize and precisely report to the President the situation as it is.”Hong added, “President Moon needs to feel the same urgency that the general public are feeling.”During his special address, Moon was critical of the current parliamentary confirmation hearing system for ministers and other ranking government officials, which he believes focuses on humiliating nominees, preventing him from picking candidates who are a good fit for the job.His remark came following criticism from the publi

May 10, 2021By Kang Seung-woo

Kang Seung-woo

Read more

North Korea, China challenges ahead for Moon despite successful summit in US

Politicians see parallels to Gwangju in Myanmar uprising

Korea leans toward partially joining Quad

INTERVIEW P4G Seoul Summit to highlight Korea's commitment, efforts toward climate change

COVID-19 affecting dating, marriage, childbirth rates

New KDVA member

Migrant workers work 50 hours per week on average: report

Ruling party's presidential hopefuls gear up for primary race

Man mistakenly given COVID-19 vaccine instead of shingles shot

Critics say Moon's special address far from public sentiment

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