my timesThe Korea Times
ksw

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.

Go to Email

Read more

Defense

Joint military drill may emerge as hot-button issue for allies

By Kang Seung-wooWhether to hold joint military exercises between South Korea and the United States in 2021 may put the allies at loggerheads, according to diplomatic experts, Thursday, as Washington is expected to resume the annual combat training, while Seoul is likely to seek to suspend or even stop it altogether. Kathleen Hicks, nominee for U.S. deputy secretary of defense / Courtesy of Biden-Harris TransitionOn Wednesday local time, U.S. President-elect Joe Biden nominated Kathleen Hicks as deputy secretary of defense, who would be the first woman to serve in the role if confirmed by the Senate. However, to South Korea, there is something more than her honorable title to care about, based on her recent contribution opposing the allies' unilateral halt to the military exercises.“Mutual freeze for freeze approaches on exercises could likewise be considered, but they should never deny South Korea and the United States from preparing combined forces for non-peninsula contingencies and from appropriate self-defense measures,” she wrote to the Center for Strategic and Inte

Dec 31, 2020By Kang Seung-woo
Joint military drill may emerge as hot-button issue for allies
North Korea

Experts mixed on North Korean leader's messages in congress

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un speaks during a politburo meeting of the ruling Workers' Party in this photo released by the Korean Central News Agency, Wednesday. / YonhapBy Kang Seung-wooWith North Korea's much-heralded party congress set to take place early next month, Pyongyang watchers showed mixed opinions on what messages North Korean leader Kim Jong-un will deliver during the political event, Wednesday.Some expect Kim will release a message to the incoming Joe Biden administration to exert influence on the new U.S. government's policymaking on his country, while others predict that the reclusive country, plagued by COVID-19, may extend a conciliatory gesture to South Korea to help break through its current challenges.The North's Korean Central News Agency announced earlier in the day that Kim presided over a politburo meeting of the ruling Workers' Party and decided to hold a party congress in early January, but the state media did not elaborate on a specific date. The eighth party congress, the first since May 2016, comes at a critical time for the country as it is suffering

Dec 30, 2020By Kang Seung-woo
Experts mixed on North Korean leader's messages in congress
Health

Transporting infected inmates

Buses transporting 480 inmates infected with COVID-19 from the Seoul Dongbu Detention Center arrive at the Cheongsong Penitentiary in North Gyeongsang Province, Monday. The detention center has reported 529 virus cases since its first outbreak in Nov. 27, and the Cheongsong prison will be used as a treatment facility for them. / Yonhap

Dec 28, 2020By Kang Seung-woo
Transporting infected inmates
Defense

Defense minister meets Indian Army chief

Defense Minister Suk Wook, left, poses with India's Army chief, Gen. Manoj Mukund Naravane, during the latter's courtesy visit to the defense ministry in Seoul, Monday. They discussed ways to strengthen cooperation against nontraditional security threats, such as viruses, cyberattacks and natural disasters, according to the ministry. / Courtesy of Ministry of National Defense

Dec 28, 2020By Kang Seung-woo
Defense minister meets Indian Army chief
Politics

Call for impeachment of top prosecutor faces backlash

By Kang Seung-wooRep. Kim Du-kwan of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) has run into criticism from the opposition bloc and even members of his own party after calling on them to begin impeachment proceedings against Prosecutor-General Yoon Seok-youl. Rep. Kim Du-kwan of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea / Korea Times fileHis call came Friday, one day after the Seoul Administrative Court granted the top prosecutor an injunction against a two-month suspension from duty concocted by Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae amid a feud over prosecution reform and politically sensitive investigations. The court decision subsequently led to President Moon Jae-in issuing an apology for causing inconvenience and confusion over the disciplinary action against Yoon.On Friday, the two-term lawmaker and former interior minister said he would launch the impeachment process, denouncing the court decision as a “judicial coup.”“The court made a ridiculous ruling. It is nothing but a coup d'etat that suspended the authority of the President elected by the people. Without reforming th

Dec 27, 2020By Kang Seung-woo
Call for impeachment of top prosecutor faces backlash
Defense

KATUSAs likely to get vaccinated soon

KATUSA soldiers could be vaccinated against COVID-19 earlier than regular Korean civilians as the U.S. Forces Korea is expected to administer the Moderna vaccines for its service members and those working with the USFK as early as this week. / Korea Times fileBy Kang Seung-wooKorean Augmentation to the United States Army (KATUSA) soldiers and other civilian workers of the U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) may be the first Koreans to get vaccinated for COVID-19 here, as vaccines for the USFK are expected to arrive as early as this week.On Wednesday, the USFK announced that it was one of the overseas locations identified to receive the Moderna vaccine and would administer it to all eligible USFK-affiliated community members, including KATUSAs and Koreans working on U.S. bases. However, it failed to elaborate on any other details, including the vaccine quantity. It remains to be seen whether any of the 3,000 KATUSA soldiers will be inoculated this time, but if so, they will be the first Korean citizens, given that the government is not expected to start vaccinations against the coronavirus until

Dec 24, 2020By Kang Seung-woo
KATUSAs likely to get vaccinated soon
Politics

Disapproval grows for land minister nominee

Land minister nominee Byeon Chang-heum apologizes for his past controversial remarks and other allegations during his confirmation hearing at the National Assembly in Seoul, Wednesday. / YonhapBy Kang Seung-wooA National Assembly confirmation hearing of besieged land minister nominee Byeon Chang-heum found, Wednesday, that disapproval of him by the opposition bloc was showing no signs of abating due to his past controversial remarks and alleged misdeeds.Lawmakers from the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) asked a barrage of tough questions of Byeon in relation to them, urging him to decline his nomination, and even the minor opposition Justice Party, which has traditionally refrained from finding fault with President Moon Jae-in's Cabinet nominees, denounced him as unfit for the ministerial post.Earlier this month, President Moon nominated Byeon, president of the Korea Land and Housing Corp. (LH), to replace Minister Kim Hyun-mee, amid a public backlash against the government's failure to curb skyrocketing housing prices. Minister nominees are subject to Assembly confirmation

Dec 23, 2020By Kang Seung-woo
Disapproval grows for land minister nominee
North Korea

North Korean leader tightens control amid faltering economy

By Kang Seung-wooNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un has stepped up a wide range of efforts to strengthen his grip on power, as the reclusive state's current unfavorable conditions, dented by COVID-19 and its bleak economy, are feared to pose a threat to the regime's survival. The totalitarian state recently passed new laws, including those on foreign culture and telecommunications, and has carried out executions related to the pandemic. Pyongyang watchers believe such steps are mainly aimed at stopping possible cracks in the “rent-seeking” North Korean elite, who have fallen victim to decreased cross-border trade with China since the pandemic began. Earlier this month, the Kim regime held a plenary meeting of the presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly to adopt the new laws, according to the (North) Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).“The law on rejecting the reactionary ideology and culture specifies the principles to be certainly observed by all the institutions, enterprises, organizations and citizens in further cementing our ideological, revolutionary and class p

Dec 20, 2020By Kang Seung-woo
North Korean leader tightens control amid faltering economy
  • North Korea raises issue of Mount Geumgang complex again
North Korea

'Corresponding measures desirable to complete NK denuclearization'

Kyungnam University President Jae Kyu Park speaks during an interview with The Korea Times at his office in Seoul, Wednesday. / Korea Times photo by Kang Seung-wooBy Kang Seung-wooThe United States has demanded that North Korea dismantle its nuclear weapons program before expecting economic ― or other ― rewards, with Pyongyang rejecting what it called immediate and unilateral demands.As a result, with no apparent signs of a breakthrough on North Korean denuclearization after nearly 30 years of efforts, there is a growing debate on whether the U.S. should ditch its age-old approach and take the path of corresponding measures. Kyungnam University President Jae Kyu Park, a former South Korean minister of unification, is among those who are supportive of a parallel approach that he believes could be a more effective method to ensure the North's complete denuclearization.“The reason the North Korea nuclear negotiations have been dragging on for nearly 30 years is because the U.S. and North Korea are not truly reconciling and do not trust each other,” Park said during an interv

Dec 19, 2020By Kang Seung-woo
'Corresponding measures desirable to complete NK denuclearization'
  • North Korean premier calls for building Mt. Kumgang tourist area 'our own way'
  • North Korea making all-out efforts against coronavirus before key party convention
North Korea

Foreign minister defends law banning propaganda leaflets

Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha / Korea Times fileKang says 'freedom of expression is not absolute'By Kang Seung-wooForeign Minister Kang Kyung-wha defended a newly passed law that bans anti-North Korea leaflet campaigns from growing criticism, Thursday, citing the security of people living in border regions.Her defense came amid complaints from international human rights groups and some U.S. politicians over the South Korean government's increasingly weak stance on human rights violations and accountability in the North.Earlier this week, the National Assembly passed the bill that prevents mainly North Korean defectors and human rights activists from flying propaganda leaflets or other materials critical of the Kim Jong-un regime over the border into the North. The government and the ruling Democratic Party of Korea claim the new law will help protect residents in border regions and ease cross-border tension.“Because this is happening in a very sensitive area, the most militarized zone in the whole world with people living right next to the border area,” Kang said in an

Dec 17, 2020By Kang Seung-woo
Foreign minister defends law banning propaganda leaflets
previous page
6768697071
next page

Top 5 stories

Korea Times
About Us
Introduction
History
Contact Us
Products & Services
Subscribe
E-paper
RSS Service
Content Sales
Site Map
Policy
Code of Ethics
Ombudsman
Privacy Policy
Youth Protection Policy
Terms of Service
Copyright Policy
Family Site
Hankookilbo
Dongwha Group
FacebookXYoutubeInstagram
CEO & Publisher: Oh Young-jinDigital News Email: webmaster@koreatimes.co.krTel: 02-724-2114Online newspaper registration No: 서울,아52844Date of registration: 2020.02.05Masthead: The Korea TimesCopyright © koreatimes.co.kr. All rights reserved.