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Jung Min-ho

Korea Times Politics & City Reporter

Jung Min-ho has worked as a staff writer at The Korea Times since 2012, mostly covering social and political issues. He currently belongs to the Politics & City Desk where he covers topics such as health, labor and human rights. Prior to joining the team, he was responsible for covering North Korea and sports. His article about a biosecurity breach of Middle East respiratory syndrome won him an award from the Korea Science Journalists Association in 2016. He is also the co-author of the book, "Medical Pioneers of Korea" (2019). He served as the head of the international relations committee at the Journalists Association of Korea from 2021 to 2023.

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Foreign Affairs

Yoon remains optimistic about Seoul-Tokyo relations

President Yoon Suk-yeol takes questions from reporters during a press conference marking his 100 days in office at the presidential office in Seoul, Wednesday. NewsisVerdict expected soon on liquidation of Japanese assets over forced labor ― Tokyo's red lineBy Jung Min-hoDespite the wartime forced labor issue standing in the way of Korea-Japan relations, President Yoon Suk-yeol remains optimistic about the prospects of improving bilateral relations. “I believe the governments and the people of both countries can come up with a reasonable solution,” Yoon said at Wednesday's press conference marking his 100 days in office. “When the two countries strengthen their future-oriented relations, they can resolve their issues in the past amicably and promptly, through concession and understanding. If there's no future for them, why would they put the past behind them?”His remarks come just two days after he called the country a neighbor that Korea should join forces with to protect their shared values, such as freedom and human rights, in his Liberation Day speech.Soon

Aug 17, 2022By Jung Min-ho
Yoon remains optimistic about Seoul-Tokyo relations
  • Yoon opposes forceful change to status quo in North Korea
Foreign Affairs

'Japan is our partner': Yoon vows to improve Seoul-Tokyo ties

President Yoon Suk-yeol speaks during a ceremony celebrating the 77th anniversary of Korea's Liberation Day from Japan's colonial rule, on the lawn of the presidential office in Seoul, Monday. YonhapIn Liberation Day speech, president proposes economic assistance to North Korea in return for denuclearization By Jung Min-hoPresident Yoon Suk-yeol vowed to improve relations with Japan, calling the country a partner that South Korea should work with to defend important shared values, in a speech on Monday marking the 77th anniversary of liberation from Japan's 1910-45 colonial rule.Yoon reiterated that he aims to inherit the spirit of the 1998 joint declaration between former President Kim Dae-jung ― a revered figure among liberal voters ― and former Japanese Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi, underscoring the shift of perception toward Japan from an old enemy to a new friend.“In the past, we had to unshackle ourselves from the political control imposed upon us by imperial Japan so that we could regain and defend our freedom. Today, Japan is our partner as we face common threats that c

Aug 15, 2022By Jung Min-ho
'Japan is our partner': Yoon vows to improve Seoul-Tokyo ties
  • FULL TEXT Address by President Yoon Suk-yeol on Korea's 77th Liberation Day
  • Yoon's 'audacious initiative' for NK lacks details: experts
Politics

Yoon pardons Samsung chief, other business tycoons to 'overcome economic crisis'

Samsung heir Lee Jae-yong speaks to reporters in front of the Seoul Central District Court in southern Seoul, Friday, after President Yoon Suk-yeol's pardon announcement. YonhapPoliticians, including ex-President Lee Myung-bak, not on listBy Jung Min-hoPresident Yoon Suk-yeol has granted his first special pardons to Samsung heir Lee Jae-yong and other business tycoons to help “overcome an economic crisis” facing Korea.Lotte Group Chairman Shin Dong-bin, Dongkuk Steel Mill Chairman and CEO Chang Sae-joo and former STX Group Chairman Kang Duk-soo were among other business leaders who are being pardoned, Monday, on the 77th anniversary of the country's Liberation Day.“With urgent needs to overcome the national economic crisis, several business people were carefully selected, so they would lead the economic growth through technology investment and job creation,” Justice Minister Han Dong Hoon said during a press briefing in Seoul.Politically controversial figures, including former President Lee Myung-bak and former South Gyeongsang Province Govenor Kim Kyoung-soo,

Aug 12, 2022By Jung Min-ho
Yoon pardons Samsung chief, other business tycoons to 'overcome economic crisis'
  • Samsung's Lee expected to solidify leadership, step up biz activities after receiving pardon
Defense

Yoon holds first meeting with USFK chief since inauguration

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol shakes hands with U.S. Forces Korea Commander Gen. Paul LaCamer at Camp Humphreys, the U.S. military base in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, in this April 7 file photo. President Yoon had a closed meeting with him and U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Philip Goldberg at the presidential office Tuesday, an official said Thursday. NewsisSouth Korea, US reinforce military ties amid rising tensions in regionBy Jung Min-hoPresident Yoon Suk-yeol had a closed meeting with U.S. Forces Korea Commander Gen. Paul LaCamera at the presidential office, Tuesday, in the first talks between the two since he was inaugurated on May 10, a top-ranking official told The Korea Times. “Issues such as the security situation surrounding the Korean Peninsula and Seoul-Washington (military) cooperation were discussed in the meeting,” an official familiar with the talks said on Thursday. It was Yoon's second meeting with LaCamera, 58, who serves also as the commander of the South Korea-U.S. Combined Forces Command and the United Nations Command. Yoon met him for the first t

Aug 11, 2022By Jung Min-ho
Yoon holds first meeting with USFK chief since inauguration
Defense

INTERVIEW Polish arms deal may well lead to greater opportunities for Korea: expert

The K2 Black Panther / Courtesy of Hyundai RotemUkraine war raises interest in Korean weapons suppliers to help upgrade aging Eastern European ordnanceBy Jung Min-hoBruce BennettSouth Korea's recent arms deals with Poland demonstrate its potential in the global military procurement market and it may well lead to greater opportunities, particularly in Eastern Europe, according to an expert.“The Ukraine experience suggests that countries don't have to have top-of-the-line weapons to defeat parts of the Russian forces,” Bruce Bennett, a senior defense analyst at the Rand Corporation, a U.S.-based policy think tank, told The Korea Times. “One of the challenges for the Eastern European countries is to have weapons good enough to be able to fight and defeat Russian aggression … So I expect that they will look across the lines at their forces.”In South Korea's biggest arms export deal, the Polish government announced last month that it will buy 48 FA-50s, a light combat jet co-developed by Korea Aerospace Industries and Lockheed Martin, 980 K2 battle tanks, ma

Aug 10, 2022By Jung Min-ho
[INTERVIEW] Polish arms deal may well lead to greater opportunities for Korea: expert
North Korea

North Korea releases water from border dam after downpours

Water gushes through the gates of Gunnam Dam on the Imjin River, which runs across the inter-Korean border, in the South Korean border town of Yeoncheon, Tuesday. YonhapBy Jung Min-hoNorth Korea released water from a dam near South Korea without providing prior notice despite an inter-Korean agreement and Seoul's repeated requests, an official said Tuesday.“It appears that North Korea has repeatedly opened floodgates on Hwanggang Dam without notifying us,” an official told The Korea Times. “So far, there have been no reports of damage by the recent water release … North Korea seems to be adjusting the water level in the dam after heavy rainfall there.”The dam, which was constructed on the Imjin River in 2007, is situated 42 kilometers north of the Korean Demilitarized Zone. North Korea agreed in October 2009 to give prior notice to the South after six South Koreans were killed in Yeoncheon one month earlier as a result of its massive release of water from the dam without notification.The official said the South received such notices six times since the

Aug 9, 2022By Jung Min-ho
North Korea releases water from border dam after downpours
Politics

Ruling party's self-inflicted crisis

Lee Jun-seok, the suspended chairman of the ruling People Power Party / NewsisSuspended leader vows court battle as President Yoon continues to lose popularityBy Jung Min-hoAfter two consecutive election wins for president and local offices, the ruling People Power Party (PPP) has found itself in a self-inflicted "emergency" that will only get worse as faction leaders vow to continue to fight despite President Yoon Suk-yeol's abysmal approval ratings.Suspended PPP Chairman Lee Jun-seok is at the very center of the party's internal conflict.Under the 37-year-old leader, the party won the executive office in March and a majority of local offices nationwide three months later. It was a stunning comeback from the party's near-death experience following the scandal that brought down former President Park Geun-hye just five years ago.Lee's future in the party looked more promising until the PPP's ethics committee on July 8 suspended him from his position and party affairs for six months over allegations of having accepted sexual services in return for political favors and destroying the ev

Aug 8, 2022By Jung Min-ho
Ruling party's self-inflicted crisis
Foreign Affairs

Korean, US parliamentary leaders vow to expand alliance amid mounting tensions near Taiwan

National Assembly Speaker Kim Jin-pyo, right, and U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi attend a joint press announcement after their meeting at the National Assembly in Seoul, Thursday. NewsisKim, Pelosi agree to foster cooperation in defense, technologyBy Jung Min-hoThe parliamentary leaders of South Korea and the United States vowed to expand the bilateral alliance further in defense and technology, Thursday, the day Beijing launched unprecedented live-fire military drills near Taiwan in a warning to Washington. National Assembly Speaker Kim Jin-pyo and U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi met for talks in Seoul, where they agreed to improve the bilateral relationship to the “comprehensive” level through cooperation in security and the economy, including high-tech fields like semiconductors, to handle challenges facing both countries more effectively.The meeting comes just a day after Pelosi's visit to Taiwan, where she pledged Washington's “ironclad” commitment to defending democracy on the self-governing island at her meeting with Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-wen. Be

Aug 4, 2022By Jung Min-ho
Korean, US parliamentary leaders vow to expand alliance amid mounting tensions near Taiwan
  • Yoon, Pelosi talk over phone, without meeting in person
Politics

Lee Jae-myung claims innocence amid corruption probe

Rep. Lee Jae-myung, a leading candidate for the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea's chairman post, speaks during a press conference at the National Assembly in Seoul, Wednesday. YonhapHopes of winning ― and keeping ― party leadership hinge on possible indictment for ex-presidential candidateBy Jung Min-hoRep. Lee Jae-myung, a leading candidate for the opposition Democratic Party of Korea's top post, claimed his innocence Wednesday amid an ongoing investigation into corruption allegations surrounding him and his family, accusing prosecutors and police of “colluding” with certain politicians. The risk of being prosecuted stands as the biggest obstacle to his ambition of controlling the party for the next two years. Lee, 57, leads the two other shortlisted candidates ― Rep. Park Yong-jin and Rep. Kang Hoon-sik ― by a comfortable margin. But if he is indicted ― before or after its Aug. 28 national convention ― his role could be suspended under the party rules.“There is no evidence despite years of accusations,” Lee said in his first press conference a

Aug 3, 2022By Jung Min-ho
Lee Jae-myung claims innocence amid corruption probe
Defense

Defense chiefs of Korea, Australia to meet for talks on arms industry cooperation

Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup, right, and his Australian counterpart Richard Marles shake hands during the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, in this June 12 file photo. NewsisBy Jung Min-hoDefense Minister Lee Jong-sup departed for Canberra, Tuesday, for talks with his Australian counterpart Richard Marles on arms industry cooperation and regional security. According to the Ministry of Defense, the two are scheduled to meet in the capital Thursday, in the first official talks between the nations' defense chiefs since the Australian Labor Party took power in May.Minister Lee's five-day visit there comes at a time when the Redback, an infantry fighting vehicle developed and manufactured by Korean arms maker Hanwha Defense, is competing for the Australian Army's high-profile procurement project known as Land 400 Phase 3.Invited by Marles, Lee plans to visit Geelong, Victoria, where the company is constructing its first overseas factory for the production of K9 self-propelled howitzers. In December 2021, the country signed a contract to purchase 30 units of the howitzers among other weap

Aug 2, 2022By Jung Min-ho
Defense chiefs of Korea, Australia to meet for talks on arms industry cooperation
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