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Kwak Yeon-soo

Korea Times Digital Content Reporter

Kwak Yeon-soo is a digital editor at The Korea Times creating, editing and curating digital content for the newspaper’s website, mobile app and social media. She previously covered a diverse array of cultural, political and business topics.

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Politics

Opposition leader acquitted of election law violation

Rep. Lee Jae-myung, leader of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), was found not guilty of violating the election law, in a ruling that could remove long-running legal risks that he has faced from criminal allegations. The Seoul High Court on Wednesday overturned the lower court’s ruling that Lee violated the Public Official Election Act by making false statements before the 2022 presidential election. This appellate court ruling comes 131 days after the Seoul Central District Court sentenced him to one year in prison, suspended for two years. Lee was initially found guilty of making false statements during a parliamentary audit of the Gyeonggi Provincial Government in October 2021 when he was the governor. He had claimed that he rezoned the former site of the Korea Food Research Institute in Baekhyeon-dong, Seongnam, when he was the city mayor, due to pressure from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. However, prosecutors accused Lee of rezoning the site to give preferential treatment to private developers, causing losses to the city government. The lower

Mar 26, 2025By Kwak Yeon-soo
Opposition leader acquitted of election law violation
Politics

South Korea condemns China for installing unauthorized structures in West Sea

South Korea should strengthen efforts to prevent China from possibly conducting strategic operations to expand its control in the West Sea after installing unauthorized steel structures there, analysts warned Tuesday. Since 2018, China has been installing several large steel structures in a disputed area known as the Provisional Measures Zone (PMZ) in the West Sea, where the Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs) of Korea and China overlap. South Korean intelligence agencies estimate that one structure exceeds 70 meters in width and height. China insists that the installations are for aquaculture purposes, but South Korea fears that China is using “gray zone” tactics to expand its maritime sovereignty like it did when building artificial islands in the South China Sea. Gray zone tactics are state or nonstate actions that fall in the ambiguous space between peace and war, employing a range of coercive measures short of direct military conflict to achieve strategic goals. Kim Doo-young, former deputy registrar at the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS), said the Chinese-ins

Mar 25, 2025By Kwak Yeon-soo
South Korea condemns China for installing unauthorized structures in West Sea
Law & Crime

How did Prime Minister Han Duck-soo get reinstated?

The Constitutional Court’s decision to dismiss a motion to impeach Prime Minister Han Duck-soo and reinstate him as acting president reflects that charges brought against him were not necessarily grave enough to warrant dismissal from office. In Monday's ruling, five of the eight justices voted against the impeachment motion, while only one justice approved it. Two justices voted to reject the motion entirely, citing the lack of support from the two-thirds of the National Assembly required for presidential impeachments. The ruling came 87 days after the National Assembly impeached Han over his alleged role in President Yoon Suk Yeol’s Dec. 3 martial law declaration, among other reasons. At the heart of Han’s impeachment trial was his alleged involvement in the president’s martial law imposition, his refusal to appoint additional justices to the Constitutional Court, his refusal to designate a permanent special counsel to investigate insurrection charges against Yoon, his failure to promulgate two special counsel bills targeting Yoon and first lady Kim Keon Hee and his efforts to

Mar 24, 2025By Kwak Yeon-soo
How did Prime Minister Han Duck-soo get reinstated?
Law & Crime

Prime minister’s impeachment verdict to be litmus test for ruling on president

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo’s impeachment verdict could serve as a litmus test for the potential removal of President Yoon Suk Yeol, legal experts said Friday. The Constitutional Court announced Thursday it will deliver its verdict on whether to uphold Han's impeachment at 10 a.m. Monday. However, the court has not yet disclosed the date for its ruling on the president’s impeachment trial for his Dec. 3 martial law declaration. The ruling on Han’s impeachment will come 87 days after the National Assembly passed a motion to oust him for his alleged involvement in Yoon’s martial law imposition. His impeachment trial concluded on Feb. 19 after only one hearing. At the core of Han’s impeachment trial are several allegations: his purported involvement in the president's martial law imposition, his refusal to appoint additional justices to the Constitutional Court, his refusal to appoint a permanent special counsel to investigate insurrection charges against Yoon, his failure to promulgate two special counsel bills targeting Yoon and first lady Kim Keon Hee, and his efforts to manag

Mar 21, 2025By Kwak Yeon-soo
Prime minister’s impeachment verdict to be litmus test for ruling on president
North Korea

North Korean human rights groups affected by Trump’s aid freeze

U.S. President Donald Trump's push to freeze foreign aid is putting North Korean human rights organizations at risk, with some expressing concerns that they may need to seek alternative funding sources.

Mar 19, 2025By Kwak Yeon-soo
North Korean human rights groups affected by Trump’s aid freeze
North Korea

46% of North Koreans undernourished, UN report says

Nearly 46 percent of North Koreans are undernourished, according to a recent U.N. report, as the impoverished country grapples with severe food insecurity driven by escalating geopolitical tensions and increasing climate variability.

Mar 18, 2025By Kwak Yeon-soo
46% of North Koreans undernourished, UN report says
Society

Political divide fuels Korea's democratic backslide: Swedish think tank

Korea’s democracy is backsliding after President Yoon Suk Yeol’s Dec. 3 martial law declaration, according to a Swedish political science research institute. The regression is attributed to government disinformation, political polarization and a loss of freedom of expression.

Mar 17, 2025By Kwak Yeon-soo
Political divide fuels Korea's democratic backslide: Swedish think tank
Law & Crime

Constitutional Court expected to decide on Yoon's impeachment soon

The spotlight is now on the Constitutional Court as it prepares to rule on President Yoon Suk Yeol’s impeachment case. There is widespread speculation that the court will announce its final decision this week, determining whether Yoon will be reinstated or removed from office for his Dec. 3 martial law declaration.

Mar 16, 2025By Kwak Yeon-soo
Constitutional Court expected to decide on Yoon's impeachment soon
North Korea

NK, Chinese vessels' suspected collision prompts suspicions of sanctions violation

North Korea and China have remained silent so far regarding a suspected collision between two of their vessels in the West Sea, likely because they were engaged in the illegal transfer of North Korean coal, which is prohibited under U.N. Security Council (UNSC) sanctions, experts said Thursday.

Mar 13, 2025By Kwak Yeon-soo
NK, Chinese vessels' suspected collision prompts suspicions of sanctions violation
Defense

DOGE review halts efforts to ID remains of US soldiers killed in Korean War

Concerns are rising that services essential to identifying soldiers killed in the 1950-53 Korean War could be jeopardized by the U.S. Department of Government Efficiency's (DOGE) policy to reduce spending limits on Government Purchase Cards (GPCs).

Mar 11, 2025By Kwak Yeon-soo
DOGE review halts efforts to ID remains of US soldiers killed in Korean War
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