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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.

Ex-vice Gyeonggi governor found guilty of perjury over claims of 'drinking party' during interrogation

SUWON — A regional court on Saturday found a former vice governor of Gyeonggi Province guilty of perjury for falsely testifying to parliament that he was provided with alcohol and food during a prosecution interrogation. The Suwon District Court sentenced Lee Hwa-young to four months in prison, convicting him of violating the law on testimony before the National Assembly, according to the court document. The case was tried before a seven-panel citizen jury. Lee was indicted on perjury charges after he testified during a parliamentary hearing in 2024 that he and Kim Seong-tae, former chairman of underwear maker Ssangbangwool, were treated to alcohol and raw salmon during questioning by prosecutors over their involvement in an illegal remittance to North Korea in 2019. Lee claimed that prosecutors pressured and enticed him and Kim to give false statements incriminating President Lee Jae Myung, then the main opposition party leader who had served as Gyeonggi governor when the unauthorized money transfer allegedly took place. The court ruled that Lee Hwa-young's testimonies lacked consiste

Jun 20, 2026By Yonhap
Ex-vice Gyeonggi governor found guilty of perjury over claims of 'drinking party' during interrogation

Lee calls inflation top policy priority, urges 'extraordinary' measures to stabilize prices

President Lee Jae Myung said Friday inflation is the government's most urgent policy challenge and urged officials to devise extraordinary measures to stabilize prices and ease the burden on households. Lee made the call during a meeting with senior presidential aides, noting it will take a long time before global energy supply chains return to normal and the Strait of Hormuz is fully reopened despite a ceasefire deal between the United States and Iran aimed at ending the monthslong war in the Middle East. "The high oil prices, inflation and heightened foreign exchange rate volatility triggered by the war have done significant damage to our economy," Lee said. "The most urgent task right now is prices. Both the presidential office and the government must mobilize all available means to stabilize prices and restore the people's livelihoods," he added. Though the pace of price growth has been managed through the oil price cap system and other preemptive responses, there are still many areas that require attention, Lee said, calling for "extraordinary measures" to normalize petroleum produc

Jun 19, 2026By Yonhap
Lee calls inflation top policy priority, urges 'extraordinary' measures to stabilize prices

Lee looks to rebuild political momentum following diplomatic trip

President Lee Jae Myung appears to be trying to restore political momentum after returning from a 10-day diplomatic tour of Europe, Thursday, amid declining approval ratings and tensions within the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK). On Friday, the president convened a press briefing on the outcome of diplomatic trip, which concluded Thursday, and also a meeting with senior presidential secretaries. The briefing was held amid speculation that the president believed the achievements of his trip had been overshadowed by domestic political issues, leading him to personally present the results instead of delegating the task to aides, as is customary. Meanwhile, Friday's meeting with senior presidential secretaries followed a previous gathering with corresponding aides in Seoul, Sunday, while Lee was in Italy for a state visit. Such a meeting was unprecedented, prompting speculation that Lee remained focused on developments at home even while abroad amid the fallout from the June 3 local elections. The DPK won most of the mayoral and gubernatorial races nationwide but lost the Seoul mayora

Jun 19, 2026By Yi Whan-woo
Lee looks to rebuild political momentum following diplomatic trip

Assembly speaker urges diplomatic efforts to ensure safe return of Korean vessels from Hormuz Strait

National Assembly Speaker Cho Jeong-sik called for all-out diplomatic measures Friday to ensure the safe return of Korean vessels stranded in the Strait of Hormuz, following a ceasefire deal reached between the United States and Iran earlier this week. Cho made the call in a meeting at his office with Foreign Minister Cho Hyun, saying "the war in the Middle East has fortunately come to a halt after 106 days." "I urge you to take all possible diplomatic measures to ensure that the 24 vessels and their crew members stranded in the Strait of Hormuz can return home safely," the parliamentary speaker said. He also stressed that Korea's national interests should be fully protected during follow-up measures after a formal end to the war is declared, adding that the National Assembly will do its part to help ensure the success of the country's pragmatic diplomacy centered on national interests. A large number of vessels, including 24 Korea-linked ships, have been stranded in the vital waterway after commercial shipping was largely halted during the war amid threats of missile and drone attacks. T

Jun 19, 2026By Yonhap
Assembly speaker urges diplomatic efforts to ensure safe return of Korean vessels from Hormuz Strait

PM vows to properly honor patriots, fallen heroes

The government of President Lee Jae Myung will do its best to make sure that the sacrifices and dedication that patriots and fallen heroes made for the country will be properly recognized and honored, Prime Minister Kim Min-seok said Friday. Kim made the remark after awarding state decorations to patriots, their families and those credited with promoting the well-being of patriots, saying the freedom, peace and prosperity South Korea enjoys today were made possible by the "earnest dreams and sacrifices of patriotic martyrs for the country." "President Lee Jae Myung said that upholding the spirits of patriotic martyrs and fallen heroes and providing them with due respect is a historical duty that we must fulfill," Kim said, noting a series of measures that the government has taken to help patriots and bereaved families live better lives. "The government will look after the lives of state-honored patriots and their families in a more robust manner," he said. Kim also said the best way to honor the sacrifices of patriots is to build a peaceful and democratic nation where every member of soc

Jun 19, 2026By Yonhap
PM vows to properly honor patriots, fallen heroes

PM to travel to China next week for Summer Davos Forum

Prime Minister Kim Min-seok will travel to China next week to attend a World Economic Forum (WEF) meeting and hold bilateral meetings with senior Chinese officials, his office said Friday. During the three-day trip starting Monday, Kim is scheduled to deliver a special address at the annual WEF meeting, also known as the Summer Davos Forum, to be held in the Chinese coastal city of Dalian. Kim also plans to meet with senior Chinese officials and attend economic and other events, the office said without elaborating on whom he is scheduled to meet with, including whether Kim's Chinese counterpart, Premier Li Qiang, is among them. "Prime Minister Kim's trip is expected to provide an opportunity to outline our government's innovative economic vision to the international community and strengthen international cooperation while at the same time carrying on the trend of recent high-level exchanges between Korea and China to accelerate mutually beneficial cooperation," the office said.

Jun 19, 2026By Yonhap
PM to travel to China next week for Summer Davos Forum

S. Korea conveys concern to China over N. Korea's silence on denuclearization

The South Korean government reportedly raised concerns with China over growing speculation that Beijing is tacitly condoning North Korea's nuclear weapons, a perception fueled by China's recent silence on denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula. According to South Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Nam Jin, director general of its Northeast and Central Asian Affairs Bureau, met Wednesday with Director-General Liu Jinsong of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Liu was visiting Korea, and the two discussed the North Korean nuclear issue and other matters. Speculation that China is effectively tolerating North Korea's nuclear arsenal gained traction after the North Korea-China summit in Pyongyang this month did not publicly address denuclearization. The South Korean government reportedly conveyed its position that theories suggesting China is condoning North Korea's nuclear weapons are undesirable and unhelpful to peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula. Despite these concerns, the government reportedly believes China is not condoning North Korea's nuclear weapons, citing Beijing's c

Jun 18, 2026By Park Ung
S. Korea conveys concern to China over N. Korea's silence on denuclearization

PM nominee's confirmation hearing set for June 25-26

The ruling and opposition parties agreed Thursday to hold a confirmation hearing for Prime Minister nominee Han Seong-sook next week. A special parliamentary committee on Han's hearing passed a plan to hold a two-day confirmation hearing from next Thursday. In Korea, the appointment of a prime minister is subject to parliamentary approval following a confirmation hearing. If confirmed by the National Assembly, Han would become the first female prime minister under the Lee Jae Myung administration and the country's second female prime minister since Han Myeong-sook, who held the post from 2006-07.

Jun 18, 2026By Yonhap
PM nominee's confirmation hearing set for June 25-26

DPK factional divide becomes more visible after local elections

A simmering factional divide within the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) has become increasingly visible nearly two weeks after the June 3 local elections, with loyalists of President Lee Jae Myung and party Chairman Jung Chung-rae exchanging mocking labels that lay bare the depth of the rift. The antagonism has proved more entrenched than many had assumed. Those aligned with the president have sought to disparage pro-Jung figures with a derogatory acronym: "Moon-Cho-Teol-Rae-Rhyu." The acronym, which references former President Moon Jae-in and four of his notable associates, including Jung, is crafted from syllables of their names and well-known personal traits of Moon and his allies — Cho Kuk, Kim Ou-joon, Jung and Rhyu Si-min. The former president remains a potent force within the DPK despite Lee having taken control of the party before being elected as president in June 2025. Cho served as Moon's justice minister, while Kim, a left-leaning journalist and broadcaster, is known for his trademark thick beard, earning him the nickname “teolbo,” or bearded man, from which the

Jun 18, 2026By Yi Whan-woo
DPK factional divide becomes more visible after local elections

Ministries clash over whether to call North Korea 'principal enemy'

The Ministry of Unification on Thursday challenged the defense ministry’s position that North Korea remains a "principal enemy," saying the Lee Jae Myung administration’s goal of peaceful coexistence cannot be reconciled with treating Pyongyang in such terms. The remarks exposed a rare policy divide within the government as the Ministry of National Defense prepares its 2026 Defense White Paper, the first to be issued under the Lee administration. “The peaceful coexistence of the two Koreas is a firm policy goal of the Lee Jae Myung government,” a unification ministry official told reporters during a background briefing. “One cannot pursue peaceful coexistence with North Korea while defining it as a principal enemy.” The comments came hours after the defense ministry rejected media reports suggesting it was considering dropping references to North Korea as an enemy in the upcoming white paper. “The report is not true,” Lee Kyung-ho, deputy spokesperson for the defense ministry, said during a regular briefing. “Our position that the North Korean regime and the North Korean

Jun 18, 2026By Bahk Eun-ji
Ministries clash over whether to call North Korea 'principal enemy'
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