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Lee considering creation of dedicated body for youth policies

President Lee Jae Myung said Saturday he is considering establishing a dedicated organization to oversee youth policies. Lee raised the idea during a ceremony to mark Youth Day at the presidential office, noting the difficulties faced by young people in the job market. "With the capabilities of current policymakers, it is difficult to emerge from this emergency situation," he said. "Opportunities for the new generation are decreasing with growing polarization and industrial restructuring due to artificial intelligence." Young job seekers have faced an increasingly tough market, with the employment rate for those aged 20 to 24 at 41.3 percent in the second quarter, compared with the 2025 average of 43.6 percent, according to government data.

Sep 19, 2026By Yonhap
Lee considering creation of dedicated body for youth policies

Cheong Wa Dae says Lee's 'no war intervention' remark not a rejection of Trump's Hormuz request

Cheong Wa Dae said Saturday that President Lee Jae Myung's remarks ruling out troop dispatches that could involve the country in a war were not a refusal of U.S. President Donald Trump's request for Seoul to send forces to the strategic Strait of Hormuz. The presidential office clarified the position after the New York Times reported that Lee's comments at a press conference Friday amounted to a rejection of Trump's appeal for Seoul's military cooperation in the Middle East. "Lee did not turn down Trump's request for Korea's cooperation on Middle East-related issues during yesterday's press conference," a presidential official told reporters on condition of anonymity. "The government has been reviewing practical ways to contribute in close communication with the international community, including the United States, in order to protect our citizens and safeguard national interests." Seoul will continue to examine concrete options under its stated principle of not intervening in a war or combat, the official added. On Friday, Lee said during the nationally televised press conference that "

Sep 19, 2026By Yonhap
Cheong Wa Dae says Lee's 'no war intervention' remark not a rejection of Trump's Hormuz request

Kim withdraws as justice minister nominee

Justice minister nominee Kim Seung-won withdrew his nomination on Saturday following allegations concerning his involvement in a COVID-19 treatment and approval of its clinical trials. “After much deliberation, I decided to step down as the nominee for justice minister. I apologize for failing to live up to your expectations,” Kim said during a press conference at the National Assembly. The move comes after a parliamentary committee adopted his confirmation hearing report Thursday amid objections from the main opposition People Power Party over the allegations. Kim, a two-term lawmaker of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), served as a judge at the Jeonju District Court and the Suwon District Court before joining the presidential office under the liberal Moon Jae-in administration, where he worked in the office of political affairs. He was elected to the 21st National Assembly in 2020 and later served as DPK's legal affairs committee chief.

Sep 19, 2026By Kwak Yeon-soo
Kim withdraws as justice minister nominee

Lee approves appointment of new Supreme Court justice

President Lee Jae Myung on Friday approved the appointment of Kim Sung-soo as a new Supreme Court justice, his office said. Lee's approval comes a day after the National Assembly passed a motion for Kim's confirmation in a 227-28 vote, following a confirmation hearing earlier in the week. Supreme Court Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae last month recommended Kim to the president for appointment as the successor to former Supreme Court Justice Lee Heung-ku. Kim will become the first Supreme Court justice to take office since the launch of the Lee administration last year.

Sep 18, 2026By Yonhap
Lee approves appointment of new Supreme Court justice

Lee meets UAE official to discuss continued cooperation

President Lee Jae Myung met with a United Arab Emirates (UAE) official Friday and called for continued cooperation between Korea and the Gulf state, his office said. Lee welcomed Khaldoon Khalifa Al Mubarak, chairman of the Executive Affairs Authority of Abu Dhabi, to Cheong Wa Dae, recalling that Seoul and Abu Dhabi agreed during his state visit to the UAE last November to begin a partnership for the next 100 years, presidential spokesperson Kang Yu-jung said in a written briefing. He thanked the UAE for prioritizing crude oil supplies to Korea in March amid the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran and noted growing cooperation in areas such as defense, artificial intelligence, nuclear energy and culture. "President Lee called for close communication between the two countries' point men for each other in order to produce concrete achievements that can be felt by the two countries' people, while continuing communication and cooperation based on trust between the two countries' leaders," Kang said, referring to Lee's chief of staff Kang Hoon-sik and Khaldoon. Lee also asked the chairman to convey h

Sep 18, 2026By Yonhap
Lee meets UAE official to discuss continued cooperation

Confirmation hearing for special inspector nominee held for 1st time in 11 years

A parliamentary confirmation hearing was held Friday for a special inspector nominee tasked with investigating corruption allegations involving the family and relatives of the president and senior aides to the president, marking the first of its kind in 11 years. Choi Kil-su, a former senior prosecutor, was nominated by President Lee Jae Myung from among three candidates recommended by the rival parties and the bar association last month. "I will not be swayed by any external pressure or political considerations and will make decisions solely based on the law and principles, as well as objective facts and evidence," Choi said during his confirmation hearing at the National Assembly. "I will ensure that the very existence of the special inspector serves as a mechanism that heightens discipline and accountability among public officials and helps prevent misconduct," he said. The special inspector post was established in 2014 to conduct investigations into alleged irregularities involving the president's spouse and close relatives, and senior presidential officials, but has remained vacant

Sep 18, 2026By Yonhap
Confirmation hearing for special inspector nominee held for 1st time in 11 years

President stresses 'commercial viability' in $350 bil. US investment talks

President Lee Jae Myung said Korea is continuing talks with the United States on the details of its $350 billion investment plans based on the principle that it will pursue only projects with “commercial viability.” During a press conference on Friday, he said the overarching goal is to establish a mutually beneficial framework by thoroughly scrutinizing individual project returns, capital recovery mechanisms, revenue-sharing models and the allocation of potential losses. “Managing the U.S. investment portfolio is an extraordinarily complex and demanding endeavor. From my standpoint, $350 billion represents taxpayers’ money,” Lee said. The president said that he had demanded from the outset that the phrase “commercial viability” be included in the official accord. Following tough negotiations, Korea successfully secured the condition in the final text. “It was an exceptionally tough struggle, as no other nation managed to include such a clause,” Lee noted. “However, once specific discussions on actual capital deployment began, new friction points emerged.” Elaboratin

Sep 18, 2026By Jun Ji-hye
President stresses 'commercial viability' in $350 bil. US investment talks

PM calls for thorough readiness for security threats

Prime Minister Han Seong-sook called Friday for thorough readiness to respond to security threats and other contingencies, saying the security environment Korea faces is more complex and uncertain than ever before. Han made the remark during a meeting to review last month's Ulchi civil defense exercise, which involved some 580,000 officials from about 4,000 central and local government agencies and public institutions, to assess the country's readiness for war and other contingencies. "The security situation we face today is more complex and uncertain than at any other time. Armed conflicts are continuing in many places of the world, and we should also be prepared for new types of threats, such as drone and cyber attacks," Han said. "If the government is to maintain state functions and protect the lives and safety of the people during a crisis, thorough preparations and repeated trainings during peacetime are more important than anything else," she said.

Sep 18, 2026By Yonhap
PM calls for thorough readiness for security threats

Lee says S. Korea reviewing possible contribution to Hormuz but will not get involved in war

President Lee Jae Myung on Friday highlighted the need for the country to protect its citizens and national interests in the Strait of Hormuz but said there will be no troop dispatch that might lead to the country's involvement in an overseas conflict. "Let it be clear. There will be no dispatch of troops that will lead to involvement in a conflict. There will be no engagement or involvement in war," Lee said in a televised press conference. "The principle of no engagement or involvement in war has been observed so far and will continue to be observed in the future," he asserted. The president's remarks came as Seoul is deliberating making what it calls "contributions" to ensuring freedom of navigation along the key transit route in the face of mounting pressure from U.S. President Donald Trump. A South Korean on-site investigation team returned home last week from a mission to the United Arab Emirates to assess the overall Middle East safety situation, in an apparent sign of preparations for a possible military dispatch. The president said it was also clear that the country needs to cond

Sep 18, 2026By Yonhap
Lee says S. Korea reviewing possible contribution to Hormuz but will not get involved in war

Lee rules out Korean troop deployment in Iran war

President Lee Jae Myung said Friday that South Korea will not deploy troops or military assets in a way that would involve the country in the war between the United States and Iran, while leaving open the possibility of expanding military activities to protect South Korean vessels, oil shipping routes and nationals. “There will be no deployment that involves or intervenes in the war. I can state that clearly,” Lee said during a press conference at Cheong Wa Dae. “We will not make such a troop deployment or dispatch military assets.” Lee said South Korea has maintained its principle of staying out of the conflict and would continue to do so. “To make it clear once again, there will be no deployment in the war,” he said. “We have upheld the principle of noninvolvement and nonintervention in the war, and we will continue to uphold it.” At the same time, Lee drew a distinction between joining the conflict and taking steps to protect South Korea’s own interests. “Like other countries, we clearly need to carry out minimum activities to protect our commercial vessels, oil sh

Sep 18, 2026By Bahk Eun-ji
Lee rules out Korean troop deployment in Iran war
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