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Yoon, first lady report $5.7 million in personal assets

President Yoon Suk-yeol answers reporters' questions while arriving for work at the presidential office in Seoul, Aug. 23. (Yonhap)President Yoon Suk-yeol and first lady Kim Keon-hee declared 7.6 billion won ($5.7 million) in personal assets, in their first asset disclosure since Yoon took office, the government gazette showed Friday. The first couple's assets fell about 100 million won from February, when Yoon was required to report their assets as a presidential candidate. Kim accounted for most of their declared assets. Yoon reported his personal assets at 520 million won and Kim's assets at about 7.1 billion won, most of which are bank deposits.Under anti-corruption law, senior officials at government agencies and national universities, as well as other high-level public office holders, are required to report the status of their assets to the Government Ethics Committee.The amount declared by each government official includes assets owned by their spouses and immediate family members, such as parents and siblings.It showed the average assets of 52 ranking officials at the preside

Aug 26, 2022
Yoon, first lady report $5.7 million in personal assets

Yoon calls for unity between gov't, ruling party to improve people's livelihoods

President Yoon Suk-yeol speaks during a dinner workshop of the ruling People Power Party on Aug. 25, held at an education center in Cheonan, 92 kilometers south of Seoul. YonhapPresident Yoon Suk-yeol on Thursday called for closer cooperation between the government and the ruling party as he focuses on improving people's livelihoods to regain trust from the public amid low approval ratings.Yoon made the remarks during a dinner workshop of the ruling People Power Party held in Cheonan, 92 kilometers south of Seoul, the first of its kind since he took office in May."The party and the government must now become one, and once (we) only think about the people's livelihoods, all the difficult issues will be resolved, and the government and the party will receive the trust from the people," he said at the session attended by ruling party lawmakers as well as officials from the presidential office and the Cabinet.Yoon also urged them to stop blaming the past administration, saying an "excuse" that difficult economic situations are inherited from the previous administration is "no longer work

Aug 25, 2022
Yoon calls for unity between gov't, ruling party to improve people's livelihoods

Yoon lauds Korea's world-class nuclear power technology

President Yoon Suk-yeol delivers a speech during a dinner with ruling People Power Party (PPP) lawmakers in Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province, Thursday. PPP lawmakers gathered there for a two-day event to discuss ways to achieve unity and exchange ideas about key agendas ahead of the National Assembly's regular session.By Nam Hyun-wooPresident Yoon Suk-yeol on Thursday congratulated Korea's state-run energy company for winning a deal to construct turbine islands under the El Dabaa nuclear power plant project in Egypt, saying the contract proves Seoul's technological prowess in the nuclear power plant industry.In a posting on Facebook, Yoon stressed that the “massive deal” won by Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) is “an achievement that came 13 years after Korea won a contract to build nuclear power plants in Barakah, the United Arab Emirates.”“Our world-class competitiveness (in the nuclear power plant industry) did not happen overnight,” Yoon wrote. “It is the outcome of the consistent efforts made by numerous people who dedicated the

Aug 25, 2022By Nam Hyun-woo
Yoon lauds Korea's world-class nuclear power technology

Yoon's approval rating edges up to over 30%

President Yoon Suk-yeol visits a flooded semi-basement home in the Silim-dong area in Seoul's district of Gwanak, Aug. 9. Yoon was criticized for going home and not staying at his office during torrential rainfall that lasted for days. Joint Press Corps Joint Press CorpsPresident Yoon Suk-yeol's approval rating has risen to over 30 percent, a poll showed Thursday, in a positive sign that his rating may be recovering after a personnel reshuffle and his pledge to better listen to the people.In the poll of 1,001 voters nationwide conducted by pollsters Embrain Public, Kstat Research, Korea Research and Hankook Research from Monday to Wednesday, 32 percent gave a positive assessment of his job performance, up 4 percentage points from two weeks earlier.Yoon's approval rating, which hovered at over 40 percent in June, fell to the 30 percent range in July and to 28 percent in the second week of August.The disapproval rating inched down 2 percentage points to 63 percent in the same period.The poll has a margin of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points at a 95 percent confidence level. (Yonhap)

Aug 25, 2022
Yoon's approval rating edges up to over 30%

Yoon vows to help grow small businesses, self-employed

President Yoon Suk-yeol buys rice cakes at the Amsa Complex Market in eastern Seoul, Aug. 25. YonhapPresident Yoon Suk-yeol vowed Thursday to help grow small businesses and the self-employed by implementing short- to long-term plans focused on recovery from the pandemic and fostering entrepreneurship. Yoon made the remark as he presided over an emergency meeting on the economy and people's livelihood issues at a traditional market in eastern Seoul. Reviving the economy has been a major focus of the president as the country grapples with the effects of high inflation, a weak currency and high interest rates. "Our small businesses and the self-employed are suffering from a decline in sales and an increase in debt caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, and I believe properly taking care of these people's lives is the reason for existence of the state and the government," Yoon said after meeting with merchants at the Amsa Complex Market. "In the short term, I will help their debt adjustment and swift revival through an emergency response plan, and in the mid- to long-term, create the condition

Aug 25, 2022
Yoon vows to help grow small businesses, self-employed

Yoon's confidential schedule leaked on internet fan club of first lady

President Yoon Suk-yeol attends the opening ceremony of an industry fair on creating farming business and returning to rural living in Seoul, Wednesday. YonhapA confidential schedule of President Yoon Suk-yeol has been leaked on an internet fan club of first lady Kim Keon-hee, prompting the presidential office to figure out how such a security breach could happen, a presidential official said Wednesday.The leaked schedule was posted on the Facebook fan club for Kim, called "Keon Hee Love," earlier in the day, saying Yoon plans to visit a market in the southeastern city of Daegu on Friday.The posting went into details of Yoon's schedule, including his arrival time and the market's name. A member of the fan club who posted the leaked schedule also advised club members to gather at the market when Yoon visits there.The president's schedule is strictly confidential for security reasons before it ends.A senior presidential official apologized for the leaked presidential schedule.The official said the Presidential Security Service "will figure out how this happened and make utmost efforts

Aug 24, 2022
Yoon's confidential schedule leaked on internet fan club of first lady

DP's central committee votes down charter revision proposal

Rep. Byun Jae-ill, chair of the main opposition Democratic Party's central committee, declares the opening of a committee meeting at the National Assembly in Seoul, Wednesday. Joint Press CorpsThe main opposition Democratic Party (DP) on Wednesday decided not to revise its charter in connection with party membership suspension of those facing criminal charges amid criticism the attempt is aimed at protecting former presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung.The DP's central committee held a vote and decided to drop the revision proposal and maintain the current charter that mandates membership suspension for those who are indicted.Last week, the DP's emergency leadership committee tabled a proposal to revise a charter clause to allow the cancellation of membership suspension imposed for indictment that the party considers political suppression.The move sparked criticism that the proposal is intended to prevent membership suspension of Lee and strengthen his influence within the party. But pro-Lee members said the revision is needed to respond to possible political retaliation against oppos

Aug 24, 2022
DP's central committee votes down charter revision proposal

Why South Korea's largest labor groups oppose military drills with US

Members of labor and civic groups, including the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, hold a protest against South Korea's joint military drills with the United States, near the U.S. Army Garrison Yongsan in Seoul, Aug. 14. NewsisAnti-US nationalists still exert major influence among liberals: expertsBy Jung Min-hoSouth Korea's two biggest labor umbrella groups have called for the immediate suspension of the country's ongoing joint military exercise with the United States, calling it a dangerous act that increases the risk of conflict with North Korea.In front of the War Memorial of Korea, Tuesday, the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) and the Federation of Korean Trade Unions criticized President Yoon Suk-yeol for the resumption of the two allies' first full-scale field trainings in five years.“We denounce the Yoon administration for being trapped in a swamp of the South Korea-U.S. alliance, a byproduct of the Cold War of the 20th century, and making the wrong moves for the peace, diplomacy and economy of the Korean Peninsula,” they said in a joint statement.

Aug 24, 2022By Jung Min-ho
Why South Korea's largest labor groups oppose military drills with US

Monitoring forex market volatility

President Yoon Suk-yeol speaks during a meeting on macroeconomic conditions at Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation headquarters in Seocho district, Seoul, Wednesday, a day after the Korean won closed at 1,343.5 per dollar, the weakest level since April 2009 when the country was hit by the global financial crisis. Yoon noted the macroeconomic situation is worse than previous predictions in May, and demanded all-out efforts by the government to prevent another financial crisis. Yonhap

Aug 24, 2022By Nam Hyun-woo
Monitoring forex market volatility

Presidential office inspects own staff

President Yoon Suk-yeol enters the presidential office in Yongsan District, Seoul, Wednesday. / Korea Times photo by Seo Jae-hoonYoon's scheduled visit to Daegu on Friday was disclosed through the first lady's online fan forumBy Nam Hyun-wooThe presidential office has been inspecting some secretaries, aides and other staff members who are believed to have been involved in leaking internal documents, fraud or other inappropriate activities. According to sources at the presidential office, the secretary for public office discipline has inspected at least six presidential staffers, including secretaries, to look into their possible involvement in unspecified irregularities.One of them is a secretary reporting to the senior secretary for civil society. The secretary is under inspection for allegedly inappropriate contact with an agency outside the office as well as interfering with internal personnel matters. This secretary is known to have helped President Yoon since the beginning of his political career and is close with President Yoon's confidants in the National Assembly. Another sec

Aug 24, 2022By Nam Hyun-woo
Presidential office inspects own staff
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