my timesThe Korea Times
South Korea

Politics

Yoon to appoint ex-technocrat as economic adviser

This file photo shows Byeon Yang-kyoon, a former Roh Moo-hyun administration official, who was to be appointed as economic adviser to President Yoon Suk-yeol, July 15. Korea Times filePresident Yoon Suk-yeol will appoint Byeon Yang-kyoon, a well-known former economic technocrat who served as budget and planning minister, as an outside economic adviser Friday, his office said.Byeon, 72, served as chief policymaker in the presidential office of former President Roh Moo-hyun from 2006 to 2007 after spending decades working at the finance ministry and serving as budget and planning minister from 2005-06."Many people recommended him," Yoon told reporters as he arrived for work.Byeon is "someone who has long advocated a policy fit for the industrial structure of the fourth industrial revolution from a perspective of innovation and supply," he said.Doorstepping with the president had been suspended this week due to a COVID-19 outbreak among the press corps. On Friday, it appeared to have resumed as normal, as no additional infections were reported for days. (Yonhap)

Jul 15, 2022
Yoon to appoint ex-technocrat as economic adviser

Main opposition party halts talks with ruling party over parliamentary committee formations

Ruling People Power Party floor leader and acting Chairman Rep. Kweon Seong-dong, left, and main opposition Democratic Party of Korea floor leader Park Hong-geun leave the National Assembly after their talks over parliamentary committee formations, Wednesday. Joint Press CorpsThe main opposition Democratic Party (DP) said Thursday that it suspended talks with the ruling People Power Party (PPP) over parliamentary committee formations that have left the National Assembly in limbo.Earlier this month, the rival parties voted to elect Rep. Kim Jin-pyo of the DP as new National Assembly speaker, but they have failed to narrow differences on how to form parliamentary committees.Rep. Lee Soo-jin of the DP said it suspended talks with the PPP over parliamentary committee formations, criticizing the ruling party for a "lack of sincerity."Kim's election came after the DP accepted a proposal from the PPP that it would cooperate for the election of the parliamentary speaker and vice speakers on condition the DP promises to select parliamentary committee chiefs based on agreement between the two

Jul 14, 2022
Main opposition party halts talks with ruling party over parliamentary committee formations

Int'l human rights groups criticize repatriation of North Korean fishermen

A North Korean fisherman, left, is on standby for deportation back to North Korea in Panmunjeom, located in the demilitarized zone between North and South Korea on November 2019. YonhapBy Lee Yeon-wooThe previous Moon Jae-in government's repatriation of the North Korean fishermen in 2019 despite their revealed intention to defect to the South has drawn condemnations from international human rights groups following the disclosure of several photos of them. In those photos that were revealed by the Ministry of Unification, the North Koreans appear to have resisted while being taken to the inter-Korean border to hand them over to the North Korean authorities. The Korean-language website of Voice of America (VOA), the U.S. state-owned international broadcaster, has reported that several human rights groups and other U.S.-based organizations have criticized the Moon government's decision to send them back to the North against their will, calling it a violation of human rights. In particular, Amnesty International said, “The decision to send them back to North Korea violated the prin

Jul 14, 2022By Lee Yeon-woo

Senior presidential aide asks for ruling party's help in launching NK human rights foundation

PPP's acting leader Rep. Kweon Seong-dong, center, speaks with senior political affairs secretary Lee Jin-bok, left, at Seoul Air base in Gyeonggi Province, June 27. YonhapThe senior presidential secretary for political affairs met with the ruling People Power Party's (PPP) acting chief Thursday and asked for the party's help with the long-delayed establishment of a foundation charged with promoting human rights in North Korea.The North Korean Human Rights Foundation is supposed to be established under the North Korean Human Rights Act that passed through the National Assembly in 2016, but its establishment has been delayed as the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea has not recommended its share of board members.The ruling and main opposition parties should recommend five board members each.On Thursday, Lee Jin-bok, senior political affairs secretary to President Yoon Suk-yeol, met with the PPP's acting leader, Rep. Kweon Seong-dong, and called for help in launching the foundation, officials said."Five board members, whose recommendations should be submitted by the opposition p

Jul 14, 2022
Senior presidential aide asks for ruling party's help in launching NK human rights foundation

Rep. Lee Jae-myung to declare bid for DPK chairmanship: aide

Rep. Lee Jae-myung / Korea Times fileRep. Lee Jae-myung, former presidential candidate of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), will declare his bid for the party's chairmanship on Sunday, an aide said.The DPK plans to hold a national convention on Aug. 28 to elect a new leader, and whether Lee will run for the party leadership has been a point of contention within the DPK amid a power struggle between pro- and anti-Lee lawmakers. Supporters say Lee is the right person to lead the party, while opponents argue that he should take responsibility for the party's defeat not only in March's presidential election but also in June's nationwide local elections.While announcing his run for the contest, Lee plans to emphasize the importance of political reform and party unity, the aide said. (Yonhap)

Jul 14, 2022
Rep. Lee Jae-myung to declare bid for DPK chairmanship: aide

Former lawmaker annoyed by first lady's 'fan club'

Na Kyung-won, a former lawmaker of the ruling People Power Party. YonhapBy Lee Yeon-wooFormer lawmaker Na Kyung-won called out first lady Kim Keon-hee's “fan club,” saying the group has been doing a disservice to Kim and her husband, President Yoon Suk-yeol. In response, Kang Shin-up, a lawyer who founded the group, Kunhee Sarang, fired back at the former lawmaker, calling her “an opportunist.” Na and Kang exchanged barbs, following the former lawmaker's remarks on a radio show on Wednesday. Na, a former member of the ruling People Power Party (PPP), said she has been annoyed by the fan club, voicing her worries that their political statements could hurt the first lady as opposed to helping her.“I'm afraid that those comments could be misunderstood as those of the first lady's,” she said.She then accused the fan club of being partly responsible for President Yoon's falling approval rating. Her remarks came as Kang openly criticized politicians, including recently suspended PPP Chairman Lee Jun-seok, and shared first lady Kim's photos on the fan clu

Jul 14, 2022By Lee Yeon-woo

INTERVIEW 'NK's nuclear tests to inspire unity among West'

Japan wants to engage N. Korea's denuclearization process By Kim Yoo-chulA key question on the minds of political analysts following Russia's invasion of Ukraine is how North Korea views the incursion.Russian President Vladimir Putin's war raised a lot of concerns and debates from a security standpoint not only for Europe but also in Asia. The Biden administration is further strengthening its commitment to the Indo-Pacific region, and China's dissatisfaction over NATO's recent description of Beijing as a “challenge” to its security and values is also raising the probability of conflict escalation in Northeast Asia. Under this kind of new geopolitical situation, North Korea is in the process of recalibrating its core foreign policy priorities in a way to position itself mostly between Washington, Beijing, Seoul and Tokyo, according to political analysts.According to them, the ongoing Ukraine crisis is being emphasized by the North Korean regime to reawaken the necessity of having more nuclear weapons to possibly break U.S. military actions, providing justification for Pyon

Jul 14, 2022By Kim Yoo-chul
[INTERVIEW] 'NK's nuclear tests to inspire unity among West'

Presidential office staffer quits, feeling pressure over her controversial livestreamer brother

A conservative activist waves a flag in front of former President Moon Jae-in's residence in Yangsan, South Gyeongsang Province, in this May 14 file photo. NewsisBy Nam Hyun-wooA staff member of the presidential office resigned on Wednesday, a day after she was revealed to be the sister of Ahn Jeong-kwon, a right-wing YouTuber who has been at the center of controversy for continuing noisy rallies in front of former President Moon Jae-in's residence in Yangsan, South Gyeongsang Province. According to the office, the staff member, who has been identified only by her surname Ahn, offered her resignation after the controversy involving her brother continued. She had reportedly been working for President Yoon Suk-yeol since his election campaign, editing videos for Yoon's YouTube page. After Yoon took office, she was known to have worked at the office of the senior secretary for public relations, assisting Yoon's photographers. An official at the office said she resigned as she “felt pressure due to news reports over the controversies,” but refused to disclose any further deta

Jul 13, 2022By Nam Hyun-woo
Presidential office staffer quits, feeling pressure over her controversial livestreamer brother

Seoul city draws up record-high $4.9 billion extra budget bill

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon / YonhapThe Seoul city government has drawn up a record-high 6.4 trillion won ($4.9 billion) supplementary budget bill to beef up welfare programs for vulnerable groups and the city's global competitiveness, officials said Wednesday. The extra budget bill, which was submitted to the city council for approval Wednesday, marks the biggest extra spending the city government has earmarked and the city's second such bill this year. Of the total budget, 401.1 billion won will be spent to expand welfare programs for vulnerable people and upgrade the city's infrastructure, including free meal benefits for the homeless and the underprivileged, and repairing the city's aged sewerage systems. Another 383.4 billion won will go into building city infrastructure, including notably the construction of a 110,000-square-meter park near the National Assembly by 2025 and the diffusion of electric vehicles across the city. A combined 926.2 billion won will be pumped into compensating businesses and people hit by the COVID-19 pandemic, and anti-infection regulations as well as trea

Jul 13, 2022
Seoul city draws up record-high $4.9 billion extra budget bill

Presidential office vows to uncover truth behind controversial repatriation of North Korean fishermen

A North Korean fisherman, who was captured near the eastern inter-Korean sea border, resists as he is handed over to North Korean authorities in the inter-Korean truce village of Panmunjom in Nov., 2019. Courtesy of the Ministry of UnificationThe presidential office on Wednesday slammed the controversial repatriation of two North Korean fishermen in 2019 as a potential "crime against humanity" and vowed to uncover the truth behind the case.The statement came a day after the unification ministry released 10 photos of the two North Koreans being dragged across the inter-Korean border in November 2019 apparently against their will."If they were forcibly sent to the North even though they stated their intention to defect, this would be an anti-humanitarian crime and a crime against humanity that violates both international law and the Constitution," presidential spokesperson Kang In-sun said during a press briefing."The Yoon Suk-yeol government will fully determine the truth behind this case in order to restore the universal values of freedom and human rights," she said. (Yonhap)

Jul 13, 2022
Presidential office vows to uncover truth behind controversial repatriation of North Korean fishermen
previous page
536537538539540
next page

Most Read in South Korea