South Korea - The Korea Times

Moon presses on with appointment of justice minister

Justice Minister nominee Cho Kuk gets emotional during a press conference at the National Assembly, Monday, after the political parties failed to hold a planned confirmation hearing. Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chulBy Park Ji-wonCheong Wa Dae is pressing ahead with the controversial appointment of justice minister nominee Cho Kuk despite rising calls for the withdrawal of his nomination following allegations of corruption involving him and family members.The presidential office is planning to request a parliamentary confirmation hearing report Tuesday, even though the political parties failed to agree on holding the hearing that was scheduled to take place for two days starting Monday. The parties failed to narrow their differences on including Cho's family members as key witnesses. President Moon Jae-in has appointed 16 high-level officials without an Assembly confirmation report, but public discontent is likely to be higher this time given that Cheong Wa Dae has placed special importance on the former senior presidential aide for civil affairs as a symbol of social reform. &ldqu

Sep 2, 2019By Park Ji-won

Moon presses on with appointment of justice minister

North Korea tightening strategic alliance with China for nuclear leverage

China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi, left, shakes hands with his North Korean counterpart Ri Yong-ho during their meeting in Pyongyang in this file photo taken May 3 last year. YonhapBy Lee Min-hyungChinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi held talks with his official North Korean counterpart Ri Yong-ho in Pyongyang, Monday, a move seen by many as the North showing off the Beijing-Pyongyang alliance amid stalled denuclearization talks between North Korea and the United States.The Chinese FM's visit to the North Korean capital has raised expectations that a possible summit between Chinese President Xi Jinping and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un could take place soon.No official announcements have been made from either side regarding but there stands a high probability the two will meet, as both countries have historically taken advantage of their alliance when they detect any signs of diplomatic friction between Seoul and Washington, political analysts in Seoul said.A few days ago, North Korea's vice FM Choe Son-hui fired a salvo against U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, saying the North's ex

Sep 2, 2019By Lee Min-hyung

North Korea tightening strategic alliance with China for nuclear leverage

Seoul signs intel sharing pact with Bangkok

South Korean President Moon Jae-in, left, and Thailand's Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-o-cha listen to their national anthems during a welcoming ceremony at the government house in Bangkok, Thailand, Sept. 2. AP-YonhapBy Kim Yoo-chulBANGKOK, Thailand ― As trade friction with Japan shows no imminent sign of abating, South Korea is aiming to expand its security partnership with Thailand.In a renewed sign of interest in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Seoul signed a military intelligence-sharing agreement, a General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA), with Bangkok.The agreement came after South Korea ended its GSOMIA with Japan in a deepening trade dispute triggered by Tokyo's decision to remove Seoul from its list of most trusted trading partners in response to the South Korean Supreme Court's ruling last year, which ordered Japanese companies to compensate surviving Koreans who were forced to work for them before and during World War II.“Based on a very high level of mutual trust, South Korea agreed with Thailand to strengthen security-related

Sep 2, 2019By Kim Yoo-chul

Seoul signs intel sharing pact with Bangkok

Q&As Hatoyama says 'radioactive contamination not under control'

Former Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama, second from left, conducts an exclusive interview with The Korea Times at the newspaper's headquarters in Seoul, Thursday. Korea Times photo by Choi Won-sukThe Japanese government has tried to convince the world with an extensive propaganda campaign to claim any persisting dangers from the Fukushima nuclear disaster are under control ahead of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Recently, concerns have been mounting among the South Korean government and international environmental groups such as Greenpeace about reports of Japan's plan to release radioactive water into the sea off the coast of Fukushima. Korean political parties have also taken issue with the possible radioactive contamination of food that will be provided to athletes at the Olympics. Former Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama showed concern about the Shinzo Abe administration's handling of the radioactive water situation and called for urgent action for the reconstruction of Fukushima. The following are edited questions and answers from The Korea Times interview with the fo

Sep 1, 2019By Park Ji-won

Hatoyama says 'radioactive contamination not under control' [Q&As]

VIDEO 'Japan should swiftly restore ties with South Korea'

VIDEO 'Japan should swiftly restore ties with South Korea'

Former Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama listens during an exclusive interview with The Korea Times at the newspaper's headquarters in Seoul, Thursday. Korea Times photo by Choi Won-sukThis is the sixth in a series of interviews with political experts and experienced analysts assessing the impact of the ongoing South Korea-Japan trade row after Tokyo removed Seoul from its list of trusted trading partners receiving preferential treatment in exports. ― ED.Former Japanese PM slams Abe over economic retaliation against Seoul By Park Ji-wonJapanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe should restore relations with South Korea immediately in order to tackle his priority issues such as the repatriation of Japanese citizens abducted by North Korea and establishing diplomatic relations between Tokyo and Pyongyang, according to former Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama.“Japanese PM Shinzo Abe cannot resolve the issue of Japanese abductees by North Korean spies and establish diplomatic relations with North Korea,” unless he improves the Seoul-Tokyo relationship, Hatoyama, who served

Sep 1, 2019By Park Ji-won

'Japan should swiftly restore ties with South Korea' [VIDEO]

Moon hopes to broaden ties with ASEAN

President Moon Jae-in offers a traditional greeting upon arriving in Bangkok, Sunday. Yonhap By Kim Yoo-chulBANGKOK, Thailand ― South Korean President Moon Jae-in is seeking to broaden Seoul's partnership with Southeast Asian nations in order to diversify the country's revenue channels.The South Korean leader arrived at a military airport in Bangkok, Thailand, Sunday evening (KST) as the first destination of his six-day trip to three ASEAN member nations including Myanmar and Laos.This trip would make President Moon the first South Korean leader to visit Thailand and Myanmar in seven years and the first-ever Korean head of state to visit Laos, Cheong Wa Dae said in a press release, Sunday. Earlier, Moon vowed to visit all 10 ASEAN member states during his presidency in accordance with his concerted efforts to up South Korea's ties with the ASEAN bloc.On Sept. 2, the President will hold a summit with Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha. Cheong Wa Dae said the bilat

Sep 1, 2019By Kim Yoo-chul

South Korea, Thailand hold summit on high-tech industry cooperation

Moon to visit Thailand, Myanmar, Laos

South Korean President Moon Jae-in will open a busy tour of Thailand, Myanmar and Laos on Sunday. YonhapSouth Korean President Moon Jae-in will open a busy tour of Thailand, Myanmar and Laos on Sunday, another key diplomatic undertaking in his campaign to broaden and deepen Seoul's partnerships with the Southeast Asian bloc.The trip will make him the first South Korean leader to visit Thailand and Myanmar in seven years and the first-ever South Korean leader to visit Laos.With the upcoming six-day journey, Moon will fulfill his promise to visit all the 10 member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) during his presidency under his administration's New Southern Policy drive.In Bangkok, his first destination, Moon is scheduled to hold summit talks with Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha on Monday.Traditionally, the two sides have maintained close cooperation on economy, society, culture, national defense and arms development.Seoul is now seeking to expand bilateral ties to science-technology and cutting-edge businesses, as Thailand has the second-biggest economy in

Sep 1, 2019

If you don't like it, deem it fake news

GETTYIMAGESBANKKorea's ambiguous definition of fake news endangers freedom of expression By Kang Hyun-kyungThe self-serving characterization and abuse of the term “fake news” has been evident recently as supporters and critics of the controversial justice minister nominee Cho Kuk have clashed following a swath of media coverage about him.On Thursday, the phrase “fake news out” topped the top 10 most frequent searches on the nation's largest internet portal Naver. It was part of Cho supporters' online campaign to save the embattled nominee in the wake of the prosecution kicking off its investigation into the nominee regarding various allegations about him, his daughter and relatives.Cho's supporters deem suspicions and allegations about the justice minister nominee to be fake news and claim the prosecution's probe is politically motivated. Cho is a harsh critic of the prosecution and vowed to overhaul it if he takes the helm. So his supporters alleged that the prosecution is launching a pre-emptive strike against Cho out of fear of him passing the confirmation

Aug 30, 2019By Kang Hyun-kyung

Frame wars heat up over Cho Kuk

Gov't augments budget for diplomacy with Japan

Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon, right, has a talk with Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha while participating in a meeting of the Special Committee on Budget and Accounts at the National Assembly in Seoul, Monday. Yonhap By Lee Min-hyungThe Ministry of Foreign Affairs has introduced additional spending to its budget for next year to be used to strengthen diplomacy with Japan amid a worsening row over trade and history issues. The ministry said Thursday it would submit a budget of 2.74 trillion won ($2.2 billion) to the National Assembly early next month. The amount is up 11.5 percent from the previous year, and the largest increase in five years.The ministerial budget is part of the government's overall spending plan for next year.Some 5.1 billion won will be spent to “enhance diplomatic outreach and activities from South Korean official residences in Japan,” the ministry said, a huge increase of 330 percent from this year.“The decision reflects a willingness to keep conta

Aug 29, 2019By Lee Min-hyung

Gov't augments budget for diplomacy with Japan

Foreign ministry lodges complaints to US ambassador

By Lee Min-hyungU.S. Ambassador to South Korea Harry Harris / Korea Times fileThe Ministry of Foreign Affairs lodged a complaint to U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Harry Harris, Wednesday, over Washington's exceptional message protesting South Korea's recent military exercise on its easternmost islets of Dokdo. “The Dokdo drill was part of Seoul's biannual military exercises aimed at protecting its territory, and the government made it clear to Harris that such a public criticism from the U.S. is of no help for us in strengthening our intention,” a diplomatic source said, asking for anonymity.First Vice Foreign Minister Cho Sei-young called in Harris to deliver the complaint that the U.S. State Department called the domestic exercise “not productive” in easing the escalating dispute between Seoul and Tokyo.It is rare for the South to make public complaints to the U.S. ambassador; but the foreign ministry apparently decided to do so at a time when Washington has repeatedly issues statements criticizing Seoul's recent decision to withdraw from an intelligence-sha

Aug 28, 2019By Lee Min-hyung

Politics