South Korea - The Korea Times

New Year Address Gov't to strengthen social and employment safety nets

President Moon Jae-in gives his New Year's address at Cheong Wa Dae, Thursday. YonhapBy Kim Hyun-binCreating a safe environment and increasing support programs for the needy and the unemployed will be one of the key focuses this year, President Moon Jae-in said. “The government will strive to ensure that the social safety net runs in conjunction with the employment safety net,” Moon said Thursday in a speech before the New Year's press conference at Cheong Wa Dae.Moon acknowledged the need to establish a safe work environment and enhance safety in basic infrastructure. The need came from several devastating incidents in recent months, including the derailment of a KTX bullet train, a communications blackout from fire at KT building, a deadly gas leak at a pension in Gangneung, and the death of an irregular worker at a power plant in Taean, South Chungcheong Province.“People were unnerved by a series of accidents that were closely related to everyday life,” he said. “All these incidents came together to alert the government to the fact that many more safe

Jan 10, 2019By Kim Hyun-bin

[New Year Address] Gov't to strengthen social and employment safety nets

New Year Address 'Kim Jong-un understands USFK presence'

Economic cooperation with North Korea will be blessing: Moon

President Moon Jae-in speaks to reporters during his New Year press conference at Cheong Wa Dae, Thursday. YonhapBy Kim Yoo-chulEconomic cooperation with North Korea will provide a boost to the South Korean economy, President Moon Jae-in said Thursday.“If we restart economic cooperation with North Korea, this will bring vitality to our economy,” Moon said during a New Year's press conference at Cheong Wa Dae.“Inter-Korean economic projects are a blessing, which have already been prepared for us. One misunderstanding is South Korea is spending too much on economic projects with North Korea. But South Korean companies have benefitted more from operations at the Gaeseong Industrial Complex as it offered a chance for local companies to supply and sell their projects, there.”Moon said South Korea will cooperate with the international community including the United States and the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) to quickly resolve the issue of economic sanctions on the North.“In order to resolve the issue of economic sanctions, North Korea should introdu

Jan 10, 2019By Kim Yoo-chul

Economic cooperation with North Korea will be blessing: Moon

Gov't to 'tweak' economic policies for innovation

Kim, Xi reaffirm denuclearization

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and Chinese President Xi Jinping shake hands at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, Tuesday. YonhapBy Kim Bo-eunNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un invited Chinese President Xi Jinping to visit his country, and Xi accepted the invitation, the North's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported Thursday.The report stated Kim invited Xi to visit “at a convenient time” and that Xi accepted the invitation and “notified Kim of his plan.”The invitation came during a summit held in Beijing during Kim's Wednesday through Thursday trip to China. Kim and Xi have held four summits so far, all of them in China.Xi visited Pyongyang as vice president in 2008 and met with Kim Jong-un's father Kim Jong-il. If made, the trip will be the first for Xi after Kim Jong-un took power in December 2011.The KCNA also reported the leaders discussed denuclearization and the achievement of peace on the Korean Peninsula.“There is no change in our stance of adhering to the goal of denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, carrying out the joint statemen

Jan 10, 2019By Kim Bo-eun

Moon vows efforts for visible benefits of income-led growth in 2019

South Korean President Moon Jae-in addresses the nation in his first press conference in 2019, televised live, at Cheong Wa Dae, Thursday. YonhapPresident Moon Jae-in sought to defend his embattled income-led growth strategy Thursday, vowing efforts to make "tangible" benefits this year.While addressing the nation before his first press conference in the new year, the president said the government too is well-aware of difficulties facing Asia's fourth-largest economy but that that is only the more reason the country should continue to push for income-led growth."An economic policy shift can be truly frightening. It will take time and may generate controversy," the president said in his nationally broadcast speech."However, it is the path that we must take. We will achieve the goal of an innovative, inclusive nation by all means while sufficiently making up for any shortcomings," he said.The national address was soon followed by a question-and-answer session, attended by some 200 journalists at the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae.Lee Hae-chan, the head of the ruling Democratic Party

Jan 10, 2019

Moon vows efforts for visible benefits of income-led growth in 2019

North Korean leader tours industrial site in China

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un visited a factory run by Chinese pharmaceutical conglomerate Tong Ren Tang at Economic Technological Development Area in Beijing, Tuesday, before departing for Pyongyang. YonhapKim concludes two-day stay in BeijingBy Kim Bo-eunNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un departed for Pyongyang after visiting an industrial site in Beijing, Wednesday. The visit wrapped up Kim's two-day stay in the city, after he met with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Tuesday. His armored train left Beijing Station around 2 p.m. on the first leg of his journey to Dandong bordering North Korea that is expected to take around 14 hours.Earlier in the day, Kim's motorcade was seen leaving the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse and then stopping at a pharmaceutical factory in the state-run Economic Technological Development Area. The factory is run by Tong Ren Tang, the country's largest producer of traditional Oriental medicine.Based on previous trips to China, Kim was expected to visit industrial facilities. In March he visited the technology hub of Zhongguancun known as China's Silicon Valley.

Jan 10, 2019By Kim Bo-eun

North Korean leader tours industrial site in China

Kim Jong-un committed to denuclearization, 2nd US summit: Chinese media

Moon names six secretaries

By Kim Yoo-chulPresident Moon Jae-in replaced six secretaries late Wednesday after naming close associates to senior positions, according to Cheong Wa Dae.“Moon replaced secretaries for international communication, local affairs, national affairs management, the Cheong Wa Dae press center, cultural policies and the office of the first lady,” presidential spokesman Kim Eui-kyeom said.Cheong Wa Dae Press Center chief Yoo Song-hwaNew presidential secretary for international communication Kim Ae-kyung graduated from New York University with a Masters of Law (LLM) degree. Cheong Wa Dae Press Center chief Yoo Song-hwa had served as a vice spokeswoman for the country's ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) after completing coursework for a doctoral program focusing on North Korean studies at Seoul's Dongguk University.The new presidential secretary for local affairs Bok Ki-wang was a one-time lawmaker and a former mayor of Asan, South Chungcheong Province. A seasoned journalist at the Hankyoreh newspaper Yeo Hyeon-ho will handle issues for national affairs management. Secretary

Jan 9, 2019By Kim Yoo-chul

Moon's ex-aides eyeing next year's election

Former presidential chief of staff Im Jong-seok, left, smiles with his replacement Noh Young-min after announcing a changes to the senior presidential secretaries at Cheong Wa Dae, Tuesday. YonhapBy Kim Yoo-chulA handful of President Moon Jae-in's aides are reportedly seeking to run in the general election scheduled for April next year.Rumors are circulating that former presidential chief of staff Im Jong-seok may run in Jongno-gu, central Seoul.“I will take several months off for a break, but I will move somewhere in Jongno-gu once I return to prepare for my next step,” Im said. A Cheong Wa Dae official said, “Jongno is a symbolic place in Korean politics. If Im is elected, it will have a significant meaning.”Former chief presidential press secretary Yoon Young-chan is also rumored to run in Jungwon-gu in Seongnam City, Gyeonggi Province, in the 2020 election.“My next mission is how to help Moon get more public backing for his policy agenda in the National Assembly instead of Cheong Wa Dae,” Yoon said.Moon's single five-year term is due to end in

Jan 9, 2019By Kim Yoo-chul

Moon's ex-aides eyeing next year's election

Scars open ahead of court ruling

Bullet holes in the floor and wall of the 10th floor of Jeonil Building in Gwangju are numbered “36” (top) and “71.” The holes, among 245 found inside and outside the structure in an investigation by the National Forensic Service, show the building was fired upon from a helicopter during the May 18 Democratic Uprising in 1980. Korea Times photos by Choi Won-sukMilitary strongman Chun Doo-hwan brutally put down protesters in Gwangju on May 18, 1980, and Jeonil Building in the city bears witness to that. By Ko Dong-hwanGWANGJU ― It is hard to miss Jeonil Building, a dilapidated structure next to Gwangju's large public square in front of the former main building of the South Jeolla Provincial Government. Paint is peeling in spots on the exterior of the white 10-story building, built in the 1960s. In 1980, the square was one of the flashpoints where citizens gathered to protest the power grab by military strongman Chun Doo-hwan, who sent troops in to suppress them with force. The building was left with 245 bullet holes, with 193 found inside the 10th floor, accord

Jan 9, 2019By Ko Dong-hwan

Foreign Line

Jim Jefferies tours KoreaThe outspoken Australian-American comedian Jim Jefferies is coming to Seoul this weekend as part of his “The Night Talker” comedy tour. Famed for his 2013-14 TV sitcom “Legit” and news satire show “The Jim Jefferies Show,” Jefferies is an accomplished stand-up comedian. His breakdown of the absurdities of U.S. gun control has become well-known, and he gained notoriety when a heckler violently attacked him on stage in Manchester, U.K. He'll be appearing at Yes24 Live Hall in Gwangjin-gu, eastern Seoul, this Friday. Tickets are 77,000 won. Thrash metal band issues albumThe Korean metal band Sahon releases its fifth full-length album “Chanting for the Fallen” this Saturday with a show at DGBD in the Hongik University area. Founded in 1999, Sahon plays thrash metal with a heavy influence of death and black metal. The liner notes for the latest album bear an interesting art theme, drawing on traditional Korean art showing rabbits with musical instruments.Openers include Hammering, Memnoch and Valley of the Headless.

Jan 8, 2019By Jon Dunbar

NK, US poised for denuclearization talks

 North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and his wife Ri Sol-ju inspect an honor guard in Pyongyang before departing for China, Monday. Kim will be traveling for four days and plans to hold a fourth summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping. / YonhapBy Lee Min-hyungNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un has embarked on a pre-summit diplomacy mission by making a surprise visit to China ahead of his anticipated second meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump.Kim's four-day travel to Beijing from Monday is a clear indicator that the Washington-Pyongyang summit is around the corner, as North Korea has for decades pushed for a strategy of bringing in China when solving conundrums on the Korean Peninsula.By holding a fourth summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Kim will likely discuss ways for the North to gain leverage in the upcoming denuclearization talks with the U.S.The talks have remained locked in a stalemate since the first summit between Trump and Kim in June; the U.S. has since urged the North to take verifiable steps for the dismantlement of its major nuclear facilities, which the Nort

Jan 8, 2019By Lee Min-hyung

NK, US poised for denuclearization talks

Kim Jong-un meets Xi ahead of Trump summit

Politics