South Korea National Assembly Speaker Kim Jin-pyo is heading to Turkey on Wednesday for the eighth MIKTA parliamentary speakers’ meeting. MIKTA is the informal grouping of Mexico, Indonesia, South Korea, Turkey and Australia. In a release on Tuesday, the National Assembly speaker’s office said that at the MIKTA meeting, Kim would “seek joint responses at the parliamentary level” on issues such a...

South Korean opposition lawmakers on Tuesday signed a statement welcoming the re-introduction of the US House of Representatives bill calling for efforts to achieve a formal end to the Korean War. “We, 166 lawmakers of South Korea, thank the members of the US Congress for their insight on and dedication to building peace on the Korean Peninsula,” the South Korean lawmakers from the main oppositi...

Card spending in Itaewon's nightlife district in the fourth week of February fell 57.1 percent compared with the fourth week of October 2022, just before the crowd crush disaster during the Halloween weekend which claimed 159 lives. According to data from the Seoul municipal government Tuesday, the foot traffic in Itaewon 1-dong -- which covers streets filled with international shops, bars, club...

A 48-year old man with 24 prior charges of arson as well as an attempted rape charge is being investigated by the police over Saturday night's fire that devastated Incheon's Hyundai Market. According to Incheon Jungbu Police Station, the man is suspected of causing the fire that destroyed 55 shops in the market. The suspect initiated the fire by setting smaller fires at five locations inside and...

Jeong vows to make Hwaseong safe from sex crimes

President Yoon Suk Yeol is set to meet with his Japanese and US counterparts as early as next week and next month, respectively, as the South Korean leader seeks stronger three-way ties he says are required to counter global challenges, the biggest of which involves containing North Korea. For a summit with Japan, Yoon’s office has yet to reveal the exact date, saying it was “closely looking at ...

Spate of statements without action shows NK's struggle to respond to military exercises amid economic woes, say experts

President Yoon Suk Yeol has invited the Korean rescue team who returned from the earthquake site in Turkey to a Cheong Wa Dae luncheon to convey his gratitude, officials said on Tuesday. He thanked the 135-member team on behalf of the public and acknowledged the challenging conditions they faced with aftershocks and cold weather. “Your solidarity shown at the Turkey relief site reminds us once ...

2 Korean relief workers tell of tragedy, miracles in quake-hit site; call for intensive support to Turks in dire situation

Monthly spending on English was highest, followed by math and Korean language

The South Korean government has eased travel advisories for six countries, including Spain and Tunisia, to the lowest level in line with its latest COVID-19 guidelines, Seoul's foreign ministry said Tuesday. The level 2 alert, which also affected Mauritius, Andorra, Jordan and Namibia, was lowered one notch to level 1, according to the ministry. It also eased travel advisories for Peru, Papua Ne...

Over half of young women in South Korea said they are willing to give birth, a government survey showed Tuesday, as the nation is struggling to boost the world's lowest fertility rate. According to the survey of 15,000 young people aged 19 to 34, 55.3 percent of female respondents said they intend to have children, the Office for Government Policy Coordination said in a statement. In comparison...

Kim Yo-jong, the sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, warned Tuesday the North is ready to take "overwhelming" actions against military activities by the United States and South Korea, as its rivals are staging joint military drills involving American strategic assets. Kim also warned the North will regard any US attempt to intercept a missile that it will fire as a "clear declaration of w...

South Korea's new COVID-19 cases rebounded to over 12,000 on Tuesday amid eased COVID-19 virus curbs, with health authorities considering further easing antivirus measures in the coming months. The country reported 12,284 new COVID-19 infections, including 19 cases from overseas, bringing the total caseload to 30,581,499, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency. Tuesday's t...

President Yoon Suk Yeol could visit Japan this month for talks with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida following Seoul's decision to compensate wartime forced labor victims without Japanese firms' involvement, the presidential office said Tuesday. The visit is under strong consideration, the office said, making it the first time in four years detailed discussions are taking place over a South...