The outcome of the United Kingdom’s Brexit referendum shocked populations across Europe. But watching the response in Lviv, in western Ukraine — a hub of enthusiasm about the European Union — was particularly jarring.At a time when irresponsible opportunists and populists in the U.K. are taking a wrecking ball to their country’s own institutions, and those of Europe, Ukrainian reformers are trying to build something new. Whereas the U.K.’s “Leave” campaign peddled trumped-up dangers from immigra

Shortly before the Brexit vote, Germany’s Der Spiegel magazine ran a cover story that urged the Brits: “Please don’t go.” For Germans, long the most loyal supporters of the European Union, it was unthinkable that the British would leave them.　After the Brexit shock, Der Spiegel has a new plea: “If we don’t become more passionate about the European Union, we will lose it,” writes columnist Stefan Kuzmany.　There is widespread agreement that the future of a united Europe will be decided more by emo

The week of July 4 is a good moment to salute an unlikely champion of saving energy and switching to alternative fuels -- the U.S. Navy. Once a supreme fuel-guzzler whose energy needs sometimes dictated foreign policy, the Navy has become a model for how the country can curb its appetite for fossil fuels. The Navy’s energy diet began seven years ago with an edict from newly appointed Secretary Ray Mabus, who issued five goals for radically changing how the Navy bought and consumed fuel. A former

On a working Sunday afternoon at the office, I received a funny message from my husband who was at home. In the attached photo, my 3-year-old son was taking a nap lying down on top of daddy’s tummy with his face resting comfortably on my husband’s chest. “I’ve been lying on the floor like this for two hours,” my husband said in the message, holding his smartphone with one hand to kill time and embracing the boy with the other. He couldn’t get the boy off because the slightest hint of a move woul

Fear of terror attacks is shrouding the globe in the wake of successive assaults in Turkey, Bangladesh and Iraq. A week ago, a bombing at the Istanbul airport killed 44, a hostage-taking incident at a restaurant in Dhaka left 22 dead over the weekend and a massive car bomb attack in Baghdad has killed at least 150 people. The jihadist militant Islamic State group claimed accountability for the massacres in Baghdad and Dhaka. IS is also suspected of committing the terrorist attack in Istanbul.Fol

Last week, the government said it would draw up a supplementary budget worth 10 trillion won ($8.69 billion) in its unveiling of its second-half economic policy direction.A package of stimulus might be necessary in terms of overcoming the weak recovery in exports and domestic consumption as well as uncertainty from the Brexit scenario. But in a different aspect, the planned government expenditure is arousing concerns over possible deterioration of fiscal soundness amid a recent surge in sovereig

I have often thought that I would have been quite miserable if I were born 20 or 30 years ago. I would have to go through the hell of the college entrance exam, which I surely would not have survived. For one thing, I am not quick at figures, and with my poor math score, any university I applied to would have rejected me. These days, prestigious universities demand almost perfect scores in every subject.  Suppose I was lucky enough to be accepted by a university, I still would not have been able

Last month, the world woke up to find that the British actually voted 51.9 percent for an exit from the European Union.World stock markets lost over $3 trillion in market value, with the credit rating agencies downgrading the U.K. from “AAA” to “AA,” making it more costly for British companies and government to raise funds. The pound sterling depreciated sharply to its lowest level in years.  What will happen next?Brexit was technically a referendum on whether the United Kingdom wanted to remain

Breaking up, it turns out, is not so hard to do. It is a simple matter of a stupid vote. The Brexit result is a shock to the international financial system and a threat to post-cold war stability, and it raises tensions in a region with a historically bad war habit.Brexit dealt a new blow to European integration and collective strength, and it adds pressure to a further weakened European Union already facing strategic challenges from places like Russia.Despite Brexit’s destabilizing potential, t

Point one: Bill and Hillary Clinton are victims of a perpetual right-wing smear campaign, a highly personalized subset of a decades-long, coordinated and sleazy conservative crusade to discredit government.Point two: Bill and Hillary Clinton evade rules and skirt laws that others are required to follow. They seek to hide conduct that should be open to scrutiny and intentionally evade accountability. When their improper actions are exposed, they invariably dissemble. Why did Hillary Clinton use a

The Brexit vote was a political earthquake because the referendum was not expected to pass. The results have been analyzed many times over and a number of theories have been offered to explain what happened.The vote was close, with 52 percent voting to leave the EU and 48 percent voting to remain. The results showed sharp regional and generational divisions. Scotland and Northern Ireland voted strongly to remain, whereas England and Wales voted to leave. London and most other big cities in Engla

The government’s plan to develop Korea’s own space launch vehicle for lunar exploration by 2020 is likely to be delayed as the test launch of the rocket scheduled for December 2017 is to be postponed.　The Korea Aerospace Research Institute has reported to the government that the development of a 75-ton class liquid engine and fuel tanks for the test launch vehicle is 10 months behind schedule due to difficulties in sorting out technological problems.　The institute had difficulty in ensuring stab

The main opposition The Minjoo Party of Korea has unveiled a plan to overhaul the health insurance system amid widespread discontent about the way insurance premiums are determined.The party’s plan proposes making aggregate income the single criterion for setting premiums for the two types of policyholders -- employees and the self-employed.Currently, insurance contributions for employees are set based solely on their wage income and are shared equally between the employee and employer.For the s

In July 2000, a Group of Eight summit meeting was held in Nago, Okinawa Prefecture. Russian President Vladimir Putin, who arrived late, spoke to the other world leaders about a meeting he had with then North Korean leader Kim Jong-il in Pyongyang two days before.　According to Putin, Kim suddenly opened a window to look outside during their two-hour talk. It was at that moment that Putin urged him to engage with the international community. “We, the Russian Federation, were born after the Soviet

In 1986, for reasons that now seem absurd, the Audi 5000 became the victim of a national panic over “sudden acceleration incidents.” These were, allegedly, events in which the car shot forward even though the driver was not stepping on the gas, but was rather pressing on the brake as hard as possible.　There had always been a certain number of these incidents reported to regulators. Regulators didn’t do much with them, because they assumed what you are probably assuming: The drivers were not, in

In 1947 Winston Churchill stated, “The UK is with Europe but not part of it.” “We are linked to Europe but not included in it,” He added. This signifies that that the U.K. keeps privileged relations with the U.S. in security cooperation. This cooperation has the strong interlocking networks in operating NATO since the very beginning of the military security organization. Charles de Gaulle then proposed to the U.S. to establish the trilateral cooperation system of NATO, with a view to reviewing i

When terrorism hits Asia, fewer tears seem to be shed than when Europe or the U.S. is targeted.This past week, a gang of terrorists massacred 41 people and injured 239 at Turkey’s Ataturk International Airport, one of Europe’s business airports.It was the second terrorist attack -- ninth since last summer -- to hit the country within a month. The three fully armed terrorists could have killed more but for the brave actions of police.Nevertheless, the scars are deep and it will take some time for

Among the letters I have received from new members -- 10,000 have joined the Liberal Democrats in the wake of the referendum -- was one saying this:　“I can‘t believe just how stupid I’ve been, sorry doesn’t really cover the hurt my part has caused more than 16 million residents of our great country. Please save the union between the United Kingdom and Europe.”　Buyers’ remorse after the vote to leave the European Union seems widespread. But I don’t blame those who were duped. I blame those who kn

Should anyone require further proof that the promises of populists are worthless, they need only watch the latest psychodrama in London.Boris Johnson, the ex-London mayor and mop-haired Donald Trump clone who led the Conservative party’s “Leave” faction, just dropped his bid to become Britain’s next prime minister. This was almost as shocking as the voters’ decision to leave the European Union, since Johnson was the face of the Brexit campaign.But every glowing promise Johnson made before the Br

These days, many people make a habit of checking the levels of fine dust in the air, as the country is often swept by a blanket of hazardous particulate materials. The air pollution problem has become a headache for President Park Geun-hye as people struggling with hazy air filled with harmful pollutants vent their anger against the government. Park called for a package of “extraordinary” measures to address the problem, and officials announced some measures -- they called them “action plans” --