Page 6 - South Korea

Heavy rain devastates South Korea's capital, leaving 1 person dead

Torrential rain battered South Korea's greater capital region for a second day Thursday, leaving at least one person dead, flooding or damaging hundreds of roads and homes, and forcing more than 1,000 people to evacuate. About 250 to 300 millimetres of rain fell in parts of Seoul and nearby cities Paju, Incheon, and Gimpo through Thursday morning, leaving vehicles stranded on roads that became chocolate-coloured rivers and residents salvaging belongings from properties damaged by flash floods. Authorities issued flood and landslide warnings for areas near rivers, streams, and hills, while emergency workers rescued at least 145 people and responded to hundreds of reports of road disruptions. As of Thursday morning, power was restored to some 4,000 households that had been knocked out of electricity overnight, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety said. South Korea's weather agency said the greater Seoul area will continue to be affected by downpours through Thursday ...

Wife of S Korea's jailed ex-President Yoon held over corruption allegations

The wife of South Korea's jailed former President Yoon Suk Yeol has been arrested as investigators seek to charge her over various suspected crimes, including bribery, stock manipulation and meddling in the selection of a candidate. In granting a special prosecutor's request for an arrest warrant late Tuesday, the Seoul Central District Court said Kim Keon Hee posed a risk of destroying evidence. The investigation into Kim is one of three special prosecutor probes launched under Seoul's new liberal government targeting the presidency of Yoon, a conservative who was removed from office in April and rearrested last month over his brief imposition of martial law in December. While Yoon's self-inflicted downfall extended a decades-long run of South Korean presidencies ending badly, he and Kim are the first former presidential couple to be jailed simultaneously over criminal allegations. Yoon's surprising yet poorly planned power grab on December 3 came amid a seemingly routine standoff

South Korean President Lee to meet Trump in Washington on August 25

South Korea's new President Lee Jae Myung will travel to Washington later this month to meet with US President Donald Trump, Lee's office said Tuesday, for talks on trade and defence cooperation in the face of nuclear-armed North Korea and other threats. Their August 25 summit will follow a July trade deal in which Washington agreed to cut its reciprocal tariff on South Korea to 15 per cent from the initially proposed 25 per cent and to apply the same reduced rate to South Korean cars, the country's top export to the United States. South Korea also agreed to purchase USD 100 billion in US energy and invest USD 350 billion in the country, and the leaders could use their meeting to discuss expanding cooperation in key industries such as semiconductors, batteries and shipbuilding, Lee's spokesperson Kang Yu-jung said. The meeting also comes amid concerns in Seoul that the Trump administration could shake up the decades-old alliance by demanding higher payments for the US troop presence

Tariffs on South Korea's products threaten the 'K-beauty' boom in the US

When Amrita Bhasin, 24, learned that products from South Korea might be subject to a new tax when they entered the United States, she decided to stock up on the sheet masks from Korean brands like U-Need and MediHeal she uses a few times a week. I did a recent haul to stockpile, she said. I bought 50 in bulk, which should last me a few months. South Korea is one of the countries that hopes to secure a trade deal before the Aug. 1 date President Donald Trump set for enforcing nation-specific tariffs. A not-insignificant slice of the U.S. population has skin in the game when it comes to Seoul avoiding a 25 per cent duty on its exports. Asian skin care has been a booming global business for a more than a decade, with consumers in Europe, North and South America, and increasingly the Middle East, snapping up creams, serums and balms from South Korea, Japan and China. In the United States and elsewhere, Korean cosmetics, or K-beauty for short, have dominated the trend. A craze for ...

Kim Jong Un's sister rejects appeasement overture by S Korea's new prez

The influential sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un rebuffed an appeasement overture by South Korea's new liberal government, saying Monday that North Korea has no interests in talks with South Korea no matter what proposal its rival offers. Kim Yo Jong's comments suggest again that North Korea, now preoccupied with its expanding cooperation with Russia, has no intentions of returning to diplomacy with South Korea and the U.S. anytime soon. But experts said North Korea could change its course if it thinks it cannot maintain the same booming ties with Russia when the Russia-Ukraine war nears an end. We clarify once again the official stand that no matter what policy is adopted and whatever proposal is made in Seoul, we have no interest in it and there is neither a reason to meet nor an issue to be discussed with South Korea, Kim Yo Jong said in a statement carried by state media. It's North Korea's first official statement on the government of South Korean President Lee Jae ...

Probe into S Korea's Jeju Air crash hints at pilot error, angering families

The initial results of an investigation into December's devastating Jeju Air crash in South Korea showed that, while the plane's both engines sustained bird strikes, its pilots turned off the less-damaged one just before its crash-landing. The finding, which implied human errors, drew quick, vehement protests from bereaved families and fellow pilots who accuse authorities of trying to shift responsibility for the disaster to the dead pilots. South Korea's Aviation and Railway Accident Investigation Board initially planned to publicise the results of an investigation of the plane's engines on Saturday. But it was forced to cancel its press briefing in the face of strong protests by relatives of crash victims who were informed of the findings earlier in the day, according to government officials and bereaved families. If they want to say their investigation was done in a reliable, independent manner, they should have come up with evidence that backs up their explanation, said Kim ...

13th high-level meeting between coast guards of India, Korea held in Delhi

Top officers from the Indian and Korean coast guard forces held a key meeting in Delhi on Monday, seeking to boost cooperation in maritime law enforcement, search and rescue and pollution response. The defence ministry said this in a statement. "Both sides engaged in discussions to boost cooperation in Maritime Search and Rescue (SAR), Pollution Response (PR), and Maritime Law Enforcement (MLE), while reaffirming their commitment to share best practices and enhance interoperability under the 2006 MoU, it said. This was the 13th High-Level Meeting (HLM) between the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) and the Korea Coast Guard (KCG) in Delhi. The meeting was co-chaired by Paramesh Sivamani, Director General, ICG, and KIM Yong Jin, Commissioner General, KCG, who is currently leading a five-member delegation on an official visit to India from July 20-24, the ministry said. As part of the visit, the KCG delegation will travel to Mumbai from July 23-24 for an industrial visit to Mazagon Dock ...

Jeju Air pilots shut off less-damaged engine before crash: Report

A government source said examinations of the plane's recovered engines found that no defects had been present before the bird strike and crash

Heavy downpours in South Korea kill 14 and leave 12 others missing

Torrential rains that slammed South Korea for five days have left 14 people dead and 12 others missing, the government said Sunday. One person was killed on Sunday after their house collapsed during heavy rain and another person was found dead after being swept by a swollen stream in Gapyeong, a town northeast of Seoul, the Interior and Safety Ministry said. The ministry said eight people were discovered dead and six others were reported missing in the southern town of Sancheong on Saturday after heavy downpours caused landslides, house collapses and flash floods there. A ministry report said that six people remain missing in Gapyeong and the southern city of Gwangju. Earlier last week, three people were found dead in a submerged car, and a person was also killed when their car was buried by soil and concrete after a retaining wall of an overpass collapsed in Osan, just south of Seoul, during heavy rain. As of 9 a.m. on Sunday, about 3,840 people remain evacuated from their homes,

South Korea's ousted President Yoon indicted on additional criminal charges

South Korea's ousted conservative President Yoon Suk Yeol was indicted Saturday on additional criminal charges related to his ill-fated imposition of martial law, about three months after he was formally thrown out of office. Yoon's additional indictments mean he will remain in jail for up to six months as he faces a trial at the Seoul Central District Court on his Dec 3 martial law declaration that plunged South Korea into huge political turmoil. Yoon was sent back to prison last week after the Seoul court approved his arrest warrant requested by a team of investigators headed by independent counsel Cho Eun-suk. Cho's team indicted Yoon on abuse of power that obstructed the rights of some of his Cabinet members. The charge was imposed because Yoon summoned only select Cabinet members to approve his emergency martial law when South Korean law requires approval of all Cabinet members for such a measure, Park Ji-young, a senior investigator at Cho's team, told a briefing. Park said Yo

South Korea wins appeal in legal dispute with Elliott over Samsung merger

In 2023, the Netherlands-based Permanent Court of Arbitration had directed the South Korean government to pay approximately $100 million in damages to Elliott

Samsung billionaire Lee's legal battle ends, cleared of all charges

The top court upheld a Seoul High Court ruling that acquitted Lee and other Samsung officials of all 19 charges stemming from the 2015 merger of Samsung C&T Corp. and Cheil Industries

South Korea to order fuel switch checks on Boeing jets after AI171 crash

A spokesperson for the South Korean transport ministry said the checks were in line with a 2018 advisory from the FAA, but did not give a timeline for inspections

North Korea sent over 12 million artillery shells to Russia, says Seoul

South Korea's DIA reports that Pyongyang has sent 28,000 containers of munitions missiles, troops, and workers to aid Russia's war and reconstruction efforts in Ukraine

South Korean drama on teacher-student romance scrapped after public uproar

South Korea drops teacher-student romance drama after outcry as educators, unions and critics warn of grooming glorification and urge stricter oversight of webtoons and media content

Russia warns US, South Korea, Japan against alliance targeting North Korea

Russia's foreign minister on Saturday warned the US, South Korea and Japan against forming a security partnership targeting North Korea as he visited his country's ally for talks on further solidifying their booming military and other cooperation. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov flew to North Korea's eastern Wonsan city on Friday for a meeting with his North Korean counterpart, Choe Son Hui. Relations between Russia and North Korea have been flourishing in recent years, with North Korea supplying troops and ammunition to support Russia's war against Ukraine in return for military and economic assistance. That has raised concerns among South Korea, the US and others that Russia might also transfer to North Korea sensitive technologies that can increase the danger of its nuclear and missile programs. After a meeting with Choe on Saturday, Lavrov accused the US, South Korea and Japan of what he called their military buildups around North Korea. We warn against exploiting these

South Korea, US, Japan hold air drill to show strength against North Korea

Top South Korean, US and Japanese military officers urged North Korea to cease all unlawful activities that threaten regional security, as the three nations flew advanced warplanes for a joint exercise in a show of force against the North. The development came Friday as Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov was to travel to North Korea amid booming military and other cooperation between the two countries that have raised concerns among their neighbours. During their regular meeting in Seoul on Friday, the chairmen of the joint chiefs of staff from South Korea, the US and Japan discussed North Korea's deployment of troops to Russia to support its war against Ukraine and Russia's potential transfer of military technology to North Korea in return. They urged the DPRK to immediately cease all unlawful activities to destabilise the Korean Peninsula, the Indo-Pacific, and beyond, and pledged to continue working together to respond to the DPRK's threats, the three top military officers sa

S Korean court approves new arrest of former Prez Yoon over martial law

A South Korean court early Thursday approved the new arrest of former President Yoon Suk Yeol on charges related to his brief imposition of martial law in December, accepting a special prosecutor's claim that he poses a risk of destroying evidence. The arrest warrant issued by the Seoul Central District Court sent Yoon back to a detention centre near the capital, four months after his release in March, when the same court overturned his January arrest and allowed him to stand trial for rebellion without being held in custody. His criminal case is being handled by a team of investigators under special prosecutor Cho Eun-suk who are pursuing additional charges over Yoon's authoritarian push, including obstructing official duties, abuse of power and falsifying official documents. Cho's team questioned him twice before submitting a request for his arrest warrant to the court on Sunday. Yoon's lawyers had described the arrest request as excessive and unsubstantiated. They didn't ...

South Korea's Yoon appears in court for hearing on possible arrest warrant

Disgraced former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol arrived in court Wednesday for a hearing to review a special prosecutor's request for his arrest on charges related to his brief imposition of martial law in December. Yoon, who was ousted in April after the Constitutional Court upheld his impeachment, was released from prison in March after the Seoul Central District Court overturned his January arrest, allowing him to stand trial for rebellion without being detained. Arriving in a black van with his lawyers, Yoon did not respond to questions before entering the court in Seoul. His criminal case is being handled by a team of investigators under a special prosecutor, Cho Eun-suk, who are pursuing additional charges over Yoon's authoritarian push, including abuse of power, falsifying official documents and obstructing official duties. Cho's team said they view Yoon as a potential threat to destroy evidence. They questioned him twice before submitting a request for his arrest warr

Trump puts pressure on Asian ally South Korea to pay more for its defence

The pressure from Trump comes as North Korea appears to be more emboldened through its growing partnership with Russia