Tuesday, February 22, 2022
Round-up of important news from major Korean dailies and from international media today

The Korea Post ( www.koreapost.com )

Celebrating the 23rd International Mother Language Day

The embassy and KNCU organized a discussion meeting and a cultural event at UNESCO Hall(11F) in Seoul to mark the occasion. About 200 people, including diplomats and journalists, attended the meeting and cultural event hosted by the embassy and the Korean Cultural Center. In opening remark by H.E. Mr. M. Delwar Hossain, Ambassador of Bangladesh to the Republic of Korea, he said: “Bangladesh is home to 27 small ethnic communities speaking 42 etho-languages Only 10 of these languages have orthography or script About 15 laguages are now endangered at varying gegres A couple of languages are spoken by less than 50 people and have no orthography Scenario in other parts of the world seems to be similar, if not worse According to experts, 50% of the 7,000 languages currenly spoken in the world may not survive at the turn of the century.

 

"Armenia takes 1/5 of Azerbaijani territory, ethnic-cleanses over 1 million Azerbaijanis"

26 February 2022 marks the 30th anniversary of the genocide committed by the Armenian armed forces in Khojaly during Armenia’s aggression against Azerbaijan that had resulted in occupation of one-fifth of the Azerbaijani territories and ethnic cleansing of more than one million Azerbaijanis. Before the genocide, 7,000 people lived in this town of the Karabakh region of Azerbaijan. From October 1991, the town was entirely surrounded by the armed forces of Armenia. Over the night of the 25 to 26 February 1992, following massive artillery bombardment of Khojaly, the armed forces of Armenia, with the help of the infantry guards regiment No. 366 of the former USSR, implemented the seizure of Khojaly.

 

Ahn Cheol-soo declares abandonment of cooperation with main opposition Candidate Yoon

Presidential Candidate Ahn Cheol-soo of the minor opposition People's Party declared that he is giving up his offer to work together with Presidential Candidate Yoon Suk-yeol of the main opposition People Power Party. At a press conference on Feb. 20, 2022, Ahn said that he had waited for one week for a response from Presidential Candidate Yoon of the PPP—with no available. He said that he has decided it was meaningless to wait for Yoon’s affirmative response any longer. Ahn had proposed a single candidacy with Yoon early last week emphasizing that the two parties must seek a single candidate to secure victory from Presidential Candidate Lee Jae-myung of the ruling Democratic Party.

 

                                                                                                              

KBS (http://world.kbs.co.kr/service)

National Assembly Passes 16.9 Tln-won Extra Budget Bill

The National Assembly has passed a 16-point-nine trillion won extra budget bill aimed at supporting small businesses hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. The assembly held a plenary session on Monday night to pass the bill as rival parties managed to reach an agreement on the amount of the budget increase at the eleventh hour. Monday’s bill saw a three-point-three trillion won increase over the government's initial proposal of 14 trillion won. The revisions included the allocation of an additional one-point-three trillion won for quarantine spending, along with an additional two trillion won for small merchants.

 

DP to Unilaterally Pass Extra Budget Bill as Talks with PPP Break Down

The ruling Democratic Party(DP) will seek to pass an extra budget bill on its own on Monday evening after it failed to finalize a deal with the main opposition People Power Party(PPP) on the matter despite an earlier agreement. DP floor leader Yun Ho-jung disclosed the plan on Monday after unsuccessful talks with his PPP counterpart Kim Gi-hyeon presided over by National Assembly Speaker Park Byeong-seug. Yun said once the supplementary budget bill, which passed the Special Committee on Budget and Accounts over the weekend, is referred to the plenary session, the DP will submit a revised bill instead and pass it during the session. The plenary session will begin at 7 p.m., he said, citing the parliamentary speaker.

 

Overseas Voting for Pres. Election to Begin on Wednesday, Excluding Ukraine

Overseas voting for the 2022 presidential election will commence on Wednesday and run through February 28. According to the National Election Commission(NEC), overseas voters will be able to cast their ballots at 177 diplomatic offices and 219 polling stations across 115 countries between  the hours of 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. To vote, citizens must provide a photo identification, as well as their name and birth date.  Absentee voting will not, however, take place in Ukraine due to the escalating tensions there involving Russia. Even if they are registered to vote overseas, traveling voters can cast their ballots in Korea on March 9 if they can produce paperwork showing that they were not overseas in the country they had registered to vote from during the absentee voting period.

                                                                                                               

 

Yonhap (http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr)

Presidential candidates clash over economic issues in TV debate

Ruling party presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung and his main opposition rival Yoon Suk-yeol clashed over COVID-19 relief plans and other economic issues during a TV debate Monday, even trading harsh barbs over corruption scandals involving their family members. The two-hour debate, also involving Ahn Cheol-soo of the minor opposition People's Party and Sim Sang-jeung of the minor progressive Justice Party, opened with the candidates addressing their plans for overcoming the economic crisis induced by the novel coronavirus pandemic.

 

N. Korean leader Kim congratulates China's Xi on 'successful' closing of Beijing Olympics

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has sent a verbal message to Chinese President Xi Jinping to congratulate China on the "successful" closing of the Beijing Winter Olympics, according to Pyongyang's state media Tuesday. "In the message the respected Comrade Kim Jong-un extended heartfelt warm congratulations to General Secretary Xi Jinping upon the splendid proceeding of the Beijing Winter Olympics as a novel and special grand sports festival," the North's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said. The closing ceremony for the Feb. 4-20 competition was held in the Chinese capital on Sunday.

 

Consumer sentiment worsens in Feb. over virus resurgence

South Korea's consumer sentiment worsened in February as the highly contagious COVID-19 omicron variant has triggered an unprecedented wave of infections, central bank data showed Tuesday. The composite consumer sentiment index (CCSI) came to 103.1 in February, down 1.3 points from the previous month, according to data from the Bank of Korea. A reading above 100 means optimists outnumber pessimists. The figure improved in January following a drop the previous month, as toughened antivirus rules mitigated worries over the spread of the pandemic.

 

                                                                                   

 

The Korea Herald (http://www.koreaherald.com)

Why isn’t COVID-19 top priority for S. Korea’s next president?

A new president is about to be elected, leading South Korea through the next phase of the pandemic. So why is COVID-19 getting so little attention in the presidential race? It wasn’t until after a hospital bed shortage induced by the “living with COVID-19” scheme in November that the leading candidates -- the ruling Democratic Party of Korea’s Lee Jae-myung and main opposition People Power Party’s Yoon Suk-yeol -- set up dedicated committees for outlining their pandemic response plan.

 

Young voters’ ask to be taken more seriously

With less than three weeks to go to the presidential election, Kim Min-young, 31, has yet to decide who she will support for the country’s next president, as none of the contenders have been successful in persuading her. The many election promises the candidates have made to target voters in their 20s and 30s lack details in how they link with the visions and principles the candidates hold for their government,” Kim, an office worker in Seoul, told The Korea Herald.

 

Election's about the future, but campaigns are focused on the past

South Koreans to this day have directly elected seven presidents to lead the country and are on course to vote for their eighth leader next month. Since direct elections began in 1987, every presidential candidate has carried slogans and signature policy aims to win support while outlining his or her vision. However outlandish or vain they may be, these promises have carried considerable weight in swaying voters. So it would not be unreasonable to expect policy to take center stage in debates among candidates and discussions among voters.

 

 

                                                                                    

 

The Korea Times (http://www.koreatimes.co.kr)

Putin orders Russian military to act as 'peacekeepers' in Ukraine regions

President Vladimir Putin on Monday ordered Russia's military to act as peacekeepers in two breakaway regions of Ukraine, just hours after he recognized them as independent. In two official decrees, Putin instructed the defence ministry to assume "the function of peacekeeping" in the Donetsk and Lugansk regions. Moscow provided no details or date for any deployment, with the order saying only that it "comes into force from the day it was signed." Russia has in recent months moved tens of thousands of soldiers to regions near Ukraine's borders, with the West saying Moscow plans to use them for an attack at any moment.

 

Yoon, DPK clash over floating wind turbines in Ulsan

People Power Party (PPP) presidential candidate Yoon Suk-yeol and his rival Lee Jae-myung's ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) clashed over a renewable energy project to build floating wind turbines in Ulsan. Speaking in front of Lotte Department Store in the southeastern coastal city, Feb. 19, Yoon said that DPK lawmakers are trying to benefit only their allies through the project, which is still in the planning stages. He called the national renewable energy-based power generation project "conniving that goes beyond ignorance" on the part of the DPK.

 

Financial experts rally behind main opposition candidate Yoon

A number of former financial industry leaders have declared their official support for main opposition People Power Party (PPP) candidate Yoon Suk-yeol in the upcoming presidential election. They criticize the incumbent Moon administration for having "impaired the country's financial industry." A total of 110 former financial industry leaders, including former Korea Financial Investment Association (KOFIA) chairman Hwang Young-ki, announced their official support for Yoon at the headquarters of the PPP located on Yeouido, Seoul, on Sunday morning. Hwang also served as chairman at both Woori Financial Group as well as KB Financial Group during the 2000s.

 

                                                                                                               

 

Chosun Ilbo (http://english.chosun.com)
Experts Divided on Direction of Real Estate Prices

Experts are divided whether real estate prices are going to go up or down amid the endless confusion of government policies designed to tame the market. Most realtors expect housing prices to decline this year, but developers, academics and financial experts think they will rise even further. KB Financial Group polled 527 realtors and 161 market watchers and found that two-thirds of realtors expect home values to drop this year, while most experts forecast that they will keep rising nationwide. In the same survey last year the vast majority expected prices to rise, as indeed they did.


Opposition Fails to Agree on Single Presidential Candidate
The opposition has failed to agree on a single presidential candidate who could unite fractured supporters or undecided voters behind him. People's Party candidate Ahn Cheol-soo on Sunday withdrew his offer to main opposition People Power Party candidate Yoon Seok-youl to field a single candidate for the March election after talking with Yoon on the phone. "I will go my own way from now on," Ahn told reporters at the National Assembly. "I will cease unnecessary and exhausting negotiations on fielding a single candidate and focus on discussions for the future." But the PPP hinted that the negotiations can continue and urged Ahn to work together for regime change. The two sides fell out over the method of choosing the single candidate.

Car Tax Muddle Raises Hackles
Controversy over Korea's baffling criteria for car taxation has been reignited now the time has come to pay up. Car owners are complaining because the practice of levying taxes based on engine displacement rather than price means some owners of very expensive cars pay less than people who drive cheaper cars. The controversy erupts again every January, March, June and September when people pay their taxes in full to receive discounts. More electric and hydrogen-fueled cars, which are subject to only a flat W100,000 tax, has intensified grudges (US$1=W1,198). Under current regulations, cars with an engine displacement of less than 1,000 cc are subject to W80 in tax per cubic centimeter, those up to 1,600 cc to W140 per cubic centimeter and bigger cars to W200 per cubic centimeter.

                                                                                                

HanKyoReh Shinmun (http://english.hani.co.kr)

Housing prices have skyrocketed globally – what happens next?

The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Home Price Index is considered one of the most representative indicators of trends in the prices of residential real estate in the US. On the last Tuesday of every month, the credit rating agency Standard & Poor’s (S&P) announces the indices for two months earlier. It calculates individual index scores for 20 major US cities, including New York, Chicago, Boston, and Los Angeles, as well as the top 20 and top 10 metropolitan areas and the country as a whole. On Jan. 25, S&P announced its figures for November 2021. They showed US housing prices to be rising at a staggering rate.

 

Samsung tops global TV market for 16th straight year

Samsung Electronics has retained the No. 1 spot in the global television market for the 16th year in a row, thanks to its premium QLED televisions. According to figures published Sunday by market research firm Omdia, Samsung Electronics Co. had the largest share of the global television market both in terms of sales value (29.5%) and in terms of units sold (19.8%). The South Korean company attributed its performance to an increase in sales of premium televisions, and especially its QLED models, standing for quantum dot light-emitting diodes.

 

S. Korea opts to ease virus curbs despite cases soaring above 100,000

Amid record-shattering COVID-19 case numbers, the South Korean government announced adjustments to its social distancing measures on Friday. Private gatherings will remain capped at six participants, but the 9 pm curfew on business hours for cafes and restaurants will be extended to 10 pm. The changes will go into effect on Saturday. Small business owners have been demanding the closing time restrictions be lifted while health authorities are proceeding with caution amid record COVID-19 cases in the country.

 

                                                                                    

 

The Dong-A Ilbo (http://english.donga.com/)

Number of severe COVID cases in Korea increase 57% weekly

The number of severe COVID-19 cases in Korea is accelerating as the number of confirmed cases have exceeded two million. As of midnight on Monday, the number of severe patients being treated stands at 480, which is 57% higher than the previous week (306 as of Feb. 14). Based on data from four data estimation services, three of the data agencies predicted that the number of severe patients would exceed 1,000 by early March, according to the health authorities. Some predict that the figure would go up to 2,500.

 

Biden convenes National Security Council meeting on Ukraine

Heavy artillery bombing continued to occur focusing on the eastern Ukraine region of Donbas where pro-Russian militias are partially occupying, which left Ukraine soldiers killed. U.S. President Joe Biden convened a National Security Council meeting Sunday by issuing an emergency statement, saying, “I am certain that Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered invasion” Ukraine’s defense ministry said on the day two government soldiers were killed and four others were injured due to artillery strikes by pro-Russian militias. Pro-Russian militias said, “Ukraine troops’ strikes are imminent,” ordering the entire militias to mobilize forces and residents to evacuate.

 

EU may de-route import gas to Europe from S. Korea and Japan

President of the Eurond Japan as the ongoing confrontation between Russia and Western countries over Ukraine may lead to a severe crunch of natural gas from Russia, 40 percent of European demand. Reportedly, the South Korean government hinted that it is impossible to exchange natural gas for some time due to high domestic heating needs during the cold although having natural gas assistance currently under review. According to the Sputnik new agency, President von der Leyen said at the Munich Security Conference in southern Germany on Saturday (local time), “For the time being we would be able to replace the Russian gas with LNG deliveries that we get from our friends all over the world,”


                                                                                                 

 

The KyungHyangShinmun (http://english.khan.co.kr/)

Lee Jae-myung Pledges to Increase Domestic Investment of the Pension Fund and to Abolish the Securities Transaction Tax

On February 21, Democratic Party of Korea’s presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung pledged, “I, Lee Jae-myung, who properly knows the market, will protect the ‘ant investors’ and create new opportunities.” This day, Lee wrote a post on his social media account titled, “A Crisis Is an Opportunity: I Will Make Proper Changes to the Stock Market” and said, “If we can turn the crisis into momentum, we can completely change our country’s current stock market into something new.” Lee Jae-myung shared his diagnosis of the current situation and said, “Unfavorable external factors, such as the risk of war in Ukraine and predictions of an interest rate hike in the U.S., are fueling the anxiety in our stock market.

 

I Will Uphold the Noble Wishes of Ahn Jung-geun” Ahn Cheol-soo Announces He Will Resume Presidential Campaign

On February 21, Ahn Cheol-soo, the presidential candidate of the People’s Party asserted his determination to resume his election campaign after announcing his visit to the Ahn Jung Geun Memorial Museum. This day, on social media, Ahn wrote, “On a cold windy morning yesterday, I went to the Ahn Jung Geun Memorial Museum in Namsan Mountain, Seoul,” and further elaborated, “As I was walking out of the memorial, I vowed once again to uphold the noble dying wishes of Ahn. I will resume my presidential campaign with the mind that I am starting over.” His pledge came a day after he announced that negotiations to come together in support of a single candidate collapsed.

 

Restaurants and Cafes Will Be Open Until 10 p.m. Starting Feb. 19: Private Gatherings Remain Limited to 6 People

The government decided to extend business hours for cafes and restaurants one more hour to 10 p.m. from the current 9 p.m. However, the size of private gatherings will remain limited to six people. On February 18, Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum presided over a meeting of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters in response to COVID-19 and said, “Considering the economic challenges people face in their livelihoods, we deemed it inevitable to make minimum adjustments that our revised disease control and medical system could handle,” and announced the latest decision. The new distancing measure will be applied for three weeks from February 19 until March 13.

 

                                                                                                

 

Maeil Business News Korea (http://www.pulsenews.co.kr/)

S. Korean conglomerates strengthen govt affairs team in Washington

Some Korea’s major conglomerates are fortifying their government affairs team in the United States by setting up Washington D.C. offices or recruiting former American bureaucrats to better respond to uncertainties from frequent policy changes of the U.S. administration amid the escalating U.S.-China rivalry and Washington’s push to reshape global supply chains.

 

SK ecoplant buys waste management service provider TES Envirocorp for $1 bn

SK ecoplant Co. is taking over Singapore-based electronics waste management solution provider TES Envirocorp for $1 billion to enhance its sustainability identity. Under stock purchase agreement signed on Monday, SK ecoplant, a unit of South Korean conglomerate SK, will buy 100 percent stake (252,076 shares) in TES Envirocorp from Navis Capital Partners at $1 billion.

 

Wholesale power price gallops, accelerating KEPCO’s debt and deficit run

Wholesale power price has shot up nearly 70 percent from the beginning of the year in South Korea, pushing KEPCO deeper in deficit and debt as imported fuel prices show no signs of easing. According to the Korea Power Exchange on Sunday, the average system marginal price (SMP), or the power price that the state utility firm pays to public and private power generating companies to buy electricity, hit 213.26 won per kilowatt hour (kwh) as of Feb. 18, surging 67 percent from 127.81 the beginning of the year.


                                                                                                                  

 

What’s ticking around the world at this second?

See what the world media around the world have to report:

USA Today www.usatoday.com aallman@gannett.com

The New York Times www.nytimes.com inytletters@nytimes.com

Wall Street Journal www.wsj.com support@wsj.com, service@wsj-asia.com

Financial Times www.ft.com ean@ft.com

The Times www.thetimes.co.uk help@timesplus.co.uk

The Sun www.thesun.co.uk talkback@the-sun.co.uk

Chinese People's Daily www.people.com.cn kf@people.cn

China Daily www.chinadaily.com.cn circulation@chinadaily.com.cn

GwangmyeongDaily www.gmw.cn webmaster@gmw.cn

Japan's Yomiuri www.yomiuri.co.jp japannews@yomiuri.com

Asahi www.asahi.com customer-support@asahi.com

Mainichi www.mainichi.jp

Le Monde www.ilemonde.com

Italy LaRepubblica www.quotidiano.repubblica.it vittorio.zucconi@gmail.com

Germany Frankfurter AllgemeineZeitung www.faz.net anzeigen.ausland@faz.de

SüddeutscheZeitung www.sueddeutsche.de forum@sueddeutsche.de

Australia Brisbane Times www.brisbanetimes.com.au syndication@fairfaxmedia.com.au

Sydney Morning Heraldwww.smh.com.au

Colombia Reports http://colombiareports.com

Bogota Free Planet http://bogotafreeplanet.combfp@bogotafreeplanet.com

El Universal http://www.eluniversal.com.mx/english

Andes http://www.andes.info.ec/en

Ecuador Times http://www.ecuadortimes.net

The Jordan Times https://www.jordantimes.com

LSM.lv http://www.lsm.lv/en

The Baltic Times http://www.baltictimes.com lithuania@baltictimes.com, estonia@baltictimes.com, editor@baltictimes.com

El Pais http://elpais.com/elpais/inenglish.html

Philippine Daily Inquirer https://www.inquirer.net

Daily News Hungary http://dailynewshungary.com

Budapest Times http://budapesttimes.hu
                                                                                                               

 

The Korea Post is running video clips from the different embassies.

Azerbaijan: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OR8CBpcQ4WM

Sri Lanka: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hByX92Y2aGY&t=22s

Morocco: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jfFmp2sVvSE

And many other countries.
 

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