The Korean daily media headlines and humor

The Korean daily media headlines and humor

Friday, June 15, 2018

Your Excellency:

What’s ticking in Korea and around the world today?

Here are The Korea Post notices and a roundup of important headlines from all major Korean-language dailies, TV and other news media of Korea today:

Very Respectfully Yours

/s/

Lee Kyung-sik

Publisher-Chairman

The Korea Post media

U.S. ambassador nominee backs 'pause' in joint military drills with S. Korea

U.S. President Donald Trump's pick for the ambassador to South Korea said Thursday the allies should "pause" major combined military exercises to help test North Korea's seriousness about dialogue. Retired Adm. Harry Harris, who commanded American forces in the Pacific, cited a change in the security landscape. "I believe we should give exercises, major exercises, a pause to see if Kim Jong-un is in fact serious about his part of the negotiations," he said in his confirming hearing at the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. "Today, following the summit, we are in a dramatically different place." He was referring to summit talks between Trump and the North's leader Kim Jong-un in Singapore earlier this week, in which they agreed to reshape the Pyongyang-Washington relations through "complete" denuclearization and a peace regime.

(For further details, visit: http://www.koreapost.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=6917)

S. Korea's jobless rate rises to 4 pct in May

South Korea's jobless rate rose slightly in May due to a fall in employment in the retail, manufacturing and educational service sectors, government data showed Friday. The unemployment rate stood at 4 percent last month, up 0.4 percentage point from a year earlier, according to the report compiled by Statistics Korea. The number of employed people reached 27.06 million in May, up 72,000 from a year earlier, according to the data. The unemployment rate for young adults -- those aged between 15 and 29 -- was 10.5 percent, up 1.2 percentage points from a year earlier. The employment rate stood at 67 percent in May, unchanged from a year earlier, with the corresponding figure for young people at 42.7 percent, down 0.3 percentage point over the cited period.

(For further details, visit: http://www.koreapost.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=6918)

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Round-up of important news stories from major Korean dailies today:

The Korea Post media (www.koreapost.com) in English, (www.koreapost.co.kr) in Korean.

‘National Leader Aliyev, architect of modern Azerbaijan, devotes entire life for independent, strong Azerbaijan’

Ambassador Ramzi Teymurov of Azerbaijan in Seoul and Madam Teymurova hosted a reception at the Grand Hyatt Seoul on May 21, 2018 to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Republic Day of Azerbaijan. There were many important guests attending the party. They included Chairman Mr. Lee Myoung-su of the Korea-Azerbaijan Inter-Parliamentary Friendship Group, Ambassador Moon Duk-ho for International Security Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, President Chungwon Choe of the World Taekwondo Federation, and Rep. Madam Park In-sook.

S. Korea, U.S., Japan to discuss post-summit strategy over N. Korea

The top diplomats of South Korea, the United States and Japan will hold talks in Seoul on Thursday on ways to keep the momentum of the Pyongyang-Washington summit talks, Seoul's foreign ministry said. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo arrived in the capital Wednesday for a bilateral meeting with his South Korean counterpart Kang Kyung-wha and a trilateral session involving Japan's Minister Taro Kono, who landed here the same day. In advance of the talks, he plans to meet with President Moon Jae-in at his office Cheong Wa Dae. The secretary is expected to brief them in detail on the results of the summit meeting between President Donald Trump and the North's leader Kim Jong-un held in Singapore on Tuesday.

Koreas set to hold military talks to discuss easing tensions

South and North Korea are set to hold their first high-level military talks in more than 10 years Thursday to discuss ways to ease cross-border tensions. The meeting will be held on the northern side of the truce village of Panmunjom from 10 a.m., according to Seoul's defense ministry. It will be the first such talks since they met last in December 2007. South Korea's five-member delegation will be led by Major General Kim Do-gyun. The North's delegation will be led by Lieutenant General An Ik-san, who will be accompanied by four other officials.

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KBS (http://world.kbs.co.kr/english/news/)

Defense Chiefs of S. Korea, US Discuss Joint Military Drills

The defense chiefs of South Korea and the U.S. have held discussions over the allies' joint military exercises, following U.S. President Donald Trump's recent remarks that he will stop "provocative war games." The Defense Ministry in Seoul said Friday that Defense Minister Song Young-moo and his U.S. counterpart James Mattis held 30-minute telephone talks from 7:30 p.m. on Thursday to exchange views on the exercises, including the Ulchi Freedom Guardian(UFG) set for August.

12-Yr Prison Term Demanded for Ex-Pres. Park over NIS Bribery

The prosecution has demanded a 12-year prison term for former President Park Geun-hye for allegedly taking over three-point-six billion won worth of bribes from the National Intelligence Service's "special activities fund." In the final trial held on the case on Thursday, the prosecution also asked the Seoul Central District Court to slap her with eight billion won in fines and collect three-point-five billion won from her. The impeached ex-president, who was absent from the trial, is suspected of receiving around three-point-five billion won worth of bribes in total from former NIS chiefs Nam Jae-joon, Lee Byung-kee and Lee Byung-ho, in collusion with her former close aides, Ahn Bong-geun, Lee Jae-man and Jeong Ho-seong.

Deliberations to Begin on 2019 Minimum Wage Hike

South Korea's Minimum Wage Commission is set to launch discussions on next year’s minimum wage. The commission held an unofficial meeting on Thursday and said a general meeting will be held from next Tuesday to deliberate the rate of increase for 2019 and other related issues. Noting that the deadline for deliberation is only two weeks away, the commission said it will continue to press the labor community to join the discussions.

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

Two Koreas agree to completely restore military communication lines

The two Koreas agreed Thursday to completely restore their military communication lines during their first general-grade military talks in more than a decade, their joint statement showed. They also exchanged opinions on demilitarizing the inter-Korean truce village of Panmunjom on a "trial basis" and agreed to thoroughly implement a 2004 bilateral agreement on preventing accidental clashes in the West Sea. The marathon talks were held at Tongilgak, a North Korean building in Panmunjom, to follow up on the April 27 inter-Korean summit declaration that calls for joint efforts to alleviate military tensions and "practically eliminate the danger of war."

5 makers of marine cables fined over collusion

South Korea's corporate watchdog said Friday that it has levied a total of 22.7 billion won (US$21 million) in fines on five manufacturers of cable used for ships, such as oil rigs and LNG carriers, for collusion. The Fair Trade Commission (FTC) said LS Cable & System, the country's top cable maker, and four other manufacturers of cable used for vessels worked together to set bidding prices of marine cable supply deals worth a combined 292 billion won, between November, 2008 and February, 2014. The corporate watchdog also referred two firms, including LS Cable & System, to state prosecutors for further investigation.

Seoul stocks open nearly flat on financials losses

South Korean stocks changed little Friday, as investors hunting for tech and utility bargains were offset by losses in financials. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added 0.53 points, or 0.02 percent, to 2,424.01 in the first 15 minutes of trading. The index opened higher on investors' bargain hunting after a heavy fall in the previous session over the U.S. interest rate decision. But earlier gains were paired as financials moved down further on news that the European Central Bank (ECB) vowed to hold off on raising rates until next year.

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

No sanctions relief until NK’s complete denuclearization

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Thursday that there will be no sanctions relief for North Korea until it completely denuclearizes and that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un understands denuclearization must happen “quickly.”Speaking after the meeting with his South Korean and Japanese counterparts in Seoul, Pompeo also confirmed their shared commitment to North Korea’s “complete, verifiable and irreversible” denuclearization.

US rate hike likely to have limited impact on Korea: officials

As the United States carried out its anticipated rate hike this week, South Korea faces mounting pressure to keep pace with the momentum amid prolonged slow growth and chronic household debt. In a largely defensive gesture, key fiscal and monetary officials here said that the impact of the US rate hike would be limited, though they vowed anticipative measures for the potential consequences of the faster-than-expected rate hike timeline that has been signaled.

Re-elected Seoul mayor likely to ban old diesel cars in city center

After a sweeping election victory by the Democratic Party of Korea, leaders of municipalities are likely to push ahead with an administrative drive to ditch old diesel cars and boost electric vehicles as part of their campaign pledges. Re-elected Seoul city major Park Won-soon vowed during his campaign that he would classify vehicles in five different groups based on the amount of emissions and make an alternative-day-no-driving system mandatory. Park said incentives would be given to vehicles emitting CO2 less.

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

'Complete denuclearization clear between US, NK'

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Thursday said the agreement reached at the North Korea-U.S. summit this week was clear about North Korea's complete denuclearization in a comprehensive sense, despite the words verifiable and irreversible being omitted in the accord. Pompeo's statement is in line with U.S. President Donald Trump's remarks in a press conference following the summit that the term "complete" in the agreement covers the meaning of verifiable and irreversible. "The agreement made very clear that this would be complete denuclearization," Pompeo told reporters in Seoul, at a joint press conference with his South Korean and Japanese counterparts, Kang Kyung-wha and Taro Kono.

Moon cautions against 'arrogance' after sweeping election win

President Moon Jae-in said Thursday that the huge public support for the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) in Wednesday's local elections and the by-elections for parliamentary seats would give the government momentum in pursuing its reform drives. He expressed his gratitude to the people as the ruling party clinched a landslide victory across the country. "I know the huge victory does not mean I did well in all state affairs," Moon said in a statement. "The people showed their trust in me despite the shortfalls. That's why I thank them more."

Summit shines Singapore's strategic diplomacy

Singapore is a tiny but strong nation. The strength comes from two elements ― a sense of urgency and practical diplomacy. The city-state always tries to remain vigilant and prepare for the future while building friendly diplomatic ties with all possible countries. It is always heavily neutral in all political issues. Simply speaking, its number one diplomatic strategy is "being neutral and making no enemies." That's why it has maintained diplomatic relations with both Koreas for a long time. The strategic approach was well exemplified in the June 12 historic summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un at the Capella Hotel on the resort island of Sentosa.

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Chosun Ilbo (http://english.chosun.com)

Washington in Disarray Over 'War Games' with S.Korea

Washington is in disarray after U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday made a throwaway promise to end joint South Korea-U.S. military exercises. At the press conference following his summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, Trump said, "We will be stopping the war games, which will save us a tremendous amount of money." But as usual even some of Trump's closest colleagues had no idea he was going to make that promise. Damage limitation efforts took sometimes farcical form. The Wall Street Journal on Tuesday quoted the White House as saying the U.S. military "would continue to train with its South Korean counterparts and conduct military drills -- but not large-scale joint exercises."

N.Korean State Media Claim Victory for Kim at Singapore Summit

North Korea's state media on Wednesday sold the U.S.-North Korea summit in Singapore as a diplomatic victory for the country's leader Kim Jong-un. The Rodong Sinmun daily portrayed the relationship as weighed heavily toward the North, which will graciously "take additional steps if the U.S. side takes sincere measures to improve relations." The notion that the ball is now in the U.S. court has some grounding in reality after Washington seemingly abandoned demands for complete denuclearization before concessions can be made.

Pompeo Briefs Moon on Trump-Kim Jong-un Summit

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is making the rounds of Seoul and Beijing to brief them on the historic U.S.-North Korea summit in Singapore on Tuesday. In a joint statement, U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un pledged to implement their agreement through follow-up negotiations between Pompeo and a senior North Korean official. Pompeo arrived in Seoul on Wednesday evening and paid a courtesy visit to President Moon Jae-in at Cheong Wa Dae on Thursday morning before meeting with Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha.

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

North Korea’s reconstruction should be viewed as integration, not reunification

The standards for calculating the costs of North Korea’s economic reconstruction should be discussed in terms of “integration” rather than “reunification,” analysts are arguing. Analysts also predicted the city of Wonsan is likely to become a landmark for North Korean economic openness. A June 13 report by the Samsung Securities North Korean investment strategy team titled “Toward the CVIP Era on the Korean Peninsula” outlined possible scenarios for inter-Korean economic cooperation, predicting the recent North Korea-US summit in Singapore would become a “historic inflection point” with “an economy arriving in place of nuclear weapons and missiles.”

Japanese critic of Abe administration advocates normalizing relations with North Korea

Former Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yohei Kono said Tokyo should attempt to normalize relations with North Korea first instead of continuing to emphasize a resolution on the issue of abducted Japanese nationals. Speaking about the recent North Korea-US summit in a talk in central Tokyo on June 13, Kono said he could “sense how peace has gotten closer after the dialogue between [the two sides],” adding that it was “meaningful and great,” the NHK network reported.

Trump discussed suspending joint military exercises during Singapore summit

It turns out that US President Donald Trump’s remarks about halting South Korea-US joint military exercises were discussed and agreed upon during the North Korea-US summit on June 12. Since halting these exercises would be the first measure by the US to remove the threat felt by North Korea, there is growing interest about what role this will play in the process of building peace on the Korean Peninsula. On June 13, North Korean state-run newspaper the Rodong Sinmun reported that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un said during his summit with Trump the day before that the first decision that must be made is halting military actions that provoke and antagonize each other.

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JoongAng Ilbo (http://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/)

South reviews halt to exercises

South Korea is reviewing the suspension of joint military exercises with the United States, President Moon Jae-in said during a meeting with his National Security Council on Thursday, emphasizing that “flexibility” is needed in the process amid ongoing dialogue and trust-building with North Korea. His remark was a response to U.S. President Donald Trump’s abrupt declaration that he would stop the United States’ “war games” with South Korea during a news conference in Singapore after his summit with Kim Jong-un on Tuesday. Trump called the exercises “expensive” and “provocative.”

Conservatives reel from election loss

The leaders of two opposition parties resigned on Thursday as the country’s conservatives begin a process of soul-searching after bruising defeats in nationwide elections on Wednesday. Hong Joon-pyo, chairman of the Liberty Korea Party (LKP), stepped down from his post in the country’s largest opposition party, and Yoo Seong-min of the center-right Bareunmirae Party resigned as co-chairman to take responsibility for the losses. The LKP won only two seats among the 17 major gubernatorial and mayoral races. The Bareunmirae Party won none.

U.S. interest rate increase rocks Seoul stocks

Korean stock markets fell sharply on Thursday as foreign and institutional investors led the outflow following the U.S. Federal Reserve Bank’s decision to raise its benchmark interest rate, a widely expected move. The main bourse Kospi dropped 1.84 percent to 2,423.48, while the junior Kosdaq ended lower at 864.56, down 1.2 percent. The fall came after the Fed hiked its key rate a quarter of a percentage point to a range of 1.75 percent to 2 percent.

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The KyungHyang Shinmun (http://english.khan.co.kr/)

Suspicious Attention to Claims by Lawmakers When National Court Administration Under Yang Seung-tae Promoted the Final Appeals Court

An allegation has been raised claiming that the National Court Administration, when Yang Seung-tae served as the chief justice of the Supreme Court, even drew up reports after reviewing the complaints filed by lawmakers, in the process of promoting a final appeals court. On June 13, several officials in the judiciary said, "The National Court Administration wrote a report after reviewing and summarizing the claims filed by a number of lawyers from the Democratic Party of Korea and the Saenuri Party in 2014-2015." Reportedly, the claims included questions on specific criminal trials and opinions on the relocation of court-related facilities.

Conservatives Fall Before the Ruling Party’s Landslide Victory

The ruling Democratic Party of Korea won a landslide victory in the nationwide local elections and parliamentary by-elections on June 13. The latest election was, in fact, an assessment of the first year of the Moon Jae-in government. So the Democratic Party's apparent victory is expected to boost President Moon Jae-in's handling of state affairs. On the other hand, the Liberty Korea Party, which has shriveled to a "United Liberal Democrats" of the Daegu and Gyeongsangbuk-do (TK) region after a record-breaking defeat, is expected to be engulfed in internal conflicts over the responsibility of the latest defeat.

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AJU Business Daily (http://eng.ajunews.com/korea)

Moon says Singapore summit will rid world of nuclear and missile threats

South Korean President Moon Jae-in hailed the results of a summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un as a great achievement that would rid the world of nuclear and ballistic threats. Moon's comment came at talks with U.S. secretary of state Mike Pompeo, who visited Seoul to give South Korean officials a full account of what was discussed at the summit in Singapore. "There are mixed evaluations of what was achieved at the summit. What is more important, however, and extremely valuable is that the world, including the United States, Japan and China, will no longer be put under nuclear and long-range missile threats," Moon said.

President Moon promises to carefully consider stopping joint military exercises

President Moon Jae-in said Thursday he would carefully consider stopping joint military exercises with the United States if North Korea "sincerely" engages in denuclearization and maintains dialogue. In a press release released the presidential office, Moon said at a high-level security meeting at his office that he would give a "careful review" over the sensitive of suspending regular military exercises between the allies.

Promoters decide to launch S. Korea's first MRO company in July

With active state support, South Korea's sole aircraft manufacturer formed its first maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) company that would help domestic carriers reduce spending on outsourced work abroad. Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) said Thursday that the MRO company named "Korea Aviation Engineering & Maintenance Service, Ltd. (KAEMS)", held a meeting of promoters in the southern city of Sacheon. KAI has been involved in the production of military planes.

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

Samsung Elec creates NEXT Q Fund to secure promising AI technologies

South Korea’s tech giant Samsung Electronics Co. has launched a fund that will mainly invest in artificial intelligence (AI) startups to secure promising technologies and skilled manpower in the AI sector, the company’s next growth engine. According to industry sources on Thursday, Samsung NEXT, Samsung Electronics’ internal organization in charge of unearthing innovative technologies, recently orchestrated to launch NEXT Q Fund to invest in startups and talents with latest AI technologies.

Fed rate hike to have limited impact on Korean market: BOK chief

The tightening pace in the United States is in line with expectations and will likely have limited impact on both the Korean market and domestic monetary policy in its focus on aiding the country’s still weak economic recovery, said Bank of Korea (BOK) Governor Lee Ju-yeol. A gap of 25 to 50 basis points in the interest rates of Korea and the U.S. is unlikely to trigger a capital flight, Lee told reporters after the U.S. Federal Reserve bumped up the fed fund rate target to 1.75-2.0 percent in a second hike this year.

Kia Motors, Tencent unveil digital infotainment dashboard

South Korea’s Kia Motors Corp. in partnership with Chinese tech giant Tencent has revealed a voice-activated car infotainment system tailored for Chinese-speaking drivers and passengers. Korea’s second-largest automaker unveiled the new infotainment system jointly developed with Tencent QQ Music at the CES Asia 2018, Asia’s largest electronics tradeshow, in Shanghai on Wednesday.

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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.cnkf@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.comlithuania@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

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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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