Thursday, January 12, 2023


Round-up of important news from major Korean dailies and from international media today

 

The Korea Post ( www.koreapost.com )

President Yoon Suk-yeol to visit UAE, Switzerland from Jan. 14-19
President Yoon Suk-yeol will visit the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for a state visit and Switzerland to attend the World Economic Forum in Davos. President Yoon will visit the UAE from Jan. 14 to 17 for a summit and state luncheon with UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, National Security Adviser Kim Sung-han said in a press briefing on Jan. 10. As a symbol of the two countries' nuclear cooperation, Yoon will also tour the Barakah nuclear power plant built by South Korean companies in Abu Dhabi's far western desert and visit the Korean Army's Akh unit deployed in the UAE.


North Korea ranks 4th in the world in military size with 1.2 million troops
North Korea ranked fourth in terms of scale of military force in the world after China, India, and the United States. However, military experts point out that the number of soldiers and actual combat power are separate. Radio Free Asia (RFA) reported on Jan. 9 that World Atlas, which provides world maps and statistics for each region, announced the number and ranking of soldiers from around the world on Jan. 7 (local time). According to the results of a survey on the size of troops in each country, North Korea has 1.2 million troops, ranking fourth after China (2 million), India (1.45 million), and the United States (1.39 million). South Korea ranked eighth in the world with 555,000 troops.

 

LG Chem LUCON® TX5007 Is Now Applied to Japanese Global OEM’s Front Fenders
LG Chem has started supplying engineering plastics to Mitsubishi Motors for its powder coating parts used as the front fenders of RVR, Delica D:5 and Outlander models. Front fender is located on the side of the vehicles, which not only acts as one of key factors in the exterior design but also protects its wheels from road debris. Thus, it not only should possess a high level of mechanical robustness but also an excellent exterior quality to keep a high integrity design with the rest of the car body.

 

                                                            


Chosun Ilbo (http://english.chosun.com)
Yoon to Visit UAE, Switzerland

President Yoon Suk-yeol will visit the UAE and Switzerland next week, the presidential office said Tuesday. Yoon will tout for business in the Gulf federation, discussing exports of defense equipment and nuclear power plants with leaders there before attending the World Economic Forum in Davos, an annual gathering of global leaders and businesspeople. He will be accompanied by an entourage of businessmen from about 100 companies. Tycoons from major businesses will be included, but about 70 percent are from small and medium-sized companies.

 

China Stops Short-Term Visas for Koreans
China on Tuesday suspended short-term visas for Koreans in retaliation against what it claimed are "discriminatory" COVID measures taken by Korea. The abrupt suspension came without prior notice, disrupting plans for many who were about to visit the country. Among many countries who restricted entry for travelers from China amid a surge of COVID infections there, Korea and Japan were singled out for retaliation. Kyodo News reported that China also suspended short term-visas for Japanese travelers.

Opposition Chief Questioned over Seongam Bribery Scandal
Opposition leader Lee Jae-myung appeared for questioning by prosecutors on Tuesday over his involvement in a bribery scandal in Seongam, Gyeonggi Province when he was mayor there. Lee showed up at the Suwon District Prosecutors' Office with a group of Minjoo Party lawmakers and read a five-page statement. "It is totally unacceptable to try Seongnam city officials' and my own sincere efforts in the interest of citizens as a crime," he said. "The summons is a politically motivated trap and I will stand up and face it."

                                                                                    

Joongang Ilbo (https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com )

China forces transit passengers from Korea, Japan to get visas
Beijing suspended transit visa exemptions for Korean and Japanese traveling through China Wednesday, an additional retaliation for restrictions on its own nationals. China's National Immigration Administration said Wednesday that "measures have been introduced as a small number of countries have recently implemented discriminatory entry restrictions against Chinese nationals." Normally, China allows transit passengers to stay in airports or even in cities without visas for up to 144 hours while waiting for a connecting flight. That will be denied Koreans and Japanese travelers starting Wednesday.

 

Defense minister says South should deal with North through 'power'
Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup outlined a comprehensive strategy of maintaining peace on the Korean Peninsula “through power” to President Yoon Suk Yeol on Wednesday. In a proposal entitled, “Implementing Peace by Power,” Lee said that South Korea’s military would focus on establishing overwhelming response capabilities against asymmetric threats, such as North Korea's nuclear weapons and missiles, as well as supporting the domestic defense industry so that the country becomes one of the top four defense exporters in the world.


Foreign Ministry downplays trust in North Korea
The South Korean Foreign Ministry is giving up on trusting North Korea and going back to foreign policy principles like relying on its allies, including the U.S. "We are completely moving away from peace that relies on the good will of the other party such as a declaration to end the [Korean] war," President Yoon Suk Yeol said Wednesday. "As we are a country that aims for peace, we will never consider invasive war. "However, we have to be prepared for everything to exercise our strong autonomy when there is a provocation that threatens our freedom and peace."


                                                               
 

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

ROK-U.S. to hold joint exercises in May
The Joint Chiefs of Staff of the Republic of Korea and the United States Strategic Command agreed to conduct joint exercises in May in preparation for potential nuclear attacks from North Korea, using all available military capabilities, including the U.S. nuclear umbrella. The military authorities of the two countries will discuss and examine specific plans on the strategy of the nuclear umbrella and the U.S.’s strategic assets in an aggressive response to North Korea’s nuclear provocation scenario composed of nuclear threat, imminent nuclear attack, and nuclear attack.

 

Samsung Galaxy S23 to host Unpack event in the U.S. next month
Samsung Electronics announced on Wednesday that it would host the Samsung Galaxy Unpack event in San Francisco on Feb. 1 (local time) to release the Galaxy S23 series. It will be the first time in three years since the start of the pandemic to host the event offline. `

The company sent invitations to global media and partner companies on the day. The invitation featured the rear camera and flash, placed side by side in a water drop shape on Galaxy S23, with the green spotlight.


Anti-government protests in Peru intensifies again
Anti-government protests in Peru caused by the impeachment of former President Pedro Castillo on December 7, 2022 are intensifying. The clash between protestors and the police led to 18 deaths on Monday (local time) alone. The burned body of a police officer was even found on Tuesday. The prosecution began an investigation of some members of the Cabinet, including President Dina Boluarte, on charges including mass killing.

 

                                                                   
 

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

Lotte Biologics to invest $3 bn to build 3 plants by 2030
Lotte Biologics Co. will invest $3 billion to build a bio industrial complex that will house three plants with an annual production capacity of 360,000 liters of antibody drugs in South Korea by 2030. The company’s Chief Executive Officer Lee Won-jik announced the mid- and long-term plan during a J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference held in San Francisco, saying that Lotte Biologics will strengthen business competitiveness to become a major player in the contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) market through a two-track strategy of acquisitions and new facilities.


Korea’s Jan. 1-10 exports down 0.9%, imports up 6%
South Korea’s exports dipped slightly in the first 10 days of January while imports rose by more than 6 percent to imply continued imbalance after posting the first annual trade deficit in 14 years in 2022. According to Korea Customs Service on Wednesday, the country’s exports came to $13.9 billion from Jan. 1 to 10, down 0.9 percent from the same period a year earlier. Daily exports fell 14.1 percent based on 7.5 working days, a day longer than last year.

 

Yoon to make his first state visit since taking office to United Arab Emirates
South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol will visit the United Arab Emirates and Switzerland later this week in what will be his first overseas trip of the year to highlight the administration’s focus on the economy by boosting exports and forging business partnerships. President Yoon will depart for UAE on Saturday for a four-day state visit at the invitation of President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, said national security adviser Kim Sung-han during a press briefing at the presidential office in Yongsan on Tuesday.

                                                     
 

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

Lee becomes first sitting leader of top opposition party summoned for prosecutors' questioning
Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung appeared before prosecutors Tuesday to answer questions about allegations concerning support funds for the Seongnam Football Club. This marks the first time in the history of South Korea’s constitutional government that the sitting leader of the top opposition party has been summoned for questioning by prosecutors. Lee blasted the move as a “judicial coup d’etat,” claiming the prosecutors were “making up nonexistent charges by dredging up a case that they had already investigated for years but never found grounds for pressing charges on.”

 

China bans short-term visas for Korea 1 week after threatening “corresponding measures”
China is retaliating against Japan and Korea after threatening to take “corresponding measures” to COVID-19 testing requirements that various countries around the world are implementing for Chinese travelers. As the first country to temporarily stop issuing short-term visas to those coming to China, Korea has become China’s first target, with Japan appearing to have been made subject to the same measures. Visas, which allow non-nationals to enter countries, are an area in which reciprocity is key. China’s suspension of short-term visa issuance to South Korean nationals made on Tuesday indeed echoes the measures taken by South Korea.

 

Wargame predicts costly US victory in imagined Chinese invasion of Taiwan
A recent wargame suggested China would have little chance of winning if it invaded Taiwan. However, the strategy game also suggested that the US and its allies must be prepared to suffer terrible losses of life and material in stopping China’s invasion, including tens of thousands dead, two aircraft carriers lost, and countless warships and aircraft destroyed. The US think tank Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) on Monday released a report titled, “The First Battle of the Next War: Wargaming a Chinese Invasion of Taiwan,” which included the results of a wargame predicated on a Chinese amphibious invasion to occupy Taiwan in 2026.

 

                                                  

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

Prosecutors Question Lee Jae-myung for 12 Hours: Lee Claims, “The Answer Was Predetermined. Prosecution Is Obvious”
Prosecutors finished questioning Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, after twelve hours on January 10. Tuesday, Lee appeared at the Seongnam Branch of the Suwon District Prosecutors’ Office at 10:45 a.m. and was questioned for nearly twelve hours until 10:42 p.m. Lee submitted a ten-page written statement, which he had prepared beforehand, and answered the prosecutor’s questions at a minimum during the interrogation.


Number of Employed Workers Rose by 816,000 in 2022, Biggest Leap in 22 Years
Statistics Korea released the employment status in December 2022 along with the annual employment figures for the past year on January 11. According to the latest statistics, the number of people employed last year rose by 816,000 from the previous year, the biggest increase since 2000 (882,000). This was the third time since the government began collecting related figures that the annual number of newly employed positions exceeded 800,000. The government believes the latest figures reflect a “reopening” effect, after economic activities resumed following the lifting of distancing measures in response to COVID-19 this year.


Park Hong-keun, “Opposition Party Leader Subpoenaed for the First Time in the History of Our Constitution... Even the Nazis Advocated the Rule of Law”
Park Hong-keun, the floor leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, criticized prosecutors after they subpoenaed Lee Jae-myung for questioning on January 10 and said, “When the German Nazis and the Japanese Government-General of Korea threatened the people, they also claimed the rule of law.” In a meeting to discuss the party’s strategy on the floor at the National Assembly Tuesday, Park said, “This government is the first in the history of our Constitution to summon an incumbent leader of the major opposition party to the Prosecutors’ Office,” and announced, “Outwardly, they state the rule of law, but in reality, it is nothing more than ruthless ‘rule with an iron fist’ trying to remove President Yoon Suk-yeol’s political opponent and suppress the opposition party.”

 

                                                            

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

Biden Hails Hanwha Solutions' Investment Plan as 'Big Deal'
U.S. President Joe Biden has welcomed a plan by South Korean energy company Hanwha Solutions to invest over two-point-five billion dollars in solar panel production in the United States. Hanwha Q Cells, a unit of Hanwha Solutions under Hanwha Group, announced on Wednesday that it plans to invest three-point-two trillion won to build a new solar panel parts plant in Georgia and expand its existing facility in Dalton, Georgia as the company develops a "solar hub."


DP Chief Pledges to Not Capitulate to Prosecution’s Attempts to Distort Facts
Main opposition Democratic Party(DP) leader Lee Jae-myung said he will not capitulate to attempts by the administration and prosecution to distort sincere efforts to serve the public as a crime. At a Supreme Council meeting on Wednesday, a day after being questioned by prosecutors on third-party bribery allegations surrounding a municipal football club, Lee pledged to crush the ruling side's attempt to destroy the opposition and democracy. The DP chief is suspected of attracting 16 billion won in corporate donations to Seongnam city's football club between 2016 and 2018, when his position as mayor of the city also made him chairman of the city-owned club, in return for administrative favors.

 

Speaker: Special Parliamentary Committee Needed for Constitutional Amendment
National Assembly Speaker Kim Jin-pyo has called for the creation of a special parliamentary committee dedicated to constitutional revisions. During his New Year press conference on Wednesday, Kim expressed a resolve to create the committee by seeking bipartisan agreement. He proposed the parties pioneer a new route to achieving constitutional amendment, adding the prospective parliamentary entity will encourage national discussions and enhance consensus on the matter and ultimately help achieve national unity.

 

                                                                        
 

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

Biden hails US$2.6 bln investment plan by S. Korea's Hanwha Solutions as 'big deal'
U.S. President Joe Biden on Wednesday welcomed Hanwha Solutions' plan to build a solar panel production facility in the U.S., calling it a "big deal" for American workers and the U.S. economy. The U.S. leader insisted the planned investment is a "direct result" of his economic plan and the recently enacted Inflation Reduction Act. "Today's Hanwha Q CELLS announcement to make the largest solar investment in U.S. history is a big deal for Georgia's working families and the American economy.


Temporary owners of 2 homes to be given more leeway on taxes
South Korea's finance ministry said Thursday owners of two homes will pay less taxes if they dispose of one of them during an extended period amid a slump in the home market. Under the plan, such homeowners will not be subject to heavier taxation if they offload one of the two homes within a three-year period, according to the Ministry of Economy and Finance. The ministry earlier extended the period from one to two years in May 2022. While the revised policy will be officially implemented in February, the ministry said it will be applied retroactively starting Thursday.

 

Yoon says Japan's moves to bolster defense are hard to stop
President Yoon Suk Yeol said Wednesday that Japan's moves to bolster its defense capabilities are hard to stop in the face of the threat of North Korea's missiles. Yoon made the remark during a joint policy briefing from the foreign and defense ministers, referring to Japan's recent increase in its defense budget and its inclusion of the "counterstrike" concept in its revised security documents.

 

                                                    


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

South Korea, US in talks on how to modernize UN Command: ministry
South Korea and the United States have been in discussion over how to modernize the US-led United Nations Command, South Korea’s Defense Ministry said Wednesday, adding that it aimed to complete the discussion and publicly announce the outcome this year. Seoul took the 70th anniversary of the US-South Korea alliance as an opportunity to propose comprehensive talks on the issue, senior Defense Ministry officials confirmed during a closed-door briefing on condition of anonymity. They added that the US had agreed.

 

'Economy will go down the rabbit hole,' survey finds
Concerns over deepening economic slowdown and a bleak outlook for global business conditions, experts predicted that this year the country’s economy would fall deep into a dark and chaotic situation as if it "goes down the rabbit hole." Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry summarized the opinions of some 85 economics and management experts including university professors as "falling down the rabbit hole."


China lifts transit visa exemption for Koreans, Japanese
China said Korean and Japanese nationals will be required to have transit visas when transiting through a Chinese airport as of Wednesday, extending its apparent retaliation against Seoul's quarantine mandate on travelers from China that requires them to submit a PCR test upon arrival. Citing "discriminatory entry restrictions" by Korea and Japan, China also said travelers from two countries will not be allowed to get visas at points of entry in China.

 

                                                   

 

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

Biden hails $2.6 bil. investment plan by Hanwha as 'big deal'
U.S. President Joe Biden on Wednesday welcomed Hanwha Solutions' plan to build a solar panel production facility in the U.S., calling it a "big deal" for American workers and the U.S. economy. The U.S. leader insisted the planned investment is a "direct result" of his economic plan and the recently enacted Inflation Reduction Act. "Today's Hanwha Q CELLS announcement to make the largest solar investment in U.S. history is a big deal for Georgia's working families and the American economy. And, this investment is a direct result of my economic plan and the Inflation Reduction Act," Biden said in a statement released by the White House.

 

Health ministry pushes to raise medical student quota despite backlash from doctors
The Ministry of Health and Welfare and medical groups are at loggerheads over the government's proposal to increase the medical student quota, a plan which the government had previously retracted following fierce protests from doctors in 2020. The thorny issue was brought up again in the ministry's New Year policy briefing to President Yoon Suk Yeol, Monday, promising to speed up discussions with the medical community on its plan to raise the quota to deal with a looming shortage of physicians in Korea. The admissions quota across 40 medical schools in the country has remained unchanged after it was set at 3,058 in 2006, whereas the quota for nursing schools doubled to over 23,000 during the same period.

 

PM disagrees with proposal to write off debts to spur birthrate
Prime Minister Han Duck-soo said Wednesday that he does not agree with a proposal to resolve Korea's persistently-low birthrate by writing off the debts of newlywed couples who have babies. The idea was proposed by Na Kyung-won, vice chair of the Presidential Committee on Aging Society and Population Policy. During a dinner meeting with reporters, Han said he expressed his objections after Na had briefed him on the proposed plan to spur the birthrate before announcing it at a press conference on Jan. 5.

 


                                                                                                                  

 

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

Gwangmyeong Daily 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.com, bfp@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.
 

What are you waiting for?
Use us!
The Korea Post media are more than eager to be used, and to serve you
with the following five news outlets, 37 years old this year!

Korean-language Internet edition: http://www.koreapost.co.kr
English-language Internet edition: http://www.koreapost.com
Korean-language print newspaper:
http://pdf.koreapost.co.kr/38/3801.pdf
http://pdf.koreapost.co.kr/38/3802.pdf
http://pdf.koreapost.co.kr/38/3803.pdf
http://www.koreapost.co.kr/pdf/list.php?category=&syear=2018&smonth=03&sday=26&hosu=40
English E-daily: http://www.koreapost.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=10690

저작권자 © The Korea Post 무단전재 및 재배포 금지