![[News analysis] The double-sided nature of South Korea’s growing diplomatic influence](https://flexible.img.hani.co.kr/flexible/normal/961/577/imgdb/original/2025/1128/4417643185355532.jpg "[News analysis] The double-sided nature of South Korea’s growing diplomatic influence")
Main article 주요기사 10개
![[Editorial] Abandoned appeal in 2019 lawmaker clash case raises questions about prosecutors’ standards](https://flexible.img.hani.co.kr/flexible/normal/500/300/imgdb/original/2025/1128/1817643173126142.jpg "[Editorial] Abandoned appeal in 2019 lawmaker clash case raises questions about prosecutors’ standards")
[Editorial] Abandoned appeal in 2019 lawmaker clash case raises questions about prosecutors’ standardsThe prosecution has abandoned its appeal against People Power Party lawmakers, including Na Kyung-won, who were indicted for violently attempting to obstruct the fast-track designation of key reform bills in 2019. Despite a lower court imposing a fine far below the prosecution’s requested prison sentence, thereby meeting the conditions for appeal, the prosecution dropped the appeal for absurd reasons, saying a guilty verdict was “sufficient.”
Google chipping away at Nvidia’s AI dominance could be good news for Korean semiconductor makersAs market attention focuses on Gemini 3.0, the latest iteration of Google’s artificial intelligence service, cracks are forming in Nvidia’s domination of the AI chip market. The AI chips used to operate Gemini 3.0 are not Nvidia graphics processing units (GPUs) but tensor processing units (TPUs) produced by Google itself — chips that the market considers superior to competing models in terms of performance.![[Video] Korea’s homegrown Nuri rocket successfully places 13 satellites in orbit](https://flexible.img.hani.co.kr/flexible/normal/500/300/imgdb/resize/test/original/2025/1127/5717642317226054.jpg "[Video] Korea’s homegrown Nuri rocket successfully places 13 satellites in orbit")
[Video] Korea’s homegrown Nuri rocket successfully places 13 satellites in orbitSouth Korea’s independently developed launch vehicle, the Nuri, successfully launched on Thursday morning. This was the fourth flight for the Nuri since the first launch attempt in 2021, and the first late-night launch of the rocket.
Trump brings back trade protectionism of 150 years ago — will he bring on wars it started too?If we look closely at the history of trade, we see that it is far from beautiful. Today, free trade is as commonplace as the air we breathe, but most of modern history was dominated by protectionist tariff barriers, predation and colonization. Protectionism has historically sparked frequent trade wars, touching off conflicts between nations that have sometimes escalated into military clashes.
Prosecutors seek 15-year sentence for former PM Han in insurrection trialThe special counsel team investigating Korea’s martial law crisis of Dec. 3, 2024, is demanding a 15-year prison sentence for former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo on charges of abetting former President Yoon Suk-yeol in orchestrating an insurrection. Han will become the first of the defendants standing trial for insurrection to receive a verdict.![[Editorial] Was Yoon’s wife pulling the strings of those investigating her?](https://flexible.img.hani.co.kr/flexible/normal/500/300/imgdb/original/2025/1127/2217642324453714.jpg "[Editorial] Was Yoon’s wife pulling the strings of those investigating her?")
[Editorial] Was Yoon’s wife pulling the strings of those investigating her?In May 2024, then-first lady Kim Keon-hee reportedly sent text messages to then-Minister of Justice Park Sung-jae inquiring about prosecutors’ investigation of her and calling for them to investigate former first lady Kim Jung-sook and future first lady Kim Hae-kyung. Park is also suspected of providing Kim Keon-hee with details received from prosecutors on the status of an investigation into election interference charges surrounding power broker Myung Tae-kyun.
Could Yoon be released from jail before insurrection verdict? Legal experts say it’s unlikelyThe resurgence of lurking fears that a single dedicated court may be established to try the December 2024 insurrection attempt has been sparked in part by concerns that delays in the trial under Judge Jee Kui-youn could result in ex-President Yoon Suk-yeol being released due to his legal detention period expiring before a ruling is set to come in his first trial.![[Column] The origins of China’s real estate bubble](https://flexible.img.hani.co.kr/flexible/normal/500/300/imgdb/original/2025/1127/3717642304508069.jpg "[Column] The origins of China’s real estate bubble")
[Column] The origins of China’s real estate bubbleGaining a proper understanding of a country requires knowing what its people fight over. China is often imagined to be some kind of conflict-free utopia under the leadership of the Communist Party. But that’s not the case.
In era of upheaval, Lee uses diplomacy to build partnerships in Middle East, AfricaSouth Korean President Lee Jae Myung boarded a plane bound for Seoul on Nov. 25, the final day of his visit to Turkey after a 10-day tour around the Middle East and Africa. After the Group of 20 summit in Johannesburg, South Africa, Lee jetted off to the Middle East to help Korea expand its reach in strategic industries such as nuclear energy, national defense, and AI. At the same time, he worked to build models for cooperation that would sustain South Korea’s amicable relations with nations throughout the region.
South Korea’s homegrown Nuri rocket prepares to take 13 satellites into orbitThe independently developed South Korean launch vehicle Nuri is set to take flight for the fourth time in history on Thursday. The launch is being spearheaded by a private enterprise and will take place at night for the first time in the 16 years since the first launch of the Korea Space Launch Vehicle I in August 2009.
US stays silent on Taiwan after Xi turns up pressure on Japan in call with TrumpDuring his phone conversation with US President Donald Trump, Chinese President Xi Jinping reportedly stressed that Taiwan must return to China, indirectly putting pressure on Japan in Beijing’s diplomatic spat with Tokyo over the Taiwan issue. The US side did not mention Taiwan during statements about the phone call, an omission that some see as a victory for China. But it could also be a reflection of Trump’s main focus at the moment: getting China to resume imports of US soybeans.![[Column] Japan’s quandary in the ‘new type of great power relations’](https://flexible.img.hani.co.kr/flexible/normal/500/300/imgdb/original/2025/1126/3817641458604477.jpg "[Column] Japan’s quandary in the ‘new type of great power relations’")
[Column] Japan’s quandary in the ‘new type of great power relations’The imbroglio between Japan and China, instigated by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s remarks about a crisis in Taiwan, has made me realize something, or rather the absence of something — that is, the US.![[Column] Has Korean society become any safer since the martial law crisis?](https://flexible.img.hani.co.kr/flexible/normal/500/300/imgdb/original/2025/1126/7517641459875421.jpg "[Column] Has Korean society become any safer since the martial law crisis?")
[Column] Has Korean society become any safer since the martial law crisis?Recently, I found myself in deep shock reading the results of a public opinion survey I myself had participated in. In a telephone interview survey commissioned by MBC Radio and conducted by Kstat Research in October, a staggering 30% of the survey’s 2,014 respondents agreed with the claim that “China interfered in the 2024 general election and the 2025 presidential election.” Notably, 41% of those aged 18 to 29, 52% of conservatives, and 61% of People Power Party supporters agreed with this statement.![[Column] Today, you do need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows](https://flexible.img.hani.co.kr/flexible/normal/500/300/imgdb/original/2025/1126/131764146643398.jpg "[Column] Today, you do need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows")
[Column] Today, you do need a weatherman to know which way the wind blowsWeathermen, the best-known radical left “terrorist” group which operated in the US in the late 1960s and 1970s, took its name from Bob Dylan’s lyric “You don’t need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows,” from his 1965 song “Subterranean Homesick Blues.”
What’s really driving the drastic depreciation of Korea’s wonThe won-dollar exchange rate continues to climb, bringing the psychologically fraught 1,500-won mark within reach. That’s a level the won has reached during economic crises of the past. The huge sums of domestic money being concentrated in foreign investments has become a structural factor exerting upward pressure on the exchange rate, analysts say.![[Deep dive] Yoon Suk-yeol’s war game: A traitor’s gamble for power](https://flexible.img.hani.co.kr/flexible/normal/500/300/imgdb/original/2025/1125/4917640612902218.jpg "[Deep dive] Yoon Suk-yeol’s war game: A traitor’s gamble for power")
[Deep dive] Yoon Suk-yeol’s war game: A traitor’s gamble for powerWhat kind of person was Yoon Suk-yeol? Since his days as a prosecutor, I’ve written a lot about Prosecutor-General Yoon Suk-yeol, presidential candidate Yoon Suk-yeol, President Yoon Suk-yeol, and former President Yoon Suk-yeol. But despite all the ink I’ve spilled on him, I’m not sure about what kind of person he is. That’s because every new revelation about the words, actions, and crimes of Yoon that comes out is simply beyond all comprehension.![[News analysis] 4 reasons China is biting its tongue on South Korea’s pursuit of nuclear subs](https://flexible.img.hani.co.kr/flexible/normal/500/300/imgdb/original/2025/1125/3517640589380561.jpg "[News analysis] 4 reasons China is biting its tongue on South Korea’s pursuit of nuclear subs")
[News analysis] 4 reasons China is biting its tongue on South Korea’s pursuit of nuclear subsChina has been relatively subdued in its response to South Korea obtaining the US’ consent to build nuclear-powered submarines, communicating its standing concerns to Seoul while saving its attacks for the US. This is a stark contrast to China’s reaction to the US agreeing to provide Australia with nuclear-powered submarines in 2021 as part of the trilateral AUKUS alliance with the UK, which China called an “extremely irresponsible” act that constituted “severe nuclear proliferation risks.”
Lee, Erdoğan agree to cooperate on defense industry, nuclear energy and infrastructureAt a bilateral summit held in Ankara, Turkey, on Monday (local time), President Lee Jae Myung and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan agreed to expand and develop the strategic partnership between South Korea and Turkey into a future-oriented and mutually beneficial relationship. The two leaders announced a joint statement on the “strategic partnership” between the two countries, and signed memorandums of understanding for cooperation in nuclear energy, infrastructure, and veterans’ affairs.
Lee hints at willingness to scale back drills with US to resume dialogue with North Korea“Even the most hostile nations maintain hotlines for emergencies. But all connections between North and South Korea have been severed. This is an extremely dangerous situation,” President Lee Jae Myung told reporters Sunday aboard the presidential plane en route from South Africa to Ankara, Turkey.
Young Koreans see fewer opportunities as new hiring falls by 116,000 in span of a yearStatistics regarding youth employment and income indicate that hiring has dropped to the lowest levels seen since 2018, when relevant statistics began being compiled. The proportion of irregular employees has also risen to the highest level in 21 years.![[Column] A prospect more worrying than a Korean Peninsula sans US](https://flexible.img.hani.co.kr/flexible/normal/500/300/imgdb/original/2025/1124/9817639721775758.jpg "[Column] A prospect more worrying than a Korean Peninsula sans US")
[Column] A prospect more worrying than a Korean Peninsula sans US“The ROK-US alliance has developed into a genuinely future-oriented comprehensive strategic alliance that covers national security, the economy and cutting-edge technology. The door is wide open for a renaissance in the ROK-US alliance that will be beneficial for both countries,” Korean President Lee Jae Myung said on Nov. 14.
G20 leaders adopt declaration in defiance of Trump boycott, US objectionsLeaders of the Group of 20 nations made the unexpected move of adopting a declaration on the first day of their summit in South Africa on Saturday. Normally, such statements are announced on the closing day of multilateral summits, but South Africa made the aggressive move of announcing the declaration on the summit’s first day, despite explicit opposition to the document’s language from the US.
Won’s real effective exchange rate plummets to lowest level since 2009 financial crisisThe value of the won is plummeting with no end in sight. The won-dollar exchange rate closed at 1,475.6 won on Friday, up 7.7 won from the previous day as foreign investors net sold over 3.2 trillion won worth of stocks on Seoul’s stock market. This marked the highest the exchange rate has been in seven months, nearing the 1,495.5 won exchange rate recorded on April 9.![[Editorial] Yoon proves himself a coward and a fool in court](https://flexible.img.hani.co.kr/flexible/normal/500/300/imgdb/original/2025/1124/2317639716563482.jpg "[Editorial] Yoon proves himself a coward and a fool in court")
[Editorial] Yoon proves himself a coward and a fool in courtFor days on end, disgraced former President Yoon Suk-yeol has filled the public with anger and dismay each time he has taken the stand in his insurrection trial and the trials of his alleged accomplices. In court, Yoon has shown himself to be an inveterate coward, consistently denying that his declaration of martial law on Dec. 3 last year was an unconstitutional and illegal act, and attempting to blame his subordinates. It is horrifying to think that such a person was once the president of our country.
China says Japanese PM crossed ‘red line’ with Taiwan remarksThe Chinese government is ramping up its pressure on Japan on all fronts after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi implied that Japan could exercise its right to collective self-defense in the event of a crisis in Taiwan.
Korea’s Lee asks for ‘tips’ on reunification from Germany, sidestepping question on ChinaSouth Korean President Lee Jae Myung worked through a breathless three-day schedule of summits with the leaders of France and Germany and pull-aside meetings with the leaders of India and Brazil during the Group of 20 summit.
South Korea to host G20 summit in 2028South Korea is set to host the 2028 Group of 20 summit, which will coincide with the 20th anniversary of the framework’s launch. This is to be the first time South Korea has hosted the event in 18 years, having last hosted in 2010. President Lee Jae Myung said Sunday that he would “play my role with an enormous sense of responsibility to solidify the G20’s standing as the top forum for international economic cooperation.”
Taiwan lifts restrictions on Japanese seafood imports amid Tokyo’s row with BeijingAs tensions escalate between China and Japan, Taiwan demonstrated its support for Japan by lifting all restrictions on food imports from Japan’s Fukushima Province. China, on the other hand, has said it will reinstate bans on seafood imports from Japan, which had been eased slightly, after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi remarked that Japan may exercise “collective self-defense” in the case of an emergency in Taiwan.
Lee vows Korea’s support to achieve ‘Miracle on the Nile’ in Egypt“In Korea, there is a phrase that says people who have endured the same suffering understand each other. The citizens of South Korea have endured the hardships of war and the sorrow of being separated from their families. Our deepest sympathies lie with the tears of those threatened by conflict.”![[Column] There’s no solving the feud between Japan and China](https://flexible.img.hani.co.kr/flexible/normal/500/300/imgdb/original/2025/1121/271763714973635.jpg "[Column] There’s no solving the feud between Japan and China")
[Column] There’s no solving the feud between Japan and ChinaJapanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi surely never imagined that her off-the-cuff remark on a topic that is an absolute taboo in China-Japan relations would open Pandora’s box. Takaichi was taking questions at the Budget Committee of the House of Representatives at 1:55 pm on Nov. 7 when she was asked the fateful question by Katsuya Okada, a lawmaker with the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan who served as foreign minister during that party’s short-lived tenure in power.
Could China go as far as restricting exports of rare earths to Japan?China is ramping up pressure on Japan following Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s claim that Japan could exercise its right to collective self-defense in the event of a contingency in Taiwan, severing ministerial-level lines of communication and warning of further countermeasures.
‘Challenges’ in Yellow Sea contributed to US approval for SK nuclear sub, US envoy saysActing US Ambassador to South Korea Kevin Kim stated that South Korea and the US should understand that the security challenges in both the Korean Peninsula and the wider region are “evolving,” and that “we must work together to address those common challenges” on Thursday.
Chinese Embassy warns US not to ‘sow discord’ after officials’ remarks about nuclear submarineThe Chinese Embassy to South Korea reacted sharply on Sunday to back-to-back remarks by American officials suggesting that the modernization of the South Korea-US alliance is driven by the need to contain China. The embassy expressed its hope that the US will not “sow discord or pick a fight.”![[Correspondent’s column] Goodbye MAGA, hello affordability?](https://flexible.img.hani.co.kr/flexible/normal/500/300/imgdb/original/2025/1121/7417637152471688.jpg "[Correspondent’s column] Goodbye MAGA, hello affordability?")
[Correspondent’s column] Goodbye MAGA, hello affordability?“My fellow citizens, are you happy? Have your lives gotten any easier?” Kwon Young-ghil, the presidential candidate for South Korea’s Democratic Labor Party, abruptly asked during a presidential debate in 2002. It was an iconic moment that shone a light on the lives of ordinary people so often swept aside in mainstream politics.![[Editorial] PPP lawmakers get slap on the wrist for violent violation of legislative procedure](https://flexible.img.hani.co.kr/flexible/normal/500/300/imgdb/original/2025/1121/4817637152346449.jpg "[Editorial] PPP lawmakers get slap on the wrist for violent violation of legislative procedure")
[Editorial] PPP lawmakers get slap on the wrist for violent violation of legislative procedureNumerous former and current lawmakers of the People Power Party were convicted and fined by a district court on Thursday for using violence to obstruct the fast-track designation of key reform bills in 2019. Na Kyung-won, who directed the collective use of physical force as floor leader of the Liberty Korea Party, the PPP’s predecessor, was fined 24 million won (US$16,300). Former Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn, who was the party leader outside the assembly at the time, was fined 19 million (US$13,000), and Song Eun-seog, the current floor leader of the PPP, was fined 11.5 million (US$7,800). Most of these fines were imposed for aggravated obstruction of public duties.
Details emerge of Yoon’s defense chief ordering strikes in response to North Korean trash balloonsNew details have emerged about former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun repeatedly pressuring the Joint Chiefs of Staff and others to conduct strikes against the source of North Korean trash balloons and issue warning shots in October 2024. Such insistence seems to have stemmed from Kim’s frustration that an operation to fly drones over Pyongyang failed to elicit a response that would justify the declaration of martial law.![[Column] Korea: The country without a plan B](https://flexible.img.hani.co.kr/flexible/normal/500/300/imgdb/original/2025/1120/5817636282803248.jpg "[Column] Korea: The country without a plan B")
[Column] Korea: The country without a plan BRecent remarks by Evan Medeiros, former senior director for Asian affairs during the Barack Obama administration and current professor at Georgetown University, offer frank insight into America’s view of Korea-US relations. Medeiros’ comments came at a Center for Strategic and International Studies forum reporting on President Donald Trump’s visit to Asia. One point of contention was how long allies such as Korea and Japan would remain patient in the face of excessive US demands in tariff negotiations, at which point Medeiros acknowledged the elephant in the room that Americans are not keen to discuss openly.![[Editorial] China, Japan must deescalate before tensions boil over into military actions](https://flexible.img.hani.co.kr/flexible/normal/500/300/imgdb/original/2025/1120/6617636276362047.jpg "[Editorial] China, Japan must deescalate before tensions boil over into military actions")
[Editorial] China, Japan must deescalate before tensions boil over into military actionsJapanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s imprudent remarks on Taiwan have plunged Japan and China into a seemingly never-ending spat. This conflict represents the head-on collision of China’s collective identity, still nursing the scars of humiliation and defeat in its contemporary history, and Japan’s perception of security formed over more than a hundred years since the Meiji era.
Coordination with Moscow needed if Trump wants to meet Kim Jong-un during China trip, says former US envoyMark Lambert, a former US deputy assistant secretary of state who spearheaded working-level negotiations as a State Department special envoy for North Korea during Donald Trump’s first term as US president, stressed that achieving North Korea’s denuclearization was “worth trying” and that the US still has “carrots” and “sticks” to use with Pyongyang.
Korea will be ‘reliable partner’ in UAE’s quest to become AI hub, says LeePresident Lee Jae Myung announced plans to strengthen cooperation between Korea and the United Arab Emirates in high-tech and strategic industries such as artificial intelligence and defense during his visit to the Middle Eastern nation.![[Editorial] Long-awaited victory in Lone Star case should be a lesson](https://flexible.img.hani.co.kr/flexible/normal/500/300/imgdb/original/2025/1120/1017636292349918.jpg "[Editorial] Long-awaited victory in Lone Star case should be a lesson")
[Editorial] Long-awaited victory in Lone Star case should be a lessonThe South Korean government emerged victorious in its case to request the reversal of an investor-state dispute settlement arbitration ruling ordering it to pay the US private equity firm Lone Star compensation for a delay in its sale of Korea Exchange Bank (KEB).
China breaks out new cutting-edge carrier amid feud with JapanThe Fujian, China’s third commissioned aircraft carrier, returned to port after completing its first live-force maritime exercises, which included actual firing. This comes at a time when friction between Beijing and Tokyo has been intensifying in the wake of Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s remarks about the potential exercise of Japan’s collective self-defense authority in the event of an emergency involving Taiwan.
Korea wins annulment in dispute with Lone Star, no longer obligated to pay compensationThe South Korean government emerged victorious in its yearslong legal battle to overturn an international arbitration body’s decision ordering it to pay the US hedge fund Lone Star compensation for a delay in its sale of Korea Exchange Bank (KEB).![[Column] Another Eulsa Year, another blow to Korea’s sovereignty](https://flexible.img.hani.co.kr/flexible/normal/500/300/imgdb/original/2025/1119/7417635391901154.jpg "[Column] Another Eulsa Year, another blow to Korea’s sovereignty")
[Column] Another Eulsa Year, another blow to Korea’s sovereigntyThis past Monday, Nov. 17, marked the 120th anniversary of the signing of what’s known in Korea as the Eulsa Treaty, which made Korea a protectorate of Japan and set the stage for its colonization. On that day in 1905, the nobles of the Korean Empire who had vowed to protect their country tucked their tails between their legs, one by one, under coercion and in the face of obstinance and placation from Hirobumi Ito.
Korea signs on to UAE Stargate initiative to create world’s largest AI infrastructureSouth Korea has agreed to cooperate with the United Arab Emirates on the UAE Stargate project, which will establish the world’s largest artificial intelligence infrastructure in Abu Dhabi. Upon his arrival in Abu Dhabi for a state visit, President Lee Jae Myung referred to the UAE, the only country in the Middle East with which Korea has a “special strategic partnership,” as a “brother nation.”
Tokyo-Beijing ties hit a postwar low in 2012 island dispute — this time, it may be worseAmid China’s furious response to Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s comment that a Chinese invasion of Taiwan would represent an existential threat to Japan, there are growing concerns that the two countries will return to the antagonism seen during their territorial dispute over a group of uninhabited islands over a decade ago.
Local firms predict China will outcompete Korea in all major industries, including chips, by 2030Domestic corporations working in export industries predicted that South Korea is poised to fall behind China in all 10 of its mainstay areas by 2030. The corporations anticipated that South Korean businesses would be overtaken by China within five years — even in industries where they currently hold a competitive advantage, including semiconductors, electronics and shipbuilding.
광고
Editorial・opinion
- [Editorial] Abandoned appeal in 2019 lawmaker clash case raises questions about prosecutors’ standards
- [Column] The origins of China’s real estate bubble
- [Editorial] Was Yoon’s wife pulling the strings of those investigating her?
- [Column] Has Korean society become any safer since the martial law crisis?
- [Column] Japan’s quandary in the ‘new type of great power relations’
- [Editorial] Yoon proves himself a coward and a fool in court
- [Column] A prospect more worrying than a Korean Peninsula sans US
- [Column] There’s no solving the feud between Japan and China
- [Correspondent’s column] Goodbye MAGA, hello affordability?
- [Editorial] PPP lawmakers get slap on the wrist for violent violation of legislative procedure
Most viewed articles
- 1What’s really driving the drastic depreciation of Korea’s won
- 285% of major Korean firms say political uncertainty could fuel exchange rate woes
- 3Korean industries reeling on surging won-dollar exchange rate
- 4Korea sinks further into trade deficit with China amid inaction from government
- 5Won’s real effective exchange rate plummets to lowest level since 2009 financial crisis
- 6S. Korea, China renew their currency swap for additional five years to an increased US$59 billion
- 7[News analysis] The double-sided nature of South Korea’s growing diplomatic influence
- 8Korea records first trade deficit with China since 1992
- 9[Column] A prospect more worrying than a Korean Peninsula sans US
- 10Korea more vulnerable than most to demand shocks from US and China, report finds
광고
광고