Journalist
Lee Hugh
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Russia’s Lower House Speaker Visits North Korea for Kursk Operation Anniversary Event Vyacheslav Volodin, speaker of Russia’s lower house of parliament (the State Duma), has visited North Korea to attend events marking the first anniversary of the end of what North Korea calls the “Kursk liberation operation,” in which North Korean troops took part. North Korea’s Rodong Sinmun reported April 26 that an official Russian delegation led by Volodin arrived in Pyongyang the previous day at the invitation of the Supreme People’s Assembly and the Ministry of National Defense. The paper said the delegation would attend the inauguration ceremony for the Overseas Military Operation Battle Merits Memorial Hall, described as a facility honoring troops deployed to the Russia-Ukraine war. Jo Yong Won, chairman of the Supreme People’s Assembly Standing Committee, and Kim Jong Gyu, a vice foreign minister, greeted the delegation at the airport, the report said. Kim Jong Un, chairman of the State Affairs Commission, has visited the construction site several times and set the completion date to coincide with the “first anniversary of the liberation of Kursk,” making it likely the ceremony will be held April 26. Russia, which lost control of Kursk at one point during the war with Ukraine, officially declared on April 26 last year that it had regained the territory. Jo said the Russian leadership’s decision to send a high-level delegation to the ceremony was “a sign of the sincere support and respect of the entire Russian people” for North Koreans who “reverently recall the shining lives” of those who fought in overseas operations and “wish for their eternal life.” Volodin said he expressed “sincere gratitude” to Kim and the North Korean people for helping drive out what he called “Ukrainian neo-Nazi occupiers” from Russia’s Kursk region. He added that Russia would “never forget” the feats of “heroic” North Korean officers and soldiers who, he said, gave their lives in the Kursk operation.* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-04-26 12:48:16 -
Trump evacuated after gunfire at White House correspondents' dinner SEOUL, April 26 (AJP) - A suspected shooter was apprehended after U.S. President Donald Trump and other top officials were evacuated from the annual dinner of the White House Correspondents' Association in Washington, D.C., on Saturday following gunfire. At around 8:40 p.m. EDT, gunshots were fired near the main security screening area of the Washington Hilton while dinner was being served in the main ballroom. In a televised statement at the White House a few hours later, Trump said, "A man charged a security checkpoint armed with multiple weapons, and he was taken down by some very brave members of the Secret Service." Authorities identified the suspect as a 30-year-old man from California who was injured and taken into custody at the scene after he was reportedly found with a shotgun and a handgun. Trump said the alleged shooter's motivation remains unclear, but added that he was a "guy who looked pretty evil when he was down." Saturday's shooting incident was the third assassination attempt against Trump. During his 2024 presidential campaign, he narrowly survived a shooting while delivering a speech in Pennsylvania. Two months later, a gunman was found to have been lying in wait at a golf course in Florida. When asked by reporters why he has repeatedly been the target of assassination attempts, Trump replied that it may be because he is "impactful," comparing himself to former U.S. President Abraham Lincoln, who was assassinated in 1865, while dismissing any relevance to the current impasse in his war in Iran. "I've studied assassinations, and I must tell you, the most impactful people, the people who do the most, are the ones they go after," he said, describing his profession as "dangerous" and adding that attempted violence is "part of the job." He added, "And I hate to say I’m honored by that, but I've done a lot." Shortly after the incident, Trump said on his social media platform Truth Social, "The First Lady, plus the Vice President, and all Cabinet members, are in perfect condition." He also said the dinner would be rescheduled "within the next 30 days," vowing that it would be "bigger, and better, and even nicer." The gunfire occurred despite tight security at the hotel during the dinner, which was attended by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Director of National Intelligence (DNI) Tulsi Gabbard, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt. South Korean President Lee Jae Myung, meanwhile, said he was "deeply shocked by the violent incident," in a post on X, formerly Twitter both in Korean and English. "It is especially regrettable that such an incident occurred at an event meant to reaffirm the role of the press and freedom of speech," he wrote. "Political violence is a grave threat that undermines the very foundation of democracy and can never be justified under any circumstances." Lee also said he was relieved to learn that Trump, the first lady, and all others present were safe, and expressed his "deepest sympathies to the American people." 2026-04-26 12:34:42 -
PPP Picks Choo Kyung-ho as Daegu Mayor Candidate; Yoo Eui-dong Sole Nominee in Pyeongtaek-eul Rep. Choo Kyung-ho has been selected as the People Power Party’s candidate for Daegu mayor in the June 3 local elections. The party’s nomination committee also decided to make former lawmaker Yoo Eui-dong its sole recommended candidate in the Pyeongtaek-eul district in Gyeonggi Province for a special election to be held alongside the local vote. Nomination committee chair Park Deok-heum announced the results at a briefing April 26 after a committee meeting, saying, “As a result of the primary, candidate Choo Kyung-ho was selected as the People Power Party’s Daegu mayoral candidate.” Park added, “We resolved to make candidate Yoo Eui-dong our sole recommendation for the Pyeongtaek-eul by-election,” and said Yoo is “the best fit” to lead Pyeongtaek’s next step, citing his policy experience, including as the party’s policy committee chair, and his three-term legislative career. With the committee’s decision, the Daegu mayoral race will pit Choo against Kim Boo-kyum, a former prime minister. The Pyeongtaek-eul seat is also where Cho Kuk, leader of the Rebuilding Korea Party, has declared his candidacy. Park said the party will, in principle, hold primaries to pick candidates in nine districts where vacancies will be created because incumbent lawmakers are running in the local elections. A total of nine sitting lawmakers — including Choo and eight lawmakers nominated by the Democratic Party for metropolitan-level chief executive posts — are expected to resign their National Assembly seats within this month to run. Separately, the nomination committee said it will reopen applications for the Incheon Gyeyang-eul parliamentary by-election. Applications will be accepted April 27-28, followed by candidate interviews on April 29. 2026-04-26 12:21:17 -
Maeil Marine CEO Kim Myeong-jin Pledges Advanced Materials to Link Shipbuilding, Defense "We will go beyond distributing ship supplies and become a global marine technology group representing South Korea," Kim Myeong-jin, CEO of Maeil Marine and chairman of the Maeilbiz Association, said at a press briefing on April 23 at the company’s plant in Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province. Kim said the company is shifting from a ship-services business to a broader marine technology company spanning manufacturing, renewable energy, defense and nuclear-related fields. Founded in 1995, Maeil Marine grew on its ship-supply business and has become a top-tier player with 30 billion won in revenue and about 50 employees, the company said. Kim said Maeil Marine strengthened its position through mergers and acquisitions and rebranded as Maeil Marine Partners. Starting with the 2018 acquisition of Sehwa Machinery, the company secured precision machining capabilities and localized production of key ship components such as turbochargers. In 2020, it merged SAS into its plant business division to build an environment for producing shipbuilding and onshore and offshore power-generation plants. In 2025, it acquired Samyang Trading to build logistics infrastructure linking Northeast Asia. Kim said Maeil Marine plans to combine advanced-materials technology from affiliate Maeil Ceracam with its ship-services know-how to build an end-to-end value chain, from manufacturing ship engine parts and fabricating structures to distributing ship supplies. The company is also reshaping its portfolio by moving into new businesses tied to the energy transition, including offshore wind power, and by expanding into defense, Kim said. He said Maeil Marine aims to target global markets by building an edge in marine defense technology. A tour of the Changwon production site ahead of the briefing highlighted Maeil Ceracam’s core technology: an advanced material that the company said maintains Level III-A ballistic protection while also withstanding temperatures of 1,100 degrees Celsius for more than four hours. The material is expected to be used in special-purpose ship structures, as well as in the defense industry and high-spec construction markets, the company said. Kim said the company is also developing electromagnetic shielding and radiation-shielding coating technology for stealth applications, targeting higher-value markets such as naval vessels, military vehicles, and nuclear and security facilities. "If we focused on distributing ship supplies in the past, we are now putting all our efforts into manufacturing for offshore wind plants and developing future technologies such as ship drones," Kim said. He said diversification would create new market value of 1 trillion won a year. "Based on our distribution and manufacturing know-how, we will change the landscape of the global marine industry through an integrated value chain that links shipbuilding and defense," he said. 2026-04-26 12:18:19 -
Korea FTC Awards 15 Million Won to Staff Who Uncovered Sugar Price-Fixing South Korea’s Fair Trade Commission said April 26 it will pay a combined 15 million won ($) in special achievement bonuses to two staff members credited with uncovering illegal collusion by three sugar manufacturers and sellers. The FTC said it held its first special achievement awards ceremony on April 22. The bonus program was introduced this year following a presidential directive to provide exceptional rewards to public officials who deliver outstanding results. The FTC said it will award 10 million won to Jeong Mun-hong, an official, and 5 million won to Woo Byeong-hoon, a senior official. The agency said the two, while investigating suspected collusion in the sugar sector, secured a decisive confession from an employee of a cartel participant. The confession and subsequent evidence led the sugar companies to voluntarily report, allowing the investigation to be wrapped up quickly, the FTC said. In March, the FTC imposed 396 billion won in fines on the three sugar companies. The agency also said the probe produced key leads that could help uncover cartel cases in major food raw materials such as corn syrup and flour. The FTC said the confession and evidence it obtained were later used as core materials in prosecutors’ investigations, and were cited as showing how early FTC fact-finding and securing admissions can be pivotal in bringing criminal penalties in cartel cases. The FTC said it highly valued the officials’ persistent tracking of covert collusion in the food sector and their role in driving down prices. It said sugar prices at the three companies fell 16.5% from the collusive level after the cartel was uncovered. Other award recipients included: four officials, including Min Ji-hyeon, for strengthening economic penalties for unfair practices (6.5 million won); five officials, including manager Eum Jan-di, for a tough response to omissions involving DB, Youngwon and HDC affiliates (6 million won); and three officials, including manager Jang Ju-yeon, for operating a monitoring team on unfair trade in items closely tied to daily life (4.5 million won). FTC Chairman Joo Byeong-gi said the sugar cartel case reflected investigators’ ability to read competitive conditions and their determination to uncover the truth. He said the key was persuading a participant in a “giant cartel” to voluntarily report after 12 months of persistent investigative work.* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-04-26 12:08:31 -
Korea Chamber Signs Vietnam University MOUs to Ease SME Skilled Labor Shortage The Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry said Saturday it signed education cooperation agreements with four leading universities in Vietnam to help train industrial technology workers, as South Korean small and midsize companies face persistent shortages of skilled labor. The chamber said the memorandums of understanding were signed April 23 in Hanoi on the sidelines of a Korea-Vietnam business forum. The partner schools are Vietnam National University, Hanoi University of Science and Technology, Hanoi Industrial University and the Posts and Telecommunications Institute of Technology. The agreements are part of a project the chamber has been pursuing with the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy since this year to attract bachelor’s-level overseas technical talent to regional areas, it said. Under the MOUs, the universities will cooperate on selecting candidates and assessing their capabilities, running training programs in Vietnam, and developing curricula based on demand from industrial sites in South Korea. The chamber said the schools plan to begin selecting trainees in May and start training. The chamber said the project centers on an integrated process it runs directly: selection, training and verification, matching with companies, and follow-up management. It described the approach as demand-driven, contrasting it with earlier programs that mainly recruited available workers locally and then connected them to firms. Using its nationwide chamber network, it first identifies hiring and job needs at regional small and midsize companies, then reflects those needs in overseas training and matches candidates with firms, it said. The chamber said it is focusing on verifying job skills required by regional companies, beyond Korean-language ability. Trainees will be evaluated on whether they can perform without additional retraining once placed in the workplace, and must complete job projects designed around real work conditions to qualify for matching. It also said it will provide post-placement support for overseas hires, including Korean-language education and a help desk. According to the chamber, the industrial technology labor shortage rate at small and midsize-sized workplaces in 2024 was 2.9%, about 5.8 times the 0.5% rate at large workplaces. Regional turnover was higher outside the Seoul metropolitan area at 10.7% than in the capital region at 7.3%, with Daegu at 13.9% and North Gyeongsang at 12.3%. The chamber said it is also expanding cooperation beyond Vietnam to top universities in Indonesia, including the University of Indonesia, Gadjah Mada University and Bandung Institute of Technology. Lee Sang-bok, head of the chamber’s Human Resources Development Project Group, said regional small and midsize companies face limits if they rely only on domestic technical workers. “Using global professional technical talent is not an option but a necessity,” Lee said, adding that he expects the project to strengthen regional industrial competitiveness and contribute to balanced regional development and efforts to address population decline in provincial areas.* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-04-26 12:07:37 -
South Korea Reviews Supply Chains, Economic Security After Middle East War South Korea’s government is working to set policy directions for an economic restructuring aimed at responding to heightened global uncertainty following the Middle East war. The Finance and Economy Ministry said it held a meeting April 24 at the Government Complex Seoul with experts from state-funded research institutes under the National Research Council for Economics, Humanities and Social Sciences to discuss policy directions for the economy after the war. Participants included the Korea Institute for Industrial Economics and Trade, the Korea Development Institute (KDI), the Korea Institute for International Economic Policy, the Science and Technology Policy Institute, the Korea Energy Economics Institute, the Korea Labor Institute, the Korea Environment Institute and the Korea Research Institute for Human Settlements. Kang Ki-ryong, assistant vice minister at the ministry, said the situation remains uncertain because developments in the Middle East war are changing by the moment, but urged participants to help identify short- and long-term policy tasks so the country can prepare in advance. Attendees agreed the crisis has again underscored the importance of supply chains and economic security, and said the government should consider in advance how the economic system may change and prepare response strategies. The ministry said it plans to broaden the collection of expert views, including through cooperation with the National Economic Advisory Council.* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-04-26 12:06:55 -
South Korea Reviews External Economic Risks as Middle East Tensions Rise The government has begun reviewing risks and preparing responses to recent shifts in the international order, including instability in the Middle East. The Ministry of Economy and Finance said Sunday that it held a meeting with external-economy experts on April 24 at the Government Complex Seoul to discuss economic risks stemming from changes in global conditions and possible policy responses. The session was convened to consider steps to address external uncertainties such as geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, growing supply chain uncertainty and the spread of protectionism. Participants said the Middle East situation has underscored the importance of energy security, calling for diversification of energy supply chains alongside a transition to cleaner energy. They also agreed that policy responses must be flexible and swift. With protectionism spreading and supply chain restructuring accelerating, participants also raised the need to secure key supply chains more reliably and strengthen strategic economic cooperation. They urged expanding cooperation with technologically advanced countries in advanced technology and strategic industries, and pursuing export and supply chain diversification to reduce dependence on specific regions. They also warned that geopolitical risks could shrink overseas construction markets, and said the government should set up a preemptive support system while strategically using future opportunities. Vice Minister Heo Jang said it is important to pursue a balanced approach between managing external risks and preparing mid- to long-term responses. “Based on the discussions at this meeting, we will make our policy direction more concrete and continue communication with the field,” he said.* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-04-26 12:06:26 -
Survey: 89% of South Korean firms oppose immediate punishment in safety inspections Most companies say they feel burdened by an “immediate punishment” approach in occupational safety and health inspections, warning that penalties without a chance to correct problems could increase administrative 대응 rather than improvements at worksites. The Korea Employers Federation said on April 26 that in a survey of 216 domestic companies on problems and improvements in the industrial safety and health inspection system, 89% (193 companies) responded negatively to being punished immediately during inspections without an opportunity to fix issues. The most common reason, cited by 38% (74 companies), was concern that inspectors could overuse findings of legal violations to boost performance. The results come as the government moves to expand the number of industrial safety inspectors and shift inspection policy toward immediate punishment, the federation said. Companies also warned that if even minor violations lead to penalties, they may focus on paperwork and other administrative responses instead of reducing workplace hazards. Distrust of inspectors was also widespread. In the survey, 56% (120 companies) said their level of trust in industrial safety inspectors was low. The top reason was “enforcing the law uniformly without understanding the industry,” cited by 41% (49 companies). By company size, 65% of firms with 300 or more employees, 60% of firms with 50 to 299 employees, and 50% of firms with fewer than 50 employees said trust was low. Larger workplaces were more likely to see problems with punishment-centered inspections. On whether the method of selecting inspection targets is appropriate, 53% (115 companies) responded negatively. Among them, 49% said detailed criteria are not disclosed, and 45% said workplace risk levels are not considered. Companies called for a shift in inspection policy. The most common request was “granting an opportunity to correct minor violations,” at 64%, followed by “expanding guidance and consulting focused on improving risk factors,” at 62%. Among companies inspected over the past three years, 49% said the main issues cited were minor violations such as posting material safety data sheets (MSDS) and missing safety signs. The biggest difficulties during inspections were the burden of assigning staff for administrative work such as preparing documents (82%) and the burden of criminal penalties and fines (78%). Lim Woo-taek, head of the federation’s Safety and Health Headquarters, said companies have strong concerns about immediate punishment during inspections and that trust in inspectors is lacking. He said the government should shift inspections toward prevention rather than punishment, including giving companies a chance to correct minor violations, and should strengthen inspectors’ expertise and capabilities.* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-04-26 12:05:37 -
Climate Ministry to Hold Nationwide Flood Response Training Ahead of Summer The government will launch a nationwide series of river-basin flood safety trainings for disaster management officials to help prevent summer flood damage. The Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment said Saturday it will hold the traveling program from April 27 to 30 as part of the third week of the "Third Republic of Korea Flood Safety Emphasis Period" (April 15-May 14). The sessions will target disaster management officials at regional environment offices, flood control offices and local governments. Training will be held in sequence at the Han River Basin Environment Office on April 27, the Nakdong River Basin Environment Office on April 28, the Geum River Basin Environment Office on April 29 and the Yeongsan River Basin Environment Office on April 30. The ministry said it has reorganized the program into an integrated, headquarters-led format, replacing the previous approach of separate trainings by institution. Officials will learn the full flood response process, each agency’s role and how coordination works as a single workflow. The curriculum will focus on practical skills, including how to use flood response systems, to strengthen on-the-ground response capacity. The ministry provides flood alerts at 223 locations, water-level data at 983 locations, artificial intelligence closed-circuit television (AI CCTV) and flood risk maps. It also operates systems including the "Integrated Flood Situation Monitoring System" and the "Dam-River Digital Twin Water Management Platform." To increase local government use of these tools, the ministry said it will give step-by-step guidance, from account registration and login to hands-on use during actual flood response, for officials who are new to the systems or unfamiliar with how to operate them. The program will also cover the ministry’s flood measures for this summer, best practices in flood response and situation reporting, ways to use flood risk maps, and management of flood-vulnerable areas. The ministry said the training will be conducted in a practical format so local officials can clearly understand their roles and respond effectively when flooding occurs. "In flood response, careful and swift situation assessment from the early stage is important," said Cho Hee-song, director general of the ministry’s Water Management Policy Office. "We will prepare thoroughly for floods through substantive training that strengthens the capabilities of frontline disaster response officials."* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-04-26 12:04:48