Journalist

Jun Sung-min
  • Veterans Affairs Minister Kwon Oeul Meets Heads of Six Veterans Hospitals to Review Medical Supplies
    Veterans Affairs Minister Kwon Oeul Meets Heads of Six Veterans Hospitals to Review Medical Supplies Kwon Oeul, South Korea’s minister of Patriots and Veterans Affairs, will meet with the heads of six veterans hospitals to review operations and share improvement cases, the ministry said. The ministry said the meeting will be held Tuesday afternoon at the Government Complex Sejong, with Kwon; Yoon Jong-jin, chairman of the Korea Veterans Welfare and Healthcare Corp.; and the directors of the veterans hospitals in Seoul, Busan, Gwangju, Daegu, Daejeon and Incheon. Officials plan to recognize hospital leaders for maintaining services in a difficult medical environment and to review changes and results from operational improvements each hospital has pursued since an agency work report in January. Topics will include expanding high-quality medical staff, reducing outpatient waiting times, and improving treatment and payment processes. Kwon also plans to urge hospitals to continue securing appropriate inventory and managing supplies systematically, in line with government policy, amid recent instability in supplies of medical items such as syringes linked to the war in the Middle East. “Even under difficult conditions, I thank the medical staff and officials who have protected the veterans medical front line,” Kwon said. “Based on changes and experience built in the field, we will strengthen cooperation among veterans hospitals and continue to improve the quality of veterans medical services.” * This article has been translated by AI. 2026-04-29 08:47:51
  • Foreign Minister Cho Hyun Meets Bhutan Prime Minister to Expand Cooperation on Climate, Economy
    Foreign Minister Cho Hyun Meets Bhutan Prime Minister to Expand Cooperation on Climate, Economy Foreign Minister Cho Hyun met Monday afternoon with Bhutan Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay at the Foreign Ministry and discussed practical bilateral cooperation and regional developments. Cho welcomed Tobgay’s trip to South Korea, the first visit by a Bhutanese prime minister since 2010. He said he was impressed that Bhutan prioritizes citizens’ happiness and pursues environmentally friendly economic growth, and called for expanding mutually beneficial, practical cooperation between the two countries. Cho said South Korea is also seeking a shift to renewable energy to cut carbon emissions, and expressed hope the two sides would continue working together to respond to the climate crisis with Bhutan, the world’s first carbon-negative country. Tobgay praised South Korea’s efforts to address climate change and achieve carbon neutrality alongside its advanced economic development. He said he hoped the two countries would sustain cooperation in areas including the economy, climate change and development cooperation. The two sides also exchanged views on regional and international issues and cooperation in international organizations. * This article has been translated by AI. 2026-04-28 18:12:28
  • President Lee Accepts Resignations of Senior Aide Ha Jung-woo, Spokeswoman Jeon Eun-su Ahead of By-Elections
    President Lee Accepts Resignations of Senior Aide Ha Jung-woo, Spokeswoman Jeon Eun-su Ahead of By-Elections President Lee Jae-myung on the 28th approved the resignations submitted by Ha Jung-woo, the presidential office’s senior secretary for AI and future planning, and spokeswoman Jeon Eun-su. In a notice, senior presidential spokesperson Kang Yu-jung said Lee accepted Ha’s resignation, saying he respected the “difficult decision.” According to the presidential office, Lee told Ha he hoped he would continue to serve the country and the public wherever he works. Kang added that Lee also approved the resignations of Jeon and Kim Seong-beom, vice minister of oceans and fisheries. Ha and Jeon are expected to leave the presidential office as of the 28th and begin preparing for National Assembly by-elections to be held alongside the June 3 local elections. Ha, who is widely expected to run in the Busan Buk-gu Gap by-election, told reporters he had received strong support from Lee during more than 10 months as AI senior secretary. “Some may think 10 months is short, but I have never changed my direction of wanting to build a country where there are opportunities to grow,” he said. He said that wherever he goes, he will focus on what matters most at the time to help make South Korea one of the world’s three leading AI powers, adding that Lee “coolly” let him go. Ha said Lee encouraged him by saying, “You made a big decision. Wherever you go, work for the national interest and the people.” Jeon is expected to run in South Chungcheong Province’s Asan, the constituency of presidential chief of staff Kang Hoon-sik. She told reporters she had worked alongside Lee on state affairs and would now communicate with the public “on the front lines,” adding, “I will do politics for the people.” * This article has been translated by AI. 2026-04-28 17:57:05
  • President Lee Jae-myung urges unity at Admiral Yi Sun-sin birthday ceremony
    President Lee Jae-myung urges unity at Admiral Yi Sun-sin birthday ceremony "Just as Gen. Yi Sun-sin saved the nation from a national crisis, it is our mission to overcome today’s challenges together," President Lee Jae-myung said Monday, calling for national unity at a ceremony in Asan, South Chungcheong Province, marking the 481st birthday of the naval commander honored as Chungmugong. It was the first time an incumbent president attended the annual event since the late former President Kim Young-sam. Lee said the country faces headwinds comparable to the turbulent seas Yi confronted. He cited a rapidly shifting international order that has increased uncertainty, and said rising energy prices and inflation pressures tied to the war in the Middle East are affecting people’s lives. "To withstand the fierce winds blowing from outside, strong unity that does not waver from within is essential," Lee said. "No matter how great the crisis, if the people join forces as one, we can overcome it." He pointed to Yi’s famed victory with 13 ships against a Japanese fleet more than 10 times larger, saying it was possible because everyone — from the commander to soldiers and civilians — was united. Lee pledged that his "people-sovereignty government" would take Yi’s spirit as a guiding light and use national unity as the driving force to confront national challenges. Lee also vowed to turn the crisis into an opportunity for a new leap forward. He said his government would establish a system in which the gains from growth are shared broadly, build a fair society where privilege and rule-breaking are not tolerated, and restore social trust. He said the government would speed up the energy transition and concentrate its capabilities so South Korea can become a global leader in advanced technologies, including artificial intelligence. "Together with our great people, we will overcome today’s challenges and move forward steadily toward a country where everyone is happy," he said. Lee called Yi an enduring national hero who achieved victories rarely matched in naval warfare history. He said Yi prepared in advance of the Imjin War by building the turtle ship and conducting practical training. Lee said Yi’s key to repeated battlefield victories was a stern sense of duty and devotion to the people, captured in the phrase "live and you die; die and you live," meaning a willingness to face death to protect civilians. "That is why, even with scarce resources and amid despair, he united soldiers and the people and saved the country at a moment of extreme peril," Lee said, offering renewed respect and gratitude. * This article has been translated by AI. 2026-04-28 16:28:04
  • Lee Says South Korea Can Defend Itself Without Relying on Foreign Troops
    Lee Says South Korea Can Defend Itself Without Relying on Foreign Troops President Lee Jae-myung on the 28th stressed self-reliant defense, saying, “A country should protect itself. Why depend on others? We can, naturally and sufficiently.” Speaking at a Cabinet meeting he chaired at Cheong Wa Dae, Lee said South Korea once faced difficulties but no longer does “thanks to the outstanding efforts and capabilities of the people.” He said South Korea’s military capability, excluding U.S. Forces Korea, ranks fifth in the world and that its annual defense spending is 1.4 times North Korea’s annual gross domestic product. He added that South Korean forces are well trained and morale is high, that the country’s economic strength is not comparable to the North’s, and that its defense industry has risen to fourth in the world in exports. “Then why do we keep feeling anxious, as if it would be difficult to defend ourselves without foreign troops?” Lee asked. Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back replied that “some forces tend to incite and stir that up,” but most people do not share that view. Lee urged him to “make this objective situation widely known to the public.” Lee said the government should ensure that “even a small number” of people do not feel uneasy. “We must take responsibility ourselves with confidence,” he said, adding that the public should understand South Korea has sufficient capability now and “need not worry” that defense spending will be increased further. Ahn reported that, in that context, South Korea also has tangible and intangible assets and a strategic system that could allow it to move up the timeline for regaining wartime operational control. Lee replied, “Of course it should.” Lee also said payments of relief funds for damage from high oil prices began the day before. He instructed the government to closely manage the application process so people who have difficulty accessing online services are not inconvenienced, and to execute other supplementary budget funds as quickly as possible. He said the government should also check for any blind spots in support for groups hit hard by high oil prices, such as cargo truck workers and farmers. Lee said first-quarter GDP growth came in at 1.7%, nearly double the initial forecast of 0.9% and the highest in five years and six months. He said the recovery trend that began in the second half of last year appears to be accelerating. But he warned that external uncertainty remains high as the Middle East war enters its second month, and that signs are emerging that the shock from high oil prices could spread to the real economy. He said the government must respond with more finely tuned policies and “make an all-out effort” to sustain growth, with the mindset that “true crisis management starts now.” Meanwhile, the Cabinet meeting reviewed and approved a package of items including 27 presidential decree bills, three promulgation bills, one bill, 10 general agenda items and one report item, including steps to respond to high oil prices driven by the Middle East situation. The revisions include extending by two months, from the 30th of this month to June 30, a temporary flexible tax-rate cut on the individual consumption tax for butane, and expanding the size of the cut. The meeting also passed a revision to the enforcement decree of the Commercial Building Lease Protection Act, which sets detailed categories for management-fee information landlords must provide to tenants. The change is tied to an amended law that will take effect in May and creates tenants’ right to request management-fee breakdowns. Landlords must specify amounts for 14 categories, including general management fees, cleaning and security. To ease the burden on small landlords, if a tenant’s monthly management fee is less than 100,000 won, landlords may list only the categories without itemized amounts. The Cabinet also approved an agenda item to exempt preliminary feasibility studies and related procedures to speed housing supply using public idle land and aging government buildings. The measure is tied to the “plan to expand and accelerate urban housing supply” announced Jan. 29, which calls for supplying 60,000 homes for young people and newlyweds in prime locations in the Seoul metropolitan area. In a closed meeting, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and the Ministry of Finance and Economy presented reports on major real estate policy issues. Senior presidential spokesperson Kang Yu-jeong said in a written briefing that discussions included a plan to defer the owner-occupancy requirement, for fairness with multi-homeowners, when a nonresident one-homeowner sells a home that has a tenant. 2026-04-28 15:23:00
  • South Korea Envoy Says North Korea Nuclear Issue Is Top Challenge to NPT
    South Korea Envoy Says North Korea Nuclear Issue Is Top Challenge to NPT Jeong Yeon-du, South Korea’s senior representative for North Korea nuclear diplomacy, reaffirmed the government’s goal of the “complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula” and stressed the urgency of resolving the North’s nuclear issue at a meeting of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, the Foreign Ministry said. In a keynote address on April 27 (local time) at the 11th NPT Review Conference in New York, Jeong, director-general of the ministry’s Foreign Strategy and Information Bureau, said North Korea is “the only case” to have benefited from the NPT system, then declared its withdrawal and openly continued developing nuclear weapons. He called it “the most urgent challenge” to the nonproliferation regime. Jeong said all countries seeking to uphold the NPT must send a clear message that returning to the treaty is the only path that can guarantee security and prosperity. He also urged Russia to halt what he described as illegal military cooperation with North Korea. The ministry said Jeong outlined Seoul’s plan to pursue a phased denuclearization process moving from suspension to reduction and then dismantlement. Jeong said today’s unstable international security environment is undermining the NPT’s credibility and effectiveness, and proposed that nuclear-armed states engage in dialogue to increase transparency and build mutual trust. * This article has been translated by AI. 2026-04-28 11:48:17
  • Lee Says High Oil Price Relief Payments Could Spur Recovery, Urges Focus on Gaps
    Lee Says High Oil Price Relief Payments Could Spur Recovery, Urges Focus on Gaps President Lee Jae-myung said the first round of relief payments for damage from high oil prices is expected to have an economic ripple effect similar to last year’s consumer spending coupons, which he said helped reignite a recovery. Speaking while chairing a Cabinet meeting and emergency economic review meeting at Cheong Wa Dae on April 28, Lee said payments began the day before and urged officials to ensure people who have difficulty accessing online services are not inconvenienced during the application process. He also called for other supplementary budget funds to be executed as quickly as possible. Lee stressed the need to check for policy blind spots in support for groups hit hardest by high oil prices, including cargo truck workers and farmers. He also called for faster progress on structural reforms, including an “AI transformation” and a circular economy centered on recycled raw materials. Lee said first-quarter GDP growth came in at 1.7%, nearly double the initial forecast of 0.9% and the highest in five years and six months, adding that the recovery that took hold in the second half of last year appears to be accelerating. But he warned that external uncertainty remains high as the Middle East war enters its second month, and that signs are emerging that high oil prices could spill over into the real economy. He said the government should respond with more finely tuned policies and focus on maintaining growth momentum “with the mindset that the real test starts now.” Lee said the war has expanded geopolitical risks and is driving structural realignments in the global economy and security environment. To secure stable growth engines amid the shifts, he said South Korea needs “strategic, flexible and practical diplomacy” that reduces dependence on any one region and steadily broadens its options. He said his recent visits to India and Vietnam strengthened cooperation across multiple areas and should be viewed as a positive outcome in terms of long-term national interests. He added that South Korea should continue expanding its diplomatic horizons with the Global South from the perspective of “strategic national interest diplomacy.” Lee also said cooperation with traditional allies should be advanced, calling for wisdom to resolve pending issues based on common sense and principles, with mutual respect, and to build healthy, forward-looking ties. He said South Korea would pursue diplomacy that builds genuine friendship with allies “with the confidence of a sovereign nation.” Turning to education, Lee said a series of recent incidents have seriously infringed on teachers’ rights and educational activities. He said normalizing public education must start with protecting the rights and authority of teachers, “another key stakeholder in education,” as well as students. He said the priority should be creating conditions that reduce excessive administrative work so teachers can focus on teaching and student guidance. Lee added that teachers’ rights and students’ rights are not a zero-sum relationship, and urged the government to promptly prepare measures to strengthen practical protections for teachers and stabilize schools.* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-04-28 11:03:21
  • Patriots Ministry Standardizes Gen. Hong Beom-do’s Birthplace and Birth Date as Pyongyang, Aug. 27, 1868
    Patriots Ministry Standardizes Gen. Hong Beom-do’s Birthplace and Birth Date as Pyongyang, Aug. 27, 1868 Different government and related institutions have used varying information for Gen. Hong Beom-do’s birthplace and birth date, but those details have now been standardized. The Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs, led by Minister Kwon O-eul, said on 28 it will unify Hong’s birthplace and birth date based on expert advice and consultations with relevant organizations and will notify related institutions of the updated information. The ministry said there have been no definitive records such as a family register transcript or court ruling. After South Korea established diplomatic ties with the Soviet Union and its constituent republics in 1990 and new materials such as Hong’s diary and survey forms became known, institutions began using slightly different entries. After consulting historians, gathering views from the Hong Beom-do Memorial Foundation and the War Memorial of Korea, and coordinating with the Independence Hall of Korea and the National Memorial Museum of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea, the ministry concluded it is most reliable and reasonable to list Hong’s birthplace as Pyongyang, South Pyongan Province, and his birth date as Aug. 27, 1868. The ministry said it will share the findings with related bodies, including the Defense Ministry and the Korea Military Academy, as well as the War Memorial of Korea and the Independence Hall of Korea, and guide them on making corrections. Kwon said correcting records related to Hong “clarifies historical facts and, at the same time, sets right the basic national respect owed to an independence hero.” He added that the government will continue careful verification of records on independence patriots so the public can fully remember their lives and achievements. The ministry also operates the “Gonghun Electronic Archives” to provide information on state honors for independence patriots, their merits and the “Independence Activist of the Month,” and it includes details on Hong’s contributions. * This article has been translated by AI. 2026-04-28 10:14:26
  • President Lee Jae-myung vows all measures to prevent workplace deaths on Industrial Accident Workers’ Day
    President Lee Jae-myung vows all measures to prevent workplace deaths on Industrial Accident Workers’ Day President Lee Jae-myung said April 28 that he would use “every possible means” to ensure workplaces do not become sites of death, marking Industrial Accident Workers’ Day. In a Facebook post, Lee said he mourned “from the bottom of my heart” all workers who did not return home from their jobs. He called eliminating industrial accidents a key policy task for what he described as a “people-sovereignty government,” and said “sustainable growth based on safety” is a core principle that cannot be shaken. Lee said broad government efforts and cooperation between labor and management are beginning to show results, citing a 17.5% drop in workplace deaths in the first quarter compared with a year earlier. But he said the country still has a long way to go in the face of lives lost and the grief of families and neighbors. He pledged to tighten laws and systems so familiar tragedies are not repeated because of neglected hazards or small gaps, adding that the government would establish new standards and systems if necessary. Lee said the achievement of being the world’s 10th-largest economy cannot be a source of pride while the country carries the stigma of ranking first among OECD members in industrial accident death rates. He vowed to take responsibility so the day becomes not only one of mourning and remembrance, but also a day to reaffirm safety and talk about recovery. * This article has been translated by AI. 2026-04-28 09:33:16
  • Lee Praises NTS Chief Lim for Tracking Overseas Hidden Assets of Tax Delinquents
    Lee Praises NTS Chief Lim for Tracking Overseas Hidden Assets of Tax Delinquents President Lee Jae-myung applauded the National Tax Service on the 28th for tracking overseas hidden assets held by tax delinquents, calling tax fairness “a very important value.” In a post on X, formerly Twitter, Lee thanked NTS Commissioner Lim Gwang-hyeon for “working hard,” noting that Lim took the job after leaving his seat as a lawmaker. The NTS said the previous day it had recovered 33.9 billion won in overseas assets from delinquent taxpayers since Lee’s government launched in July last year. Lim wrote on X the previous day that the agency has recovered a total of 37.2 billion won in delinquent taxes from overseas since 2015, including 33.9 billion won during the nine months since Lee’s government took office. He added that recovery procedures are still underway in locations around the world. * This article has been translated by AI. 2026-04-28 08:45:16