KFA confirms North Korean female soccer club visit for AFC finals in Suwon SEOUL, May 04 (AJP) - The Korea Football Association confirmed Monday that North Korean women's soccer club Naegohyang (meaning "my hometown" in Korean) will visit Suwon, south of Seoul, for the Asian Football Confederation Women's Champions League finals. The visit marks the first time a North Korean athletic delegation has entered South Korea in eight years. According to South Korea's football governing body, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) informed May 4, 2026

Korea University, UNIST team up to build Korean version of Harvard-MIT HST SEOUL, May 04 (AJP) - Korea University College of Medicine and the Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST) have been picked for the government's flagship program to nurture physician-scientists, marking a fresh push to close the gap between Korean medical research and global leaders such as Harvard-MIT and Stanford. The two institutions were selected as a new consortium under the 2026 K-MediST (Korea Medical Science & Technology) program, supervised by the May 4, 2026

Royal night revived through open-air concert at Changdeok palace SEOUL, May 03 (AJP) -The glow of lanterns and the sound of centuries-old melodies filled Changdeokgung as a 100-member traditional Korean music ensemble transformed the royal palace into an open-air nighttime stage during a rare spring performance in central Seoul. Held from May 1 to 3 at Injeongjeon Hall, the palace’s main throne hall, the “2026 Royal Palace Concert: Music of Great Peace” invited visitors to step into a royal setting once reserved for kings, co May 4, 2026

KOSPI tops 6,800 on AI-driven chip rally amid easing Hormuz tensions SEOUL, May 04 (AJP) - South Korea’s benchmark KOSPI jumped more than 3 percent at the open on Monday to test a new plateau above 6,800 on strong institutional buying in chip and other large-cap stocks. Market sentiment was also influenced by geopolitical developments after U.S. President Donald Trump said the United States would begin safely escorting ships from “neutral and innocent” countries through the Strait of Hormuz under a new initiative referred to as &l May 4, 2026

No Children's Day without LEGO: Gwanghwamun turns into brick playground SEOUL, May 04 (AJP) -For Koreans, Children’s Day and LEGO are nearly inseparable — a pairing as familiar as balloons, picnic mats and spring sunshine. At Gwanghwamun Square over the weekend, that bond unfolded on a citywide scale as the “2026 Gwanghwamun Family Festival – Let’s Play Gwanghwamun” transformed the heart of Seoul into a sprawling outdoor LEGO playground packed with families, strollers and towering brick creations. Organized with May 4, 2026

BTS album Arirang maintains top five presence on Billboard 200 for sixth week SEOUL, May 04 (AJP) - K-pop band BTS extended its run on the United States music charts as its fifth studio album, Arirang, remained in the top five of Billboard 200 for its sixth consecutive week. The release continues to draw engagement from physical sales and digital streaming. Most high-profile albums typically see sharp consumption declines after initial debut weeks. The album moved 56,000 equivalent album units for the week ending May 3, according to Billboard. Data repre May 4, 2026

S. Korean researchers develop hologram technology using light properties as security keys SEOUL, May 04 (AJP) - Researchers at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology have developed a holographic technology that uses the physical properties of light as an encryption key to reveal hidden information, the university said Monday. The system manipulates how light vibrates and twists to ensure that images are only visible when viewed under specific conditions. The research team, led by ,Shin Jong-hwa, a professor at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and May 4, 2026

US to launch "Project Freedom" to guide trapped ships through Hormuz SEOUL, May 04 (AJP) -U.S. President Donald Trump said Sunday that Washington would begin guiding commercial vessels out of the Strait of Hormuz after ships became stranded amid the escalating conflict between the United States and Iran, raising fresh attention in South Korea where dozens of vessels and crews remain exposed to the disruption. “Countries from all over the World … have asked the United States if we could help free up their Ships, which are locked up in t May 4, 2026

South Korea deploys CAS500-2 satellite in milestone for domestic space technology SEOUL, May 3 (AJP) — South Korea successfully launched its next-generation midsized Earth observation satellite on Sunday, marking a major step forward in the country’s push to strengthen homegrown space technology and private-sector satellite capabilities. The satellite, known as CAS500-2 or Next-Generation Mid-Sized Satellite No. 2, lifted off aboard SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California at 4 p.m. Korea time Sunday, according May 3, 2026

Three in four young Koreans say they are nonreligious SEOUL, May 03 (AJP) - Three out of four South Koreans in their 20s now identify as having no religion, highlighting a deepening generational shift that is accelerating the aging of the country’s faith communities and clergy. According to a recent report by Gallup Korea titled Religion of Koreans 1983–2025, only 24 percent of adults in their 20s said they currently practice a religion last year, meaning more than 75 percent described themselves as nonreligious. The fig May 3, 2026