Yoon defends aborted martial law decree, vows to fight to the end

SEOUL, December 12 (AJP) - President Yoon Suk Yeol defended his aborted declaration of martial law last week as a legitimate exercise of his authority in governing state affairs and vowed to fight to the end, in a pre-recorded nationwide address at the presidential office in Yongsan, Seoul on Thursday. Yoon, who had holed up in his official residence in Hannam-dong after making a brief apology last Saturday, appeared to deliver the address to justify last Tuesday's debacle and r

December 12, 2024

OPINION: Taiwan president's trip skillful, successful

KENOSHA, December 12 (AJP) - "Peace is priceless, and war has no winners." Taiwan President Lai Chin-te, also known as William Lai, included that statement in a Honolulu address to an audience of Hawaii and U.S. government officials, including members of Congress. Lai was on a brief two-day “transit” stop in Hawaii, carefully choreographed to show U.S. support for Taiwan without indicating formal diplomatic relations. This reflects ongoing tensions with m

December 12, 2024

OPINION: Why Trump's election could hasten end of US dollar dominance

SEOUL, December 12 (AJP) - Donald Trump's victory in November's U.S. presidential election saw the U.S. dollar strengthen. It surged to a one-year high within two weeks, and has since retained its strength against its major peers. His election has also again brought the prospect of U.S. tariffs on imports, and attention has focused on the disruption to global trade that these may bring. As part of this, Trump made a not-so-veiled threat of steep levies on the Brics group of

December 12, 2024

Russian Embassy in Pyongyang hosts banquet to celebrate ratification of military pact

SEOUL, December 11 (AJP) - The Russian Embassy in North Korea hosted a banquet on Tuesday to celebrate the ratification of a military defense pact between the two countries, North Korean state media reported Wednesday. The official state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said its leader Kim Jong-un's sister Yo-jong, Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui, and other top officials including Choe Ryong-hae, chairman of the rubberstamp Supreme People's Assembly, attended the event.

December 11, 2024

Joint team formed to probe martial law debacle

SEOUL, December 11 (AJP) - A team of investigators from three different agencies is set to launch a joint probe into President Yoon Suk Yeol's abrupt declaration of martial law last week. Consisting of investigators from the Ministry of Defense, the National Police Agency, and the Corruption Investigation Office for High-Ranking Officials (CIO), an independent agency established to root out corruption in government, the team formed on Wednesday aims to minimize inefficiency and

December 11, 2024

Police attempt raid on presidential office, face standoff

SEOUL, December 11 (AJP) - Police on Wednesday tried to raid the presidential office in Yongsan, Seoul, about a week after President Yoon Suk Yeol abruptly declared martial law last week. Some 18 investigators arrived at the presidential compound at around 11:50 a.m. with a search warrant to seize documents and other records which could provide a clue about Yoon's short-lived martial law debacle last Tuesday. But they were prevented from entering by security staff, who, citin

December 11, 2024

PHOTOS: Rightist groups hold rally in support of President Yoon Suk Yeol

SEOUL, December 11 (AJP) - Rightist groups including the Liberty Unification Party held a rally near Gwanghwamun Station in central Seoul on Wednesday, Dec. 11, 2024, to oppose impeachment of President Yoon Suk Yeol. They alleged Yoon declared martial law on Dec. 3 to save country from Lee Jae-myung, leader of the main-opposition Democratic Party.

December 11, 2024

PHOTOS: AI-generated films starring actress Na Moon-hee will hit theaters

SEOUL, December 11 (AJP) - A collection of five short films starring veteran actress Na Moon-hee, generated entirely through artificial intelligence (AI) technology, is set to premiere on Dec. 24. These films are the winning entries of a contest that invited filmmakers to create short stories using Na's likeness and voice.

December 11, 2024

OPINION: The west is already at war with Russia. And large-scale conflict may not be far off

SEOUL, December 11 (AJP) - Russia is already at war with the west. It has been so since its occupation of Crimea in 2014, when Russia sought to secure its access to Sevastopol as a base for its Black Sea Fleet and as a potential lever of influence over Kyiv's political direction. Even in 2014 – at the annual Valdai security conference – Vladimir Putin was referencing an escalation towards conflict with the west. He later described the west as having "crossed a l

December 11, 2024

Doosan Group halts restructuring plan amid market volatility

SEOUL, December 11 (AJP) - Doosan Group has halted its ambitious corporate restructuring plan, citing recent market volatility that has sent its stock prices plummeting. The conglomerate had intended to split Doosan Bobcat from Doosan Enerbility and fold it into a subsidiary of Doosan Robotics. The proposed reorganization aimed to streamline the group's portfolio into three main sectors: clean energy (Doosan Enerbility, Doosan Fuel Cell), smart machines (Doosan Robotics, Doosa

December 11, 2024