The Democratic Party of Korea plans to pass a bill for appointing a permanent special counsel to investigate whether President Yoon Suk Yeol committed treason on the night he declared martial law. The Democratic Party, which has enough seats in the Assembly to pass bills without ruling party support, will put to vote a permanent special counsel investigation bill on Dec. 10, according to the party’s chief spokesperson Rep. Jo Seoung-lae on Thursday. Jo told reporters his party has made lau

Politics Dec. 5, 2024

President Yoon Suk Yeol is accused by the opposition of committing treason when he had troops break into the National Assembly as he invoked martial law late Tuesday. What Yoon did on the night of martial law -- deploying soldiers to the Assembly buildings and trying to thwart parliamentary efforts to overturn his decision -- was a botched coup attempt, main opposition leader Rep. Lee Jae-myung said Thursday at a meeting of the Democratic Party of Korea leadership. Labeling Yoon an “insurr

Politics Dec. 5, 2024

Minister of National Defense Kim Yong-hyun offered to step down Wednesday shortly after the Democratic Party of Korea filed an impeachment bill against him over his role in President Yoon Suk Yeol declaring martial law a day prior. In a brief text message, the South Korean defense minister said he accepts full responsibility for all events related to Tuesday’s martial law declaration and that he told the president he intended to resign. Kim said all members of the country’s armed f

Politics Dec. 4, 2024

-Yoon to face deepening political isolation amid growing threats of impeachment -All senior aides, Cabinet members offer to resign -Opposition submits bills to impeach Yoon, defense minister -Offering to resign, defense minister apologizes, says will take sole responsibility -Ruling party, PM convene at presidential office, PPP split on severing ties with Yoon -Supreme Court chief justice says illegality of martial law declaration will be reviewed -Armed troops forcibly enter Assembly for 1st ti

Politics Dec. 4, 2024

After President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law in a late-night address to the nation Tuesday, a tense standoff unfolded in the National Assembly for over two hours until lawmakers voted to overturn military rule. In the hours following the declaration, armed troops forcibly entered the Assembly for the first time in the history of the country’s legislature. From around 10:50 p.m., less than an hour after Yoon’s surprise martial law declaration, the Assembly compound was lined wit

Politics Dec. 4, 2024

Troops deployed for martial law returned to their bases as President Yoon Suk Yeol agreed to lift the martial law he declared about six hours ago late Tuesday. According to the South Korean military, all troops had been called back to their bases as of 4:22 a.m. Wednesday. The South Korean military added it continued to maintain high vigilance and that nothing unusual was observed in North Korea.

Defense Dec. 4, 2024

In the hours after President Yoon Suk Yeol declared in South Korea at around 10:20 p.m. Tuesday, chaos ensued west of Yeouido in central Seoul as lawmakers, aides and reporters rushed to get to the National Assembly. Soon after Yoon announced he would impose martial law, police squads began surrounding the gates of the legislature. At this point, people could enter at checkpoints if they presented their passes. Democratic Party of Korea Rep. Kim Byung-kee, running up flights of stairs, could be

Politics Dec. 4, 2024

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol late Tuesday imposed martial law in the country, barring all forms of political gatherings and placing press under control of the military. The martial law came into effect as of 11 p.m. Tuesday. Army Chief of Staff Gen. Park An-su, who was named the martial law commander, issued a martial law decree and said all political activities including those of the National Assembly are banned. All press is subject to martial law control and all activities that contri

Politics Dec. 4, 2024

South Korean Minister of National Defense Kim Yong-hyun called a meeting of key commanders late Tuesday as President Yoon Suk Yeol declared an emergency martial law. In a brief alert, the Ministry of National Defense said the minister convened a meeting gathering commanders across the country and ordered all forces to be on high alert. Gen. Park An-su, the Army chief of staff, was made martial law commander as of 11 p.m. Tuesday.

Defense Dec. 3, 2024

The South Korean military plans to introduce cardboard drones, dubbed “cheap stealth” because they are inexpensive and invisible to radar. According to the Ministry of National Defense on Tuesday, the military is set to finalize a contract to purchase the cardboard drones around the end of this year. Approximately 100 cardboard drones are to be supplied to the Drone Operations Command by early next year, the Defense Ministry said. “Drones have emerged as a game changer in moder

Defense Dec. 3, 2024

This budget season, the Democratic Party of Korea is leading a push to cut government funds for classified purposes with the stated aim of preventing waste of taxpayer money. In the latest amendment to the 2025 budget bill submitted by the Democratic Party, classified funding for some of the country’s law enforcement and security agencies -- the police, the prosecution and President Yoon Suk Yeol’s National Security Office -- was slashed completely. Reducing secret government expendi

Politics Dec. 2, 2024

The National Assembly is on a collision course as the parliament, where the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea holds the majority of seats, pushed through a budget cut proposal that would strip authorities in the Yoon Suk Yeol administration of their confidential funds. This came along with another high-stakes opposition-led move to impeach the head of the state-run Board of Audit and Inspection and three prosecutors who found Yoon's wife Kim Keon Hee not guilty of her alleged involvement

Politics Dec. 1, 2024

Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov left Pyongyang on Saturday after holding talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and his North Korean counterpart, No Kwang-chol, in the latest show of deepening cooperation between the two countries. The Russian delegation led by Belousov departed from the North Korean capital at the end of his two-day visit laden with meetings with the country’s political and military leaders, the North’s Korean Central News Agency reported Sunday. The Ru

Politics Dec. 1, 2024

The main opposition Democratic Party of Korea has agreed to delay taxes on profits from cryptocurrency trades, floor leader Rep. Park Chan-dae said Sunday. “We have decided to agree to a two-year moratorium on the implementation of the cryptocurrency taxation proposed by the government and ruling party,” Park said in a press conference. The law taxing cryptocurrency income is set to come into effect from January. The government earlier proposed postponing the law by two years, and th

Politics Dec. 1, 2024

The delegation from Ukraine did not request that South Korea provide defensive weapons during a series of high-level meetings held Wednesday in Seoul. Minister of National Defense Kim Yong-hyun, who spoke with his visiting Ukrainian counterpart Rustem Umerov for 30 minutes on Wednesday, said he “did not receive any proposals” from the delegation about buying the Cheongung air defense system, as some reports had speculated. The South Korean defense minister was speaking Thursday in re

Politics Nov. 28, 2024