SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) – South Korean truckers staged their second major strike in less than six months Thursday, in an action that could disrupt critical global supply chains in sectors from cars to steel. All 25,000 members of the Cargo Truckers Solidarity Union stopped working, as part of a long-running protest against the ending of a minimum wage guarantee, Park Yeon-su of the organization told AFP. With fuel prices rising, the drivers have been demanding […]
Tag: South Korean
Wanted crypto founder Do Kwon says ‘not on the run’
SINGAPORE, Singapore (AFP) – Do Kwon, the wanted South Korean founder of the failed cryptocurrency Terra, denied Sunday he was on the run after the Singapore police said he was not in the city-state as had been believed. Kwon’s whereabouts have been thrown into question after the Singapore Police Force (SPF) statement late Saturday, and his tweets did not reveal where he was. The collapse of Terraform Labs earlier this year wiped out about $40 […]
S. Korean presidential hopeful quits after rape accusation
by Jung Hawon Agence France-Presse SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — A former South Korean presidential contender stepped down as a provincial governor and announced his retirement from politics Tuesday in a stunning political fall after a female aide accused him of multiple rapes. Ahn Hee-jung — who came second to current President Moon Jae-in in the contest for the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination last year — is the most prominent figure to face abuse allegations […]
S. Korea ex-president Lee denounces graft probe as ‘revenge’
SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) – Former South Korean president Lee Myung-Bak on Wednesday denounced as “political revenge” a corruption probe into allegations his office accepted bribes from the country’s spy agency. The rare statement from conservative Lee, who stepped down in 2013, came after two of his closest aides were arrested and as his impeached ally and successor Park Geun-Hye stands trial for corruption. South Korean presidents have a tendency to end up in prison — or […]
South Korea’s Moon to visit China next week
SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — South Korean President Moon Jae-In will visit China next week for talks on North Korea and other issues, his office said Wednesday, amid tentative signs of diplomatic movement after months of high tensions over Pyongyang’s nuclear and missile threats. The announcement came as a high-level United Nations representative held talks with a senior North Korean official during a rare trip to Pyongyang. Jeffrey Feltman, UN undersecretary general for political affairs, […]
South Korea advises its nationals against travelling to Bohol
MANILA, Philippines (Eagle News) — The South Korean Foreign Ministry has issued a special travel advisory for Bohol province, warning its citizens to avoid visiting the region, following the clashes of police and soldiers with suspected members of the Abu Sayyaf. According to the South Korean Foreign Ministry, the travel advisory would remain in place until April 23. “Judging that public insecurity could continue for some time on the Island of Bohol, the venue of […]
South Korean kidnapped, murdered by PH police: Seoul
A South Korean businessman who went missing in the Philippines three months ago was kidnapped by policemen and murdered on the day he disappeared, a Seoul official said Wednesday. The family of the man, in his 50s and only identified with his surname Ji, reportedly sent the suspects a ransom of five million pesos ($100,000) two weeks after he was seized in Angeles, near Manila. But he had already been strangled to death and […]
N. Korea missile exploded shortly after lift-off: Seoul
SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — An explosion almost immediately after launch was behind the failure of North Korea’s latest test-firing of a powerful medium-range missile, the South Korean military confirmed Monday. North Korea tested a Musudan missile — capable of hitting US bases as far away as Guam — shortly after midday Saturday near an air base in the northwestern city of Kusong. Such launches are usually reported within a few hours or even minutes […]
Samsung halts sale, exchange of Note 7 over safety fears
by Giles HEWITT SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — Samsung told customers worldwide Tuesday to stop using their Galaxy Note 7 smartphones as it struggled to contain a snowballing safety crisis that threatens to derail the powerhouse global brand. The South Korean conglomerate also called a halt to worldwide sales and exchanges of the troubled Note 7s, as the federal US consumer regulator issued an alarming warning of the possible dangers the device posed to its […]
Samsung to limit recharging of faulty Note 7 batteries
SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — Samsung said Wednesday it would limit recharging of the batteries of its Galaxy Note 7 smartphones to lower the risk of explosions in a measure apparently intended to jolt users into returning their devices following a recall. The South Korean electronics giant on September 2 suspended sales of its latest flagship smartphone and announced a recall of 2.5 million units already sold, after faulty batteries caused some handsets to explode […]
N. Korea appears to have conducted nuclear test: Seoul
SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — North Korea appears to have conducted a fifth nuclear test Friday, South Korean authorities reportedly said, after monitors detected a 5.3-magnitude earthquake near its main nuclear site. The quake was detected near North Korea’s Pyunggye-ri nuclear test site as the country celebrates Foundation Day, which marks the anniversary of the founding of the nation in 1948. Seoul’s meteorological agency said the tremor, detected by quake monitors around the world including […]
S. Korea-US military drill shadowed by N. Korea threats
by Giles HEWITT SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — Tens of thousands of South Korean and US troops began a military exercise simulating an all-out North Korean attack Monday, as Pyongyang threatened a pre-emptive strike on forces participating in the drill. The two-week annual Ulchi Freedom exercise is largely computer-simulated, but still involves 50,000 Korean and 30,000 US soldiers. The drill always triggers a spike in tensions on the divided Korean peninsula, and this year it […]
