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News Keywords Nat'l/Politics North Korea Economy IT/Science Foreign Policy World Life/Culture Sports Weather President Moon to hold talks with U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper on Friday 2019-11-14 Seoul court begins trial on wartime sex slaves 2019-11-14 S. Korea, U.S. to hold senior-level defense meeting in Seoul 2019-11-14 U.S. could alter military drills to boost N. Korea talks: Esper 2019-11-14 Pro-North Korea newspaper says chances for dialogue will disappear if 2019-11-13 GSOMIA termination and Seoul-Tokyo ties 2019-11-13 S. Korea's export prices slide 1.9% on-month in October 2019-11-14 Just two S. Korean companies in world's top 500 by market capitalizati 2019-11-14 KDI slightly lowers S. Korea's growth rate to 2% for 2019, calls for m 2019-11-14 LG Electronics' OLED TV named best of 2019 by Consumer Reports 2019-11-13 BIO PLUS forum: South Korea aims to strengthen its global competitiven 2019-11-13 Using smartphone before bed could increase risk of depression, anxiety 2019-11-12 Unification Ministry officials to visit Japan next week for N. Korea i 2019-11-13 Fmr. U.S. ambassador to UN Nikki Haley claims Trump posed as 'madman' 2019-11-13 Long-delayed, first hearing on 'comfort women' lawsuit to be held in S 2019-11-13 Venice devastated by second highest tide in history 2019-11-14 Hong Kong violence gets worse and China tells U.S. not to interfere 2019-11-14 Questioning begins in first public Trump impeachment hearing 2019-11-14 China confirms two cases of pneumonic plague; spread to S. Korea unlik 2019-11-14 Seoul City names 18 foreigners as honorary Seoul citizens 2019-11-14 'Parasite' favored to win at least one Academy Award 2019-11-14 S. Korean National Football Team arrive in Lebanon... vow victory amid 2019-11-14 Korean team 'Vikira' takes 1st place at 13th Yi Sun-sin Cup Int'l Yach 2019-11-12 S. Korean baseball team clinch 3rd win at WBSC Premier12, heading to S 2019-11-09 Staying cold all day 2019-11-14 Cold snap hits most of Korea 2019-11-14 Cold Suneung Day morning 2019-11-14
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Most Popular U.S. likely to step up pressure on Seoul in terms of GSOMIA, defense costs during security meetings this week The Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, Mark Milley, is in Seoul for a series of defense meetings with South Korean officials. On Thursday, he'll sit down with his South Korean counterpart Park Han-ki for the Military Committee Meeting, where the two sides will discuss the recent security situation on the Korean Peninsula and pending security issues. High on the agenda will be GSOMIA and shared defense costs, with Washington expected to turn up the heat on Seoul. Milley on Tuesday expressed hope of finding a way for Seoul and Tokyo to renew their military intel-sharing pact, GSOMIA, before it expires on November 23. He made the remark following a meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, adding that GSOMIA will be a point of discussion while he's in the South Korean capital. Seoul decided to terminate the deal in August, after Japan placed tougher export restrictions on South Korea in retaliation for a court ruling on Japan's drafting of Koreans into wartime forced labor. South Korea said it could only reconsider GSOMIA if Japan first changes course. On a similar note, the Commander of U.S. Forces Korea, Robert Abrams expressed concern that South Korea's decision to terminate GSOMIA could send the wrong message to their regional adversaries. Speaking to reporters Tuesday as he marked a year in the role, Abrams said the pact had sent a clear message that the two neighbors were prioritizing stability and security over historical differences. With it, he said, they are stronger in providing for a stable and secure Northeast Asia. On the issue of defense costs, the U.S. official said Seoul can and should pay more as it benefits the South Korean economy noting that the funds are used to pay South Koreans employed by the U.S. military, and building new facilities for U.S. forces on the Korean peninsula. The U.S. is reportedly demanding South Korea pay nearly five billion U.S. dollars a year five times more than Seoul agreed to pay this year. Kim Min-ji, Arirang News. 2019-11-13 Finance minister says gov't will aim for growth of over 2.2% for 2020 Finance minister Hong Nam-ki said the government aims to achieve economic growth next year of over 2.2 percent. A range of 2.two to 2-point three percent is the growth forecast estimated by the IMF and OECD. At a briefing with reporters Monday to deliver his assessment of the Moon administration's economic policy so far, the finance minister said the government will focus more on structural reform and boosting productivity for the next 2-and-a-half years. He said the government's shift from policies focused on growth to policies focused on inclusiveness and distribution has helped strengthen the country's social safety net. But he said South Korea's growth has been hurt by slowing growth globally, uncertainties like the U.S.-China trade dispute and the downturn in the semiconductor sector. To help boost growth and investment, he said the Moon Administration, moving forward, will focus on structural reform and deregulation. He added that the government will continue with its expansionary fiscal policy. A 2020 budget of over 440 billion U.S. dollars which is up 9.three percent on-year, has been submitted to the National Assembly. Detailed policy measures for next year will be announced by December. Kim Hyesung, Arirang News. 2019-11-12 Security meetings lined up for S. Korea, U.S. to discuss OPCON, GSOMIA, defense costs A series of security meetings are lined up this week between South Korea and the U.S. where Washington is expected to ramp up pressure on Seoul in terms of defense costs and GSOMIA. Top military officers from Seoul and Washington are to meet later this week at their Military Committee Meeting on Thursday and Security Consultative Meeting on Friday. The two sides are to discuss the recent security situation surrounding the Korean Peninsula and their combined combat readiness as well as the transfer of wartime operational control. But a big talking point is likely to be the cost of stationing U.S. troops in South Korea. Washington has reportedly demanded that Seoul pay nearly 5 billion U.S. dollars for next year, which would be over five times what Seoul is paying now, and therefore unacceptable from Seoul's point of view. In addition, the U.S. is expected to press South Korea to keep its bilateral intel-sharing pact with Japan, GSOMIA. Seoul decided to terminate the deal in August, after Japan adopted export curbs against South Korea, citing a breach of trust in security issues. Unless South Korea rescinds its decision, the pact will automatically expire next Saturday. "U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Mark Milley are expected to stress very strongly the necessity of keeping GSOMIA for close security coordination among South Korea, the U.S. and Japan." Discussions on GSOMIA will continue in meetings to follow. After the Security Consultative Meeting, both defense chiefs are flying to Thailand for the ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting. There, the military chiefs of South Korea, the U.S., and Japan will sit down for trilateral talks and a bilateral meeting between Seoul and Tokyo could also happen. South Korea's current stance is that it will go ahead and terminate GSOMIA unless Tokyo withdraws its export restrictions. Eyes are on whether Seoul will change its mind next week if the bilateral Japan talks happen. Oh Jung-hee, Arirang News. 2019-11-13 N. Korea assails U.S. for its 'political and military provocations,' S. Korea for 'double-dealing behavior' North Korea's ambassador to the United Nations, Kim Song, is pressing Washington to abide by the joint statement adopted by their leaders in Singapore last year. Speaking in New York on Monday at a General Assembly meeting on the International Atomic Energy Agency, Kim claimed the U.S. is entirely to blame for the (quote) "vicious cycle of aggravated tension" being witnessed on the Korean Peninsula. He explained the regime has refrained from testing nuclear and intercontinental ballistic missiles for more than 20 months. However, acting IAEA Director General Cornel Feruta pointed out that the North's nuclear activities are still a cause for serious concern, and they clearly violate the UN Security Council resolutions. 2019-11-12
