Kepco has held discussions about developing Wylfa Newydd site on Anglesey
South Korea’s state-owned nuclear developer has discussed building a multibillion-pound power plant in Wales with the UK government, it has emerged.
Kepco, the largest utility provider in South Korea, has held early-stage discussions with Westminster officials about developing the Wylfa Newydd site on the island of Anglesey (Ynys Môn), the Financial Times reported.
Continue reading...PM Han Duk-soo said the government ‘humbly accepted’ the election result, which severely dents the political power of the president
Senior ruling party politicians in South Korea have offered to resign to take responsibility for its heavy defeat in Wednesday’s national assembly elections – a result that has severely weakened the country’s conservative president, Yoon Suk Yeol.
The prime minister, Han Duk-soo, tendered his resignation on Thursday as the scale of the drubbing meted out to the conservative People Power party (PPP) became apparent, according to the Yonhap news agency.
Continue reading...Lee Jong-sup is being investigated over allegations he tried to improperly influence an inquiry into death of marine while he was defence minister
South Korea’s ambassador to Australia resigned on Friday as questions about his appointment while he is under a corruption investigation battered President Yoon Suk Yeol’s ruling party less than two weeks from a closely fought parliamentary election.
Lee Jong-sup, who was appointed ambassador to Australia just four weeks ago, is being investigated over allegations he tried to improperly influence a probe into the death of a marine last year while he was defence minister.
Continue reading...Some professors will submit their resignations while others will cut their hours over a government plan to boost medical school admissions
Medical professors in South Korea have said they will reduce the hours they spend in practice, while some say they plan to resign, in a widening of a doctors strike in the country.
The move will begin on Monday in support of trainee doctors who have been on strike for more than a month over a government plan to boost medical school admissions.
Continue reading...Coastguard says chemical tanker was carrying 980 tonnes of acrylic acid but no leaks reported
Eight people died after a South Korean-flagged tanker capsized in rough seas off Japan, the coastguard said.
“They were confirmed dead at a hospital,” a spokesperson told AFP on Wednesday. One other person was in a non-life-threatening condition while two others remained missing.
Continue reading...The Japanese star is considered one of the most talented players in history. Now he finds himself in an unfamiliar role as a cultural ambassador
The sport is American, the venue South Korean. But when the LA Dodgers and San Diego Padres open the Major League Baseball season with two games in Seoul this week, all eyes will be on a Japanese superstar: Shohei Ohtani.
It says much about Ohtani’s singular appeal that South Korean baseball fans are as excited about his imminent presence in the batter’s box at Gocheok Sky Dome as his legions of admirers in Japan.
The Associated Press contributed reporting
Continue reading...The 79-year-old actor who won a Golden Glove for his role as Oh II-nam on the hit Netflix show has been handed a suspended prison sentence
South Korean actor O Yeong-su, who starred in the first season of the hit Netflix series Squid Game, was convicted on Friday on charges of sexual harassment and handed a suspended prison sentence, a court official said.
The Seongnam branch of the Suwon district court sentenced O to eight months in prison, suspended for two years, as well as 40 hours of attendance at a sexual violence treatment programme, the court official said by telephone.
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Continue reading...Almost 12,000 doctors have walked out over planned changes, as the country’s health ministry denies services have descended into chaos
South Korea’s government has started taking steps to suspend the medical licences of thousands of striking doctors, as concern grows that the month-long dispute is affecting frontline health care services.
The walkout by almost 12,000 doctors from 100 teaching hospitals has led to surgery cancellations, longer waiting times and delays in treatment, including for patients seeking emergency care, according to media reports.
Continue reading...Average number of births per woman falls to 0.72 in country that already has the world’s lowest rate, and has spent billions since 2006 to reverse the trend
South Korea’s demographic crisis has deepened with the release of data showing its birthrate – already the world’s lowest – fell to a new record low in 2023, despite billions of dollars in government schemes designed to persuade families to have more children.
Reports that South Korea’s population had shrunk for the fourth straight year came soon after neighbouring Japan reported a record decline in its population last year, along with a record fall in the number of births and the lowest number of marriages since the end of the second world war.
Continue reading...Pair are first police officials to be sentenced over 2022 disaster in which nearly 160 people died
A South Korean court has sentenced two former senior police officers for destroying evidence linked to Seoul’s deadly 2022 Halloween crush.
Tens of thousands of people, mostly in their 20s and 30s, had been out on 29 October 2022 to enjoy the first post-pandemic holiday celebrations in the popular Itaewon nightlife district. The night turned deadly when crowds poured into a narrow, sloping alleyway between bars and clubs, leading to nearly 160 people being crushed to death.
Continue reading...South Korean military says it is analysing the launch along with US intelligence authorities
North Korea has fired multiple cruise missiles off an eastern military port, South Korea’s joint chiefs of staff have said.
The missiles were launched about 8am (2300 GMT Saturday) and were being analysed by South Korean and US intelligence authorities, South Korea said, without specifying how many missiles were fired.
Continue reading...Boy sent to mental health facility after Bae Hyun-jin left with cuts to her head from attack in Seoul
A 14-year-old boy who attacked a South Korean lawmaker with a rock has been sent to a mental health facility, police have said, as they continued to investigate the incident that left the politician, Bae Hyun-jin, with cuts to her head.
The suspect was arrested at the scene of the attack in southern Seoul on Friday and sent to a hospital after he was interviewed in the presence of his parents, said Cheon Young-gil, an official at Seoul’s Gangnam district police station.
Continue reading...Kim Kwang-ho accused of negligence in failing to ‘take necessary measures’ to prevent 2022 disaster in capital’s Itaewon nightlife district
Seoul’s chief of police has been charged with professional negligence over the deadly Halloween crush in 2022 that killed nearly 160 people, prosecutors in the South Korean capital have said.
Kim Kwang-ho, head of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency (SMPA), was charged with professional negligence resulting in injury or death, Seoul’s western district prosecutors’ office said in a statement released on Friday.
Continue reading...Footage shows two 16-year-olds being sentenced in front of hundreds of their peers in an amphitheatre
Video footage released by an organisation that works with North Korean defectors shows North Korean authorities publicly sentencing two teenagers to 12 years’ hard labour for watching South Korean videos.
The footage, which shows the two 16-year-olds in Pyongyang convicted of watching South Korean films and music videos, was released by the South and North Development Institute (Sand).
Continue reading...South Korea says backgrounds of recent defectors including some ‘elite class’ indicate growing discontent with regime of Kim Jong-un
The number of North Koreans who defected to South Korea tripled last year, as the easing of border closures imposed during the Covid-19 pandemic encouraged students, women and diplomats to make the perilous journey.
At 196, the number was still well below the pre-pandemic average, but South Korean authorities said the backgrounds of many recent defectors pointed to growing discontent with the regime of the North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un.
Continue reading...In a speech, the North Korean leader has called for constitutional change to identify the south as ‘number one hostile state’
North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong-un, has called for a change to the constitution to identify South Korea as the “number one hostile state”, ending the regime’s commitment to unifying the Korean peninsula.
In a speech to the supreme people’s assembly – North Korea’s rubber-stamp parliament – Kim said he no longer believed unification was possible and accused the South of attempting to foment regime change and promote unification by stealth.
Continue reading...Oscar-winning director leads calls for inquiry into police investigative process following death of Lee Sun-kyun
A group of South Korean artists, including film director Bong Joon-ho, has called for an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death last month of prolific actor Lee Sun-kyun.
Lee, who played a lead role in Bong’s Oscar-winning film Parasite, died last month in an apparent suicide, at the age of 48.
Continue reading...Animal welfare campaigners hail decision as ‘historic victory’ after years of pressure at home and abroad
South Korea’s parliament has voted to ban the production and sale of dog meat, in a decision campaigners hailed as a “historic victory” for animal welfare.
The country’s national assembly voted overwhelmingly to ban the breeding, butchery, distribution and sale of dogs for their meat on Tuesday, after years of pressure at home and abroad.
Continue reading...Intense speculation over future role for Kim Jong-un’s daughter, who is reportedly 10, comes as North Korea fires shells near South Korean islands
The young daughter of Kim Jong-un is seen as her father’s heir apparent, South Korea’s spy agency has said for the first time, after speculation that the North Korean ruler is grooming her to become the fourth member of the dynasty to lead the country since its foundation more than seven decades ago.
There has been intense international speculation about Kim Ju-ae, who is reportedly about 10 years old, since she made her first public appearance in November 2022 when she watched a long-range missile test launch with her father.
Continue reading...Up to 127mm of rain falls on Florida and gusty winds and flash flooding hit parts of Georgia and South Carolina
Last weekend, a low-pressure system that had developed over the Gulf of Mexico tracked north-east across the Florida peninsula. Lashings of heavy rain and strong winds were brought to Florida during the early hours of Sunday morning, dumping up to 127mm (5in) of rain on the state in its passing.
The low-pressure system, termed a “nor’easter”, continued to track north-east, strengthening and bringing gusty winds and flash flooding to the coastal parts of the south-east US, including Georgia and South Carolina.
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