15 en Lee Jun‑seok, leader of the minor opposition Reform Party, appeared Sunday before a special counsel team investigating allegations that former President Yoon Suk Yeol and former first lady Kim Keon‑hee interfered in candidate nominations ahead of the 2022 elections. Lee arrived at special counsel Min ...

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]]> KBS WORLD Radio Sun, 21 Dec 2025 13:13:21 +0900 Politics Gender Equality and Family Minister Won Min-kyong has called for the approval of abortion drugs, which many women already obtain and use amid a regulatory vacuum since the Constitutional Court struck down the country’s abortion ban in 2019. Meeting with the press on Friday after delivering a policy ...

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]]> KBS WORLD Radio Sat, 20 Dec 2025 15:41:45 +0900 Politics The government is expediting efforts to attract foreign students in the natural sciences and engineering fields as part of a plan to shore up the country’s cutting-edge industries. The education ministry recently briefed President Lee Jae Myung of the plan to expand the proportion of graduate students ...

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]]> KBS WORLD Radio Sat, 20 Dec 2025 14:49:40 +0900 Politics Police have questioned former Oceans Minister Chun Jae-soo for more than 14 hours regarding allegations that he received money and gifts from the Unification Church. Speaking to reporters early Saturday after the interrogation, Chun said he faithfully cooperated with the police and received no money or ...

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]]> KBS WORLD Radio Sat, 20 Dec 2025 14:19:51 +0900 Politics Anchor: U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio says Washington will find ways to work with Beijing without undermining its security commitments to its East Asian allies. During a year-end news conference on Friday, the top diplomat addressed the recent tensions between Japan and China, saying they’re ...

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]]> KBS WORLD Radio Sat, 20 Dec 2025 14:00:46 +0900 Politics Former President Yoon Suk Yeol has appeared before a special counsel team as a suspect accused of violating the Political Funds Act and the Public Official Election Act. The interrogation on Saturday was Yoon’s first by the team in charge of the case against former first lady Kim Keon-hee and will ...

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]]> KBS WORLD Radio Sat, 20 Dec 2025 13:32:15 +0900 Politics In the face of an apparent policy mismatch between the foreign ministry and the unification ministry, President Lee Jae Myung says it would be helpful for each ministry to have a distinct position on North Korea.  According to presidential spokesperson Kim Nam-joon on Friday, Lee said during a closed-door ...

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]]> KBS WORLD Radio Sat, 20 Dec 2025 13:15:57 +0900 Politics Prosecutors on Friday sought a four-year prison sentence and a fine of 500-million won, or roughly 338-thousand U.S. dollars, for Sampyo Group Chairman Chung Do-won, after a deadly quarry collapse that became the first case to be prosecuted under the Serious Accidents Punishment Act. They argued that ...

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]]> KBS WORLD Radio Fri, 19 Dec 2025 18:52:42 +0900 Politics The government has requested Mexico’s effort to help minimize the impact of its planned tariff hike on South Korean businesses. According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources, Deputy Trade Minister Park Jung-sung and Mexican Ambassador to South Korea Carlos Peñafiel Soto discussed a range ...

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]]> KBS WORLD Radio Fri, 19 Dec 2025 18:10:06 +0900 Politics The North Korean military crossed the land border between the two Koreas ten times during the last month alone. Joint Chiefs of Staff(JCS) documents submitted to the office of main opposition People Power Party(PPP) Rep. Kang Dae-sik on Friday indicated that North Korean soldiers violated the Military ...

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]]> KBS WORLD Radio Fri, 19 Dec 2025 18:04:56 +0900 Politics The opposition People Power Party criticized President Lee Jae Myung for saying North Korea worries about a possible invasion from the South, accusing him of echoing Pyongyang’s narrative. Chief party spokesperson Park Sung-hoon said Friday that the remark had raised doubts about whether Lee was fit to ...

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]]> KBS WORLD Radio Fri, 19 Dec 2025 17:36:33 +0900 Politics A Seoul court on Friday suspended the imposition of fines on Democratic Party lawmakers Park Beom-kye and Park Joo-min over their roles in violent clashes during the National Assembly fast-track confrontation. The Seoul Southern District Court handed both lawmakers a suspended sentence on fines of three ...

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]]> KBS WORLD Radio Fri, 19 Dec 2025 17:00:27 +0900 Politics Anchor: Police are interrogating former Oceans and Fisheries Minister Chun Jae-soo about whether he received money and gifts from the Unification Church. As an investigation into a scandal surrounding the organization widens its net, Chun arrived at Seoul Seodaemun Police Station on Friday morning and denied ...

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]]> KBS WORLD Radio Fri, 19 Dec 2025 15:03:24 +0900 Politics The foreign ministry will work to ensure a South Korea-U.S. summit is held next year and check the status of agreements reached during recent meetings between the two nations' leaders. Foreign Minister Cho Hyun made the remark during a policy briefing to President Lee Jae Myung on Friday at the ministry's ...

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]]> KBS WORLD Radio Fri, 19 Dec 2025 14:27:12 +0900 Politics Yoon Seok-hwa, a leading figure in South Korea's first generation of theater actors, died on Friday at the age of 69 after battling a brain tumor. Sources in the theater community said Yoon died at 10 a.m. at Severance Hospital in Seoul with family members and close acquaintances at her side. A memorial ...

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]]> KBS WORLD Radio Fri, 19 Dec 2025 11:51:23 +0900 Politics President Lee Jae Myung said Thursday that South Korea must act patiently and proactively to ease inter-Korean hostility and foster trust, stressing the need to take the initiative in improving relations with North Korea. Speaking at a policy briefing by the foreign and unification ministries on Friday, Lee ...

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]]> KBS WORLD Radio Fri, 19 Dec 2025 11:47:03 +0900 Politics Police are interrogating former Oceans and Fisheries Minister Chun Jae-soo about whether he received money and gifts from the Unification Church. Chun, who arrived at the Seoul Seodaemun Police Station shortly before 10 a.m. Friday, denied receiving cash and a luxury watch, calling claims that he'd done so ...

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]]> KBS WORLD Radio Fri, 19 Dec 2025 11:11:26 +0900 Politics A special counsel team has raided the Bank of Korea as part of its investigation of former first lady Kim Keon‑hee. The team, led by Special Counsel Ahn Gweon‑seob, said Friday it had dispatched investigators and prosecutors to the central bank at 9 a.m. to execute a search warrant targeting the ...

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]]> KBS WORLD Radio Fri, 19 Dec 2025 10:24:01 +0900 Politics Another case of highly pathogenic avian influenza has been confirmed at a poultry farm in the Chungcheong region. The Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters for Avian Influenza said Friday that the H5N1 strain had detected at a farm that was raising 25-thousand layer hens in Boryeong, ...

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]]> KBS WORLD Radio Fri, 19 Dec 2025 09:39:09 +0900 Politics The defense ministry said it will negotiate with the United States to secure fuel for nuclear‑powered submarines, aiming to complete the talks within two years. At a presidential policy briefing on Thursday at its headquarters in Seoul's Yongsan District, the defense ministry outlined its plans to advance ...

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]]> KBS WORLD Radio Fri, 19 Dec 2025 09:21:48 +0900 Politics The main opposition People Power Party stepped up its dissent on Thursday after the ruling Democratic Party moved to process a revised bill to create a special court for insurrection-related cases, insisting constitutional concerns remain unresolved. At a party leadership meeting, senior party official ...

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]]> KBS WORLD Radio Thu, 18 Dec 2025 18:06:24 +0900 Politics President Lee Jae Myung says though the nation had briefly experienced social chaos, it exists as it is today because the military maintained its role and faithfully paid allegiance to the nation and people. Lee paid tribute to the military on Thursday at the start of policy briefings by the defense ...

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]]> KBS WORLD Radio Thu, 18 Dec 2025 17:06:06 +0900 Politics A police team investigating whether various political figures received money and gifts from the Unification Church have summoned former Oceans Minister Chun Jae-soo for questioning.  The National Police Agency’s special investigation team said Thursday that it notified Chun to appear for questioning as ...

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]]> KBS WORLD Radio Thu, 18 Dec 2025 16:50:09 +0900 Politics Anchor: As the ruling camp pushes to establish a division to handle martial law-related cases, the Supreme Court appears to be eyeing a similar possibility. The highest court has adopted a new fast-track procedure for insurrection, foreign aggression and mutiny trials—which will likely apply to cases ...

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]]> KBS WORLD Radio Thu, 18 Dec 2025 15:25:32 +0900 Politics Former National Intelligence Service(NIS) director Cho Tae-yong has denied allegations that he failed in his duties as NIS chief at the time of the December 3 martial law declaration. Cho revealed the stance on Thursday during the first preparatory hearing in his trial held at the Seoul Central District ...

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]]> KBS WORLD Radio Thu, 18 Dec 2025 15:25:02 +0900 Politics Police Commissioner General Cho Ji-ho, who was impeached last year for his alleged role in the December 3 martial law declaration, has been dismissed. The Constitutional Court approved a motion to impeach Cho on Thursday, one year after the same motion passed the National Assembly. The motion accused ...

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]]> KBS WORLD Radio Thu, 18 Dec 2025 15:14:05 +0900 Politics The government will nurture ten-thousand ventures and startups in the field of artificial intelligence and deep tech in the next five years as the core pillar of the nation's growth strategy. The Ministry of SMEs and Startups and other ministries jointly disclosed the blueprint on Thursday as part of a ...

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]]> KBS WORLD Radio Thu, 18 Dec 2025 13:44:41 +0900 Politics Former President Yoon Suk Yeol took the stand for the first time in the trials of senior commanders who are accused of aiding the December 3 martial law declaration. A prison vehicle carrying Yoon arrived at the military court in Seoul at around 9:30 a.m. Thursday. Beginning at 10 a.m., Yoon testified in ...

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]]> KBS WORLD Radio Thu, 18 Dec 2025 12:27:22 +0900 Politics The ruling Democratic Party plans to introduce a bill to establish a special tribunal for martial law-related cases at the National Assembly’s plenary session next Tuesday. Party spokesperson Kim Hyun-jung unveiled the plan to reporters at the National Assembly on Thursday and said a plenary session ...

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]]> KBS WORLD Radio Thu, 18 Dec 2025 12:18:51 +0900 Politics Financial authorities have reaffirmed their commitment to enhanced monitoring of the foreign exchange market and timely responses following the sharp depreciation of the local currency against the U.S. dollar. Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Koo Yoon-cheol chaired a meeting on the financial ...

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]]> KBS WORLD Radio Thu, 18 Dec 2025 11:57:09 +0900 Politics