Tuesday, February 2, 2021

Round-up of important news from major Korean dailies and from international media today

The Korea Post (http://www.koreapost.com/)

“For Korean companies, there are countless opportunities in Iran for win-win cooperation”

The following are excerpts from an interview with Ambassador Saeed Badamchi Shavestari of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Seoul which was conducted by The Korea Post media on the occasion of the Victory of the Islamic Revolution Day on February 11th.—Ed.

P.M. Modi: “I wish all the people of India a Happy Republic Day. Jai Hind!”

On January 22 this year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India, together with other leaders of the country, wished a Happy Republic Day 2021 to the people of his country. In his special message to the nation, Prime Minister Modi tweeted, "Wishing all the people of India a Happy Republic Day. Jai Hind!”

“We greet this day with enthusiasm, respect for our flag, faith in the Constitution”

On the occasion of the Republic Day of India on Jan. 26, 2021, President Shri Ram Nath Kovind of India issued an extensive speech. The following are details of the speech kindly provided by the Embassy of India in Seoul to The Korea Post media for publication.—Ed.

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KBS (http://world.kbs.co.kr/english/news/)

Energy Ministry Unveils Document on N. Korea Nuke Plant Plan

South Korea's energy ministry on Monday made public an internal document about a possible nuclear power project in North Korea to dispel suspicions surrounding the document.
The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said on Monday in a press release that it unveiled the document after deliberation by a related committee at the ministry, considering the public value of ending unnecessary controversy.

Blinken Reaffirms U.S. Will Review Overall N. Korea Policy

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has reaffirmed that the U.S. is reviewing its North Korea policy across the board, mentioning both additional sanctions and diplomatic incentives as possible tools. 
Blinken made the remarks in an interview with NBC News aired on Monday. 

Ruling Party Proposes Motion to Impeach Senior Judge

A motion to impeach a senior judge accused of power abuse has been proposed to the parliament, with support from more than half of the chamber's lawmakers. 
Representative Lee Tahn-ey of the ruling Democratic Party(DP) on Monday proposed the motion against Lim Seong-geun, a senior judge at the Busan High Court, soon after the National Assembly kicked off the February extra session. 

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Yonhap (http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr)

New virus cases at over 2-month low amid extended curbs

SEOUL, Feb. 1 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases rose by the smallest amount in over two months to stay in the 300s for the second straight day on Monday due to fewer tests over the weekend amid extended tough virus curbs.

AstraZeneca vaccine is OK for all adults: panel

SEOUL, Feb. 1 (Yonhap) -- A South Korean panel of experts has said that vaccines for the novel coronavirus by AstraZeneca can be administered to elderly people amid efficacy controversies, according to the country's drug safety agency Monday.

Moon urges no more 'regressive' politics amid controversy over alleged N. Korea power plant plan

SEOUL, Feb. 1 (Yonhap) -- President Moon Jae-in called Monday for an end to "regressive, old-fashioned" politics that bring about conflicts among South Korean people, as he stressed the need for bipartisan efforts to improve their livelihoods in the midst of the COVID-19 crisis.

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The Korea Herald (http://www.koreaherald.com)

Rocky Seoul-Tokyo ties expected to continue in Biden era

A dramatic shift in Korea-Japan relations is unlikely, despite anticipation for change with Joe Biden taking control of the White House in the US and expected pressure from Washington for its two key Northeast Asian allies to mend ties.

SK chief named to lead country’s top commerce chamber

Chey Tae-won, 60, chairman of South Korea’s third-largest conglomerate in terms of assets, was chosen Monday as the new chief of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry and will succeed incumbent Chairman Park Yong-maan.

Put policies for foreigners on back burner: former Seoul Mayor

Former Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon says he would use all of his administrative powers to focus on local people suffering from the pandemic, leaving aside support policies for foreign residents and investment for now if he is reelected to the post.

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The Korea Times (http://www.koreatimes.co.kr)

Ruling bloc goes all out to fire back over nuclear plant row

The ruling bloc is going all out to defend itself against escalating suspicions that the Moon Jae-in administration attempted to initiate the construction of a nuclear power plant in North Korea in 2018.

NXP, Infineon emerging 'top shopping list' for Samsung Electronics

With Samsung Electronics declaring it will actively seek opportunities for mergers and acquisitions (M&A) as part of a strategy to improve its competitiveness, eyes are on which companies the tech giant will add to its shopping list.

New Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry chief to push Assembly to pass industrial bills

SK Group chief Chey Tae-won has been appointed as the new chairman of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), Monday.
"At the KCCI chairman meeting we have unanimously agreed to select SK Group Chairman Chey as the sole candidate," incumbent KCCI Chairman Park Yong-maan said after the meeting. "I will now approve the candidate and once Chairman Chey Tae-won approves we will go ahead with the procedures."

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HanKyoReh Shinmun (http://english.hani.co.kr)

Three reasons the North Korean nuclear plant scandal is overblown

Over the past few days, South Korean politics have been consumed by allegations that the Moon administration sought to help North Korea build a nuclear power plant. But the whole thing is a classic example of a fake controversy.

Power plants in memory stick given to N. Korea were coal, not nuclear

The memory stick that South Korean President Moon Jae-in gave to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during their summit on Apr. 27, 2018, contained information about building and supporting coal power plants rather than nuclear power plants, multiple sources in Korea’s ruling Democratic Party told the Hankyoreh on Jan. 31.

Opposition party irresponsible in claims that Moon administration “benefited enemy” with nuclear plant document

The allegation made by Kim Chong-in, interim leader of South Korea’s People Power Party (PPP), that the Moon administration sought to build a nuclear reactor in North Korea has become a political black hole that’s drawing attention away from all other issues.

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Chosun Ilbo (http://english.chosun.com)

Lockdown Extended Till After Lunar New Year

The government has extended the current lockdown for two more weeks until after Lunar New Year.
That means gatherings of more than five people remain banned, which also applies to family members during one of the nation's biggest holiday. Restaurants and coffee shops will close at 9 p.m.

Biden to 'Build on' Trump's Anti-China Coalition

U.S. President Joe Biden is expected to carry on with a Trump-era anti-China coalition of broadly rightwing governments from around the world.
Biden's national security adviser Jake Sullivan last week said Washington wants to "carry forward and build on" the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue or Quad, which also involves Australia, India and Japan.

Most Smaller Businesses Devastated by Epidemic

Major conglomerates have managed to weather the brunt of the coronavirus epidemic, but the vast majority of small and mid-sized companies have been devastated.
In a survey by the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry of 302 businesses published Sunday, 75.8 percent of respondents said they suffered damage from the epidemic, while 8.3 percent said their very existence came under threat.

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The Dong-A Ilbo (http://english.donga.com/)

Moon criticizes opposition’s doubts on N. Korean nuclear power plants

South Korean President Moon Jae-in said on Monday, "In a time when our citizens are struggling to sustain their life, I hope you not to use an outdated politics to incite confrontation and prevent national politics from advancing further.”

SK chairman promises to return his salary in response to employee complaints

SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won faced a group of labor unionists protesting against the company’s bonus plan while attending the completion ceremony of SK Hynix’s new plant M16 on Monday at the company’s headquarters in Icheon, Gyeonggi Province.

Social distancing could be alleviated before Lunar New Year holidays

The South Korean government announced that it might alleviate the current level of social distancing before seollal, the Korean Lunar New Year’s holidays, should the number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 fall this week. “Once we can have the faith that the situation has entered a stabilizing phase, we will consider easing the level of quarantine measures before the holidays,” said Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun during a Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters meeting on Monday, calling on the self-employed and the owners of small-sized businesses to “have a little more faith in the government and cooperate with us.”

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The KyungHyang Shinmun (http://english.khan.co.kr/)

It Is Impossible to Build a Nuclear Power Plant in North Korea: Political Attacks Cross the Line

The idea of building a nuclear power plant in North Korea is stirring controversy. The debate was triggered when news got out that the officials of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy discovered details on the construction of a nuclear power plant in North Korea among some deleted files, during an audit of Wolsong Nuclear Power Plant Unit 1. 

President Moon, “I Have Received Countless Matadors, But This Is Outrageous”

On January 31, Cheongwadae firmly responded to the People Power Party’s attacks in connection to the allegation that the Moon Jae-in government tried to build a nuclear power plant in North Korea, and is reportedly considering legal action. President Moon Jae-in fiercely refuted the opposition party’s accusation of “helping the enemy” and said, “I have received countless matadors (black propaganda), but this is outrageous.”

111 Lawmakers Promote the Impeachment of a Judge: Democratic Party Draws the Line Saying “It’s Not the Party’s Position”

On January 28, the leaders of the Democratic Party of Korea approved a proposal for an impeachment of a judge connected to the “abuse of court authority.” A hundred and eleven lawmakers, mostly from the ruling party, are calling for an impeachment, so if some forty more lawmakers join them, this could lead to the first ever impeachment of a judge in the history of our Constitution.

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Maeil Business News Korea (http://www.pulsenews.co.kr/)

Kospi correction likely to be short-lived, upward momentum still intact: analysts

South Korea’s benchmark Kospi market shed 5.2 percent to fall below 3,000 last week as the volatility in Wall Street from the intense tug-of-war between retail investors and institutional short sellers over GameStop stock spilled over to Seoul, but the correction proved to be short-lived.

S. Korea’s January exports in double-digit growth for 2nd month in a row

South Korea’s exports grew at a double-digit rate from a year ago in January for the second month in a row, mainly driven by robust demand for the country’s mainstay export items such as semiconductors and automobiles.

Pandemic cuts Korea’s air traffic 59% and duty-free sales 38% in 2020

The Covid-19 pandemic has reduced passenger traffic at South Korea’s 15 air gateways by nearly 60 percent and duty-free store revenues by 40 percent last year.
According to the Korean Statistical Information Service under the Statistics Korea on Monday, the number of passengers using 15 airports in Korea was tallied at 65,027,063 last year, down 58.8 percent or 92,646,381 from a year earlier.

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What’s ticking around the world at this second?
See what the world media around the world have to report:

USA Today www.usatoday.com aallman@gannett.com
The New York Times www.nytimes.com inytletters@nytimes.com
Wall Street Journal www.wsj.com support@wsj.com service@wsj-asia.com
Financial Times www.ft.com ean@ft.com
The Times www.thetimes.co.uk help@timesplus.co.uk
The Sun www.thesun.co.uk talkback@the-sun.co.uk
Chinese People's Daily www.people.com.cn kf@people.cn
China Daily www.chinadaily.com.cn circulation@chinadaily.com.cn
GwangmyeongDaily www.gmw.cn webmaster@gmw.cn
Japan's Yomiuri www.yomiuri.co.jp japannews@yomiuri.com
Asahi www.asahi.com customer-support@asahi.com
Mainichi www.mainichi.jp
Le Monde www.ilemonde.com
Italy LaRepubblica www.quotidiano.repubblica.it vittorio.zucconi@gmail.com
Germany Frankfurter AllgemeineZeitung www.faz.net anzeigen.ausland@faz.de
SüddeutscheZeitung www.sueddeutsche.de forum@sueddeutsche.de
Australia Brisbane Times www.brisbanetimes.com.au syndication@fairfaxmedia.com.au
Sydney Morning Herald www.smh.com.au
Colombia Reports www.colombiareports.com
Bogota Free Planet www.bogotafreeplanet.com bfp@bogotafreeplanet.com
El Universal www.eluniversal.com.mx/english
Andes www.redaktionstest.net/andes-info-ec/
Ecuador Times www.ecuadortimes.net/
The Jordan Times www.jordantimes.com/
LSM.lv www.lsm.lv/
The Baltic Times www.baltictimes.com lithuania@baltictimes.com, estonia@baltictimes.com, editor@baltictimes.com
El Pais https://english.elpais.com/
Philippine Daily Inquirer www.inquirer.net/
Daily News Hungary https://dailynewshungary.com/
Budapest Times www.budapesttimes.hu/
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The Korea Post is running video clips from the different embassies.
Azerbaijan: www.youtube.com/watch?v=OR8CBpcQ4WM
Sri Lanka: www.youtube.com/watch?v=hByX92Y2aGY&t=22s
Morocco: www.youtube.com/watch?v=jfFmp2sVvSE
And many other countries.
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