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☆ Chaos as U.S. soldier Travis King bolted into North Korea -witness
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-19 | by ( Ju-Min Park | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SEOUL, July 19 (Reuters) - American and South Korean guards shouted "get him" as they scrambled unsuccessfully to stop U.S. Army soldier Travis King from sprinting into North Korea, a New Zealand woman who was on the same tour to the border area said on Wednesday. "I don't think anyone who was sane would want to go to North Korea, so I assumed it was some kind of stunt." The U.S. military was scrambling on Wednesday to determine King's fate after what officials said was a wilful, unauthorised crossing of the border into North Korea, throwing Washington into a new crisis in its dealings with the state. One American soldier shouted "get him," and other American and South Korean guards ran after King, but he was already on the north side of the border, Leslie said. "It was too late," she said, adding that he disappeared from sight and she didn't see him enter any buildings or be detained by North Korean guards.

Persons: Travis King, Sarah Leslie, King, Leslie, Travis T, Handout, REUTERS King, Hyunsu Yim, Josh Smith, Bernadette Baum Organizations: U.S, Army, Joint Security Area, Reuters, Security Area, REUTERS, North, Thomson Locations: SEOUL, North Korea, New Zealand, Washington, U.S, Panmunjom, South Korea, American

☆ South Korea challenges arbitration ruling that found for Elliott in Samsung merger case
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SEOUL, July 18 (Reuters) - South Korea said on Tuesday it would challenge an arbitration ruling that ordered it to pay U.S. hedge fund Elliott Investment Management $108.5 million in a case involving the merger of two Samsung Electronics (005930.KS) affiliates. The Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague last month found in favour of Elliott, though the compensation ordered was much less than the $770 million the hedge fund had sought. South Korea will argue that the Hague-based tribunal did not have jurisdiction to make the ruling under a free trade agreement it has with the United States, and will challenge the ruling at a UK arbitration body, the Justice Ministry said in a statement. It did not name the UK arbitration body. ($1 = 1,260.1300 won)Reporting by Hyunsu Yim; Editing by Ed Davies and Edwina GibbsOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Elliott, 1,260.1300, Hyunsu Yim, Ed Davies, Edwina Gibbs Organizations: Elliott Investment, Samsung Electronics, South, Pension Service, Samsung, Hague, Ministry, Thomson Locations: SEOUL, South Korea, U.S, Hague, United States

☆ South Korea flood death toll rises to 39 as Yoon orders all-out effort
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SEOUL, July 17 (Reuters) - South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol ordered on Monday an all-out effort to handle the devastation caused by days of torrential rain, as the death toll grew to 39 on Monday, including a dozen people found dead in a submerged underpass. The rains have pummeled the country's central and southern regions since Thursday, as the rainy season starting in late June reaches its peak, with the interior ministry also reporting nine people missing and 34 injured. Among the casualties, 12 deaths occurred in a tunnel in the central city of Cheongju, where some 16 vehicles, including a bus, were swamped by a flash flood on Saturday after a levee of a nearby river collapsed. Yoon convened an intra-agency meeting on disaster response and called for authorities to make the utmost effort to rescue victims and vowed support for recovery work, including designating affected areas as special disaster zones. Reporting by Hyunsu Yim Editing by Ed DaviesOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Yoon Suk Yeol, Yoon, Hyunsu Yim, Ed Davies Organizations: Thomson Locations: SEOUL, Cheongju

SEOUL, July 17 (Reuters) - A year after South Korea vowed to step up readiness for extreme weather driven by climate change, experts say not enough work has been done even as greater volumes of sudden and torrential rains are expected in coming decades. South Korea is mountainous and urban development has left many regions vulnerable to landslides, while readiness to respond to extreme weather has not been up to speed. [1/3]Rescue workers look for victims during a search and rescue operation near an underpass that has been submerged by a flooded river caused by torrential rain in Cheongju, South Korea, July 16, 2023. REUTERS/Kim Hong-jiA 2020 study by the Korea Meteorological Administration found that property damage costs and casualties from extreme weather have tripled compared to the yearly average of the previous decade. "In advanced countries, they allocate 70% for prevention and 30% for recovery, prioritising recovery over prevention."

Persons: Jeong Chang, Jeong, Yoon Suk, Yoon, Kim Hong, Sejong, Jung, Lee Su, Lee, 1,267.1100, Hyun Young Yi, Hyunsu Yim, Jack Kim, Tom Hogue Organizations: Induk University, REUTERS, Korea Meteorological Administration, Korea Environment Institute, University of Seoul, Thomson Locations: SEOUL, Korea, Cheongju, Seoul, Busan, Gangnam, South Korea, North Gyeongsang, Gyeongsang

☆ Tesla begins sale of cheaper Model Y vehicle in South Korea
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SEOUL, July 14 (Reuters) - Tesla (TSLA.O) began selling its Model Y rear-wheel drive car on Friday in South Korea at a price of 56.99 million won ($45,139), the automaker' s website said, making the vehicles eligible for the maximum rate of government subsidies. Local media said the Tesla Model Y cars were made in China. A tweet by Tesla Korea announcing the sale showed a video of cars being produced in its Gigafactory in Shanghai and being shipped. With subsidies, coupled with Tesla's referral programme, the price can be reduced further to below 50 million won, the company said. In Seoul, consumers can receive subsidies of up to 8.6 million won for EV vehicles priced below 57 million won.

Persons: Tesla, 1,262.5400, Hyunsu Yim, Ed Davies Organizations: Local, Tesla, EV, Thomson Locations: SEOUL, South Korea, China, Tesla Korea, Shanghai, Seoul

SEOUL, July 12 (Reuters) - LG Electronics (066570.KS) said on Wednesday it is targeting 100 trillion won ($77 billion) in sales by 2030 and plans some 50 trillion won of investment as the South Korean company announced its future strategy. "LG Electronics will tranform its business portfolio... increase profits by growing in business-to-business, and transition to a service business," CEO William Cho told a press conference. In 2022, LG reported about 65 trillion won in consolidated sales excluding affiliate LG Innotek (011070.KS), which makes device components such as camera modules for smartphones. That would be up from more than 80 trillion won ($61.72 billion) as of end-March, according to an eBest Investment & Securities report on Monday. On Friday, LG Electronics estimated its second-quarter operating profit rose 12.7% from a year earlier to 892.7 billion won, its second-largest April-June quarter profit ever.

Persons: William Cho, 1,292.1700, Hyunsu Yim, hyang Choi, Joyce Lee, Ed Davies, Simon Cameron, Moore Organizations: LG Electronics, South Korean, LG, Investment, Securities, Thomson Locations: SEOUL, KS

☆ S.Korea opposition lawmakers want more experts to review Fukushima discharge plan
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) chief Rafael Grossi and South Korea's main opposition Democratic Party lawmaker Wi Seong-gon attend their meeting at the National Assembly in Seoul, South Korea, July 9, 2023. Yonhap via REUTERS/File PhotoJuly 12 (Reuters) - More expert organizations should take part in reviewing Japan's plan to release Fukushima wastewater into the sea in addition to the U.N nuclear watchdog, South Korean opposition lawmakers said on Wednesday while visiting Japan. Democratic Party lawmaker Wi Seong-gon, who was among the group of lawmakers from the opposition parties, made the comment in a joint statement at a press conference in Tokyo. When asked about the South Korean government's position, Wi said Seoul needed to relay the voices of people who were concerned and opposed to the plan. "We are doing our best to persuade the government and this is why we are visiting Japan right now," Wi said.

Persons: Rafael Grossi, Wi, Yoo Suk Yeol, Hyunsu Yim, Ed Davies Organizations: Atomic Energy Agency, IAEA, Democratic Party, National Assembly, Yonhap, REUTERS, Democratic, International Atomic Energy Agency, Korean, Thomson Locations: Seoul, South Korea, Korean, Japan, Tokyo, South

SEOUL/TOKYO, July 12 (Reuters) - North Korea fired an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) off its east coast on Wednesday, prompting U.S. condemnation, as well as from the leaders of South Korea and Japan who met on the sidelines of a NATO summit. The White House condemned the launch and said it would take all necessary measures to ensure its security and that of South Korea and Japan. South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, in Lithuania for the NATO summit, convened an emergency national security council meeting and vowed to use the summit to call for strong international solidarity to confront such threats. [1/3]Passengers wait for their train in front of a TV broadcasting a news report on North Korea firing a ballistic missile off its east coast, at a railway station in Seoul, South Korea, July 12, 2023. REUTERS/Kim Hong-JiThe top military generals of the United States, Japan and South Korea gathered for a rare trilateral meeting in Hawaii just before the missile launch.

Persons: Hirokazu Matsuno, Adam Hodge, Yoon Suk Yeol, Yoon, Fumio Kishida, Kishida, Kim Hong, Ji, Kim Dong, Yang, Leif, Eric Easley, Josh Smith, Soo, hyang Choi, Hyunsu Yim, Hyonhee, Rami Ayyub, David Brunnstrom, Elaine Lies, Tom Hogue, Lincoln, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: NATO, House, National Security, REUTERS, University of North Korean Studies, Analysts, Reuters Graphics Reuters, Asan Institute, Policy Studies, Ewha Womans University, Thomson Locations: SEOUL, TOKYO, North Korea, South Korea, Japan, Korean, American, Pyongyang, Lithuania, Japanese, United States, Australia, New Zealand, Seoul, Hawaii, Japan's, U.S, Washington, Tokyo

☆ South Korean zoo welcomes giant panda twins
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] Giant Panda Ai Bao holds her baby panda with mouth after giving birth to twin at Everland amusement park in Yongin, South Korea, July 11, 2023. Samsung C&T/Yonhap via REUTERSSEOUL, July 11 (Reuters) - A South Korean zoo said on Tuesday it had recently welcomed the first giant panda twins to be born in the country. The first twin weighed 180 grams (6.35 oz) and the second, which arrived nearly two hours later, weighed 140 grams. The birth of the twins comes nearly three years after Fu Bao, the first panda to be born in South Korea, came into the world with the same parents Ai Bao and Le Bao. Fu Bao is due to be returned to China by July next year at the latest, the zoo said.

Persons: Ai Bao, Donghee Chung, Chung, Fu Bao, Le Bao, Cherwon Kang, Ai Bao's, Kang, Hyunsu Yim, Ed Davies Organizations: Samsung, REUTERS, YouTube, Thomson Locations: Yongin, South Korea, REUTERS SEOUL, Korean, Seoul, China

☆ North Korea accuses U.S. of repeatedly entering its economic zone
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SEOUL, July 11 (Reuters) - North Korea's Kim Yo Jong, the powerful sister of leader Kim Jong Un, on Tuesday accused a U.S. military spy plane of entering the country's Exclusive Economic Zone eight times, state media KCNA reported. The Pentagon earlier brushed aside Pyongyang's accusations of airspace violations and said the U.S. military had adhered to international law. "So those accusations are just accusations," Pentagon spokesperson Sabrina Singh told reporters. A country's Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) - which extends 200 nautical miles from the 12 nautical-mile territorial zone around the coast - is a right to exploit marine resources within but does not confer sovereignty over the water's surface or the airspace above it. U.S. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller urged North Korea "to refrain from escalatory actions" and reiterated a call for it "to engage in serious and sustained diplomacy" when asked about the North Korean statements at a regular news briefing on Monday.

Persons: Kim Yo Jong, Kim Jong, Kim, Sabrina Singh, Matthew Miller, Hyunsu Yim, Kanishka Singh, Chris Reese, Sandra Maler Organizations: Pentagon, U.S . Air Force, U.S . State Department, Korean People's Army, U.S ., Korea's, Chiefs, Staff, South, Thomson Locations: SEOUL, U.S, Tongchon, Gangwon Province, Uljin, North Gyeongsang Province, North Korea, South Korea, Pyongyang, Washington

☆ IAEA chief in South Korea to allay Fukushima water dump concerns
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

No expert behind the IAEA's Fukushima report disagreed with the content, Grossi told news agency Yonhap on Saturday, hinting at his comment during an interview with Reuters one day earlier. Prior to that, Grossi said during a Friday press conference in Japan that he wanted to also meet with the opposition party in South Korea which has been critical of the discharge plan. South Korea's government said on Friday it respected the IAEA's report and that its own analysis had found the release will not have "any meaningful impact" on its waters. But the plan has stirred anger and concern among South Koreans, prompting some shoppers to buy up sea salt. Despite South Korea's assent for the plan, a ban on food and seafood products from the Fukushima region would remain in place.

Persons: Rafael Grossi, Grossi, Yonhap, Yoo Suk Yeol, Lee Jae, myung, Hyunsu Yim, Richard Chang, Kim Coghill Organizations: United Nations, South, International Atomic Energy Agency, IAEA, Reuters, Opposition Democratic Party, International Tribunal, Thomson Locations: SEOUL, South Korea, Japan, Seoul's, Tokyo, South, Fukushima

☆ South Korea says respects IAEA review of Japan's Fukushima wastewater plan
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-07 | by ( Hyunsu Yim | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SEOUL, July 7 (Reuters) - South Korea's government said on Friday it respected the U.N. nuclear energy watchdog's review of Japan's plan to discharge treated radioactive water from the tsunami-wrecked Fukushima plant into the ocean and said it met international standards. Seoul announced its own assessment after the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) gave the greenlight this week to Japan's plan, despite concerns over safety in some neighbouring countries and signs of a consumer backlash. "Therefore the plan meets international standards including those of the IAEA," he said. The plan to discharge the treated water from the Fukushima plant is also expected to "not have any meaningful impact on our ocean areas," Bang said. The announcement comes as Rafael Grossi, director general of the IAEA, is due to arrive in South Korea on Friday for a three-day visit to explain the agency's findings after it approved Japan's plan this week.

Persons: Bang, Yoon Suk Yeol, Rafael Grossi, Jin, Hyunsu Yim, Choi, Ed Davies Organizations: Seoul, International Atomic Energy Agency, Coordination, IAEA, Democratic Party, South Korean Foreign, Thomson Locations: SEOUL, Japan, South Korea, Tokyo

☆ Japan protests to S.Korea over military drill on disputed islands
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

TOKYO, July 7 (Reuters) - Japan lodged a protest with South Korea over military drills it conducted on disputed islands, saying it was "extremely regrettable", the foreign ministry said in a statement issued on Friday. "Takeshima is indisputably an inherent territory of Japan, in light of historical facts and based on international law," the ministry said in the statement. "The drills by the South Korean military are unacceptable and extremely regrettable." "The East Sea territory defence exercise was carried out to conduct our mission to protect our territory, people and property," a South Korean military official said. The South Korean military has conducted the military drill routinely every year, the official added.

Persons: Kaori Kaneko, Hyunsu Yim, Kim Coghill Organizations: South, South Korea, East, Korean, Thomson Locations: TOKYO, Japan, South Korea, South Korean, Tokyo, Seoul, Dokdo, Korea

☆ Vietnam probes Blackpink concert organiser over South China Sea map
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

HANOI, July 6 (Reuters) - Vietnam has launched an inspection into K-pop group Blackpink's tour organiser's website, ahead of its concert in Hanoi, over criticism from fans that it shows a map of the South China Sea with disputed boundaries. Chinese organiser iME Entertainment and South Korean agency YG Entertainment (122870.KQ), which manages Blackpink, had no immediate comment. The organiser's website was inaccessible on Thursday but a cached version seen by Reuters and last updated on July 4, shows a vague nine-dash line that encompasses nearly the whole South China Sea. Vietnam and China have long had overlapping territorial claims to a potentially energy-rich stretch in the waterway. The culture ministry's move followed complaints by Vietnamese internet users who noticed the nine-dash line on the organiser's website.

Persons: Phuong Nguyen, Khanh Vu, Francesco Guarascio, Hyunsu Yim, Kanupriya Kapoor Organizations: Warner Bros, Vietnam, iME Entertainment, YG Entertainment, Reuters, Facebook, Thomson Locations: HANOI, Vietnam, Hanoi, South, South China, Korean, China, The Hague, Seoul

☆ Samsung Biologics unveils $920 mln manufacturing deals for Pfizer
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SEOUL, July 4 (Reuters) - South Korea's Samsung Biologics (207940.KS) announced on Tuesday two deals with Pfizer (PFE.N) worth around a combined 1.2 trillion won ($921.38 million) to manufacture products for the U.S. pharmaceutical giant. The latest orders bring this year's combined tally of orders from Pfizer to $1.08 billion, Samsung Biologics said in a statement. Tuesday's announcements include a 922.7 billion won contract, as well as an additional 254.3 billion won order that is a follow-up to a deal previously announced in March. Samsung Biologics welcomed the orders as an expansion of a strategic partnership, adding that it had won total contracts worth 1.93 trillion won so far this year, surpassing last year's annual contract volume. Earlier this year, Samsung Biologics signed deals with Eli Lilly Kinsale and GlaxoSmithKline (GLAX.NS).

Persons: Samsung Biologics, Eli Lilly Kinsale, 1,302.4000, Hyunsu Yim, Ed Davies Organizations: Samsung, Pfizer, Samsung Group, GlaxoSmithKline, Thomson Locations: SEOUL, South Korea

☆ North Korea appears to lift COVID mask mandate, reports say
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SEOUL, July 4 (Reuters) - North Korea appeared to have eased a strict COVID-19 mask mandate, media reports said this week, after state news agencies showed many people maskless. North Korean state television and newspapers did not make any official announcement, but showed crowds of people at theatres and other locations without masks. The report said authorities had eased the mandates because wearing used masks and strict mask control had led to the spread of skin and eye infections. Last August, North Korean state news agency KCNA said Pyongyang had dropped a face mask mandate along with other social distancing rules as leader Kim Jong Un declared victory over COVID-19. North Korea's strict coronavirus curbs have also been criticized by a United Nations report last year as worsening its human rights violations.

Persons: KCNA, Kim Jong Un, Hyunsu Yim, Josh Smith, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: NK News, Free Asia, United Nations, Thomson Locations: SEOUL, North Korea, Korean, Seoul, U.S, North Korean, Pyongyang

☆ Samsung Biologics unveils $897 mln manufacturing deals for Pfizer
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SEOUL, July 4 (Reuters) - South Korea's Samsung Biologics (207940.KS) announced on Tuesday two deals with Pfizer (PFE.N) worth a combined $897 million to manufacture products for the U.S. pharmaceutical giant. The latest orders bring this year's combined tally of orders from Pfizer to $1.08 billion, Samsung Biologics said in a statement. Samsung Biologics welcomed the orders as an expansion of a strategic partnership, adding that its total contracts so far this year had already surpassed last year's annual contract volume. Earlier this year, Samsung Biologics signed deals with Eli Lilly Kinsale and GlaxoSmithKline (GLAX.NS). In March, Samsung Biologics announced a plan to invest 2 trillion won ($1.54 billion) through September 2025 to build a new factory in South Korea.

Persons: Samsung Biologics, Eli Lilly Kinsale, 1,302.8100, Hyunsu Yim, Ed Davies Organizations: Samsung, Pfizer, Samsung Group, GlaxoSmithKline, Samsung Biologics, Thomson Locations: SEOUL, South Korea

☆ South Korea's Yoon tells unification ministry to be less soft on North
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SEOUL, July 2 (Reuters) - Having appointed a new unification minister days earlier, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol said on Sunday that the ministry had focused too much on providing aid for North Korea in the past and needed to change. "The Unification Ministry has been acting like the ministry of North Korea aid and it is wrong," Yoon was quoted as telling staff in a statement issued by his press secretary. "It's time for the unification ministry to change." Yoon also urged the ministry to stand up for liberal democratic values and said unification should bring a "better and more human life" to people in the South and North. In 2019, Kim wrote in an online column that the path to unification would open once North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's "regime is overthrown and North Korea is liberated."

Persons: Yoon Suk Yeol, Kim Yung, Yoon, Kim, Kim Jong, Hyunsu Yim, Simon Cameron, Moore Organizations: Thomson Locations: SEOUL, North Korea, Korea, South, Korean

☆ South Korea LGBT festival proceeds, bumped from prime spot by Christian group
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-01 | by ( Hyunsu Yim | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SEOUL, July 1 (Reuters) - Tens of thousands attended South Korea's largest annual LGBT festival on Saturday, vowing to continue fighting for gay rights after the Seoul city government denied them a prime spot and gave it to an anti-LGBT Christian group. "You can see a lot of hateful banners behind me as well as those that support us on our right," said Yang Sun-woo, chief organiser of the Seoul Queer Culture Festival. "South Korea is enjoying a rise in global status but LGBT rights here are at rock bottom," she said. The Christian group CTS, which has vocally opposed homosexuality, said it was not trying to thwart LGBT people. "Some ask why we need this queer festival, but it is the only time a year where we can all enjoy ourselves out in the open."

Persons: Yang Sun, ”, Cho Jong Yun, Kim Kyu Jin, Kim Saeyeon, Kyu Jin Kim, Nicole Kim, Hong Joon, Daewoung Kim, Hyunsu Yim, William Mallard Organizations: South, Christian, Seoul Queer Culture, CTS, LGBT, Gallup, Minwoo, Thomson Locations: SEOUL, Seoul, COVID, Korea, South Korea, Daegu

REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji/File PhotoSEOUL, June 29 (Reuters) - South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol on Thursday picked a conservative scholar and an outspoken critic of North Korea's human rights record as the country's new unification minister handling relations with Pyongyang in a cabinet reshuffle. Kim, 63, served as a presidential secretary for unification and a human rights envoy under the conservative Lee Myung-bak and Park Geun-hye administrations. North Korea has long rejected criticism of its rights conditions as part of a plot to overthrow its rulers. Kim is the right person to pursue a "principle-based" and consistent North Korea policy, said Yoon's chief of staff, Kim Dae-ki. The unification ministry's role ranges from cross-border dialogue and exchanges to studying human rights abuses in North Korea and helping defectors resettle in the South.

Persons: Kim Hong, Yoon Suk, Kim Yung, Yoon, Kim, Lee Myung, Kim Jong, Kim Dae, Jang Mi, Soo, hyang Choi, Hyunsu Yim, Jack Kim, Ed Davies, Gerry Doyle Organizations: South, REUTERS, Sungshin Women's University, North, Thomson Locations: Korean, South Korean, Paju, South Korea, SEOUL, Pyongyang, North Korea, North Korean, Korea, United States

☆ South Korea to return to Japan's 'white list' for exports on July 21
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

TOKYO, June 27 (Reuters) - Japan will reinstate South Korea to its "white list" for exports with fast-track trade status effective July 21, Japanese trade minister Yasutoshi Nishimura said on Tuesday, a crucial step for resolving an economic row between the two nations. Japan lifted export curbs on high-tech materials to South Korea in March as the nations mended ties amid North Korea's repeated missile launches and China's stepping up defence activities. South Korea's trade ministry welcomed the move as a "complete recovery of trust between the two countries in export control". The ministry also said it would work closely with Tokyo on bilateral and multilateral export control issues in future. Reporting by Miho Uranaka in TOKYO, Hyunsu Yim in SEOUL, writing by Kaori Kaneko Editing by Chang-Ran KimOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Yasutoshi Nishimura, Miho Uranaka, Hyunsu Yim, Kaori Kaneko, Chang, Ran Kim Organizations: South, Thomson Locations: TOKYO, Japan, South Korea, Tokyo, SEOUL

☆ YouTube removes North Korean 'vloggers' after South Korea blocks accounts
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-27 | by ( Hyunsu Yim | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The channels featured English-speaking young women, including a girl as young as 11, who claimed to offer an unfiltered look at every day life in North Korea as informal video bloggers, or "vloggers." The YouTube spokesperson said in a statement that the decision to remove the channels was taken to comply with "U.S. sanctions and trade compliance laws, including those related to North Korea." According to NK News, a Seoul-based website that tracks North Korea, the YouTubers have been linked to the Pyongyang-based Sogwang Media Corporation which seeks to expand the country’s external outreach through social media. North Korea-linked Twitter accounts, including those of so-called "friendship associations" in the United Kingdom and elsewhere, have also been blocked in South Korea due to legal demands. Some researchers have complained that removing the accounts cuts off sources of information about North Korea and its media.

Persons: Harry Potter, Hyunsu Yim, Josh Smith, Simon Cameron, Moore Organizations: YouTube, U.S, South, Korea Communications Standards, National Intelligence Service, North Korean, Google, NK News, Sogwang Media Corporation, Thomson Locations: SEOUL, North, North Korea, South Korea, Seoul, Pyongyang, United Kingdom

☆ South Korea aims to curb private education spending, axe 'killer questions'
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-26 | by ( Hyunsu Yim | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

"We will cut the vicious cycle of killer questions in exams, which leads to excessive competition among students and parents in private education," education minister Lee Ju-ho told a briefing. The ministry also vowed to crack down on private education "cartels" by ramping up efforts to monitor what it termed false and exaggerated advertising by private schools targeting exam preparations. Local media have reported on alleged connections between the private education industry and government education officials in drawing up college entrance exams that require private tutoring to master. Nearly eight in 10 students use in private education products such as cram schools, known as "hagwons", according to the report. Shin So-young, an activist at civic group The World Without Worry About Private Education, said the planned changes may not be enough to contain the competition.

Persons: Yoon Suk, Lee Ju, Yoon, Shin, Woongjin Thinkbig, 1,302.0300, Soo, hyang Choi, Hyunsu Yim, Jack Kim, Ed Davies, Gerry Doyle Organizations: South Korea, Education, Thomson Locations: South, SEOUL, South Korea's, South Korea, KS, MegaStudyEdu

☆ Netflix CEO says $2.5 bln Korean investment won't exploit local talent
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

South Korea has created some of the Californian company's biggest shows, which have become synonymous with the broader international success of the country's cultural exports and spurred it to announce a $2.5 billion investment in Korean content in April. Don Kang, Netflix's vice president of Korean content, said the company was planning to expand its content investment to films and non-fiction, after previously focusing on series. On Wednesday, Sarandos met with celebrated South Korean director Park Chan-wook and film students and said telling stories from other countries, not just Hollywood, was his "most proud decision". South Korea has produced four of Netflix's 10 most-watched non-English language series, including "Squid Game", "The Glory" and "Extraordinary Attorney Woo". But as Netflix is by far the biggest streaming platform in South Korea, there are also concerns over its dominance.

Persons: Ted Sarandos, Sarandos, Don Kang, Scanline, Han Duck, Park Chan, Woo, 1,293.1100, Hyunsu Yim, Ed Davies, Sam Holmes Organizations: Netflix, Korea Radio Promotion Association, Eyeline Studios, South, Thomson Locations: SEOUL, South, Korea, Seoul, South Korea, Eyeline Studios Korea, United States

The car maker said it plans to spend about 35.8 trillion won on EVs in the period to 2032, targeting the sale of 2 million EV units annually by 2030. To enhance its competitiveness in batteries and develop next-generation batteries, Hyundai Motor plans to invest 9.5 trillion won over the next 10 years, it said in the statement. Hyundai Motor said it plans to introduce competitive lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) batteries with increased energy density and improved low-temperature efficiency for the first time around 2025. In China, Hyundai Motor said it will halt production at another plant this year following the shutdown of its fifth plant. It also plans to reduce the available model numbers from 13 to eight to focus on SUVs and Genesis luxury brand models.

Persons: 1,280.8200, Hyunsu Yim, Heekyong Yang, Ed Davies, Jacqueline Wong Organizations: Hyundai, Kia Corp, EVs, Hyundai Motor, Thomson Locations: SEOUL, KS, United States, Seoul, China

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