Latest South Korea government News

A look at other Americans who have entered North Korea over the years
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea has expelled a U.S. soldier who crossed into the country in July. Pvt. Travis King's case comes at a time of high tensions on the Korean Peninsula. King was released to U.S. custody on Wednesday. Other Americans have entered...

South Korean court denies arrest warrant for opposition leader Lee in corruption allegations
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — A South Korean judge on Wednesday denied an arrest warrant for the country’s opposition leader on broad corruption allegations, saying there wasn't a clear risk that he would destroy evidence. Lee Jae-myung, who awaited the decision at a detention...

South Korea's Constitutional Court strikes down law banning anti-Pyongyang leafleting
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea’s Constitutional Court on Tuesday struck down a 2020 law that criminalized the sending of anti-Pyongyang propaganda leaflets to North Korea, calling it an excessive restriction on free speech. The ruling came in response to a complaint filed...

South Korean opposition leader attends court hearing on arrest warrant for alleged corruption
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Coming off a 24-day hunger strike, South Korean opposition leader Lee Jae-myung appeared in front of a judge on Tuesday who will decide whether he will be arrested on broad corruption allegations. Walking slowly with a cane, Lee, a former presidential...

King Charles III and Queen Camilla to welcome South Korea's president for a state visit in November
LONDON (AP) — King Charles III and Queen Camilla will welcome the president of South Korea for a state visit to the U.K. in November, the second such visit of the monarch’s reign. The king and queen will host Yoon Suk Yeol and his wife, Kim Keon Hee, at Buckingham Palace on an as...

North Korea calls South's leader a 'guy with a trash-like brain' as it slams his UN speech
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea on Monday called South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol “a guy with a trash-like brain” and “a diplomatic idiot” as it blasted him for using a U.N. speech to issue a warning over the North’s deepening military ties with Russia. In a...

Leaders of Syria and China announce strategic partnership as part of Asian Games diplomacy
BEIJING (AP) — China and Syria announced the formation of a strategic partnership on Friday as Chinese leader Xi Jinping kicked off a series of diplomatic meetings ahead of the upcoming Asian Games. Xi met Syrian President Bashar Assad in the southern Chinese city of Hangzhou,...

BTS member Suga begins alternative military service in South Korea
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Suga, a member of K-pop supergroup BTS, began fulfilling his mandatory military duty Friday as a social service agent, an alternative form of military service in the country. Suga, 30, became the group’s third member to start carrying out their military...

North Korea's Kim sets forth steps to boost Russia ties as US and Seoul warn about weapons deals
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un ordered unspecified steps to further develop relations with Russia after his recent visit to the country as his foreign rivals warn that any cooperation on military weapons would be dangerous and bring consequences. Experts...

South Korean lawmakers vote to lift hunger striking opposition leader's immunity to arrest
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — In a surprise outcome, South Korea’s opposition-controlled parliament voted Thursday to pass a motion submitted by the government that allows the potential arrest of the country’s leading opposition figure, Lee Jae-myung, who faces a widening investigation over...
