South Korea

SEOUL, June 25 (Reuters) - North Korea on Saturday condemned "aggression moves" by Washington and Seoul, vowing to take revenge as it marked the 72nd anniversary of the outbreak of the Korean War at a time of rising tension on the Korean Peninsula.

Amid concerns North Korea could be preparing to conduct its first nuclear test in five years, South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol and U.S. President Joe Biden agreed in May to deploy more U.S. weapons if it was necessary to deter the North. 

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un doubled down on his nuclear arms buildup to overwhelm “hostile forces” at a key meeting where military leaders approved unspecified new operational duties for frontline army units.

Members of the ruling Workers’ Party’s Central Military Commission decided to supplement an “important military action plan” on the duties of frontline troops and further strengthen the country’s nuclear war deterrent, state media said Friday.

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea discussed assigning additional duties to front-line army units at a key military meeting, state media said Thursday, a move that analysts said indicates it plans to deploy battlefield nuclear weapons targeting South Korea along the rivals’ tense border.

While much international attention has focused on North Korea’s testing of intercontinental ballistic missiles potentially capable of reaching the U.S. mainland, it is also developing a variety of nuclear-capable short-range missiles that can target South Korea.

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — It’s only been a month since North Korea acknowledged having a COVID-19 outbreak, after steadfastly denying any cases for more than two years. But already it may be preparing to declare victory.

According to state media, North Korea has avoided the mass deaths many expected in a nation with one of the world’s worst health care systems, little or no access to vaccines, and what outsiders see as a long record of ignoring the suffering of its people.

(AP) --- The headlines on the newsstands in Seoul blared fresh warnings of a possible nuclear test by North Korea.

Out on the sidewalks, 28-year-old office worker Lee Jae Sang already had an opinion about how to respond to North Korea’s fast-growing capacity to lob nuclear bombs across borders and oceans.

“Our country should also develop a nuclear program. And prepare for a possible nuclear war,” said Lee, voicing a desire that a February poll showed was shared by 3 out of 4 South Koreans.

SEOUL, June 20 (Xinhua) -- South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol's approval rating stayed at 48.0 percent last week, unchanged compared to the previous week, a weekly poll showed Monday.

The negative assessment on Yoon's conduct of state affairs gained 1.2 percentage points to 45.4 percent, according to local pollster Realmeter.

Support for the ruling conservative People Power Party dipped 0.5 percentage points over the week to 46.8 percent last week.

The main liberal opposition Democratic Party's approval rating rose 0.2 percentage points to 39.4 percent.

SEOUL, June 19 (Reuters) - North Korea has dispatched medical crews and epidemiological investigators to a province battling the outbreak of an intestinal disease, state media reported on Sunday.

At least 800 families suffering from what North Korea has only called an "acute enteric epidemic" have received aid in South Hwanghae Province so far.

Enteric refers to the gastrointestinal tract and South Korean officials say it may be cholera or typhoid.

SEOUL, June 17 (Reuters) - North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and other senior officials prepared aid to send to 800 families suffering from an unidentified intestinal epidemic, state media reported on Friday, as the country also battles its first COVID-19 outbreak.

North Korea revealed this week it was facing an "acute enteric epidemic" on top of a weeks-long outbreak of COVID. It did not elaborate what the disease was, but enteric refers to the gastrointestinal tract.

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea reported a new “epidemic” of an intestinal disease on Thursday, an unusual announcement from the secretive country that is already contending with a COVID-19 outbreak and severe economic turmoil.

It’s unclear how many people are infected in what the official Korean Central News Agency said was “an acute enteric epidemic” in southwestern Haeju city.

SEOUL, Jun 15 (NNN-YONHAP) – South Korea’s automotive export logged a double-digit growth last month, due to strong demand for environmentally-friendly vehicles, government data showed today.

Car shipment advanced 18.9 percent from a year earlier to 4.15 billion U.S. dollars in May, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

It marked the highest May figure, on the back of robust global demand for eco-friendly vehicles, the export of which surged 46.1 percent to 1.28 billion dollars.