Politics

U.S. President Joe Biden and South Korean President Moon Jae-in participate in an expanded bilateral meeting at the White House on May 21.
International relations

Biden and Moon align on North Korea but walk fine line on China

US leader names veteran Sung Kim special envoy and aims for 'practical progress'

22 May 2021
Vice President Kamala Harris meets with South Korean President Moon Jae-in in the ceremonial office in Eisenhower Executive Office Building in the White House complex on May 21.
Indo-Pacific

South Korea will stand by US to defend liberal order: Moon tells VP

Harris says alliance can promote a free, open, and prosperous Indo-Pacific

22 May 2021
Vaccines and North Korea's nuclear program will be on top of South Korean President Moon Jae-in's agenda when he meets U.S. President Joe Biden in Washington later this week. (Photos from AP and Reuters)
International relations

Moon's goals for Biden summit: vaccines and North Korea progress

South Korean president heads to Washington seeking buy-ins from the U.S.

20 May 2021
U.S. President Joe Biden is due to meet South Korean President Moon Jae-in in the White House on Friday. (Biden photo by Getty/Kyodo, Moon photo by Yonhap/Kyodo)
Indo-Pacific

Moon weighs 'Quad lite' at Biden summit

South Korea president walks fine line between US and China

18 May 2021
South Korean President Moon Jae-in speaks in Seoul on Monday to mark four years since he took office.
Economy

Moon Jae-in targets 4% growth in South Korea this year

Entering final year in office, president vows to bolster nation's chip industry

10 May 2021
South Korean President Moon Jae-in is entering his final year in office, bruised by corruption scandals among his administration and public disapproval of his handling of the economy.
Politics

Young South Korean men turn against Moon ahead of 2022 election

President enters final year of office with approval rating at new low

7 May 2021
Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi, left, met with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and South Korean Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong in London Wednesday.
International relations

Japan and South Korea agree to coordinate with US on North Korea

Tokyo and Seoul try to thaw ties as foreign ministers meet in-person for first time

6 May 2021
From strawberries to whisky, Japan is eager to protect the premium image of its produce. (Source photos by Kei Higuchi and courtesy of Fukuoka Prefecture)
Agriculture

Japan battles Chinese and Korean strawberry and whisky copycats

Government and industry set stricter regulations to protect premium brands

4 May 2021
U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson hosts a virtual G-7 meeting in February. This week's gathering of foreign ministers will be the group's first in-person meeting since COVID-19 hit. (File photo by pool/AP)
International relations

China and Russia's authoritarian challenge hangs over G-7 meeting

India, Australia, South Korea and ASEAN to attend London summit as guests

3 May 2021
President Moon says Seoul will pursue "balanced diplomacy by deepening further its relations with China while placing importance on its relationship with the U.S." (Nikkei montage/AP/Reuters)
International relations

Moon Jae-in's visit to US tinged by promises to China

At May summit, Biden expected to tell South Korean president to act as an ally

30 April 2021
South Korean President Moon Jae-in will be the second foreign leader to have a summit with U.S. President Joe Biden, and the second from Asia. (Source photos by Reuters)
International relations

South Korean President Moon to visit White House on May 21

Date marks President Biden's second in-person summit with a foreign leader

30 April 2021
The Royal Navy’s fleet flagship, the HMS Queen Elizabeth, leaves Glen Mallan, Scotland, on March 20 as part of final preparations before its first operational deployment. (Photo courtesy of the Royal Navy)
Indo-Pacific

UK carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth to visit Japan and South Korea

18 F-35s, two destroyers, two frigates and two support ships to form strike group

26 April 2021
Women hold portraits of deceased former South Korean "comfort women" during anti-Japan rally in Seoul in 2018.
Comment

Conflicting ideas vex South Korea courts in 'comfort women' cases

Sovereign immunity is cited in dismissal of suit against Japan

22 April 2021
A statue symbolizing "comfort women" is seen in front of Japanese embassy in Seoul on Wednesday.
International relations

Former Korean 'comfort women' lose lawsuit against Japan

Court makes surprise ruling; dismisses compensation suit due to state immunity

21 April 2021
A man receives a COVID-19 vaccination in Germany: Currencies in countries where vaccine rollouts have made progress have fared better than those where they have lagged.
Markets

Coronavirus vaccination rate now on investors' radar

Pound and dollar rise as vaccines boost give UK and US economies

18 April 2021
Myanmar's junta chief Senior General Min Aung Hlaing takes part in an army parade on Armed Forces Day in Naypyitaw on March 27.
Myanmar Crisis

Posco cuts ties to Myanmar junta as multinationals face scrutiny

Investors press companies to stop working with military's web of 130 businesses

18 April 2021
South Korean President Moon Jae-in has less than a year left to boost his party's fortunes before next March's general elections.
Politics

South Korea's Moon shuffles cabinet pack after heavy poll defeats

President picks Kim Boo-kyum as new prime minister; 5 other changes

16 April 2021
President Moon Jae-in speaks during a meeting with executives from South Korean companies in key industries including semiconductors, autos and shipbuilding.
Technology

South Korea's Moon summons strategic companies amid chip shortage

Samsung, Hyundai Motor and others discuss crisis disrupting supply chains

15 April 2021
South Korean President Moon Jae-in, left, expressed his worries over Japan’s decision to discharge the treated wastewater from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant. Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said it was "unavoidable." (Nikkei montage/Reuters/Kosaku Mimura)
Japan-South Korea rift

South Korea weighs fighting Fukushima water plan at tribunal

Japan's decision to discharge treated water adds to Tokyo-Seoul tensions

14 April 2021
The Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant (Photo by Yuki Nakao) 
Politics

Why the decision to release treated Fukushima water took a decade

Distrust of TEPCO and government hindered plans for scientifically safe discharge

13 April 2021
Tanks storing contaminated water are seen in the foreground at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant in January.
Politics

Japan approves release of Fukushima plant water into sea

Tepco to discharge treated water in two years as China and South Korea blast plan

13 April 2021
The MT Hankuk Chemi leaves the port in Bandar Abbas, Iran on April 9. 
9 April 2021
Oh Se-hoon, center, candidate of the main opposition People Power Party celebrates with party members while watching the results of exit polls for the Seoul mayoral election at party headquarters in the South Korean capital on Wednesday.
Politics

Moon's liberals suffer heavy defeats in Seoul and Busan elections

Conservative wins set to hasten president's lame duck status in final year

8 April 2021
People pass by posters showing candidates running in the Seoul mayoral by-election on a street in the South Korean capital on Tuesday.
Politics

South Korean voters cast ballots for mayors in Seoul and Busan

Polls signal conservatives to win both cities in boost before 2022 presidential poll

7 April 2021
South Korea's second city of Busan is traditionally a conservative area, and has inched further to the right in recent years in apparent frustration with the ruling party's failure to revive the regional economy.
Asia Insight

Moon promises the sky in Busan but faces electoral crash landing

Polls tip conservatives to win back mayorships of South Korea's two biggest cities

6 April 2021