Koreas

SEOUL, Nov. 7 (UPI) — After the inauguration of the Donald Trump in January, the South Korean government and its corporations were pressed to invest hundreds of billions of dollars in the United States to avoid high tariffs.

Observers expressed concern Friday that such large-scale overseas investments could end up harming Asia’s fourth-largest economy, which heavily depends on the manufacturing industry.

Late last month, Seoul agreed to invest $200 billion in cash and $150 billion in shipbuilding and other industrial projects in the United States over the coming years, with an annual ceiling of $20 billion.

In return, Washington would reduce tariffs on Korean exports to 15% from 25%, honoring the terms agreed upon in late July. Trump also vowed to provide propulsion technology to help the key U.S. ally in East Asia build a nuclear-powered submarine.

The deal coincided with Trump’s visit to Korea to meet his counterpart, President Lee Jae Myung, on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit.

“Beginning next year, our annual investments in the United States are expected to double compared to 2025. When corporate funds move abroad, companies will have less capacity to invest at home,” Sogang University economics Professor Hur Jung told UPI.

“The problem is that it appears to become a long-term trend, which is feared to lead to the hollowing out of Korea’s manufacturing sector. The government is required to put forth great efforts to address this,” he said.

Hur recommended the country to prioritize traditional industries, such as semiconductors and automobiles, rather than concentrate on artificial intelligence-based innovations, which have been the main focus of the incumbent Seoul administration.

Other analysts note that the worries go beyond the $350 billion investment plan, as many Korean corporations have announced major spending initiatives in the United States to avoid high tariffs.

For example, Korea’s state-backed companies and private enterprises promised up to $150 billion in investments in the United States in August, when Lee had his first summit with Trump.

Back then, Hyundai Motor Group unveiled a plan to funnel $26 billion in the United States until 2028, while Hanwha Group committed $5 billion to expand its shipyard in Philadelphia, which the Korean conglomerate acquired late last year.

Korean Air also plans to purchase 103 aircraft from Boeing by the end of the 2030s, which is expected to total $36.2 billion in value.

“Korea Inc. invested $106 billion in domestic facilities last year. And its companies are now ready to spend $150 billion in the United States alone after a single meeting between the two countries’ political leaders in August. Does it make sense?” economic commentator Kim Kyeong-joon, formerly vice chairman at Deloitte Consulting Korea, asked rhetorically in a phone interview.

“Our foreign exchange reserves stand at just over $400 billion, and we are preparing to pour more than that amount into a single foreign market. Such an approach could weaken our ability to invest domestically, weighing heavily on the manufacturing-based economy,” he said.

According to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, manufacturing accounts for 27% of South Korea’s gross domestic product, which is almost double the average among other member countries.

Against this backdrop, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources is set to establish a forum involving related researchers and businesses to deal with the expected crisis. The Bank of Korea also warned of the gravity of the situation in an August report.

“As in past crises, our corporations, the government and households need to share a sense of urgency and work together to overhaul the country’s aging economic structure,” the central bank said at the time.

However, critics take issue with the complacency of top policymakers like Kim Yong-beom, chief presidential secretary for policy in the current administration, who downplayed fears about the hollowing out of the domestic manufacturing sector.

“Such assessments may be premature because many partner firms and key operations, including research and development centers, still remain based in Korea,” Kim told a conference in early September.

SEOUL, Nov. 3 (UPI) — General Motors Korea saw its sales plunge more than 20% in October from a year earlier due to a slump at home and abroad amid high tariffs under the United States’ Trump administration.

GM Korea, based west of Seoul, said Monday that it sold 50,021 vehicles last month, down 20.8% year-on-year. The company’s domestic sales dropped 39.5%, while exports declined 20%.

Citing statistics from the Korea Automobile & Mobility Association, GM Korea Vice President Gustavo Colossi offered an optimistic view about its performance this year.

“Despite the production losses in the third quarter, demand for Chevrolet vehicles remains strong both domestically and globally, as evidenced by the Chevrolet Trax Crossover ranking No. 1 in domestic passenger car exports from January to September this year,” he said in a statement.

However, some observers remain worried about the future of GM Korea.

“Most of GM Korea’s turnover comes from exports to the United States. But the 25% tariffs have weighed on the company this year. Even if the duties go down to 15%, the struggle is feared to continue,” Daelim University automotive professor Kim Pil-soo told UPI.

“Worse, its domestic sales accounted for only about 3% in October, with just over 1,000 units sold. If the situation continues, speculation about GM’s withdrawal from Korea is unlikely to fade,” he added.

Originally, South Korean automakers did not pay any tariffs when exporting their cars to the United States, thanks to the bilateral free trade agreement that went into effect in early 2012.

The Trump administration imposed tariffs of up to 25% on Korean-made automobiles earlier this year, although Washington agreed to reduce the rate to 15% late last month in return for Seoul’s promise to make major investments in the United States.

GM Korea has denied rumors that it plans to leave South Korea.

President Donald Trump has come out in support of a future fleet of South Korean nuclear-powered submarines. He says he has signed off on the plan and has claimed that at least some of the boats will be built in the United States. Authorities in South Korea have been open about their nuclear-powered submarine ambitions for years, but have faced pushback, including from the United States, particularly over nuclear proliferation concerns.

Trump has made two posts on his Truth Social social media network discussing South Korean nuclear-powered submarine plans in the past day or so. The U.S. President held a summit with his South Korean counterpart, Lee Jae Myung, yesterday, which was centered heavily on trade negotiations. Trump’s visit to South Korea was part of a larger tour of Asia.

“Our Military Alliance is stronger than ever before and, based on that, I have given them approval to build a Nuclear Powered Submarine, rather than the old fashioned, and far less nimble diesel powered submarines that they have now,” Trump wrote in one post on Truth Social.

“South Korea will be building its Nuclear Powered Submarine in the Philadelphia Shipyards, right here in the good ol’ U.S.A.,” he wrote in a second post. “Shipbuilding in our Country will soon be making a BIG COMEBACK. Stay tuned!!!”

The South Korean Navy already has a substantial fleet of diesel-electric submarines, which currently consists of 12 Jang Bogo class, nine Sohn Won-yil class, and three Dosan Ahn Chang-ho class types. The Jang Bogo and Sohn Won-yil class submarines are German-designed Type 209s and Type 214s, respectively. The Dosan Ahn Chang-ho class, also known as the KS-III Batch I, is a domestically developed design. Just this month, South Korea launched the first of a planned subclass of three KS-III Batch IIs, the country’s largest and most advanced submarine to date, which you can read more about here.

In general, compared to even advanced diesel-electric types like the KS-III Batch II, the key benefit that nuclear-powered submarines offer is functionally unlimited range.

The Trump administration has yet to elaborate on exactly what the current South Korean nuclear-powered submarine plan might entail and the roles that the United States may play.

The shipyard in Philadelphia that Trump mentioned is most likely the Hanwha Philly Shipyard. That yard had been Philadelphia Shipyard Inc. until elements of the South Korean conglomerate Hanwha acquired it last year. That yard has never produced a submarine of any kind or any type of nuclear-powered vessel.

“Asked about Trump’s submarine announcement, Hanwha Ocean, which owns the shipyard with another Hanwha affiliate, said it was ready to cooperate with both countries and provide support with advanced technology, but did not mention specifics,” according to Reuters.

General Dynamics Electric Boat in Groton, Connecticut, and Newport News Shipbuilding, a division of Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) in Newport News, Virginia, are two current producers of nuclear-powered submarines in the United States.

South Korea’s “Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back told lawmakers that plans called for South Korea to build its own submarines and modular reactors, and receive a supply of enriched uranium fuel from the United States,” Reuters also reported. “Seok Jong-gun, the minister for the defense acquisition program administration told the same hearing that South Korea had been developing small nuclear reactors for some time and would be able to build one for a submarine in less than the decade usually needed to develop such nuclear-powered vessels.”

“We believe if we use the technologies we have been preparing for the future…we’ll be able to achieve this within a short period of time,” Seok added, per Reuters‘ story.

The South Korean government is known to have conducted at least one detailed design study relating to a miniature nuclear reactor for use on a future submarine, called the 326 Initiative, in the 2003 timeframe. The country also has an established nuclear power industry that develops reactors for non-military purposes, but which could be leveraged for such work.

A key question, in general, when it comes to nuclear-powered submarine designs, is the level of enrichment of the fuel inside their reactors. U.S. Navy nuclear-powered submarines notably have reactors with fuel enriched to the same level as material for nuclear weapons. This is not a requisite, however. The reactors inside current French nuclear-powered submarines use low-enriched uranium. There are reports that Chinese nuclear-powered submarines may also use reactors with LEU fuel.

Still, it is worth noting here that, at least currently, the only countries with operational nuclear-powered submarines are also nuclear weapon states. At the same time, that is already set to change with the Australian Navy’s expected acquisition of nuclear-powered submarines through the trilateral Australia-United Kingdom-United States (AUKUS) defense cooperation agreement.

Since 2015, South Korea has also faced the unique hurdle of a bilateral agreement that bars it from enriching uranium and reprocessing spent fuel without U.S. government approval. Trump appears to have now given that approval. Defense Minister Ahn’s comments, per Reuters, indicate the hurdle has been further cleared by a plan to source the nuclear material directly from the United States.

A South Korean nuclear submarine program could still create proliferation concerns for the country, which is presently a party to the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). As TWZ previously wrote when the possibility of South Korea acquiring nuclear-powered submarines came up in 2018:

The need to build enrichment or other nuclear facilities, or otherwise acquire the highly enriched fissile material, could also draw international criticism that South Korea is abiding by the letter, but not the spirit of the NPT, effectively developing a nuclear weapons program in all but name. These issues are at the core of why South Korea conducted the 326 Initiative in secret and why it abandoned it after it became public, attracting the attention of both the United States and the International Atomic Energy Agency.

South Korean officials have talked in the past about the possibility of changing geopolitical circumstances on the Peninsula, and elsewhere, leading it to start its own nuclear weapons program. North Korea is, of course, a nuclear weapons state, and it may now be pursuing its own nuclear-powered submarines with assistance from Russia.

The South Korean Navy would also have to develop suitable infrastructure to sustain a fleet of nuclear-powered submarines, as well as train personnel in the operational and maintenance of naval reactors. There could be cost and related industrial base concerns, especially depending on how deeply involved the United States needs to be in any such plan. Questions have already been raised about whether the U.S. nuclear-powered submarine industry can support Australia’s needs and U.S. Navy requirements. The U.S. naval shipbuilding industry, as a whole, has faced serious challenges in recent years and continues to despite government-backed efforts to bolster its capabilities and capacity.

There are still larger questions about South Korea’s practical need for a nuclear-powered submarine capability. South Korean President Lee has said that his country fielding nuclear-powered submarines could help reduce operational demands for its American allies. Especially combined with conventionally-armed submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBM), it could also give the South Korean Navy more of a true second-strike capability to help deter North Korea.

However, North Korea has limited anti-submarine warfare capabilities, while South Korean diesel-electric submarine designs are only getting more and more advanced. The range and other benefits that nuclear propulsion offers for naval vessels generally point to broader, blue water ambitions. This is certainly the case for Australia, which is situated far from the areas it expects its future nuclear-powered boats to operate.

As such, South Korea’s work to acquire a fleet of nuclear-powered submarines, especially if they are capable of carrying out longer-range strikes on targets at sea and/or ashore, could have broader ramifications. The KSS-III Batch I submarines can already fire conventionally-armed SLBMs (SLBM), a capability that is being expanded upon in the Batch II types.

The Chinese government “hopes that South Korea and the United States will earnestly fulfill their nuclear non-proliferation obligations and do things to promote regional peace and stability, and not the other way around,” Guo Jiakun, a spokesperson for the country’s foreign ministry, said in response to the nuclear-powered submarine news, according to Reuters.

China already has a very large submarine force that includes diesel-electric and nuclear-powered types, and which it continues to expand in both size and capability.

Much still remains to be learned about how, and when, South Korea may expect to finally begin operating nuclear-powered submarines. Regardless, the country’s ambitions in this regard have now gotten a major boost in support from President Trump.

Contact the author: [email protected]

SEOUL, Oct. 24 (UPI) — South Korea’s law firm industry is ruled by Kim & Chang by any measure, while a handful of other companies struggle to catch up with the leader.

In terms of annual revenue, Kim & Chang reportedly posted about $1 billion last year, which was roughly equivalent to the combined revenue of its next four competitors — Lee & Ko, Bae, Kim & Lee, Yulchon and Shin & Kim.

When it comes to the number of lawyers, Kim & Chang was also second to none.

According to the Ministry of Justice, 1,020 lawyers licensed in Korea worked for Kim & Chang as of July, followed by 565 at Lee & Ko, 519 at Shin & Kim, 497 at Bae, Kim & Lee and 433 at Yulchon.

Kim & Chang was the only South Korean law firm in 2024 to be featured among the world’s Top 100 in a survey published by The American Lawyer and Law.com International.

Observers expect that the outfit will maintain its dominant position for the foreseeable future.

“As a perennial leader, Kim & Chang enjoys a premium. Corporate clients with deep pockets tend to select the best law firm available regardless of cost,” Sungkyunkwan University former law school professor Choi June-seon told UPI.

“Kim & Chang has a recruiting team that picks the cream of the crop. Its reward system, based on intense internal competition, is also notable. Its dominance is unlikely to fade within five years. And I expect it to continue even for a decade,” he said.

Economic commentator Kim Kyeong-joon, formerly vice chairman at Deloitte Consulting Korea, said that Kim & Chang has savored a first-mover advantage. Named after two founders, Kim Young-moo and Chang Soo-kil, it was established in 1973.

“As one of the earliest law firms in South Korea, Kim & Chang has stood out by meeting the mounting demand from corporate clients at a time when the country was undergoing rapid economic growth,” Kim said in a phone interview.

“In addition to its long history, the firm’s strength lies in its diversity across practice areas and industries, including M&A consulting, finance, antitrust, tax and litigation in both Korean and foreign languages,” he said.

Kim & Chang said the full-service law firm employs up to 2,100 professionals, including accountants, tax specialists and patent attorneys, on top of Korean and international lawyers.

Yonhap Infomax, a subsidiary of Yonhap News Agency, reported that Kim & Chang advised on 168 M&A deals last year worth $25.95 billion, capturing a 35.88% market share and remaining atop the list for 12 consecutive years.

Shin & Kim ranked No. 2 with 19.8%, chased by Lee & Ko with 12.6%, and Yulchon with 10.31%.

During the first half of this year, Kim & Chang again topped the podium with a market share of 28.27%.

Globally renowned law firms have tapped into the South Korean market since the early 2010s, but they have failed to make their presence felt. Some even exited the country after failing to achieve significant results.

“From the perspective of global law firms, it would be very difficult to build networks within Korea’s tightly-knit legal community. That’s why they have languished,” Seoul-based consultancy Leaders Index CEO Park Ju-gun said. “The situation is not likely to change in the near future.”

Asked which company might emerge as a serious contender to Kim & Chang, Park named Yulchon, which has chalked up fast growth over the past several years. Even so, he projected that it would take quite a lot of time.

Founded in 1997 as a latecomer, Yulchon has risen to the top ranks on the back of its expertise in tax, antitrust, and regulatory affairs. Other major players were mostly launched in the 1970s and 1980s.

Kim Jong Un claims no mistakes made in 80-year history of ruling party at event attended by Chinese and Russian leaders.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has declared the country’s global standing is growing stronger and promised to transform the country into an “affluent socialist paradise” during an event marking the 80th anniversary of the governing Workers’ Party of Korea, according to state media.

At a speech at May Day stadium in Pyongyang on Thursday, Kim said the party had not made “a single mistake or error” in its 80-year history, leading the country on a path of ascent riding on the wisdom and strength of the people, KCNA state news agency said on Friday.

“Today, we stand before the world as a mighty people with no obstacles we cannot overcome and no great achievement we cannot accomplish,” he said, KCNA reported.

North Korea has long been one of the most isolated and insular nations in the world, suffering economic difficulties while building up its nuclear weapons capabilities.

Friday’s events follow Kim’s visit to Beijing last month for China’s 80th anniversary of its World War II victory, standing with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin at a massive military parade in his first public appearance on the multilateral diplomatic stage.

United States President Donald Trump suggested that Russian, Chinese and North Korean leaders were conspiring against the United States as they gathered in Beijing, saying “no one even had this in their thoughts”.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump wrote to China’s leader Xi Jinping at the time: “Please give my warmest regards to Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong-un, as you conspire against The United States of America.”

KCNA did not name the guests attending Thursday’s events. Chinese Premier Li Qiang, Vietnamese leader To Lam and Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev had arrived in Pyongyang to attend anniversary celebrations, state media had reported.

Mass games and art performances were held at the stadium, with Kim accompanied by guests whom the large crowd gathered greeted with cheers “that shook the capital’s night sky”, KCNA said.

Al Jazeera’s Jack Barton, reporting from Seoul, said according to a South Korean government adviser, North Korea was “no longer the most isolated state in the world”.

“The message here is also … that he has consolidated his power at home and now increasingly on the international stage,” Barton added.

Kim talks tough on US and promises to build a ‘socialist paradise’

Kim said that North Korea has been pushing for the simultaneous development of nuclear weapons and the economy to cope with “growing nuclear war threats by the US imperialists”, according to state media.

“Our party and government are still coping with our adversaries’ ferocious political and military moves of pressure by pursuing harder-line policies, holding fast to firm principles and employing brave, unflinching countermeasures,” Kim said.

“This is powerfully propelling the growth of the progressive camp against war and hegemony.”

Last month, Kim Jong Un had suggested that he is open to talks with the US if Washington stops insisting that his country give up its nuclear weapons.

“If the United States drops the absurd obsession with denuclearising us and accepts reality, and wants genuine peaceful coexistence, there is no reason for us not to sit down with the United States,” Kim said in late September.

Kim on Friday also expressed confidence in overcoming difficulties and drastically improving the economy in the near future. “I will surely turn this country into a more affluent and beautiful land and into the best socialist paradise in the world,” Kim said.

The North Korean leader also held talks with Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Thursday, praising the two countries’ “friendly and cooperative relations”.

Kim praised Li’s visit as “showing the invariable support and special friendly feeling towards the WPK and the government and people of the DPRK” as well as Beijing’s efforts to maintain “traditional DPRK-China friendly and cooperative relations and further develop them”, KCNA reported.

Kim Jong Un says Pyongyang will counter the buildup of US forces in the Korean Peninsula.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has pledged to develop additional military measures and allocate more strategic assets to respond to the buildup of US forces in the south, as the country prepares for a major anniversary parade.

“In direct proportion to the buildup of US forces in [South] Korea, our strategic interest in the region has also increased, and we have accordingly allocated special assets to key targets of interest,” Kim was quoted in a report published by the state media KCNA on Sunday.

Kim’s latest statement comes just days after South Korea reported that Pyongyang has accumulated large quantities of highly-enriched and weapons-grade uranium, signalling a sharp increase in the country’s stockpile of nuclear material.

“I believe our enemies should be concerned about the direction their security environment is evolving,” Kim said at a military exhibition event ahead of the parade.

North Korea “will undoubtedly develop additional military measures” to prepare to respond to the buildup of US forces, he added without elaborating further.

In recent weeks, Kim had directed top officials to strengthen the nation’s “nuclear shield and sword”, saying only a “nuclear counteraction” could safeguard his country’s security.

On Friday, October 10, Kim is set to lead a large-scale military parade to celebrate the 80th anniversary of the ruling Workers’ Party of Korea. At this event, the country is also expected to display its latest weaponry and other military hardware.

South Korea’s Yonhap news agency quoted analysts as saying that Pyongyang may showcase the next-generation Hwasong-20 intercontinental ballistic missile during the parade.

It added that North Korea could also test-launch the same weaponry around the date leading to the anniversary.

Yonhap quoted South Korea’s military as saying “there are signs” that Pyongyang is preparing to welcome tens of thousands of people at the parade, which will be held on the night of October 10.

South Korea stated that it has also detected movements of vehicles and some military equipment, but did not provide further details.

Kim has maintained a hardline rhetoric towards South Korea and its close ally, the United States, despite signs of diplomatic outreach from US President Donald Trump and Seoul.

South Korea’s President Lee Jae-myung, who took office in June, has also promised a more dovish approach towards Pyongyang compared with his hawkish predecessor, Yoon Suk-yeol.

North Korea has also been tightening military ties with Russia and has been supporting Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine by sending troops and artillery.

Kim has also been deepening alignment with China and recently travelled to Beijing to attend a military parade marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, alongside Chinese leader Xi Jinping and Putin.

SEOUL, Oct. 3 (UPI) — South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on Friday called for North Korea to allow families separated by the 1950-53 Korean War to hold reunions or exchange letters.

Lee made the remarks while meeting with elderly citizens who had relatives in the North ahead of Chuseok, the mid-autumn festival that is one of Korea’s most important holidays.

“I strongly urge the North to consider these unfortunate circumstances from a humanitarian perspective,” Lee said at the Ganghwa Peace Observatory in Incheon, which overlooks North Korea.

“I believe that it is the responsibility of all political leaders in both the South and the North to ensure that these tragically separated families can confirm the fate of their relatives and, at the very least, exchange letters,” he said, according to his office. He added that the families should ideally be able to meet again in person.

North and South Korea have held 21 family reunions since 2000, with the last one taking place in August 2018 during a period of inter-Korean detente.

Relations have frozen over for the past several years, however, and time is not on the side of the family members who are still hoping to connect with their long-lost relatives.

Over 134,000 South Koreans have registered to participate in family reunions since 1988, but only 35,311 were still alive as of August, according to data from the South’s Unification Ministry. Some two-thirds of people on the list are over the age of 80.

In February, North Korea began dismantling the facility used for family reunions at its Mount Kumgang tourist zone, a further sign of deteriorating relations.

Lee’s administration has made efforts to reduce tensions between the two Koreas since he took office in June, with conciliatory gestures such as removing propaganda loudspeakers from border areas.

In an address to the U.N. General Assembly last week, Lee unveiled a peace initiative that seeks engagement and normalization with the North.

SEOUL, Oct. 2 (UPI) — South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on Thursday apologized for the country’s troubled history of overseas adoptions, acknowledging that “unjust human rights violations” occurred and vowing stronger safeguards going forward.

“South Korea once bore the shameful stigma of being a ‘child exporter,'” Lee said in a Facebook post.

“While some found loving adoptive families, many suffered their entire lives due to the irresponsibility and inaction of certain adoption agencies,” he said. “My heart is heavy when I think of the anxiety, pain, and confusion of international adoptees who were thrown alone into a foreign land at a young age.”

In March, a long-awaited report by South Korea’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission found that the government violated adoptees’ rights as it sought to expedite overseas adoptions rather than strengthen domestic welfare programs. The report highlighted fraudulent practices such as document falsification, infant substitution and inadequate vetting of adoptive parents.

At least 170,000 South Korean children and babies were sent overseas since the end of the 1950-53 Korean War, particularly in the 1970s and 1980s as the country went through a period of explosive economic growth.

Lee noted that even in the 2020s, long after South Korea had become an economic power, an average of more than 100 children per year were still being sent abroad for adoption.

Acknowledging the “unjust human rights violations” cited in the TRC report, Lee said that there were instances where the government “failed to fulfill its role in this process.”

“On behalf of the Republic of Korea, I offer my sincere apologies and condolences to the international adoptees, their families, and their families of origin who have suffered,” he said.

The president’s remarks came one day after South Korea formally became a party to the Hague Adoption Convention, an international treaty meant to establish safeguards for intercountry adoptions. Seoul ratified the treaty in July, some 12 years after signing the pact.

Moving ahead, Lee called on government ministries to “protect the rights of adoptees and establish a human rights-centered adoption system.”

“I also urge them to devise effective support measures to help international adoptees find their roots,” he added.

Kim Jong Un references ‘new important nuclear strategy’ in high-level meeting with scientists and military officials.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has directed top officials to strengthen the nation’s “nuclear shield and sword”, saying only a “nuclear counteraction” could safeguard his country’s security.

In a meeting with nuclear scientists and technicians on Friday, including Hong Sung-mu, a senior official believed to have spearheaded North Korea’s nuclear programme, Kim said the production of nuclear materials and weapons was an “essential top priority”, according to state media.

“The powerful deterrent, namely, the logic of peacekeeping and security by force with nuclear forces as its backbone is the invariable stand of the DPRK,” Kim was quoted as saying by the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) is North Korea’s official name.

Kim also made reference to “main tasks” that had been carried out by the country’s nuclear weapons research institute with regard to “a new important nuclear strategy”, South Korea’s official Yonhap news agency reported.

The North Korean leader did not provide details regarding that new strategy.

“Comrade Kim Jong Un said we must constantly sharpen and renew the nuclear shield and sword that can reliably guarantee national sovereignty, security and interests and the right to development,” KCNA added.

Kim’s meeting with his nuclear scientists and military officials follows just days after South Korea said Pyongyang was presumed to possess as much as 2,000kg (2 tonnes) of highly-enriched uranium.

South Korea’s Unification Minister Chung Dong-young said on Thursday that just 10-12kg (22-26lbs) of enriched uranium was adequate to build a nuclear bomb.

“Even at this very hour, uranium centrifuges at four locations (in North Korea) are running, probably accumulating nuclear materials,” Chung said, according to Yonhap.

The minister also said it was now impossible to convince North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons programme through the forces of sanctions, but the resumption of talks between Pyongyang and Washington could offer a “breakthrough” to denuclearisation efforts.

“It will be desirable for [talks] to take place as soon as possible,” the minister said.

Kim said recently there was no reason to avoid dialogue with the US if Washington ceased insisting that his country give up nuclear weapons.

“Personally, I still have fond memories of US President Trump,” Kim said, according to KCNA, referring to meeting Trump three times during the United States president’s first administration.

“If the United States drops the absurd obsession with denuclearising us and accepts reality, and wants genuine peaceful coexistence, there is no reason for us not to sit down with the United States,” Kim was quoted as saying.

“The world already knows full well what the United States does after it makes a country give up its nuclear weapons and disarms,” Kim said.

“We will never give up our nuclear weapons,” he added.

Kim Keon-hee is standing trial on three charges related to corruption and stock manipulation.

Former South Korean First Lady Kim Keon-hee has appeared in court for her first hearing in a corruption trial involving bribery and stock manipulation.

With her face partially covered with a mask and wearing her inmate number, 4398, Kim, 53, was brought to the Seoul Central District Court on Wednesday from detention, where she had been held since August 12.

During an identity check from the bench, Kim told the court she was currently “unemployed” and did not want a jury trial.

Kim becomes the first spouse of a former president to stand trial after she was accused of violating the Capital Markets Act, the Political Funds Act and a law on the acceptance of bribes for mediation.

The former first lady’s charge under the Capital Markets Act is related to claims that she conspired with the former head of Deutsch Motors, a BMW dealer, and a close associate to manipulate the company’s stock prices and make 810 million won ($581,000) in profits in two years, between 2010 and 2012.

Kim’s second charge is based on allegations that she and her husband, ousted President Yoon Suk-yeol, received free opinion polls from a self-proclaimed power broker, for free, ahead of the 2021 elections, which Yoon went on to win.

However, the trade-off for the free polling was securing the nomination of the former People Power Party representative, Kim Young-sun, for a by-election later that year.

Kim’s final charge, related to corruption, is connected to her alleged acceptance of luxury bags and jewellery from the Unification Church in 2022.

The head of the church, Han Hak-ja, was arrested on Tuesday for bribing Kim, a claim that Han and her church have denied.

Meanwhile, Yoon is also standing trial for his failed attempt to impose martial law in the country in December of last year.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has suggested that he is open to talks with the US if Washington stops insisting that his country give up its nuclear weapons.

“If the United States drops the absurd obsession with denuclearising us and accepts reality, and wants genuine peaceful coexistence, there is no reason for us not to sit down with the United States,” Kim said in a speech at the Supreme People’s Assembly in Pyongyang on Sunday, according to the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

The North Korean leader also commented on US President Donald Trump, whom he met three times during Trump’s first presidency, saying: “Personally, I still have fond memories of US President Trump.”

Kim’s comments come after both Trump and South Korean leader Lee Jae-myung expressed their willingness to meet with their North Korean counterpart at a meeting at the White House last month.

“Someday, I’ll see him. I look forward to seeing him. He was very good with me,” Trump said at the time, adding that he knew Kim, whose family has ruled North Korea for three generations, “better than anybody, almost, other than his sister”.

Lee, who has been vocally supportive of thawing relations with his country’s northern neighbour since taking office in June, said at the same meeting that he hoped the US president would “build a Trump Tower” in North Korea “so that I can play golf there”.

Despite overtures from Lee and Trump, North Korea has been critical of joint military drills between the US and South Korea, with Kim Jong Un’s sister, Kim Yo Jong, describing them as a “reckless” invasion rehearsal.

A more realistic goal

In recent interviews with the BBC and the Reuters news agency, Lee has also expressed an openness to negotiating his country’s stance on North Korea’s nuclear weapons.

Speaking to the BBC on Sunday, Lee said he would be open to a more “realistic” goal of North Korea agreeing to stop acquiring more nuclear weapons, rather than continuing with “fruitless attempts” at making it give up its existing arsenal.

“So long as we do not give up on the long-term goal of denuclearisation, I believe there are clear benefits to having North Korea stop its nuclear and missile development,” Lee said.

In an interview with Reuters, also published on Sunday, Lee acknowledged that sanctions had ultimately failed to deter Pyongyang, which today is adding an estimated 15 to 20 nuclear weapons to its arsenal every year.

“The reality is that the previous approach of sanctions and pressure has not solved the problem; it has worsened it,” Lee said.

Addressing the Supreme People’s Assembly in Pyongyang on Sunday, Kim also said that sanctions had only made his country stronger and more resilient, despite reports that the nation of some 26 million people has long suffered from a food crisis.

“There will never be, and will never ever be for eternity, any negotiations with enemies of exchanging some things out of some obsession with lifting sanctions,” Kim said.

The United Nations imposed sanctions on North Korea for pursuing its banned nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programmes close to 20 years ago.

But Kim Jong Un last year promised to “exponentially” boost his nation’s nuclear arsenal to defend itself against “hostile” forces.

The push comes as the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute’s (SIPRI) Yearbook warned in its latest annual report that the world is at risk of a new arms race among the nine nuclear-armed states: China, France, Israel, India, North Korea, Pakistan, Russia, the United Kingdom and the US.

Meanwhile, Kim’s signalling of an openness to meeting with Washington comes after he met with China’s leader, Xi Jinping, and Russia’s leader, Vladimir Putin, in Beijing earlier this month for a military parade marking 80 years since the end of World War II.

In comments apparently addressed to Xi regarding the Beijing celebrations, Trump said on his Truth Social platform: “Please give my warmest regards to Vladimir Putin, and Kim Jong Un, as you conspire against the United States of America.”

SEOUL, Sept. 11 (UPI) — South Korean President Lee Jae Myung said Thursday that last week’s “perplexing” immigration raid at a Hyundai electric battery plant in Georgia, which led to the detention of more than 300 South Korean workers, could prevent firms from making future investments in the United States.

“Companies will have to worry about whether establishing a local factory in the United States will be subject to all sorts of disadvantages or difficulties,” Lee said at a press conference in Seoul marking his 100th day in office.

“That could have a significant impact on future direct investment,” he said.

Multiple agencies led by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested 475 people, most of whom are South Korean nationals, at a Hyundai-LG Energy Solutions battery plant near Savannah, Ga., last Thursday.

ICE and Homeland Security Investigations officials said those who were detained are not authorized to work in the United States. The raid was the largest single-site operation so far under U.S. President Donald Trump‘s mass deportation agenda.

The roundup, which came less than two weeks after Lee met with Trump in the White House, has sparked widespread public shock and anger in South Korea. In July, Seoul and Washington reached a trade deal to lower Trump’s threatened tariffs from 25% to 15%, while South Korea pledged to invest $350 billion in the United States.

“The situation is extremely perplexing,” Lee said, noting that South Korean firms regularly send skilled workers for short stays to help establish overseas factories.

“These are not long-term workers,” he said. “When setting up facilities and equipment, you need skilled technicians. You need to install the machinery and the U.S. doesn’t have the workforce locally.”

Lee added that Seoul is currently negotiating with Washington to address the visa situation through potential waivers, additional quotas or new visa categories for Korean workers.

“If the United States sees a practical need, I think the issue will be resolved,” he said. “Under the current circumstances, Korean companies will be very hesitant to make direct investments in the United States.”

Some 316 South Korean nationals and 14 foreigners will return to Seoul on a charter plane departing at 1 a.m. local time on Friday, Lee said.

The flight, initially planned for Wednesday, was delayed due to U.S. officials insisting on transporting the workers in handcuffs, Lee added. He said Seoul protested and Washington reversed its stance, citing an “instruction from the White House.”

In latest development of his weapons arsenal, Kim supervised the test of a new solid-fuel rocket engine for North Korea’s ICBMs.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has overseen a test of a new rocket engine designed for intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) that he described as marking a “significant change in expanding and strengthening” the country’s strategic nuclear forces.

The country’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported on Tuesday that the successful test marked the ninth and final ground test of the solid-fuel rocket engine, built with carbon fibre and capable of producing 1,971 kilonewtons of thrust – a measure of propulsive force which is more powerful than earlier North Korean rocket engines.

The KCNA said that Kim expressed satisfaction after Monday’s test, calling the “eye-opening” development of the new rocket engine a “significant change” in North Korean nuclear capabilities.

The announcement that tests on the solid-fuel rocket are now complete comes a week after Kim visited the research institute that developed the engine, and where he unveiled that a next-generation Hwasong-20 ICBM is currently under development.

The development of North Korea’s ICBM arsenal adds to Pyongyang’s efforts in recent years to build weapons that pose as a viable threat to the continental United States, according to defence analysts.

Pyongyang’s nuclear ambitions are seen as a means to bolster North Korea’s status as a nuclear power and give it leverage in negotiating economic and security concessions with the US and other world powers.

North Korea also marked the 77th anniversary of its founding on Tuesday, by the current leader’s grandfather, Kim Il-sung.

In a separate report, KCNA said that Chinese President Xi Jinping sent a congratulatory letter to Kim and called for strengthened “strategic communication” between Beijing and Pyongyang.

“The Chinese side is ready to join hands in promoting the China-DPRK friendship and the socialist cause of the two countries through the intensified strategic communication and brisk visits and close cooperation with the DPRK side,” Xi wrote, using the acronym for North Korea’s official name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.

Last week, Kim joined Russian President Vladimir Putin and Xi in Beijing for China’s Victory Day Parade commemorating the end of World War II.

Analysts have said that the rare trip to an international gathering of world leaders was a diplomatic win for Kim, who has fortified his alliance with Russia and China.

The once rock-solid relationship between Washington and Seoul is being rocked by the detention of South Korean workers in a United States immigration swoop.

The controversy is the latest jolt in the alliance. There has been turbulence over tariffs and military spending as well.

Is the raid a one-off, or a sign of deeper trouble between the two nations?

Presenter:

Adrian Finighan

Guests:

Se-Woong Koo – founder of Korea Expose, an online magazine based in Seoul, specialising in Korean news

Jenny Town – senior fellow at the Stimson Center in Washington, DC, and director of its Korea programme and 38 North

Youngshik Bong – visiting professor at Yonsei University, Seoul

Sept. 3 (UPI) — South Korea’s governing Democratic Party said Wednesday that it will push for National Assembly hearings this month on the troubles facing debt-laden Home Plus, the country’s No. 2 discount chain, and its owner MBK Partners, one of Asia’s leading private equity funds.

Rep. Min Byung-deok of the Democratic Party said that lawmakers should act quickly. He heads the party’s committee designed to protect the rights of economically vulnerable groups.

“We will try to move forward with hearings regarding Home Plus in September. Since the parliamentary inspection is slated for October, this month is the deadline to do so,” Min told UPI in a phone interview.

“We plan to summon MBK Chairman Michael Byungju Kim and executives from both MBK and Home Plus. Toward that end, we will ask for the cooperation of the opposition People Power Party,” he added.

The Democratic Party has accused MBK of driving Home Plus into decline by prioritizing its own benefits over the retailer’s financial health.

The People Power Party, however, has been cautious about the proposal, arguing that the legislature should wait for the outcome of police and prosecution probes.

Against this backdrop, Rep. Min pressed prosecutors to speed up their investigation into the case and arrest Kim.

“The MBK scandal is not just an issue for one retail company. It is a grave crime that threatens the very foundation of our national economy and erodes trust in the financial markets,” the lawmaker commented.

“The prosecution must act without delay to arrest Chairman Kim and other MBK executives to show the public results through a swift and thorough investigation,” he said.

In 2015, MBK acquired Home Plus from Tesco in a $5.1 billion deal. Since 2021, however, the retail chain has suffered consecutive annual losses, prompting it to seek court-supervised corporate rehabilitation this March.

MBK, having waived its rights to 2.5 trillion won ($1.8 billion) in common equity, is now focused on facilitating a sale, though Home Plus has yet to secure a new buyer.

The North Korean leader is set to attend a military parade alongside Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s train has crossed the border into China ahead of his planned attendance at a military parade marking Japan’s surrender in World War II, state media have reported.

Kim is among 26 world leaders scheduled to attend Wednesday’s parade commemorating the 80th anniversary of the end of the second world war.

The event in Beijing is set to be the first time that Kim, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin have gathered at the same venue.

Kim’s train crossed the North Korea-China border in the early hours of Tuesday morning, the state-controlled Rodong Sinmun newspaper reported.

“Key senior officials from the Central Committee of the Workers’ Party of Korea and the government of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea are accompanying Comrade Kim Jong Un on his visit to the People’s Republic of China,” the Rodong Sinmun said, using North Korea’s official name.

Kim’s visit to China comes on the heels of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in China’s Tianjin, at which Xi and Putin took turns criticising Western dominance of the international order.

One of the world’s most isolated states, North Korea has long relied on China and Russia for economic and diplomatic support.

Pyongyang has grown especially close with Moscow in recent years, sending thousands of troops to support Putin’s war in Ukraine.

Kim, who rarely travels abroad, has met Xi five times since coming to power in 2011, most recently in 2019, when the North Korean leader attended an event commemorating the 70th anniversary of China-North Korea relations.

Kim has met Putin three times, most recently in June 2024, when the two leaders signed a mutual defence treaty in Pyongyang.

Kim Jong Un’s visit comes ahead of planned trip to China to attend military parade with Xi Jinping.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has inspected a new missile production line and missile-manufacturing automation process, according to state media.

His visit on Sunday to the missile production line came ahead of a planned trip to Beijing to attend a military parade along with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

North Korea is under heavy international sanctions imposed over its nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programmes, which were developed in violation of United Nations Security Council resolutions.

Experts and international officials say the sanctions have lost much of their bite amid growing economic, military and political support from Russia and China.

Kim said that the modernised production process would help increase major missile units’ combat readiness, the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said on Monday.

North Korea has sent soldiers, artillery ammunition and missiles to Russia to support Moscow in its war against Ukraine.

North Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs also criticised US cooperation with Japan and South Korea, singling out a recent trilateral joint statement that warned of cybersecurity threats from Pyongyang.

The ministry “strongly denounces and rejects” the United States, Japan and South Korea for using cyberspace as a “theatre of geopolitical confrontation and hostile propaganda”, a spokesperson said in a statement carried by KCNA.

“The more the US persists in its anachronistic and malicious hostile acts against the DPRK through the intensified collaboration with its satellite countries, the more distrust and hostility will be piled up between the DPRK and the US,” the spokesperson added, using the initials of North Korea’s official name.

Kim Jong Un expresses ‘grief’ for failing to save ‘the precious lives’ of his troops killed fighting against Ukraine.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has met again with the families of his soldiers killed fighting for Russia against Ukraine, offering condolences for their “unbearable pain” and promising the bereaved “a beautiful life”, state media reports.

KCNA state news agency reported on Saturday that Kim hosted the families of slain soldiers, and expressed “grief at having failed to save the precious lives” of those who sacrificed their lives to defend the country’s honour.

The meeting was the second reported occasion that Kim met with families of fallen soldiers this month. Pyongyang has not confirmed the number of troops that were killed fighting for Russia, though Seoul estimates about 600, with thousands more wounded.

“I had this meeting arranged as I wanted to meet and console the bereaved families of all the heroes and relieve them of their sorrow and anguish even a little,” Kim said in his speech, according to KCNA.

Kim also pledged to build a monument in the capital, Pyongyang, as well as name a new street for the bereaved families, and the state will give full support to the children of deceased soldiers.

The North Korean leader said his “heart breaks and aches” for the children who lost fathers.

“I, our state and our army will take full responsibility for them and train them admirably as staunch and courageous fighters like their fathers,” he added.

South Korean and Western intelligence agencies have said that Kim sent more than 10,000 soldiers to Russia in 2024 – primarily to the Kursk region – along with North Korean-produced artillery shells, missiles and long-range rocket systems.

At a ceremony with mourning family members and Ukraine war veterans last week, images released by KCNA showed an emotional Kim embracing a returned soldier who appeared overwhelmed, burying his face in the leader’s chest.

The leader was also seen kneeling before a portrait of a fallen soldier to pay his respects and placing medals and flowers beside images of dead troops.

Kim is due to stand alongside Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping at a military parade in Beijing next week, marking the surrender of Japan in World War II.

Relations between Kim and Putin have surged significantly since they signed a military alliance in 2024.

Beijing says 26 world leaders will attend the event in Tiananmen Square, overseen by Chinese President Xi Jinping.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin will be among world leaders attending an upcoming military parade in China to mark 80 years since the end of World War II.

Kim and Putin will participate in the “Victory Day” parade in Beijing next week, China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on Thursday.

It will be held in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square and will feature a cast of thousands and a showcase of China’s latest military technology.

The guest list also includes Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, and Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto, the ministry said.

The parade coincides with the anniversary of September 3, 1945, the day that the Empire of Japan formally surrendered to Allied Forces in Tokyo.

South Korea will be represented by Woo Won-shik, the speaker of the National Assembly, while Robert Fico, the prime minister of Slovakia, will be the only Western leader in attendance.

It is unclear if Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will attend the parade.

Modi will be in China that same week to attend a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, a Beijing-led security alliance, in the Chinese city of Tianjin.

Indian and Chinese relations declined sharply in 2020 over a border dispute in the Himalayas, but they have thawed recently thanks to shared economic grievances with the United States and President Donald Trump’s tariff war.

Kim and Putin are expected to take centre stage at the parade alongside Chinese President Xi Jinping.

North Korea is a treaty ally of China, and Beijing provides Pyongyang with a crucial economic lifeline in the face of international sanctions over its nuclear weapons programme.

Beijing has also come to play a similar role to Russia since Putin’s unilateral invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

China has continued to buy Russian energy exports and supply it with “dual use” technology, electronics and parts that can be used for civilian but also military purposes.

Xi and Putin signed a “no limits partnership” in the weeks leading up to the invasion of Ukraine, while North Korea and Russia have also grown closer since the start of the war, with Pyongyang sending munitions and even soldiers to resupply Russian forces in their battle against Ukraine.

Putin last visited China in 2024, while Kim last visited in 2019.

In White House meeting with Lee, Trump also says US should have ownership of land housing US military base in South Korea.

United States President Donald Trump and South Korean President Lee Jae-myung have expressed their willingness to engage with North Korea’s hereditary leader, Kim Jong Un, during a meeting at the White House.

Lee, who has promised to “heal the wounds of division and war” as South Korea’s new president, told the US leader on Monday that his North Korean counterpart “will be waiting” to meet him.

“I hope you can bring peace to the Korean Peninsula, the only divided nation in the world, so that you can meet with Kim Jong Un”, and “build a Trump Tower in North Korea so that I can play golf there”, Lee said, speaking in Korean.

Trump, who has met with Kim on three past occasions, told reporters in the Oval Office that he hopes to meet the North Korean leader again this year.

“Someday, I’ll see him. I look forward to seeing him. He was very good with me,” Trump said, adding that he knew Kim “better than anybody, almost, other than his sister”.

During his meeting with the South Korean president, Trump also said the US should have ownership of South Korean land where some 28,500 American troops are stationed in US military bases.

“We spent a lot of money building a fort, and there was a contribution made by South Korea, but I would like to see if we could get rid of the lease and get ownership of the land where we have a massive military base,” Trump said.

This was Lee’s first visit to the White House after he was elected in June following the impeachment of former President Yoon Suk-yeol, who briefly imposed martial law late last year in a move swiftly overturned by lawmakers and which has led to his arrest on alleged insurrection charges.

Since taking office, Lee has publicly made efforts to improve South Korea’s relationship with its northern neighbour. But Pyongyang has so far rebuffed the diplomatic overtures.

Last week, Lee said he would seek to restore the so-called September 19 Military Agreement, signed at an inter-Korean summit in 2018, suspending military activity along South Korea’s border with North Korea as part of an effort to rebuild trust.

Lee’s announcement was met with criticism from North Korea, which noted that it came as South Korea embarked on joint military drills with the United States.

North Korean state media said that the drills proved Washington’s intention to “occupy” the entire Korean Peninsula .

“If they continuously persist in the military rehearsal, they will certainly face up the unpleasant situation and pay a dear price,” Kim Yong Bok, first vice-chief of the General Staff of the Korean People’s Army, was cited by North Korean state media KCNA as saying.

‘A raid on churches’

Hours before Lee arrived at the White House, Trump took to social media to denounce what he described as “a Purge or Revolution” in South Korea. “WHAT IS GOING ON IN SOUTH KOREA? Seems like a Purge or Revolution. We can’t have that and do business there,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.

Asked about his post during his meeting with Lee, Trump said, “I am sure it’s a misunderstanding, but there’s a rumour going around about raiding churches … I did hear that from intel.”

Last month, South Korean Special Prosecutor Min Joong-ki’s team raided Unification Church facilities and officials linked with the religious sect, while “investigating various allegations involving former first lady Kim Keon Hee”, South Korea’s official Yonhap News Agency said.

Seoul police also raided Sarang Jeil Church, headed by evangelical preacher Jun Kwang-hoon, who led protests in support of the removed President Yoon.

The police have also investigated pro-Yoon activists who stormed a court in late January after it extended Yoon’s detention, and in July, special prosecutors investigating the declaration of martial law served a search warrant on the Korean part of a military base jointly operated with the US.