yna--2020-06-22--(LEAD) S. Korea's daily number of new COVID-19 patients may hit 800 if current trend continues: Seou

(LEAD) S. Korea's daily number of new COVID-19 patients may hit 800 if current trend continues: Seoul mayor

`` If things continue along this trend , it means that it 's now just one month before a second @ @ @ @ @ '' Park said , adding that this is much faster than forecasts that had projected @ @ @ @ @ viral again in the fall .

(ATTN: ADDS details in paras 8, 10-12, photo)
SEOUL, June 22 (Yonhap) -- Seoul's mayor vowed to reinforce quarantine measures against the new coronavirus Monday, citing a warning from experts that the country may report as many as 800 new patients on a daily basis next month if the current pace of growth in infections continues.
"The R-number for COVID-19 sharply increased to 1.79 between April 30 and June 11. If the R-number stays at the figure seen 10 days ago, daily new infections are expected to reach around 800 a month later," Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon said in a press briefing, citing public health experts.
The R-number, or reproduction rate, reflects the average of number of people infected by a patient. A higher figure indicates a greater possibility of more people getting infected.
"If things continue along this trend, it means that it's now just one month before a second wave of mass infection," Park said, adding that this is much faster than forecasts that had projected the infectious virus to go viral again in the fall.
Visitors at a screening center set up at a community health center in the southwestern Seoul ward of Guro wait to be tested for the new coronavirus on June 22, 2020. (Yonhap)
To prevent such a scenario from actually happening, the mayor urged people to follow preventive guidelines -- such as wearing masks -- and refrain from holding meetings or working out in confined spaces.
Park said the city may take stronger preventive measures if the number of new coronavirus cases shows no sign of slowing down in the next few days.
"I have to say that the city cannot help but resume social distancing if the average number of new cases over a three-day period reaches more than 30 or if the operation rate of hospital wards tops 70 percent, a level that is considered burdensome for the public health system," he said.
The daily average number of of virus infections in Seoul stood at 17.9 as of Friday this month, a sharp rise from 7.4 in May and 5.2 in April, according to the city's data.
Park said the city government will consult with education and health authorities as well as the municipal governments of nearby Incheon and Gyeonggi Province to help contain the virus in the densely populated metropolitan area.
Health authorities, meanwhile, said the country may already be going through a second round of virus outbreak.
"We originally predicted the second wave to emerge in fall or winter," Jeong Eun-kyeong, chief of the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said Monday. "Our forecast turned out to be wrong. As long as people have close contact with others, we believe that infections will continue."
South Korea imposed intensive social distancing measures when the country's daily infections sharply surged in February and March, but relaxed the scheme in early May after the virus curve flattened from its peak of more than 900 new daily cases in late February.
South Korea added 17 new cases on Monday, including 11 local infections, raising the country's COVID-19 caseload to 12,438.
While this is the lowest figure in nearly a month, authorities have remained on alert due to a rise in cases coming from unidentified infectious routes and the growing number of elderly patients, who are likely to suffer more from the infectious virus.
Students at an elementary school in the eastern Seoul ward of Seongdong wait to be checked for the new coronavirus on June 20, 2020, after a sixth grader tested positive. (Yonhap)
mlee@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-06-22--N.K. paper says S. Korea's pro-U.S. policies hinder inter-Korean relations

`` South Korean authorities have told us nonsense saying that it needs to convince the U.S. or that the determination @ @ @ @ @ to solving hostile relations ... this is truly bizarre , '' said the Rodong Sinmun @ @ @ @ @ North 's ruling party .

SEOUL, June 22 (Yonhap) -- North Korea's official newspaper on Monday accused South Korea of holding onto pro-American policies, saying nothing will be solved if Seoul continues with its "submissive practices."
"South Korean authorities have told us nonsense saying that it needs to convince the U.S. or that the determination of the U.S. is key to solving hostile relations ... this is truly bizarre," said the Rodong Sinmun, the organ of the North's ruling party.
It also criticized "working group" meetings that South Korea and the U.S. have held to coordinate North Korea policies, saying the "inter-Korean relations on the brink of precipice are an inevitable outcome of the south Korean authorities' sycophantic and submissive practices."
"Nothing will be solved between the two Koreas as long as South Korea continues with its submissive policies and the U.S. continues its plot to crush our country."
The outlet also slammed President Moon Jae-in's address commemorating the first-ever summit between the leaders of the two Koreas, describing his remarks stressing the need to get "approval from the international community" for inter-Korean relations as "absurd."
"How can one reach out his hands to the robber who robbed his house when inter-Korean relations have collapsed ... This is a rash behavior only those engrossed with subservience and submission can do," it added.
This photo, taken from the South Korean border town of Paju, north of Seoul, shows smoke rising from the inter-Korean industrial complex in the North Korean border town of Kaesong on June 16, 2020. Earlier in the day, South Korea's unification ministry said the North blew up the inter-Korean joint liaison office in Kaesong at 2:49 p.m. The explosion came just days after Kim Yo-jong, sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, warned, "Before long, a tragic scene of the useless North-South joint liaison office completely collapsed would be seen." (Yonhap)
julesyi@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-06-22--S. Korean Bond Yields on Jun. 22, 2020

S. Korean Bond Yields on Jun. 22, 2020

(URGENT) N. Korea says Travis King decided to come over to N. Korea because he harbored ill feeling within the U.S. Army: KCNA


yna--2020-06-22--Jeju to file compensation suit against tourist who traveled with virus symptoms

The tourist visited more than 10 attractions and restaurants .
After the tourist tested positive for the virus , 57 @ @ @ @ @ with the tourist in Jeju were put under compulsory self-quarantine and 21 tourist sites and @ @ @ @ @ fumigated , resulting in financial losses .

SEOUL, June 22 (Yonhap) -- The government of Jeju Island said Monday it will file a compensation suit against a tourist who traveled there earlier this month despite experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 infection.
Jeju Gov. Won Hee-ryong announced the plan to take legal action against the unidentified resident of Ansan, southwest of Seoul.
The tourist tested positive after touring the resort island from June 15-18.
On the second day of the four-day trip, the tourist had symptoms of the new coronavirus, including fatigue and cold, but continued the journey after taking around ten tablets of an anti-fever medication.
The tourist visited more than 10 attractions and restaurants. After the tourist tested positive for the virus, 57 people who came into contact with the tourist in Jeju were put under compulsory self-quarantine and 21 tourist sites and restaurants on the island were fumigated, resulting in financial losses.
"Jeju will deal sternly with (similar cases) as the infection could proliferate if tourists, like the concerned person, push ahead with travel even under obvious (virus) symptoms," according to the island.
The island earlier brought a similar compensation suit against a mother and a daughter in late March who traveled the island even while the daughter, after returning from studying in the United States, had clear symptoms of COVID-19 infection.
An image of Jeju Gov. Won Hee-ryong, provided by the Jeju Special Self-Governing Province (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
pbr@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-06-23--Seoul stocks trade higher late Tues. morning on tech rally

Apple shares soared 2.6 percent to a record high of US $ 358.87 after announcing its plans to build its @ @ @ @ @ computers .
Microsoft shares also jumped over 2 percent .

SEOUL, June 23 (Yonhap) -- South Korean shares traded higher Tuesday as major tech companies took a cue from overnight gains on Wall Street.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added 10.32 points, or 0.49 percent, to 2,137.05 as of 11:20 a.m.
The KOSPI got off to a strong start, led by large tech gains on Wall Street.
Apple shares soared 2.6 percent to a record high of US$358.87 after announcing its plans to build its own chips for its Mac computers. Microsoft shares also jumped over 2 percent.
The tech-laden Nasdaq gained 110.35 points, or 1.11 percent, to close at a fresh record high of 10,056.47 on Monday (U.S. time).
In Seoul, most large caps traded higher.
Market bellwether Samsung Electronics advanced 0.38 percent, while No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix added 0.24 percent.
Top pharmaceutical firm Samsung BioLogics advanced 0.63 percent, with leading chemical maker LG Chem climbing 0.79 percent.
The local currency was trading at 1,209.90 won against the U.S. dollar, up 5.9 won from the previous session's close.
jwc@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-06-23--Lotte, Shilla begin domestic sales of duty-free goods this week

The customs office decided in late April to permit domestic sales of duty-free goods that have been in stock for @ @ @ @ @ an effort to prop up the segment that has been hit hard by the new @ @

SEOUL, June 23 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's two leading duty-free operators started to sell duty-free products through local retail channels Tuesday, as the government has decided to temporarily permit such sales to help the pandemic-hit sector.
Industry leader Lotte Duty started to release duty-free items, including foreign luxury brands, worth 10 billion won (US$8.3 million), on its integrated online shopping mall.
No. 2 player Shilla Duty Free plans to sell duty-free products via its new online sales platform starting Thursday. It will sell duty-free items of masstige brands at relatively affordable prices.
Few customers are spotted at duty-free stores at Terminal 1 of Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul, on May 15, 2020. (Yonhap)
The customs office decided in late April to permit domestic sales of duty-free goods that have been in stock for more than six months in an effort to prop up the segment that has been hit hard by the new coronavirus.
Duty-free products hit local shelves for the first time early this month, as No. 3 player Shinsegae International Inc. sold luxury duty-free items on its online shopping mall.
Duty-free operators have faced a slump as the COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted air travel.
Duty-free stores saw their combined sales fall below the 1 trillion-won mark for the first time in four years in April, according to industry data.
Amid the prolonged pandemic, "revenge" spending appears to boost demand for luxury items.
The country's customs office earlier estimated that local duty-free operators may be able to secure around 160 billion won in cash with the eased sales rule.
Cosmetics, perfume, liquor and food will be excluded from the list of duty-free products to be sold at retail channels, due mainly to such products' shelf lives.
sooyeon@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-06-23--Moon urges parliament to handle extra budget bill to battle pandemic

While the operation of the National Assembly is up to lawmakers , they should not hold up such an issue @ @ @ @ @ people 's lives and living , '' Moon stressed .
`` It is a more @ @ @ @ @ any other thing to protect the lives of the people . ''

By Lee Chi-dong
SEOUL, June 23 (Yonhap) -- President Moon Jae-in pressed the National Assembly in an unusually strong tone Tuesday to approve the government's plan for another batch of supplementary budgets intended to support South Korea's fight against the new coronavirus and curb its impact on the economy.
His call came as the parliament is still in limbo due to partisan strife over the selection of the heads of major standing committees.
Three weeks earlier, the Moon administration submitted a bill on allocating 35.3 trillion won (US$29 billion) worth of extra budgets. It represents the third package of additional budgets sought by the government in response to the COVID-19 crisis.
For the people and companies in trouble, it is a "very regrettable situation," the president said in front of pool reporters and TV cameras at the outset of a weekly Cabinet meeting held at Cheong Wa Dae.
"It is an urgent situation," he said. "The delay in handling the supplementary budget bill would increase the suffering of the people."
President Moon Jae-in speaks during a Cabinet meeting at Cheong Wa Dae on June 23, 2020. (Yonhap)
He added it would also derail a scheme to advance economic recovery.
While the operation of the National Assembly is up to lawmakers, they should not hold up such an issue "directly connected with the people's lives and living," Moon stressed. "It is a more urgent and desperate task than any other thing to protect the lives of the people."
He cited growing worries about a potential second wave of the pandemic.
Concerns have been mounting about the unrelenting spread of the virus, especially in Seoul, Incheon and Gyeonggi Province.
Health authorities here said the capital area is already in the second wave of the COVID-19 outbreak, as they have struggled to contain a resurgence that is eroding the nation's springtime success in responding to the virus.
Earlier in the day, the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) reported 46 additional confirmed cases.
Moon stressed the importance of guarding against further virus transmissions in the area.
"It is no exaggeration to say that the stability of the coronavirus situation depends on the capital area," Moon said.
Among attendees at this week's Cabinet meeting were Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon, Gyeonggi Gov. Lee Jae-myung and Incheon Mayor Park Nam-chun.
Meanwhile, the president and the other participants wore badges embodying a part of the Korean national flag and the number 122,609, which refers to the Korean War dead who have yet to be recovered.
The flag image is used to cover the remains of deceased service members. Thursday marks the 70th anniversary of the outbreak of the 1950-53 conflict.
lcd@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-06-23--(LEAD) N. Korean defectors' group says it sent leaflets to North overnight

`` Leaflets , whether from the North or the South , do no good for inter-Korean relations , and the @ @ @ @ @ Panmunjom Declaration to stop the leafleting , '' a ministry official said , referring to @ @ @ @ @ President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un .

(ATTN: ADDS quote from unification ministry official in paras 9-10)
SEOUL, June 23 (Yonhap) -- A group of North Korean defectors in the South claimed Tuesday it sent anti-North Korea leaflets across the border overnight from the western border city of Paju.
"(We) sent anti-North Korea leaflets over (to the North) between 11 p.m. and midnight on Monday (from a town) in Paju," Park Sang-hak, chief of Fighters for a Free North Korea, said. The group picked a very dark location to avoid police surveillance, he added.
According to Park, six members of the group, which has been active in anti-North Korea leafleting, sent to the North around 500,000 leaflets carried by 20 large helium balloons.
Some 500 pamphlets depicting South Korea's success story, 2,000 American one-dollar bills and 1,000 SD cards were also flown to the North, along with the leaflets, he said.
The covert operation by the group came as the police were keeping watch around-the-clock along the border, a move aimed at blocking any anti-North leafleting by activists and defectors amid escalating inter-Korean tensions over the issue.
Taking issue with such leafleting campaigns in the South, North Korea made a series of inflammatory remarks toward South Korea and President Moon Jae-in in recent weeks.
Early Monday, the North's state media also threatened to send around 12 million propaganda leaflets to South Korea in retaliation against South Korea's "failure" to stop anti-North leaflet campaigns here.
Commenting on the defector group's claim to have sent leaflets Monday night, the police and military officials said they are "in the process of verifying the claim and related details."
The unification ministry called for a halt to such leaflet campaigns.
"Leaflets, whether from the North or the South, do no good for inter-Korean relations, and the two leaders agreed in the Panmunjom Declaration to stop the leafleting," a ministry official said, referring to a 2018 summit agreement between President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
"From this point of view, the government believes that the unproductive distribution of leaflets must be immediately halted to improve inter-Korean relations and promote peace on the Korean peninsula," the official said.
A balloon carries anti-North Korea leaflets, in this image captured from a video provided by Fighters for a Free North Korea. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
pbr@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-06-23--The Korea Interbank Offered Rates (KORIBOR)

SEOUL , Jun .
23 ( Yonhap ) -- The Korea Interbank Offered Rates ( KORIBOR ) as posted by @ @ @ @ @ news and information arm of Yonhap News Agency , at 11:00 a.m .


yna--2020-06-23--(LEAD) N. Korea completes setting up some 20 loudspeakers along border

The North was first seen reinstalling the loudspeakers inside the Demilitarized Zone separating the two Koreas on Sunday in the @ @ @ @ @ actions ramping up tensions on the Korean Peninsula in anger over anti-Pyongyang leaflets sent across @ @ @ @ @ other activists here .

(ATTN: ADDS defense ministry spokesperson's remarks at bottom)
By Choi Soo-hyang
SEOUL, June 23 (Yonhap) -- North Korea has completed setting up around 20 propaganda loudspeakers in regions along the inter-Korean border, about half of which had been removed under a 2018 summit agreement with South Korea, a military source said Tuesday.
The North was first seen reinstalling the loudspeakers inside the Demilitarized Zone separating the two Koreas on Sunday in the latest in a series of actions ramping up tensions on the Korean Peninsula in anger over anti-Pyongyang leaflets sent across the border by defectors and other activists here.
The North could install more, as it had previously operated around 40 loudspeakers.
Pyongyang is expected to resume broadcasting through the loudspeakers, along with the sending of anti-Seoul leaflets, after winning approval from the ruling Workers' Party's central military commission.
Announcing its plan to take a series of retaliatory actions against the South on Wednesday, the North's military said it will present its action plans to the commission "for ratification at an earliest date."
South Korea is mulling over how to respond to the North's apparent push to resume psychological warfare, as restoring its own loudspeakers would also be a move violating their inter-Korean summit agreement.
After the first summit between President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on April 27, 2018, the two Koreas agreed to halt all hostile acts against each other, including broadcasting through loudspeakers and distributing leaflets.
The defense ministry said Monday it is closely monitoring the North's moves, adding that the military is "fully ready to immediately respond to various possibilities."
"We have already said North Korea will have to pay the price if it takes action that thwarts efforts that the South and the North have made together to move inter-Korean relations forward and keep peace on the Korean Peninsula," ministry spokesperson Choi Hyun-soo said during a regular press briefing.
"We will sufficiently take necessary action depending on the situation," she said.
A propaganda loudspeaker (in circle) is reinstalled near a North Korean guard post inside the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), in this photo taken from the South Korean border city of Paju, 30 kilometers north of Seoul, on June 22, 2020. (Yonhap)
scaaet@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-06-23--(LEAD) New virus infections bounce back on imported cases, community spread still at large

Health authorities has said the Seoul metropolitan area is already in the second wave of the new coronavirus outbreak , @ @ @ @ @ brace for a protracted virus fight .
The first wave of the virus outbreak gripped @ @ @ @ @ March .

(ATTN: UPDATES with more details throughout; CHANGES photos)
SEOUL, June 23 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's new virus cases bounced back Tuesday due mainly to a surge in imported cases, with most traced to sailors on a Russia-flagged ship docked in the southeastern city of Busan. The spread of the virus in the Seoul metropolitan area and outside the capital continued.
The country added 46 cases, including 16 local infections, raising the total caseload to 12,484, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC).
The tally rebounded from 17 new cases reported Monday, the lowest in almost a month.
The country reported 30 additional imported cases, 16 of which were tied to the Russia-flagged refrigerator vessel with 21 crew. The ship that departed from Russia's Vladivostok is currently at a port in Busan.
This photo, taken on June 23, 2020, shows a Russia-flagged ship docked at a port in South Korea's southeastern city of Busan, where at least 16 cases of the new coronavirus were reported. (Yonhap)
The crewmembers took virus tests a day earlier, after the captain who got off the ship in Russia a week ago tested positive. Around 160 port workers who came in contact with the infected sailors are in isolation.
Health authorities are on high alert, as imported cases are likely to further rise.
In an effort to stem a rise in imported cases, South Korea began to suspend visa issuance and non-scheduled flights to restrict entry from Pakistan and Bangladesh on Tuesday, as COVID-19 cases imported from the two nations have recently spiked.
The number of virus cases coming in from overseas has been on a steady rise, reaching 31 on Saturday and 13 on May 12. As of Monday, the country identified a total of 1,471 imported cases since its first outbreak in late January.
It marked the first time in nearly 40 days that the number of imported cases surpassed that of local infections.
Imported cases, once the main culprit for virus cases here, fell to a single-digit figure early this month after the country strengthened quarantine measures on all international arrivals in April.
But such cases have bounced back to double-digit numbers since mid-June.
A health worker explains quarantine measures to an international arrival at Incheon International Airport, South Korea's main gateway west of Seoul, on June 22, 2020. (Yonhap)
Still, community spread remains the main challenge for health authorities as cluster infections in the greater Seoul area and outside the capital continued to grow.
Of the locally transmitted cases, 11 were reported in the densely populated Seoul and nearby metropolitan areas. four cases were reported in Daejeon, 164 kilometers south of Seoul.
Health authorities has said the Seoul metropolitan area is already in the second wave of the new coronavirus outbreak, warning that the country should brace for a protracted virus fight. The first wave of the virus outbreak gripped the country between February and March.
The Seoul metropolitan area accounted for most of the newly added cases this month. The country has been gripped by multiple and sporadic cluster infections since it relaxed strict social distancing on May 6 on the back of the flattened virus curve.
But health authorities warned that they could consider imposing tougher infection preventive measures, currently in place in the Seoul metropolitan area, across the country amid a continued rise in cluster infections.
The country, meanwhile, reported one additional death, bringing the total death toll to 281. The fatality rate was 2.25 percent.
The total number of people released from quarantine after full recoveries stood at 10,908, up 27 from the previous day.
The country has carried out 1,196,012 tests since Jan. 3.
Citizens wait to take tests for the new coronavirus at a screening center in the southwestern city of Gwangju on June 22, 2020. (Yonhap)
sooyeon@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-06-23--Finance ministry again urges National Assembly to swiftly approve 3rd extra budget

Explaining why the economy needs the budget , An said the budget would help 580,000 workers keep their jobs and @ @ @ @ @ subsidies to 1.14 million freelance workers who lost their jobs due to the coronavirus outbreak @

SEJONG, June 23 (Yonhap) -- Vice Finance Minister An Il-whan on Tuesday urged the National Assembly to swiftly approve the third extra budget to help revive the virus-hit economy, saying the budget is desperately needed to protect jobs amid the pandemic.
Earlier this month, South Korea proposed the extra budget of 35.3 trillion won (US$29 billion), the third batch meant to help key industries cushion the economic blow from the coronavirus pandemic and protect jobs.
Lawmakers, however, have failed to begin a budget review as there is much political debate over the issue.
Explaining why the economy needs the budget, An said the budget would help 580,000 workers keep their jobs and provide 1.5 million won in subsidies to 1.14 million freelance workers who lost their jobs due to the coronavirus outbreak.
If approved, South Korea will spend more than 75 percent of the budget within three months, An said.
South Korea's economy contracted 1.3 percent in the January-March period from the previous quarter, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK).
The first-quarter contraction is the worst quarterly drop since the final quarter of 2008, when it shrank by 3.3 percent.
Vice Finance Minister An Il-whan speaks at a meeting with senior ministry officials on June 23, 2020, in this photo provided by the ministry. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
kdh@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-06-23--Anatomy of the injured list: how KBO teams are making use of the new system

With the IL in place now , there 's no minimum number of days for which players must be sidelined @ @ @ @ @ Heroes ' first baseman Park Byung-ho was put on IL last Wednesday with wrist and @ @ @ @ @ in the lineup by Saturday .
NC Dinos ' catcher Yang Eui-ji , who suffered @ @ @ @ @ ear problems , also spent just three days on the 10-day IL .

SEOUL, June 23 (Yonhap) -- For the first time since its inception in 1982, the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) implemented an injured list (IL) starting this season. And the league's 10 clubs have taken advantage of the new system that gives them more flexibility than the pre-IL days.
Beginning this season, teams are able to place injured players on the IL for up to 10, 15 or 30 days. To send a player to the IL, clubs must submit their application, along with a medical record, within three days of the player's last game.
In this file photo from June 4, 2020, Samsung Lions' third baseman Lee Won-seok stays on the ground after getting struck in the right hand by a groundball during a Korea Baseball Organization regular season game against the LG Twins at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul. (Yonhap)
In the past, teams simply deactivated injured players and sent them to the minor league for treatment and rehab. A player demoted to the minors was required to spend at least 10 days before rejoining the KBO roster.
With the IL in place now, there's no minimum number of days for which players must be sidelined. For instance, Kiwoom Heroes' first baseman Park Byung-ho was put on IL last Wednesday with wrist and knee issues and was back in the lineup by Saturday. NC Dinos' catcher Yang Eui-ji, who suffered from vertigo caused by inner ear problems, also spent just three days on the 10-day IL.
Through Monday, 68 players have been or are currently on the injured list. LG Twins' outfielder Chae Eun-seong could join them Tuesday, after spraining his right ankle while trying to run out an infield single on Sunday.
Those on the 10-day IL have spent an average of eight days on the sidelines.
The very first player to hit the IL was SK Wyverns' catcher Lee Jae-won, who broke his right thumb on May 7, the third day of the season. He was put on the 30-day IL the following day and returned to the active roster last Saturday.
Chae Eun-seong of the LG Twins is carried off the field by a team trainer after spraining his right ankle trying to run out an infield single during a Korea Baseball Organization regular season game against the Doosan Bears at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul on June 21, 2020. (Yonhap)
Other players with long-term injuries include LG Twins' reliever Go Woo-suk, who's been out since mid-May following knee surgery and is expected to miss two more months, and Lotte Giants' reliever Lee Seung-heon, who was struck in the head by a line drive on May 17 and resumed baseball activities in the minor league last Tuesday.
Days spent on the IL will still count toward service time for would-be free agents.
jeeho@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-06-23--N. Korean defectors' group says it sent leaflets to North overnight

`` ( We ) sent anti-North Korea leaflets over ( to the North ) between 11 p.m. and midnight on @ @ @ @ @ ) in Paju , '' Park Sang-hak , chief of Fighters for a Free North @ @ @ @ @ group picked a very dark location to avoid police surveillance , he added .

SEOUL, June 23 (Yonhap) -- A group of North Korean defectors in the South claimed Tuesday it sent anti-North Korea leaflets across the border overnight from the western border city of Paju.
"(We) sent anti-North Korea leaflets over (to the North) between 11 p.m. and midnight on Monday (from a town) in Paju," Park Sang-hak, chief of Fighters for a Free North Korea, said. The group picked a very dark location to avoid police surveillance, he added.
According to Park, six members of the group, which has been active in anti-North Korea leafleting, sent to the North around 500,000 leaflets carried by 20 large helium balloons.
Some 500 pamphlets depicting South Korea's success story, 2,000 American one-dollar bills and 1,000 SD cards were also flown to the North, along with the leaflets, he said.
The covert operation by the group came as the police were keeping watch around-the-clock along the border, a move aimed at blocking any anti-North leafleting by activists and defectors amid escalating inter-Korean tensions over the issue.
Taking issue with such leafleting campaigns in the South, North Korea made a series of inflammatory remarks toward South Korea and President Moon Jae-in in recent weeks.
Early Monday, the North's state media also threatened to send around 12 million propaganda leaflets to South Korea in retaliation against South Korea's "failure" to stop anti-North leaflet campaigns here.
Commenting on the defector group's claim to have sent leaflets Monday night, the police and military officials said they are "in the process of verifying the claim and related details."
A balloon carries anti-North Korea leaflets, in this image captured from a video provided by Fighters for a Free North Korea. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
pbr@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-06-23--LG Uplus to open contactless store over pandemic concerns

The new store , which is set to open in central Seoul , will provide services such as selling USIM @ @ @ @ @ plans through digital kiosks , LG Uplus said in a statement .
The company plans @ @ @ @ @ September .

SEOUL, June 23 (Yonhap) -- LG Uplus Corp., South Korea's No. 3 mobile carrier, said Tuesday it will open a contactless store in October in line with growing demand for non-face-to-face services amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The new store, which is set to open in central Seoul, will provide services such as selling USIM cards and changing cell phone plans through digital kiosks, LG Uplus said in a statement. The company plans to develop the kiosks by September.
While the store will not be completely unstaffed to ensure customer support, users will be able to receive assistance from an artificial intelligence chatbot or video chat.
This photo provided by LG Uplus Corp. on June 23, 2020, shows digital kiosks that the company will use for its contactless store set to open in central Seoul in October. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
The company said the new store targets consumers, especially young people, who are in favor of non-face-to-face services due to concerns from the pandemic.
The new store will serve as a test bed for further expansion of non-face-to-face services to the carrier's existing stores.
LG Uplus' announcement comes as local rivals are planning or have already launched contactless services.
KT Corp. has already made limited contactless services available at around 300 stores nationwide since July last year, while SK Telecom Co. is reportedly planning to launch unstaffed services later in the year.
yunhwanchae@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-06-23--Daegu files damage suit against religious sect of Shincheonji for mass coronavirus infections

Daegu 's first known COVID-19 patient was confirmed on Feb. 18 .
After the city found out that she was @ @ @ @ @ demanded the sect submit a list of its members , ask them to actively get @ @ @ @ @ cooperate with the city 's quarantine efforts , all of which , the city argued @ @ @ @ @ .

DAEGU, June 23 (Yonhap) -- Daegu, once the epicenter of South Korea's new coronavirus outbreak, filed a civil damage suit against a fringe religious sect for allegedly causing mass infections by hindering the city's quarantine efforts, the city said Tuesday.
The city, the country's fourth-largest with 24.3 million people, filed the suit with the Daegu District Court on Thursday against the Shincheonji Church of Jesus and its chairman, Lee Man-hee.
It demanded Shincheonji provide financial compensation of 100 billion won (US$82.3 million), more than two-thirds of the city's total virus-related spending of 146 billion won. The city said it was planning to increase the amount as it secures more evidence of financial damage down the road.
The city believed mass infections among the religion's practitioners led to a spike in the city's COVID-19 caseload, putting huge financial strain on the city and stretching health care facilities there. The city spent a huge sum of money on quarantine and health-related work to stop the rapid spread of the virus.
The Shincheonji Church of Jesus in Daegu, 300 kilometers southeast of Seoul, is shuttered on March 10, 2020. Members of the church accounted for a large number of people infected with COVID-19 in the country. (Yonhap)
Daegu's first known COVID-19 patient was confirmed on Feb. 18. After the city found out that she was a Shincheonji member, it demanded the sect submit a list of its members, ask them to actively get tested for the virus and cooperate with the city's quarantine efforts, all of which, the city argued, were not followed through.
Also, it said many of the sect's worshipers gathered for prayer or bible studies in a place not registered as a religious facility. Such a violation of architectural laws, the city argued, also played a role in spreading the virus.
According to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the city has reported 6,901 cases, and about 61 percent were confirmed to be Shincheonji members. The country's total caseload is 12,484 as of Tuesday.
In February, the city filed a complaint against the sect's officials for failing to submit a full list of its members and facilities and to cooperate with the city's quarantine and disinfection efforts.
In March, it raided the sect's facilities to secure closed-circuit television footage and computer hard drives to confirm illegal activities, the city said.
Prior to the damage suit, the city had received a court permit to temporarily seize some of the assets of the church and the chairman, including Lee's deposit bond.
The lawsuit is meant to "soothe the damaged hearts of Daegu citizens who suffered from COVID-19 and to hold Shincheonji accountable," said Jung Hae-yong, head of the city's suit preparation team, during a press briefing Monday.
"We expect to hold the church legally liable and get reimbursed for the spending on quarantine works and medical treatments for the infectious disease," he said, adding that the city expected a lengthy legal battle with the sect.
jaeyeon.woo@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-06-23--N.K. paper says S. Korea's push to repatriate remains of Korean freedom fighter 'another provocation

N.K. paper says S. Korea's push to repatriate remains of Korean freedom fighter 'another provocation'

`` All of our people , including from the North and South and around the world , will agree that @ @ @ @ @ in his hometown Pyongyang , '' Uriminzokkiri , one of the North 's propaganda websites @ @ @ @

SEOUL, June 23 (Yonhap) -- A North Korean propaganda outlet claimed Tuesday that the remains of a legendary Korean independence fighter, which South Korea has been seeking to bring to Seoul from Kazakhstan, should be brought to his hometown of Pyongyang.
Hong Beom-do was a general commander of the Korean independence army during the 1910-45 Japanese colonial rule who claimed victories in battles against Japanese forces in Manchuria, including the Battle of Fengwudong in 1920. He died in Kazakhstan in 1943 and is still buried there.
During his visit to Kazakhstan in April 2019, South Korean President Moon Jae-in told Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev that he hoped to repatriate Hong's remains. South Korea has since been in talks with Kazakhstan to bring home his remains.
"All of our people, including from the North and South and around the world, will agree that his remains must be buried in his hometown Pyongyang," Uriminzokkiri, one of the North's propaganda websites, said Tuesday.
"The Kazakh government also promised us it would hand over the remains of Hong Beom-do after the reunification of the two Koreas," it added.
The website slammed South Korean authorities, saying the move to bring back his remains is "another provocation and an inhumane act that ignores our ancestral tradition as well as international practice."
"We will not overlook South Korea's scheme to bring back his remains. They will clearly face the consequences," the website said.
This photo, provided by Defense Media Agency, shows a statue of Korean independence fighter Hong Beom-do in Kazakhstan. Hong, the general commander of the Korean independence army during the 1910-45 Japanese colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula, died in Kazakhstan at age 75 and is buried there. During his visit to Kazakhstan in April 2019, South Korean President Moon Jae-in told Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev that he hoped to repatriate Hong's remains. The remains are likely to return as early as August, a government source said on June 2, 2020. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
julesyi@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-06-23--New virus infections bounce back on imported cases, community spread still at large

SEOUL, June 23 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's new virus cases bounced back Tuesday due mainly to a surge in imported cases, with most traced to sailors on a Russia-flagged ship docked in the southeastern city of Busan. The spread of the virus in the Seoul metropolitan area and outside the capital continued.
The country added 46 cases, including 16 local infections, raising the total caseload to 12,484, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC).
The tally rebounded from 17 new cases reported Monday, the lowest in almost a month.
The country reported 30 additional imported cases, 16 of which were tied to the 3,933-ton Russia-flagged refrigerator vessel with 21 crew. The ship that departed from Russia's Vladivostok is currently at a port in Busan.
A Russia-flagged ship where at least 16 cases of the new coronavirus were reported is docked at a port in South Korea's southeastern city of Busan on June 22, 2020 in this provided photo. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
The crewmembers took virus tests a day earlier, after the captain who got off the ship in Russia a week ago tested positive. Around 160 port workers who came in contact with the infected sailors are in isolation.
Health authorities are on high alert, as imported cases are likely to further rise.
In an effort to stem a rise in imported cases, South Korea began to suspend visa issuance and non-scheduled flights to restrict entry from Pakistan and Bangladesh on Tuesday, as COVID-19 cases imported from the two nations have recently spiked.
The number of virus cases coming in from overseas has been on a steady rise, reaching 31 on Saturday and 13 on May 12. As of Monday, the country identified a total of 1,471 imported cases since its first outbreak in late January.
Still, community spread remains the main challenge for health authorities as cluster infections in the greater Seoul area and outside the capital continued to grow.
Of the locally transmitted cases, 11 were reported in the densely populated Seoul and nearby metropolitan areas. four cases were reported in Daejeon, 164 kilometers south of Seoul.
Health authorities has said the Seoul metropolitan area is already in the second wave of the new coronavirus outbreak, warning that the country should brace for a protracted virus fight. The first wave of the virus outbreak gripped the country between February and March.
The Seoul metropolitan area accounted for most of the newly added cases this month. The country has been gripped by multiple and sporadic cluster infections since it relaxed strict social distancing on May 6 on the back of the flattened virus curve.
Citizens wait to take tests for the new coronavirus at a screening center in the southwestern city of Gwangju on June 22, 2020. (Yonhap)
But health authorities warned that they could consider imposing tougher infection preventive measures, currently in place in the Seoul metropolitan area, across the country amid a continued rise in cluster infections.
The country, meanwhile, reported one additional death, bringing the total death toll to 281. The fatality rate was 2.25 percent.
The total number of people released from quarantine after full recoveries stood at 10,908, up 27 from the previous day.
The country has carried out 1,196,012 tests since Jan. 3.
sooyeon@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-06-23--(URGENT) 27 more people released after full recovery from coronavirus, total cured patients at 10,90

(URGENT) 27 more people released after full recovery from coronavirus, total cured patients at 10,908: KCDC


yna--2020-06-23--(URGENT) S. Korea reports 1 more coronavirus virus death, total death toll at 281: KCDC


yna--2020-06-23--(URGENT) S. Korea reports 46 more cases of new coronavirus, total now at 12,484: KCDC


yna--2020-06-23--N. Korea completes setting up some 20 loudspeakers along border

By Choi Soo-hyang
SEOUL, June 23 (Yonhap) -- North Korea has completed setting up around 20 propaganda loudspeakers in regions along the inter-Korean border, about half of which had been removed under a 2018 summit agreement with South Korea, a military source said Tuesday.
The North was first seen reinstalling the loudspeakers inside the Demilitarized Zone separating the two Koreas on Sunday in the latest in a series of actions ramping up tensions on the Korean Peninsula in anger over anti-Pyongyang leaflets sent across the border by defectors and other activists here.
The North could install more, as it had previously operated around 40 loudspeakers.
Pyongyang is expected to resume broadcasting through the loudspeakers, along with the sending of anti-Seoul leaflets, after winning approval from the ruling Workers' Party's central military commission.
Announcing its plan to take a series of retaliatory actions against the South on Wednesday, the North's military said it will present its action plans to the commission "for ratification at an earliest date."
South Korea is mulling over how to respond to the North's apparent push to resume psychological warfare, as restoring its own loudspeakers would also be a move violating their inter-Korean summit agreement.
After the first summit between President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on April 27, 2018, the two Koreas agreed to halt all hostile acts against each other, including broadcasting through loudspeakers and distributing leaflets.
The defense ministry said Monday it is closely monitoring the North's moves, adding that the military is "fully ready to immediately respond to various possibilities."
A propaganda loudspeaker (in circle) is reinstalled near a North Korean guard post inside the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), in this photo taken from the South Korean border city of Paju, 30 kilometers north of Seoul, on June 22, 2020. (Yonhap)
scaaet@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-06-23--Daewoong Pharmaceutical gets nod for Nabota in Taiwan

Daewoong Pharmaceutical said its Taiwanese partner , Orient Europharma Co. , will be in charge of the sales of Nabota @ @ @ @ @ in the latter half of this year .

By Kim Han-joo
SEOUL, June 23 (Yonhap) -- South Korean drugmaker Daewoong Pharmaceutical Co. said Tuesday it has won approval from authorities in Taiwan for the sale of its botulinum toxin product.
The Taiwan Food and Drug Administration accepted Daewoong Pharmaceutical's application to sell Nabota for the treatment of frown lines.
This photo, provided by South Korean drugmaker Daewoong Pharmaceutical Co on Dec. 19, 2019, shows the company's botulinum toxin product, Nabota. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
Daewoong Pharmaceutical said its Taiwanese partner, Orient Europharma Co., will be in charge of the sales of Nabota in the Asian country starting in the latter half of this year.
"Taiwan is one of the fastest growing aesthetics markets in Asia," Park Seong-soo, a Daewoong Pharmaceutical official, said. "Taiwan can serve as the test bed for potential success in advancing into China."
The product has already won approval from authorities in the United States, the European Union, Indonesia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
khj@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-06-23--East Asian nations strengthen emergency liquidity program

The move came after a revised agreement of the regional financial safety net , known as the Chiang Mai Initiative @ @ @ @ @ went into effect earlier in the day , the Ministry of Economy and Finance said @ @ @ @

SEJONG, June 23 (Yonhap) -- South Korea, China, Japan and 10 Southeast Asian nations strengthened their emergency liquidity program to better cope with possible financial crises, Seoul's finance ministry said Tuesday.
The move came after a revised agreement of the regional financial safety net, known as the Chiang Mai Initiative Multilateralization (CMIM), went into effect earlier in the day, the Ministry of Economy and Finance said in a statement.
The 13 nations agreed to revise the agreement in May last year to reinforce financial support, including the flexibility to extend the period of provision under the IMF-linked portion of the CMIM agreement.
They also agreed to add an overarching legal basis for conditionality in order for the CMIM to support members in addressing their risks and vulnerabilities through policy recommendations, as well as financial support.
The CMIM, launched in 2010, refers to the US$240 billion pool that can be tapped through currency swap deals in times of financial crisis.
ASEAN comprises Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Thailand, Singapore and Vietnam.
(END)


yna--2020-06-24--U.S. urges N. Korea to return to engagement

`` We remain in close coordination with our ally , the Republic of Korea , and urge the DPRK to @ @ @ @ @ a State Department spokesperson told Yonhap News Agency on condition of anonymity , referring to @ @ @ @ @ name , the Democratic People 's Republic of Korea .

By Lee Haye-ah
WASHINGTON, June 23 (Yonhap) -- The U.S. State Department urged North Korea on Tuesday to "return to engagement" as the communist nation continued to threaten South Korea over anti-Pyongyang leaflet campaigns.
North Korea has issued a series of threats since early this month, taking issue with Seoul's failure to stop defectors and activists from sending propaganda leaflets by balloon into the North.
This week it threatened to send some 12 million propaganda leaflets of its own into the South and appeared to have set up around 20 loudspeakers near the inter-Korean border to broadcast propaganda messages.
"We remain in close coordination with our ally, the Republic of Korea, and urge the DPRK to return to engagement," a State Department spokesperson told Yonhap News Agency on condition of anonymity, referring to North Korea by its official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
The State Department had urged the North to refrain from "further counterproductive actions" when it demolished an inter-Korean liaison office last week.
The North's actions come as denuclearization negotiations between Washington and Pyongyang have stalled amid differences over the scope of North Korea's denuclearization and sanctions relief from the U.S.
The leaflet campaigns and loudspeaker broadcasts were part of activities the two Koreas agreed to halt during the first summit between President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in April 2018.
This AFP file photo shows the U.S. Department of State in Washington. (Yonhap)
hague@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-06-24--U.S. continued to have 'significant concerns' about N.K. nuclear program in 2019: State Dept.

`` U.N. and U.S. sanctions will remain in place and will be fully enforced , '' it said .
`` @ @ @ @ @ work with a broad range of partners and the international community on the need for @ @ @ @ @ -- and the need for continued vigilance against its proliferation activities worldwide -- in order @ @ @ @ @ sustain and advance its unlawful nuclear and ballistic missile programs and to incentivize negotiating progress @

By Lee Haye-ah
WASHINGTON, June 23 (Yonhap) -- The United States continued to have "significant concerns" about North Korea's nuclear weapons program in 2019, the State Department said Tuesday, vowing to keep sanctions on the country until full denuclearization is achieved.
In its annual report on U.S. and other nations' compliance with various arms control and nonproliferation agreements, the department raised the possibility that North Korea may have additional unidentified nuclear facilities, but stopped short of revealing them to the public.
The report to Congress has an unclassified and classified version, and Tuesday's release was of the unclassified version.
"Throughout 2019, the United States continued to have significant concerns regarding North Korea's nuclear weapons program and its continued production of fissile material," the department said in the 79-page document.
"The United States continues to closely monitor North Korea's nuclear activities. The final, fully verified denuclearization of North Korea remains the overriding U.S. objective, and the United States remains committed to continued diplomatic negotiations with North Korea toward that goal," it said.
Last year saw two meetings between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un -- in February and June -- as the two sides tried to implement their June 2018 agreement to "work toward" complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula in exchange for U.S. security guarantees.
The meetings failed to produce any additional deal, and working-level negotiations have not been held since October.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un (L) and U.S. President Donald Trump hold talks at the Sofitel Legend Metropole hotel in Hanoi, Vietnam, on Feb. 28, 2019, in this photo carried by the North's official Korean Central News Agency the next day. (For Use Only in the Republic of Korea. No Redistribution) (Yonhap)
The department said North Korea did not adhere to its obligations and commitments under agreements with the International Atomic Energy Agency, the U.S. government, and other members of the six-party nuclear talks.
It cited IAEA reports on activities at North Korea's main nuclear complex in Yongbyon, including the construction of an experimental light water reactor that could provide the country with a "relatively small" source of electricity.
The department said the reactor "may be intended to provide North Korea with a civilian justification to possess uranium enrichment technology that could be used to produce fissile material for nuclear weapons."
The IAEA also reported in August 2019 that there were indications of ongoing mining, milling and concentration activities at locations previously declared as the Pyongsan uranium mine and Pyongsan uranium concentration plant.
"The United States believes there is a possibility of additional unidentified nuclear facilities in North Korea," the department said, adding that additional information is provided in the "higher classification Annex."
On North Korea's announcement of its dismantlement of the Punggye-ri nuclear test site in May 2018, the department said the U.S. is unable to confirm the extent to which it was been dismantled because no international inspectors were invited to verify the process.
"The results of dismantlement activities at Punggye Nuclear Test Site on May 24, 2018, are almost certainly reversible," it said. "It is also possible that North Korea could develop another nuclear test site, if it chose to do so."
The report added: "North Korea's failure to permit qualified international inspectors to observe and verify the dismantlement of the Punggye Nuclear Test Site calls into question whether North Korea will forego further nuclear explosive tests."
The department reaffirmed the U.S.'s readiness to engage in a "constructive negotiation" with North Korea, but noted that until final, fully verified denuclearization is achieved, the international community remains united.
"U.N. and U.S. sanctions will remain in place and will be fully enforced," it said. "The United States continues to work with a broad range of partners and the international community on the need for continued pressure on North Korea -- and the need for continued vigilance against its proliferation activities worldwide -- in order to impede its ability to sustain and advance its unlawful nuclear and ballistic missile programs and to incentivize negotiating progress.
"The United States has also taken enforcement action, including U.S. Treasury sanctions designations, against those involved in U.N. and U.S. sanctions evasion," it added.
The department also concluded that North Korea has had an offensive biological warfare program since at least the 1960s in violation of its obligations under the Biological Weapons Convention.
"Although the United States has fragmented insight into North Korea's offensive BW program, continued reporting illustrates that North Korea has BW capabilities intended for use to counter U.S. and South Korean military superiority," it said.
hague@yna.co.kr
(END)


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yna--2020-06-23--(4th LD) New virus infections bounce back on imported cases, community spread still at large

SEOUL , June 23 ( Yonhap ) -- South Korea 's new virus cases bounced back Tuesday due mainly to @ @ @ @ @ , with most traced to sailors on a Russia-flagged ship docked in the southeastern city @ @ @ @ @ of the virus in the Seoul metropolitan area and outside the capital continued .

(ATTN: UPDATES with details in paras 10-15)
SEOUL, June 23 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's new virus cases bounced back Tuesday due mainly to a surge in imported cases, with most traced to sailors on a Russia-flagged ship docked in the southeastern city of Busan. The spread of the virus in the Seoul metropolitan area and outside the capital continued.
The country added 46 cases, including 16 local infections, raising the total caseload to 12,484, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC).
The tally rebounded from 17 new cases reported Monday, the lowest in almost a month.
The country reported 30 additional imported cases, 16 of which were tied to the Russia-flagged refrigerator vessel with 21 crew. The ship that departed from Russia's Vladivostok is currently at a port in Busan.
This photo, taken on June 23, 2020, shows a Russia-flagged ship docked at a port in South Korea's southeastern city of Busan, where at least 16 cases of the new coronavirus were reported. (Yonhap)
The KCDC said it detected three sailors Sunday who showed symptoms of high fever while conducting a quarantine inspection of the ship. But the ship operator did not notify South Korea of the suspected cases in advance.
The captain who got off the ship in Russia a week ago tested positive. Russia also did not inform South Korea of the captain's virus infection, according to the KCDC.
Health authorities said 176 port workers, repairmen and sailors from another Russia-flagged vessel that docked near the ship came in contact with the infected sailors. Currently in isolation, they are undergoing virus tests.
As the two ships are run by the same operator, the crewmembers had relatively close contacts, according to health authorities. Of 21 crew members aboard another ship, one sailor tested positive, according to health officials in Busan.
Health officials said they will consider boarding ships arriving from Russia to better inspect such vessels.
The maritime affairs ministry decided to shut down part of the Busan port until Friday for disinfection work.
"Our prevention guidelines have not been fully implemented due to the recent hot weather and their working conditions," a ministry official said. "Taking such special circumstances into consideration, we will revise related guidelines and announce them within a couple of days."
Currently, except for vessels coming from three risk-prone countries -- China, Iran and Italy -- South Korea conducts inspection for infection prevention on foreign ships only with electronically registered documents.
As of Tuesday, Russia has reported a total of 592,280 confirmed virus cases, the third most after the United States' 2.3 million and Brazil's 1.1 million.
Health authorities are on high alert, as related imported cases here are likely to further rise.
Over the past two weeks, the country reported a total of 171 imported cases, accounting for 27 percent of total new infections.
In an effort to stem a rise in imported cases, South Korea began to suspend visa issuance and non-scheduled flights to restrict entry from Pakistan and Bangladesh on Tuesday, as COVID-19 cases imported from the two nations have recently spiked.
The number of virus cases coming in from overseas has been on a steady rise, reaching 31 on Saturday and 13 on May 12. As of Monday, the country identified a total of 1,471 imported cases since its first outbreak in late January.
It marked the first time in nearly 40 days that the number of imported cases surpassed that of local infections.
Imported cases, once the main culprit for virus cases here, fell to a single-digit figure early this month after the country strengthened quarantine measures on all international arrivals in April.
But such cases have bounced back to double-digit numbers since mid-June.
Health workers guide an international arrival through quarantine measures at Incheon International Airport, South Korea's main gateway west of Seoul, on June 23, 2020. (Yonhap)
Still, community spread remains the main challenge for health authorities as cluster infections in the greater Seoul area and outside the capital continued to grow.
Of the locally transmitted cases, 11 were reported in the densely populated Seoul and nearby metropolitan areas. four cases were reported in Daejeon, 164 kilometers south of Seoul.
Cases tied to a door-to-door retailer in southern Seoul reached 202 as of noon, up four from the previous day. Infections traced to a day care center for seniors in northeastern Seoul rose by two to 45.
Virus cases connected to a door-to-door sales establishment in Daejeon came in at 57, up eight cases over the past 24 hours.
"South Korea is at a critical juncture of whether or not it suffers another wave of virus outbreaks like some other countries," KCDC Deputy Director Kwon Joon-wook said in a briefing.
Health authorities have said the Seoul metropolitan area is already in the second wave of the new coronavirus outbreak, warning that the country should brace for a protracted virus fight. The first wave of the virus outbreak gripped the country between February and March.
This photo, taken on June 23, 2020, shows a smartphone application for QR code-based entry registration at a cram school in western Seoul, as health authorities have designated large-sized private education institutions and buffet restaurants as facilities vulnerable to infections of the new coronavirus. (Yonhap)
The Seoul metropolitan area accounted for most of the newly added cases this month. The country has been gripped by multiple and sporadic cluster infections since it relaxed strict social distancing on May 6 on the back of the flattened virus curve.
But health authorities warned that they could consider imposing tougher infection preventive measures, currently in place in the greater Seoul area, across the country amid a continued rise in cluster infections.
The country, meanwhile, reported one additional death, bringing the total death toll to 281. The fatality rate was 2.25 percent.
The total number of people released from quarantine after full recoveries stood at 10,908, up 27 from the previous day.
The country has carried out 1,196,012 tests since Jan. 3.
sooyeon@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-06-23--U.S. citizen faces probe over quarantine violation

The woman in her 20s arrived from the United States on June 10 and began her 14-day mandatory self-quarantine at @ @ @ @ @ south of Seoul .
She tested negative for COVID-19 on June 12 .

SEOUL, June 23 (Yonhap) -- A local government in South Korea filed a complaint with police against a U.S. citizen Tuesday for allegedly violating coronavirus self-isolation rules.
The woman in her 20s arrived from the United States on June 10 and began her 14-day mandatory self-quarantine at an apartment in Suwon, south of Seoul. She tested negative for COVID-19 on June 12.
She was found to have left the place last Wednesday, with the GPS tracking system in her mobile phone turned off. The government-run mobile phone app uses GPS tracking to monitor quarantined people.
The Suwon municipal government did not disclose where she visited.
She was forced Friday to wear a location-tracking wristband and tested negative in a second virus test Saturday, the city government said.
All entrants from overseas are required to self-isolate at their residences or government-designated facilities for 14 days. Foreigners refusing to comply are denied entry and violators of the rules are fined and deported.
Dozens of foreign nationals have been deported for breaching the rules.
Passengers from the United States arrive at Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul, on April 13, 2020. (Yonhap)
graceoh@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-06-23--2.1 magnitude earthquake hits northern part of S. Korea

`` Those in nearby areas could feel the ground shake , '' the agency said , calling on citizens to @ @ @ @ @ has been reported .

SEOUL, May 23 (Yonhap) -- A 2.1 magnitude earthquake hit the northern city of Paju near the inter-Korean border on Tuesday, the state weather agency said.
The quake occurred at 7:58 p.m., 15 kilometers northeast of Paju, Gyeonggi Province, at a depth of 6 km, according to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA).
The epicenter was at 37.86 degrees north latitude and 126.90 degrees east longitude, it added.
Paju is located around 30 kilometers northwest of Seoul.
"Those in nearby areas could feel the ground shake," the agency said, calling on citizens to be careful. No damage has been reported.
This photo provided by the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) shows the epicenter of a 2.1 magnitude earthquake that hit the northern city of Paju on June 23, 2020. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
graceoh@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-06-23--In summit call, S. Korea, Turkey agree on closer economic ties, coronavirus cooperation

He said he hopes to visit the construction site in Turkey of what would be the world 's longest suspension @ @ @ @ @ Two South Korean firms -- SK and Daelim -- are joining a consortium to build @ @ @ @ @ Dardanelles Strait in Turkey .

By Lee Chi-dong
SEOUL, June 23 (Yonhap) -- The leaders of South Korea and Turkey agreed to bolster the two countries' economic partnership and cooperation on the coronavirus during their phone talks Tuesday.
President Moon Jae-in and his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, had the 35-minute conversation ahead of the 70th anniversary of the outbreak of Korean War, on June 25, in which Turkey fought for the South, leading to a "blood brother" relationship.
During the talks, Erdogan stressed the need for close economic cooperation between the two nations in response to COVID-19 and preparations for the post-coronavirus era, according to Cheong Wa Dae spokesman Kang Min-seok.
He expressed hope that South Korea's investment in Turkey and bilateral trade will further expand through the establishment of a payment and settlement system based on their own currencies, Kang said.
In particular, he emphasized the need for cooperation in the defense and shipbuilding industries.
South Korean President Moon Jae-in talks over the phone with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on June 23, 2020, in this photo provided by Cheong Wa Dae. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
Moon noted that the South Korea-Turkey free trade agreement, signed in 2013, has contributed to promoting trade and investment. He expected a joint economic committee meeting to be held at an early date for discussions on bolstering economic partnerships.
He thanked Erdogan for sending a video message for an official ceremony, to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the outbreak of the three-year conflict on the Korean Peninsula, on Thursday.
Turkey dispatched more than 21,000 troops to help the South, the fourth-most among countries participating in the war under the U.N. flag after the United States, Britain and Canada. South Koreans often call Turkey a "blood brother."
Erdogan's video message has not been revealed yet.
He reaffirmed Turkey's support for the Korea peace process, recalling news that North Korea blew up a joint liaison office in Kaesong.
He said he hopes to visit the construction site in Turkey of what would be the world's longest suspension bridge together with Moon. Two South Korean firms -- SK and Daelim -- are joining a consortium to build the 1915 Çanakkale over the Dardanelles Strait in Turkey.
Once constructed in 2021, it would be a landmark in the history of South Korea-Turkey cooperation, Erdogan was quoted as saying.
Moon replied that he's looking forward to visiting the site and extended his gratitude for continued support for Seoul's peace initiative.
Despite its immigration control against foreign arrivals amid the pandemic, the Turkish government recently allowed entries of South Korean company workers and other business travelers.
Turkish Airlines, the country's national flag carrier, plans to resume direct flight services between Istanbul and Incheon, west of Seoul, starting on Wednesday.
The two leaders had their previous phone conversation in early March. Moon had planned to travel to Turkey that month but canceled the trip amid the spread of the coronavirus.
lcd@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-06-23--(3rd LD) N. Korean defectors' group flies leaflets toward North

`` We went to the scene upon receiving a call from a resident that a plastic ballon presumed to be @ @ @ @ @ leafleting was hanging from a tree , '' a police officer said .
`` We @ @ @ @ @ by a defector group last night . ''

(ATTN: RECASTS headline; UPDATES with response from unification ministry in paras 1-3, 13-15)
SEOUL, June 23 (Yonhap) -- A group of North Korean defectors in the South said Tuesday it sent leaflets into North Korea overnight from the western border city of Paju.
One of the plastic balloons used for sending the leaflets was found in a town in the mountainous eastern province of Gangwon, according to local police.
The government said no balloons appear to have managed to cross the border, considering the direction of wind and other circumstances.
"(We) sent anti-North Korea leaflets over (to the North) between 11 p.m. and midnight on Monday (from a town) in Paju," Park Sang-hak, chief of Fighters for a Free North Korea, said. The group picked a very dark location to avoid police surveillance, he added.
According to Park, six members of the group, which has been active in anti-North Korea leafleting, sent to the North around 500,000 leaflets carried by 20 large helium balloons.
Some 500 pamphlets depicting South Korea's success story, 2,000 American one-dollar bills and 1,000 SD cards were also flown to the North, along with the leaflets, he said.
The covert operation by the group came as the police were keeping watch around-the-clock along the border, a move aimed at blocking any anti-North leafleting by activists and defectors amid escalating inter-Korean tensions over the issue.
Taking issue with such leafleting campaigns in the South, North Korea made a series of inflammatory remarks toward South Korea and President Moon Jae-in in recent weeks.
Early Monday, the North's state media also threatened to send around 12 million propaganda leaflets to South Korea in retaliation against South Korea's "failure" to stop anti-North leaflet campaigns here.
At least one of the balloons, flown by defectors in South Korea on Monday, was found on a hill in Hongcheon, a South Korean county located nearly 100 kilometers southeast of Paju, on Tuesday morning, police said.
"We went to the scene upon receiving a call from a resident that a plastic ballon presumed to be in use for anti-North Korean leafleting was hanging from a tree," a police officer said. "We understand the balloon was floated by a defector group last night."
An image of the balloon showed that it was carrying images of North Korea's ruling Kim family members, including the current leader Kim Jong-un and his younger sister Yo-jong, as well as bundles of leaflets.
Police retrieve a plastic balloon carrying anti-Pyongyang leaflets in Hongcheon, South Korea on June 23, 2020. A group of North Korean defectors sent 20 large helium balloons carrying anti-North Korea leaflets to the North from Paju the previous night, and one of them was found in Hongcheon, a South Korean county located nearly 100 kilometers southeast of Paju, the following day. (Yonhap)
The unification ministry rebutted Park's claim, saying no leaflets seem to have flown into the North, taking various factors into account, such as weather conditions.
Park had bought only enough helium gas to float one balloon and one-dollar bills and SD cards were not found in the plastic balloon that police retrieved in Hongcheon, the ministry said.
"The government will take strict measures against Park, who has threatened the life and safety of the people living in the border areas and heightened inter-Korean tensions by continuously attempting to fly anti-North Korea leaflets and materials and spreading false information," the ministry said.
Earlier in the day, the ministry called for a halt to such leaflet campaigns.
"Leaflets, whether from the North or the South, do no good for inter-Korean relations, and the two leaders agreed in the Panmunjom Declaration to stop the leafleting," a ministry official said, referring to a 2018 summit agreement between President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
"From this point of view, the government believes that the unproductive distribution of leaflets must be immediately halted to improve inter-Korean relations and promote peace on the Korean peninsula," the official said.
Police retrieve a plastic balloon carrying anti-Pyongyang leaflets in Hongcheon, South Korea on June 23, 2020. A group of North Korean defectors sent 20 large helium balloons carrying anti-North Korea leaflets to the North from Paju the previous night, and one of them was found in Hongcheon, a South Korean county located nearly 100 kilometers southeast of Paju, the following day. (Yonhap)
pbr@yna.co.kr
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yna--2020-06-23--Rays' infielder Choi Ji-man leaves for U.S. to rejoin club

MLB asked the union to let them know if players will be able to report to camp by July 1 @ @ @ @ @ agree on an operating manual containing health and safety protocols to ensure completion of the @ @ @ @ @ .

SEOUL, June 23 (Yonhap) -- Tampa Bay Rays' South Korean first baseman Choi Ji-man, who has been training in his home country since April, left for the United States Tuesday to rejoin his club.
A source close to Choi said Tuesday the player will continue to work out on his own until there's more clarity regarding the start of the 2020 Major League Baseball (MLB) season.
In this file photo from April 13, 2020, Choi Ji-man of the Tampa Bay Rays swings a bat at a private baseball academy run by his brother in Incheon, 40 kilometers west of Seoul. (Yonhap)
When the coronavirus pandemic put the start of the season on indefinite hold, Choi came home on March 24. Following a two-week quarantine, Choi started training in a baseball academy run by his former-player brother, Jeong-woo.
He had been initially scheduled to leave in late May but extended his stay here, with no end in sight to squabbles between the big league owners and the players' union.
Earlier Tuesday in Korean time, MLB announced that the players' union had rejected its latest offer for a truncated season, and that it will move ahead with a 60-game season.
MLB asked the union to let them know if players will be able to report to camp by July 1 and if the union will agree on an operating manual containing health and safety protocols to ensure completion of the regular season and the playoffs.
Choi, 29, enjoyed his best big league season in 2019, his first full year with the Rays following a 2018 midseason trade from the Milwaukee Brewers. Choi batted .261/.363/.459 with 19 home runs, 63 RBIs and 20 doubles in 127 games, the last four numbers being all new career highs.
In this file photo from April 13, 2020, Choi Ji-man of the Tampa Bay Rays plays catch at a private baseball academy run by his brother in Incheon, 40 kilometers west of Seoul. (Yonhap)
jeeho@yna.co.kr
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yna--2020-06-23--KBO cancels interleague play in minors to save costs

The team officials decided to scrap 117 interleague games scheduled after June 30 to save travel expenses .
The KBO @ @ @ @ @ new schedule of about 60 games , to be played after July 7 , with @ @ @ @ @ own division .

By Yoo Jee-ho
SEOUL, June 23 (Yonhap) -- In a cost-cutting measure during the coronavirus pandemic, South Korean minor league baseball teams will not play interleague games after June.
The Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) made the announcement regarding the Futures League schedule on Tuesday following a meeting of its executive committee, made up of general managers of 10 clubs.
In this file photo from June 2, 2020, mascots for the LG Twins take a rest during a Korea Baseball Organization regular season game against the Samsung Lions at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul. (Yonhap)
The Futures League is made up of five KBO affiliates in the Northern League, and five KBO affiliates plus the military club Sangmu in the Southern League.
The Northern League clubs are based in and around Seoul, while the Southern League teams are in the south and southeastern parts of the country.
The team officials decided to scrap 117 interleague games scheduled after June 30 to save travel expenses. The KBO will come up with a new schedule of about 60 games, to be played after July 7, with teams only playing within their own division.
The KBO season opened on May 5 without fans in the seats, due to the coronavirus outbreak. The league's hope of putting spectators back in the stands by early June was dashed when Seoul and its surrounding regions saw a sudden spike in new COVID-19 cases.
Gate receipts are said to account for about one-third of teams' revenue.
With the number of daily new virus cases still sitting in the double-digit range, talks of opening ballparks to fans have been shelved.
One team official said canceling Futures League games will not help clubs' bottom lines all that much, but teams felt they had to do something.
This file photo from May 31, 2020, shows dolls standing in place of fans at Daegu Samsung Lions Park in Daegu, 300 kilometers southeast of Seoul, during a Korea Baseball Organization regular season game between the Samsung Lions and the NC Dinos. (Yonhap)
jeeho@yna.co.kr
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yna--2020-06-23--(LEAD) Shincheonji to donate blood plasma of 4,000 members recovered from COVID-19

The Shincheonji Church of Jesus was the center of the early phase of the COVID-19 outbreak in South Korea around @ @ @ @ @ , most of whom were from its branch in the southeastern city of Daegu , @ @ @ @ @ .

(ATTN: UPDATES with numbers in 7th para)
SEOUL, June 23 (Yonhap) -- Shincheonji, a minor religious sect, said Tuesday that it will donate blood plasma of thousands of its congregants who have recovered from the novel coronavirus to support the development of a vaccine or drug to treat the virus.
"The government has helped us a lot, having our followers treated," a Shincheonji official said. "Now we think it is time to do something. So we've decided to donate blood plasma of our recovered members."
The church has already earned consent from those people, he added.
He said officials from the Korea Center for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) and local pharmaceutical firm Green Cross Corp. had meetings with church officials last week to discuss details.
The Shincheonji Church of Jesus was the center of the early phase of the COVID-19 outbreak in South Korea around February-March. Some 4,000 followers, most of whom were from its branch in the southeastern city of Daegu, were infected with the coronavirus.
Experts said the massive contribution of blood plasma by Shincheonji would accelerate the development of blood plasma treatment in the country.
According to Green Cross, only 195 people had expressed their intention to donate blood plasma for the research as of 1 p.m. Tuesday. Out of them, 49 people already had their blood taken while 43 people were deemed inappropriate for donation.
But some argued that Shincheonji's contribution is aimed at distracting from allegations that the sect provided false information on its membership to health authorities and hindered the government's efforts to rein in the outbreak. Two of its senior officials were arrested on such charges.
Shincheonji has been also under special tax probe by the National Tax Service for its founder Lee Man-hee's tax evasion charges.
"We will sincerely face examinations by the prosecution and the tax agency," the church official said. "We just want to support the development of a vaccine."
South Korea had reported around 12,400 cases of the coronavirus as of Tuesday, and 42 percent, or 5,200, of those are linked to Shincheonji.
The Shincheonji Church of Jesus in Daegu, 300 kilometers southeast of Seoul, is firmly shuttered on March 10, 2020. Members of the church account for a large number of people who were infected with COVID-19 in the country. (Yonhap)
brk@yna.co.kr
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yna--2020-06-23--(News Focus) Love, quantified: K-pop super fans keen on competitive goals, numeric milestones

`` We 're expected to land in second place .
The streaming rate of the current No .
1 song @ @ @ @ @ natural for the curve to drop so do n't be so impatient , '' a @ @ @ @ @ Seventeen wrote on Monday evening on Twitter , not too long after the group released @ @ @ @ @ Heng : Garae , '' at 6 p.m .

By Chang Dong-woo
SEOUL, June 23 (Yonhap) -- From the most casual to the most ravenous followers, the international K-pop fan community is as varied and nuanced as any ethnic group or nationality. Given the diverse demographics, any attempt to broadly define K-pop fandom is bound to end in futility.
But on close observation, one common trait becomes apparent among the most devoted super fans of K-pop stars: an acute sensitivity to numbers.
The popularity and influence of K-pop acts are ultimately determined by, and reflected through, various numbers, such as chart rankings, YouTube views, the number of shares and retweets of social media posts, album sales and so forth.
While recent online activism of K-pop super fans in the United States was put under the media spotlight during the course of the Black Lives Matter movement, die-hard fans at home and abroad have regularly demonstrated the strength in coordinated mobilizations meant to push stars to new heights.
For example, a simple search of the word "streaming," or "chonggong" (the abbreviation for a Korean word meaning full-scale attack), on Twitter at any given time results in a large pile of tweets or accounts related to collective streaming events meant to elevate their favorites stars to the upper tier of real-time music charts.
Concentrated and collective streamings are most intense upon release of new music from K-pop stars. Through social media, fan clubs and teams organizing streaming events often send out guidelines announced around the clock.
In a typical chonggong session, a fan stands by his or her computer ahead of a new release by a K-pop act, with numerous internet browser tabs open on paid music streaming sites. Upon release, the fan plays the songs on concurrent loops on all streaming services to drive up the number of streams.
Fan clubs tend to create recommended playlists, often including past hits to maintain a balanced library of songs of the artist to stay afloat on the chart.
In this file photo, K-pop boy band Seventeen poses for a photo during a media showcase for its new EP, "Heng:Garae," at a hotel in southern Seoul on June 22, 2020. (Yonhap)
"We're expected to land in second place. The streaming rate of the current No. 1 song is tremendous. It's natural for the curve to drop so don't be so impatient," a streaming team for boy band Seventeen wrote on Monday evening on Twitter, not too long after the group released its seventh EP, "Heng:Garae," at 6 p.m.
Throughout the streaming sessions, which can continue for over 24 hours, chart movements are constantly monitored. If an artist shows signs of waning, more fans can be called upon to join the collective streaming session.
Details guidelines and tips are provided to the point where functions of individual toggles in the setting menus of music streaming apps or websites are explained to maximize nonstop replays.
The template of such swarm action is also applied to viewings of music videos on YouTube, purchases of physical copies of records and popular fan votes during the annual end-of-year music awards season.
Collective streaming by K-pop fan bases is hardly exclusive to South Korea; it is apparently all over the world.
Spotify announced in February that the service has recorded more than 41 billion K-pop music streams since 2014, with BTS collecting more than 8 billion of those. In late 2017, BTS fans in the U.S. made a successful effort to land the K-pop act on the Billboard Hot 100 chart for the first time.
On YouTube, it has become a sport for fan bases to push toward numeric milestones, such as 100 million, 500 million or 1 billion views in the shortest amount of time.
Fully aware of this, K-pop agencies often put out press releases announcing new records, which become cause for fan celebration when carried by news websites.
A promotional image provided by YG Entertainment on Nov. 11, 2019, in celebration of the music video for "Ddu-du Ddu-du" by K-pop girl group BLACKPINK collecting over 1 billion views on YouTube. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
CedarBough Saeji, a visiting assistant professor of Korean Culture at Indiana University in the United States, noted that fan involvement as active promoters of the stars can be quite addictive, especially when it achieves meaningful results and goals.
"When the news says 'most views in 24 hours,' 'fastest to 1 billion views' or whatever a fan can say 'I helped do that. I was part of that.' It's empowering," Saeiji told Yonhap News Agency.
The professor also underscored that the strong level of dedication and attachment fans have shown may have resulted from the fact that K-pop was largely invisible or underappreciated by the mainstream media outside of Asia until the past few years.
"K-pop has had a lot of difficulties getting things like radio play, and is still considered (and dismissed) as niche by many outside Asia. When fans achieve metrics they can hold those metrics up as proof of the legitimacy of their group," Saeji said.
Some have noted that the artist-fan dynamic in K-pop has shifted in recent years to resemble that of a parent-child relationship, as in super fans taking on the role of parents that will do anything and everything to push their children to success.
"Within K-pop idol fan culture, there is the idea that fans rear the star, similar to how a child is brought up by the parent. Similar to how parents look after their children to boost their grades and other extracurricular qualifications," said Kim Youngdae, a South Korean music critic based in Seattle.
Kim noted that the collective streaming culture is an interesting new phenomenon resulted from the advent of social media in the past 10 years.
"What's different from before is that fans today have the ability to mobilize and concentrate strength in real time through Twitter and social media. Tangible results can be achieved right in front of people's eyes when actions are coordinated," Kim explained.
He added, "I believe fixations of chart scores and numbers were usually seen among domestic Korean fans, but as K-pop went global I see that culture being adopted by foreign fans as well."
But some followers of K-pop also question whether the competitive nature of streaming events is indeed healthy for the industry.
"(Fans) wanted to prove to Western artist (fans) that K-pop wasn't a niche genre but something more global and that's why they started streaming. Then it somehow became a competition among K-pop groups and the source of many fan wars," observed Twitter user @NoxDWN, a 21-year-old college student based in Paris and a follower of K-pop.
A promotional image provided by Big Hit Entertainment on June 8, 2020, in celebration of the music video for "Idol Feat. Nicki Minaj" by K-pop group BTS collecting over 100 million views on YouTube. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
odissy@yna.co.kr
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yna--2020-06-23--Seoul's trade minister to make bid to be next WTO chief

Yoo has often been referred to as the `` devil 's advocate '' and a counterpoint to her predecessor , @ @ @ @ @ while Kim takes a more aggressive approach during negotiations , Yoo tends to be more @ @

SEOUL, June 23 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's trade minister will officially run for the top position of the World Trade Organization (WTO) this week, ministry officials said Tuesday.
Trade Minister Yoo Myung-hee will hold a press conference Wednesday to announce her bid to become the director general of the WTO, officials said.
Since early this month, the WTO has started its procedure to pick a new head, as Brazil's Roberto Azevedo is set to step down in August, about a year before his term ends.
If Yoo officially makes her bid, she would become the third South Korean to run for the top slot of the Geneva-based trade body.
Two South Korean candidates made bids in 1994 and 2012 each, but they failed.
So far, the WTO has received four candidates from Egypt, Mexico, Nigeria and Moldova, according to the ministry.
Yoo, a veteran negotiator in trade talks, was appointed as South Korea's trade minister in February last year.
Yoo has often been referred to as the "devil's advocate" and a counterpoint to her predecessor, Kim Hyung-chong. Sources said while Kim takes a more aggressive approach during negotiations, Yoo tends to be more circumspect.
Yoo is fluent in English and served as the presidential office's spokesperson for foreign correspondents.
She was the first woman to become a first-rank staff in the 70-year history of the trade ministry in 2018.
South Korean Trade Minister Yoo Myung-hee speaks during a videoconference with her Singaporean counterpart, Chan Chun Sing, on June 22, 2020, in this photo provided by the ministry. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
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yna--2020-06-23--In retweet of Yonhap report, Trump accuses Bolton of breaking law

On Monday , the South Korean presidential office lashed out at Bolton over his upcoming memoir , `` The Room @ @ @ @ @ which included accounts of nuclear diplomacy last year that led to an unsuccessful summit between @ @ @ @ @ and North Korea .

SEOUL, June 23 (Yonhap) -- U.S. President Donald Trump has accused former National Security Advisor John Bolton of breaking the law with his soon-to-be published memoir while retweeting a Yonhap News Agency report that the office of President Moon Jae-in criticized Bolton for distorting facts.
"See, Bolton broke the law. Classified Information!" Trump said in his retweet of a Yonhap story titled, "Cheong Wa Dae says much of Bolton's memoir on Korea 'distorted.'"
On Monday, the South Korean presidential office lashed out at Bolton over his upcoming memoir, "The Room Where It Happened," which included accounts of nuclear diplomacy last year that led to an unsuccessful summit between the leaders of the U.S. and North Korea.
In the book, Bolton claimed that Trump made his foreign policy decisions in a way that best serves his political interests and the diplomacy with North Korea was a "creation" of South Korea's that lacked substance.
Chung Eui-yong, South Korea's national security advisor, said Monday "A considerable portion" of the book was "distorted," and "not accurate", accusing his former U.S. counterpart of unilaterally disclosing details of diplomatic consultations between governments.
This image shows U.S. President Donald Trump's comment posted on his Twitter account regarding the memoir by former national security advisor John Bolton, on June 23, 2020. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
elly@yna.co.kr
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yna--2020-06-23--FM Kang reiterates accountability, transparency as key values for pandemic response

`` Full disclosure about what the government is doing or not doing in the midst of a crisis may be @ @ @ @ @ all the more critical , for this is the only way to win the public @ @ @ @ @ the most important ingredient in effective crisis management , '' she added .

SEOUL, June 23 (Yonhap) -- Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha reiterated Tuesday that accountability and transparency are key values for democracies to uphold in their response to crises, such as the new coronavirus pandemic.
In her message for a project on COVID-19 co-organized by BBC Radio and Britain's Chatham House think tank, Kang also noted that Seoul's commitment to these values helped build public trust and encouraged civic participation in social distancing efforts.
"In fact, crisis is a time for democracies to redouble our commitment to accountability. And the best way to do so is to be transparent," the minister said.
"Full disclosure about what the government is doing or not doing in the midst of a crisis may be difficult, but it is all the more critical, for this is the only way to win the public's trust, which is the most important ingredient in effective crisis management," she added.
Kang also expressed worries that crises tend to "turn countries insular and reveal the weakest links in our societies," while stressing the need for collective efforts to ensure the safety of all humanity.
"Inside countries, (COVID-19) has exposed deep-seated inequalities, lacks in state capacity, the pitfalls of technology," she said.
"Democracies must face up to these with honesty and humility," she added.
On Tuesday, South Korea reported 46 cases, including 16 local infections, raising the total caseload to 12,484.
Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha takes part in a videoconference with her counterparts from eight countries to discuss efforts to contain the COVID-19 pandemic at the foreign ministry in Seoul in this photo provided by the ministry. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
sshluck@yna.co.kr
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yna--2020-06-23--Doosan Group to focus on clean energy biz, ditch others

Oil pressure machine maker Doosan Mottrol has already been put up for sale , but Doosan Mobility Innovation , a @ @ @ @ @ powerpacks for drones will not be included in the asset sale , according to an @ @ @ @ @ two are business units under Doosan Corp. , the group 's holding company .

SEOUL, June 23 (Yonhap) -- Cash-squeezed Doosan Group will focus on its clean energy-related business while selling off others, such as its power plant construction business, in return for financial assistance from its creditors, industry sources said Tuesday.
State-run banks the Korea Development Bank and the Export-Import Bank of Korea injected 3.6 trillion won (US$2.95 billion) into the group to keep it afloat between March and June, as the group drew up a 3 trillion-won self-rescue plan.
The logo of Doosan Group at Doosan Tower, the group's headquarters, in Seoul (Yonhap)
As of the end of 2019, Doosan Group, the 15th-largest conglomerate, had a total of 25 affiliates under its wing, including Doosan Infracore Co. and Doosan Fuel Cell Co., with its business portfolio ranging from power plant construction to chemicals.
The business group has been seeking to sell assets to tide over cash shortages caused by a lack of orders at its power plant affiliate Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction Co. and extended losses at its construction unit Doosan Engineering & Construction Co.
Under the business restructuring plan, Doosan Heavy, the group's flagship, has pushed ahead with its scheme to shift its mainstay coal and nuclear power plant business toward its renewable energy business.
Doosan Heavy will increase its presence in such areas as offshore wind power plants and energy storage systems, as well as make inroads into the tidal power, solar power and other energy sectors.
The cash-strapped company's business lineup ranges from nuclear and coal power plants to gas turbines for liquefied natural gas (LNG) power plants, solar and wind power plants, and water desalinization plants.
Oil pressure machine maker Doosan Mottrol has already been put up for sale, but Doosan Mobility Innovation, a producer of portable fuel cell powerpacks for drones will not be included in the asset sale, according to an official at KDB. The two are business units under Doosan Corp., the group's holding company.
On the asset sales list were Doosan Infracore, the group's headquarters building, a golf course and other non-core assets.
Also included on the list were copper foil maker Doosan Solus Co. and venture capital firm Neoplux Co.
This file photo, captured from Doosan Fuel Cell's website, shows a Doosan fuel cell system generating power. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
Doosan Fuel Cell, a fuel cell manufacturer, is likely to be off the list.
The group may not sell advertising agency Oricom Inc., a professional baseball team, the Doosan Bears, and Doosan Bobcat, a maker of small-sized construction equipment and also the group's cash cow.
Doosan Group will be pressured to sell Doosan Bobcat if its asset sales plan does not go smoothly, the sources said.
But Doosan Heavy's shift toward the renewable energy sector may hurt its financial status, as it may take a few years to make a splash in the sector amid its reduced presence in the nuclear and coal power plant sector.
It is unclear whether Doosan Heavy will be able to expand its presence in the gas turbine market, where General Electric Co., Siemens AG. and Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems are competing.
ksnam@yna.co.kr
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