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About this Episode
The latest news from home and abroad, with a close eye on Northeast Asia and the Korean Peninsula in particular
Hosts & Guests
Transcript
From Seoul Korea KBS World Radio News Today starts right now.
On today's broadcast, the leaders of South Korea and Singapore hold a summit during President
E.J. Myeong's two-day visit to the city-state.
U.S. President Donald Trump says he will continue the ongoing combat operations in Iran,
and that the country's entire military command has already been wiped out.
And the main opposition, People Power Party, halts its filibuster for the sake of advancing
a bill to merge Daegu and North Kyung-sang province.
This is KBS World Radio News, I'm Il-imke.
President E.J. Myeong says he and his Singaporean counterpart share the hope that stability and
peace will be restored to the Middle East.
In the wake of escalating regional tensions, after the U.S. and Israel launched a major attack
on Iran over the weekend.
E, who is on a two-day state visit to Singapore, said in a joint press announcement following
a summit with Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wang that both leaders had assessed the impact
of the Middle East situation on global security, energy supply chains, and the global economy.
The South Korean leader called Singapore a place of great significance, pointing out that
in 2018, it hosted the historic summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North
Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
E said Singapore demonstrated exceptional diplomacy eight years ago, working for peace through
leadership in dialogue and communication, and that he is confident the country will continue
to play a constructive role in promoting peace on the Korean Peninsula and across the region.
He also announced plans to launch negotiations to upgrade the 20-year-old bilateral free
trade agreement, to reflect advances in technology, and the changing trade and economic security
environment.
The two sides signed a number of memorandums of understanding, covering a range of areas,
including artificial intelligence, civilian nuclear energy, and intellectual property.
U.S. President Donald Trump says he will continue the ongoing combat operations in Iran,
which began Saturday, during which U.S.-Israeli strikes, killed Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Hamini.
In a pre-recorded video posted Sunday on Truth Social, Trump called Operation Epic Fury,
one of the largest, most complex, most overwhelming military offensives the world has ever seen.
Iran's formerly supreme leader Ayatollah Hamine is dead.
This wretched and vile man had the blood of hundreds and even thousands of Americans on
his hands and was responsible for the slaughter of countless thousands of innocent people all
across many countries.
Combat operations continue at this time in full force, and they will continue until all
of our objectives are achieved.
We have very strong objectives.
Trump said the U.S. and its partners have hit hundreds of targets in Iran, including Iranian
air defense systems, and that Iran's entire military command has been wiped out in the
operation.
He also said Americans grieve for the three U.S. military service members who were killed
in action and promised to avenge their deaths.
Addressing the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and Iran's military police, Trump said
America is ready to help them once they decide to lay down their arms and seek immunity.
The main opposition People Power Party has halted its ongoing filibuster in parliament
for the sake of advancing a bill to merge Degu and North Gyeongsang province, the PPP's
traditional stronghold in the Southeast.
PPP floor leader Song On Sok announced the suspension Sunday of Representative Kim Jong-Jay's
filibuster.
Launched to protest contested judicial reform bills pushed by the ruling Democratic Party,
and urged the ruling side to agree to convene the legislation and judiciary committee so it
can approve the merger bill.
Earlier, D.P. Representative Chumye, who chairs the committee, refused to open a session
unless the main opposition called off the filibuster.
Regarding the bill to merge Degu and North Gyeongsang province, the ruling party is insisting
that the PPP clarify its position since the merger has met with opposition from some
local PPP councils in the region.
After the parliament passed a similar bill on the merger of South Jala province and Guangju
in the Southwest, the D.P.'s traditional stronghold, the rival parties pointed the finger
at each other over the stalled progress of the bill to merge Degu and North Gyeongsang province.
The D.P. blamed incompetence and weak leadership within the PPP, and the PPP accused the
ruling party of trying to concentrate support solely on Guangju and South Jala province.
The main opposition, People Power Party, has urged President E.J.
Myeong to exercise his veto power to squelch the three contentious judicial reform bills
the parliament passed last week.
At a Supreme Council meeting on Monday, PPP leader Jang Dong Hyuk said the president
will veto the bills if he has a shred of conscience and that doing so is the only way to fulfill
his duty to uphold the Constitution. Saying the E.J. Myeong administration has secured complete
dominance over the judiciary, Dong accused the government of destroying the judiciary,
and sacrificing the public in the process so its own officials can avoid being put behind bars.
One of the bills creates a punishable offense perverting the course of justice for judges and
prosecutors who intentionally misinterpret the law or permit the use of fabricated evidence
during a trial or investigation. A second bill would allow constitutional appeals
even after a Supreme Court ruling, and a third bill would increase the number of top court
justices from 14 to 26.
President E.J. Myeong has nominated four term ruling Democratic Party Representative
Hongkun as the inaugural chief of the Ministry of Budget and Planning.
Park's nomination on Monday comes 36 days after the president withdrew the nomination
of former conservative lawmaker Ihe Hoon amid allegations of bullying and over her family's
real estate dealings. Park has the history of working closely with the president,
having served as one of the DP floor leaders during President E's time as party leader.
Of the Korea Maritime Cooperation Center's International Cooperation Committee
was nominated to head the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries.
Hong's nomination comes 81 days after former Oceans Minister Chun-Jae-soo stepped down
over allegations he accepted gifts from the Unification Church.
The government intends to conduct a full investigation into agricultural land ownership
throughout the country as part of efforts to clamp down on real estate speculation targeting
farmland. An official from the Agriculture Ministry said Monday that preparations are underway
to launch the investigation within the month, focusing on violations of the Farmland Act.
The government conducts a farmland usage survey each year, but this investigation will be the
first to cover all the nation's farmland. Last week, President E.J. Myeong called for action
to lower agricultural land prices in the rural areas and instructed officials to review
the possibility of a comprehensive farmland survey and the issuance of orders to sell illegally
held farmland. Under the Constitution, there is a provision that in principle restricts the
ownership of farmland to those who actually engage in farming. President E.J. Myeong called for
restoring inter-Korean trust and resuming dialogue, urging an end to confrontation and a renewed
push for peace and shared prosperity on the Korean Peninsula. Speaking Sunday in Seoul at a ceremony
marking the 107th anniversary of the 1919 Independence Movement, E.J. said building a peaceful peninsula
is the truest way to honor the spirit of the March 1st Movement. He reaffirmed that his administration
would respect North Korea's political system and avoid hostile acts or any pursuit of unification
by absorption.
And that's the news from KBS World Radio's New Center in Seoul. This has been Eileen Keh-Helpe.
