Category: South Korea

CEO of Kakao, South Korea’s Most Popular Messaging App, Resigns After Service Outage

A top executive of Kakao Corp., a popular South Korean messaging app, stepped down Wednesday following a widespread service outage on the ubiquitious platform that millions of South Koreans use regularly for wiring money, chatting with friends, hailing taxis, and logging onto other major websites. “As a CEO of Kakao, I feel miserable and strongly…


North Korea Fire Artillery Near Border With South Korea

North Korea fired artillery rounds into its sea boundaries with South Korea on Tuesday in retaliation for South Korea’s annual military drills, which it regards as “provocative acts.” South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said the North fired about 100 artillery rounds off its west coast around 10 p.m. (local time), followed by another…


After Fighter Jet Purchase, Poland Now Buying 300 Multiple-Rocket Launchers From South Korea

Poland will sign a contract with South Korea to buy 300 K239 Chunmoo multiple-rocket launchers, the Polish defense minister said, as Warsaw seeks to bolster defense capability amid the ongoing Russia–Ukraine war. Polish Defense Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Mariusz Blaszczak said the two countries had completed their negotiations and that a contract will be…


South Korea’s KakaoTalk Partially Restored After Fire at Data Center Fire Causes 11-Hour Outage

South Korea’s tech powerhouse Kakao Corp. has restored 40 percent of its data center’s servers 11 hours after a fire at its data center caused service disruptions across some of the nation’s most used tech platforms. Servers hosted at a data center operated by SK C&C in Pangyo, south of Seoul, caught fire on Saturday, causing…


Rare Protest in Beijing Ahead of Key CCP Meeting

In a rare public protest in Beijing, people were standing up against China’s zero-COVID-19 policy, even condemning Chinese leader Xi Jinping by name. Following the protest, the word “Beijing” was put on China’s censorship blacklist. Internet police appear to be working overtime. Controversies are brewing over a New York nonprofit and its having funded a…


South Korea Aims to Become World’s 4th Largest Arms Exporter

New Analysis The Russia-Ukraine war has shaken the global arms industry as nations bulk up defense budgets to expand their militaries. Amid an intensified global arms race, South Korea is seeking to become one of the world’s top four weapons suppliers. “By entering the [list of the] world’s top four defense exporters after the United…


North Korea Launches 2 Missiles Toward Sea After US–South Korea Drills

SEOUL, South Korea—North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles toward its eastern waters on Sunday, the latest of a recent barrage of weapons tests, a day after it warned the redeployment of a U.S. aircraft carrier near the Korean Peninsula was inflaming regional tensions. South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement that…


US Redeploys Aircraft Carrier, Sanctions Entities Aiding North Korea’s Nuclear Program

The United States staged another round of joint drills with South Korea with an aircraft carrier and sanctioned entities aiding North Korea’s nuclear programs, as tensions on the Korean Peninsula ratcheted up. The maritime drills were held in waters off South Korea’s east coast, involving the USS Ronald Reagan carrier strike group, and will run…


US, Philippines Begin Large-Scale Joint Military Drills to Bolster Defense Ties

The Philippines and U.S. marines have launched two weeks of joint naval exercise to bolster military ties, with Japan and South Korea participating in the drill as “observers” for the first time. The Kamandag 6 is being held in the Philippines islands of Luzon, Batanes, and Palawan from Oct. 3 to Oct. 14. It involved…


South Korean President Defends Decision to Abolish Gender Equality Ministry

South Korea’s president said Thursday that the abolition of the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family was aimed at “strengthening the protection of women,” despite criticism from opposition lawmakers and women’s rights groups. South Korea’s government has finalized a plan to dissolve the ministry, under which the Welfare and Health Ministry will assume its core…