This is pretty funny that someone filed a complaint against President Moon for violating his own coronavirus prevention measures:
President Moon Jae-in has come under fire for having a dinner with four of his former aides at Cheong Wa Dae, which critics claim was in violation of the nationwide ban on gatherings of five or more people as a measure to contain the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Two days after the Moon administration’s latest Cabinet reshuffle, announced April 17, Moon had drinks and dinner with the four former aides to show his appreciation for their work, at his residence within the presidential office compound. The aides were former senior secretary for social policy Yoon Chang-yul, former senior secretary for political affairs Choi Jae-sung, former spokesman Kang Min-seok and former secretary for legal affairs Kim Young-sik.
However, a person later filed a civil complaint on the website run by the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission, saying Moon’s gathering with the former aides was against the ban on gatherings of five or more people.
You can read more at the link, but the Blue House is saying that the gathering ban only applies to private gatherings and not official gatherings like what are held at the Blue House. Just like in the US, what is with these politicians that can follow the rules they push down on everyone else.
This will make life a little better for those who are vaccinated:
Soldiers wait in line to be vaccinated at the Armed Forces Capital Hospital in Seongnam, south of Seoul, on April 28, 2021, in this photo provided by the Kookbang Ilbo.
South Korean health authorities said Wednesday that fully vaccinated people will be exempted from the country’s mandatory 14-day isolation period from early next month as the country is struggling to speed up the vaccination campaign.
Health authorities said that, under the country’s anti-infection measures, those who have been fully inoculated will no longer be required to self-isolate themselves after coming in close contact with COVID-19 patients or entering the country from overseas from May 5.
As long as the Korean left remains in power I just don’t see them joining the “Quad” because of their near religious zeal of improving relations with North Korea. Additionally even if the Korean right was to regain power even they would be challenged to join the quad considering the heavy economic investment that Korean companies have made in China that would be impacted:
A journalist takes a photo of a screen showing a live image of Chinese President Xi Jinping delivering a speech at the opening of the Boao Forum for Asia (BFA) Annual Conference 2021 in Boao, Hainan province, April 20. AFP-Yonhap
Korea may face tougher pressure from China to avoid joining the U.S.-led informal strategic group, as Beijing reportedly remains on high alert over Seoul’s possible participation.
Citing diplomatic sources, the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported Saturday that Korea had received a number of inquiries from Chinese officials about whether it was considering joining the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue or “Quad.” But the Korean government has so far said that there has been no invitation from Washington.
The report also said that Chinese diplomatic experts believe that if Korea were to join the Quad, it would be a significant challenge to China’s security in East Asia, while referring to the alliance as an “anti-China coalition” in the region.
It will be interesting to see if Lee has his sentenced reduced for facilitating a vaccine deal that now shields the Moon administration from the heavy criticism they had been receiving:
Lee Jae-yong walks into the Seoul High Court on Jan. 18. (Yonhap)
After South Korea closed a deal with Pfizer to obtain additional doses of its COVID-19 vaccine, Samsung Electronics’ de facto chief, Lee Jae-yong, is receiving much attention in local media for his reported role in facilitating talks between the two sides.
Seoul announced Friday that it had secured enough additional vaccine for 20 million people in a deal that soothed public worries over a shortage. Adding to those worries were the reported side effects associated with the AstraZeneca jabs — the mainstay of the country’s inoculation campaign.
According to the DongA Ilbo and multiple other media outlets, the vice chairman of Samsung, in prison since January for bribing former President Park Geun-hye, acted as a bridge between the Korean government and Pfizer.
While the Moon Jae-in government had no channels with the top leadership of the US vaccine developer until early December, Lee used his personal network and sought the help of Shantanu Narayen, chairman of the US computer software company Adobe, who was an independent director of Pfizer.
You can read more at the link, but for those that have followed Lee Jae-yong’s legal issues he was essentially jailed because he was caught in the middle of the political battles between the Korean left and right. He was jailed because it was alleged that former President Park made demands to Lee that Samsung give money to a sport agency to sponsor her friend’s daughter’s Olympic equestrian training. In return the Park administration was alleged to have smothered over Lee’s acquisition of Samsung from his then ailing father.
I have no idea if Lee is guilty of what he is accused of, but what I do know is that Korea is a rule by law nation instead of a rule of law nation. If powers that be want him guilty they can make it happen. The same powers that be can find a way to get him released as well. We will see if that happens in the coming months because I doubt they will announce it right after this vaccine deal.
It appeared that when Trump was in office he did not have a good relationship with Moon and his latest remarks validate this:
South Korean President Moon Jae-in, left, shakes hands with U.S. President Donald Trump at the InterContinental Barclay hotel during the United Nations General Assembly on Sep. 23, 2019, in New York. AP-Yonhap
Former president Donald Trump on Friday accused his South Korean counterpart of ripping off the United States, while continuing to highlight his supposed friendship with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
“Kim Jong-un of North Korea, who I have gotten to know (and like) under the most trying of circumstances, never respected the current President of South Korea, Moon Jae-in,” Trump said in a statement.
“President Moon was weak as a leader and as a negotiator, except when it came to the continued, long term military ripoff of the USA… We were treated like fools for decades, however, I got them to pay billions of dollars more for the military protection and services we render.”
“The Biden Administration is not even going to ask for the additional billions South Korea agreed to pay us,” Trump added, referring to current President Joe Biden.
This analysis is based on a lot of wishful thinking. South Korea is a rich country that fared well at first but failed to buy vaccines because of our leaders' hubris. Good luck convincing Congress to share vaccines with us when there are many Americans who need the vaccines. https://t.co/TS2qSeALYE
Park Sang-hak and the Fighters for a Free North Korea are planning on launching more leaflets to North Korea despite the Moon administration’s vows to stop them:
Park Sang-his
A North Korean defector group said Friday it plans to send thousands of leaflets to North Korea next week despite a recently enacted ban on such leafleting.
Park Sang-hak, a defector who heads Fighters for a Free North Korea, told Yonhap News Agency on Friday that his group plans to send leaflets across the border at an unannounced time and location from this Sunday to May 1.
“The leaflets will include a message criticizing their three-generation hereditary dictatorship and telling them to give out at least the minimum amount of food required for North Korean people,” he said.
You can read more at the link, but I guess we will see if the Moon administration decides to jail these activists or not. The new law they past can give people up to three years in jail for sending leaflets to North Korea. Park Sang-hak is probably hoping they try and do that to highlight how authoritarian the law is.
It would be interesting to see what the Biden administration would ask for diplomatically in return for this favor if they do indeed grant this request from the Moon administration:
Work to unload 250,000 doses of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine from a UPS cargo plane is under way at Incheon International Airport, Wednesday. Yonhap
As a “swap” deal with the United States is emerging as a temporary fix to address Korea’s shortage of COVID-19 vaccines, Seoul will find itself in the position of looking at how to return Washington’s favor diplomatically, according to diplomatic observers, Thursday.
With a mere 3.41 percent of the country’s 52 million population having received shots since the government began its vaccination campaign Feb. 26, due to the shortage, Korea has turned to its long-time ally for help as the U.S. has enough vaccines for every single American, according to President Joseph Biden.
It would be interesting to see how many Koreans rush to get the Russian made vaccine if they decide to go this route:
Domestic contract manufacturing organizations (CMOs) of the Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine have enjoyed a bullish run on the stock market this week, as the government began to consider use of the Russian vaccine to deal with a supply shortage of Pfizer and Moderna products.
President Moon Jae-in recently ordered his staff to review the feasibility of using Sputnik V, according to sources familiar with the issue. The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety also asked the foreign ministry to collect data on the safety of the Russian vaccine.
You can read more at the link, but I would not be surprised if the Moon administration is trying to play the Russians off of the Americans to get COVID vaccines out of the Biden administration.
