Both leaders may be talking nice now, but we all know how this is going end up:
President Lee Jae-myung expressed his wish to build a mature Korea-Japan relationship in his first phone call with Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, Monday.
According to the presidential office, the two leaders spoke for approximately 25 minutes in their first exchange since Lee took office last week. They reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening bilateral relations and advancing shared national interests.
“The president expressed his gratitude to the prime minister for congratulating him on his inauguration and emphasized the growing importance of the Korea-Japan relationship amid today’s strategic environment,” presidential office spokesperson Kang Yu-jung said during a press briefing.
You can read more at the link.
The easy access to various mountain trails is something very unique to Seoul that the government has done a better job of promoting and maintaining hiking trails. This has led to a large increase in foreigners hiking these trails:
Wearing hanbok (Korean traditional attire) and walking around Gyeongbok Palace, eating street food and shopping for K-pop merchandise and cosmetics used to top to-do lists for people traveling to Korea.
Now, a new experience is climbing in popularity — literally. Hiking Korea’s urban mountains, often dubbed “K-hiking,” has quickly become one of the most unexpected yet popular activities among international tourists.
Searching hashtags like #seoulhiking, #hikingtourism or #hikinginseoul on Instagram now turns up over 10,000 posts. No matter which mountain in downtown Seoul, it is now common to see foreign tourists exploring mountain paths or taking photos at the summits.
You can read more at the link, but K-hiking has definitely become popular with foreign tourists. I have seen way more foreigners on Korean trails today compared to 20 years ago.
What this article is not telling readers is that many of the Korean-American owned businesses in LA’s Koreatown use illegal immigrant labor, especially from Latin-American countries. This is the primary reason the Korean American Federation is speaking out against the ICE raids:
US federal immigration authorities conducted a series of coordinated enforcement operations across Los Angeles on Friday, including in neighborhoods with a high concentration of Korean American-owned businesses. The move has raised concerns within the local Korean diaspora.
The raids reportedly targeted areas in downtown Los Angeles’ fashion district, commonly referred to as the “Jobber Market,” where several Korean American-run wholesale clothing stores are located.
In a statement released the same day, the Korean American Federation of Los Angeles condemned the enforcement actions, describing them as “unilateral and heavy-handed.”
“These actions by ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) disregard proper legal procedures,” the organization said. “We urgently call on our local elected officials to take action and provide solutions to this crisis. In addition, we will work closely with local organizations to ensure that no individuals are unjustly harmed.”
“Even individuals who struggle with English or are unable to provide identification immediately are reportedly being arrested or detained first,” the organization added. “This has caused significant harm and confusion, not only among Korean nationals but also among local residents.”
You can read more at the link, but what do ROK Heads think would happen in Korea if a bunch of Americans started attacking Korean law enforcement while waving U.S. flags?
This is clearly a conflict of interest, but if President Lee wants his defense lawyer on the Constitutional Court he will get because the DPK controls the National Assembly which has to approve the nomination:
President Lee Jae-myung is considering nominating two sitting senior judges and a lawyer who served as his defense counsel in recent trials as candidates for two Constitutional Court justice positions, officials familiar with the matter said Sunday.
Presiding Judge Oh Young-joon of the Seoul High Court and Judge Wi Kwang-ha of the same court are under review for the nomination, according to a presidential official. (…….)
The possible nomination of Lee is sparking debate, as he previously served as the president’s defense lawyer in a series of trials concerning allegations of election violations and unauthorized remittances to North Korea.
The trials have been put on hold due to a South Korean president being immune from criminal prosecution while in office.
The opposition People Power Party (PPP) criticized the presidential office over the potential nomination of Lee, saying the move would “amount to turning the judiciary into a private law firm.”
“The biggest reason why half of the people didn’t vote for President Lee Jae-myung was the suspicion and fear that he might exert influence over the judiciary if he gained control of the executive branch in addition to the legislature,” PPP spokesperson Seo Ji-young said.
You can read more at the link.
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