Tag: South Korea

The crux of this issue is that from Japan’s perspective Japanese citizens during the Imperial era were mobilized to work in industries to support Japan’s war effort. At the time, Imperial Japan considered Koreans as Japanese citizens. The ROK wants special mention that Koreans were discriminated against and forced to work at these sites which the Japanese viewpoint disagrees with. Their viewpoint is that Koreans were mobilized to work just like Japanese in support of the empire:

South Korea on Tuesday called on UNESCO’s heritage oversight body to step in if Japan continues to backtrack on its promise to honor wartime forced labor victims from its UNESCO World Heritage-listed industrial sites. 

South Korean Ambassador to UNESCO Bak Sang-mee made the call during a session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee (WHC) in Paris, about a week after Seoul’s attempt to place the industrial sites on this year’s WHC agenda was blocked by a rare vote among member states, including both South Korea and Japan.

Seoul sought to bring attention to Japan’s lukewarm efforts in implementing WHC recommendations on presenting the full history of the Meiji industrial revolution sites, which were inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list in 2015. 

One of the sites is Hashima Island, where many Koreans were taken to toil during World War II, when Korea was under Japan’s 1910-45 colonial rule. 

“The case of the site of Japan’s Meiji industrial revolution is notable for the committee’s consistent request through four consecutive decisions for the development of an interpretation strategy that allows for an understanding of the full history of each site,” Bak said. “However, nearly a decade later, its implementation remains insufficient and continues to raise concerns.”

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

Some people have no sense of shame if they think ordering employees to do chores around their house is okay:

Gender Equality Minister nominee Kang Sun-woo apologized Monday for having legislative aides perform her household chores, such as disposing of food waste at her home, amid opposition criticism and calls for her resignation over alleged abuse of power. 

Kang offered the apology during a parliamentary confirmation hearing on her nomination, when she was pressed by opposition lawmakers, including Rep. Lee Dal-hee of the People Power Party, who actually brought a plastic bag of food waste to the hearing to make her point. 

“I sincerely apologize for the controversy I’ve caused. I offer my heartfelt apologies to the aides who may have been hurt in the process,” Kang told lawmakers at the National Assembly. 

“I humbly accept my shortcomings and will take this as a lesson to be more mindful in my words and actions, and to move forward with greater care and consideration,” she said.

Kang, a two-term lawmaker of the ruling Democratic Party, was nominated for gender minister late last month. 

The controversy arose after some of her staff members raised allegations that she ordered her aides to do her household chores and repair her toilet, claiming that her abusive behavior amounts to “gapjil” — a Korean term used to describe a power-abusing workplace practice by a superior.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

This seems to be a trial balloon warning of what could happen to USFK if the ROK is not cooperative in allowing U.S. military units in Korea to be used to respond to regional crisises. The recent deployment of Patriot missile defense units off the peninsula shows that the ROK was cooperative with that deployment:

A U.S. think tank recommended a reduction of the U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) troop level to about 10,000 from the current 28,500 in a report released Wednesday, amid speculation that the Pentagon might weigh the idea of a troop drawdown on the Korean Peninsula to prioritize deterring Chinese threats.

Defense Priorities, a Washington-based institution, released the report, titled “Aligning global military posture with U.S. interests,” saying that the U.S. troop presence should be reduced even further if Seoul limits the U.S. ability to use USFK assets to address other regional security crises outside the peninsula.

The report was written by Jennifer Kavanagh, senior fellow and director of military analysis at the think tank, and Dan Caldwell, a former senior adviser to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.

The think tank recommended cutting all ground combat units not tied to base security from South Korea, along with Army signal, intelligence, and headquarters units, and some of their associated support and sustainment units — a reduction that would remove most of the 2nd Infantry Division from Korea, including the rotational brigade combat team and Army combat aviation units.

It also said that the U.S. should cut airpower based in Korea, moving two fighter squadrons from U.S. bases in South Korea back to the U.S. and that about a third of air maintenance and other support units and personnel can also be returned stateside.

“In total, this would reduce the total U.S. military presence in South Korea by more than 50 percent, leaving about 10,000 personnel along with two fighter squadrons (including a larger super squadron) and support forces.

“The ground personnel left would be primarily for support, sustainment, logistics, and maintenance, leaving the responsibility for combat operations in the event of any crisis on the peninsula to South Korean forces.”

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

Here is the latest in regards to where South Korea stands in the global trade war with the Trump administration:

Calls are mounting for Seoul to refrain from signing a tariff deal hastily with Washington, as the leaders of Japan and other U.S. trade partners criticized U.S. President Donald Trump’s letters threatening “reciprocal” tariffs he said will take effect on Aug. 1.

Amid the limited impact of the U.S. tariff threats on the stock market, speculation is also growing that the Lee Jae Myung administration will maintain a cautious approach — though it has ostensibly vowed to accelerate trade negotiations.

After receiving Trump’s letter Tuesday, Lee remained silent on the issue during public events. The presidential office also said Kim Yong-beom, presidential chief of staff for policy, prioritized the national interest over immediate negotiations during an emergency meeting with relevant ministry officials that day. (……)

Rep. Kim Joon-hyung of the minor opposition Rebuilding Korea Party, a former chancellor of the Korea National Diplomatic Academy, said in a radio interview Wednesday that Korea should be in solidarity with Japan to reject unilateral requests from the U.S.

Myongji University professor Kim Tae-hwang advised Korea to align with Japan and the European Union, both of which are key trade partners of the U.S.

These suggestions were backed by Trump’s inconsistency in the tariff deadline, which has been ridiculed with the term “TACO,” which stands for “Trump always chickens out.” According to Forbes, the U.S. president has flip-flopped 28 times regarding his tariff policy.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link, but Trump has actually brought Korean leftists in line with Japan due to the current trade dispute.

It looks like Chinese Communist Party is going to pretend they had anything to do with defeating the Imperial Japanese during World War II and they are inviting President Lee to join them in their delusion:

The South Korean government is weighing whether President Lee Jae Myung should attend China’s military parade, held in Beijing to mark the 80th anniversary of its victory over Japan during World War II.

This will be another diplomatic test for the Lee administration, as the invitation, extended amid heightened regional tensions, reflects China’s efforts to reinforce its historical narratives and expand its regional influence. 

For South Korea, Lee’s potential attendance poses a delicate diplomatic balancing act — weighing the importance of its economic relationship with China against its security alliance with the United States and its deeply rooted historical tensions with Japan. Whether he accepts or declines could carry far-reaching implications for regional alignment and the evolving historical discourse in Northeast Asia.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link, but the CCP during World War II sat back and did hardly anything against the Imperial Japanese invasion of China. Nearly all the fighting against the Japanese was from the Kuomintang that ruled China at the time.

If anything the CCP should be sending the Emperor of Japan a thank you card because the only reason the CCP took power was because World War II had so weakened the Kuomintang. The degradatoin of the Koumintang allowed the CCP to win the Chinese civil war and the Kuomintang fled to Taiwan where the civil war with the CCP continues from to this day. If anyone should be having a military parade to celebrate the defeat of the Imperial Japanese in China it is Taiwan.

With that all said President Lee should not attend a military parade for a country that is responsible for the current division of the Korean peninsula. If CCP troops had not intervened in the Korean War, Korea would be one country today and instead it is divided because of China.

The use of paper straws was a bad idea from the start and it appears Starbucks Korea is trying to couse change:

Around 200 Starbucks stores in South Korea are testing out plant-based plastic straws after customers complained about the durability of the coffee chain’s paper straws. Starbucks Korea, which operates approximately 2,000 stores, on Wednesday introduced bioplastic straws made from sugarcane, a company spokeswoman said by phone Thursday.

The company received complaints — many of them from customers at branches in hospitals and family housing districts — about the durability of the paper straws, prompting Starbucks to explore other materials, the spokeswoman said.

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link, but what is the most ridiculous thing about the paper straws is that depending on what you order, they serve it to you in a plastic cup with a plastic lid. If Starbucks was so concerned about the environment why didn’t they use only paper cups and biodegradable lids?

Foreigners are not supposed to be involved in political activity while in South Korea and doing something like this will likely get their visas cancelled:

Six American nationals were caught early Friday in Ganghwa-gun, Incheon, while attempting to send plastic bottles filled with rice, $1 bills and Bibles to North Korea.

The group, ranging in age from their 20s to 50s, allegedly tried to launch about 1,300 bottles into the sea at around 1 a.m. on Friday, according to South Korean police.

The South Korean military, which had been monitoring the coastline using surveillance cameras, spotted the group and reported them to police. The group was caught before putting the bottles in the ocean.

Korea Herald

You can read more at the link.