The Russians and Chinese are showing they are unhappy with trilateral security cooperation between the U.S., Japan, and ROK:
Four Chinese and four Russian military planes entered South Korea’s air defense identification zone (KADIZ) without notice Tuesday, Seoul’s military said, prompting the South Korean Air Force to send its fighter jets to the scene.
The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said that between 11:52 a.m. and 1:49 p.m., the Chinese and Russian aircraft entered the southern and eastern parts of the KADIZ, respectively, and exited it. They did not violate South Korea’s air space, it added.
“Our military identified the Chinese and Russian planes before their entry into the KADIZ and deployed Air Force fighters to conduct tactical steps in preparation against potential accidental situations,” the JCS said in a text message sent to reporters.
1st S. Korea-Japan defense ministers’ talks in nearly 4 yrs South Korean Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup (L) shakes hands with his Japanese counterpart, Yasukazu Hamada, as they meet for bilateral talks on the margins of the annual Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore on June 4, 2023. (Yonhap)
This has to be the shortest time as a committee member ever:
Lee Rae-kyung, the honorary chair of The Tommorrow, a left leaning civic group, is seen in this undated photo provided by the Democratic Party on June 5, 2023. (Yonhap)
The newly appointed head of a special innovation committee of the main opposition Democratic Party (DP) said Monday he is resigning following controversy over his past remarks, including a claim that North Korea’s 2010 sinking of the South Korean naval ship Cheonan was fabricated.
Lee Rae-kyung announced his resignation just nine hours after DP leader Lee Jae-myung said Lee was appointed to head the committee newly formed to help turn around the party’s image amid a slew of scandals.
You can read more at the link, but how much of a left wing ideologue do you have to be to believe the ROK sunk its own warship which is what some of these loons in the DP believe.
Chinese nationals have apparently been investing heavily in Korean real estate:
Chinese people account for over 54 percent of homes owned by foreigners in Korea, while Americans account for 24 percent of them, according to the land ministry’s latest data on foreign ownership of land and housing in Korea.
Data revealed by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, Wednesday, show foreign nationals own 83,512 homes in Korea as of the end of last year, accounting for 0.4 percent of all residential property in the country.
This is the first time that statistics on homes owned by foreigners have been officially announced by the government. So far, the land ministry had been announcing statistics on a regular basis on foreign land ownership, but not the number of homes in the country owned by foreigners. The disclosure of the data is ascribed to the Yoon administration’s pledge to regulate foreigners’ speculative housing transactions.
By category, 91 percent of the homes owned by foreigners are in multi-complex housing, such as apartments, while the other 9 percent are single-family detached houses.
You can read more at the link, but this makes me wonder how many of these Chinese owned apartments are actually occupied or are they just sitting empty waiting to appreciate and be sold again?
Japanese warship arrives in S. Korea Japan’s JS Hamagiri destroyer hoisting the Rising Sun flag arrives in South Korea’s southeastern port city of Busan on May 29, 2023, to participate in the Eastern Endeavor 23 exercise in the international waters southeast of Jeju Island later in the week. (Yonhap)
The island of Guam was hit recently by a massive typhoon that caused the Korean tourists on the island to be trapped there for almost a week. They are now being evacuated from the island:
South Korean tourists stranded on Guam will return home as the international airport on the island resumed operation Monday afternoon after closure due to a powerful typhoon, airline officials said.
The country’s four carriers — Korean Air Co., Jeju Air Co., Jin Air Co. and T’way Air — said they have resumed flights to bring back Korean tourists starting Monday, as the Guam airport reopens at 2 p.m. (Korean time) or 3 p.m. (local time) on the same day.
The carriers plan to send a total of 11 passenger jets to Guam on Monday to bring about 2,500 Korean travelers home, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.
Those planes are expected to arrive at the airport in Guam from Monday to Tuesday.
Here is another sign of how President Yoon and Prime Minister Kishida are working together on not allowing historical issues derail their bilateral relationship:
President Yoon Suk Yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Sunday paid tribute to South Korean victims of the 1945 Hiroshima atomic bombing at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park, in a symbolic gesture to transcend the two countries’ historical issues and normalize their ties.
During a summit that followed, just two weeks after their previous meeting in Seoul, the leaders agreed that their visit was “a courageous act toward the future” and the two countries should cooperate to tackle various global challenges.
“Today, I and Prime Minister Kishida together paid a tribute to the monument,” Yoon said during the summit. “It was about paying condolences to the South Korean victims of the Hiroshima atomic bombing and at the same time will be remembered as the prime minister’s courageous act toward a peaceful future.”
S. Korea-Canada summit South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol (5th from L) holds expanded summit talks with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau (3rd from R) at the presidential office in Seoul on May 17, 2023. (Yonhap)
This is apparently going to be a major topic during President Yoon’s upcoming summit with Prime Minister Trudeau:
The KSS-III Shin Chae-ho / Courtesy of Republic of Korea Navy
A planned summit between President Yoon Suk Yeol and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is prompting speculation over a potential submarine deal between Korea and Canada as Ottawa plans to replace its aging submarines.
Yoon and Trudeau will sit down with each other Wednesday in Seoul to commemorate the 60th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the two countries. Trudeau is the first Canadian prime minister to visit Korea in nine years.
During their summit, the leaders are expected to discuss the two countries’ cooperation in national defense, including Canada’s submarine replacement program.
Multiple Canadian news outlets have reported that the Royal Canadian Navy is urging the government to purchase up to 12 new conventionally-powered attack submarines to replace its aging Victoria-class diesel submarines.
Military analysts note that Korea’s KSS-III submarines, Japan’s Taigei-class submarines and Spain’s S-80 Plus class submarines are the perfect fit for the replacement program.
