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[Editorial] Ballots and blunders
Elections in South Korea have long served as both a civic ritual and a litmus test for the health of its democracy. But as the country heads into a pivotal presidential vote on Tuesday, confidence in the integrity of that process is under severe strain. Early voting, which took place over two days beginning Thursday, drew an enthusiastic response from the public. Turnout reached 34.74 percent — the second-highest since the system was introduced in 2014 — signaling a population deeply engaged in
June 2, 2025 -
[Editorial] A cut that cuts deep
For weeks, financial markets anticipated the move. On Thursday, just five days before South Korea’s pivotal June 3 presidential election, the Bank of Korea lowered its benchmark interest rate by a quarter percentage point to 2.5 percent. The decision itself came as no surprise. What did surprise was the central bank’s sharp downgrade of its growth forecast. Its projection for 2025 collapsed from an already modest 1.5 percent to just 0.8 percent — a halving of expectations in the span of three mo
May 30, 2025 -
[Editorial] Improve transparency
Early voting in South Korea's 21st presidential election is being held over two days, today and tomorrow, at 3,569 polling places across the country. Election Day is June 3. South Korean livelihoods and state affairs were thrown into disarray by former President Yoon Suk Yeol's short-lived martial law decree last December followed by his impeachment and dismissal. The election has historical significance in that it is held to fill a leadership void and stabilize the nation as quickly as possible
May 29, 2025 -
[Editorial] No work, no future
It is one of South Korea’s most confounding contradictions: a nation bracing for demographic collapse, yet failing to provide its young people with the jobs they need to build lives, families and futures. With the presidential election just days away, on June 3, the major candidates remain preoccupied with political brinkmanship — dredging up old scandals and lobbing accusations over peripheral controversies — rather than addressing what may be the country’s most urgent crisis: the hollowing out
May 28, 2025 -
[Editorial] Stop the cycle
Lee Jae-myung, the presidential candidate of the liberal Democratic Party of Korea, said in a press conference Sunday that he is the right person to end the pattern of political retaliation because he knows its ills better than anyone else. He also said that if he is elected president, there will be no political revenge targeting certain persons, though the crime of insurrection will be strictly punished. Considering he is the front-runner in the presidential race, this is a welcome promise. As
May 27, 2025 -
[Editorial] Troops, trust and alliance
In geopolitics, ambiguity is seldom accidental. The Wall Street Journal’s report Thursday that the Pentagon is weighing the withdrawal of some 4,500 troops from South Korea — roughly 16 percent of the 28,500-strong United States Forces Korea — landed like a spark in a dry forest. Both Seoul and Washington issued swift denials. But those denials failed to fully dispel the speculation. A Pentagon spokesperson, when asked directly about the reported drawdown, said only that “there were no policy an
May 26, 2025 -
[Editorial] Korea’s crypto gambit
Crypto is crashing the campaign trail. With South Korea’s presidential election on June 3 fast approaching, one of the more unlikely issues to seize the spotlight is stablecoins — digital tokens tied to real-world currencies. At the forefront is the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea, which has positioned won-backed stablecoins as a flagship of its digital finance agenda. Advocates argue they will preserve monetary sovereignty and foster innovation. Yet the speed with which this intricate
May 23, 2025 -
[Editorial] Hole in cybersecurity
The nation was jolted by interim probe findings that personal information and universal subscriber identity module or USIM data of practically all subscribers of SK Telecom may have been leaked by hackers. The cyberattack dated back about three years and turned out to be much more extensive than revealed in the initial briefing, according to the second briefing Monday by a joint investigation team of the Ministry of Science and ICT and the Korea Internet & Security Agency. SK Telecom discovered
May 22, 2025 -
[Editorial] Fiscal reckoning ahead
Moody’s Investors Service downgraded the United States’ sovereign credit rating from Aaa to Aa1 on Friday — the first time in more than a century that it had done so. With US debt now surpassing $36 trillion and political dysfunction entrenched in Washington, even the world’s most trusted reserve currency is not immune to market skepticism. The downgrade is more than a symbolic setback for the US; it serves as a cautionary tale for countries like South Korea, where the warning signs are increasi
May 21, 2025 -
[Editorial] Keep your promise
Lee Jae-myung, presidential candidate of the liberal Democratic Party of Korea, on Sunday proposed amending the nation's Constitution to allow a president to serve two four-year terms. He said the two-term presidency would not apply to the sitting president, as specified by the current Constitution. This means that if he is elected as the next president, he would serve a single five-year term even if the Constitution is amended while in office. His proposal strengthens the power of the National
May 20, 2025 -
[Editorial] A resignation too late
As South Korea’s presidential election approaches on June 3, former President Yoon Suk Yeol formally left the conservative People Power Party on Saturday and urged voters to rally behind the party’s embattled presidential candidate, Kim Moon-soo. Yoon’s departure came not from a moment of clarity or political integrity but from growing unrest within the People Power Party, which has struggled to reconcile its democratic image with a former leader tainted by constitutional disgrace. On April 4, Y
May 19, 2025 -
[Editorial] Tariff pause, strategic push
The US and China — the world’s two largest economies — agreed Monday to a 90-day suspension of their escalating tariff war, reducing duties from a punishing 145 percent to 30 percent on US imports from China, and from 125 percent to 10 percent in the reverse direction. While this temporary truce may ease immediate pressure, it offers no resolution. For South Korea, the implications are complex — a brief opening and a sharp warning. South Korea, whose economy is built on export-led growth, is dee
May 16, 2025 -
[Editorial] Absurd clause
The full story of an apparent Chinese espionage maneuver to obtain military secrets through a South Korean active duty soldier was revealed Monday. A Chinese national was indicted last month in connection with the case. The indictment, secured by the office of Joo Jin-woo, a National Assembly member of the ruling People Power Party, was disclosed to the media on Tuesday. According to the indictment, the Defense Counterintelligence Command caught the man trying to get USBs containing sensitive mi
May 15, 2025 -
[Editorial] Election race begins
With just three weeks until South Korea’s presidential election on June 3, the race has officially begun. On Monday, the seven declared candidates launched their campaigns, but early polls show the contest is mainly focused on a two-way battle. A poll released by Hangil Research on Tuesday showed that Lee Jae-myung of the liberal Democratic Party of Korea led with 49.5 percent support. Kim Moon-soo of the conservative People Power Party followed at 38.2 percent. Lee Jun-seok of the minor conserv
May 14, 2025 -
[Editorial] Lowest in economic growth
South Korea posted the lowest economic growth rate among 19 major economies in the first quarter. The global economy is embroiled in unprecedented uncertainties caused by a tariff war that the US started and a renewed trade protectionism. Slowed growth has become the reality of many major economies, but the nosedive of South Korea's growth rate is obviously a matter that Koreans should think hard. According to the Bank of Korea, the Korean real gross domestic product -- a key measure of economic
May 13, 2025