logo
FM holds 1st phone talks with Australian counterpart

FM holds 1st phone talks with Australian counterpart

Korea Herald2 days ago
Foreign Minister Cho Hyun held telephone talks with his Australian counterpart, Penny Wong, on Monday to discuss bilateral relations, the foreign ministry said, marking their first phone conversation since Cho took office.
During the call, Cho stressed that the summit between President Lee Jae Myung and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in June has helped further deepen the two countries' ties, according to the ministry.
Cho also expressed appreciation for the warm hospitality extended by Australia during last week's visit by a special delegation from Seoul. He called for continued high-level exchanges and enhanced multidimensional cooperation between the two nations.
The special envoys, led by former National Assembly Speaker Kim Jin-pyo, delivered Lee's message in their meetings with Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Richard Marles and Wong.
In response, Wong reaffirmed that South Korea is one of Australia's key partners and expressed hope to meet with Cho in person at the earliest opportunity to maintain close communication and strengthen strategic collaboration, it added. (Yonhap)
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Trump says US will raise pharmaceutical tariffs to 150% in 1 year, to 250% later
Trump says US will raise pharmaceutical tariffs to 150% in 1 year, to 250% later

Korea Herald

timean hour ago

  • Korea Herald

Trump says US will raise pharmaceutical tariffs to 150% in 1 year, to 250% later

US President Donald Trump said Tuesday that his administration will put "small" tariffs on pharmaceutical imports initially, and then raise them to 150 percent in a year and to 250 percent later, as he unveiled a plan to announce sector-specific tariffs "within the next week or so." Trump made the remarks in a CNBC interview as South Korea and other countries are bracing for the Trump administration's rollout of new sectoral tariffs, including those on semiconductors following their deals with it over steep "reciprocal" tariffs that are set to take effect on Thursday. Trump has been using tariffs to generate federal revenue, reduce America's trade deficits and bolster domestic manufacturing. "On pharmaceuticals, we will be putting a ... initially small tariff on pharmaceuticals," he said. "But in one year ... one and a half years maximum, it's going to go to 150 percent, and then it is going to go to 250 percent because we want pharmaceuticals made in our country," he added. Trump affirmed that his administration will unveil sectoral tariffs soon. He invoked Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 to roll out the tariffs as the law allows the president to adjust imports into the US when he determines they threaten to impair national security. "Within the next week or so, we are going to be announcing tariffs," he said, noting that the new tariffs will be a "separate class" from country-specific reciprocal tariffs. Last Wednesday, Trump announced a trade deal with South Korea, under which his administration agreed to lower reciprocal tariffs on South Korea to 15 percent, down from the proposed 25 percent, in return for South Korea's commitment to invest $350 billion in the United States and other pledges. The deal with South Korea was among an array of framework trade agreements that his administration has signed with trading partners, including the European Union and Japan. During the interview, Trump touted the deals. "South Korea has opened up their country ... but not only opened up, and that's going to be huge business," he said. "When you open up South Korea, it's a closed country, and now all of a sudden, we are allowed to sell cars into South Korea, and trucks and SUVs. I mean we are really opening it up." Touching on the European Union's $600 billion investment pledge, Trump called it a "gift." "That's a gift. That's not like, you know, a loan by the way," he said, claiming that there's "nothing to pay back." "They gave us $600 billion that we can invest in anything we want," he said. His remarks raised the possibility that there could be a discrepancy over the nature of the investment pledges that other countries have made in their trade negotiations with the US Seoul officials have said that Korea's investment would mostly take the form of loans or loan guarantees. (Yonhap)

Ruling party lawmaker accused of trading stocks under someone else's name
Ruling party lawmaker accused of trading stocks under someone else's name

Korea Herald

time18 hours ago

  • Korea Herald

Ruling party lawmaker accused of trading stocks under someone else's name

South Korea's ruling Democratic Party of Korea launched an internal probe Tuesday after a senior lawmaker was photographed appearing to trade stocks under someone else's name during a parliamentary session. This sparked speculations that the lawmaker might have failed to fulfill his duty to declare assets as a public official. Local media published an image showing Rep. Lee Choon-suak, chair of the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee, using his phone to access trading windows for Naver and LG CNS shares. The account name did not match his, prompting allegations of borrowed-name trading. Rep. Joo Jin-woo of the main opposition People Power Party said he would file a criminal complaint, accusing Lee of violating the Real-Name Financial Transactions Act and the Public Service Ethics Act. 'Borrowed-name stock trading is a serious crime that exploits retail investors,' Joo said, adding that omitting such assets from mandatory disclosures could call Lee's qualifications into question. The Legislation and Judiciary Committee is considered one of the most influential in South Korea's Assembly, serving as the final gatekeeper for bills heading to a plenary vote at regular sessions. The Democratic Party's ethics oversight panel will lead the internal inquiry.

Lee offers condolences to Korean atomic bomb victims ahead of 80th anniversary of Hiroshima bombing
Lee offers condolences to Korean atomic bomb victims ahead of 80th anniversary of Hiroshima bombing

Korea Herald

time20 hours ago

  • Korea Herald

Lee offers condolences to Korean atomic bomb victims ahead of 80th anniversary of Hiroshima bombing

President Lee Jae Myung on Tuesday offered his condolences to the Korean nuclear bomb victims, a day before Japan's Hiroshima marks the 80th anniversary of the devastating 1945 atomic bombing of the city. In a Facebook post, Lee wrote, "I express my deepest condolences and sympathy to the victims of the atomic bombing and their families who were caught in the tumult of history and suffered unimaginable pain in a place that was not their homeland but in a foreign land. "The two atomic bombs that dropped on Japan 80 years ago claimed countless lives in an instant," he said. "Our fellow Koreans in Japan also endured immense suffering, and the victims and their bereaved families have been suffering for a long time." He noted that a special law enacted in 2017 to support the Korean victims laid the foundation for practical assistance but acknowledged that much remains to be done. The government will continue efforts to "heal the scars left by the atomic bombings," Lee said. Around 50,000 Koreans fell victim to the atomic bombing, including 30,000 killed, after many were brought to Japan to work as forced laborers during its 1910-45 colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula, according to the Korea Atomic Bombs Victim Association. (Yonhap)

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store