Trilateral ties may be unshakeable, but good luck trying to get North Korea to denuclearize because that is pretty much a fantasy as this point:
The top diplomats of South Korea, the United States and Japan held their first meeting since the launch of the new Trump administration, reaffirming their “unshakable trilateral partnership.”
Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul and his American and Japanese counterparts Marco Rubio and Takeshi Iwaya held talks on Saturday on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference in Germany.
According to Seoul’s Foreign Ministry, the top diplomats discussed ways to enhance trilateral cooperation, responses to North Korea issues including its nuclear weapons, regional situations, and ways to expand economic cooperation.
In a joint statement, the three sides reaffirmed their resolute commitment to the complete denuclearization of North Korea.
You can read more at the link.
A pretty badge tragedy at this hotel construction site in Busan:
Six workers died and seven others were injured in a fire at a hotel construction site in the southeastern port city of Busan on Friday, authorities said.
The fire started at the Banyan Tree hotel under construction at approximately 10:50 a.m., presumably from insulating material loaded near a swimming pool on the building’s first floor, according to the Busan firefighting headquarters.
Firefighters rescued those trapped inside using helicopters, but six were later pronounced dead. Fourteen others were safely rescued from the roof, while more than a hundred workers evacuated.
Yonhap
You can read more at the link.
It will be interesting to see if these tariffs lead to an invigoration of steel manufacturing in the U.S.:
Acting President Choi Sang-mok said Tuesday the government will respond to the new U.S. tariffs on steel imports based to its pre-prepared measures and pursue further negotiations with Washington to reflect South Korea’s interests.
On Monday (U.S. time), U.S. President Donald Trump signed proclamations imposing a 25 percent tariff on all imported steel and aluminum products, effective March 12, with “no exceptions or exemptions.” The tariffs will apply to millions of tons of steel and aluminum imports, including those from South Korea.
You can read more at the link.
The left is turning to their usual playbook of “racial profiling” to try and stop ICE from deporting illegal immigrants:
A photo of a Korean man who was arrested, Jan. 28, in the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s crackdown on illegal immigration on charges of possessing sexually exploitative materials involving minors. The original image was shared uncensored. Captured from White House’s X
U.S. President Donald Trump’s massive immigration crackdown across the country is sparking fear, disruption and frustration in both expected and unexpected ways in Korean communities.
Some 110,000 undocumented Koreans, as estimated by the Pew Research Center, are scattered throughout the United States, but in reality, experts say there are many more, and Trump’s sweeping clampdown promises to weed them out.
On. Jan. 31, the White House said a Korean national was arrested for the first time in the latest operation by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Living undocumented in Atlanta, the Korean man was found guilty of possessing sexually explicit material depicting minors, according to U.S. authorities.
He is one of nearly 1,000 migrants arrested daily in the immigration crackdown, which the Trump administration claims targets illegal residents with criminal records, such as assault, robbery and driving under the influence.
However, local media reports say many of the arrested migrants have not committed any criminal offenses — a concern that’s putting some people on edge.
“It’s not just criminal illegal immigrants. It’s not even just illegal immigrants. It’s people of color who are being randomly targeted,” said Sam Kim, 39, a U.S. citizen living in Los Angeles, who is trying to mobilize efforts to advocate against what he considers “racial profiling.”
“Criminals need to get punished. I’m not arguing against that,” Kim noted. “But legal, hardworking Koreans in the U.S. should not be mistreated just because of the way we look and speak.”
You can read more at the link, but if you are in the country legally you shouldn’t have any worries about being deported by ICE.
If traveling in South Korea for the Lunar New Year holiday please be careful because the conditions look pretty challenging out there right now:
Heavy snow blanketed South Korea for the second consecutive day Tuesday, disrupting transportation services and causing traffic congestion for people heading to their hometowns for the Lunar New Year holiday.
As of 4 p.m., 130 centimeters had piled up on Mount Halla on the southern resort island of Jeju since Monday, while some counties in the eastern province of Gangwon had 40 cm of snow over the same period. Cities of Anseong and Pyeongtaek in Gyeonggi Province, about 60 kilometers south of Seoul, had received about 25 cm of snow. In Seoul, the southwestern ward of Gwanak had 13.7 cm of snow.
For Wednesday, the Korea Meteorological Administration forecast an additional 5 to 15 cm of snow in the mountainous areas of Jeju and about 5 to 10 cm of snow in the Chungcheong and Jeolla provinces.
You can read much more about the transportation delays and road conditions at the link.
It looks like South Korea has found another potential defense export market:
Acting Defense Minister Kim Seon-ho and Estonian Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur discussed ways to strengthen bilateral cooperation in the defense sector and the arms industry Monday, according to the defense ministry.
In the talks held in Seoul, Kim noted that the two countries’ cooperation in the cybersecurity sector has been advancing and suggested expanding such ties to other areas, according to the defense ministry.
Kim also briefed Pevkur on South Korean weapons systems, including the K9 self-propelled howitzer that Estonia has acquired.
You can read more at the link, but at this point the Korean defense industry should send Putin a gift basket because all of this aggression towards his neighbors has been a boon for weapons sales.
The moral of this story is that if you are a foreigner in Korea make sure you bring enough money to provide medical care for yourself if needed:
Sgt. Park Ah-ron, Korea’s only police officer dedicated to assisting the unhoused, took charge of the case. Park contacted 21 hospitals in the Seoul metropolitan area but was met with refusals. Hospitals cited the 64-year-old’s foreign nationality and the high cost of surgery as reasons for rejection.
Efforts to reach his sister in Sweden were also unsuccessful, as she declined to cover the medical expenses.
Finally, with the help of the Seoul Homeless Support Center, Park identified a hospital in Jincheon, North Chungcheong Province — Hyeogsin Seongmo Hospital — that agreed to perform the surgery after consultations with its director.
Using a translator to communicate with the Swedish national, Park obtained his consent for the surgery. On Dec. 16, the 64-year-old underwent a successful amputation. Despite the successful procedure, he passed away on Dec. 20 due to sepsis stemming from pneumonia. Hospital staff explained that his severely weakened immune system had contributed to his death.
Before his passing, the Swedish national, who had diabetes, requested and enjoyed a piece of chocolate as a small comfort in his final moments.
Exposing systemic gaps
Park expressed frustration over the lack of welfare support for foreign nationals in Korea. “I reached out to the local government for support with surgery costs, but foreign nationals are not eligible for medical aid as vagrants,” he said.
You can read more at the link.
I don’t think I have ever heard of an airport being raided by the police before, but here we are:
Police on Thursday raided Muan International Airport, the office of Jeju Air and other locations over the airline’s deadly crash that killed 179 people.
The Jeonnam Provincial Police conducted search and seizure operations into the airport in southwest South Korea, the Seoul office of Jeju Air and the Muan office of the Busan Regional Office of Aviation, officials said.
The search warrant was issued on charges of professional negligence resulting in death, officials said.
You can read more at the link, but maybe the police should also raid the offices of the politicians who decided to build a little used airport in the middle of a bird migration wetland as well?
