Is this the world’s most dangerous view from a Starbucks?:
Coffee drinkers can sip their beverages and view a quiet North Korean mountain village from a new Starbucks at a South Korean border observatory. Customers have to pass a military checkpoint before entering the observatory at Aegibong Peace Ecopark, which is less than a mile from North Korean territory and overlooks North Korea’s Songaksan mountain and a nearby village in Kaephung county.
The tables and windows face North Korea at the Starbucks, where about 40 people, a few of them foreigners, came to the opening Friday. The South Korean city of Gimpo said hosting Starbucks was part of efforts to develop its border facilities as a tourist destination and said the shop symbolizes “robust security on the Korean Peninsula through the presence of this iconic capitalist brand.”
You can read more at the link.
It appears Korean business owners are expecting the Trump administration to use tariffs on ROK exports if they are this concerned:
More than 8 out of 10 South Korean companies expect Donald Trump’s reelection as U.S. president will have a negative impact on the national economy, a survey showed Sunday.
In the annual survey on 239 companies with at least 30 employees on their management, 82 percent said the Korean economy will be negatively affected by the protectionist policy of the incoming second Trump administration as it has high dependence on exports, according to the Korea Enterprises Federation (KEF).
Only 7.5 percent answered the Korean economy will benefit from his reelection thanks to his China policy, expected to be aimed at curbing the growth of the world’s second-largest economy.
You can read more at the link.
The Democratic Party would need to get 8 votes from President Yoon’s People Power Party to impeach him. It will be interesting to see what the PPP does because its leadership has clashed with Yoon as well. If the PPP decides to support impeachment they are essentially handing the Presidency to Lee Jae-myung and the Korean left. However if the PPP does decide to support impeachment I can’t really blame them because the martial law attempt was preposterous:
President Yoon Suk Yeol has come under growing attacks from the main opposition party to face impeachment or charges of treason, in the wake of his short-lived attempt to impose martial law that was blocked by the National Assembly. (Yonhap)
You can read more at the link, but any treason charges is going to depend on if the Constitutional Court finds that what Yoon did was Constitutional or not.
I don’t get what Yoon was thinking declaring martial law knowing full well the Democratic Party who holds a majority in the National Assembly can just vote to end it. We all know the DP is conducting the impeachments in effort to protect their leader Lee Jae-myung from prosecution, but their had to be better response options than martial law:
President Yoon Suk Yeol declared emergency martial law, accusing the nation’s opposition of paralyzing the government with “anti-state activities,” but the National Assembly voted to lift the decree hours later.
“Martial law is aimed at eradicating pro-North Korean forces and to protect the constitutional order of freedom,” Yoon said in an emergency national address televised live in late Tuesday.
It marks the first declaration of emergency martial law in South Korea since 1979.
The surprise announcement came after the opposition Democratic Party (DP) railroaded a downsized budget bill in the parliamentary budget committee, and submitted impeachment motions against a state auditor and the chief prosecutor.
Under the Constitution, the president can declare martial law in response to military needs during times of war, armed conflict, a national emergency, or when public safety and order require it.
Following the address, Army Chief of Staff Gen. Park An-su, who was named as leader of martial law command, announced a decree banning all political activities, including protests and activities by political parties.
At at around 1 a.m, Wednesday, the 300-member National Assembly convened a plenary session to demand that Yoon lift martial law, with the resolution approved with 190 members present and 190 votes in favor.
With the motion’s passage, the martial law declaration is void, according to the parliamentary speaker’s office. (Yonhap)
You can read more the link, but Yoon was already very unpopular and this martial law decree will likely make him even more deeply disliked in Korea.
This is a heck of a collateral that is being offered by the Lotte Group:
Lotte Group said Thursday that it provided Seoul’s landmark Lotte World Tower as collateral to strengthen the creditworthiness of corporate bonds issued by its struggling chemical unit, Lotte Chemical. The move is part of the group’s efforts to reassure investors about its financial prudence.
Lotte Group said in a statement that it will offer Lotte World Tower to banks as collateral to enhance the creditworthiness of its corporate bonds through bank guarantees related to the bond agreements.
The 123-story, 555-meter Lotte World Tower is the world’s sixth-tallest building and the highest in Korea. Owned by Lotte Property & Development, its current value exceeds 6 trillion won ($4.3 billion).
The statement came after Lotte Chemical revealed last week that it was in a position where creditors could declare an event of default and demand early repayment of its corporate bonds, valued at 2.05 trillion won. This development arose from the company’s inability to comply with the predetermined terms of the bonds.
You can read more at the link.
