Politics

Busan Metropolitan City announced a plan to become an English-friendly city in a bid to establish itself as a global hub. This effort dates back to the Lee Myung-bak Administration's Immersion English education plan, which aimed to increase the proficiency of English in South Korea. To bridge the language divide, the Korean Ministry of Education has been implementing English education regulations and providing equal opportunities for English language study. In 1997, English was incorporated int

The ongoing conflict in Ukraine has stimulated South Korea's arms export industry, as countries backing Kyiv seek to replenish their armaments from Seoul. Despite calls from NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg to reconsider, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol has declined to provide lethal aid directly to Kyiv, citing a law that prohibits the country from doing so during a conflict. South Korea's position as a global arms supplier has been elevated by its rapid growth as the world's faste

South Koreans continue to work more than their counterparts in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). According to OECD data, South Koreans worked 1,915 hours last year, ranking sixth among the 38 OECD member nations. The number of hours was down 10.3% from 2011. Korea's long working hours relates the lowest fertility rate South Korea also has the lowest fertility rate in the world and a fast-aging population. Concerns are ascending that the burden on the economy a

Five countries have submitted competing bids to host World Expo 2030: The Republic of Korea (in Busan), Italy (in Rome), Ukraine (in Odesa), and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (in Riyadh). Russia withdraws its bid * The Republic of Korea has applied to host a World Expo in Busan between May 1 and October 31, 2030, with the theme "Transforming Our World, Navigating Toward a Better Future." * Italy's bid is for a World Expo in Rome from April 25 to October 25, 2030, with the theme "The Horizontal

The Iranian film Scent Of Wind, directed by Hadi Mohaghegh, will have its official opening at the 27th Busan International Feature Festival (BIFF, Oct. 5–14), which will finish with the Venice-produced film A Man by Ishikawa Kei. The 27th Busan film festival marks the first full recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic in three years, restoring various programs and forums that had been interrupted over the past two years. The festival was reduced to a fraction of its usual scale in 2020 due to the C