By Sangmi Cha, Josh Smith2 Min ReadFILE PHOTO-A North Korean flag flies on a mast at the Permanent

By Sangmi Cha2 Min ReadSEOUL( Reuters)-South Korea said on Wednesday it would ramp up COVID

SEOUL( Reuters)-South Korean former president Roh Tae-woo, a decorated war veteran who played a pivotal but controversial role in the transition to democratic elections from rule by authoritarian leaders, has died, a Seoul hospital confirmed. The 88-year-old died on Tuesday, a Seoul National University Hospital official said, without citing the cause of death. Roh had been in poor health since 2002 when he received surgery for prostate cancer and was repeatedly hospitalized in recent years.In th

SEOUL( Reuters)-South Korea reported a record daily 5, 352 new COVID-19 infections and 70 deaths, while a nationwide total of nine cases of the Omicron variant have been confirmed, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency( KDCA) said on Saturday. The government on Friday announced that people visiting restaurants, cinemas and other public spaces will have to show vaccine passes.... It is also reducing the limit on private gatherings to six people in the greater Seoul area, from 10 curren

SEOUL( Reuters)-South Korean frontline health workers on Thursday dropped plans to strike after they reached an agreement with the government on their demand for increased staffing and better work conditions during last-ditch negotiations overnight. The Korean Health and Medical Worker's Union had warned some of its 80, 000 members, including nurses, medical engineers, and pharmacists who say they are exhausted from battling waves of COVID-19 outbreaks, would begin striking from Thursday if thei

SEOUL( Reuters)-South Korea said on Monday it has shelved plans to further relax COVID-19 curbs due to the strain on its healthcare system from rising hospitalisation and death rates as well as the threat posed by the new Omicron variant. President Moon Jae-in said the crisis had deepened and called for a united response to prevent the variant from entering the country including the mobilisation of more personnel and tightening contact tracing." Numbers for new confirmed cases, severe cases and

" The rest of October with a fortnight remaining will be the final test to stepping towards restored routines." The new social distancing rules will be imposed until Oct.... 31, after which the authorities will announce a more inclusive strategy for small businesses and the self-employed, hit hard by the sweeping curbs. South Korea reported 1, 684 new COVID-19 cases for Thursday, bringing its cumulative tally to 339, 361 infections with 2, 626 deaths....

SEOUL( Reuters)-South Korea's government on Friday said it would raise its greenhouse gas reduction goal from 26.3 percent to 40 percent by 2030, as part of efforts to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. The revised nationally determined contribution( NDC) was proposed by the ruling party in June and will be officially introduced at the 26th U.N. Climate Change Conference in Glasgow in November, with a government plan presented to the United Nations in December. South Korean President Moon Jae-in

SEOUL( Reuters)-South Korea said on Monday it has been informed by Moderna of an unspecified production issue involving its COVID-19 vaccine, as the country expands its inoculation campaign for people aged 55-59 amid a fourth wave of infections.It was not immediately clear what the production issue is, how much and long shipment will be impacted and whether other countries will be also affected by the problem. Moderna did not immediately reply to a Reuters' request for comment." Moderna has info

SEOUL( Reuters)-Nearly 400 evacuated Afghans arrived on Thursday in Seoul, where the government said it was amending the law to allow long-term stays for those who worked on South Korean projects in Afghanistan before the Taliban seized power this month.... He acknowledged controversy over the plan, saying the decision to accept the Afghan evacuees had been" difficult", but added that South Korea could not give up on its friends." Despite the fact that we are physically apart in a distant count