https://www.scmp.com/rss/523816/feed The latest news and top stories on Hankuk University of Foreign Studies. A Seoul-based private research university, Hankuk University of Foreign Studies is dedicated to educating professionals for Korea’s post-war reconstruction, fostering creative experts and international citizens. Its main areas of focus include extensive foreign language programmes, humanities, social sciences, business and international relations. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Park Chan-kyong Park Chan-kyong South Korea’s jailed former president Yoon Suk-yeol has drawn sharp criticism for an Easter message from prison that opponents say amounted to comparing his downfall to the suffering of Jesus and showing his lack of remorse for his criminal acts. Yoon, who was removed from office a year ago after his short-lived imposition of martial law in December 2024, released the message on Sunday through his lawyer, Bae Ui-cheol, urging the public to “hold onto the hope of salvation even if times are... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3349150/south-koreas-yoon-slammed-invoking-jesus-his-message-sent-prison?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3349150/south-koreas-yoon-slammed-invoking-jesus-his-message-sent-prison?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 06 Apr 2026 08:09:31 +0000 Seong Hyeon Choi Seong Hyeon Choi Washington’s decapitation operation in Iran would push Pyongyang to feel “vindicated” in developing nuclear weapons for its own security and move closer to China and Russia to bolster its deterrence capabilities, according to analysts. On Wednesday, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un inspected the test firing of what the country’s state media called a “strategic cruise missile” from the new 5,000-tonne naval destroyer Choe Hyon before the vessel’s official commissioning. Kim hailed the warship as a... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3345806/will-us-attack-iran-push-north-korea-even-closer-russia-and-china?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3345806/will-us-attack-iran-push-north-korea-even-closer-russia-and-china?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 07 Mar 2026 15:00:07 +0000 Yeon Woo Lee Yeon Woo Lee China and South Korea have had a turbulent relationship over the past few years as they compete across a range of hi-tech industries. But the two countries now appear to be bonding over a shared challenge: their rapidly ageing societies. The issue has featured on the agenda of several meetings between President Xi Jinping and South Korean President Lee Jae Myung in recent months, with the leaders pledging to work together to deal with the economic changes being wrought by their nations’ low... https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3343740/china-and-south-korea-find-new-shared-bond-their-rapidly-ageing-societies?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3343740/china-and-south-korea-find-new-shared-bond-their-rapidly-ageing-societies?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 18 Feb 2026 06:00:10 +0000 Park Chan-kyong Park Chan-kyong Two recent convictions tied to Yoon Suk-yeol’s short-lived 2024 martial law decree have effectively sealed his fate, some legal observers say, as judges prepare to rule on the insurrection charge against the former South Korean president. On Thursday, a three-judge panel at the Seoul Central District Court’s Criminal Division 25 is set to deliver its verdict and sentence on the 65-year-old, weighing the prosecution’s request for the death penalty and any mitigating factors. The ruling will test... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3343837/south-koreas-yoon-awaits-verdict-insurrection-rulings-mount-game-over?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3343837/south-koreas-yoon-awaits-verdict-insurrection-rulings-mount-game-over?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 18 Feb 2026 00:00:11 +0000 Park Chan-kyong Park Chan-kyong When prosecutors in South Korea demanded the death penalty for ex-president Yoon Suk-yeol, he shook his head in disbelief and let out a contemptuous laugh – a moment that encapsulated his defiant posture throughout nine months of hearings. Yoon stands accused of being the “ringleader” of an insurrection stemming from his failed martial law bid in 2024 that plunged the country into political chaos. The public gallery, packed with Yoon’s supporters, erupted into protests, forcing the presiding... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3339807/south-koreas-yoon-could-become-martyr-if-given-death-penalty-observers?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3339807/south-koreas-yoon-could-become-martyr-if-given-death-penalty-observers?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 14 Jan 2026 02:58:49 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Ahn Sung-ki, one of South Korean cinema’s biggest stars whose prolific 60-year career and positive, gentle public image earned him the nickname “The Nation’s Actor”, died on Monday. He was 74. The death of Ahn, who had been fighting blood cancer for years, was announced by his agency, the Artist Company, and the Seoul-based Soonchunhyang University Hospital. “We feel deep sorrow at the sudden, sad news, pray for the eternal rest of the deceased and offer our heartfelt condolences to his bereaved... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3338710/south-korean-nations-actor-ahn-sung-ki-dies-74?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3338710/south-korean-nations-actor-ahn-sung-ki-dies-74?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 05 Jan 2026 02:20:46 +0000 Alyssa Chen Alyssa Chen Lee Jae-myung is set to become the first sitting South Korean president to travel to China since 2019 with a visit scheduled for early January. Analysts said Lee was expected to engage Beijing on security issues, including North Korea’s nuclear ambitions and the enforcement of international sanctions, while seeking to build on his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in October. Neither side has confirmed the visit, but preparations are under way, highlighted by a recent strategic... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3337847/south-korean-president-set-visit-china-next-month-north-korea-high-agenda?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3337847/south-korean-president-set-visit-china-next-month-north-korea-high-agenda?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 27 Dec 2025 04:00:11 +0000 Park Chan-kyong Park Chan-kyong South Korea’s decision to return its presidential office to the Blue House, undoing Yoon Suk-yeol’s costly relocation, has reopened old questions over the superstitions said to have driven the impeached ex-president’s decision. The move is widely viewed as rolling back a legacy tarnished by the former leader’s failed attempt to impose martial law last year. Yoon had insisted on moving his office despite the high costs to taxpayers and security concerns. “The presidential office will leave behind... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3335717/shaman-rumours-resurface-south-korea-returns-blue-house?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3335717/shaman-rumours-resurface-south-korea-returns-blue-house?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 10 Dec 2025 00:00:09 +0000 Park Chan-kyong Park Chan-kyong South Korea is watching with mounting alarm as tensions between China and Japan escalate over the Taiwan Strait, a development that threatens to test Seoul’s pragmatic diplomacy and its balancing act between Beijing and Washington, observers warn. The dispute is unfolding just as Seoul has worked to stabilise long-strained relations with both regional powers, raising fears that renewed rivalry could force South Korea into unwelcome geopolitical crossfire, they add. Analysts say the flare-up is... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3333739/china-japan-row-escalates-south-korea-fears-being-dragged-unwanted-flare?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3333739/china-japan-row-escalates-south-korea-fears-being-dragged-unwanted-flare?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 22 Nov 2025 02:30:16 +0000 Park Chan-kyong Park Chan-kyong South Korea’s bid to reboot ties with China and deepen trade links while strengthening its military alliance with the United States has stirred warnings of renewed pressure from both powers, with last week’s Apec summit underscoring the fragility of Seoul’s balancing act. President Lee Jae-myung’s meetings with his Chinese and American counterparts, Xi Jinping and Donald Trump, have been hailed as diplomatic wins. However, analysts say Seoul could pay a steep price for trying to hedge between... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3331323/did-south-korea-pop-champagne-too-early-us-china-balancing-act-apec?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3331323/did-south-korea-pop-champagne-too-early-us-china-balancing-act-apec?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 03 Nov 2025 08:26:09 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse South Korean President Lee Jae-myung and Japan’s new Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi both stressed on Thursday the importance of “forward-looking ties” as they held their first official talks. Relations have long suffered over issues related to Japan’s brutal 1910-45 occupation of the Korean peninsula, and there have been concerns that ties could worsen under Takaichi. “In today’s rapidly changing international and trade environment, South Korea and Japan – as neighbouring countries with so many... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3330946/japans-pm-takaichi-and-south-koreas-lee-pledge-forward-looking-ties-apec?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3330946/japans-pm-takaichi-and-south-koreas-lee-pledge-forward-looking-ties-apec?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 30 Oct 2025 12:35:14 +0000 Alyssa Chen Alyssa Chen Highly anticipated talks between Xi Jinping and Donald Trump on the sidelines of the Apec summit are set for Thursday in Busan, South Korea – some 85km (53 miles) from the forum’s main events in Gyeongju – and security considerations could explain why as the two seek to make headway on issues that have strained ties. On Wednesday, the Chinese foreign ministry announced that Xi and Trump would meet in Busan to “exchange views on bilateral relations and issues of mutual interest”. Foreign ministry... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3330734/why-xi-and-trump-are-set-talk-busan-away-south-koreas-apec-events?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3330734/why-xi-and-trump-are-set-talk-busan-away-south-koreas-apec-events?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 29 Oct 2025 08:26:13 +0000 Alyssa Chen Alyssa Chen For the first time in more than a decade, Chinese President Xi Jinping will visit South Korea next week, travelling to the historic city of Gyeongju for talks with South Korean President Lee Jae-myung as well as to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) summit. While the trip carries limited expectations for immediate breakthroughs, it is seen as a carefully calibrated step towards resetting strained China-South Korea ties, according to experts. Xi’s last visit in 2014, at the... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3330223/beyond-apec-xis-south-korea-visit-signals-symbolic-restart-strained-ties-experts?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3330223/beyond-apec-xis-south-korea-visit-signals-symbolic-restart-strained-ties-experts?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 25 Oct 2025 03:00:12 +0000