World Heritage status eyed for old fortifications around Seoul
Jungseongmun Gate of Bukhansanseong Fortress in Goyang, Gyeonggi-do Province (Goyang Special City)
By Koh Hyun Jeong
The city government of Goyang, Gyeonggi-do Province, on Feb. 4 announced its application to have the...
Over 11,000 foreign nationals granted citizenship in 2025
The number of people naturalized as citizens last year exceeded 11,000, the highest since 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. Shown are foreign students on Nov. 6, 2025, posing for a group photo at an event marking Ajou International Day at Ajou University in...
Long-term care insurance waived for migrant workers: reports
The Ministry of Health and Welfare plans to exempt seasonal foreign workers from paying for insurance for long-term geriatric care. Shown are such laborers harvesting cabbages at a farm in Goesan-gun County, Chungcheongbuk-do Province. (Goesan-gun Office)
By Aisylu...
[World Heritage candidates] ① Busan: refugee hub of Korean War
Busan will host the 48th session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee in July. Korea.net reflects on the significance of this event by looking at six of the 12 sites on Korea's tentative candidate list for UNESCO World Heritage.
Chinese pick Korea as top spot to spend Lunar New Year: study
The Singapore-based marketing technology company China Trading Desk says between 230,000 and 250,000 Chinese tourists will visit Korea over the Lunar New Year period from Feb. 15-23. Shown is the trendy Seongsu-dong neighborhood in Seoul's Seongdong-gu District late...
Consortium lands deal to export AI know-how to Saudi Arabia
Second Vice Minister of Science and ICT Ryu Jemyung (clockwise from left in back row) on Feb. 1 poses for a group photo with Aramco Digital CEO Nabil Al-Nuaim, Mohammed Makhdoum, Aramco Digital's president of digital business services, and Joh Joon...
Winter Olympic team pledges to do its best at launch ceremony
National curling athletes on Jan. 22 yell "Fighting!" in pledging their best efforts at the launch ceremony for the national team for the Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina, Italy, at Seoul Olympic Parktel in Seoul's Songpa-gu District.
New gov’t content fund eyes ‘KRW 300T era of Korean culture’
A new government fund for content policy worth KRW 730 billion seeks to accelerate a "Korean culture era worth KRW 300 trillion." Shown is the K-pop boy band EPEX on Nov. 8, 2025, at the annual K-Wave Festival held...
AI Basic Act takes effect as world’s first set of laws for AI
An artificial intelligence drawing robot on Oct. 29, 2025, creates the portrait of a visitor at K-Business Square of the APEC Economic Exhibition Hall in Gyeongju, Gyeongsangbuk-do Province. (Park Dae Jin)
By Margareth Theresia
Grant budget of KRW 2.84T in 2026 to sponsor 1,555 projects
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Jan. 21 holds a meeting on grant development cooperation at its headquarters in Seoul's Jongno-gu District. (Ministry of Foreign Affairs)
By Lee JihaeThis year's budget for grant assistance is...
Researchers solve solar system mystery using Webb telescope
Artist illustration of James Webb Space Telescope (NASA)
By Park Hye RiA domestic research team has achieved a world first in identifying a key process in the early-stage formation of the solar system and planets.The...
BTS gets approval to use central Seoul for comeback in March
Two BTS fans on the central staircase leading up to Sejong Center for the Performing Arts in Seoul's Jongno-gu District on Jan. 6 pose for photos ahead of the K-pop phenom's highly anticipated return in March. (Lee Jeongwoo)
Summit with Italy covers supply chains, chips, defense sector
President Lee Jae Myung (fourth from right) and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni (fourth from left) on Jan. 19 hold an extended summit at Cheong Wa Dae.
By Kim HyelinPhotos = Cheong Wa DaePresident Lee...
82% of people worldwide have positive view of Korea: survey
The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism on Jan. 20 said a 2025 study on global perceptions of Korea found that a record-high 82.3% of those surveyed had a good impression of the country. (Korean Cultural Center in...
Agency eyes joint UNESCO registration of taekwondo with NK
The Korea Heritage Service seeks to jointly register the martial art taekwondo as UNESCO Intangible Heritage of Humanity with North Korea. Shown is a gyeokpa (breaking) demonstration on July 11, 2025, at a taekwondo tournament hosted by Kyungmin University in...
2 ministries, UN agency to offer scholarships to refugees
Vice Minister of Justice Lee Jin Soo (left), Vice Minister of Education Choi Eun-ok (center) and Kim Sae-ryo, head of the Korean office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, on Jan. 15 display a trilateral memorandum...
Official talks launched with Egypt on pursuing free trade pact
Minister for Trade Yeo Han-koo (left) and Egyptian Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade Hassan Elkhatib on Jan. 18 shake hands after signing a joint statement on promoting a comprehensive economic partnership agreement between both sides in Cairo,...
President Lee discusses ‘100-year partnership’ with UAE envoy
President Lee Jae Myung (right) on Jan. 15 shakes hands with Khaldoon Al Mubarak, chairman of the Executive Affairs Authority of the United Arab Emirates, at Cheong Wa Dae. (Cheong Wa Dae)
By Kim Hyelin
‘Talks with Japan covered Asia-Pacific trade pact, supply chains’
President Lee Jae Myung and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Jan. 14 visit Horyuji Temple, a leading cultural heritage site in Japan's Nara Prefecture. (Cheong Wa Dae)
By Yoo Yeon GyeongPresident Lee Jae Myung...
59 ministry affiliates, public institutions release 2026 biz plans
The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism's affiliates and public institutions on Jan. 13 present their business plans for 2026 at CKL Corporate Support Center in Seoul's Jung-gu District, an event livestreamed by KTV, a channel for government...
