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Quotes of the Day:
“The cure for a fallacious argument is a better argument, not the suppression of ideas.”
–Carl Sagan
"Fascism is cured by reading and racism is cured by traveling."
– Migue; de Unamuno
"Blind belief in authority is the greatest enemy of truth."
– Albert Einstein
1. Credenda and the Illusion of Power. (north Korean escapee naming in South Korea)
2. The Devil Is in the Details: US and South Korea Seek Alliance Modernization, But How?
3. A View from Seoul: First 100 Days of the Lee Jae Myung Administration
4. Trump says he, Xi agree to meet at APEC summit in S. Korea
5. Hegseth stresses 'sacred' duty to return 'every fallen hero' home
6. Trilateral Freedom Edge Exercise Wraps Off South Korea
7. The City That Embodies the U.S.-Korea Bond, Even in the Trump Era
8. Biz leaders in Georgia want Korean workers back but visa challenges persist
9. Trump inks proclamation to impose US$100,000 fee per year for H-1B visa application
10. Korea's President Lee tells TIME he 'would have been impeached' if he'd caved to Trump trade demands
11. Korea's foreign minister vows practical diplomacy, calls 1st 100 days of gov't 'unpredictable'
12. South Korea vows ‘strong action’ against anti-China protests amid efforts to reset ties
13. ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Leads the Wave Back to Korea
14. Fault Lines Daily Summary - September 20, 2025 (Korea+ news)
1. Credenda and the Illusion of Power. (north Korean escapee naming in South Korea)
Another important essay from my friend and CAPS colleague from north Korea, Ms. Jihyun Park (now a human rights activist and political leader in the UK).
I too was unfamiliar with the concept of "credenda." (I guess I need to go back to the books - there is always more to learn - but I always learn something from every essay from Ms Park).
I hope South Korean political leaders, e.g., and the Lee Administration, will heed Ms. Park's words here.
[블챌] 일상 포토덤프
Credenda and the Illusion of Power.
https://m.blog.naver.com/freedom88-/224015444675
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Credenda and the Illusion of Power: A Democratic Test Through the Naming Controversy Over North Korean Escapees
One of the “essential readings for civic understanding” is Charles Edward Merriam’s Political Power. Merriam argued that power relies on repetitive, formulaic tools to sustain itself. One of those tools is what he called “credenda.”
To be honest, I had never heard of this term before, nor had I encountered Merriam’s philosophy. But it left a deep impression on me.
Credenda are not mere slogans or ideas. They are collective belief systems that power injects into society to justify and perpetuate itself. Power cannot endure through law or force alone. It needs a belief that people accept as natural and unquestionable.
That belief is credenda.
North Korea is a textbook example. The myth of the Baekdu bloodline and the Juche ideology that demands loyalty to the leader are instilled in the population as absolute truths. The regime repeatedly enforces the belief that the leader’s bloodline is sacred, and that the people owe their lives to him. This belief is a more potent tool of control than violence. North Korea’s system is not just a politics of fear—it is a politics of coerced belief.
South Korea’s political legitimacy originally stemmed from a liberal democratic credenda: “The people are sovereign,” “Freedom and human rights are universal values,” and “North Korean residents are also citizens of the Republic of Korea.” These were foundational beliefs that sustained Korean society. Article 3 of the Constitution enshrines this principle.
But recent developments in South Korean politics suggest that our democratic credenda are fading. Since the inauguration of the Lee Jae-myung administration, various policies and statements regarding North Korea have signaled this shift.
The controversy over the naming of North Korean escapees is emblematic. Prime Minister Kim Min-seok referred to escapees as “dobukja” in his thesis, and the Minister of Unification proposed renaming them “bukhyangmin.” At first glance, it may seem like mere wordplay, but this linguistic shift carries serious political consequences.
Under Article 3 of the Constitution, escapees are originally citizens of South Korea. Changing their name reclassifies them—not as citizens, but as special cases or problematic entities. This is a violation of individual rights. From the standpoint of international law, it is clearly unconstitutional and unlawful.
The 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) states in Article 6: “Everyone has the right to recognition everywhere as a person before the law.” Article 15 affirms: “Everyone has the right to a nationality.”
The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) echoes this. Article 24 declares that “Every child shall have the right to acquire a nationality,” and Article 16 affirms that “Everyone shall have the right to recognition as a person before the law.”
Imposing a new name on escapees effectively strips them of these rights. It dilutes their nationality, obscures their legal status, and subtly implants the message that they are not citizens of South Korea. This violates not only Article 3 of the Constitution but also the UDHR and ICCPR. Renaming is not a neutral language policy—it is a dangerous political mechanism that undermines citizenship.
It treats us, North Korean escapees, not as human beings but as administrative objects. It is a clear affront to our dignity and a violation of our human rights.
The term “escapee” carries the weight of our journey and our lives.
None of us are products or brands. There is no reason our names should be changed for marketability.
Worse still, if new names are imposed without meaningful dialogue with those affected—if they are tailored to external perceptions—it becomes another form of discrimination.
We are not subjects of academic analysis or research. We are human beings entitled to universal rights and dignity.
International human rights norms clearly guarantee the right to choose one’s identity and name.
Articles 1 and 2 of the UDHR affirm that all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights, and are entitled to these rights without discrimination.
Articles 17 and 27 of the ICCPR guarantee the right to privacy and honor, and the right of minority groups to preserve their culture, language, and names.
This is not about changing names—it’s about building a society where the names and lives we choose are respected and treated without discrimination.
What’s more troubling is how this trend resembles North Korea’s class-based system. There, citizens are categorized into “core,” “wavering,” and “hostile” classes, institutionalizing discrimination and surveillance.
If South Korea begins to label escapees as a “special class,” treating them as people who can be deported to North Korea at any time, it is importing North Korean thinking into South Korean soil. It is planting the seeds of totalitarianism in the soil of democracy.
Add to this the suspension of broadcasts to North Korea. For North Korean residents, access to outside information is a matter of survival. In a system of total isolation, the moment they learn another world exists, the possibility of freedom and change opens.
Article 19 of the UDHR states: “Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.”
Broadcasts to North Korea are not mere propaganda—they are human rights efforts to guarantee the right to know. Cutting them off serves the demands of the North Korean regime while depriving its people of basic rights.
All these measures weaken the original credenda South Korea must uphold: freedom, human rights, and popular sovereignty.
Instead, power seeks to establish a new credenda: “Dialogue with North Korea equals peace.” But that belief offers no tangible results. It’s like a fiancée waiting for a groom who will never return—only empty years pass.
All power stands on credenda. The question is whether that belief expands freedom—or serves as an illusion for power.
North Korea’s credenda is a tool of oppression. South Korea’s distorted credenda threatens to erode the rights of its citizens.
Today, South Korea seems to avoid actions that might discomfort North Korea. Power has chosen silence, and what remains is a belief in dialogue alone.
Viewed through the lens of credenda, South Korea appears to have set aside its original belief in freedom and democracy, embracing a new credenda: “Dialogue with North Korea brings peace.” But unless that belief yields concrete results, it risks becoming an illusion that sustains nothing.
The belief we must reclaim is clear: North Korean residents are citizens of South Korea. Freedom and human rights are non-negotiable, absolute values. That is the credenda South Korea must defend—and the only path to legitimate power.
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꿈을 이룬 사람은 다른 사람의 꿈이 된다! 매일 일상을 기록하고 나 만의 공간을 만들어간다. 중년의 나이 이지만 영어를 배우는 사람 #탈북자
2. The Devil Is in the Details: US and South Korea Seek Alliance Modernization, But How?
We must not fear "alliance modernization." It is a n opportunity for the alliance evolve and serve the interests of both the ROK and the US.
Excerpts:
One point on alliance modernization that came up during the recent summit was related to burden-sharing. Burden-sharing refers to the costs each nation incurs to develop their military capabilities to contribute to the alliance, and in this area, Lee proactively offered to invest more. Under the slogan, “Make America’s Shipbuilding Great Again (MASGA),” Lee said Seoul would invest $150 billion of a total $350 billion investment pledge as well as another $150 billion in foreign direct investment in semiconductors, vehicles, batteries, and other sectors that could support alliance defense efforts.
At present, South Korea spends just 2.8 percent of GDP on defense, and the Trump administration has sought a significant rise to 5 percent. Although Seoul has only pledged 3.5 percent, it believes that other investments, like MASGA, should count for another 1.5 percent as well. Trump certainly welcomed MASGA, especially amid all of Lee’s flattery of him in the Oval Office, but it remains to be seen whether Seoul’s commitments will be enough to satiate Trump.
Finally, and quite inauspiciously, neither Lee nor Trump mentioned Biden-era agreements that sought to strengthen the alliance. In 2023, Biden signed three distinct agreements to enhance coordination at the highest levels. The Washington Declaration, for example, aims at sharing more sensitive U.S. information on nuclear warfighting plans with Seoul, and the Camp David trilateral summit agreement strengthened trilateral cooperation between the U.S., South Korea, and Japan, particularly against North Korea. Biden also signed a Joint Summit Statement that specifically sought to deepen and expand the alliance.
Overall, the leaders scarcely discussed alliance modernization at the most recent South Korea-U.S. summit. To be sure, it is possible that negotiations did occur, but were purposefully kept quiet. It is also equally possible that both Trump and Lee decided to leave it up to their national security teams to hash out the finer details of defense interactions. But because Trump has a clear pattern of threatening South Korea on alliance issues, neither of these seems likely. Rather, the U.S. and South Korea probably have genuine differences and even grievances against each other, and this does not bode well for alliance modernization over at least the next three years.
The good news is that Trump and Lee have remarkably similar worldviews, whether on the alliance (they both want it to work), North Korea (they both want engagement), and Japan (they both see the nation as critical to helping deter North Korea). Even against geopolitical foes China and Russia, there could be strategic alignment as neither country seeks war but wants a reset in diplomatic ties.
It is unclear, however, if common worldviews will be enough to keep the alliance moving in a positive direction, or if substantial achievements in alliance modernization will just have to wait until the U.S. returns to a more traditional approach toward the South Korea-U.S. alliance.
The Devil Is in the Details: US and South Korea Seek Alliance Modernization, But How?
It’s not clear that common worldviews will be enough to keep the alliance moving in a positive direction.
https://thediplomat.com/2025/09/the-devil-is-in-the-details-us-and-south-korea-seek-alliance-modernization-but-how/
By Derek Grossman
September 17, 2025
U.S. President Donald Trump hosts a bilateral meeting with President Lee Jae-myung of South Korea in the Oval Office, Aug. 25, 2025.
Credit: Official White House Photo by Emily J. Higgins.)
Of all the issues South Korean President Lee Jae-myung discussed with U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House on August 25, perhaps the thorniest was South Korea-U.S. alliance modernization. To be sure, both nations broadly agree that modernization is necessary. After the summit, Lee gave a speech at the Center for International and Strategic Studies (CSIS), a major think tank in Washington, in which he stated “At the summit meeting today with President Trump, President Trump and I agreed to make and modernize our bilateral alliance to be more reciprocal and future-oriented in line with the changing security landscape.”
But neither Lee nor Trump offered many concrete details on how to do it, likely reflecting tensions – even rising tensions – behind the scenes regarding this critical part of the South Korea-U.S. relationship.
Before arriving in Washington, for example, Lee poured cold water on the prospect that Seoul might agree to the Trump administration’s desire to achieve “strategic flexibility” for the alliance, i.e. shifting U.S. forces deployed on the peninsula toward other regional contingencies to counter China.
Here, the Trump administration may have a point: the term “strategic flexibility” has been around for decades, making its first appearance in a 2006 joint statement Seoul signed with the George W. Bush administration. Moreover, the Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT) undergirding the South Korea-U.S. alliance does not specify that U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) has to be exclusively focused on the North Korean threat, leaving open the possibility of focusing on others, like China.
Nonetheless, responding directly to U.S. demands, Lee remarked “this is not an issue we can easily agree with.” He countered, “Instead, discussion on a future-oriented strategic transformation of USFK are necessary from our perspective as well.”
He thereby underscored his government’s keen interest in keeping the focus on North Korea as the South Korea’s top threat rather than any distractions. Perhaps due to such bilateral differences, neither Lee nor Trump explicitly mentioned strategic flexibility during the summit.
The two leaders were also mum on operational control (OPCON) transfer from the U.S. to the South Korean militaries, which is a perennial alliance modernization issue. A couple of weeks before the summit, the State Affairs Planning Committee of Lee’s government issued a five-year plan, and within it, called for OPCON transfer to occur by 2030.
In 2006, Washington and Seoul had agreed to OPCON transfer, but conservative South Korean administrations had delayed it, until Lee’s progressive predecessor, Moon Jae-in, agreed with the first Trump administration that OPCON should occur only after certain conditions are met, rather than on a set date. For Lee, it is very significant to overturn a fellow progressive leader’s pact with the United States, and yet, his plan went entirely unmentioned during the summit.
Yet another area of tension in the alliance concerns troop deployments. At present, the United States has approximately 28,500 troops positioned in South Korea to deter North Korea. However, a report in May noted that the Trump administration was forming preliminary plans to withdraw approximately 4,500 troops to reposition them in other locations across the Indo-Pacific, to include in Guam, as part of a broader strategic reassessment. To date, the Trump administration has not confirmed this report, but the concept appears to fit well with Washington’s close attention to China as its top geopolitical foe.
It also would not be the first time the U.S. has reduced troop deployments in South Korea: indeed, the Bush administration, which successfully negotiated strategic flexibility with Seoul in 2006, took the opportunity to withdraw roughly 8,500 troops for warzones related to the Global War on Terror following the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Hence, it is hardly impossible that this could happen again. In the past, South Korea has stressed the need to keep U.S. troops on the peninsula at the current level.
Finally, Washington and Seoul are at odds over both cost-sharing and burden-sharing in the alliance. On cost-sharing, the Special Forces Measures Agreement (SMA) is relevant. Dating back to his first term, Trump often publicly criticized South Korea for ripping off the U.S. because it allegedly refused to pay its fair share to house U.S. troop deployments on its bases. Trump demanded that Seoul pay five times more toward the cost, severely angering and insulting Seoul.
In the end, South Korea paid around 8 percent more than the previous year, bucking Trump’s demands. Then-President Joe Biden’s administration decided to sign a five-year SMA in late 2024 to lock in cost-sharing percentages. This had been normal prior to 2018, but it also conveniently prevented a future Trump administration from meddling further.
But now that Trump is back, he may seek to reopen this old wound. On at least two recent occasions, for example, he has mused aloud about bundling a new trade pact with defense cost-sharing, saying, “[It would be] nice to wrap it all up in one package for each country. You know, it’s nice and clean.” And during the summit, Trump, apparently referring to Camp Humphreys, quipped that “maybe Seoul should give the U.S. ownership of the land where we have the big fort,” virtually ensuring that cost-sharing frictions will continue to haunt the alliance.
Seoul responded cautiously to Trump’s statement, with National Security Adviser Wi Sung-lac saying he would need to further investigate the background of his remarks and Lee avoiding it entirely.
One point on alliance modernization that came up during the recent summit was related to burden-sharing. Burden-sharing refers to the costs each nation incurs to develop their military capabilities to contribute to the alliance, and in this area, Lee proactively offered to invest more. Under the slogan, “Make America’s Shipbuilding Great Again (MASGA),” Lee said Seoul would invest $150 billion of a total $350 billion investment pledge as well as another $150 billion in foreign direct investment in semiconductors, vehicles, batteries, and other sectors that could support alliance defense efforts.
At present, South Korea spends just 2.8 percent of GDP on defense, and the Trump administration has sought a significant rise to 5 percent. Although Seoul has only pledged 3.5 percent, it believes that other investments, like MASGA, should count for another 1.5 percent as well. Trump certainly welcomed MASGA, especially amid all of Lee’s flattery of him in the Oval Office, but it remains to be seen whether Seoul’s commitments will be enough to satiate Trump.
Finally, and quite inauspiciously, neither Lee nor Trump mentioned Biden-era agreements that sought to strengthen the alliance. In 2023, Biden signed three distinct agreements to enhance coordination at the highest levels. The Washington Declaration, for example, aims at sharing more sensitive U.S. information on nuclear warfighting plans with Seoul, and the Camp David trilateral summit agreement strengthened trilateral cooperation between the U.S., South Korea, and Japan, particularly against North Korea. Biden also signed a Joint Summit Statement that specifically sought to deepen and expand the alliance.
Overall, the leaders scarcely discussed alliance modernization at the most recent South Korea-U.S. summit. To be sure, it is possible that negotiations did occur, but were purposefully kept quiet. It is also equally possible that both Trump and Lee decided to leave it up to their national security teams to hash out the finer details of defense interactions. But because Trump has a clear pattern of threatening South Korea on alliance issues, neither of these seems likely. Rather, the U.S. and South Korea probably have genuine differences and even grievances against each other, and this does not bode well for alliance modernization over at least the next three years.
The good news is that Trump and Lee have remarkably similar worldviews, whether on the alliance (they both want it to work), North Korea (they both want engagement), and Japan (they both see the nation as critical to helping deter North Korea). Even against geopolitical foes China and Russia, there could be strategic alignment as neither country seeks war but wants a reset in diplomatic ties.
It is unclear, however, if common worldviews will be enough to keep the alliance moving in a positive direction, or if substantial achievements in alliance modernization will just have to wait until the U.S. returns to a more traditional approach toward the South Korea-U.S. alliance.
This article was originally published as an ROK-US Policy Brief by the Institute for Peace and Unification Studies, Seoul National University. It is reprinted with permission.
Authors
Guest Author
Derek Grossman
Derek Grossman is a professor of political science and international relations at the University of Southern California. He formerly served as a senior defense analyst at RAND and the daily intelligence briefer to the assistant secretary of defense for Asian and Pacific security affairs at the Department of Defense.
3. A View from Seoul: First 100 Days of the Lee Jae Myung Administration
Excerpts:
With regards to the incident in Georgia, the U.S. government crackdown on improperly documented Korean workers is deeply regrettable. I wonder whether this was largely motivated by political concerns leading up to next year’s midterm elections. The anger in Korea was that the actions taken by the U.S. government led to inhumane treatment of Korean workers. It is worth noting that these companies and workers came to invest in the United States because the government asked them to. The horrifying images of arrests and poor conditions of the detention facilities make this incident one of the worst moments in the bilateral relationship.
This happened even though the general attitude about the United States is favorable in South Korea, especially among younger generations. This might no longer be the case. It could also embolden those progressives, who are ideologically critical of the United States, while weakening the Lee administration’s pragmatic approach.
From the perspective of the United States and the Trump administration, this incident was [a] profoundly foolish [one] that worsens their position across all dimensions of domestic and international politics, including the U.S. economy and US–Korea relations. This is because this could discourage corporate investment and even fuel early signs of stagflation. The economy is a central factor in Trump’s previous electoral performance, and it could also impact results next year and in 2028.
Given President Lee’s character as a leader who emphasizes national sovereignty and the primacy of national interest, he cannot ignore the deterioration of public opinion. As a result, during the remainder of the Trump administration — and even under subsequent U.S. administrations — South Korea will be compelled to take a firmer and more confrontational stance not only on economic and trade issues but also on matters of alliance modernization. The future of US–Korea relations is deeply concerning.
A View from Seoul: First 100 Days of the Lee Jae Myung Administration
An interview with Professor Ahn Byong-jin sharing his assessment of the first 100 days of the Lee Jae Myung administration
The Stimson Center hosted Professor Ahn Byong-jin on September 18, 2025 for an assessment of President Lee Jae Myung’s first 100 days in office. Ahn, who served on the State Affairs Planning Committee, stated that the administration has thus far honored the public’s mandate to restore competent and responsible governance after the previous administration’s collapse. With an approval rating around 63 percent, Lee’s early successes included effective diplomacy in tariff negotiations with President Trump.
Ahn outlined the administration’s five-year plan built on objectives such as overcoming division, promoting AI-driven growth, addressing inequality, expanding welfare, and pursuing pragmatic diplomacy. The plan involved over 120 detailed policy tasks and incorporated citizen input. Reform priorities included prosecutorial reform, AI leadership, energy transition, decentralization, demographic policy, and peacebuilding. Key challenges for South Korea ahead include low growth, demographic decline, and fiscal pressures. Ahn emphasized the need for integrated leadership and bold fiscal reforms. On US–Korea ties, he noted Lee’s pragmatic alignment with Trump but warned that a U.S. crackdown on Korean workers risked undermining goodwill and could strain bilateral relations going forward.
The Stimson Center Korea Program invited Professor Ahn Byong-jin of the Global Academy of Future Civilizations at Kyung Hee University on September 18, 2025 to share his assessment of the first 100 days of the Lee Jae Myung administration at a closed-door meeting. Professor Ahn offered a unique insider perspective, having recently served on the Planning Subcommittee of the State Affairs Planning Committee. Below is the content of an interview that the Stimson Center Korea Program conducted with Professor Ahn after the event
Professor Ahn’s distinguished academic career spans positions at Kyung He-e University, Changwon National University, and the City University of New York. Dr. Ahn holds a PhD in American Politics from the New School for Social Research, where he was awarded the prestigious Hannah Arendt Award for his dissertation. He will join Stanford University’s Walter H. Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center as a visiting scholar in Fall 2025.
Professor Ahn, thank you for agreeing to join us at the Stimson Center to talk about the new administration, which recently hit its first 100 days as of September 11th. So, what is your assessment of the first 100 days of the Lee Jae Myung administration?
First, we need to consider the voters’ mandate for the Lee Jae Myung administration. Historically, many Korean administrations have tended to neglect this and instead pursue the agendas they want. In my view, the majority voters’ mandate was to restore a competent administration that reflects the people’s will and takes responsibility – this was especially so after what happened with the previous administration and the attempted autocoup. In this respect, Lee Jae Myung’s first 100 days can be rated highly for faithfully upholding the people’s mandate. Indeed, approval ratings in polls were about 10% higher than the historical average (63%).
“…the majority voters’ mandate was to restore a competent administration that reflects the people’s will and takes responsibility…”
When it comes to presidential evaluations, citizens value not so much the policy agenda emphasized by intellectuals, but performance. And in performance, “defining moments” matter. I believe there were two such moments during the early part of the Lee administration.
The first was the image of President Lee eating gimbap while chairing a Cabinet meeting. The image for the broader Korean public in these meetings and town halls was his sense of responsibility and his “I feel your pain” attitude. Many of these meetings were also televised and reported on, and the public was astonished by his detailed understanding of policy. This also left a strong impression, especially when contrasted with the previous leader, who was less outward facing.
The second was his handling of the summit with President Trump, where he conveyed messages with ease and produced good results in the tariff negotiations. These two defining moments will likely be the basis for his performance evaluation for many months to come.
Now that 100 days have passed, however, difficult challenges lie ahead – economic hardship, international uncertainty, opposition party challenges, and media scrutiny. In a book titled Year Zero, author Christopher Liddell posits that a president’s first question during the campaign should be: “What legacy do I want to leave at the end of my term?” The Lee administration should keep asking itself this question over the next five years. From here on out, it must focus with laser precision on creating a legacy that the public can tangibly experience, based on its short- and medium-to-long-term core agendas. Whether it succeeds in doing this will determine the administration’s overall success.
Professor Ahn, you were selected to be a part of the State Policy Planning Committee at the onset of the new administration. What was the selection process, and how did you end up in this role?
The Committee was formed around the exceptional circumstances under which the new administration was elected to power after a presidential impeachment. A normal transition team could not be launched, so it was formed after the new government was installed and already functioning, but simultaneously it was tasked to formulate a plan for future governance. As a scholar specializing in the U.S. presidency and advising the campaign during the election, I believe I had some insights into designing a practical framework for this Policy Planning Committee. I believe the Committee Chairman Lee Han-joo considered my contributions to this work during the campaign and my expertise in national future strategic planning to assign me to this role in the Committee.
Can you tell us anything about the five-year plan as it was formulated by the Committee?
The overall framework of the five-year plan was guided by five national objectives:
- Overcome conflict and division to build “one nation.”
- Break through into the new era of growth through future industries (i.e., AI).
- Achieve balanced growth by resolving regional and structural inequalities (e.g., small and medium vs. large firms).
- Strengthen and secure citizens’ basic living standards – housing, healthcare, etc. – through active state intervention.
- Pursue pragmatic diplomacy and security, prioritizing national interest.
Based on these objectives, the Committee laid out 23 strategic guidance and 123 policy tasks, with detailed action plans spelled out in the 1,600-page white paper. Seven subcommittees (planning, economy 1, economy 2, society 1, society 2, political, administrative, diplomacy/security) and 10 task forces (AI, climate/energy, etc.) were involved.
Importantly, we created a National Popular Sovereignty Committee that took requests or suggestions from citizens. This Committee reviewed over 14,000 public submissions, some of which were incorporated into the five-year plan.
There was some news reporting that President Lee decided not to release the plan as recommended by the Committee. Is this true? If so, can you share with us why he decided to do this?
Government reorganization involves many sensitive vested interests, so the administration had to be cautious about publicly releasing those details. But aside from the reorganization plan, the detailed five-year plan was in fact released to the media and published in a white paper form. Government restructuring is moving along and becoming clearer on a day-to-day basis. From what I hear, ministries are already using the Committee’s detailed guidance as their roadmap.
What do you think are major reform agenda items for the new administration in Seoul? And why?
In my view, the Committee’s core reform agendas can be summarized into six areas:
- Democratic consolidation, including prosecutorial reform.
- Regulatory and financial reforms plus talent development to make Korea one of the world’s top three AI powers.
- Energy transition toward renewable energy.
- Decentralization and balanced growth.
- Address[ing] the demographic challenge through health, welfare, and building a “basic society.”
- Advancing peace on the Korean Peninsula and stabilizing regional relations.
Among these, I believe the Committee placed the greatest emphasis on reforms to generate new growth engines.
“I believe the [State Affairs Planning] Committee placed the greatest emphasis on reforms to generate new growth engines.”
That said, I anticipate tension between the push for deregulation and sovereign AI strategies on the one hand, and citizens’ stability and rights on the other. The key will be whether the administration can establish a reform agenda that is inclusive and balanced during what looks to be a major shift in the economy due to technological change. The Committee’s vision of an “AI-based society” must evolve beyond simply using AI; it should become part of a broader liberal vision and reform philosophy of the Lee administration.
What do you think are the challenges that the new administration faces as it attempts to move forward with its reform agenda? How should the Lee Jae Myung administration deal with them?
I believe Korea has already entered an era of long-term low growth. With manufacturing jobs moving overseas, labor instability due to accelerating AI adoption, and the worsening demographic crisis, the pain of stagnation and transition will likely intensify. The most difficult challenges will therefore be securing sustainable public finances, creating new industrial strategies, and preventing the collapse of people’s livelihoods.
Past governments have failed in this area because ministries operated in silos, lacking integrated leadership. That is why I paid attention to the August 13 presidential meeting on fiscal savings. Fortunately, we could see that the president had a strong sense of crisis regarding weakened growth engines and fiscal vulnerabilities. Going forward, he must stay on top of this and lead bold changes in revenue and expenditure.
Moreover, I hope this administration will, through role-sharing with the prime minister, establish a National Strategy Committee and a Basic Society Committee focused on fiscal, AI, and other core short- and long-term strategic tasks. Only competent, future-oriented committees empowered by the president can overcome bureaucratic inertia and achieve real transformation. Success in this area will determine the Lee administration’s legacy after five years.
What do you think about the prospects for US–Korea relations in the Trump–Lee era? Please explain. Also, what do you think about the recent incident in the LG Battery plant in Georgia? Do you think this would have any lasting negative impact on US-ROK relations? Why or why not?
As we saw at the recent summit, President Lee has a good understanding of President Trump and is acutely aware of U.S. concerns about Korea’s new administration. For example, his statement that the era of “security with the U.S., economy with China” (anmi-gyeongjung) is no longer viable marked a surprisingly pragmatic shift – unthinkable for past liberal presidents.
At the same time, President Lee places great emphasis on popular sovereignty, so he is expected to continue stressing Korea’s national interest and citizen rights. For President Trump, Lee’s pragmatism matches well with his own style, opening opportunities for win-win cooperation in industries such as shipbuilding.
That said, because the Trump administration strongly emphasizes alliance modernization, there will be many issues requiring coordination. This first summit was merely the successful end of a beginning. However, given President Lee’s pragmatism and realism – more so than any past liberal leader — and the orientation of his top aides, I believe the relationship will mature well.
Still, the difficult task remains to forge a new bipartisan line for Korea through public debate so that we can bridge the conservative-progressive divide. I hope that, like the debates between Kim Dae-jung and Lee Kuan Yew, President Lee will spark constructive discussions by proposing a new diplomatic doctrine. If this doctrine articulates a vision that goes beyond “security with the U.S., economy with China” toward a new vision for US–Korea relations and ties with surrounding countries, it could form a meaningful legacy.
“Still, the difficult task remains to forge a new bipartisan line for Korea through public debate so that we can bridge the conservative-progressive divide.”
With regards to the incident in Georgia, the U.S. government crackdown on improperly documented Korean workers is deeply regrettable. I wonder whether this was largely motivated by political concerns leading up to next year’s midterm elections. The anger in Korea was that the actions taken by the U.S. government led to inhumane treatment of Korean workers. It is worth noting that these companies and workers came to invest in the United States because the government asked them to. The horrifying images of arrests and poor conditions of the detention facilities make this incident one of the worst moments in the bilateral relationship.
This happened even though the general attitude about the United States is favorable in South Korea, especially among younger generations. This might no longer be the case. It could also embolden those progressives, who are ideologically critical of the United States, while weakening the Lee administration’s pragmatic approach.
From the perspective of the United States and the Trump administration, this incident was [a] profoundly foolish [one] that worsens their position across all dimensions of domestic and international politics, including the U.S. economy and US–Korea relations. This is because this could discourage corporate investment and even fuel early signs of stagflation. The economy is a central factor in Trump’s previous electoral performance, and it could also impact results next year and in 2028.
Given President Lee’s character as a leader who emphasizes national sovereignty and the primacy of national interest, he cannot ignore the deterioration of public opinion. As a result, during the remainder of the Trump administration — and even under subsequent U.S. administrations — South Korea will be compelled to take a firmer and more confrontational stance not only on economic and trade issues but also on matters of alliance modernization. The future of US–Korea relations is deeply concerning.
4. Trump says he, Xi agree to meet at APEC summit in S. Korea
South Korea as a global pivotal state hosting APEC.
(3rd LD) Trump says he, Xi agree to meet at APEC summit in S. Korea | Yonhap News Agency
en.yna.co.kr · Song Sang-ho · September 20, 2025
(ATTN: ADDS more info in paras 6-7)
By Song Sang-ho
WASHINGTON, Sept. 19 (Yonhap) -- U.S. President Donald Trump said Friday that he agreed with Chinese President Xi Jinping to meet at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit set to take place in South Korea later this year.
Trump made the remarks in a social media post shortly after he held phone talks with Xi, which he called "very productive."
"I also agreed with President Xi that we would meet at the APEC Summit in South Korea," he wrote on Truth Social, referring to the multilateral gathering set to take place in Korea's southeastern city of Gyeongju from Oct. 31 to Nov. 1.
He added, "Both look forward to meeting at APEC!"
This combined photo, released by AFP, shows U.S. President Donald Trump (L) and Chinese President Xi Jinping. (Yonhap)
It remains unclear whether the agreed-upon meeting between Trump and Xi would be a formal summit or just an encounter on the margins of the APEC summit. If it takes place as planned, it will mark their first in-person meeting since they met during the Group of 20 summit in Osaka, Japan, in June 2019.
The envisioned meeting between the leaders of the two superpowers is expected to draw keen international attention to the APEC summit venue in Korea, as their sit-down, depending on its outcome, could have broad implications for global trade, security and other areas.
South Korea's preparations for the APEC summit come as President Lee Jae Myung's administration seeks to strengthen the bilateral alliance with the United States and maintain stable relations with China under his "pragmatic" foreign policy approach.
In the social media post, Trump also said he and Xi agreed that he would go to China in the early part of next year, and that Xi would come to the U.S. "at an appropriate time."
Trump made his last presidential trip to China during his first term in November 2017. Xi visited Florida to meet Trump in April 2017.
Touching on the discussions during the call, Trump said that the two sides made "progress" on "many very important issues," including the fate of the short video platform TikTok; trade; the need to end the war between Russia and Ukraine; and the fentanyl issue.
"The call was a very good one, we will be speaking again by phone, appreciate the TikTok approval," he said without elaborating further.
Last year, Congress passed a law that would ban TikTok's service in the U.S. unless Chinese company ByteDance, which owns the social media platform, gives up its control. The law came amid U.S. concerns over potential user data collection and other security risks.
Given that the app has some 170 million users in the U.S., Trump has delayed the enforcement of the TikTok ban, as his administration engages in negotiations over the fate of the platform.
Following a recent round of trade talks with China in Madrid, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Monday that Washington has reached a "framework" for a deal with Beijing on the TikTok issue.
China's Xinhua News Agency reported that Xi pointed out Beijing's "clear" position on the TikTok issue, adding that it "respects the wishes of the company, and is glad to see business negotiations in line with market rules and a solution that conforms to Chinese laws and regulations and takes into account the interests of both sides."
On trade, Xi said that the U.S. should avoid taking "unilateral" trade restrictions to prevent undermining the achievements made by both sides through multiple rounds of consultations, according to Xinhua.
The news agency said that the conversation between the leaders was "pragmatic, positive and constructive."
sshluck@yna.co.kr
(END)
en.yna.co.kr · Song Sang-ho · September 20, 2025
5. Hegseth stresses 'sacred' duty to return 'every fallen hero' home
I did not see any prominent news coverage of this in the US media. Thank you to Yonhapfor reminding us of US and Korean shared values.
(LEAD) Hegseth stresses 'sacred' duty to return 'every fallen hero' home | Yonhap News Agency
en.yna.co.kr · Song Sang-ho · September 20, 2025
(ATTN: ADDS more info in last 4 paras)
By Song Sang-ho
WASHINGTON, Sept. 19 (Yonhap) -- U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Friday underscored the Pentagon's "sacred" duty to return "every fallen hero until the end," vowing not to forget the sacrifices of American troops who were taken as prisoners of war (POWs) or remain unaccounted for.
Hegseth made the remarks during an annual event marking "National POW/MIA Recognition Day" at the Pentagon in Arlington as senior U.S. defense officials, foreign military attaches and family members of the fallen and unaccounted-for troops joined the event. MIA stands for missing in action.
The special day is observed each year to honor POWs and missing U.S. service members who fought during armed conflicts, including World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War.
"We are working every day to restore the warrior ethos, and one of those core elements of the warrior ethos is I will never leave a fallen comrade," Hegseth said in his speech at the Pentagon's parade field in Arlington.
"It is our sacred duty to uphold that ethos and ensure that we return, whenever possible until the end, every fallen hero," he added.
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth speaks during an event marking "National POW/MIA Recognition Day" at the Pentagon in Arlington near Washington on Sept. 19, 2025. (Yonhap)
The Pentagon chief noted that nearly 81,000 troops remain missing from World War II, the Cold War, the Korean War, the Vietnam War and the Persian Gulf War, as he stressed his department's mission to deliver a "final answer" to their families.
"It's our mission to return them to American soil and provide a final resting place here at home for the heroes who fought for their country," he said. "It is our commitment to you that we will work unceasingly to bring our warriors home, and we will never forget their service and sacrifice."
The secretary also mentioned his visit to the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) earlier this year, during which the agency announced the identification of the 100th service member from remains North Korea sent under a 2018 agreement between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
Pyongyang handed over 55 boxes of Korean War troop remains to the U.S. under the leaders' summit agreement in Singapore in June 2018.
"(The identification) was announced thanks to a historic agreement secured by President Trump in his first term," Hegseth said.
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth (L) attends an event marking "National POW/MIA Recognition Day" at the Pentagon in Arlington near Washington on Sept. 19, 2025. (Yonhap)
In his remarks, Chief of Staff of the Army Gen. Randy George introduced the story of Army Corporal Melvin Huff, who was killed in action during World War II and accounted for in July last year, as he pointed out that there are "so many moving stories to tell of courage, strength and sacrifice."
Huff, an aerial gunner, was reported as missing in action in January 1945 when he and his crew were attacking enemy defensive positions in a jungle on nearby Cape Wom, Papua New Guinea. Huff's mother was 94 when she learned that the wreckage from Huff's plane had been found.
"Finally, the question that haunted her family for a generation was answered," George said.
"Today, we remember our teammates who were held prisoner or missing in action. We are grateful for their service and sacrifice, and we also remember the families and friends who spent years, like the Huff family, waiting for their father or brother or son to come home until the empty seat at their dining table."
His speech was followed by the recognition of the POW/MIA families. The event ended with a flyover of Navy aircraft.
Later in the day, Trump signed a proclamation marking the national day.
In it, he mentioned the North's return of Korean War remains.
"As Commander in Chief, I remain committed to pursuing full accountability for those captured and missing in action. During my first term, I secured the repatriation of remains from North Korea, believed to be at least 250 individuals who paid the ultimate sacrifice during the Korean War," he said.
"In March of this year, our Nation identified the 100th service member from the remains -- ending decades of uncertainty for the families of the fallen. This sacred mission will continue until every American is returned home.
U.S. service members march during an event marking "National POW/MIA Recognition Day" at the Pentagon in Arlington near Washington on Sept. 19, 2025. (Yonhap)
A group of Navy aircraft is seen flying during an event marking "National POW/MIA Recognition Day" at the Pentagon in Arlington near Washington on Sept. 19, 2025. (Yonhap)
sshluck@yna.co.kr
(END)
en.yna.co.kr · Song Sang-ho · September 20, 2025
6. Trilateral Freedom Edge Exercise Wraps Off South Korea
Our silk web of friends, partners, and alliances and in this case our most important trilateral relationship in Northeast Asia.
Trilateral Freedom Edge Exercise Wraps Off South Korea - USNI News
news.usni.org · Dzirhan Mahadzir · September 19, 2025
Sailors from USS Curtis Wilbur (DDG-54) approach the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force’s (JMSDF) Hyuga-class helicopter destroyer JS Hyuga (DDH-181) on a rigid-hull inflatable boat alongside the Republic of Korea’s forces on Sept. 15, 2025. US Navy photo
The U.S., Japan and South Korea wrapped Freedom Edge 25 on Friday, concluding the five-day trilateral multi-domain exercise that occurred off South Korea’s Jeju Island.
The third iteration of the drill, which began Monday, expanded on previous trilateral exercises to enhance multidomain capabilities that play a key role in promoting the shared commitment by the three countries of security, freedom, and prosperity on the Korean Peninsula and throughout the region, U.S. Indo-Pacific Command said in a news release.
This year’s Freedom Eagle exercise incorporated air and maritime training with cyber warfare and special operations capabilities to further enhance multi-domain capabilities. Participating forces also executed ballistic missile defense (BMD), defensive counter-air, anti-surface warfare, maritime interdiction operations, visit, board, search and seizure (VBSS), counter-piracy, medical evacuation and replenishment-at-sea (RAS) operations, according to the release.
“The ongoing cooperation among all three nations demonstrates strength and an unwavering commitment to defending vital interests against shared threats by promoting security cooperation, encouraging peaceful development, responding to contingencies and deterring aggression. This approach is grounded in partnership, presence and military readiness,” reads the INDOPACOM release.
The Freedom Eagle exercises began in 2024 following a commitment by the three countries during the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore in June that year. This year was the first time that a U.S. Navy carrier strike group (CSG) did not participate in the drills. The Theodore Roosevelt CSG headed the drills in June 2024 and the George Washington CSG led the drills in November 2024.
Forward-deployed carrier USS George Washington (CVN-73) is currently the only U.S. carrier in the Western Pacific. The carrier completed a summer patrol on Aug. 30 and returned to its homeport of Yokosuka, Japan. The strike group’s embarked Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 5 began Field Carrier Landing Practice (FCLP) on Wednesday, which is the initial stage of preparation for an upcoming underway.
Instead of a carrier strike group, Pentagon imagery released shows U.S. Seventh Fleet command ship USS Blue Ridge (LCC-19) and destroyer USS Curtis Wilbur (DDG-52) participated in the drills.
USS Curtis Wilbur (DDG-54) steams in formation with the U.S. 7th Fleet flagship USS Blue Ridge (LCC-19), Republic of Korea and Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force during a photo exercise at sea in support of Freedom Edge 25, Sept. 16, 2025. US Navy photo
Curtis Wilbur carried out VBSS drills Monday with Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) helicopter destroyer JS Hyuga (DDH-181).
On Tuesday, Blue Ridge led a joint sail with Curtis Wilbur, Hyuga, JMSDF destroyer JS Haguro (DDG-180) and Republic of Korea Navy (ROKN) destroyers ROKS Wang Geon (DDH-978) and ROKS Yulgok Yi I (DDG-992).
Curtis Wilbur conducted an RAS on Wednesday with ROKN fast combat support ship ROKS Daecheong (AOE-58), while on the same day medical evacuation drills were carried out on Hyuga.
After participating in Freedom Edge 25, Blue Ridge arrived Thursday in Pyeongtaek, South Korea, for a port visit. The ship’s port visit in the first in over a decade since Blue Ridge has visited Pyeongtaek, according to a 7th Fleet news release.
“This port visit to Pyeongtaek by USS Blue Ridge and the greater 7th Fleet team demonstrates our steadfast commitment of the U.S.- Republic of Korea alliance,” Vice Adm. Fred Kacher, commander of U.S. 7th Fleet, said in the news release.Meanwhile in the South China Sea, destroyer USS Dewey (DDG-105) and Royal Australian Navy (RAN) frigate HMAS Ballarat (FFH155) conducted bilateral training Monday and Tuesday “in support of a free and open Indo-Pacific,” according to a Navy news release.
Over the course of the two days, the ships engaged in a formation sailing exercise, maritime communications training and simulated fires exercises alongside information sharing and a combined transit through the South China Sea.
“This activity was a component of a planned routine deployment for Ballarat to the region,” Cmdr. Dean Uren, commanding officer of Ballarat, said in the release. “This activity is an important demonstration of the resolve that Australia has to supporting an open, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific, where international law is respected.”
A Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) P-8A Poseidon Maritime Patrol Aircraft (MPA) supported the two ships during the two days of activities in the South China Sea, according to a news release from Australia’s Defence Department.
Additionally in the Indo-Pacific, Dewey on Wednesday carried out an RAS with Royal Navy fleet oiler RFA Tidespring (A136). Tidespring is part of the U.K. Carrier Strike Group headed by carrier HMS Prince of Wales (R09). The strike group includes destroyer HMS Dauntless (D33), JMSDF destroyer JS Akebono (DD-108), frigate HMS Richmond (F239) and Royal Norwegian Navy frigate HNoMS Roald Amundsen (F311).
The U.K. CSG is now headed to Singapore where the U.K. units of the CSG will take part in the Five Power Defence Arrangements (FPDA) multidomain exercise Bersama Lima, which began on Friday. Operational drills are expected to begin Wednesday and will be held off the southeast coast of Peninsular Malaysia and northeast of Singapore.
Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Malaysia, Singapore and the U.K comprise the FPDA nations. Having transited through the South China Sea earlier this week, Ballerat is now in Kuantan, Malaysia, for the FPDA drills.
Related
news.usni.org · Dzirhan Mahadzir · September 19, 2025
7. The City That Embodies the U.S.-Korea Bond, Even in the Trump Era
Extensive photos at the link.
Like keeping a marriage strong, the alliance must not be neglected or taken for granted.
Excerpts:
If the Incheon landing symbolized the United States’ commitment to defend South Korea, then Incheon’s annual “We Remember” festivities embody the gratefulness many South Koreans still feel toward the Americans. But the alliance has been roiled in recent months as the Trump administration outraged South Korea by imposing heavy tariffs on its exports and by arresting hundreds of its citizens who were building a factory in Ellabell, Ga.
This is not the first time that some South Koreans are questioning the dynamics of the relationship with Washington. Some progressives no longer see it as a savior but as a bully. They have demanded the removal of the MacArthur statue, which was built in 1957 with citizens’ donations, once setting a fire on the pedestal.
But like in years past, Incheon pressed ahead with its annual celebration, reaffirming its singular place in South Korea’s modern history and its ties with the United States.
“Without the Incheon landing, South Korea as we know it would not have existed,” Incheon Mayor Yoo Jeong Bok said in an interview. “It reminds us that when we keep the alliance strong, we can keep South Korea free and defend the free world.”
On Sept. 15, 1950, Allied transport ships strung out down the Incheon channel as far as the eye could see. American Marines clambered down cargo nets into flat-bottomed landing craft, as warships pounded the beaches with shells to soften the enemy defense. Allied planes zoomed over, bombing and strafing the sea walls.
...
But this narrative is harder to accept for younger generations, who unlike their grandparents have not experienced war. The Trump administration has made it even trickier.
This year’s ceremonies came “at a bad time because people feel humiliated by the Georgia episode,” said Mr. You, the former museum director. “Some people were so angered by it that they say South Korea should align itself with China, although I don’t think they are serious when they say so.”
To Kim Young-rak, 49, the Incheon landing has become more relevant than ever. He cited North Korea’s expanding nuclear threat and the deepening rivalry between the United States and China.
“The Americans crossed the Pacific 75 years ago to help push back Communists barreling down the Korean Peninsula,” said Mr. Kim, who watched the parade on Sunday with his wife and son. “South Korea and the United States must band together again to deter North Korea and China.”
South Korea Dispatch
The City That Embodies the U.S.-Korea Bond, Even in the Trump Era
Incheon, the site of a crucial battle of the Korean War, has a singular place in South Korea’s modern history and in its ties with the United States.
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/20/world/asia/south-korea-incheon-us-bond.html?unlocked_article_code=1.nU8.i7Hg.XHs1JA6R11cf&smid=url-share
By Choe Sang-HunVisuals by Jun Michael Park
Reporting from Incheon, South Korea
Douglas MacArthur has not faded away in Incheon, South Korea. From its hilltop Freedom Park, the late American general, in the form of a bronze statue, gazes down at the narrow channel that connects the city to the Yellow Sea.
On a September dawn 75 years ago, tens of thousands of U.S. and South Korean Marines under his command braved a hail of enemy fire to approach the shore and scale sea walls protecting Incheon. They retook the city from North Korean forces and went on to liberate Seoul, the South Korean capital, which lies roughly 25 miles to its east.
The Incheon Landing, the U.S. military’s most daring amphibious assault since D-Day in Normandy, turned the tide of the Korean War and made MacArthur a household name in South Korea. In Incheon, he is more than that; the city has made him and his maneuver part of its identity, hosting commemorative ceremonies each year.
Image
The statue of General Douglas MacArthur at Freedom Park in September.
Video
South Korean and U.S. Marines marched down an Incheon street on Sept. 14.CreditCredit...
On Sunday, South Korean and U.S. Marines marched down an Incheon street as onlookers cheered, waving flags of both countries. On Monday, the landing’s anniversary, amphibious assault vehicles vroomed across the water into the harbor. Marines later hoisted the South Korean flag on a pier as a large outdoor screen flashed black-and-white images from the actual landing 75 years ago.
If the Incheon landing symbolized the United States’ commitment to defend South Korea, then Incheon’s annual “We Remember” festivities embody the gratefulness many South Koreans still feel toward the Americans. But the alliance has been roiled in recent months as the Trump administration outraged South Korea by imposing heavy tariffs on its exports and by arresting hundreds of its citizens who were building a factory in Ellabell, Ga.
This is not the first time that some South Koreans are questioning the dynamics of the relationship with Washington. Some progressives no longer see it as a savior but as a bully. They have demanded the removal of the MacArthur statue, which was built in 1957 with citizens’ donations, once setting a fire on the pedestal.
Image
The military maneuver is commemorated at the Memorial Hall for Incheon Landing Operation in the city.
Image
A monument marking Green Beach, one of the primary landing areas of the Incheon Landing.
But like in years past, Incheon pressed ahead with its annual celebration, reaffirming its singular place in South Korea’s modern history and its ties with the United States.
“Without the Incheon landing, South Korea as we know it would not have existed,” Incheon Mayor Yoo Jeong Bok said in an interview. “It reminds us that when we keep the alliance strong, we can keep South Korea free and defend the free world.”
On Sept. 15, 1950, Allied transport ships strung out down the Incheon channel as far as the eye could see. American Marines clambered down cargo nets into flat-bottomed landing craft, as warships pounded the beaches with shells to soften the enemy defense. Allied planes zoomed over, bombing and strafing the sea walls.
Image
General MacArthur, center, observed the shelling of the enemy before the landing at Incheon.Credit...Corbis, via Getty Images
Video
Re-enacting of the Incheon Landing on Monday, its 75th anniversary. It was the U.S. military’s most daring amphibious assault since D-Day in Normandy.CreditCredit...
Today, Incheon’s bustling port exemplifies the contrast between the globalized South and the isolated North of the Korean Peninsula.
Cruise ships ply the waters along with commercial vessels shipping out South Korean exports like Kia cars and bringing in oil and natural gas to fuel its economy, one of Asia’s largest. Tall port silos and derricks loom over what used to be the sea walls U.S. Marines had to scale. Wolmido — an Incheon islet that American warplanes napalmed before the landing, not only scorching North Korean pillboxes but also killing villagers — now hosts an amusement park where children scream on roller coasters.
The map locates Incheon, the city and port in northwestern South Korea, not far from Seoul, the capital.
SOUTH KOREA
Seoul
Incheon
International
Airport
Incheon
N. KOREA
WOLMIDO
Port Incheon
Seoul
Incheon
SONGDO
SOUTH
KOREA
Yellow Sea
Busan
5 mileS
By The New York Times
To the south, mud flats have been replaced with piers stacked with shipping containers, and the Songdo free economic zone, which is home to outposts of American universities, a thriving biotech industry and gleaming skyscrapers housing United Nations offices. Incheon is now among South Korea’s fastest growing cities. It has overtaken Busan, another port city, in terms of economic output and is second only to Seoul.
Video
Wolmido — an Incheon islet that American warplanes napalmed before the landing, not only scorching North Korean pillboxes but also killing villagers — now hosts an amusement park with roller coasters and whatnot.CreditCredit...
Image
Incheon Port now encompasses what was known as Red Beach, one of the primary landing areas.
In Incheon, young couples and students used to take wedding and school album photos in front of the MacArthur statue. There were even shamans who adopted the dead American general as a deity and performed rituals around his statue, said You Dong-hyun, the former director of the Incheon Metropolitan City Museum. Those shamans are long gone but on a recent sultry evening, an old man circled the statue, chanting Buddhist verses, while others walked their dogs in the park.
“There is respect for General MacArthur and American troops sacrificed during the landing,” said Lee Sang-suk, 60. “Their image as the national savior is especially strong among old generations here.”
Yong Suck Shin, a retired journalist, was 9 when he watched American Marines handing out chocolates to children after liberating Incheon. This year, he helped organize an exhibition about Marguerite Higgins, an American war correspondent who scaled a sea wall with the Marines to report the landing.
“I am so proud of the landing that when I traveled abroad, I used to carry a photo of the MacArthur statue so I could explain where I came from,” Mr. Shin said.
For centuries Korea was known as the hermit kingdom. It opened up for trade only in the late 1800s, when Incheon was a cluster of muddy fishing huts. Japan, China and the United States all established trade posts in Incheon because of its proximity to Seoul.
Image
Incheon became a gateway to South Korea, and its Chinatown was the birthplace of a national noodle dish called jajangmyeon.
Image
Wolmido is now a tourist attraction with a ferry dock, seafood restaurants and theme parks along the pier.
American missionaries also arrived through Incheon, bringing Western medicine and education with them. Today, roughly 30 percent of all South Koreans identify as Christian. Korea’s first railway, highway and telegram lines all started from Incheon. Its first baseball and soccer games were held in Incheon. The old port area now attracts tourists with museums, alleys with turn-of-the-century themes and with its Chinatown, the birthplace of a national noodle dish called jajangmyeon.
“Modern civilization arrived in Korea through Incheon,” said Vice Mayor Hwang Hyojin.
Postwar Incheon attracted migrants seeking jobs unloading flour and other American aid shipments or at factories that were springing up around the city. But it has always been overshadowed by its bigger neighbor, Seoul. Incheon was the gateway to Seoul and everything seemed to pass through it, not anchoring down.
That began changing in the early 2000s with the opening of Incheon International Airport, one of the world’s largest, and the Songdo free economic zone, both on reclaimed land.
At the ceremony on Monday, Gen. Xavier T. Brunson, the top U.S. military officer in South Korea, said, “The Republic of Korea that we see today — strong, prosperous and democratic — stands as living proof of what can be accomplished when allies and partners join together.”
Image
Central Park in Songdo, which is built on reclaimed land.
Image
Triple Street, a popular mall in Songdo, Incheon.
But this narrative is harder to accept for younger generations, who unlike their grandparents have not experienced war. The Trump administration has made it even trickier.
This year’s ceremonies came “at a bad time because people feel humiliated by the Georgia episode,” said Mr. You, the former museum director. “Some people were so angered by it that they say South Korea should align itself with China, although I don’t think they are serious when they say so.”
To Kim Young-rak, 49, the Incheon landing has become more relevant than ever. He cited North Korea’s expanding nuclear threat and the deepening rivalry between the United States and China.
“The Americans crossed the Pacific 75 years ago to help push back Communists barreling down the Korean Peninsula,” said Mr. Kim, who watched the parade on Sunday with his wife and son. “South Korea and the United States must band together again to deter North Korea and China.”
Choe Sang-Hun is the lead reporter for The Times in Seoul, covering South and North Korea.
8. Biz leaders in Georgia want Korean workers back but visa challenges persist
But they need to check with the local Georgia politician who allegedly complained to ICE about all the foreigners working there.
Thursday
September 18, 2025
dictionary + A - A
Biz leaders in Georgia want Korean workers back but visa challenges persist
https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/news/2025-09-18/national/diplomacy/Biz-leaders-in-Georgia-want-Korean-workers-back-but-visa-challenges-persist/2402725
Published: 18 Sep. 2025, 22:00
A masked federal agent wearing a Homeland Security Investigations vest guards a site during a raid where about 300 Koreans were among 475 people arrested at the site of a $4.3 billion project by Hyundai Motor and LG Energy Solution to build batteries for electric cars in Ellabell, Georgia on Sept. 4. [REUTERS/YONHAP]
Concerns are mounting in the United States over the aftermath of the detention of Korean workers at the construction site of Hyundai Motor and LG Energy Solution’s joint battery plant in Georgia, with state officials exploring ways to bring the Korean workers back to the state.
Key economic leaders in Georgia said Wednesday they are discussing measures to allow the Korean workers — who were arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on Sept. 4, detained for a week and later returned to Korea — to return to the United States.
Related Article
"You have sophisticated, talented South Koreans here installing battery equipment," said Hugh "Trip" Tollison, president and CEO of the Savannah Economic Development Authority to local news outlet Savannah Morning News. "The frustration, and I feel it too, is that there's no other entity in the world that has this proprietary technology that has to be installed by certain individuals. We are relying on South Korea."
The authority is a private organization that partners with the Georgia state government to promote regional economic growth. Tollison said he and Georgia Department of Economic Development Commissioner Pat Wilson met with Hyundai executives last week.
Pat Wilson, commissioner of the Georgia Department of Economic Development, Tollison and the executive team from Hyundai Motor Company met last week in Detroit to discuss the raid. Tollision was in Nashville at the time of the ICE raid.
Detainees are made to stand against a bus before being handcuffed, during a raid by federal agents where about 300 Koreans were among 475 people arrested at the site of a $4.3 billion project by Hyundai Motor and LG Energy Solution to build batteries for electric cars in Ellabell, Georgia on Sept. 4. [REUTERS/YONHAP]
"They're just as shocked and surprised," said Tollison. "I was there with Pat Wilson to show support and let them know that we're still there to get the project done. It was a good meeting. There are a lot of discussions about getting them back."
Tollison said that the raid was "a minor setback" and that "the agreement is still intact."
Still, observers note that returning may not be easy for the workers without proper safeguards in place, given the trauma of the incident. Many point to the need for systemic fixes, such as creating a new employment visa category — an E-4 visa — for Korean specialists.
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp addressed the issue publicly for the first time Tuesday during a visit to an EV plant run by U.S. manufacturer Rivian, saying the United States needs to "comprehensively review its visa system."
"That’s not a problem that was just for Hyundai, a lot of companies across the country have dealt with that," said Kemp on Tuesday, according to local news outlet Atlanta News First. "I think there’s a lot of confusion about what really happened down there."
Korean workers who were detained at a factory in Georgia before being released leave Terminal 2 of Incheon International Airport after returning to Korea on Sept. 12. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]
On the same day, Chris Clark, president and CEO of the Georgia Chamber of Commerce, echoed the call for visa reform.
"These are temporary workers who come here, they train up Americans, they bring unique expertise and knowledge to this state and we need a visa system that allows them to do their jobs," said Clark at the Rivian event. "Because long term, Georgia workers benefit from that."
The U.S. Congress is also taking the matter seriously. The Congressional Research Service (CRS) highlighted in a Sept. 12 report that the detentions remain a challenge for Korea-U.S. relations.
"U.S. immigration enforcement operations on Sept. 4 at ROK [Republic of Korea] automaker Hyundai’s manufacturing plant in Georgia have raised concerns in South Korea about the bilateral relationship, as well as questions over whether U.S. immigration policy may conflict with the U.S. objective for increasing U.S. manufacturing jobs through foreign investment," said the report, calling South Korea by its official name, Republic of Korea.
The report referenced H.R.4687, also known as the Partner with Korea Act, introduced by Rep. Young Kim, a Republican of California. The bill would establish a new E-4 visa category exclusively for Koreans, with an annual quota of 15,000 high-skilled visas.
The joint battery plant by LG Energy Solution in Georgia remains deserted, with construction fully suspended after the recent raids from the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. [YONHAP]
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY CHANG YOON-SEO [kim.minyoung5@joongang.co.kr]
9. Trump inks proclamation to impose US$100,000 fee per year for H-1B visa application
(2nd LD) Trump inks proclamation to impose US$100,000 fee per year for H-1B visa application | Yonhap News Agency
en.yna.co.kr · Song Sang-ho · September 20, 2025
(ATTN: ADDS more info in paras 3, 12-13)
By Song Sang-ho
WASHINGTON, Sept. 19 (Yonhap) -- U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday signed a proclamation to impose a yearly fee of US$100,000 for an H-1B nonimmigrant visa application for a highly skilled foreign worker, as his administration seeks to ensure tech firms help train Americans rather than bringing in foreign workers.
The fee is expected to put a burden on Korean companies that need to bring their skilled workers into the United States on a stable visa program to set up and run factories in the U.S. to proceed with their investment projects.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to the media in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington on Sept. 19, 2025, in this photo released by EPA. (Pool photo) (Yonhap)
The current fee for the H-1B visa is $1,000. The visa is meant for skilled professionals, especially in the fields of science, technology, engineering and math, with its program subject to an annual worldwide cap of 85,000 visas.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick elaborated on the fee for an H-1B visa -- a three-year visa with one renewal that could last a total of six years -- as he called for tech companies to train Americans and stop bringing in foreign workers to take American jobs.
"The whole idea is no more will these big-tech companies or other big companies train foreign workers. They have to pay the government $100,000, then they have to pay the employee. So it's just not economic," Lutnick said, standing next to Trump during a press availability at the White House.
"If you're going to train somebody, you're going to train one of the recent graduates from one of the great universities across our land, train Americans, stop bringing in people to take our jobs. That's the policy here. $100,000 a year for H-1B visas," he added.
The secretary clarified that the fee for the visa is on an annual basis, saying that companies need to decide if the worker that they want to bring to the U.S. is "valuable enough" to pay that amount to the U.S. government.
"The whole idea (is) it's annual, and it can be a total of six years ... so $100,000 a year. So either the person is very valuable to the company and America, or they're going to depart and the company is going to hire an American," Lutnick said.
"That's the point of immigration -- Hire Americans and make sure that people coming in are the top people. Stop the nonsense of letting people just come into this country on these visas that were given away for free. The president is crystal-clear. Valuable people only for America."
The visa fee proclamation came in the midst of South Korea's ongoing efforts to address visa-related issues for skilled professionals, following a recent U.S. immigration raid at a Korean plant construction site in Georgia that led to the arrest of more than 310 Korean nationals.
The raid has raised questions over whether the Trump administration's push to attract foreign investments conflicts with its immigration policy.
Separately, Trump signed an executive order on the "Gold Card" program that would authorize an alien, who makes an "unrestricted gift" to the Commerce Department, to establish eligibility for an immigrant visa using an expedited process.
The requisite gift amount will be $1 million for an individual donating on his or her own behalf, and $2 million for a corporation or similar entity donating on behalf of an individual, according to the document.
sshluck@yna.co.kr
(END)
en.yna.co.kr · Song Sang-ho · September 20, 2025
10. Korea's President Lee tells TIME he 'would have been impeached' if he'd caved to Trump trade demands
Thursday
September 18, 2025
dictionary + A - A
Korea's President Lee tells TIME he 'would have been impeached' if he'd caved to Trump trade demands
https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/news/2025-09-18/national/politics/Koreas-President-Lee-tells-TIME-he-would-have-been-impeached-if-hed-caved-to-Trump-trade-demands/2402333
Published: 18 Sep. 2025, 16:22
Updated: 18 Sep. 2025, 19:54
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung is seen in this cover photo for an interview with Time magazine [TIME]
President Lee Jae Myung said that he “would have been impeached” if he had agreed to the terms unilaterally presented by the United States regarding a $350 billion investment fund in a recent interview with TIME Magazine.
Lee made the comments in a TIME Magazine interview published Thursday under the headline, “The Bridge — Lee Jae-myung is rebooting South Korea and courting Donald Trump,” also featured on the front cover of the publication.
Related Article
“So I asked the U.S. negotiating team for a reasonable alternative,” Lee said regarding the investment fund demanded by the United States.
During the South Korea-U.S. summit last month, the U.S. side made burdensome demands concerning the creation of the $350 billion fund and its profit-sharing scheme, according to TIME. Key issues reportedly included whether South Korea could pay the entire amount in cash and who would bear the losses if the investment failed.
At a press conference marking his first 100 days in office last Thursday, Lee also addressed criticism that South Korea had not signed the final tariff agreement after the summit. “Why should I sign if it is not in our interest?” he said. “We must ensure any agreement is as reasonable as possible. Don’t blame me for not signing.”
When asked during the press conference about U.S. President Donald Trump’s public remark during the summit that he wanted ownership of U.S. military bases in South Korea, Lee replied, “I think he was joking. The U.S. already uses those bases and land free of charge. And if they did own them, they would have to pay comprehensive property tax and real estate tax. We cannot give tax exemptions on that,” he added with a laugh.
TIME quoted Naomi Chi, a professor at Hokkaido University in Japan, as suggesting that Lee may have raised the issue of restarting dialogue with North Korea partly to shift Trump’s attention away from trade and investment disputes.
U.S. President Donald Trump, right, meets with South Korean President Lee Jae Myung in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington on Aug. 25. [AP/YONHAP]
Asked whether he would consider nominating Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize for efforts toward reconciliation with Pyongyang, Lee said, “If there is concrete progress on this issue [...] there is no other person who would deserve that prize.”
He added that real progress would mean “negotiations to partially ease or lift sanctions” on North Korea in exchange for a three-stage process: arms suspension, reduction, and finally denuclearization. “And I believe that President Trump would be on the same page,” Lee told TIME.
“We will stand together with the U.S. in the new global order, as well as supply chains centered on the U.S., but there is a need for us to manage our relationship with China so as not to antagonize them,” Lee told TIME.
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung, second from right, and presidential chief of staff Kang Hoon-sik, far right, speak with U.S. President Donald Trump, far left, who is seated at the Resolute desk in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington on Aug. 25. [THE WHITE HOUSE]
He warned that unless relations with China are carefully managed to avoid hostility, there is “a risk that South Korea could become the front line of a battle between two different blocs.”
Asked whether he would attend China’s Victory Day celebrations, Lee smiled and said, “I think China wanted me to attend, but I didn’t ask further.”
TIME also noted that Lee’s approval ratings dipped following his pardons on Liberation Day. The magazine described them as pardons for “controversial allies,” referring to Cho Kuk, interim leader of the Rebuilding Korea Party, and former lawmaker Youn Mee-hyang. Lee’s approval rating reportedly fell from 63 percent in late July to 51 percent in mid-August.
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY YOON JI-WON [lim.jeongwon@joongang.co.kr]
11. Korea's foreign minister vows practical diplomacy, calls 1st 100 days of gov't 'unpredictable'
Friday
September 19, 2025
dictionary + A - A
Korea's foreign minister vows practical diplomacy, calls 1st 100 days of gov't 'unpredictable'
https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/news/2025-09-19/national/diplomacy/Koreas-foreign-minister-vows-practical-diplomacy-calls-1st-100-days-of-govt-unpredictable/2403630
Published: 19 Sep. 2025, 20:16
- LIM JEONG-WON
- lim.jeongwon@joongang.co.kr
Korea JoongAng Daily
Korea's foreign minister vows practical diplomacy, calls 1st 100 days of gov't 'unpredictable'
3 min
Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI
Foreign Minister Cho Hyun speaks during a press conference with foreign correspondents hosted by the Seoul Foreign Correspondents' Club (SFCC) at the Korea Press Center in Jung District, central Seoul on Sept. 19. [YONHAP]
Korea’s Foreign Minister Cho Hyun pledged to steer the country’s diplomacy with pragmatism and national interest at its core, stressing that Seoul will deepen relations with key allies while preparing for shifting global dynamics during a press conference with foreign correspondents.
Speaking to foreign correspondents in Seoul on Friday, Cho said the Lee Jae Myung administration has faced an “unpredictable” international landscape in its first 100 days, citing intensifying geopolitical competition and global crises.
Related Article
“Against this backdrop, I would like to say that we are going to pursue practical diplomacy grounded in national interest,” he said.
Cho underscored progress with Washington, highlighting Lee’s summit with U.S. President Donald Trump last month as “a major step toward a resounding success” in security, trade and technology. He added that Seoul aims to make the Korea-U.S. alliance a “future-oriented, progressive strategic partnership,” while ensuring “mutually beneficial economic cooperation.”
“We reaffirmed to further strengthen foundation for future-oriented cooperation through an agreement to expand exchanges among younger generations,” Cho said.
Cho, who returned from Beijing just a day before the briefing after a meeting with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, described Korea-China relations as moving toward “a genuine strategic cooperative partner.”
Foreign Minister Cho Hyun, left, shakes hands with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi at a meeting in Beijing, China, on Sept. 17. [MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS]
The foreign minister stressed that peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula will top the agenda in talks with Beijing.
“The two countries are in agreement,” Cho said. “Basically, they share the same foundation in that they seek peace and stability of the Korean Peninsula.”
Foreign Minister Cho Hyun speaks during a press conference with foreign correspondents hosted by the Seoul Foreign Correspondents' Club (SFCC) at the Korea Press Center in Jung District, central Seoul on Sept. 19. [YONHAP]
“How do we legally define what is happening in Gaza?” Cho said when asked whether Seoul recognizes the ongoing Gaza conflict as genocide. “I think it's going to take time for us to do that.”
He reiterated Korea’s support for a two-state solution but said the issue of recognizing Palestine “needs to be considered as a whole for Korea to come to a certain official position.”
During the press conference, Cho also addressed the recent detention of Korean workers in Georgia, calling it “the responsibility of the government” to protect nationals and investigate possible human rights violations. He said he had secured assurances from Washington, saying, “From the U.S. Secretary of State, I received confirmation that the Korean people, they were detained will not gain any penalty in reentering the U.S. border.”
This picture taken from a position at Israel's border with the Gaza Strip shows smoke billowing during Israeli bombardment of the besieged Palestinian territory on Sept. 19 amid the ongoing war between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas militant group. [AFP/YONHAP]
Cho added that a joint working group would be formed with the United States to resolve visa disputes and provide clearer guidance for Korean companies and workers.
He was also pressed on whether Korea would act on its obligations to arrest Russian President Vladimir Putin under an International Criminal Court warrant if he attends APEC.
Detainees are made to stand against a bus before being handcuffed, during a raid by federal agents where about 300 Koreans were among 475 people arrested at the site of a $4.3 billion project by Hyundai Motor and LG Energy Solution to build batteries for electric cars in Ellabell, Georgia, Sept. 4, in a still image taken from a video. [U.S. IMMIGRATION AND CUSTOMS ENFORCEMENT]
“That comes with a very big assumption, and I'd like to excuse myself for responding to that question, because it comes with rather wide reaching assumptions,” he said.
On trade, Cho acknowledged tensions with Washington over tariffs, particularly on automobiles, but stressed that Seoul seeks a “mutually beneficial” agreement.
“We will make sure that Korean auto companies are not disadvantaged,” he said, noting that predictability remains “the most important matter” for Korean businesses.
President of China Xi Jinping attends a dinner on behalf of the President of the Russian Federation for heads of foreign delegations in the Grand Palace at the Kremlin in Moscow, on May 8, ahead of celebrations of the 80th anniversary of the Soviet Union's victory over Nazi Germany during the World War II.[AP/YONHAP]
“Preventive measures should be sought if necessary to make sure that illegal activities are not implemented by the demonstrators,” he said.
As the session closed, Cho sought to assure correspondents that despite turbulence, Seoul’s alliances and partnerships remain resilient.
“Korea-U.S. relations can overcome these issues and can even turn it into a case of silver lining,” he said.
BY LIM JEONG-WON [lim.jeongwon@joongang.co.kr]
12. South Korea vows ‘strong action’ against anti-China protests amid efforts to reset ties
What I do not recall is "strong action" against anti-US protests, ever. I was there during the democracy movement in the 1980s, the IMF crisis in the 1990s, Highway 56 indicient, and the beef protests in the 2000s and I cannot recall ever seeing "strong action" against anti-American protests.
South Korea
This Week in AsiaPolitics
South Korea vows ‘strong action’ against anti-China protests amid efforts to reset ties
The rallies in Myeongdong, where the Chinese embassy is located, have become increasingly disruptive to residents and local businesses
Park Chan-kyong
Published: 10:00am, 20 Sep 2025Updated: 11:44am, 20 Sep 2025
South Korea’s prime minister has ordered a clampdown on anti-China demonstrations outside the Chinese embassy, amid warnings that such protests could derail Seoul’s efforts to reset ties with Beijing.
Prime Minister Kim Min-seok on Friday directed law enforcement to “take strong action” against the increasingly disruptive rallies, which had led to merchants and residents complaining of noise, abuse and declining tourist traffic.
Kim told police to “closely monitor the protests, and do everything possible to maintain public safety and order so that merchants, residents, and Chinese nationals in the affected areas do not experience growing inconvenience or anxiety in their daily lives”.
The rallies in Myeongdong, a major shopping district in central Seoul that hosts the Chinese embassy, have often been noisy and sometimes become violent.
For more than three months, hundreds of “hate China” demonstrators have been rallying and marching through Myeongdong, an area popular among tourists, including those from China.
Waving banners, the protesters frequently chanted slogans such as “China out” and hurled abuses, prompting scared Chinese tourists to flee from the site.
Police questioned some participants after tearing down banners bearing images of Chinese President Xi Jinping and Dai Bing, the Chinese ambassador to South Korea.
A conservative protester carries signs with anti-China slogans during a rally near the Chinese embassy in Myeongdong, Seoul, last month. Photo: Korea Times
The crackdown order comes after President Lee Jae-myung said South Korea needed to manage its ties with China based on its strong alliance with the United States.
“The government cannot sit idle because such protests are feared to damage its efforts to improve ties with Beijing,” Yang Moo-jin, head of the University of North Korean Studies, told This Week in Asia.
“This move is related to Seoul’s efforts to bolster ties with Beijing based on its strong alliance with the United States,” he added.
Yoon Sung-suk, a political-science professor at Chonnam National University, said anti-China protests would not help national interests, as Seoul was seeking to improve ties with Beijing.
Bilateral relations hit a low during the administration of former conservative president Yoon Suk-yeol, who was later impeached and jailed over his failed martial law decree.
“Such protests by extremists are feared to hamper Seoul’s efforts to mend fences with Beijing amid tough trade negotiations with Washington,” Yoon the professor told This Week in Asia.
In an interview with Time magazine published on Thursday, Lee said South Korea remained well placed to act as a “bridge of exchanges and cooperation” in the region by cementing ties with the White House.
“We will stand together with the US in the new global order, as well as supply chains centred on the US, but there is a need for us to manage our relationship with China so as not to antagonise them,” the South Korean president said.
Otherwise, Lee conceded, there was “a risk that South Korea could become the front line of a battle between two different blocs”.
South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun says the country is obliged to stop the protests in accordance with not only domestic laws but also the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations. Photo: AFP
Foreign Minister Cho Hyun has said signatories including South Korea to the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations are obliged to stop such protests.
“Protests by extremists are taking place in all the countries in the world, but should they go too far, we are obliged to stop them in accordance with not only domestic laws but the Vienna Convention as well,” he told journalists on Friday.
Under the convention, the receiving state has a special duty to prevent any disturbance of the peace of the missions or impairment of their dignity.
Lee has condemned the anti-China protests as “nothing but ruckuses”, calling for countermeasures.
“At a time when we are striving to increase tourist numbers, they are holding rallies that insult tourists from a particular country,” Lee said during a government cabinet meeting last week.
“Merchants are trying to make a living by selling goods to tourists, but these protesters are insulting them and driving [customers and tourists] away.”
He accused the protesters of obstructing business and worsening relations with China.
“How can these protests be called freedom of expression? It’s nothing but ruckuses. We need to think seriously about it.”
TV footage showed hundreds of protesters marching around Myeongdong last week, shouting “China out! China out!” as they sang openly xenophobic songs in unison.
At times, demonstrators had even threatened local merchants who asked them to refrain from using hate speech as their acts scared away tourists and other customers.
Park Jeong-su, a Myeongdong shop owner, said on MBC TV: “They’ve shoved placards targeting Chinese people right up to their faces, and it’s been a huge disturbance for us. On days when the protesters show up, I can barely do any business at all.”
People shop at the Chinatown in Seoul’s Daelim district, an area populated by Chinese nationals of Korean ancestry. Photo: Erika Na
Police last week blocked the protesters from entering the busy commercial district. Undeterred, the activists moved their rallies to Daelim district in the southern part of Seoul, a Chinatown densely populated by Chinese nationals of Korean ancestry.
“This country is now being messed up because of the inflows of Chinese illegal immigrants”, one protester told MBC TV.
Chinese residents in Daelim have expressed dismay at the xenophobic rhetoric.
“I’ve lived in Korea long enough to feel half Korean,” a Chinese resident said on MBC TV. “I don’t want to see these protests. Hearing such words makes me very sad.”
Educators in Daelim district, where more than 60 per cent of students come from multicultural backgrounds, have warned that hate speech hurts their students, calling for protective measures.
Police have vowed to sternly punish those who are caught hurling abuses at foreigners and threatening them, and limit locations for such protests.
The protests come ahead of next month’s Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation leaders’ summit, which Xi is expected to attend, to be held in the southern city of Gyeongju.
Cho has said Lee is likely to hold talks with Xi during the multilateral summit of major economies set for October 31 to November 1.
Park Chan-kyong
Park Chan-kyong is a journalist covering South Korean affairs for the South China Morning Post. He previously worked at the Agence France-Presse's Seoul bureau for 35 years. He studied political science at Korea University and economics at the Yonsei University Graduate Sc
13. ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Leads the Wave Back to Korea
I have not watched this show. But Korea is masterful at soft power.
‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Leads the Wave Back to Korea
The megahit movie opens a new chapter for soft power.
September 19, 2025, 2:45 PM
By Grace Kao, the IBM professor of sociology at Yale University.
Foreign Policy · Grace Kao
In 1999, a Beijing newspaper published the first known use of the word hallyu, or Korean Wave, describing the emerging popularity of Korean cultural products abroad. Prior to that time, Korea was an importer rather than an exporter of culture. But following the end of South Korea’s dictatorship in 1987 and the subsequent liberalization of its entertainment industry, Korean television dramas and new K-pop idols swept across Asia.
In the decades since, the Korean Wave has successfully spread beyond the continent, with K-pop groups BTS and Blackpink, K-dramas such as Squid Game, and the Oscar-winning film Parasite gaining popularity and acclaim and K-beauty products fast appearing on the shelves of global retailers.
This summer, the Netflix film KPop Demon Hunters joined these ranks, quickly transitioning from an unexpected hit to an undisputed cultural juggernaut.
The animated musical follows HUNTR/X, a K-pop girl group living a double life as demon hunters. They are charged with protecting the Honmoon (or spirit gate), which prevents demons from entering the human world. The demon ruler Gwi-Ma forms a boy group, the Saja Boys, to battle HUNTR/X for the souls of humans via catchy songs and choreographies in front of roaring crowds of fans.
Since its release in June, KPop Demon Hunters has become Netflix’s most viewed film of all time, while its sing-along version—released in theaters for only two days—topped the U.S. box office late last month.
Even more astonishing is its resounding success on the U.S. Billboard charts. As of the Sept. 20 chart, the song “Golden” has remained at No. 1 for five weeks, the most ever for an animated act. Four songs from the film are in the top 10, and the soundtrack now sits at No. 1 on the albums chart. The movie’s fictional K-pop groups—performed by real singers from the K-pop industry, it should be noted—are now outperforming real-world groups: On Spotify, there are currently more than 50 million monthly listeners of HUNTR/X and 33 million of Saja Boys, compared with 32 million monthly listeners of Blackpink and 26 million of BTS.
A crowd of people react and sing or cheer in a darkened theater.
An audience reacts during the KPop Demon Hunters Sing-Along Event at Paris Theater in New York on Aug. 23. Roy Rochlin/Getty Images for Netflix
A woman in a leather crop top and leather fingerless gloves holds a mic as she sings atop a bus. A crowd looks up from under a marquee below her.
Rei Ami, the singing voice of Zoey in KPop Demon Hunters, performs at the Sing-Along Event at Paris Theater on Aug. 23.
Since the beginning of modern K-pop with Seo Taiji in 1992, music of the genre has always been made with both Koreans and non-Koreans in mind. Many songwriters and producers hail from Sweden and other Nordic countries, and some Korean companies have brought in foreign talent to work in Korea. Today, with the notable exception of BTS, most K-pop groups have at least one member who is not Korean, which can help a group reach and communicate with fans elsewhere in the world. Until recently, K-pop songs usually mixed Korean and English lyrics or sometimes Japanese and Chinese lyrics for those respective markets.
Increasingly, however, some entertainment companies are embracing K-pop groups and songs that use local cultural elements over strictly Korean ones—a concept called localization—believing this will be more marketable and palatable to non-Korean audiences. This can take the form of English-language songs, music videos shot on sets resembling New York or Los Angeles with non-Korean background dancers, and the like.
The most extreme version of this might be a group like dearALICE—based in the U.K. and developed in partnership with K-pop company SM Entertainment. Its members aren’t Korean, have not been trained under the strict K-pop trainee system in Korea, and sing and speak in English.
At its core, KPop Demon Hunters is a rebuke of this trend. Though the film was animated and written in the United States, it is a proudly Korean product: Its cast comprises both Korean nationals and members of the diaspora, its music features a mix of Korean and English lyrics, and its story is heavily influenced by Korean culture.
This commitment can be seen in the setting, as the characters perform at Seoul Olympic Stadium, spend time at the historic Bukchon Hanok Village, or go on romantic strolls along the Seoul Fortress Wall in Naksan Park, following in the footsteps of K-dramas such as Itaewon Class and Strong Woman Do Bong Soon. It can be seen in the traces of Korean folklore—for instance, the Saja Boys are named for and resemble Jeoseung Saja, the Korean Grim Reaper, and sport high black hats, called gat, that were worn by the upper class for formal occasions during the Joseon dynasty. The movie also nods to Korean folk art, minhwa, seen in Jinu’s animal companions, Derpy the tiger and Sussie the magpie, which were commonly depicted together in Joseon-era art.
Beyond these visual choices, the movie’s plot also honors Korean heritage and identity. The film forces its main characters to confront their identities. Rumi hides her demon heritage, while Jinu misrepresents his human past, and it is only by falling in love that they become true to themselves and embrace who they really are. Perhaps this plot device works to remind diaspora Koreans to be proud of their Korean heritage. After all, many of the songwriters and artists involved in the film are part of the Korean diaspora, and K-pop itself owes much to Koreans who moved from Australia, Canada, and the United States to Korea to participate in the music industry.
Three animated women leap forward holding swords as a mass of clawing demons jumps toward them.
Rumi, Mira, and Zoey leap into action to attack a throng of demons. Netflix
Beyond its dedication to Korean culture and history, KPop Demon Hunters is also simply a tribute to K-pop itself. Though the movie embraces fantastical elements, it also takes great care to otherwise accurately reflect that world, offering fan service for dedicated enthusiasts and an enjoyable entry point for those new to the phenomenon.
HUNTR/X and the Saja Boys each have their own signature light sticks, waved at concerts and used to show membership in a fandom—and which fans of the movie are already re-creating. The film also shows how quickly K-pop fans can move from an old favorite to a new group, particularly in recent times, when as many as 70 new groups debut each year. Like their real-world counterparts, the members of HUNTR/X and the Saja Boys release new singles at a breakneck pace and regularly meet with fans and make appearances on variety shows.
Read More
- From Elvis to BTS, militaries have long used celebrity soldiers for clout.
In K-pop, good idols must profess their love for their fans and mean it, but the Saja Boys dump the flowers they receive from fans in the trash, exhibiting idol behavior that is notoriously frowned upon. And true to form, after one public meeting, fans begin to speculate about members of HUNTR/X and the Saja Boys dating one another, generating “ships”—lingo for imagined or real relationship pairings.
And even as it pays tribute to the world of K-pop, Demon Hunters also flips that script in key ways. Typically, members of idol groups perform songs as determined by their management companies. In the film, however, HUNTR/X calls the shots, and their manager, Bobby, does what he’s told.
While Asian and Asian American women are often portrayed in American cinema as passive and sexual objects, the stars of HUNTR/X—Rumi, Mira, and Zoey—are powerful but human in their self-doubt despite being worldwide K-pop stars. In stark contrast to actual K-pop girl groups, whose members’ appearances and personalities are often homogenized, the stars of HUNTR/X are unique from one another in their appearances, musical strengths, and voices.
Five animated K-pop band members pose. The leader kneels atop the head and shoulders of a demon emerging from a pool.
Jinu and the rest of Saja Boys, a group of demons masquerading as a K-pop boy band.
Two animated women, one in a baseball cap the other in a fuzzy bucket hat, with hearts over their eyes and their mouths agape.
A scene from KPop Demon Hunters. Netflix
In fact, it is the Saja Boys who are less distinguishable. Only Jinu is given a proper name. The other members lack distinct personalities and are named accordingly: Abby (for his muscular abs), Baby (for being cute and baby-faced), Romance (for his heart-shaped hair), and Mystery (for his long bangs that cover most of his face). Like K-pop stars, they are objectified primarily via their appearance, exhibited by fans and by Mira and Zoey, whose eyes humorously become hearts, then abs, then corn on the cobs, and finally popcorn when she first spots the boys.
And while female K-pop idols are highly sexualized, the members of HUNTR/X are not. For instance, in Korea, hair length symbolizes femininity, and almost every female idol has long hair. Here, Zoey sports short hair, Rumi’s hair is pinned up in a braid, and Mira’s long hair is styled in two ponytails.
The objectification of men rather than women is notable and rather fantastical in a country that boasts the widest gender pay gap among Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development countries. In the Atlantic, journalist Anna Louie Sussman writes that in South Korea, gender is the sharpest “social fault line.” Increasingly, amid the rise of the 4B movement, women are rejecting dating, marriage, childbearing, and sex with men, as documented in many social science surveys and in dissertation work by Meera Choi, a Ph.D. candidate at Yale University.
It is a marvel that South Korea has had such a powerful cultural impact given its population of only 52 million. With the rise of K-pop, South Korea has become a uniquely influential source of soft power. But as the industry has grown and become more global, it has found itself with something of an identity crisis. Hallyu products, and K-pop in particular, struggle with how much of their Korean roots to maintain in a desire for further global expansion.
KPop Demon Hunters shows that consumers are not looking for a product stripped of Korean cultural elements or Koreans themselves. It does not need to emulate American or any other pop culture to be successful. Audiences enjoy it for its excellence and because it is something different from what they already know and can consume elsewhere.
Many have wondered and speculated on the factors that have made this movie so popular. Sometimes a movie is just a movie, and efforts to replicate the original’s success often fail. But with its triumph, KPop Demon Hunters seems to have ushered in the next chapter of the Korean Wave—one that knows K-pop, even as a global brand, need not shed its Koreanness.
This post appeared in the FP Weekend newsletter, a weekly showcase of book reviews, deep dives, and features. Sign up here.
Foreign Policy · Grace Kao
14. Fault Lines Daily Summary - September 20, 2025 (Korea+ news)
Fault Lines Daily Summary - September 20, 2025
Daily news and analysis tracking the cracks and shifts at the fault lines of global power — with Korea at the epicenter.
https://hutchinsong.substack.com/p/fault-lines-daily-summary-september-4a2?utm
George Hutchinson
Sep 20, 2025
Surface Scan
On the surface, South Korea’s room for maneuver appears to be narrowing across every dimension. Domestically, Seoul is linking investment credibility to swift U.S. visa fixes while hedging through CPTPP accession talks with Japan. Regionally, it will host Trump and Xi for a pivotal APEC summit, acutely aware of the risks of getting caught between Washington and Beijing. As it manages this balancing act, Seoul is also balancing its approach with North Korea, even as Pyongyang showcases new AI-equipped drones and attempts to assert itself at the UN. Globally, fractured Western unity over sanctioning China, Russia’s escalating war on Ukraine, and cyberattacks on European airports all sharpen systemic risks that reach into Korea’s trade and energy lifelines. Together, these pressures highlight how Seoul’s balancing act is becoming increasingly difficult.
Epicenter
Summary:
• Seoul announced that it will conduct a detailed review of the U.S. government’s changes to the H-1B visa program, warning that restrictions could undermine the smooth movement of Korean professionals central to bilateral high-tech collaboration. The move reflects Seoul’s growing unease over American domestic politics shaping the viability of its overseas investment strategies, while setting the stage for further bilateral negotiations on workforce mobility.
Source: Reuters — South Korea to assess US changes to H-1B visa for impact on companies, workforce
• Adding urgency to this review, Seoul’s top diplomat stressed that a swift resolution of U.S. visa frictions is critical for sustaining Korea’s $350 billion U.S. investment portfolio, which hinges on timely access for skilled engineers. His comments underscore how Washington’s immigration decisions directly impact Korea’s industrial strategies abroad, while providing an opening for Seoul to press for broader exemptions in trade and labor policy.
Source: Korea Herald — Swift US visa fix ‘critical’ for Korean investment plans, says top diplomat
• On the security front, North Korea unveiled two new kamikaze drones equipped with AI targeting systems, showcasing asymmetric capabilities designed to exploit gaps in South Korea’s defenses. The timing of the reveal, just as Seoul was marking the anniversary of the inter-Korean military accord, highlights Pyongyang’s preference for coercive demonstrations over confidence-building, injecting fresh volatility into the peninsula’s security landscape.
Source: Chosun Ilbo — North Korea unveils two kamikaze drones with AI focus
• In parallel, the Freedom Edge trilateral exercise with the U.S. and Japan concluded off South Korea’s coast, featuring missile defense drills, anti-submarine warfare, and live-fire operations. The scope and complexity of the exercise underline the allies’ tightening security coordination at sea, a deliberate counterweight to Pyongyang’s drone provocations and Beijing’s growing maritime assertiveness.
Source: USNI News — Trilateral Freedom Edge Exercise Wraps Off South Korea
• At the economic-strategy level, Seoul announced plans to open negotiations with Tokyo over joining the CPTPP, a high-standard Pacific trade bloc that could deepen supply-chain integration while diversifying export markets. The move links directly back to Korea’s anxieties over U.S. trade frictions, reflecting a hedging strategy to expand access to multilateral frameworks even as bilateral issues remain unresolved.
Source: Nippon.com — S. Korea to Hold Talks with Japan on Joining CPTPP
Impact:
South Korea continues to face parallel pressures on both economic and security fronts. The urgency behind resolving U.S. visa frictions reflects not only the risk of delayed engineer access but also the credibility of Korea’s massive U.S. investment strategy; Seoul is effectively signaling that capital will not flow unless labor mobility is guaranteed. At the same time, by opening CPTPP talks with Japan, Seoul is hedging against the unpredictability of U.S. trade policy, using multilateral frameworks to diversify export markets and lock in supply-chain resilience. On the security side, North Korea’s unveiling of AI-equipped kamikaze drones highlights Pyongyang’s intent to exploit emerging technologies to destabilize the balance, directly challenging Seoul’s ability to restore the spirit of the 2018 inter-Korean military accord. The conclusion of the Freedom Edge trilateral exercise demonstrates that Seoul, Washington, and Tokyo are tightening defense coordination precisely to counter these asymmetric threats, but also risks hardening Pyongyang’s resolve to escalate. Taken together, these developments underscore Seoul’s shrinking strategic maneuverability: it must simultaneously push Washington for policy concessions, broaden economic options through regional trade blocs, and bolster deterrence against a technologically adaptive adversary—all while hosting great-power diplomacy on its own soil.
Shifting Plates
Summary:
• North Korea will dispatch Vice Foreign Minister Kim Son-gyong to the UN General Assembly, signaling Pyongyang’s intent to reassert itself on the multilateral stage just as U.S.-China rivalry intensifies. The delegation choice suggests North Korea wants to remain visible in global debates while leaving open space for leader-level messaging at a later point.
Source: The Korea Times — North Korea to send vice foreign minister to UN assembly: report
• President Trump reported progress with Xi Jinping toward resolving the TikTok dispute and agreed to meet in South Korea during the upcoming APEC summit, framing the peninsula as the venue for their first high-stakes encounter since Trump’s return to office. The talks are set to cover not only tech governance but also fentanyl, Ukraine, and trade—ensuring that Seoul is thrust into the middle of the world’s most consequential bilateral relationship.
Source: Reuters — Trump and Xi make progress on TikTok deal, plan to meet in South Korea
• Trump later confirmed he would travel to South Korea within weeks for the Xi meeting, followed by an official trip to China early next year, a sequencing that places the Korean summit as a diplomatic springboard. This timeline underscores both the urgency of the U.S.–China agenda and the degree to which Korea has become the staging ground for great-power dialogue.
Source: AP News — Trump says he and Xi will meet in South Korea in coming weeks and he’ll later go to China
• President Lee cautioned that South Korea risks becoming the “front line” in the struggle between U.S. and Chinese blocs, acknowledging openly that the country’s strategic space is narrowing. His remarks, timed alongside preparations for hosting Trump and Xi, reflect the acute dilemma of needing both Washington’s security umbrella and Beijing’s economic ties.
Source: Hankyoreh — Lee says Korea is at risk of becoming ‘front line’ of battle between US, China blocs
Impact:
The interplay of these developments underscores just how compressed South Korea’s strategic margins have become. Pyongyang’s decision to send its vice foreign minister to the UN General Assembly signals an effort to remain relevant in multilateral discourse, even as the U.S. and China draw global attention toward their planned summit in Seoul. Trump’s confirmation that the Korea meeting will precede his first state trip to China positions Seoul as both a proving ground and a launchpad for U.S.–China diplomacy, magnifying the political stakes of its role as host. Yet this visibility comes at a cost: South Korea is being placed squarely between the competing narratives of technological governance, security burdens, and trade bloc rivalries. President Lee’s warning that Korea risks becoming the “front line” of the U.S.–China contest reflects the growing recognition in Seoul that neutrality is becoming increasingly difficult to sustain. Together, these moves show how the peninsula is being pulled into the very center of systemic rivalry, leaving South Korea little room to maneuver without alienating one or both of its most critical partners.
Global Ripples
Summary:
• President Trump is pressing European allies to sanction Chinese firms that purchase Russian oil, but Brussels remains hesitant, wary of the economic and diplomatic risks of targeting Beijing directly. The debate highlights the limits of U.S. leverage over Europe and underscores how any widening of sanctions regimes could reverberate into Korea’s trade and energy ties with both China and the EU.
Source: The Hill — Trump faces challenge in convincing Europe to hit China over Russia
• Moscow launched one of its largest air assaults in months on Ukrainian cities, hitting infrastructure and residential areas just as Kyiv expanded its drone strikes against Russian oil refineries. This highlights an escalatory feedback loop: Russia is intensifying pressure on Ukrainian infrastructure and civilians while Ukraine continues to chip away at Moscow’s energy revenues.
Source: Euronews — Moscow launches large-scale attack on Ukraine as Kyiv continues attacks on Russian oil refineries
• Analysts note that Ukraine’s refinery strikes have given Kyiv new leverage over Moscow by forcing Russia to allocate resources toward defending its energy sector, thereby weakening its ability to sustain the war effort. While unlikely to cripple Russia’s economy outright, the strikes complicate export reliability and raise latent risks in global energy markets, an exposure that Korea, as a major importer, must monitor closely.
Source: Forbes — Ukraine Gains Leverage With Strikes On Russian Refineries
• Meanwhile, a cyberattack on a European airline check-in provider disrupted operations at Heathrow, Brussels, and Berlin, snarling both passenger and cargo flows across the continent. The incident underscores the increasing risks of cyberattack, a weapon North Korea continues to refine. It also underscores the fragility of global transport nodes, with potential spillover effects on Asia–Europe supply chains that underpin Korean reliance on exports of high-value goods.
Source: Financial Times — European airports hit by cyber attack on check-in provider
Impact:
Global dynamics are tightening. Trump’s push to bring Europe on board with sanctioning Chinese firms over Russian oil underscores the fracturing of consensus among Western allies and foreshadows deeper strains between Washington, Brussels, and Beijing. For Seoul, which depends heavily on both Chinese trade and Western alignment, this tug-of-war complicates its diplomatic calculus. Meanwhile, Russia’s intensified strikes on Ukrainian cities and Ukraine’s continued targeting of Russian refineries reveal an escalatory cycle with direct implications for global energy stability; each round of escalation injects fresh uncertainty into fuel markets on which Korea is acutely dependent. The refinery campaign in particular highlights how Ukraine can disrupt Russia’s revenues without decisive battlefield gains, a dynamic that heightens volatility rather than resolves it. Finally, the European airport cyberattack illustrates how vulnerabilities in global infrastructure can have ripple effects across continents — a reminder that North Korea’s own cyber capabilities remain a persistent threat. Taken together, these developments converge on a stark reality for Seoul: its economic and security exposure is shaped not only by great-power rivalry but also by systemic risks in energy markets and cyber domains that are increasingly beyond its direct control.
Convergence
The convergence of today’s developments underscores how Seoul’s strategic space is being compressed on multiple fronts at once. Economically, Korea is signaling that U.S. investment flows hinge on reliable labor access while simultaneously pursuing CPTPP membership to hedge against American unpredictability. Militarily, Pyongyang’s drone advancements and Seoul’s trilateral drills with Washington and Tokyo highlight a cycle of adaptation and counter-adaptation that risks deepening regional instability. Diplomatically, Trump and Xi’s upcoming summit in Seoul, paired with Lee’s warning that Korea risks becoming the “front line” of systemic rivalry, confirm that the peninsula is no longer a peripheral stage but the central arena of U.S.–China competition. Globally, energy shocks from the Russia–Ukraine conflict and cyber vulnerabilities in Europe reveal how distant crises feed directly into Korea’s security and economic vulnerabilities. Taken together, these dynamics converge on a sobering reality: South Korea is being forced into simultaneous roles as ally, host, and balancer—tasks that require constant recalibration in a world where neutrality is ever harder to sustain.
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Daily news and analysis tracking the cracks and shifts at the fault lines of global power — with Korea at the epicenter.
De Oppresso Liber,
David Maxwell
Vice President, Center for Asia Pacific Strategy
Senior Fellow, Global Peace Foundation
Editor, Small Wars Journal
Twitter: @davidmaxwell161
Phone: 202-573-8647
email: david.maxwell161@gmail.com
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