‘Valley Generation’ overcomes difficulties… ‘Kim Eun Joong-ho’ reaches quarter-finals
South Korea’s football hopefuls have reached the quarter-finals of the Under-20 World Cup먹튀검증, their second consecutive appearance in the tournament following Lee Kang-in’s appearance in Poland four years ago. Playing with one less day’s rest than quarter-final opponents Nigeria.
The first 90 minutes were a grind, followed by extra time. The first, and only, shot on target became the winning goal: Choi Seok-hyun’s header from Lee Seung-won’s corner kick. It was the same scene as the final goal against Ecuador in the Round of 16. Captain Lee delivered his fourth assist of the tournament. All four assists came from set pieces – a delightful rebellion by South Korea’s football hopefuls, who have overturned the assessment of the Valley Generation. The quarter-final against Italy will take place on Friday, the 12th, at 6am (local time).
- Ending the initial conflict…Korea and US growing closer together
Yonhap News
South Korea and Japan have decided to end their initial conflict and focus on future-oriented security cooperation. In December 2018, Japan reacted strongly by claiming that the ROK Navy aimed its fire control radar at a Japanese Maritime Self-Defence Force patrol plane in the East Sea, but the ROK Navy countered that no such thing had happened and that the Japanese plane had threatened our warships by flying close to them at an altitude of 150 metres. The two sides’ claims ran parallel and became yet another catalyst for the deterioration of bilateral relations under the Moon Jae-in administration. The defence ministers of South Korea and Japan held bilateral talks on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue, an Asian security conference, in Singapore yesterday and agreed to accelerate working-level consultations on preventing a recurrence of the incident, cutting through the rhetoric – another sign of the new millennium under Yun and Kishida.
The trilateral military cooperation between South Korea, Japan and South Korea is also being strengthened. The South Korean and Japanese defence ministers agreed at the Shangri-La Dialogue that a real-time sharing system for North Korean missile warning information, agreed to by the three leaders last November, will be operational this year. Meanwhile, North Korea has indicated that it may not give advance notice to international organisations when it launches satellites in the future. North Korean leader Kim Yo Jong spoke again yesterday and reiterated his intention to launch a military reconnaissance satellite.
- Democratic Party attacks ‘labour repression, polluted water’ vs People’s Power attacks ‘symbiotic relationship with the Election Commission’
The Democratic Party of Korea is making moves to go outside the National Assembly. The issue of contaminated water from Japan’s Fukushima nuclear power plant and ‘labour conflicts’ are the main reasons. The party is trying to reverse crises such as the Kim Nam-guk coin scandal and the money bag allegations by using the contaminated water issue. In response to the Democratic Party’s offensive, the Komeito is responding by calling it propaganda and incitement, such as putting up banners with the phrase “rumours and incitement = public enemy.” The Komeito is also trying to build support ahead of next year’s general election.
The BNP has been on the offensive, claiming that the National Election Commission, which has been embroiled in allegations of preferential hiring of children, has a symbiotic relationship with the Democratic Party. Yesterday, the Bareun National Party, which held an emergency Supreme Committee meeting over the weekend, reiterated its demand for the resignation of Election Commissioner Noh Tae-ak. It described the commission’s decision last week to reject an audit by the National Audit Office as a declaration of war against the people. It accused the Bareun National Party of forming a symbiotic partnership with the Democratic Party of Korea. In response, Democratic Party lawmakers on the National Assembly’s Administrative Affairs and Security Committee issued a position paper, saying that the resignation of the election commissioner and the demand for an audit by the National Audit Office, which moves at the whim of Yoon Seok-yeol’s government, is an attempt to take control of the Election Commission. Amid these developments, the ruling and opposition parties are expected to meet today to discuss the details of a parliamentary-level national investigation into the Election Commission, and are expected to face difficulties over the duration and scope of the investigation.