Lee Jae-myung

And Joon Ha Park.

And this week, President Lee Jae-myung has been on social media, and he's been citing quite a few unusual sources for a progressive president.

Right.

And if you look at it from the domestic politics point of view, it is not really that surprising, but it's still...

victims of the

various tragedies within South Korea's sort of social history.

And now President Lee, who has established himself as quite a stalwart of the progressive left, has now been sharing a post from FM Korea criticizing preferential access for multicultural families at public postpartum care centers.

He was thanking the author of the FM Korea post, which was citing a news media outlet article suggesting that those benefits should be reviewed or abolished.

About 1,000 people attended a memorial on Thursday.

President Lee Jae-myung referred to an ongoing investigation.

He promised to uncover the truth.

Two Japanese women died in the crash, including the daughter of this man.

The ministry said Kang and Hexeth agreed to hold the allies' annual security consultative meeting early next year, after a ministerial meeting in Washington in December.

The bilateral dialogue normally held in late October or early November was postponed amid an apparent disconnect over the timing of the OPCON transfer, which Seoul is pushing to complete before President Lee Jae-myung's term ends in June 2030.

A special counsel team has again requested a death penalty for former President Yoon Sung-yeol at his appeals trial in the insurrection case stemming from his martial law declaration in 2024.

The team, led by Special Counsel Cho Eun-seok, requested the sentence on Thursday during the final hearing of the trial at the Seoul High Court.

The team said there was no reason not to impose the death penalty, emphasizing that only severe punishment can prevent another insurrection.

You are now listening to the news from KBS World Radio's News Center in Seoul, Korea.

On the fourth anniversary of the Itaewon crowd-crush disaster, President Lee Jae-myung has promised action to prevent government neglect from costing more lives.

Lee said while attending a memorial for the victims at South Gwanghwamun Square on Thursday that the state turned its back on its responsibilities when festivities turned into tragedy on the night of October 29, 2022.

A special counsel team again requests the death penalty for former President Yoon Sung-yeol at his appeals trial in the insurrection case stemming from his 2024 attempt to impose martial law.

And President Lee Jae-myung and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz hold talks in Seoul on how to best expand bilateral economic cooperation.

This is KBS World Radio News.

I'm Daniel Choi.

Lee's political pandering is alienating migrants, multicultural families, and his own base.

Is it worth it? Critics say the president's remarks on foreign workers and multicultural family benefits could fuel discrimination, while doing little to improve his low approval ratings with young men.

News Analysis President Lee Jae-myung is drawing flack from his usual supporters over recent remarks that seem to undermine foreign workers' economic contributions and the benefits provided to multicultural families.

In a Cabinet meeting Tuesday, Lee said foreign workers don't contribute as much to the national economy because they send all their wages back home, sparking an immediate backlash.

He drew further ire Wednesday after sharing a post from a conservative-leaning online community about reservations at Seoul's public postpartum care centers and questioning benefits for multicultural families.

Such remarks align with more extreme conservative views and are unusual coming from Lee, a former child factory worker who has frequently championed himself as an advocate of those who are marginalized in society.

His remarks have sparked criticism from progressives, migrant worker groups, labor unions, and experts who point out that attacking foreigners in Korea only provides validation to far-right groups, fueling hate and discrimination.

Political analysts say Lee, who recently marked 500 days in office, seems to be pandering to a conservative demographic that has usually been critical of him, amid low approval ratings that have ranged in the 30s in recent weeks.

Yes.

JoongAng Ilbo has this bizarre story about President Lee Jae-myung.

The Twitter obsession.

Yes, he is obsessively fighting with random citizens in the media on X, or formerly Twitter, over a report on agricultural land surveys at all hours of the night.

South Korean National Security Advisor Wee Sung-lak today told a parliamentary audit that South Korea was still considering various options regarding a possible deployment to the Strait of Hormuz, including sending a maritime patrol aircraft.

Wee said combat deployment was ruled out, in line with South Korean President Lee Jae-myung's previous announcement.

Kyusok Shim reports for Reuters.

Russia-Ukraine war.

For further information, see Japan Ministry of Defense, GG Press, Air and Space Forces Magazine, and Associated Press.

South Korea and Germany have announced an enhanced strategic partnership following talks between President Lee Jae-myung and Chancellor Friedrich Merz in Seoul.

The agreement expands cooperation in defense, semiconductors, advanced manufacturing, and energy.

Both governments also intend to establish arrangements for protecting classified military information, although that agreement remains unsigned.