The following is the first summary of major stories moved by Yonhap News Agency on Friday.
โ (2nd LD) Presidential office says no decision reached on troop deployment to Hormuz; review ongoing
SEOUL -- The presidential office said Friday no final decision has been reached on sending military forces to the Strait of Hormuz, saying a review is still under way.
South Korea may be able to make military contributions to global efforts to ensure free navigation through the strait, to the extent that such contributions do not compromise its defense readiness, if it decides to do so, a presidential official said.
โ (LEAD) Lee to visit France next week for summit with Macron
SEOUL, Sept. 4 (Yonhap) -- President Lee Jae Myung will visit France next week to attend a summit-level event on cinema and hold bilateral talks with French President Emmanuel Macron, a presidential official said Friday.
The trip, scheduled for Sunday to Wednesday, comes at the invitation of Macron following the French leader's visit to South Korea in April, according to National Security Adviser Wi Sung-lac. It also comes as the two countries mark the 140th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations.
โ S. Korea extends current account surplus in July amid strong exports
SEOUL -- South Korea posted a current account surplus in July, central bank data showed Friday, led by robust exports amid the global artificial intelligence (AI) boom.
The current account surplus totaled US$42 billion in July, down $7.65 billion from a month earlier, according to data from the Bank of Korea (BOK).
โ Japan's defense minister to skip annual security dialogue in Seoul after war shrine visit: sources
SEOUL -- Japanese Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi is expected to skip an annual security forum in Seoul early next week, sources familiar with the matter said Friday, a move seen as related to his recent visit to a controversial war shrine in Tokyo that drew criticism from Seoul.
Koizumi will not attend the Seoul Defense Dialogue (SDD), set for Monday through Wednesday, multiple sources told Yonhap News Agency.
โ Chip tariff talks with U.S. based on understanding S. Korea won't be disadvantaged: Seoul official
WASHINGTON -- South Korea's Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan said Thursday that Seoul and Washington are continuing talks on U.S. semiconductor tariffs under the understanding that South Korea would not be put at a disadvantage compared with its competitors.
Kim made the remarks during a meeting with reporters at an event marking four U.S. companies' plans to invest in South Korea, a day after U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said that President Donald Trump's administration is working to develop a "targeted" and "thoughtful" tariff policy for semiconductors.
โ Judge who handed Yoon life sentence indicted for corruption
SEOUL -- Anti-corruption investigators on Friday indicted a judge, known for sentencing former President Yoon Suk Yeol to life in prison, over allegations he was entertained at an expensive bar in 2023.
Judge Jee Kui-youn faces charges of violating the anti-graft law for allegedly making two lawyers pay for services worth 4.09 million won (US$3,000) at a bar in Seoul's posh neighborhood of Cheongdam in August 2023, according to the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO).
