[Today's Hot Issue]Kim Yo Jong: "Anti-South Korea Loudspeakers to Be Activated Within Days"

[Hot Issues: Top 5]
President Lee: "The president is responsible for directing and supervising the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency"
Bank of Korea Monetary Policy Board keeps benchmark interest rate at 3% per year

1. North Korean leader Kim Yo Jong says anti-South Korea loudspeakers will be activated within days

Tensions are rising in border areas after Kim Yo Jong, a department director of the Workers’ Party of Korea, said that new strike capabilities had been deployed along the border and that anti-South Korea loudspeakers would be activated within days.

The Korean Central News Agency reported on the 21st that Kim Yo Jong, department director of the Workers' Party of Korea, inspected key sites at a southern border fortification project on the 20th alongside Pak Jong Chon, adviser to the Ministry of National Defence, Workers' Party Secretary Ri Il Hwan, and key commanders of the Korean People's Army General Staff. Yonhap News Agency

2. President Lee Jae-myung says he is responsible for directing and supervising the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency, adding that giving up that responsibility would be grounds for impeachment

President Lee stressed that the head of the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency attends Cabinet meetings to share information on state affairs and ensure democratic oversight, but the opposition is concerned that this could undermine investigative independence.

3. A PHP security vulnerability has triggered a global alert

A critical security vulnerability has been discovered in PHP, a programming language widely used on websites around the world. Government websites in Europe have been shut down one after another, and the U.S. government has begun inspections. South Korean IT companies and the cybersecurity industry are also responding urgently.

4. The Bank of Korea holds its benchmark interest rate at 3% per year

All seven members of the Bank of Korea’s Monetary Policy Board unanimously voted to keep the rate unchanged. Governor Shin Hyun-song said the bank would maintain its restrictive policy stance for the time being.

Bank of Korea Governor Shin Hyun-song speaks at a press conference on the Monetary Policy Board's monetary policy decision at the Bank of Korea in Jung-gu, Seoul, on the 22nd. Photo by Kim Hyun-min

5. Pension reform to end discrimination against people with no income is being pursued

A structural reform is being pursued in earnest to bring 6.67 million people, including homemakers and young people who have been excluded from the National Pension system, into the locally insured subscriber category. The measure would shift the system from “one pension per household” to “one pension per person.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.