South Korea
Follow the latest South Korea news, videos, and analysis from ABC News.
November 12, 2024 at 2:22 PM

South Korean president takes up golf again to forge a bond with Trump

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol has dusted off his golf clubs in an attempt to forge a bond with President-elect Donald Trump, an avid lover of the game
November 12, 2024 at 2:22 PM
FILE - South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol answers a reporters' question during a news conference at the Presidential Office in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday, Nov. 7, 2024. (Kim Hong-Ji/Pool Photo via AP, File)
November 6, 2024 at 11:26 AM

South Korea fights deepfake porn with tougher punishment and regulation

South Korea has announced a package of steps to curb a surge in deepfake porn
November 6, 2024 at 11:26 AM
FILE - The National Assembly passes bills toughening the punishment for deepfake sex crimes in Seoul, South Korea, Sept. 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon, File)
November 5, 2024 at 9:15 AM

S. Korea fines Meta $15M for illegally collecting information on Facebook users

South Korea’s privacy watchdog has fined Meta 21.6 billion won for illegally collecting Facebook users’ sensitive personal information, including data about their political views and sexual orientation, and sharing it with thousands of advertisers for ...
November 5, 2024 at 9:15 AM
South Korean Personal Information Protection Commission's director Lee Eun Jung speaks during a briefing at the government complex in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. (Lee Jung-hun/Yonhap via AP)
November 3, 2024 at 12:38 PM

US flies long-range bomber in drill with South Korea, Japan

South Korea says the U.S. has flown a long-range bomber in a trilateral drill with South Korea and Japan in response to North Korea’s recent test-firing of a new intercontinental ballistic missile designed to strike the U.S. mainland
November 3, 2024 at 12:38 PM
In this photo provided by the North Korean government, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, right, and his daughter observe what it says a test launch of new intercontinental ballistic missile "Hwasong-19" at an undisclosed place in North Korea Thursday, Oct. 31, 2024. Independent journalists were not given access to cover the event depicted in this image distributed by the North Korean government. The content of this image is as provided and cannot be independently verified. Korean language watermark on image as provided by source reads: "KCNA" which is the abbreviation for Korean Central News Agency. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP)
October 30, 2024 at 12:14 PM

South Korean military says the North appears poised to conduct nuclear and ICBM tests

South Korea’s military intelligence agency says North Korea has likely completed preparations for its seventh nuclear test and appears to be preparing to test a long-range missile capable of reaching the United States
October 30, 2024 at 12:14 PM
FILE - This photo distributed by the North Korean government shows what it says is a test-fire of a Hwasong-17 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), at an undisclosed location in North Korea on March 24, 2022. Independent journalists were not given access to cover the event depicted in this image distributed by the North Korean government. The content of this image is as provided and cannot be independently verified. Korean language watermark on image as provided by source reads: "KCNA" which is the abbreviation for Korean Central News Agency. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP, File)
October 24, 2024 at 11:33 AM

North Korea trash balloon lands in South Korea president's compound, security says

A North Korean "trash balloon" landed inside the South Korean presidential compound in the capital Seoul on Thursday amid rising tensions between the two neighbors.
October 24, 2024 at 11:33 AM
A North Korean "trash balloon" landed inside the South Korean presidential compound in the capital Seoul on Thursday amid rising tensions between the two neighbors.
October 22, 2024 at 2:42 PM

North Korea sending troops to aid Russia: South Korean intelligence

ABC News' Britt Clennett reports on this potential threat and the response from the U.S.
October 22, 2024 at 2:42 PM
VIDEO: North Korea sending troops to aid Russia: South Korean intelligence
October 18, 2024 at 9:23 AM

BTS member J-Hope finishes mandatory military enlistment in South Korea

K-pop idol J-Hope was discharged from the military on Thursday, becoming the second member of BTS to finish mandatory enlistment in South Korea.
October 18, 2024 at 9:23 AM
WONJU, SOUTH KOREA - OCTOBER 17: J-Hope of BTS reacts after being discharged from military service at the army's 36th Infantry Division on October 17, 2024 in Wonju, Gangwon-do province, South Korea. J-Hope is the second BTS member to complete the 18-month mandatory military service, which is required for all able-bodied male citizens in South Korea before they turn 28. (Photo by Han Myung-Gu/Getty Images)
1 month ago

South Korea fires warning shots after North Korea blows up border roads

South Korea's military said Tuesday it detected explosions on two cross-border roads connecting the country to North Korea.
1 month ago
South Korea's military said Tuesday it detected explosions on two cross-border roads connecting the country to North Korea.
1 month ago

South Korea fires warning shots after North Korea blows up border roads

South Korea's military said Tuesday it detected explosions on two cross-border roads connecting the country to North Korea.
1 month ago
A TV screen reports North Korea has blown up parts of northern side of inter-Korean roads during a news program at Seoul Railway Station in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024.
1 month ago

South Korean author Han Kang awarded Nobel Prize in literature

The poet and novelist was praised by the Nobel committee for her “intense poetic prose.”
1 month ago
The poet and novelist was praised by the Nobel committee for her “intense poetic prose.”
2 months ago

South Korea threatens military response for North Korean 'trash balloons'

South Korea officials said Pyongyang has launched 5,500 balloons across the border since May.
2 months ago
South Korea officials said Pyongyang has launched 5,500 balloons across the border since May.
5 months ago

US aircraft carrier arrives in South Korea as Putin threatens to arm North Korea

A nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, the USS Theodore Roosevelt, reached port in Busan for planned drills with South Korea and Japan.
5 months ago
VIDEO: US aircraft carrier arrives in South Korea as Putin threatens to arm North Korea
5 months ago

BTS members embrace bandmate Jin after he's discharged from South Korean military

RM played the trumpet as fellow BTS members J-Hope, Jimin, V, and Jungkook lined up to embrace Jin, who was discharged from his mandatory service in the South Korean military.
5 months ago
RM played the trumpet as fellow BTS members J-Hope, Jimin, V, and Jungkook lined up to embrace Jin, who was discharged from his mandatory service in the South Korean military.
8 months ago

Police chase runaway ostrich in South Korea

An ostrich escaped from a zoo in South Korea on Tuesday and ran wild in the streets for about an hour until being safely captured, officials say.
8 months ago
VIDEO: Police chase runaway ostrich in South Korea
10 months ago

South Korean ruling party lawmaker attacked in Seoul, aide says

Bae, a member of the People Power Party and a former TV journalist, was hit with a palm-sized rock on the back of her head, an aide said.
10 months ago
People Power Party lawmaker Bae Hyun-jin speaks at the National Assembly in Seoul, South Korea, on May 31, 2023.
10 months ago

South Korea passes ban on dog meat

South Korea's National Assembly passed the bill by a 208-0 vote.
10 months ago
South Korea's National Assembly passed the bill by a 208-0 vote.
10 months ago

South Korean assembly bans dog meat trade, consumption

Dog meat consumption in South Korea will be prohibited by law starting in 2027.
10 months ago
Animal rights activists attend a protest rally supporting the government-led dog meat banning bill at the National Assembly in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2024.
10 months ago

South Korean opposition leader in ICU after attack at press conference

South Korean Democratic Party Leader Lee Jae-myung was hospitalized after being attacked during a press conference in Busan, South Korea, police said.
10 months ago
South Korean opposition party leader Lee Jae-myung speaks to reporters as he visits the site of a new airport in Busan on Jan. 2, 2024.
10 months ago

South Korean opposition leader stabbed, rushed to hospital

South Korean Democratic Party Leader Lee Jae-myung was hospitalized after being attacked during a press conference in Busan, South Korea, state media reported.
10 months ago
South Korean Democratic Party Leader Lee Jae-myung was hospitalized after being attacked during a press conference in Busan, South Korea, state media reported.
10 months ago

South Korean opposition leader stabbed, rushed to hospital

South Korean Democratic Party Leader Lee Jae-myung was hospitalized after being attacked during a press conference in Busan, South Korea, state media reported.
10 months ago
South Korea's opposition party leader Lee Jae-myung speaks during his visit to Busan, South Korea, Jan. 2, 2024.
1 year ago

Lee Sun-kyun, star of Oscar-winning film 'Parasite,' dies, police say

"Parasite" actor Lee Sun-kyun has died, police in South Korea confirmed to ABC News.
1 year ago
South Korean actor Lee Sun-kyun arriving at a police station in Incheon for police questioning in December 2023 (Photo by Yonhap / YONHAP / AFP)
1 year ago

North Korea redeploys troops to surveillance posts along DMZ, South Korea says

The North Korean military has been spotted re-installing surveillance posts according to surveillance footage provided by the South Korean military Monday.
1 year ago
North Korean military personnel are seen in a guard post within the DMZ in an undated photo released by the South Korean Military on Nov. 27, 2023.
1 year ago

South Korea fights off unprecedented bedbug infestation

South Korean officials have been detecting and exterminating bedbugs for the last two weeks as a major disinfection of transportation and public facilities is on the way.
1 year ago
FILE PHOTO: A bed bug is seen on a glove of a biocide technician from the company Hygiene Premium who treats an apartment against bed bugs in L'Hay-les-Roses, near Paris, France, September 29, 2023.
1 year ago

South Korea fights bedbug infestation

The first bedbug outbreak was reported in October at a public bath house in Incheon.
1 year ago
The first bedbug report was in October at a public bath house in Incheon.
1 year ago

Biden holds milestone summit with Japan and South Korea

The president's historic summit in Camp David is where Japan and South Korea agreed to expand security and economic ties.
1 year ago
VIDEO: Biden holds milestone summit with Japan and South Korea
1 year ago

Biden holds landmark trilateral meeting with Japanese, Korean leaders

ABC News’ Selina Wang is at Camp David where President Joe Biden is set to hold a trilateral meeting with Japanese and South Korean leaders.
1 year ago
VIDEO: Biden holds landmark trilateral meeting with Japanese, Korean leaders
1 year ago

US nuclear-armed submarine makes rare appearance in South Korea

ABC News’ Martha Raddatz reports on the U.S. nuclear submarine in South Korea on “This Week.”
1 year ago
VIDEO: US nuclear-armed submarine makes rare appearance in South Korea
1 year ago

Exclusive: Inside the US nuclear missile sub in South Korea

Martha Raddatz reports from inside the first U.S. nuclear sub to visit South Korea, in four decades.
1 year ago
VIDEO: Exclusive: Inside the US nuclear missile sub in South Korea
1 year ago

ABC News Exclusive: Inside the US nuclear ballistic missile submarine in South Korea

Martha Raddatz reports from the first such sub to visit near North Korea.
1 year ago
Commander Lee "Randy" Fike talks with ABC's Martha Raddatz aboard the USS Kentucky, a U.S. nuclear-armed submarine, anchored at the Busan Naval Base in Busan, South Korea, July 20, 2023.
1 year ago

Inside look of nuclear US submarine in South Korea

ABC News’ Martha Raddatz goes aboard the U.S.S. Kentucky, a nuclear ballistic missile submarine and first of its kind to travel to the country in more than four decades.
1 year ago
VIDEO: Inside look of nuclear US submarine in South Korea
1 year ago

North Korea fires 'unidentified ballistic missile,' South Korean military says

North Korea fired "an unidentified ballistic missile" toward the East Sea on Thursday, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said.
1 year ago
A TV screen shows a report of North Korea's missile launch with a file image during a news program at the Seoul Railway Station in Seoul, South Korea, June 15, 2023. North Korea test-fired a ballistic missile off its east coast on Thursday, hours after South Korean and U.S. troops ended a fifth round of large-scale live-fire drills near the Koreas' heavily fortified border.
1 year ago

Seoul musicians protest Ukraine war with music

More than a hundred cellists have played in front of the Russian Embassy in Seoul, South Korea, since March 2022.
1 year ago
More than a hundred cellists have played in front of the Russian Embassy in Seoul, South Korea, since March 2022.
1 year ago

State dinner surprise: South Korean president sings 'American Pie'

Yoon's visit marks the 70th anniversary of the U.S. and South Korea’s alliance.
1 year ago
President Joe Biden reacts as South Korea's President Yoon Suk Yeol sings the song American Pie by Don Mclean in the State Dining Room of the White House, April 26, 2023, following the State Dinner.
1 year ago

Group of North Koreans defect, cross border into South Korea

A group of North Koreans crossed the Northern Limit Line in a fishing boat on May 6, South Korean authorities confirmed Thursday.
1 year ago
A South Korean Navy Incheon-class frigate (back) is seen from a ferry traveling to South Korea's eastern island of Ulleungdo in the East Sea, also known as the Sea of Japan, on November 3, 2022.
2 years ago

South Korean President Yoon delivers remarks during joint meeting of Congress

ABC’s Elizabeth Schulze reports on South Korean President Yoon’s message of democracy before a joint meeting of Congress, as well as the latest GDP report and the GOP House vote on the debt ceiling.
2 years ago
VIDEO: South Korean President Yoon delivers remarks during joint meeting of Congress
2 years ago

South Korean president sings 'American Pie' at White House State Dinner

South Korea’s President Yoon Suk Yeol stole the show with his rendition of Don McClean’s “American Pie.”
2 years ago
South Korea’s President Yoon Suk Yeol stole the show with his rendition of Don McClean’s “American Pie.”
2 years ago

Yoon tells Congress the US-South Korea alliance is 'stronger than ever'

The U.S. and South Korea are marking the 70th anniversary of their alliance as they face North Korean aggression and Chinese expansion in the Indo-Pacific region.
2 years ago
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol waves before addressing Congress in the House Chamber of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., April 27, 2023.
2 years ago

Chip and Joanna Gaines attend President Joe Biden's South Korea state dinner

The "Fixer Upper" stars, along with other celebrities like Angelina Jolie and her son Maddox, were in attendance at the White House event for South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol.
2 years ago
VIDEO: Chip and Joanna Gaines attend President Joe Biden's South Korea state dinner
2 years ago

Biden calls relationship with South Korea 'success story'

ABC News’ Elizabeth Schulze provides analysis on the bilateral meeting between President Joe Biden and South Korea President Yoon Suk Yeol, as the two leaders celebrate their close relationship.
2 years ago
VIDEO: Biden calls relationship with South Korea a “success story”
2 years ago

Biden touts relationship with South Korea as 'great success story'

The state visit comes as the U.S. and South Korea mark the 70th year of the countries' alliance.
2 years ago
VIDEO: Biden touts relationship with South Korea as 'great success story'
2 years ago

Biden welcomes South Korea's president to White House

This comes ahead of a joint press conference between the two leaders and a state dinner at the White House.
2 years ago
VIDEO: Biden welcomes South Korea's president to White House
2 years ago

Biden welcomes South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol to White House

The visit comes as the White House announced steps designed to deter North Korea from launching a nuclear attack on South Korea.
2 years ago
VIDEO: Biden welcomes South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol to White House
2 years ago

South Korea exporting arms to Poland amid controversy over lethal aid to Ukraine

South Korea has confirmed the exports deal to Poland will continue after President Yoon Suk Yeol signaled his intentions to possibly send weapons directly to Ukraine.
2 years ago
South Korea's President Yoon Suk Yeol gives a speech in front of students at Keio University on the sidelines of his visit to Tokyo on March 17, 2023.
2 years ago

South Korea increases its arms exports as Russia-Ukraine war rages on

The country exported a record $17.3 billion in weapons last year, according to South Korea’s Defense Ministry.
2 years ago
The country exported a record $17.3 billion in weapons last year, according to South Korea’s Defense Ministry.
2 years ago

K-Pop stars face challenges of military conscription

ABC News' Joohee Cho reports from South Korea about K-Pop boy band members enlisting in mandatory military service and speaks with K-Pop star Siwon Choi about his experience.
2 years ago
VIDEO: K-Pop stars face challenges of military conscription
2 years ago

North Korea fires 4 ballistic missiles

North Korea launches four new missile tests as a response to joint exercises between the U.S. and South Korea.
2 years ago
VIDEO: North Korea fires 4 ballistic missiles
2 years ago

US, South Korea warn North Korea following missile launches

The U.S. and South Korea issued a warning to North Korea following intensifying missile launches.
2 years ago
VIDEO: US, South Korea warn North Korea following missile launches
2 years ago

South Korean police reveal emergency calls began hours before deadly crowd surge

South Korean police reveal that emergency calls for help began nearly four hours before the deadly crowd surge that killed at least 156 people.
2 years ago
VIDEO: South Korean police reveal emergency calls began hours before deadly crowd surge
2 years ago

The search for answers after deadly South Korean crowd surge

ABC News’ Matt Gutman reports from Seoul with the latest on the investigation into the crowd crush that killed 155 people during a Halloween celebration over the weekend.
2 years ago
VIDEO: The search for answers after deadly South Korean stampede