Yonhap News Summary

The following is the first summary of major stories moved by Yonhap News Agency on Tuesday.

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(2nd LD) New virus cases bounce back to triple digits, cluster infections still drag in virus fight

SEOUL -- South Korea's new virus cases rebounded to over 100 on Tuesday, snapping five consecutive days of a two-digit rise, as sporadic cluster infections continued across the nation and imported cases rose amid an eased social distancing scheme that went into effect this week.

The country added 102 COVID-19 cases, including 69 local infections, raising the total caseload to 24,805, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).

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(2nd LD) BTS takes top two spots on Billboard singles chart

WASHINGTON/SEOUL -- South Korean boy group BTS has achieved its second No. 1 on Billboard's main singles chart with a song featuring the South Korean septet climbing to the summit this week, Billboard reported Monday.

"Savage Love (Laxed - Siren Beat)," the latest version of hit song "Savage Love" by U.S. singer Jason Derulo and New Zealand producer Jawsh 685 featuring BTS, has taken the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100, according to Billboard.

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Defense minister heads to U.S. for talks with Esper

SEOUL -- Defense Minister Suh Wook headed to the United States on Tuesday for his first face-to-face talks with U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper expected to focus on North Korea and the transfer of wartime operational control.

Suh and Esper are scheduled to meet in Washington on Wednesday for annual defense ministers' talks between the two countries, known as the Security Consultative Meeting (SCM), just days after North Korea unveiled a massive new missile believed to be capable of striking any part of the U.S.

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(LEAD) Moon links balanced regional development with Korean New Deal

SEOUL -- President Moon Jae-in declared balanced regional development as another pillar of his administration's ambitious Korean New Deal initiative, speaking at a meeting attended by the heads of 17 local governments nationwide Tuesday.

"With a bold balanced regional development plan, the government will push strongly for the Korean-version New Deal as a national development strategy for the future of the Republic of Korea," he said during the second official session to discuss strategies on the New Deal project. The Republic of Korea is South Korea's official name. The move represents a commitment to shifting the axis of national growth to local regions, he added.

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Top N.K. technocrat urges all-out efforts to carry out Kim's call for '80-day campaign'

SEOUL -- North Korea's top economic technocrat called for all-out efforts to successfully carry out leader Kim Jong-un's call for an "80-day campaign" to recover from flood damage and make as much progress as possible in the country's economic development project by year's end.

Pak Pong-ju, vice chairman of the State Affairs Commission, made the appeal during a military-civilian rally held in Pyongyang, days after the North staged a massive military parade over the weekend to mark the 75th founding anniversary of its ruling Workers' Party.

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Trump says Kim one of 'sharp' leaders even after N.K. unveils massive new missile

WASHINGTON -- U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday picked North Korean leader Kim Jong-un as one of the world's "sharp" leaders, even after the North unveiled a massive new missile believed to be capable of striking any part of the United States.

"Look. We can't play games. The one thing I know for sure, President Xi of China ... President Putin of Russia. You look at around Kim Jong-un ... They are 100 percent sharp. We have somebody running who is not 100 percent," Trump said during a campaign rally in Florida, referring to his Democratic rival Joe Biden.Trump says Kim one of 'sharp' leaders even after N.K. unveils massive new missile.

kokobj@yna.co.kr
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