Yonhap News Summary

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

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(LEAD) Yoon pledges to revive nuclear power industry
(ATTN: UPDATES with Yoon's congratulatory message; CHANGES headline)

SEOUL -- President Yoon Suk-yeol promised Wednesday to revive the nuclear power industry and turn it into a key export sector.

Yoon made the remark in a congratulatory message read by Industry Minister Lee Chang-yang at the opening ceremony for the Shin Hanul No. 1 nuclear reactor in Uljin, 223 kilometers southeast of Seoul.

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(LEAD) Ex-South Gyeongsang Gov. Kim says he does not want parole
(ATTN: UPDATES with presidential office's response)

SEOUL -- Former South Gyeongsang Province Gov. Kim Kyoung-soo has said he does not want to be released from prison on parole amid speculation he will be granted a special pardon by President Yoon Suk-yeol later this month.

Kim, who has been serving a two-year sentence on opinion rigging charges, stated his case in a handwritten note posted by his wife on his Facebook page Tuesday, saying he rejects the conditions for parole, which include "clear indications of regret."

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Ex-spy chief quizzed in 2020 death of fisheries official

SEOUL -- Former National Intelligence Service (NIS) Director Park Jie-won appeared before prosecutors Wednesday for questioning over alleged irregularities surrounding the controversial death of a government official at the hands of North Korea in 2020.

Park, who served as the NIS director under former President Moon Jae-in, is accused of involvement in the then administration's ungrounded conclusion that the fisheries official was killed while attempting to defect to the North.

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(2nd LD) S. Korea adds 626,000 jobs on-year in Nov.; job growth slows for 6th month
(ATTN: RECASTS lead; ADDS details in last 8 paras)

SEOUL -- South Korea added jobs for the 21st straight month in November, but the growth continued to slow for the sixth month in a row amid the central bank's aggressive monetary tightening, government data showed Wednesday.

The number of employed people stood at 28.4 million last month, up some 626,000 from a year earlier, according to the data from Statistics Korea. It marked the highest growth for any November since the agency adopted the current research methods in 1999.

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S. Korea's COVID-19 cases over 80,000 for 2nd day amid virus surge worries

SEOUL -- South Korea's new COVID-19 cases stayed above 80,000 for the second straight day Wednesday amid lingering concerns of another surge as the government mulls easing the indoor mask mandate.

The country reported 84,571 new COVID-19 infections, including 73 from overseas, bringing the total to 27,925,572, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said.

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S. Korea consulting closely with U.S. to minimize fallout from IRA: Vice FM

WASHINGTON -- South Korea will continue to work with the United States to address its concerns over the new U.S. law that offers tax incentives to electric vehicles assembled in North America, Seoul's 2nd Vice Foreign Minister Lee Do-hoon said Tuesday.

Lee made the remark one day after he held a high-level economic dialogue with Under Secretary of State for Economic Growth, Energy and the Environment Jose Fernandez here in Washington.

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(LEAD) Seoul unification ministry hosts int'l forum on N. Korea's human rights
(ATTN: UPDATES with former U.S. officials' comments in last paras; ADDS photo)

SEOUL -- South Korea's unification ministry on Wednesday held an annual international forum on North Korea's human rights situations in an effort to raise public awareness about the problem.

The 2022 International Dialogue on North Korean Human Rights opened at a hotel in Seoul, under the theme of major pending issues and future tasks in regard to the North's human rights records. It was moderated by Lee Shin-hwa, South Korea's envoy for the North's human rights.

(END)