Yonhap News Summary

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

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Yoon ordered sending of two to three drones across border if N.K. sends one: official

SEOUL -- President Yoon Suk Yeol had ordered an in-kind response when North Korean drones infiltrated South Korean airspace earlier this week, telling aides to send two to three drones across the border if the North sent one, a senior official said Wednesday.

Yoon also ordered officials to shoot down North Korean drones if necessary, the official told reporters, recounting the tense situation at the presidential office when five North Korean drones flew into the South on Monday.

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(LEAD) S. Korea's military to focus on 'overwhelming' capabilities against N. Korean nuke, missile threats

SEOUL -- South Korea aims to raise defense spending by an annual average of 6.8 percent over the next five years, with a focus on securing "overwhelming" capabilities to counter North Korea's evolving nuclear and missile threats, according to the defense ministry Wednesday.

The ministry announced the first midterm defense blueprint under the conservative Yoon Suk Yeol administration launched in May, amid tensions caused by the North's missile launches last week and this week's drone infiltrations across the inter-Korean border.

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Yoon berates defense minister over botched operation against N.K. drones

SEOUL -- President Yoon Suk Yeol berated Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup over the military's failed operation against five North Korean drones that entered South Korean airspace earlier this week, officials said Wednesday.

Yoon met with Lee on Tuesday morning and was briefed on the military's response to the North's violation of South Korean airspace the previous day.

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S. Korea's lunar orbiter Danuri enters orbit of moon

SEOUL -- South Korea's unmanned space vehicle Danuri has successfully entered the orbit of the moon earlier than planned, the science ministry said Wednesday.

Danuri, also known as the Korea Pathfinder Lunar Orbiter, was captured by the moon's gravity on Tuesday and began rotation, according to the Ministry of Science and ICT.

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Seoul stocks sharply down late Wed. morning on Wall Street decline

SEOUL -- Seoul stocks extended losses Wednesday morning on overnight falls on Wall Street.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) had dipped 48.27 points, or 2.07 percent, to 2,284.52 points, as of 11:20 a.m.

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Amazon stands as No. 1 player in local cloud computing market in 2021

SEOUL -- U.S.-based Amazon Web Services (AWS) remained the leading player in the South Korean market for cloud computing services last year, the country's antitrust regulator said Wednesday.

AWS accounted for 62.1 percent of the local cloud service market in 2021, down from 70 percent tallied in 2020, according to the data compiled by the Fair Trade Commission (FTC).

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

SEOUL -- South Korea's new COVID-19 cases stayed above 80,000 for the second straight day Wednesday amid lingering concerns over a wintertime surge.

The country confirmed 87,517 new coronavirus infections, including 56 from overseas, bringing the total to 28,859,713, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said
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