Yonhap News Summary

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

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(LEAD) Yoon signs off on motion requesting parliamentary consent to opposition leader's arrest

SEOUL, Sept. 19 (Yonhap) -- President Yoon Suk Yeol on Tuesday signed off on a motion requesting parliamentary consent to opposition leader Lee Jae-myung's arrest over bribery and other charges, his office said.

Lee of the main opposition Democratic Party (DP) has been accused of breach of trust, bribery and other charges in connection with a scandal-ridden land development project and his alleged involvement in a company's illegal cash remittance to North Korea.

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(2nd LD) Biden thanks S. Korea, other countries for helping achieve return of U.S. detainees from Iran

WASHINGTON/SEOUL -- President Joe Biden expressed his appreciation Monday to South Korea and other countries for helping achieve the return of five American citizens who were detained in Iran.

Biden issued a statement celebrating their release under a rare swap deal with Tehran that reportedly saw around $6 billion in Iranian funds frozen in South Korean banks under U.S. sanctions unlocked.

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(LEAD) Yoon meets leaders of Sri Lanka, San Marino, 7 other nations

NEW YORK/SEOUL -- President Yoon Suk Yeol held summits with the leaders of Sri Lanka, San Marino and seven other nations in New York on Monday (local time), kicking off a series of bilateral meetings arranged on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly to seek support for South Korea's bid to host the 2030 World Expo.

Yoon, who arrived in New York on Monday for a five-day visit, is scheduled to address the U.N. General Assembly on Wednesday and hold at least 30 bilateral summits on the margins, according to his office.

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Seoul shares turn lower late Tues. morning

SEOUL-- South Korean stocks turned lower after starting marginally higher late Tuesday morning, led by a fall in major tech blue chips.

After starting a tad higher at the opening bell, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index declined 4.55 points, or 0.18 percent, to 2,570.17 at around 11:20 a.m.

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Auto exports jump nearly 30 pct in Aug. on strong eco-friendly car sales

SEOUL -- South Korea's car exports jumped 28.7 percent on-year in August on the back of solid global demand for electric vehicles and other eco-friendly cars, the industry ministry said Tuesday.

The value of outbound shipments of automobiles came to US$5.29 billion last month, compared with $4.12 billion a year earlier, according to data from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

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All elementary schools in Seoul to record calls from parents

SEOUL -- All elementary schools in Seoul will be installed with telephone recorders to record calls from parents, while a chatbot will be introduced across elementary to high schools to deal with parental complaints on behalf of teachers, the Seoul education chief said Tuesday.

The plan, announced by Cho Hee-yeon, superintendent of the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education, marks the latest in a series of measures aimed at helping block teachers' direct exposure to abusive complaints from parents in the wake of several distressed teachers' suicide deaths.

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U.S. court rules in favor of KEPCO, KHNP over nuclear reactor exports

WASHINGTON -- A U.S. district court on Monday dismissed a lawsuit that an American energy firm filed to stop two South Korean state-run companies from exporting nuclear power plants, determining it is not qualified to take the legal move.

The District Court for the District of Columbia rejected the complaint that Westinghouse Electric Co. filed against Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) and Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) last October.
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