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≡ Two Koreas To Discuss Expanding Health Cooperation
South and North Korea are holding working-level talks today to discuss expanding cooperation on health-related matters.
The meeting at the joint inter-Korean liaison office in the North's border town of Kaesong will discuss exchanging influenza-related information on a trial basis as well as plans to cooperate on combatting infectious diseases next year.
Kwon Jun-wook, a senior official at Seoul's health ministry, will lead South Korea's delegation while Kim Yun-chol will represent the North.■
[2018.12.12]
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≡ US State Department Reaffirms Plan To Continue Sanctions On N. Korea Until Denuclearization
The U.S. State Department says Washington will continue to urge North Korea to address its alleged human rights abuses until the regime abandons its nuclear weapons program.
Deputy spokesperson Robert Palladino said at a press briefing Tuesday that the U.S.' stance remains the same, which is the final, fully verified denuclearization of the North.
The remark comes a day after the U.S. imposed sanctions on three senior North Korean officials, including a top aide to leader Kim Jong-un, over suspected human rights abuses and censorship.■
[2018.12.12]
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≡ Ruling Party, Govt, Cheong Wa Dae Meet For Budget Follow-Up Measures (Update)
The ruling Democratic Party, the government and Cheong Wa Dae have agreed on the need to frontload next year's government budget in order to create jobs and boost the economy.
They came to the agreement during a meeting this morning to discuss follow-up measures to the 2019 budget plan, which was approved by the Cabinet yesterday.
At the meeting, Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon predicted a rather pessimistic outlook for next year's economy, saying the government will do its best to prevent conditions from going downhill and improve people's livelihoods by frontloading 70 percent of the budget.
Parliament has set next year's budget at 469.6 trillion won, about 900 billion won less than the government's proposal.
Attendees also discussed safety issues amid recent accidents, including Saturday's KTX train derailment near Gangneung and the bursting of a hot water pipe near Baekseok Station in Gyeonggi's Goyang.■
[2018.12.12]
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≡ Health Law Revision Proposes Graphic Warnings On Alcoholic Beverages
A public health law revision is currently underway to require pictorial warnings of health hazards on alcoholic beverages.
Health ministry officials say the warning labels will resemble those on cigarette packs, alerting consumers to health risks of drinking and the consequences of drunk driving.
The health ministry said that the smoking rate dropped 1.6 percentage points on-year in 2017, after heavy warnings were placed on the packs, along with graphic photos.
According to Statistics Korea, nearly 5,000 people died in 2017 from alcohol-related illnesses, about 13 people each day.■
[2018.12.12]
