S.KOREA-ROMANIA SUMMIT

S.KOREA-ROMANIA SUMMIT

[Anchor Lead]
President Yoon Suk Yeol held a summit with Romanian President Klaus Iohannis, who is visiting Korea for the first time in 16 years. The two leaders agreed to further strengthen the strategic partnership between their countries, particularly focusing on cooperation in national defense and nuclear reactors. They also condemned North Korea's provocations and military collaboration with Russia, reaffirming their commitment to supporting and rebuilding Ukraine.

[Pkg]
Romanian President Klaus Iohannis is in Korea for the first time in 16 years. President Yoon Suk Yeol and his Romanian counterpart agreed to further strengthen the 16-year strategic partnership between the two countries. They agreed to strengthen cooperation in strategic areas, such as national defense and nuclear reactors.

[Soundbite]
Yoon Suk Yeol (President): I hope this visit will bring good results in ongoing talks on national defense and nuclear reactors.

Defense-related issues included increased export of Korean-made weapons, exchange of military education and training, and technological cooperation. As for nuclear reactors, Korean companies' participation will be expanded in the small modular reactor project after Korea received orders in Romania last year. Iohannis is to tour a nuclear reactor maker in Korea during his visit.

[Soundbite]
Klaus Iohannis (President of Romania)

On the geopolitical front, the two countries denounced North Korea's provocations and vowed to work together to promote denuclearization and human rights. The two leaders also agreed to condemn military cooperation between North Korea and Russia and cooperate in aiding and rebuilding Ukraine. To put these plans into action, Korea and Romania agreed to strengthen cooperation with countries in the Indo-Pacific region and NATO.

S. KOREA'S MISSILE DEFENSE SYSTEM

[Anchor Lead]
North Korea's recently launched short-range ballistic missile, with a range of around 400 km, we reported, targets key South Korean military facilities. Given North Korea's ongoing development of such weapon systems, we examine how South Korea's defense systems would respond in case of an actual provocation.


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If North Korea fires its super-large multiple rockets toward South Korea's military facilities, the South's ballistic missile surveillance radar will detect them first. The missiles can be traced down in real time from the moment of their launch. The U.S. early warning system can also spot them in just 40 seconds. North Korea's missiles can be neutralized using the Patriot and Cheonggung missile defense systems at an altitude of less than 40 km. At higher altitudes, they can be neutralized with long-range surface-to-air guided weapons and the high-altitude missile defense system THAAD, which are part of the South Korean multi-layered defense system. However, the long-range surface-to-air guided missile II, which can intercept missiles at an altitude of less than 100 km, will only be produced from 2029, meaning a void may occur in missile defense. Moreover, North Korea's long-range artillery deployed en masse near the DMZ also poses a threat to South Korea's security. It consists of more than 300 shells targeting the Seoul metropolitan area. To prepare for this, the Army Fires Brigade has deployed tactical surface-to-surface missiles, which can destroy North Korea's long-range artillery bases hidden in shafts using a GPS guidance technology. The dome-shaped long-range artillery rocket and missile defense system, or LAMD, designed to intercept North Korean shells is to be introduced by 2029.

[Soundbite]
Jeon Ha-kyu (Spokesperson, Ministry of National Defense): The longer N. Korea continues its nuclear and missile provocations, the better prepared our military will be, including the Three-Axes System.

The key point is to detect and intercept missiles in the shortest time possible. Pundits say this requires the development of surveillance technologies such as military recon satellites and multifunctional radars, and real-time detection information sharing between South Korea and the U.S.

HYBE LAUNCHES AUDIT INTO ADOR

[Anchor Lead]
HYBE, South Korea's leading entertainment agency, is embroiled in a bitter conflict with its subsidiary, the agency for NewJeans. Accusations of an "attempted takeover" and "retaliation for whistleblowing" have fueled the internal turmoil, causing significant fluctuations in HYBE's stock price. As the dispute intensifies, there are growing concerns about the potential impact on the artists involved.

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From BTS and Seventeen to NewJeans... Korea's most prominent talent management agency HYBE launched an audit into its subsidiary. The target is Ador, which manages NewJeans. Its management is being audited for attempting to spin off from its parent company. HYBE called for Ador CEO Min Hee-jin to show up for the audit and return her assets. The label is also taking steps to dismiss her and Ador executives. HYBE intends to take legal actions once the audit finds the already obtained evidence and circumstances to be true. Ador refuted the allegations just a day after the audit began. Min claimed in her phone call with KBS that HYBE is using the media to distort the truth, adding its accusation of her trying to usurp management rights is groundless. She called the probe a retaliation for whistle-blowing. She said the issue arose after concerns were raised internally last month about unequal artist support and questionable management practices, including marketing. The management dispute caused HYBE's stock prices to plunge for two straight days. The infighting may also negatively impact NewJeans who are soon to make their comeback.

[Soundbite]
Kim Heon-sik (Culture critic): There's a need to address or prevent these issues, as they pose significant risks to idol group activities and...they are detrimental given the characteristics of K-pop.

HYBE said the date of the K-pop group's comeback should be decided by Ador. Ador stressed that NewJeans will carry out its scheduled appearances.

WEEKLY DAY OFF FOR MED PROFESSORS

[Anchor Lead]
Seoul National University Hospital and Asan Medical Center will suspend outpatient services for one weekday each starting next week, citing accumulated fatigue among medical professors. The government, after being rejected for a one-on-one dialogue with the medical community said, they expect their change of stance before the Special Committee for Medical Reform launches on Thursday.

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The medical professors of major universities are considering taking a day off every week. They have decided to do so next week for starters. Of the top-five hospitals in the nation, Seoul National University Hospital and Asan Medical Center, among others, will take one day off from next week. They will halt outpatient treatment and surgeries on one of the weekdays. Only emergency patients will be operated on. The medical professors say they can no longer deal with tight schedules stemming from junior doctors' mass resignations two months ago.

[Soundbite]
Prof. Choi Chang-min (Medical Professors Association of Korea): Working this way could lead to accidents. Examining hospitalized patients is vital, but we can reduce outpatient treatment.

Among provincial university hospitals, Chungbuk National University Hospital began taking Fridays off early this month. Chungnam National University Hospital and Wonkwang University Hospital have decided to adjust their work schedules every Friday starting this week. Medical professors are expected to leave their jobs en masse from Thursday. It will be one month since they began submitting their resignations to protest the government plan to expand the medical school enrollment quota. The government is urging the medical community to have dialogue rather than just demand that the plan be re-considered from scratch.

[Soundbite]
Jang Sang-yoon (Senior pres. secretary for social affairs): Doctors want the plan to be reconsidered from scratch, refuse to hold dialogue. They should start negotiations as soon as possible.

The government is also urging the medical sector to present a more flexible stance before the launch of a special committee on medical reforms on Thursday. Regarding its decision to let each college decide for itself how many medical students to accept, the government said its decision does not adhere to numbers, yet it is not in violation of the quota increase principle.

FASTER LIQUID HYDROGEN CHARGING

[Anchor Lead]
Korea has just launched its first hydrogen fuel charging station that uses liquid storage instead of the usual gas. This shift reduces the fuel's volume and speeds up charging, paving the way for more widespread use of hydrogen vehicles.

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This is a hydrogen fuel charging station in Seo-gu District, Incheon. Here, 120 kilograms of hydrogen can be injected into vehicles per hour. That's twice as fast as existing charging stations. As many as 120 hydrogen buses can use the station per day.

[Soundbite]
Kim Jae-yeong (Hydrogen bus driver): Charging used to take up to 40 minutes. Now, 15-20 minutes are enough.

The secret lies in the type of hydrogen fuel. Unlike other stations where hydrogen is stored in the form of gas, here, for the first time in Korea, liquid hydrogen is used. Liquid hydrogen is one 800th the volume of hydrogen gas and only turns into gas at the time of injection. Pressure ramps up in this process, which raises the charging speed.

[Soundbite]
An Gwang-heon (Chair, Liquid hydrogen charging station): Increasing gas pressure naturally vaporizes the gas, improving charging speed and temperature maintenance.

Recently, local companies have built liquid hydrogen manufacturing facilities paving the way for a large scale supply network. The government plans to install 280 such charging devices nationwide by 2030.

[Soundbite]
Jung Sun-hwa (Ministry of Environment): Zero emissions help with carbon neutrality. We will actively support fostering an ecosystem for hydrogen vehicles.

However, liquid hydrogen must maintain a low temperature of minus 253 degrees Celsius in the handling process, resulting in high initial installation costs. Also, only temporary safety standards currently exist for the operation and management of liquid hydrogen charging stations, necessitating further improvements.

LOWERING TEMPS WITH COOL ROOFS

[Anchor Lead]
There are several ways to cool down our increasingly warming planet. One approach involves applying special coatings to roofs to lower their temperatures—a concept known as 'Cool Roof.' The city of Suwon has initiated a 'Cool Roof' project at senior centers, with football players rolling up their sleeves to help.

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The rooftop of a senior center, covered in waterproof paint. The green roof is a familiar sight in Korea. Not long after, thanks to a joint effort, the roof turns white. It is the so-called cool roof, designed to lower temperature by reflecting sunlight and heat. The volunteers who teamed up with experts were civil servants at Suwon City Hall. Depending on the color of the roof, temperatures vary by more than 20 degrees. This time, football players lend a hand. They are players of the Suwon Football Club. While they're novices at doing such work the athletes are as focused as when they're playing soccer judging by the thorough hand movement, the look on their faces and the visible level of passion.

[Soundbite]
It's fun. It's like painting a picture.

Cool roof installments lowering temperatures by 2 to 4 degrees can also save air conditioning costs by about 20%. The second cool roof senior center is born, thanks to the footballers. Suwon FC said such activity is part of the team's responsibility to give back to fans.

[Soundbite]
Choi Soon-ho (General manager, Suwon FC): It's good to know what we did help ensure some people enjoy cooler summer and warmer winter.

[Soundbite]
Kim Eun-joong (Coach, Suwon FC): Suwon FC receives a lot of support from citizens all the time. We should pay it back whenever there is a chance.

The city of Suwon, together with its volunteer center, will continue the cool roof project until the year end.

[Soundbite]
Choi Young-hwa (Director, Suwon Volunteer Center): This way we save labor costs and only spend on material expenses. We hope to install cool roofs at more senior centers.


Planet earth, as well as the elderly using the centers can now cool off a bit all thanks to the meaningful work by volunteers.

ENTERTAINMENT NEWS ROUNDUP

[Anchor Lead]
Now turning to cultural news. Leading K-pop girl groups aespa and IVE are making their return with new albums. Meanwhile, hip hop musician Zico will take over as host of KBS's popular music talk show, "The Seasons." Here's more.

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K-pop girl group IVE are making a comeback. They announced the news by unveiling concept photos and video of their second album titled "IVE Switch." The album containing six songs will again have double title tracks. Another girl group Aespa, known for their unique vocals and choreography, are also set to greet fans. Their new album "Armageddon," coming out next month, is their first full-length album since their debut four years ago. Aespa are expected to showcase a deeper side of their music with the new album. NewJeans were early to announce their comeback scheduled for next month. It will be a battle of female bands on the K-pop scene this spring. Jay Park, Jannabi member Choi Jung Hoon, the sibling band AKMU and pop diva Lee Hyo-ri. They were hosts of the late night KBS music talk show "The Seasons," which has been receiving much love. The show will kick off its fifth season. The next host is hip hop musician Zico. The show's title will be "Artist," after Zico's own song. It implies the program will be a music party bringing together artists, spectators and viewers at home.

[Soundbite]
Zico (Host of The Seasons' ‘Artist’): I joined with the hopes to play the role of a messenger in introducing musicians of various fields.

The first episode of KBS The Seasons "Zico's Artist" will air at 10 p.m. on Friday. BB Girls have gained popularity after their 2017 song "Rollin'" reentered the music charts. Following the departure of Yujeong, the group will become a three-member act. The group recently ended their contract with Warner Music Korea and will start afresh with independent label BB Girls Company. Yujeong said she thought hard over the decision to leave hundreds of times adding she will continue her activities as Nam You-jeong.