NEWS BRIEF

[Anchor Lead]

Minor opposition People’s Party leader Ahn Cheol-soo declared his third presidential bid on Monday morning. He pledged to depart from the old politics of hatred and deceit and open up the age of transition and reform. He also stressed himself as the best alternative to the current established politicians, criticizing the Moon Jae-in administration as well as presidential hopefuls from the ruling and main opposition parties.
South Korea and the U.S. will conduct a combined air exercise for five days starting from Monday. A South Korean military official said the scale and form of this year’s exercise are similar to those in previous years. Therefore, the U.S. will mobilize forces only stationed on the Korean Peninsula with no additional troops dispatched from the mainland. The South Korean Air Force will deploy the F-15K and KF-16 fighter jets for the joint drill. The two countries used to hold the annual wintertime air exercise “Vigilant Ace” in December. However, they scaled down the exercise and replaced it with a comprehensive combat readiness drill in 2018 amid improving relations with North Korea.
President Moon Jae-in arrived in Glasgow, Scotland, on Monday, Korean time, to attend the 26th U.N. Climate Change Conference of the Parties, known as COP26. After wrapping up his schedule at the G20 summit held in Italy, Moon flew to Britain and attended the COP26 at the invitation of British Prime Minister Boris Johnson. At the UN climate change conference, the president will deliver addresses and introduce South Korea’s efforts for carbon neutrality and target to reduce green house gas emissions.