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1. South Korea established diplomatic relations with Cuba on Wednesday, its mission to the United Nations said, in a surprise announcement that could pose a setback to North Korea that has long boasted brotherly ties with the Latin American country.

2. The Korean Central News Agency reported Thursday that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un supervised the test-firing of a new surface-to-sea missile, named {바다수리}Padasuri-6, and ordered a tighter defense posture near the western maritime border.

3. The Korean Medical Student Association announced Thursday that medical students will take collective action against the government's planned expansion of the quota for medical school admissions, with a survey of 20-thousand students nationwide set to be conducted on whether to take a leave of absence en masse.

1. The Joint Chiefs of Staff said North Korea fired several cruise missiles off the east coast Wednesday. The South Korean military detected the missiles launched at around 9 a.m. into waters northeast of Wonsan on the east coast. It marked the North's fifth cruise missile launch this year.

2. The European Commission, the executive body of the European Union, on Tuesday conditionally approved a merger deal of 1.8 trillion-won, or roughly 1.4 billion U.S. dollars, between Korean Air and Asiana Airlines. The companies are now waiting for the final approval from the United States, out of 14 countries.

3. South Korean swimming star {황선우}Hwang Sun-woo claimed gold in the men's 200-meter freestyle at the World Aquatics Championships in Qatar on Tuesday. {김우민}Kim Woo-min also won the gold medal in the men's 400-meter freestyle at the world championships on Sunday.

1. An association of trainee doctors formed an emergency committee on Tuesday in protest of the government's plan to increase the number of medical students by 2-thousand. The association made no announcement about collective action after all-night discussions earlier in the day.

2. President Yoon Suk Yeol on Monday appointed former Industry Minister {주형환}Joo Hyung-hwan as vice chairman of the Presidential Committee on Aging Society and Population Policy, and {윤오준}Yun Oh-jun as the third deputy director of the National Intelligence Service.

3. The price of bitcoin traded above 50-thousand U.S. dollars on Monday for the first time since 2021. The cryptocurrency has gained almost 15 per cent since the start of the year, largely driven by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission approval of several spot bitcoin exchange traded funds.

1. According to the Korea Expressway Corp., some 5.2 million cars are expected to hit the road nationwide Friday, the first day of the Lunar New Year holiday. The Transport ministry designated over 130 locations on highways and roads for special management to ease congestion. Highway tolls will be exempt from Friday through Monday.

2. Four third-party forces which broke away from the ruling and opposition parties, have agreed to merge into one new party ahead of the April general elections. Related officials announced Friday that the envisioned party will be named the Reform Party.

3. According to North Korea's state media on Friday, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un again called South Korea the North's "primary foe" and vowed to guard the country through power rather than negotiations.

1. President Yoon Suk Yeol’s Lunar New Year holiday interview with KBS TV aired on Wednesday night. During the 90-minute interview Yoon revealed his administration’s policies for the new year.

2. President Yoon Suk Yeol pledged Thursday to implement various policy support measures to assist small business owners struggling with loan repayments. The government will work to refund the interest, averaging 1 million won, or 753 U.S. dollars, per person, with the total refunded amount reaching 2.4 trillion won.

3. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a Wednesday briefing dismissed Hamas’ proposals for a ceasefire and hostage deal in Gaza, calling them “delusional” in a setback to diplomatic efforts to pause the war.

1. South Korea’s Foreign Minister (조태열)Cho Tae-yul spoke by phone with his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, on Tuesday to discuss North Korea and bilateral issues. In the first such talks between the two diplomats since Cho’s inauguration, Wang Yi extended an invitation for Cho to visit Beijing.

2. South Korea and Saudi Arabia’s defense ministries announced Tuesday that the two countries have secured a three-point-two billion dollar deal to export a mid-range surface-to-air missile defense system to Saudi Arabia.

3. The Korea Medical Association is set to hold meetings Wednesday to discuss actions against the government’s plan to expand medical school admissions quota. The Ministry of Health and Welfare said it is bracing for a potential strike by doctors and establishing contingency plans.

1. The Ministry of Health and Welfare said Tuesday it plans to increase the number of medical students by 2,000 next year, in a bid to address the chronic shortages of doctors in rural areas and the essential health care field. The plan is expected to draw fierce protests from doctors.

2. President Yoon Suk Yeol on Tuesday granted special pardons to more than 450-thousand people on the occasion of the Lunar New Year, including former Defense Minister Kim Kwan-jin and former presidential chief of staff Kim Ki-choon.

3. The Ministry of Economy and Finance said Monday the OECD revised down its outlook for South Korea's economic growth this year to 2.2 percent, from its projection of 2.3 percent made in November. The projection was on par with that by the South Korean government.

1. President Yoon Suk Yeol on Monday reiterated the importance of public education in childcare, while vowing to ensure that the after-school child care program expands to two-thousand elementary schools in the first half of this year, and all elementary schools by 2026.

2. The Seoul Central District Court acquitted Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong on Monday after he was indicted on charges of involvement in the controversial 2015 merger of Cheil Industries Incorporation and Samsung C&T Corporation to solidify his managerial control of the group.

3. According to the foreign ministry on Sunday, Russian deputy foreign minister Andrey Rudenko visited Seoul last Friday. Rudenko’s visit came a day after Moscow's Foreign Ministry spokesperson publicly criticized President Yoon Suk Yeol for his remarks on North Korea as being "blatantly biased."

1. According to data from Statistics Korea on Friday, South Korea's inflation fell below 3 percent for the first time in six months in January. Consumer prices, a key gauge of inflation, rose 2.8 percent on-year last month, compared with a 3.2 percent increase a month earlier.

2. President Yoon Suk Yeol is expected to hold a pre-recorded interview scheduled two days before the Lunar New Year holidays with public broadcaster KBS, as pressure builds to address the alleged graft scandal involving first lady Kim Keon Hee.

3. The Joint Chiefs of Staff said Friday that North Korea fired several cruise missiles off the west coast at around 11 a.m. in the latest in a series of the North's cruise missile launches this year.

1. The U.S. Federal Reserve on Wednesday held its benchmark lending rate steady between 5.25 and 5.50 percent for a fourth consecutive time. After the two-day Federal Open Market Committee meeting, Fed Chair Jerome Powell said that a rate cut in March is "probably not the most likely case."

2. The main opposition Democratic Party on Thursday rejected the ruling party’s proposal that would have granted small businesses an additional two-year grace period from the Serious Accidents Punishment Act. The application of the act was expanded to businesses with fewer than 50 employees last Saturday.

3. The fourth Winter Youth Olympics will conclude on Thursday with a celebration of feats accomplished by teenage athletes over the past two weeks. Organizers of Gangwon 2024 said Tuesday that the closing ceremony will begin at 8 p.m. Thursday under the theme, "Shine Again."