Day: June 19, 2023

South Korea head coach Jurgen Klinsmann said Monday he would like to see his team take charge from the opening kickoff in their next friendly match against El Salvador.

The match kicks off at 8 p.m. at Daejeon World Cup Stadium in the central city of Daejeon.

South Korea suffered a 1-0 loss to Peru last Friday, leaving Klinsmann winless in three matches at the South Korean helm. The Taegeuk Warriors had a 2-2 draw against Colombia and then took a 2-1 loss against Uruguay in March.

At the prematch presser on the eve of the El Salvador game, Klinsmann said he wants South Korea to dictate the match and “not wait until something happens.”

“Against Peru, we lost one-versus-one battles in the first half an hour, and we went down a goal and we chased the game,” Klinsmann said. “Hopefully, the team does a lot better tomorrow. We have to be aggressive from the first second on.”

On paper, South Korea, at No. 27 in the FIFA rankings, should be favored against 75th-ranked El Salvador. The Central American nation lost to Japan 6-0 in their previous match last week, though Klinsmann guarded against any overconfidence on his players’ part.

“I told the team not to measure El Salvador on this defeat in Japan. The game was over after three minutes: first goal, penalty, red card and second goal,” Klinsmann said. “We will see a different El Salvador tomorrow night.”

Having talisman and captain Son Heung-min back in the mix should help Klinsmann’s bid for his first win on the South Korean bench, after the Tottenham Hotspur star sat out Friday while recovering from sports hernia surgery. The coach said, however, Son doesn’t yet have legs to play the full match and that he may bring the attacker off the bench in the second half, depending on the match situation.

Klinsmann said Son’s leadership off the field is just as valuable as his offense on the pitch, especially with four young players making their senior international debuts against Peru.

“His role off the field, for us coaches, is as important as on the field,” Klinsmann said. “You saw in the last game that four players earned their first caps for Korea. To guide these players through this process, we need someone like Sonny, with his experience, being on the players’ side. That’s why we’re so pleased. Obviously, when he’s on the field, we’re even happier.”

With Son, still in his prime at 30, leading the way, Klinsmann said he is “excited” about the current generation of players representing South Korea. He said he has taken calls from European coaches about South Korean players in the domestic K League and at the under-20 level.

“There’s so much to be proud of being a Korean football fan and so much to look forward to,” Klinsmann said. “I try to tell players to get hungrier and to be more confident. If you have a chance to play in Europe, go to Europe. There’s a lot happening here, and we coaches coming from abroad, we feel that. And we want to be part of this help, and push them and give them confidence.”

Source: Yonhap News Agency

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has called on China to use its influence on Pyongyang to stop the reclusive country from making further provocations, he said Monday, amid anticipation that North Korea may soon launch a space rocket in violation of United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolutions.

Blinken insisted China is in a “unique” position to encourage North Korea to act responsibly.

“We also spoke about North Korea’s increasingly reckless actions and rhetoric,” Blinken said of his ongoing visit to Beijing.

“All members of the international community have an interest in encouraging the DPRK to act responsibly, to stop launching missiles, to start engaging on its nuclear program,” the top U.S. diplomat told a press conference, referring to North Korea by its official name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.

His remarks follow a failed attempt by North Korea late last month to launch a space launch vehicle carrying what it claimed to be a military reconnaissance satellite.

The U.S. has declared the attempted launch a violation of multiple UNSC resolutions that prohibit North Korea from acquiring or using any ballistic missile technology.

Pyongyang, however, said it will continue to launch space launch vehicles until it succeeds, indicating a potential second launch in the near future.

Blinken highlighted China’s influence over Pyongyang.

“China is in a unique position to press Pyongyang to engage in dialogue and to end its dangerous behavior,” he told the press conference.

Source: Yonhap News Agency

A Montenegro court on Monday sentenced Do Kwon, the co-founder of Terraform Labs, and one of his aides to four months in prison on charges of using fake passports.

Kwon, 32, who was behind cryptocurrencies that suffered a multibillion-dollar crash last year, and his chief financial officer, identified only by his surname Han, were arrested at Podgorica Airport on March 23 after attempting to travel to Dubai with forged passports.

The Basic Court in Podgorica announced on its website it handed four-month prison terms to both. They denied the charges during previous hearings.

Earlier this month, the court granted bail to both on the condition that they each pay 400,000 euros (US$428,241) in bail money and are placed in confinement under police surveillance.

South Korea and the United States are seeking his extradition.

The duo had been on the run after fleeing South Korea while under a probe in connection to the crash of Terraform Labs’ TerraUSD and Luna coins in May last year, which wiped out nearly 50 trillion won ($38 billion) in market value.

South Korean prosecutors have since sought an arrest warrant for Kwon on allegations that included providing false information to investors and the violation of the capital market law.

Interpol also issued a red notice, used for the highest level of wanted suspects and criminals. His passport has since been invalidated.

Kwon is also wanted by the U.S., where he was charged with fraud by federal prosecutors in New York.

It is unclear whether Kwon would be sent to South Korea, as the country requested his extradition first.

In March, the Montenegrin justice minister said which country Kwon will be extradited to will be determined on the basis of the location and the time of his criminal offense and other factors.

TerraUSD was designed as a stablecoin, which was pegged to stable assets, like the U.S. dollar. But holders of TerraUSD and Luna lost more than an estimated $40 billion in market value after the stablecoin plunged far below its $1 peg last May.

Source: Yonhap News Agency

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has called on China to use its influence on Pyongyang to stop the reclusive country from making further provocations, he said Monday, amid anticipation that North Korea may soon launch a space rocket in violation of United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolutions.

Blinken insisted China is in a “unique” position to encourage North Korea to act responsibly.

“We also spoke about North Korea’s increasingly reckless actions and rhetoric,” Blinken said of his ongoing visit to Beijing.

“All members of the international community have an interest in encouraging the DPRK to act responsibly, to stop launching missiles, to start engaging on its nuclear program,” the top U.S. diplomat told a press conference, referring to North Korea by its official name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.

His remarks follow a failed attempt by North Korea late last month to launch a space launch vehicle carrying what it claimed to be a military reconnaissance satellite.

The U.S. has declared the attempted launch a violation of multiple UNSC resolutions that prohibit North Korea from acquiring or using any ballistic missile technology.

Pyongyang, however, said it will continue to launch space launch vehicles until it succeeds, indicating a potential second launch in the near future.

Blinken highlighted China’s influence over Pyongyang.

“China is in a unique position to press Pyongyang to engage in dialogue and to end its dangerous behavior,” he told the press conference.

Later, the state department reiterated that the secretary expressed concerns over a range of global issues, including the threat posed by North Korea.

“The two sides discussed a range of global and regional security issues, including Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, the DPRK’s provocative actions, and U.S. concerns with PRC intelligence activities in Cuba,” it said of Blinken’s meetings with his Chinese counterparts in a press release. PRC stands for the People’s Republic of China.

“The secretary made clear that the United States will work with its allies and partners to advance our vision for a world that is free, open and upholds the rules-based international order,” it added.

Source: Yonhap News Agency