President Barack Obama will hold his first summit with President Xi Jinping in California next month, with Sino-U.S. relations rattled by alleged Chinese cyber spying and tensions in the Pacific.Obama will welcome Xi to the plush Sunnylands estate resort in Palm Springs on June 7-8, as Washington seeks Chinese help to subdue North Korean belligerence and seeks a diplomatic breakthrough to end the slaughter in Syria.The talks will be the first major move by Obama in the crucial but delicate relat

The Pentagon sought Monday to play down a stream of North Korean short-range missile launches, saying tensions on the peninsula are low compared with "a few months ago."The U.S. military also announced a plan to test-fire a Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile this week, a move that it delayed last month amid worries over Pyongyang's provocations.Speaking to reporters, Pentagon Press Secretary George Little said, "We have noticed broadly that North Korea has ratcheted back its provoc

Ray Manzarek, the keyboardist and founding member of The Doors who had a dramatic impact on rock `n' roll, has died. He was 74.Manzarek died Monday in Rosenheim, Germany, surrounded by his family, said publicist Heidi Robinson-Fitzgerald. Robinson-Fitzgerald said his manager, Tom Vitorino, confirmed Manzarek died after being stricken by bile duct cancer.Manzarek founded The Doors after meeting then-poet Jim Morrison in California. The band went on to become one of the most successful rock `n' ro

South Korea's antitrust watchdog has launched an investigation into an online marketing and advertisement unit of NHN Corp. in what appears to be its stepped-up efforts to crack down on unfair business practices, industry sources said Tuesday.The Fair Trade Commission (FTC) started to send a team of investigators on May 13 to the offices of the NHN Business Platform (NBP) located in Bundang, south of Seoul, to obtain related data and documents, according to the sources. The investigators are rep

Prosecutors raided CJ Group, a major local conglomerate, on Tuesday as part of an investigation into allegations that the food and entertainment conglomerate managed a massive slush fund overseas.The prosecution has been looking into suspicions that the business group had set aside a large sum of the fund worth tens of billions of won and brought it into the country.A team of investigators and prosecutors of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office seized computer hard discs and relevant d

미국의 싱어송라이터 가수 제이슨 므라즈가 금요일 밤 한국팬들을 다시 찾았다. 6번째 내한공연임에도 불구하고 므라즈는 잠실 종합운동장에 1만8천명의 팬들을 운집시켰다. 오프닝 공연에서는 슈퍼스타K4 우승자 로이킴이 ‘봄,봄,봄`을 노래하고 떠오르는 영국 가수 조 브룩스(25)도 출연했다.   마침내 므라즈가 무대에 올라 2011년 프로모션 싱글 ‘더 월드 애즈 아이 시 잇`으로 공연의 포문을 연 후 데뷔앨범 히트곡 ‘더 레메디(아이 원트 워리)`로 관객들을 과거로 데려갔다. 라이브 밴드도 짜릿한 브라스 공연과 함께 므라즈의 인기곡 인기곡 ‘버터플라이`에 생기를 불어넣었으며 므라즈는 약속한 대로 신곡 ‘쓰리 싱즈`를 공개했다. 므라즈는 탱고풍의 경쾌한 퍼커션 연주를 중간에 삽입해 그래미상 수상 싱글인 ‘메이크 인 마인`, ‘럭키`를 부르기도 했다.  므라즈는 공연 도중 특유의 가짜 영국발음으로 멘트를 날리며 팬들을 즐겁게 했다. 그는 “더 우먼 아이 러브 (내가 사랑하는 여인)”을 “관

한 설문조사에서 국민들 중 약 80%는 윤창중 전 대통령 대변인의 성추행 의혹이 박근혜 대통령의 국정 운영에 영향을 줄 것으로 보인다고 생각했다. 지난주 민간 여론조사업체인 모노 리서치가 실시한 여론조사에 따르면 여론조사 응답자 1，191명 중 76%는 장기 또는 단기간이든 “그의 행동이 현 정부의 국정운영에 불가피하게 영향을 미칠 것”이라는데 동의했다. 그 밖의 22%는 이 사건이 그의 사적인 문제이기 때문에 “심각한 영향을 미치지는 않을 것이다”라고 말한 반면에 2%는 “잘 모르겠다”고 응답했다.  응답자의 약 40%는 지난주 월요일 수석비서관들과의 회동에서 박 대통령의 사과가 현재로서는 그가 할 수 있는 최선이라고 말한 반면에 34%는 만족스럽지 않다고， 22%는 형식과 내용 면에서 모두 부적절하다고 응답했다. 약 57%는 박 대통령의 국정 운영에 대해 긍정적으로 평가해 4월 25일 54%보다 상승했다.  <관련 영문 기사>Public see groping scandal har

The San Antonio Spurs drained 14 three-pointers in a convincing 105-83 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies in Sunday's opening game of the NBA's Western Conference finals.Tony Parker scored 20 points and handed out nine assists for the Spurs, whose stifling defense held Grizzlies' top scorer Zach Randolph to only two points.Randolph came in averaging 19.7 points per game in this post-season, but finished just 1-of-8 from the field for a Grizzlies team appearing in the conference finals for the fi

Prosecutors on Monday raided an office of the Seoul police in connection with a female detective's claims that high-ranking police officers hampered an investigation into the nation's intelligence agency's alleged attempt to influence public opinion ahead of last year's presidential election.A team of prosecutors and investigators of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office raided the cyber crime unit of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency (SMPA) and seized computer hard discs and relevan

South Korean stocks opened higher Monday, taking a cue from overnight gains on Wall Street, analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) edged up 1.36 points, or 0.07 percent, to 1,988.17 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Shares gathered ground across the board, with No. 1 carmaker Hyundai Motor rising 0.26 percent and top steelmaker POSCO adding 0.93 percent. Leading mobile carrier SK Telecom added 2.13 percent.U.S. stocks ended higher on Friday on the country's improv

Arsenal qualified for the Champions League for the 16th straight season after edging Tottenham to fourth place in the Premier League, as Alex Ferguson bowed out as Manchester United manager with a 5-5 draw against West Bromwich Albion.Laurent Koscielny's 52nd-minute volley sealed an unconvincing 1-0 for Arsenal at Newcastle, rendering Spurs' 1-0 victory over Sunderland _ courtesy of a late screamer from Gareth Bale _ meaningless.“We celebrated a bit like we had won the championship, which was a

A key city in northeast Nigeria was on lockdown Sunday as the military enforced a 24-hour curfew and blocked supply routes in its sweeping campaign against Islamist insurgents. The operation against Boko Haram, the group that wants an Islamic state in northern Nigeria, is aimed at retaking territory seized by the militants and ridding the country of "terrorist activities," the military has said. The offensive has included air strikes on Boko Haram strongholds in remote parts of northeastern Born

South Korea plans to issue a maximum of 3.61 trillion won (US$3.23 billion) worth of lotteries next year to meet growing demand, the finance ministry said Monday.According to the ministry in charge of lottery polices, the issuance ceiling is up 3.6 percent from 3.49 trillion won set for this year. The ministry expects that the actual sales will amount to 3.31 trillion won next year.The ministry plans to issue 3.04 trillion won worth of online lotteries, including the most popular lotto. The ceil

After all these years, Rafael Nadal still knows how to dominate Roger Federer.In the 30th meeting between the two tennis greats, Nadal controlled the final from start to finish to win 6-1, 6-3 Sunday for his seventh Italian Open title.“Rafa was just too good today,” Federer said.It tied for the second most lop-sided win in the series since Nadal also lost just four games, but over three sets, in the 2008 French Open final against Federer. At the tour finals in London in 2011, Nadal allowed Feder

Following their subpar performances last week, two South Korean first-division football teams now face must-win situations in AFC Champions League action.FC Seoul and Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors, representing the K League Classic, have to win the second legs in their round of 16 series this week to advance at the continent's premier club tournament.The K League Classic has produced three of the past four AFC champions.FC Seoul will host Beijing Guoan of the Chinese Super League at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday a

Bae Sang-moon captured the HP Byron Nelson Championship on the PGA Tour on Sunday in Texas, becoming the third South Korean golfer to win on the most prestigious men's golf circuit.At TPC Four Seasons Resort in Irving, Texas, Bae shot a 1-under 69 in the final round for a four-round total of 13-under 267, beating Keegan Bradley of the U.S. by two strokes. The 26-year-old South Korean took home US$1.17 million for his efforts."The course was really tough," said Bae, who claimed his first PGA Tour

"Great Gatsby" star Leonardo DiCaprio on Wednesday opened the 66th Cannes Film Festival ahead of the European premiere of Baz Luhrmann's controversial 3-D epic, kicking off the world's most prestigious film fest.Steven Spielberg, Nicole Kidman, Carey Mulligan and a troupe of 1920s "flapper" dancers were among those braving driving rain and plunging temperatures on the red carpet.Dresses billowed in the wind outside the festival palace forcing stars to hang on to their hemlines.Inside, Spielberg,

The nation's top court ruled Thursday that forced sex with a spouse constitutes rape, recognizing marital rape as a crime for the first time.Upholding a lower court's verdict, the Supreme Court sentenced a 45-year-old man, whose identity has been withheld, to three years and six months in prison for forcing his wife to have sex with him by threatening her with a lethal weapon. Spousal rape has not been seen as a crime in South Korea since the Supreme Court denied such a crime in the 1970s, excep

A construction company owned by a local politician demolished a 2,300-year-old Mayan temple in northern Belize to use the rubble as gravel for road repair work, authorities charged.The ancient 30-meter high pyramid, which was reduced to a small mound of debris, was part of the Noh Mul ceremonial center located 80 kilometers (50 miles) northwest of Belize City near the border with Mexico."This total disregard for Belize's cultural heritage and national patrimony is callous, ignorant and unforgiva

Midfielder Kim Nam-il, an integral player in South Korea's historic run to the semifinals at the 2002 FIFA World Cup, is back on the men's national team for the first time in three years.The Korea Football Association (KFA) on Thursday announced a 25-man roster for South Korea's last three matches in the final Asian qualification round for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. Kim, 36, last represented the country at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.South Korea will travel to Beirut to face Lebanon at