After being traded by the same Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) team for the second time in his career this week, Kim Sang-hyun didn't initially hide his disappointment.In his first game for the SK Wyverns since being moved by the Kia Tigers, the right-handed slugger put what bitter feelings he might have had behind him, and made an immediate impact on the field. Batting cleanup for the Incheon-based club following Monday's trade, Kim went 3-for-4 with two RBIs and two runs scored. Both RBIs ca

South Korea has approved 14 business projects related to a scenic mountain resort in North Korea, according to a government Web site Wednesday, raising speculation Seoul may be moving to lift restrictions on the resort that has been put on ice for nearly five years. The Ministry of Unification's Web site showed approval was given on Feb. 15 to businesses that applied to engage in various business operations at the scenic mountain resort on the communist country's east coast.This marks the first

Basketball hall-of-famer Dennis Rodman, who forged an unlikely friendship with North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un on a recent trip, appealed Tuesday for the freedom of an American sentenced to 15 years."I'm calling on the Supreme Leader of North Korea or as I call him 'Kim', to do me a solid and cut Kenneth Bae loose," Rodman tweeted.Bae, whose Korean name is Pae Jun-Ho, was sentenced last week to 15 years of hard labor on charges that he tried to topple the North Korean regime. The Korean-American

Sexual assaults in the U.S. military are a growing epidemic across the services and thousands of victims are still unwilling to come forward despite a slew of new oversight and assistance programs, according to a new Pentagon report.Troubling new numbers estimate that up to 26,000 military members may have been sexually assaulted last year, according to survey results released against a backdrops of scandals including an ongoing investigation into more than 30 Air Force instructors for assaults

The U.S. and Russia agreed Tuesday to try to convene an international conference this month to come to a political solution to end the two-year Syrian civil war but gave no indication how they would convince President Bashar Assad into talks with the rebels seeking to overthrow him.Secretary of State John Kerry said that if such a gambit were successful, it might no longer be necessary to consider arming the Syrian rebels. Kerry also said it was up to the Syrian people whether Assad should leave

The man accused in the deadly Colorado theater shootings wants to change his plea to not guilty by reason of insanity, his lawyers said Tuesday, despite their fears that the plea could severely hamper his ability mount a defense against the death penalty.James Holmes is charged with more than 160 counts of murder and attempted murder in the July 20 assault on a packed movie theater that killed 12 and injured 70. Prosecutors announced last month they would seek the death penalty.Holmes was widely

The World Trade Organization has settled on Roberto Azevedo of Brazil, a well-known diplomat and consummate insider in Geneva circles, to serve as its director-general for the next four years, officials said Tuesday.Azevedo won by positioning himself as someone who could turn around _ even heal _ the organization as it struggles for relevancy in global trade negotiations.The directorship is chosen by consensus in a complex and secretive process, and the runner-up is expected to concede afterward

South Korean stocks opened higher on Wednesday, tracking gains on Wall Street in the previous trading session, analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) moved up 3.85 points, or 0.2 percent, to 1,958.20 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Shares gathered ground across the board, with leading chipmaker SK hynix rising 0.87 percent and top steelmaker POSCO climbing 0.31 percent. No. 1 auto parts manufacturer Hyundai Mobis moved up 0.58 percent.U.S. stocks ended higher on

Just two months after recovering the last of its losses from the financial crisis, the Dow Jones industrial average punched through another milestone Tuesday, closing above 15,000 for the first time.Good economic reports, strong corporate earnings and fresh support from central banks helped ease investor concerns about another economic slowdown. Many had been on the lookout for signs that a spring swoon would derail the rally, as happened in each of the past three years.Instead, the Dow continue

The government will disclose the home addresses of convicted sex offenders and make them available via mobile handsets as part of efforts to effectively protect children from sex crimes, officials said Tuesday.Under a revised law set to go into effect on June 19, the government will expand the scope of sex criminals' personal information subject to disclosure to include the street name and house number, according to the officials at the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family.The law was part of

금융권이 제2의 STX나 웅진그룹 사태가 재발하는 것을 막고자 이르면 내달부터 대기업에 대한 재무관리를 강화하기로 했다.7일 금융권에 따르면 금융감독원은 대기업의 방만한 경영과 무분별한 투자 행위를 막기 위한 ‘주채권은행 업무 가이드라인’을 마련해 이르면 내달 은행연합회 준칙에 포함시킬 방침이다.감독 당국은 주채권은행이 대기업 재무 관리를 잘하는지 파악하기 위해 현장 검사 등을 주기적으로 단행하기로 했으며 문제가 적발되면 제재하는 방안을 고려 중이다.금융감독원은 이에 따라 부실 대기업을 제대로 관리하지 못한 주채권 은행들에 대한 제제를 강화하는 방안도 검토하고 있다고 한다.이와 같은 조치는 대기업들이 재무상태를 정확하게 밝히지 않은 채 갑작스런 구조조정 등을 통해 금융 시장에 혼란을 주는 것을 방지하고자 하는 목적인 것으로 알려졌다.이번 결정은 유동성 위기를 겪는 STX그룹에 대한 금융권의 여신 규모가 13조원을 넘긴 가운데 내려졌다. STX 그룹은 주요업종인 조선, 해운 등이 장기

미국에서 10년간 실종되어있던 여성들이 지난 6일 (현지시간) 오하이오의 한 가정집에서 극적으로 구출되었다고 CNN과 AP통신 등이 보도했다.보도에 따르면 6일, 스스로를 “아만다 베리”라고 밝힌 한 여성이 긴급 구조대에 전화해 자신이 납치되었다고 밝혔다고 한다. 그녀는 다급한 목소리로 “납치범이 돌아오기 전에 구해달라”고 간곡히 부탁했다.경찰은 긴급전화가 온 곳으로 가서 베리를 구출했다. 그녀는 지난 2003년 4월 21일, 자신의 17번째 생일을 하루 앞두고 실종되었다.당국은 베리가 있던 집에서 각각 2004년과 2000년에 실종된 지나 드지저스와 미셸 나이트를 발견했는데, 실종 당시 드지저스는 14살, 나이트는 20살이었다.이번 납치사건과 관련해 피해자들이 발견된 집의 주인은 한 52세 남성과 그의 형제 두 명이 체포되었다. 경찰은 용의자에 대한 상세 정보나 이들이 받고 있는 혐의에 대해서 아직 공개하지 않았다.사건과 관련된 결정적인 제보를 한 용의자의 이웃에 따르면, 이번 사

남파간첩을 주제로 한 영화 “은밀하게, 위대하게”가 6월 개봉을 앞두고 있다. 만화가 허훈의 인기웹툰을 원작으로 한 이 영화는 북한의 엘리트 비밀요원들이 작전을 위해 대한민국에 잠입한 이후 한 달동네에서 동네주민들과 부대끼며 살아가는 모습을 그린다. 지난달 30일 열린 영화의 쇼케이스 겸 제작보고회에서 북한 측 첩보원 역할을 맡은 박기웅은 “북한 출신 캐릭터가 남한 달동네에 동화되는 모습을 통해 인간적인 감동을 받길 바란다”고 팬들에게 당부했다. “은밀하게, 위대하게”에서 그려진 북한 간첩들의 인간적인 모습은 과거에 그저 적으로만 묘사되었던 북한인들의 모습과는 크게 차이가 있다. 1980년대까지만 하더라도 사회 내에 만연한 반공(反共)분위기로 인해 북한사람들을 “사람냄새 나는” 식으로 그린 대중매체는 찾아보기 힘들었다. 박정희, 전두환으로 이어지는 군사정권은 반(反) 공산주의를 철저하게 강조했고 “주적”으로 설정된 북한사람들에 대한 동정적인 시각을 내비치는 영화는 거의 없었다.북한에

Tokyo stocks soared Tuesday, closing at their highest level in almost five years with the market driven by a weakening yen and after Wall Street hit fresh all-time highs on solid jobs data.The benchmark Nikkei 225 index added 3.55 percent, or 486.20 points, to 14,180.24, its best finish since June 2008, while the broader Topix index of all first-section shares was up 3.06 percent, or 35.29 points, to 1,188.57.Japan's premier bourse has rocketed since late last year as Tokyo pledged to boost the

South Korean stocks opened lower on Tuesday due to weak growth momentum on the local market, analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 4.01 points, or 0.2 percent, to 1,957.47 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Tech shares traded bearish, with market behemoth Samsung Electronics falling 0.92 percent and top chipmaker SK hynix losing 0.69 percent. LG Electronics moved down 0.35 percent.Carmakers also lost ground, with No. 1 industry player Hyundai Motor falling 1.

North Korea's military warned Tuesday that it would mercilessly avenge any breach of its territorial sovereignty by South Korea or the United States during the ongoing anti-submarine drills in the Yellow Sea.The Southwestern Front Command of the Korean People's Army said it has directed its troops to immediately strike back in case even a single shell falls in its territorial waters, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said.The anti-submarine drill that began Sunday and runs through Friday com

Samsung Electronics Co. is partly responsible for last week's highly poisonous hydrofluoric acid leak at its main chip plant in southwestern South Korea, a government official said Tuesday.For the second time in just three months, a small amount of diluted hydrofluoric acid, a colorless acute poison that can damage the lungs and bones and even affect the nervous system, leaked at the semiconductor plant in Hwaseong, 60 kilometers south of Seoul, on Thursday, injuring three subcontract workers.Af

President Park Geun-hye warned Monday North Korea will "pay" if the communist nation launches attacks like its sinking of a warship and shelling of a border island in 2010.Park made the remark during an interview with CBS television broadcast Monday."Yes, we will make them pay," Park said in response to whether South Korea will respond militarily if North Korea launches small-scale attacks like the ones in 2010 that claimed the lives of 50 South Koreans.Park also called for an end to rewarding N

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon expressed support Monday for South Korean President Park Geun-hye's vision for confidence-building with North Korea and promised to play whatever roles possible for peace on the Korean Peninsula, an official said.The South Korean-born U.N. chief made the remarks when he met with Park at U.N. headquarters. Park arrived in New York on Sunday on the first leg of a five-day visit to the United States that will take her to Washington later Monday for a summit with P

China has engaged in widespread cyber espionage in a bid to extract information about the U.S. government's foreign policy and military plans, said a Pentagon report issued Monday.China kept up a steady campaign of hacking in 2012 that included attempts to target U.S. government computer networks, which could provide Beijing a better insight into America's policy deliberations and military capabilities, according to the Pentagon's annual assessment of China's military."China is using its compute