Russia, the United States and other world powers tried to put their sharp differences over Ukraine to one side on Tuesday as they kicked off the latest nuclear talks with Iran in Vienna.The gathering is the second in a series of meetings aiming to transform by July a November interim deal into a lasting accord that resolves for good the decade-old standoff and removes the threat of war.So far, despite disagreements over the Syria conflict and other issues, the six powers have shown a united fron

The United States and China have “much more to gain” from closer cooperation in reining in North Korea’s nuclear ambitions, the new U.S. ambassador to China said Tuesday. At his first press conference as ambassador, Max Baucus also pledged to build a “stronger relationship” between the world’s two largest economies and militaries, saying it would not only benefit the two nations but also the whole world. “Leaders of both sides recognize that we are much more to gain from cooperation than conflic

The crimes of North Korea's regime are as chilling as those of the Nazis, South Africa's apartheid regime or Cambodia's Khmer Rouge and must be stopped, the head of a U.N. inquiry said Monday."Contending with the great scourges of Nazism, apartheid, the Khmer Rouge and other affronts required courage by great nations and ordinary human beings alike," Michael Kirby told the U.N. Human Rights Council."It is now your solemn duty to address the scourge of human rights violations and crimes against h

The last words from a Malaysian passenger jet missing for 10 days were spoken by the co-pilot, the airline said Monday, providing a new glimpse into the crucial period when the plane was deliberately diverted.Confirmation that the voice was First Officer Fariq Abdul Hamid’s came during a press conference at which Malaysian officials hit back at “irresponsible” suggestions that they had misled the public -- and passenger’s relatives -- over what happened to Malaysia Airlines Flight 370.China has

Confirmation that the people of the Ukrainian region of Crimea have voted to join Russia caused barely a ripple in financial markets Monday, partly because the verdict had been widely discounted.Worries that the Crimea issue might prompt an escalation in tensions between Russia and Western powers have driven financial markets over the past few weeks. In the run-up to Sunday’s referendum, many stock markets around the world hit multi-week lows while `safe haven’ investments such as the Japanese y

A day after North Korea test-fired 25 rockets from its east coast, the mobile launchers remained in place on Monday, a potential sign of additional provocations, a military source said. The latest move comes as South Korea has increased military vigilance in the wake of the North's rocket launches, seen as a show of protest against ongoing joint military drills between Seoul and Washington. "About 10 mobile launchers are seen (in satellite images) near Wonsan in Kangwon Province, where the North

The South Korean government announced on Monday it will seek to award three medalists from the recent Winter Olympics the most prestigious national order of merit in sports, in an apparent attempt to assuage critics of its revamped qualification requirements for the honors.In a statement, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said speed skater Lee Sang-hwa, short tracker Park Seung-hi and figure skater Kim Yu-na will be considered for the Chungryong Medal, the highest decoration in South K

China's top negotiator on North Korea's nuclear program is visiting Pyongyang, the country's state media reported on Monday.The Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) did not give specifics on Wu Dawei's visit or the exact date of his arrival, but only said he had arrived in the North's capital.Wu's trip is the latest in a series of visits from Chinese officials to the neighboring country since the high-profile purge of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's uncle in December.Last month, the Chinese deleg

A fuel ration system in North Korea seems to have been dismantled due to a chronic fuel shortage, a report said Monday. The report by the state-run Korea Energy Economics Institute (KEEI) said a majority of households in North Korea secure their fuel for heating and cooking on the black market or by themselves, hinting that the country's fuel ration system might have been scrapped. The report was made on the basis of data compiled from a poll of 350 North Korean defectors who fled the country af

Europe and the United States on Monday mulled a financial aid plan as part of a political solution to Ukraine's crisis while President Viktor Yanukovych returned to work after four days of sick leave.EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, who is expected in Kiev this week, told the Wall Street Journal that the exact amount had not not been decided yet but said "the figures won't be small".She said the plan, which could be discussed at a meeting of EU foreign ministers on next Monday, would lo

An armed student on Monday briefly took 20 teenagers hostage in a Moscow school and killed a policeman and a teacher before being detained amid security jitters ahead of the Sochi Winter Olympic Games.Police said a student armed with a gun forced a security guard to lead him to a specific classroom in the school on the northern outskirts of Moscow and then locked himself inside with about 20 teenage pupils and the class teacher.He then opened fire through a window at scores of police who had rus

The manager of Olympic swimming great Ian Thorpe says the five-time gold medalist is in rehab after being found disoriented on a Sydney street early Monday morning by police responding to a call from residents.James Erskine told the Australian Associated Press that Thorpe was affected by a combination of antidepressants and the painkillers he was taking for a shoulder injury.Police spoke to Thorpe after residents near his parents' home in Panania in Sydney's southwest reported a man allegedly br

A Beijing court on Sunday sentenced a legal scholar and founder of a social movement to four years in prison for disrupting order in public places, a case that the U.S. government and other critics say is retribution for his push to fight corruption and create equal educational opportunities.Amid tight security, the Beijing No. 1 Intermediate People's Court handed down the verdict against Xu Zhiyong, founder of the loosely knit New Citizens movement, in a blow to the group and China's rights act

Anti-government demonstrators swarmed dozens of polling stations in Thailand on Sunday to stop advance voting for next week's general elections, chaining gates shut, threatening voters and preventing hundreds of thousands of people from casting ballots.A protest faction leader was fatally shot in a confrontation near a polling center that also left 11 people wounded, and isolated street brawls broke out in several parts of Bangkok.The chaos underscored the precariousness of Thailand's fragile de

After letting the distraction of Rafael Nadal's painful back problems cost him a set, Stan Wawrinka regained his composure to win his first Grand Slam title with a 6-3, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 victory Sunday in the Australian Open final.The 28-year-old Swiss player had never taken a set off Nadal in 12 previous meetings, but attacked from the start against the 13-time major winner.“It's really not the way you want to win a tennis match, but in a Grand Slam final I'll take it,” Wawrinka said.Nadal appeared

The most important issue concerning North Korea is the challenge it poses by continuing to pursue nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles, the top U.S. diplomat on Asia said Sunday.Assistant Secretary of State Daniel Russel made the remarks after meeting South Korean Deputy Foreign Minister Lee Kyung-soo in Seoul, saying the talks were part of intensive and in-depth discussions between South Korea and the U.S. on important issues related to North Korea.Russel, who accompanied Deputy Secretary of

오리에 이어 닭에서도 조류인플루엔자(AI) 감염이 처음으로 확인된 25일 충남 부여군 홍산면 한 종계장에서 공무원들이 살처분된 종계를 땅에 묻고자 화물차에 싣고 있다. 이곳에서 사육하던 종계는 1만6천여마리다. (연합)충남 부여 종계장에서 발견된 닭 폐사체에서 조류인플루엔자(AI) 항원(H5N8형)이 검출되면서 충남도 방역 당국에 비상이 걸렸다.도는 최근 서천 금강하구에서 가창오리 폐사체가 발견되자 금강하구와 연접한 부여, 논산 등에 AI 유입 차단을 위한 방역조치를 강화했음에도 불구하고 내륙에서 AI가 나오자 난감해하고 있다.대규모 닭·오리 농장이 밀집한 부여에서 AI가 발생함에 따라 인근 논산 등지로 확산할 가능성을 배제할 수 없고, 예방적 살처분 등에 따른 피해규모도 눈덩이처럼 불어날 것으로 예상된다.한편 경기도 역시 25일 화성시 시화호 일대 철새 분변에서 조류인플루엔자(AI) 'H5N8'형 바이러스가 검출됐다고 밝혔으며 검역본부는 고병원성인지, AI가 발생한 지역과 역학관계

Health authorities said Saturday they've confirmed a case of avian influenza (AI) in a chicken at a southern region farm and another in feces of migratory birds in the central part of the country, amid ongoing quarantine efforts to contain the bird flu virus since earlier this month.The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs said it will try to determine whether the infected poultry contains the highly pathogenic H5N8 strain of the virus and will announce its findings on Sunday. It said

China has taken note of a move by the U.S. state of Virginia to require school textbooks to use both names used by South Korea and Japan for a body of water between them, Beijing's foreign ministry said Saturday.For decades, South Korea and Japan have locked horns over the name of the body of water, with Seoul calling it the "East Sea" while Tokyo uses the name "Sea of Japan."In a victory for ethnic Koreans in Virginia against high-profile lobbying by the Japanese Embassy in Washington, the U.S.

A veteran chief judge of a local court was nominated to become a Supreme Court justice Saturday, the top court's officials said.They said Supreme Court Chief Justice Yang Sung-tae has picked Cho Hee-dae, the top judge at the Daegu District Court, as the candidate to replace outgoing Supreme Court justice Cha Han-sung.Cho, 56, became a judge in Seoul in 1986. The Supreme Court said Cho beat out four others to earn his candidacy. The nomination is pending approval by President Park Geun-hye, follo