The Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office said Monday it indicted three men on charges of blackmailing actress Han Hyo-joo with photos she had taken years ago with her then-boyfriend. According to the prosecutors, a 36-year-old man surnamed Yun and two 29-year-old men surnamed Hwang and Lee are suspected of threatening Han’s family with “photos of her private life.” The suspects said they would release the photos to the press unless the family paid them 400 million won ($376,825).Lee is be

배우 한효주 측이 ‘사생활 사진’ 유출 협박 사건에 대한 “문제될 만한 행동을 한 적이 없다”는 입장을 밝혔다.한효주의 소속사 BH엔터테인먼트에 따르면 지난 4일 한효주의 아버지는 신원미상의 남자로부터 금품 4억여원을 요구하는 협박전화를 받았다. 한료주의 사생활 사진을 빌미로 한 협박이었다. 한효주 측은 그러나 “본인에게 확인한 결과 문제될 만한 일을 한 적이 없었기에 강경 대응해야한다는 판단으로 경찰에 신고했다”며 “수사 결과 일당 3명이 검거, 이들은 한효주의 전 소속사 관계자들이었으며 사생활에 관련한 사진을 가지고 있지도 않은 것으로 드러났다”고 밝혔다. 소속사 측에 따르면 이들 3인은 휴대전화 통화료도 납부하지 못할 정도로 곤궁한 생활을 하고 있어 한효주의 아버지를 공갈협박했다. 한효주 측은 이번 사건에 대해 “공인이라는 이유로 협박을 일삼는 범죄행위에 대해 강경하게 대처할 것“이라며”현재 이들은 구속 수감 중인 상태다“고 밝혔다.다음은 한효주의 소속사 측 공식입장.자사 소속

Moody's Investors Service said Monday that it has downgraded POSCO's foreign currency bond rating by one notch to "Baa2," citing the leading South Korean steelmaker's high level of debt and industry uncertainties.In a statement, Moody's said it has cut POSCO's foreign currency bond rating to "Baa2" from "Baa1." Moody's has also downgraded the steelmaker's senior unsecured shelf rating to "Baa2" from "Baa1." The rating outlook is stable, the rating agency said."POSCO's high level of debt, the cha

박근혜 대통령과 정홍원 국무총리가 25일 나란히 천주교 정의구현사제단 전주교구의 지난 22일 시국미사에서 나온 북한의 연평도 포격 관련발언에 대해 강경한 입장을 표명, 파장이 이어질 조짐이다.박 대통령은 지난달 31일 이후 거의 한 달 만에 주재한 이날 수석비서관 회의에서 일부 사제단의 시국미사 발언을 우회적으로 겨냥한 발언을 내놨다.지난 23일이 연평도 포격 3주년임을 언급하면서 "만약 북한이 또다시 돌발적이고 기습적인 도발을 감행한다면 즉각 단호하게 대응해서 다시는 도발을 하지 못하도록 해야 할 것"이라면서도 "안보는 첨단 무기만으로 지킬 수 있는 것이 아니다.  그보다 훨씬 중요한 것은 국민들의 애국심과 단결"이라고 지적했다.그러면서 "지금 북한은 연평도 포벽 도발을 뉘우치기는 커녕 이제 청와대를 불바다로 만들겠다고까지 위협하고 있는데, 우리의 현실은 나라를 위해 젊음을 바치고 죽음으로 나라를 지킨 장병들의 사기를 꺾고 그 희생을 헛되게 하는 일들이 많이 일어나고 있다"고 지적

President Park Geun-hye on Monday fumed at the controversial Mass and remarks by a group of progressive priests over the weekend, vowing that such “an act that demoralizes the people’s trust and causes confrontation will not be tolerated or condoned.”“Things are happening where the morals of the soldiers who have sacrificed their youth and lives for the country are being depreciated,” Park said during a meeting with senior secretaries.She was referring to the comments made during a Mass by the C

The top leaders of the ruling and main opposition parties agreed Monday to meet for talks on an ongoing parliamentary impasse over the state's alleged intervention in last year's presidential race.Rep. Kim Han-gil, the chairman of the main opposition Democratic Party (DP), proposed the talks with his ruling Saenuri Party counterpart Hwang Woo-yea earlier in the day, saying the two sides should work to prevent increasing political chaos.Hwang accepted the offer, and the two leaders agreed to meet

A prolonged economic slump is forcing a slew of business groups here to sell their affiliates to tide over cash shortages and shore up their financial status, industry sources said Monday.High-profile deals currently under way include the sales of Dongbu HiTek Co. and Dongbu Metal Co. Dongbu Group said it plans to sell its stakes in the two firms by 2015, and also have its other affiliates sell assets to secure a combined 3 trillion won (US$2.82 billion).LIG Group, a mid-sized business group, is

South Korea's 10 largest conglomerates saw their net foreign-exchange losses reach 760 billion won ($716 million) through September this year, amid the won's appreciation against the greenback, data showed Monday.The country's 83 listed firms under the top 10 local business groups lost 16.7 trillion won from foreign-exchange volatilities over the cited period, while gaining 15.9 trillion won, the data compiled by Chaebul.com showed.The latest number marked a sharp decrease from the previous year

With their destination and mission among America's closest guarded secrets, the small group of officials hand-picked by President Barack Obama boarded a military plane in March.The travel plans of the U.S. diplomats and foreign policy advisers were not on any public itineraries. No reception greeted them as they landed. But awaiting the Americans in the remote and ancient Gulf sultanate of Oman was the reason for all the secrecy: a delegation of Iranians ready to meet them.It was at this first h

The Supreme Court on Monday confirmed a five-year prison term for a North Korean female spy posing as a defector for engaging in espionage activities.The 47-year-old woman, only identified by her surname Lee, was convicted of engaging in spying activities such as collecting information about Seoul's intelligence agents during her stays in China before coming to South Korea in 2011."The court agrees with lower courts' guilty verdict that (Lee) engaged in spying activities in Shenyang, Qingdao and

 South Korea’s gross national income per capita is projected to set an all-time high of $24,044 (26.4 million won) this year on the back of the U.S. dollar’s cheaper position against the won.After sliding to $17,041 in 2009 in the wake of the global financial crisis, the GNI per capita has continued to climb over the past few years ― $20,562 in 2010, $22,489 in 2011 and 22,700 in 2012.Officials at the Bank of Korea said the estimate of record-high per capita income is mainly attributable to fore

South Korean golfer Park In-bee clinched her second straight LPGA Tour money title with a top-five finish at the season's final tournament in Florida on Sunday.Park topped the tour's money list with US$2.45 million in earnings, after finishing fifth at the CME Group Titleholders at Tiburon Golf Club in Naples, Florida. She carded a 4-under 68 in the final round for the four-round total of 11-under, four strokes behind the champion Feng Shanshan of China.On the money list, Park edged out Suzann P

The economic policies for 2014 will focus on elevating GDP growth and creating more jobs, Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Hyun Oh-seok told heads of private think tanks on Monday. “We seek to have every economic bracket explicitly benefit from vitalizing the economy,” Hyun said during a breakfast meeting with the research institute officials. The keywords for the economic framework in 2014 are economic recovery, job creation, stable livelihood and economic fundamentals, he added. The

Sebastian Vettel won Formula One's season-ending Brazilian Grand Prix on Sunday, matching Michael Schumacher's record of 13 victories in a year and equaling the nine consecutive wins of Alberto Ascari.Vettel's Red Bull teammate Mark Webber was second in his final F1 race and Fernando Alonso of Ferrari was third.The win capped an impressive year by Vettel, who had already broken Schumacher's 2004 mark of seven straight wins in a year at the United States GP last week. Schumacher's 13 wins also ca

U.S. lawmakers from both parties said Sunday they are skeptical that Iran will stick to a new nuclear deal and want Congress to prepare beefed up economic penalties to hit Tehran if the accord falls apart.In an early morning announcement, Tehran agreed Sunday to a six-month pause of its nuclear program while diplomats continue talks aimed at preventing Iran from developing a nuclear weapon. International observers are set to monitor Iran's nuclear sites and ease about $7 billion of the crippling

South Korean stocks got off to a strong start Monday led by bullish construction and tech companies, analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) shot up 18.74 points, or 0.93 percent to 2,024.97 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Shares gathered ground across the board, with builders and tech blue-chips leading the climb. Major construction firm Hyundai Engineering & Construction soared 4 percent, with chip giant SK hynix hiking 3.7 percent. The local currency was tra

 소설가 이외수 씨가 MBC ‘일밤-진짜 사나이’ 측이 해군2함대 사령부 편에서 진행된 자신의 강연을 편집하기로 결정하자 답답한 심경을 토로했다. 이외수 씨는 22일 자신의 트위터에 “대한민국은 국민이 정부의 발표에 반하는 의견을 제시하면 국회의원이 외압을 가해서 강연이나 티브이 출연을 금지시키는 민주(헐)공화국”이라며 “사살당한 기분입니다”라고 글을 남겼다.앞서 MBC 측은 하태경 새누리당 의원 등이 이외수 씨 강연 편집을 요구한 데 대해 “고심 끝에 이외수 씨 녹화분량을 편집하기로 결정했다”며 “이번 논란으로 상처받았을 천안함 사태 유가족에게 죄송하다”고 입장을 밝혔다.‘진짜 사나이’ 측은 최근 해군2함대 사령부 편 녹화에서 이 씨를 초청해 강연을 진행했다. 하지만 하태경 의원이 이 씨가 지난 2010년 천안함 사태에 대한 정부 발표를 ‘소설’에 비유한 발언을 문제 삼으며 방송 중지를 요구해 논란이 일었다.이와 같은 MBC의 결정에 대해 하 의원은 자신의 트위터에 “상황종료군요.

South Korean stocks rebounded Friday from the previous session, as the U.S. Senate's nod on the motion to appoint Federal Reserve vice chair Janet Yellen as the next head relieved investors' fear about an early stimulus cut, analysts said. The local currency rose slightly against the U.S. dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) advanced 12.45 points, or 0.62 percent, to close at 2,006.23. Trading volume was moderate at 342.2 million shares worth 3.38 trillion won (US$3.18

South Korea decided to purchase 40 radar-evading warplanes for deployment from 2018-2021 for its restarted fighter procurement project on Friday, making Lockheed Martin’s F-35 warplane its sole option.At a meeting of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Council, the military decided to buy 40 stealth aircraft first and then 20 additional warplanes later in consideration of shifts in the security environment and technological development.“During the meeting, the required operational capabilities were revise

The latest round of negotiations for a bilateral free trade agreement (FTA) between South Korea and China ended Friday after the countries exchanged their initial offers for the level of liberalization for goods, marking what South Korean officials called a good start.The latest round of South Korea-China FTA negotiations, the eighth of its kind, had been held since Monday in South Korea's western port city of Incheon."In the latest round of negotiations, the two sides began discussions for a ro