(AP)Kang Sok-ju, a seasoned North Korean diplomat, is likely to make a rare trip to Europe this week, government sources said Tuesday, in a move seen as the North's efforts to break from its international isolation.Kang, secretary of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea, is expected to make a tour of Germany, Belgium, Switzerland and Italy, starting later this week, to meet political figures in those countries, the sources said.Given his status in North Korea, however, Kang's vis

Three American citizens detained in North Korea have called for Washington's help in ending their ordeals as they were allowed to hold interviews with the U.S. cable news channel CNN.The interviews, held in Pyongyang on Monday, were seen as the latest indication that North Korea wants to use the three men -- Kenneth Bae, Matthew Todd Miller and Jeffrey Edward Fowle -- as leverage to reopen dialogue with the United States.The North has long called for unconditional resumption of negotiations on n

South Korea will likely set its tariffs on rice imports at more than 500 percent, a senior government official said Tuesday."The government plans to set the import tariff rate at the highest possible level to protect the country's rice industry," the official from the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs told reporters.The move comes as South Korea is scheduled to liberalize its rice market through tarrification starting next year. The government is expected to notify the World Trade

Car sales by South Korean automakers fell sharply last month from a year earlier amid labor-management wage disputes and people taking time off for summer vacation, industrywide data showed Monday.The combined sales of five local car manufacturers reached 638,372 vehicles in August, down 7.3 percent from 688,708 vehicles sold a year ago. The total excludes complete knockdown kits shipped abroad for assembly.  Carmakers said labor strife, including partial walkouts and overtime work boycotts, hur

The National Assembly's regular parliamentary session kicked off Monday amid a political deadlock over April's deadly ferry sinking that claimed the lives of more than 300 people, mostly high school students.The dispute between the nation's rival political parties -- the ruling Saenuri Party and the No. 1 opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy  -- centers on a bill aimed at uncovering the truth behind one of the country's deadliest maritime accidents.The 6,825-ton ferry Sewol capsized of

President Park Geun-hye called Monday for a compromise between labor and management to try to find a way that benefits the two sides amid a looming strike that could disrupt South Korea's financial sector.She warned that all South Koreans will stand to lose unless strife between labor and management and the inefficiency of labor markets are urgently addressed."It's time for our labor and management to find a way for mutual benefits through dialogue and compromise ... instead of seeking immediate

His dream of playing in Major League Baseball on hold for now, South Korean pitcher Yoon Suk-min will soon return home after wrapping up his minor league season in the Baltimore Orioles organization, his agency said Monday.The Orioles designated Yoon for assignment last Sunday to make room for other players in their 40-man roster. Yoon cleared waivers and was outrighted to Norfolk. Such a move is designed to clear space for players not on the 40-man roster, and a player already in the minors, su

A South Sudanese city mayor has sent a thank-you note to South Korean President Park Geun-hye for Korean troops' reconstruction efforts in the war-torn African region, the defense ministry here said Monday.Nhial Majak, mayor of the Bor Municipal Council in South Sudan, said he was "writing a handwritten letter to convey my utmost gratitude" with regard to operations by South Korea's Hanbit unit "that have been providing a tremendous amount of support for the local community."South Korea dispatch

Negotiators from South Korea, China and Japan met in Beijing on Monday for a fifth round of talks on a trilateral free-trade agreement, a Seoul delegate said, setting aside diplomatic tensions between Japan and the two Asian neighbors over their shared history. South Korea's chief negotiator, Assistant Commerce Minister Woo Tae-hee, kicked off the talks at a hotel in Beijing by shaking hands and exchanging greetings with China's assistant commerce minister, Wang Shouwen, and Japanese Deputy Fore

Belgium's Ghent University opened its local branch in South Korea's Incheon free economic zone Monday, becoming the first European school to open a campus here.A ceremony that also marked the opening of a branch of the University of Utah from the United States was held in the free economic zone in Songdo, also a home to the United Nations Green Climate Fund, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.Ghent University, one of the top-rated schools in the world for bioscience, is expe

North Korea fired off one short-range rocket into the East Sea on Monday, South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said.The projectile was fired at around 10:30 a.m. from a site in Chagang Province near the North Korea-Chinese border, and it is presumed to have landed in the East Sea after flying some 220 kilometers, the JCS said.A JCS official said it marked the first time for the communist country to fire a short-range projectile from the province. (Yonhap)

The South Korean military has excavated this year the remains of 753 fallen soldiers who fought in the 1950-53 Korean War, the defense ministry said Monday.In a four-month project that began in April to find remains of missing service personnel, some 46,000 soldiers dug out sites in 56 regions across the country to recover the bodies, according to the ministry.The excavation team will analyze the registry of missing soldiers and conduct DNA tests to trace their families after retrieving their re

South Korean contenders came up short of matching a milestone winning streak on the LPGA Tour on Sunday in Oregon.Kim In-kyung lost to Austin Ernst on the first hole of their sudden death playoff at the Portland Classic at the par-72 Columbia Edgewater Country Club.Kim was trying to become the fourth consecutive South Korean winner on the LPGA Tour. Three other South Koreans, Lee Mi-rim, Park In-bee and Ryu, had taken the past three LPGA tournaments.The last time South Koreans won on the tour fo

Mariah Carey will hold a solo concert in South Korea next month for the first time in 11 years, an agency said Monday.The pop diva will perform in Seoul's Olympic Park on Oct. 8 as part of her Asian concert tour to promote her 14th studio album, "Me. I Am Mariah ... The Elusive Chanteuse," Yescom Entertainment said. The tour will also take her to Japan, China, Singapore and the Philippines, it added.It would mark the singer's first solo concert in South Korea since 2003 and her first overseas co

Samsung Group's shipbuilding and engineering units on Monday announced a plan to merge within this year as the nation's top conglomerate speeds up a restructuring drive.The stock exchange ratio has been set at 2.36 shares of Samsung Engineering Co. per one Samsung Heavy Industries Co. share. The merger is scheduled to be completed by Dec. 1.  Samsung Heavy said in its regulatory filing that it aims to combine its shipbuilding and marine plant business with Samsung Engineering's competitive edge

Ryu Hyun-jin of the Los Angeles Dodgers tied his career high with his 14th win of the Major League Baseball season Sunday, cruising to a victory against the San Diego Padres on the road in his return from the disabled list.The South Korean left-hander limited the fellow National League West club to one run on four hits in seven strong innings as the Dodgers won the game 7-1. Ryu struck out seven and walked none to improve to 14-6 this year and lowered his ERA from 3.28 to 3.18.In his rookie seas

Dutch King Willem-Alexander will visit South Korea in November at the invitation of South Korean President Park Geun-hye, Park's office said Friday.The monarch and his wife, Queen Maxima, will visit Seoul from Nov. 3-4, reciprocating Park's official visit to the Netherlands in March, Cheong Wa Dae said in a press release.Park, who traveled to the Netherlands to attend the Nuclear Security Summit, was the first South Korean president to officially visit the country.The king hosted a luncheon for

South Korea's sizable household debt and recent policies that eased rules on mortgage lending to prop up the ailing property market may potentially hurt credit risks of local lenders, an analyst said Friday."What is an issue is the disposable income comparison. You have more debt than disposable income," said Ritesh Maheshwari, a lead analytical manager at Standard & Poor's Ratings Services.Standard & Poor's data showed that the country's household debt in comparison to disposable income continu

Reversing an earlier conviction, a Seoul district court on Friday acquitted a former lawmaker of charges that he made sexist and derogatory remarks about female TV announcers four years ago.Kang Yong-seok, 45, was indicted on charges of telling a group of female college students in July 2010 that being a anchorwoman involves engaging in unwanted sexual relationships, suggesting that they should be willing to offer sex to advance their careers.A total of 295 female TV announcers soon filed a libe

Prosecutors said Friday they have suspended the indictment of a singer who attempted suicide last year by taking a common prescription drug that induces sleep.Son Ho-young, a member of popular boy band G.O.D., has been investigated on suspicion of taking zolpidem without prescription in May 2013 when he attempted to kill himself just days after the body of his girlfriend was found in his car along with an empty bottle of sleeping pills, a used briquette and a suicide note.The Seoul Central Distr