South Korea on Tuesday clinched a spot in the regional Olympic qualifying tournament scheduled for next year.South Korea, coached by Shin Tae-yong defeated Indonesia 4-0 in Jakarta in the preliminaries for next year's AFC U-23 Championship.South Korea had earlier defeated Brunei and Timor-Leste, and thanks to posting the best record among the four countries, South Korea qualified for the U-23 Championship, which will double as the Asian qualification tournament for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Ri

Olympic Games March 31, 2015

Another three South Koreans were evacuated from Yemen by plane on Tuesday as security concerns have heightened following airstrikes against a militant rebel group there, Seoul's foreign ministry said.The foreign ministry said that the three Korean residents in Yemen's capital Sanaa departed for Ethiopia on a U.N. plane earlier in the day following the evacuation of 10 Koreans made on Saturday.Two diplomats will be re-located to an interim diplomatic mission to be placed on a South Korean Navy de

Foreign Affairs March 31, 2015

China is awaiting decisions by South Korea, Japan and Australia on whether to join a new Chinese-led Asian infrastructure bank as founding members, China's foreign ministry said Friday. The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) has recently gained traction as major Western economies, including Britain, Germany and France, decided to join the Chinese-led bank. Close U.S. allies in Asia -- South Korea, Australia and Japan -- have yet to make their decisions. The end of March is the deadline

Foreign Affairs March 20, 2015

Lotte Group, South Korea's fifth largest conglomerate, said Wednesday that it has been selected as the preferred bidder to buy local car rental company KT Rental. After taking over the country's biggest car rental firm, Lotte will guarantee the employment of KT Rental employees, the group said. Lotte said the latest acquisition is aimed at expanding the car rental service into its new growth engine. The group, whose business portfolio ranges from beer and beverages to department and discount sto

Industry Feb. 18, 2015

Iraq's ambassador to the United Nations asked the U.N. Security Council on Tuesday to look at allegations that the Islamic State group is using organ harvesting as a way to finance its operations.Ambassador Mohamed Alhakim told reporters that in the past few weeks, bodies with surgical incisions and missing kidneys or other body parts have been found in shallow mass graves."We have bodies. Come and examine them," he said. "It is clear they are missing certain parts."He also said a dozen doctors

World News Feb. 18, 2015

Chinese businesswoman Chen Yili paid a South Korean hospital thousands of dollars to reshape her face in the hope she would look more like the glamourous stars she saw on television.Instead she says she was disfigured by the operation - one of a growing number of Chinese women who claim shoddy procedures and a lack of regulation in South Korea's booming "medical tourism" industry, have left them physically scarred. "They said they would design my face to look like a South Korean, and help me des

Social Affairs Feb. 18, 2015

North Korea on Wednesday lashed out at South Korea's foreign minister over his recent meeting with the U.S. secretary of state to enhance cooperation to solve the North's nuclear issue. The Rodong Sinmun, the official newspaper of the North's ruling Workers' Party, said the strengthening of cooperation between Seoul and Washington is aimed at bolstering the United States' efforts to invade the North. The criticism came out after Yun Byung-se, South Korea's foreign minister, met with U.S. Secreta

North Korea Feb. 18, 2015

Only 17, top-ranked Lydia Ko says she's already planning to retire from golf by the time she's 30, and become a psychologist.Ko makes her second start at No. 1 in Thursday's first round of the Women's Australian Open at Royal Melbourne along with Karrie Webb and Australia's Su Oh, who won the Australian Ladies Masters last week in her second start as a professional.The South Korean-born Ko says she will soon start an on-line psychology degree to prepare for life after golf."I say my plan is to r

Golf Feb. 18, 2015

Hyundai Motor Co. on Wednesday unveiled the images of the all-new Tucson SUV ahead of an upcoming European motor show.The Tucson, to be showcased at the Geneva Motor Show that kicks off on March 3, is tailored to meet European consumer demands with updated features and design, South Korea's top automaker said in a press release. The new version, the first update in six years, boasts both "bold" SUV images and "sophisticated urban" styles, with a large-size hexagonal grille that connects to the h

Industry Feb. 18, 2015

South Korea's No. 1 automaker, Hyundai Motor Co., and its smaller affiliate Kia Motors Corp. sold more cars in January in Europe compared with a year ago, thanks to the growing popularity of Hyundai's new i20 models, data showed Wednesday. Hyundai sold 33,197 cars in January, up 7.1 percent from the same period last year, with Kia selling 25,996 cars, up 5.5 percent, according to the data released by the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association (ACEA). Their combined market share in the re

Industry Feb. 18, 2015