Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's ruling party was headed for a landslide victory in lower house elections Sunday, according to projections released soon after polls closed.   The projections showed the ruling Liberal Democratic Party easily retaining its majority in the 475-seat House of Representatives. Exit polls have been reliable predictors of the final results in past Japanese elections.   The Liberal Democrats, a conservative party that has been in power for most of the post-World War

World News Dec. 14, 2014

A police officer who committed suicide after having been suspected of leaking a sensitive presidential document hinted the presidential office had pressured his colleague to provide false testimony, according to a suicide note released Sunday.   The police officer, identified only by his surname Choi, was found dead Saturday after apparently inhaling carbon monoxide gas from burning briquettes in his car.   His death was a new twist in the prosecution's investigation into the document, which was

Politics Dec. 14, 2014

Turkish police conducted raids in a dozen cities on Sunday, detaining at least 23 people _ including journalists, television producers and police _ known to be close to a movement led by a U.S.-based moderate Islamic cleric, the country's state-run news agency reported.    The government accuses cleric Fethullah Gulen's movement, a former ally, of orchestrating an alleged plot to try and bring down the government. It says the group's followers were behind corruption allegations that last year fo

World News Dec. 14, 2014

Prosecutors summoned a senior presidential official Sunday over his alleged role in the widening scandal involving a leaked presidential document.   The Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office called in Lee Jae-man, presidential secretary for general affairs, for questioning. He became the second active presidential secretary to be summoned by prosecutors in the political scandal that has rocked the nation.   Investigators are trying to determine how often Lee came in contact with Jeong Yun-h

Politics Dec. 14, 2014

The presidents of South Korea and Rwanda exchanged views on expanding political and economic ties at a summit meeting held in Seoul on Wednesday.   The presidential office Cheong Wa Dae said Park Geun-hye expressed hope that the two countries will move forward to strengthen ties that have benefited both countries in recent years.   Park cited Paul Kagame's two previous visits to the country as playing a part in expanding ties, particularly among senior policymakers.   The chief executive also sa

Politics Oct. 29, 2014

GM Korea Co., the South Korean unit of U.S. auto giant General Motors Co., has outlined a plan to compensate owners of its Cruze compact for exaggerated fuel economy claims, the government said Wednesday.   The transportation ministry said it recently received a plan from the country's third-largest original equipment manufacturer, stating that the combined mileage for the 1.8-liter version of the compact front-wheel drive car did not meet the stated 12.4 kilometers per liter of fuel.    The Cru

Mobility Oct. 29, 2014

The new head of KB Financial, South Korea's second-largest banking group, said Wednesday that he will hold the dual posts of chairman and bank president for the time being so as to strive for stability in the conglomerate that has been rocked by internal conflict.   In a meeting with reporters right after holding talks with members of the board, Yoon Jong-kyoo stressed that it's necessary for him to keep the two posts, so the banking group can overcome its past troubles and concentrate on moving

Oct. 29, 2014

The government on Wednesday said it is allowing a group of scholars and writers who are trying to compile a dictionary that can be used by all Koreans to visit North Korea.   The unification ministry said 28 people belonging to the Joint Board of South and North Korea for the Compilation of Gyeoremal-keunsajeon will arrive in Pyongyang on Thursday and return on Nov. 8 after consultation with their North Korean counterparts.   The visit will mark the first time in five years that South Korean mem

North Korea Oct. 29, 2014

The decision to put a dozen American soldiers returning from Liberia into quarantine for Ebola at their base near Venice rather than in the United States sparked controversy in Italy Wednesday.   "They shouldn't have been sent here, they should do their quarantine for Ebola at home," said the president of the region's assembly, Luca Zaia, insisting "it would have been more respectful" of the United States to have "thought about the risks posed to local citizens".   The Messaggero daily spoke of

World News Oct. 29, 2014

The U.S. special nuclear envoy Wednesday urged North Korea to halt its nuclear and provocative activities, calling on Pyongyang to pursue "authentic and credible" denuclearization.   Sydney Seiler, Washington's deputy negotiator on North Korea's nuclear issue, listed "representative examples" that the North can show its sincerity toward denuclearization, but he made it clear that the U.S. has no intention to "loosen standards" for the resumption of the long-stalled six-party talks.   "The (nucle

North Korea Oct. 29, 2014

Nongak, traditional Korean music performed by farmers, and North Korean versions of the traditional Korean folk song "Arirang" are most likely to be added to UNESCO's intangible cultural heritage list, the government said Wednesday.   The body that deliberates on new additions has categorized South Korea's "Nongak, community band music, dance and rituals" and six North Korean variations of "Arirang" as recommended for inscription, according to the Cultural Heritage Administration.    The final d

Culture Oct. 29, 2014

North Korea will ban foreign tourists from entering the communist country later this week, two China-based tour operators said Thursday, a move in line with the North's stepped-up efforts to prevent an outbreak of Ebola in the nation.   Young Pioneer Tours, the Xian-based travel agency specializing in tours to North Korea, said in a statement that the North will prohibit foreign tourists from entering the country from Friday due to concerns over the Ebola virus.    "We have just received news fr

North Korea Oct. 23, 2014

The United States government must make a formal apology to secure the freedom of two Americans who remain imprisoned in North Korea after the release this week of Jeffrey Fowle, North Korean legal experts said Thursday.    Although North Korea released Fowle, getting Matthew Miller and Kenneth Bae out of prison will likely require an official statement of apology and formal request for their release from Washington, according to the two North Korean law experts who spoke to The Associated Press.

North Korea Oct. 23, 2014

China on Thursday expressed its opposition to referring North Korea to the International Crime Court over the North's human rights record, undermining the prospects for Pyongyang to face more international pressure over its allegedly dismal human rights situation.   China's foreign ministry spokeswoman, Hua Chunying, made the comments as the U.N. General Assembly's human rights committee is circulating a resolution calling on the U.N. Security Council to refer North Korea to the court.    Asked

North Korea Oct. 23, 2014

Asian Development Bank (ADB) President Takehiko Nakao said Thursday that he does not have a stance on South Korea's interest in joining China's push to set up a regional bank to fund infrastructure projects in Asia, but cautioned that the proposed China-led bank should meet international standards.    Nakao made the comments in response to remarks made on Wednesday by South Korean Finance Minister Choi Kyung-hwan in Beijing that Seoul is willing to join the China-led Asia Infrastructure Investme

Oct. 23, 2014