A US missile defense system being deployed here is expected to enhance the capabilities of Seoul and Washington to counter Pyongyang's escalating missile threats, though it may not be a panacea, officials and experts here said Tuesday.The Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system will form an effective multiple-interception system at the terminal phase when it goes together with the PAC-3 system, they said. THAAD is designed to intercept short and mid-range missiles which have a range of up to

Defense March 7, 2017

China on Tuesday threatened counteractions against South Korea and the US' deployment of the high-tech defense system THAAD which started this week. Earlier in the day, South Korea's Ministry of National Defense and the US Forces Korea said they have brought two interceptor-missile launchers and other elements of Terminal High Altitude Area Defense into the US base in Osan, south of Seoul. Parts of THAAD system arrive in Korea (Yonhap)"We solemnly object to South Korea and the US' deployment of

Foreign Affairs March 7, 2017

President Park Geun-hye's lawyers urged the Constitutional Court Tuesday to ignore investigation results implicating her in bribery and other misdeeds, saying they should not affect its review of her impeachment.The lawyers made the call in a statement sent to the court a day after Independent Counsel Park Young-soo announced the results of his team's 70-day probe into the president's alleged corruption.(Yonhap)"Most of the factual relations in the investigation results were not revealed during

Politics March 7, 2017

China's economic retaliations against South Korea over Seoul's deployment of an advanced US missile defense system bring to light inconsistencies in the free trade and investment policy that Beijing has publicly advocated, industry and government sources said Tuesday.South Korea's Trade Minister Joo Hyung-hwan said Monday Seoul will "seek international action against possible violations of the World Trade Organization and the Seoul-Beijing free trade agreement" in connection with the "retaliator

March 7, 2017

The country will draw up mid- and long-term measures to cope with expected deterioration in the financial health of the country's key national insurance schemes and major national pension funds as they are expected to run into the red in the coming years due to the rapidly aging of the country's population, the finance ministry said Tuesday.The National Health Insurance Service, which logged a net profit of 3.1 trillion won ($2.7 billion) in 2016, will likely swing to a deficit in 2018 and its r

March 7, 2017

South Korea's top automaker Hyundai Motor Co. introduced its new green concept car, the FE, at the Geneva International Motor Show on Tuesday, also bringing more than 10 other cars for the world to see.The FE Concept is a fuel-cell based electric car that is designed to have a maximum driving range of more than 800 kilometers, according to the company.South Korea's leading automaker Hyundai Motor Co. unveils its new futuristic concept car, the FE Fuel Cell Concept, at the 87th Geneva Internation

Mobility March 7, 2017

Google Inc. said Tuesday that it will add more languages to its new artificial intelligence translation system and significantly improve quality and reduce errors of services offered.In November, the US Internet giant announced that Google Translate has been switched to a new system called Neural Machine Translation, an end-to-end learning framework that learns from millions of examples.A person trying out Google Translate on his smartphone (Yonhap)"Over the next couple of weeks, these improveme

Technology March 7, 2017

A former interim leader of the main opposition Democratic Party said Tuesday he will leave the party, in an apparent bid to form an alliance of centrist politicians to challenge frontrunner Moon Jae-in in the upcoming presidential election.Rep. Kim Chong-in told reporters he will quit because his role in the party is limited. Rep. Kim Chong-in, a former interim leader of the Democratic Party. (Yonhap)"I have nothing to do (in the party). I am leaving as it is time for me to leave." he said.Kim w

Politics March 7, 2017

South Korea will stick to its policy of keeping the Korean Peninsula free of any nuclear weapons, the foreign ministry said Tuesday, amid growing talk of the US' possible deployment of its tactical nuclear weapons to South Korea to tackle North Korea's nuclear threats."I am aware that the various opinions are laid out amid North Korea's ever-increasing nuclear threats," ministry spokesman Cho Jung-hyuck said in a press briefing, referring to a recent US news report that the Donald Trump administ

Defense March 7, 2017

South Korea's liberal opposition parties on Tuesday lashed out at the government for allowing Washington to begin the process of installing a US missile defense system on the peninsula.The parties, led by the main opposition Democratic Party, raised questions over Seoul's intentions behind the "unilateral, rushed" move to bring in a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense battery. They argued that the dispatch might be politically motivated ahead of this year's presidential election. Civic activists

Politics March 7, 2017

North Korea on Tuesday made it clear that the targets of its drills to test-fire missiles are the US mainland as well as US military bases abroad."The North Korean army has long put within the range of its precision strike the air force base on Guam where nuclear strategic bombers take off, the oversea aggressive bases where nuclear-powered submarines are launched, and other US logistic bases for aggression against North Korea, and even the US mainland," the Rodong Sinmun, a daily of the North's

National March 7, 2017

South Korea's top financial regulator said Tuesday the authorities will take tougher measures against accounting-related wrongdoings as part of its effort to enhance the transparency of the nation's corporate finance system.Yim Jong-yong, chairman of the Financial Services Committee, described accounting as the "mirror of the economy and a core infrastructure."Yim Jong-yong, chairman of the Financial Services Committee, speaks at a public hearing on accounting practices held at the National Asse

March 7, 2017

South Korea's spy chief denied Tuesday that his agency illegally collected information on the Constitutional Court, which is reviewing the impeachment of President Park Geun-hye, lawmakers said.Lee Byung-ho, director of the National Intelligence Service, told a parliamentary session that the allegation raised by a local broadcaster Saturday is not true, although the agency does have a team handling all courts and the prosecution, according to Reps. Lee Cheol-woo and Kim Byung-kee. National Intel

Politics March 7, 2017

South Korea's state-run Export-Import Bank of Korea said Tuesday it will financially support debt-ridden local shipbuilding and shipping firms.Eximbank CEO Choi Jong-ku said the policy lender needs to provide financial support to companies that have debt but also have potential to stand on their own feet. Export-Import Bank of Korea's main office in Seoul. (Yonhap file photo)However, he did not elaborate on how the bank will help the companies to make a rebound from their current difficulties.La

Industry March 7, 2017

A research and development center for rechargeable batteries opened at a state-run university in Ulsan on Tuesday.The Battery R&D Center at the Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology, located 414 kilometers southeast of Seoul, will focus on making future battery cells for smartphones, small information technology devices and automobiles. The Battery R&D Center opened at the Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology on March 7, 2017. (Ulsan National Institute of Science and T

Technology March 7, 2017