Retired NBA star Dennis Rodman arrived in Beijing on Saturday, wrapping up his second trip to North Korea, but without a detained American citizen.Speaking to reporters at Beijing's airport en route to the United States, Rodman said he spoke with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un about "peace, sports ... and my team and their team in North Korea."Rodman said Kim is "a friend for my life."When repeatedly asked by reporters about the fate of the detained American Kenneth Bae, Rodman shouted, "You sh

North Korea Sept. 7, 2013

A magnitude 6.5 earthquake struck Guatemala close to the border with Mexico on Friday, the U.S. Geological Survey said, but there were no initial reports of serious damage or injuries. "At the moment, we have no reports of damage or victims," said Mel Aparicio, an official at Guatemala's emergency services. Several empty homes that had been damaged in an earthquake in 2012 collapsed after the quake on Friday night, according to the Twitter feed of Guatemala's emergency services. The epicenter of

World News Sept. 7, 2013

A brother-in-law of disgraced former President Chun Doo-hwan will stand trial on tax evasion charges, state prosecutors said Friday.Lee Chang-seok was indicted on a charge of evading taxes worth 6 billion won (US$5.4 million) and formally detained pending trial, they said.He is the first relative of the former president ever to stand trial since prosecutors restarted efforts to reclaim hidden assets of the former military dictator who was convicted of taking bribes while in office in the 1980s.C

Social Affairs Sept. 6, 2013

The ruling Saenuri Party on Friday submitted a motion to expel leftist Rep. Lee Seok-ki, who was arrested Thursday for allegedly plotting an armed revolt and forming an illegal organization against South Korea. High-level Saenuri officials also urged the government to petition the Constitutional Court to consider the disbandment of Lee’s Unified Progressive Party.“I urge (the government) to request the Constitutional Court to disband the UPP,” Saenuri Party secretary-general Rep. Hong Moon-jong

Social Affairs Sept. 6, 2013

South and North Korea restored a military hotline along the west coast on Friday to coordinate cross-border travel as the two sides work toward reopening a shuttered joint industrial park.Shortly before 11:00 a.m., a South Korean liaison officer at the Customs, Immigration and Quarantine office spoke with his North Korean counterpart over the phone to test the telephone lines, a senior official at the defense ministry said.The military hotline had been used to provide safe passage for South Kore

Social Affairs Sept. 6, 2013

Danish toy maker Lego on Thursday reported an 18-percent rise in first-half net profit as revenue grew 13 percent, fuelled by growth in Asia as developed markets stalled.Lego, now the world's second-biggest toy manufacturer behind Mattel of the US, said its largest markets North America, Europe and Japan had experienced a slow start to the year."Despite this tough dynamic, our data indicates that consumer sales of Lego products for the first half of 2013 grew nine percent globally," chief execut

Industry Sept. 6, 2013

The labor and management of South Korea's largest carmaker Hyundai Motor Co. tentatively agreed Thursday on a wage deal, putting an end to the ongoing strike.During a new round of negotiations, the two sides narrowed their differences and came up with an interim agreement, which will be put to vote on next Monday.The agreement came after 25 rounds of negotiations over a wage hike and other labor issues that lasted for the past 101 days.Upon the beginning of the talks, Hyundai's unionized workers

Industry Sept. 5, 2013

Highly radioactive water leaking from a storage tank at Japan's crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant may have seeped into groundwater flowing towards the Pacific Ocean, the plant's operator said Thursday.It is the first time that Tokyo Electric Power (TEPCO) has revealed that leaks from the tank -- situated behind the plant reactor -- could also be polluting the groundwater beneath the plant. TEPCO has previously admitted that radiation has seeped from the plant's reactors into the groundwater

World News Sept. 5, 2013

South Korean President Park Geun-hye called Thursday for Italian firms to consider setting up factories in an industrial complex jointly run with North Korea as she discussed economic cooperation and other issues with Italian Prime Minister Enrico Letta.The bilateral summit took place in Russia's Saint Petersburg on the sidelines of a Group of 20 major economies' summit. Park said the two Koreas have agreed to reopen the factory park in the North's border city of Kaesong, adding they will ensure

North Korea Sept. 5, 2013

The U.S. point man on East Asia arrived in South Korea on Thursday to discuss issues of mutual concern, including efforts to denuclearize North Korea.Daniel Russel, the assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, is scheduled for a three-day stay in Seoul. He plans to meet with South Korea's vice foreign minister as well as Seoul's top negotiator to the six-party talks designed to disarm North Korea, according to the foreign ministry here.This is Russel's first visit here si

North Korea Sept. 5, 2013