Prosecutors on Thursday grilled former President Park Geun-hye at a detention center again over corruption allegations that removed her from office.Prosecutors arrived at the detention house in Uiwang, south of Seoul, at around 11 a.m. Former President Park Geun-hye leaves her home in Seoul for prosecution questioning on March 21, 2017. Park, dismissed by the Constitutional Court on March 10, faces a probe on 13 criminal allegations, including graft and abuse of power. (Yonhap)It is the second i

Social Affairs April 6, 2017

South Korea's unification ministry said Thursday it has turned down a request by Japan's top envoy to South Korea to meet with Unification Minister Hong Yong-pyo, citing the minister's schedule.The ministry handling inter-Korean affairs said that the Japanese Embassy in Seoul on Wednesday delivered the request by Ambassador Yasumasa Nagamine to meet with Hong on short notice.South Korea's Unification Minister Hong Yong-pyo. (Yonhap)"The ministry told the embassy Wednesday that the minister could

Foreign Affairs April 6, 2017

South Korean and American military officials are apparently struggling to determine the exact type of ballistic missile that North Korea fired earlier this week, their public comments and news reports suggested Thursday amid Pyongyang's reticence about the issue.Hours after the launch from the North's eastern coastal area Wednesday, South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said "a type of KN-15 intermediate-range ballistic missile" flew around 60 kilometers into the East Sea.North Korea test-fires a

North Korea April 6, 2017

Police said Thursday they have recently referred the drunk driving case involving popular singer-actor Kim Hyun-joong to the prosecution.The member of the K-pop boy band SS501 was caught on charges of driving under the influence of alcohol on a street in Seoul's Songpa Ward around 1:55 a.m. on March 26, according to the Songpa Police Station. Police recommended an indictment, sending the investigation result to the prosecution Monday, officials said. (Yonhap)Kim was driving his car on his way ho

Performance April 6, 2017

"Queen of Mystery," KBS 2TV's new comic detective series, made a striking debut, instantly overtaking rival shows thanks to the halo effect from "Good Manager," data showed Thursday.Wednesday night's premier broadcast of "Queen of Mystery" recorded a 11.2 percent nationwide viewership, according to Nielsen Korea. The rating for Seoul and its vicinity stood at 12.4 percent.The show apparently benefited from its predecessor "Good Manager," an office comedy series, which ended last week with an imp

Television April 6, 2017

Samsung Electronics Co. said Thursday it has selected 40 research projects which will be funded over the first half of 2017, in line with its move to secure key technologies.Since 2013, Samsung has operated a program which funds key research in three fields -- basic science, material technology, and information-communications technology.  (Yonhap)The South Korean tech giant plans to allocate 1.5 trillion won ($1.3 billion) throughout the 10-year program. So far, Samsung has supported 312 project

Industry April 6, 2017

South Korea's state pension fund, one of the key debt holders for ailing Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co., is set to announce the outcome of its meeting about debt rescheduling measures that aim to keep the shipyard afloat. The National Pension Service, which holds about 30 percent of bonds sold by Daewoo Shipbuilding, said it will announce the meeting's outcome on the troubled shipbuilder before Thursday noon.(Yonhap)Of 1.35 trillion won ($1.19 billion) worth of corporate bonds sold

Industry April 6, 2017

The security chiefs of South Korea and the United States on Thursday condemned North Korea's latest missile test and agreed to craft a strong response to its provocations, Seoul's presidential office Cheong Wa Dae said.During a 20-minute phone call that began at 8 a.m. (Korea time), national security adviser Kim Kwan-jin and his US counterpart H.R. McMaster agreed to maintain close cooperation over the North's saber-rattling, Cheong Wa Dae said in a press release.South Korea's national security

Foreign Affairs April 6, 2017

Banks have agreed on a refund guarantee for future orders received by the troubled Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co. that puts a policy lender up front and has commercial banks provide the secondary safety net, sources said Thursday.RG had become a new thorn among creditors of Daewoo Shipbuilding in their efforts to resuscitate the company tittering on insolvency with a 6.7 trillion-won ($5.94 billion) rescue deal. RG is a form of security for the ship purchaser, which usually makes a

April 6, 2017

Samsung Display Co. continued to stand as the top player in the global small and middle-sized display market for the sixth consecutive year in 2016, data showed Thursday.According to the data compiled by industry tracker IHS Markit, Samsung accounted for 31 percent of the global market for displays sized 9 inches and below. The South Korean firm's sales in the segment came to $13.8 billion, the data also showed. (Yonhap)Samsung's latest market share in the area marked a sharp increase from 25.2

Industry April 6, 2017

The top nuclear envoys of South Korea, the US and Japan agreed to closely cooperate in coping with North Korea's latest missile test and jointly brace for additional provocations, the foreign ministry here said Thursday.Kim Hong-kyun, special representative for Korean Peninsula peace and security affairs at the South Korean foreign ministry, talked to his US and Japanese counterparts -- Joseph Yun and Kenji Kanasugi -- in separate telephone calls, according to the ministry. Kim Hong-kyun (L), So

Foreign Affairs April 6, 2017

US President Donald Trump has empathized that all options are on the table in dealing with North Korea and its repeated provocations amid concerns that Pyongyang may push to carry out an additional nuclear test, foreign media reports said Thursday. The remarks came in a telephone conversation earlier in the day with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, according to the reports which quoted Abe from a nationally televised press conference.(Yonhap)The North fired a ballistic missile from its easter

Foreign Affairs April 6, 2017

WASHINGTON (Yonhap) -- North Korea is 78 percent likely to conduct missile launches in the next 30 days, a US think tank has predicted based on analysis of big data on the communist nation."Beyond Parallel," a North Korea analysis project of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, made the prediction together with big data firm Predata after analyzing how often the North is discussed on the Internet in an effort to predict future possibilities, with a higher frequency meaning stronge

North Korea April 6, 2017

WASHINGTON (Yonhap) -- The ballistic missile that North Korea fired Wednesday is believed to be a medium-range Scud ER, a US defense official was quoted as saying."A Scud ER (extended range) flew about 60 kilometers before suffering an in-flight failure and crashing into" the East Sea, the official was quoted as saying by AFP. North Korea test-fires a ballistic missile in this undated file photo. (For Use Only in the Republic of Korea. No Redistribution) (KCNA-Yonhap)The US Pacific Command had e

Foreign Affairs April 6, 2017

WASHINGTON (Yonhap) -- Secondary sanctions aimed at cutting off business links to North Korea will be an "early topic" when US President Donald Trump holds summit talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping, a senior White House official said Wednesday."I'm not going to go into specifics of our approach on North Korea, but I will say this is going to be an early topic in our conversation during the summit," Matt Pottinger, senior National Security Council director for Asia, told reporters in respons

Foreign Affairs April 6, 2017