COPENHAGEN ― The European Commission recently unveiled long-awaited measures to bring neighboring countries in the Mediterranean and the former Soviet Union closer to Europe. On the same day, another department of the same commission presented proposals aimed at curbing visa-waiver programs for some non-European nationals. Few missed the irony of formulating two plans that pointed in opposite dire

KABUL (AP) ― Three U.S. senators visiting Kabul said Sunday they are worried that President Barack Obama’s planned withdrawal of 33,000 American troops by September 2012 could undermine Afghan morale, embolden the insurgency and hamper efforts to defeat Taliban fighters.John McCain, Joe Lieberman and Lindsay Graham said they are heartened by the progress of Afghan security forces, but worry that O

The Mexican Embassy is running an art exhibition showcasing the duality of Mexico’s history and people by connecting yesterday and today. “Signs of History and Inner Lives” brings the works of three Mexican artists to Inje University in Gimhae City.The first collection is composed of 25 oil, graphite and mixed media works by Martha Delgado and Cassandra Sabag. “In this first stage of the exhibitio

The new chairman of the Korea Copyright Commission said on Monday that he will enhance copyright protection of Korean content overseas, especially as Korean pop music, TV dramas and animation are quickly spreading in cyberspace.Yu Byong-han, who took office on Friday, said he will expand its overseas offices from the current three in Beijing, Shanghai and Bangkok to other destinations including Lo

Hong Joon-pyo waves after he was elected new GNP leader Monday. (Yonhap News)In the ruling Grand National Party’s national convention on Monday, former Supreme Council member Rep. Hong Joon-pyo was elected as the new chairperson to lead the party up to next year’s general and presidential elections.The fourth-term lawmaker was ranked atop not only in the delegate vote held in the Olympic Gymnastic

Yoon Young-dal, CEO of Crown-Haitai Confectionary, received the 20th Montblanc de la Culture Arts Patronage Award on Monday at the Shilla Hotel’s Dynasty Hall in central Seoul. The foundation recognized Yoon’s contributions to developing and promoting the Korean traditional music “gugak” worldwide and his efforts to discover and foster young gugak musicians. “Since sometime ago, we have tended to

  Five significant copies among 297 returned Uigwe shown to mediaThe National Museum of Korea on Monday revealed five significant copies of the total of 297 retrieved ancient royal books, known as “Uigwe,” to the media for the first time since their return from France earlier this year.Korea retrieved the royal documents ― which contain both text and hand-drawn illustrations of significant royal r

KANSAS CITY, Missouri ― Playboy model hopefuls from as far as Florida and Canada line the halls of a Kansas City, Mo., studio, fanning themselves, trembling in their silk robes and waiting for their moment with Jodi Vander Woude.“I promise this will be painless,” Vander Woude assures them.Vander Woude is a photographer for Playboy Enterprises. Every month, she travels across the country doing cast

Korea’s Cha Dong-min won a gold medal in a world qualifying competition Sunday to win a place in the 2012 London Olympics.On the final day of the World Taekwondo Federation qualification tournament in Baku, Azerbaijan, the Korean defeated Russia’s Gadzhi Umarov 6-1 for the gold medal in the men’s over-80 kg final. Cha was the fourth Korean taekwondo athlete to secure a berth in the London Olympics

Korean city aims to bring Winter Olympics to Asia for third timeDURBAN, South Africa (Yonhap News) ― With the vote here on the 2018 Winter Olympics host just two days away, Pyeong-Chang, the South Korean candidate, in its last-minute pitch has been stressing its main point ― that Asia is due for a Winter Games.The International Olympic Committee is set to select the Olympic host on Wednesday, with

(Yonhap News) Volkswagen Korea, the local importer of German automaker Volkswagen AG, introduced the latest version of its Touareg crossover sport utility vehicle (SUV) in South Korea on Monday.   The mid-size model has a wider wheelbase compared to the older model but its weight has been brought down by a maximum 201 kilograms. It also comes with an eight-gear automatic transmission, a first for