South Korean Prime Minister Kim Hwang-sik will visit China next month for talks with his counterpart and other senior officials on ways to develop diplomatic and economic ties, Kim’s office said Tuesday.During the April 12-14 trip, Kim will hold talks with Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao and pay a visit to President Hu Jintao, the office said in a statement.Kim will also meet with Wu Bangguo, China’s t

The planned relocation of most U.S. troops in South Korea to an expanded base south of Seoul will be completed by the end of 2016, the South’s Defense Ministry said Tuesday, confirming a widely expected four-year delay in the multi-billion dollar project. The Defense Ministry, in a statement, said South Korea and the U.S. have recently finalized a fresh agreement to relocate the U.S. military’s he

Korea has decided to downsize areas originally included as part of the country’s six free economic zones to reflect changing development requirements, the government said Tuesday.The Ministry of Knowledge Economy said a review panel ruled to exclude 12 areas covering 90.4-square kilometers of land from the FEZs, a move expected to cut back on overall costs and construction time.Seoul first designa

Korea will host an annual meeting of the Inter-American Development Bank in 2015, a chance that the government expects would deepen its economic cooperation with American countries, the finance ministry said Tuesday.The decision was unanimously made during the 52nd round of the IDB annual meeting that ended on Monday in Canada, the Ministry of Strategy and Finance said in a press release.Founded i

KAMAISHI, Japan (AFP) ― Tsuyako Ito, the last working geisha in the Japanese steel city of Kamaishi, is no stranger to disaster ― having survived devastating U.S. air raids in World War II and three major tsunamis.“But this tsunami was the worst of all,” the 84-year-old said of the monster wave that engulfed towns such as Kamaishi, along Japan’s eastern coast on March 11.The tsunami struck as Ito was preparing to go to sing and play the traditional three-stringed shamisen for guests at a luxury