WASHINGTON (AP) _ The United States and Iran took a historic step toward ending more than three decades of estrangement on Friday when President Barack Obama and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani spoke by phone and agreed to work on resolving global suspicions that Tehran is trying to build a nuclear weapon.   The 15-minute call capped a week of seismic shifts in the relationship that revolved around Rouhani's participation in the annual U.N. meeting of world leaders. The night before the two lea

WASHINGTON- The Obama administration puts a "significant priority" on the North Korean nuclear problem and the communist nation has not shown any signs that it is serious about denuclearization talks, top U.S. officials said Friday.   Daniel Russel, assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, said Pyongyang is trying to "have its cake and eat it, too."   The communist nation appears to be seeking economic support from the West but it also wants to be allowed to retain its nu

UNITED NATIONS (AP) - The U.N. Security Council voted unanimously Friday night to secure and destroy Syria's chemical weapons stockpile, a landmark decision aimed at taking poison gas off the battlefield in the escalating 2 1/2-year conflict.The vote after two weeks of intense negotiations marked a major breakthrough in the paralysis that has gripped the council since the Syrian uprising began. Russia and China previously vetoed three Western-backed resolutions pressuring President Bashar Assad'

In an unusually speedy manner, the nation's spy agency on Wednesday arrested a leftist lawmaker on charges of plotting to overthrow the government, putting it a step closer to launching a prosecution probe into the scandal.Rep. Lee Seok-ki of the minor opposition Unified Progressive Party (UPP) is accused of leading a secret organization with suspected links to North Korea. The so-called Revolutionary Organization (RO) allegedly devised plans to destroy key infrastructure facilities in the South

BEIJING-- China's foreign ministry on Wednesday confirmed that a senior U.S. diplomat will make a two-day visit to Beijing late next week, indicating that the topics would include the latest situation on the Korean Peninsula.   Daniel Russel, the assistant U.S. secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, will make a 10-day visit to five nations in Asia from Thursday. His itinerary includes South Korea, Japan and China.   Ministry spokesman Hong Lei told reporters that Russel will pay

(URGENT) Spy agency detains leftist lawmaker on rebellion plot charge

More than 7,780 South Koreans have been infected with HIV, the virus that causes acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS), health authorities said Wednesday.   The Korea Center for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) said 9,410 South Korean were diagnosed with HIV between 1985 and 2012. Among them, 1,622 people died.   Last year, 808 South Korean men and 60 South Korean women were newly infected with HIV. The KCDC said 541 out of 868 HIV carriers became infected through sexual contact.   The

TOKYO (AP)-The operator of the wrecked Fukushima nuclear power plant said Tuesday it is struggling with its latest efforts to stop contaminated underground water leaks from running into the sea.Tokyo Electric Power Co. said that some of the water was seeping over or around a ``liquid glass wall'' it has created by injecting chemicals into the soil that solidify into a wall.The latest problem involves underground water which has built up over the last month, since the company started creating the

 ULSAN-- The union of South Korea's largestcarmaker Hyundai Motor Co. said Tuesday its talks with the management over a nearly three-month-old wage deal collapsed, a move that may lead to a strike.   Kwon Oh-il, a spokesman for the Hyundai union, said 45,000 unionized workers plan to vote on Aug. 13 on whether to go on strike, which requires majority approval from union members.   The union demanded a hike of 130,498 won ($117) in basic salaries and an extension of the retirement age to 61, as w

WASHINGTON (AP) --The U.S. State Department on Tuesday ordered non-essential personnel at the U.S. Embassy in Yemen to leave the country following the threat by al-Qaida that has caused temporary shutdowns of 19 American diplomatic posts across the Middle East and Africa.The department said in a travel warning that it had ordered the evacuation ``due to the continued potential for terrorist attacks'' and said U.S. citizens in Yemen should leave immediately because of an ``extremely high'' securi

BEIJING(Yonhap)-- China, North Korea's foremost ally and its biggest trading partner, is trying "very hard" to exert its influence in persuading the North to abandon its nuclear weapons program, a former Chinese diplomat said Tuesday.Ruan Zongze, now vice president of the China Institute of International Studies, said, however, that he expects no major policy changes toward North Korea by China's new leadership,despite Beijing's growing frustration with its unpredictable ally.China's patience wi

South Korea played China to a scoreless draw at the East Asian Cup football tournament here on Wednesday.At Hwaseong Stadium in Gyeonggi Province, south of Seoul, South Korea played its second straight scoreless draw at the regional competition, as the Chinese crowded their own zone and often outnumbered South Korean attackers inside the box.South Korea, which drew Australia 0-0 last Saturday, will close out the tournament against Japan on Sunday in Seoul. China's final match will be against Aus

State prosecutors on Wednesday raided some 30 companies that are suspected of having been involved in the provision of substandard reactor parts by falsifying quality warranties.The raid was made as part of the prosecution probe into a corruption scandal late last year in which more than 13,000 substandard parts were supplied to nuclear reactors under fake warranties over the past 10 years. The government had to stop six reactors after they were found to be using parts with fake warranties."We'v

MOSCOW (AP)--The National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden has been given a document that allows him to leave the transit zone of a Moscow airport and enter Russia, Russia's state news agency said Wednesday. Snowden applied for temporary asylum in Russia last week after his attempts to leave the airport and fly out of Russia were thwarted. The United States wants him sent home to face prosecution for espionage. Snowden, who revealed details  of NSA's wide-ranging spying activities targeting

LONDON (AP)--A closely watched survey has raised hopes that the laggard of the global economy, the 17-country eurozone, may be growing again.Financial information company Markit said Wednesday that its monthly purchasing managers' index, a broad gauge of economic activity, for the eurozone rose for the fourth month running, to 50.4 points in July from 48.7 the previous month. The increase reflected improvements in both the manufacturing and services sectors.That's the first time that the survey