Four former U.S. government officials who met with former National Security Agency systems analyst Edward Snowden said Thursday that he is adjusting to life in Russia and expresses no regrets about leaking highly classified information. Separately, Snowden's father arrived to see his son. The Americans, who once worked for the CIA, FBI, Justice Department and NSA, have criticized the U.S. government and exposed what they believed was wrongdoing in the security agencies. All supporters of Snowden

China and the United States remain committed to expanding their "effective coordination" to resolve the North Korean nuclear standoff and reduce tensions over other regional hot issues, a senior Chinese diplomat said Friday. China has been keen to restart the long-stalled multilateral talks aimed at ending the North's nuclear weapons program, but South Korea and the U.S. insist that a new round of six-party talks will not take place unless North Korea demonstrates its seriousness about denuclear

The mother of a U.S. missionary, jailed in North Korea for unspecified anti-government activities, was allowed to meet her son Friday, a news report said.Kenneth Bae, a Korean-American based in China, was traveling in North Korea late last year when he was arrested by authorities on charges of trying to overthrow the North's communist regime. In April, he was sentenced to 15 years of hard labor.On Friday, Japan's Kyodo News reported from Pyongyang that the missionary's mother, Bae Myung-hee, met

Detroit won through to another appearance in the American League Championship Series by beating Oakland 3-0 on Friday, sealing a 3-2 series victory, with Justin Verlander in dominant form on the mound.The Tigers became the first team to reach the ALCS in three straight years since the New York Yankees from 1998-2001.Their opponent will be Boston, which will host Game 1 on Saturday. Despite both being historic clubs, they have never before faced each other in the playoffs.Verlander held Oakland h

The nominee for the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) vowed Friday to speed up major weapons programs to bolster defense capabilities, saying North Korea's missile and nuclear ambitions are posing the greatest threat to South Korean national security.President Park Geun-hye last month appointed Adm. Choi Yun-hee to the JCS chief, marking the first time that a Navy chief has been appointed to the top commander post. His appointment is subject to parliamentary approval.Choi said the Sout

South Korean stocks began higher Friday, as fear of a U.S. default eased after the Republicans offered the White House a proposal to break the logjam in their negotiations, analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) shot up 18 points, or 0.9 percent, to 2,019.40 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Large-cap stocks gathered ground across the board, with Samsung Electronics rising 0.8 percent and Shinhan Financial Group climbing 1.4 percent. House Republicans proposed a

International inspectors have so far visited three sites linked to Syria's chemical weapons program, a spokesman said Thursday, as the team races to destroy the country's stockpile and delivery systems amid a raging civil war.Underscoring the complexity of the mission, a regime warplane bombed the rebel-held town of Safira, an activist group said. A regime-controlled military complex believed to include chemical weapons facilities is located near the town.The inspectors are to visit more than 20

More South Korean firms filed lawsuits against the country's fair trade watchdog in 2012 from five years earlier, data showed Friday, in an apparent bid to slash imposed fines amid tightening rules.The Fair Trade Commission (FTC) faced 60 rows last year involving its corrective measures levied on local firms, accounting for 13.3 percent of 448 cases of such orders, its report submitted to parliament showed.The number marks a near two-fold growth from the 6.8 percent tallied in 2007, the data als

In one of the most highly anticipated football matches here this year, South Korea will host Brazil in the nation's capital on Saturday.The match will take place at Seoul World Cup Stadium at 8 p.m.According to the Korea Football Association (KFA), it is expected to draw a near-sellout crowd at the 66,000-seat venue and set a new attendance record for a football friendly there.The record for the largest turnout at Seoul World Cup Stadium is 62,884, when South Korea took on the Netherlands in Jun

Washington's decision to withhold millions of dollars in mostly military aid to Egypt is fueling anti-U.S. sentiment and the perception that Washington supports Mohammed Morsi, the Islamist president the military ousted in a July coup. That could boost the popularity of the military chief, Gen. Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, whom the U.S. is trying to pressure to ensure a transition to democracy and ease the fierce crackdown on Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood.The aid freeze could also embolden Morsi's suppor

Scott Carpenter, the second American to orbit the Earth, was guided by two instincts: overcoming fear and quenching his insatiable curiosity. He pioneered his way into the heights of space and the depths of the ocean floor.“Conquering of fear is one of life's greatest pleasures and it can be done a lot of different places,” he said.His wife, Patty Barrett, said Carpenter died Thursday in a Denver hospice of complications from a September stroke. He lived in Vail.Carpenter followed John Glenn int