South Korea is now trying to decide what to do with its spent nuclear fuel, but French experts here say there really is only one option not only for South Korea but any country that produces used nuclear fuel -- deep underground burial of the highly radioactive material.France's search for ways to safely manage spent nuclear fuel began in 1991, when it launched research on three methods of nuclear waste disposal, according to Audrey Guillemenet, a spokeswoman for the Meuse Haute-Marne Center of

South Korea will soon remove most of the restrictions on farms affected by avian influenza since the first outbreak was confirmed earlier in the year, the government said Wednesday.The de facto declaration of the end of the bird flu comes as the last confirmed case was reported on July 25, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs."The lockdown on all farms affected by avian influenza between Jan. 16 and July 25 will be removed as of Sept. 4," the ministry said in a press

Two noncommissioned officers in the special forces have died of apparent suffocation and another has been injured during harsh training, military officers said Wednesday.The accident took place late Tuesday in a unit of the Special Warfare Command in the central town of Jeungpyeong, some 126 kilometers south of Seoul, when the staff sergeants, identified only by their family names, Lee and Cho, collapsed during a training exercise meant to help them survive captivity situations, according to the

South Korea will host Venezuela on Friday in its first international football match since the FIFA World Cup in Brazil.The match will kick off at 8 p.m. at Bucheon Stadium in Bucheon, just west of Seoul. It will be the first-ever meeting between South Korea and Venezuela.South Korea is ranked 57th in the world, 28 spots below Venezuela.South Korea will then face Uruguay next Monday in Goyang, northwest of the capital city.The host will be without a head coach in these two matches.South Korea has

Local brokerage houses have sharply revised down their estimate for the third-quarter operating income of Samsung Electronics Co., citing weak performance in the smartphone sector, an online financial information provider said Wednesday. South Korea's 27 brokerage houses estimated Samsung's operating profit for the July-September period at 6.98 trillion won ($6.85 billion), hovering far below the 8.6 trillion won outlook made in July, the data compiled by FnGuide showed. The figure is also 31.2

Below is a list of previous executions of westerners by jihadist groups since 2002, after the reported death in Syria of American journalist Steven Sotloff whose beheading has been claimed by the ultra-radical Islamic State.A propaganda video apparently showing the ghastly execution was released Tuesday, with IS stating the killing was in response to US air strikes against its positions in Iraq.US officials were working to authenticate the footage, which if confirmed would mark the second IS vid

US lawmakers Tuesday called for Secretary of State John Kerry to present administration policy for "rolling back" the Islamic State's gains, after the rampaging group claimed it beheaded a second American.With members of the House and Senate warning that President Barack Obama has not done enough to combat the extremist group, House Foreign Affairs Committee chairman Ed Royce said he was summoning Kerry to testify once Congress returns next week from its recess."Everyone agrees that the administ

North Korea officially confirmed Tuesday its plan to transport its 273-member Asian Games delegation by air starting next week, South Korean organizers said.North Korea has already announced its plan to send a delegation of 273 athletes, officials and coaches to the upcoming Asian Games to be held in South Korea's western port city of Incheon from Sept. 19 till Oct. 4.On Tuesday, Son Kwang-ho, vice chairman of North Korea's Olympic Committee, sent a letter to Kwon Kyung-sang, secretary-general o

"Paradise in Service," a movie by acclaimed Taiwanese filmmaker Chen-Zer Doze Niu, will open the annual international film festival set to kick off in South Korea's largest port city of Busan next month, organizers said Tuesday.The 19th Busan International Film Festival is scheduled to be held in seven cinemas in Busan on Oct. 2-11, featuring 314 films from 79 countries around the world. "Paradise in Service" follows the adventure of a boy who serves his military service on the Taiwanese island

South Korea's health minister said Tuesday he hopes to nearly double cigarette prices over the next six years to reduce the country's smoking rate, which is way higher than the average of advanced nations.Health and Welfare Minister Moon Hyung-pyo said the price should immediately be raised to at least 3,300 won ($3.24) per pack, partly to reflect the rise in consumer prices, and eventually to 4,500 won by 2020. The last price hike for cigarettes was in 2004 when it was raised by 500 won.The ave

Boosted by the Asia-wide popularity of Korean soaps, a new South Korean drama starring singer and actor Rain has set a new record as the most expensive Korean TV series released online in China, the drama's producer said Tuesday.The online transmission rights for the SBS drama series "My Lovely Girl" were recently sold for $200,000 per episode, the most ever for a Korean drama sold to China.The previous record was $120,000 per episode for "Fated to Love You," an MBC drama series starring Jang Hy

A crew member of the sunken ferry Sewol blamed the captain Tuesday for abandoning passengers and escaping the ship that went down off the country's southwest coast in mid-April, claiming more than 300 lives.The first engineer surnamed Sohn, one of the four crew members charged with abandonment and violation of a ship safety act in connection with the deadly sinking, leveled the criticism during a court hearing held at a district court in this southern city.Asked by a prosecutor whether it was re

The unification ministry said Tuesday it will sign an agreement with the ministries of justice and government legislation to jointly prepare the legal system for South Korea's possible unification with North Korea.Under the agreement, the ministries plan to step up collaboration in their research into a post-unification legal system, according to the ministry dealing with inter-Korean affairs.The joint legal efforts are aimed at reducing possible legal confusion and costs expected during and aft

President Park Geun-hye called on officials Tuesday to ensure the safety of ferries, the latest in a series of calls to make South Korea a safer country following April's deadly ferry sinking."We should be extra careful in the safety management" of ferries, Park said in a Cabinet meeting ahead of the Chuseok holiday, which falls on Sept. 7.Her comments came as the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries prepares to report to Park on its comprehensive measures for local ferries.She also called on offici

South Korea will share the cost of North Korea's participation in the upcoming Incheon Asian Games in consideration of inter-Korean ties and previous cases, a government official said Tuesday.Pyongyang has said it will send a 273-member group of athletes, coaches, referees and other officials to the games to take place in the South's western port city from Sept. 19 to Oct. 4. "The (South Korean) government will fork out a portion of the cost," the unification ministry official told reporters. "I