Two convicted South Korean prisoners in China have recently been transferred to serve out their remaining sentences in their homeland under a prisoner transfer agreement between the two countries, officials said Tuesday.   The two, aged 61 and 69, were sent from a prison in the northeast Chinese city of Shenyang to South Korea last week, according to officials at the Korean Consulate General in Shenyang.The prisoners, whose identities were withheld, have been serving time for drug-related crim

Italy declared a state of emergency on Tuesday after flash floods on the island of Sardinia left 17 people dead and forced hundreds to seek emergency shelter as the waters swept away bridges and flooded homes.   Several people were still missing and emergency workers were trying to access low-lying rural areas affected as the Mediterranean cyclone swept through on Monday, with officials saying some 20,000 people were affected.   Soldiers were deployed in the region and the government promised to

  Prime Minister Chung Hong-won said Tuesday he believes South Korea should increase its defense budget to 3 percent of gross domestic product, citing the country's "security realities."   Chung made the remark during a parliamentary interpellation session after Rep. Kim Eul-dong of the ruling Saenuri Party accused the government of lacking commitment to national security as it did not set aside enough budget for national defense.   "Security realities make it necessary to increase the defense b

In the event of a unification of the two Koreas, international support will be needed to cover the high cost since South Korea will not be able to foot the bill alone, the unification minister said Tuesday.   Speaking at a National Assembly interpellation session, South Korea's Unification Minister Ryoo Kihl-jae conceded that Seoul just does not have the resources to tackle the myriad of problems associated with merging with the North at this juncture.   "Due to the sheer amount of money that wi

The National Assembly resumed an interpellation session Tuesday after the ruling party apologized for blaming an opposition lawmaker for a scuffle the previous day.   The session came to a halt earlier in the day when all lawmakers of the main opposition Democratic party (DP) stormed out in protest of the accusation.   The scuffle broke out Monday between DP Rep. Kang Gi-jung and a presidential security officer shortly after President Park Geun-hye delivered her budget speech at the National Ass

구글이 지난 18일 애플 정보보기기의 인터넷 접속이력(쿠키)를 이용자 동의없이 수집해 개인정보를 위반한 혐의로 1천700만달러(180억원가량)의 벌금을 물기로 합의했다. 에릭 슈나이더만 뉴욕주 검찰총장은 "구글이 2011년에서 2012년 사이 애플의 웹브라우저 사파리의 인터넷 접속 이력을 추적, 이용자의 화면에 광고가 뜨게 하는 등 개인정보 보호 규정을 위반한 혐의로 1천700만달러에 달하는 벌금을 내기로 합의했다"고 밝혔다.35개주와 워싱턴DC에서 발생한 구글의 개인정보 보호 위반에 따른 이번 벌금 이전에도 구글은 지난해 11월 같은 문제로 2천250만달러(245억원가량)의 벌금을 낸 바 있다. 당시 미국 소비자보호기구인 연방거래위원회(FTC)는 구글과의 분쟁 조정절차를 거쳐 법원이 정한 금액과 같은 규모의 벌금을 물리기로 하였다. FTC가 단일 회사에 부과한 벌금으로는 사상 최대 규모다. 애플은 사파리 접속 이력에 대한 외부업체의 접근을 차단하고 있음에도 불구하고 구글은 2011

The government said Tuesday that it would increase the average price of electricity by 5.4 percent to curb heavy electricity use that might lead to a blackout at peak seasons. It was the first rate hike since January.The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said that it approved the Korea Electric Power Corp.’s revised provision on electricity supply to increase the power rate by 5.4 percent from Thursday this week.According to the revised system, the price of power will increase by 6.4 percen

Maintaining an active lifestyle is one of the best ways to prevent strokes for the elderly at high risk, according to research reported by HealthDay News.British professor Barbara Jefferis at University College London conducted a 10-year experiment on 3,435 men aged between 60 and 80, and divided them into five groups: those who walked zero to three hours a week, four to seven hours a week, eight to 14 hours a week, 15 to 21 hours a week and more than 22 hours a week. The data shows that men who

걷는 시간이 많을 수록 뇌졸중 위험은 줄어든다는 연구결과가 나왔다.영국 유니버시티 칼리지 런던(UCL) 인구보건학교수 바버라 제프리스 박사는 노년기에는 속도와 상관없이 하루 1-2시간 정도만 걸어도 뇌졸중 위험이 3분의 1 줄어든다는 연구결과를 발표했다고 데일리 메일 인터넷판과 헬스데이 뉴스가 15일 보도했다.60-80세의 건강한 남성 3천435명을 대상으로 10년에 걸쳐 실시한 조사분석 결과 이 같은 사실이 확인됐다고 제프리스 박사는 밝혔다.그의 연구팀은 이들을 일주일에 걸어다니는 시간이 얼마인지에 따라 0-3시간, 4-7시간, 8-14시간, 15-21시간, 22시간 이상 등 5그룹으로 나누고 각 그룹의 뇌졸중 발생률을 비교분석했다.그 결과 일주일에 걷는 시간이 8-14시간인 그룹은 뇌졸중 발생률이 1천명당 55명으로 0-3의 1천명당 80명에 비해 약 3분의 1 적은 것으로 나타났다.일주일에 걷는 시간이 22시간 이상인 그룹은 뇌졸중 발생률이 3분의 2 낮았다.전체적으로 걸어다니

South Korean stocks closed 0.26 percent higher Monday, as investors kept their hopes high about a delay of the U.S. stimulus cut, analysts said. The local currency rose against the U.S. dollar.   The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added 5.17 points to finish at 2,010.81. Trading volume was light at 310.3 million shares worth 3.04 trillion won ($2.85 billion) with decliners outpacing gainers 462 to 339. The main index capped its gains as foreigners and retail investors opted

A high-ranking diplomat from Seoul will soon travel to Iran to gain the release of a South Korean national in prison on espionage charges, a government source here said Sunday."Deputy Foreign Minister Lee Kyung-soo will visit Iran at the end of this month," the source said on the condition of anonymity."He's expected to put in efforts to free the South Korean there, which is one of the outstanding bilateral issues between the countries."This will be the first visit to Iran by a South Korean depu

South Korea has sent 17.8 billion won ($16.7 million) in humanitarian aid to North Korea in 2013, a 26 percent increase from last year, despite the spike in cross-border tensions, the Seoul government said Sunday.In a report released by the Ministry of Unification, the total amount of aid sent to the communist country, including money donated to international organizations, represents a 26 percent increase from 14.1 billion won offered in 2012."Despite criticisms that Seoul has not done enough t