The US military is working on continued improvements to its operation plan to evacuate American civilians in case of a war on the Korean Peninsula, Voice of America reported Wednesday.The US Forces Korea and US Army Pacific are conducting noncombatant evacuation drills on a regular basis to check on the strategic and tactical aspects of the operation, such as designating places of assembly in Korea, said Col. Christopher Garver, a spokesman for US Army Pacific in Hawaii, according to the US broa

Prosecutors on Tuesday arrested the manager of former President Lee Myung-bak’s assets under borrowed names as part of a probe into a corruption scandal surrounding auto parts maker DAS.Lee Young-bae, chief of a DAS subcontractor, is charged with embezzling company money to accumulate some 6.5 billion won ($6.1 million) in slush funds. Prosecutors suspect he laundered money for the former president.Lee allegedly embezzled money by falsely claiming to have paid wages to Kwon Young-mi, the largest

The US Treasury Department proposed sanctions against a Latvian bank, saying it helped process illicit transactions for entities including those with ties to North Korea’s ballistic missiles program.The US Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) designated Latvia’s ABLV Bank as a primary money laundering concern, and proposed to ban it from the US financial system. China’s Bank of Dandong, which was blacklisted by the US in June last year for laundering money for Nort

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un called for continued reconciliatory efforts with South Korea as he received a report from his high-level delegation about their trip to the South, the North’s state-run news agency said Tuesday.“It is important to continue making good results by further livening up the warm climate of reconciliation and dialogue created by the strong desire and common will of the North and the South with the Winter Olympics as a momentum,” Kim was quoted in English by the Korean C

North Korean state media said Monday that its high-level delegation returned from a trip to South Korea that was “meaningful” in improving inter-Korean relations.The North Korean delegation led by its ceremonial head of state Kim Yong-nam arrived in Pyongyang late Sunday night after a three-day visit to the South to attend the opening of the PyeongChang Winter Olympics. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s sister Kim Yo-jong delivered to President Moon Jae-in her brother’s letter and invitation to

The South Korean government said it would provide food, fuel and electricity for the North Korean art troupe during their stay on a ferry at the South’s Mukho port on the east coast.The Samjiyon art troupe on board the North Korean ship, Mangyongbong-92, was scheduled to arrive in Mukho around 5 p.m. on Tuesday for performances ahead of the PyeongChang Winter Olympics.“We will provide support based on the precedent of the 2002 Busan Asian Games,” an official from the South’s Unification Ministry

The female prosecutor who publicly accused a former senior Justice Ministry official of sexually harassing her years ago requested for an investigation into false rumors about her.Seo Ji-hyeon said that then-senior prosecution official Ahn Tae-geun groped her at a funeral in 2010 and that she was unfairly treated after making a formal complaint. She says she has suffered emotional distress, as rumors have spread on the internet that she made the revelation with an aim to enter politics or to sol

Ruling and opposition parties have bickered over who shoulders the blame for last week’s fire that claimed 39 lives at a hospital in Miryang, South Gyeongsang Province, when fire safety related bills have been pending at the National Assembly for over a year.The parliamentary committee on public administration and security passed five revised bills related to fire safety on Jan. 10, shortly after a fitness center fire in Jecheon, North Chungcheong Province, killed 29 people in late December. The

The US on Wednesday announced new sanctions on Chinese and North Korean entities and individuals that it said support Pyongyang’s nuclear weapons and missile programs.The US Treasury Department said in a statement that it is sanctioning nine entities, including two Chinese firms, 16 North Korean individuals and six North Korean vessels. It also urged China and Russia to expel North Koreans raising funds for the country’s weapons program.“Treasury continues to systematically target individuals an

Former President Lee Myung-bak’s second eldest brother Lee Sang-deuk was admitted to an intensive care unit at a hospital Wednesday, two days before he was due to appear before prosecutors for questioning, as the prosecution widens its probe into the former president and his family over alleged corruption and irregularities.The veteran politician had been initially summoned to appear for questioning Wednesday over allegations that he accepted illicit funds from the National Intelligence Service

Unionized workers of KBS said Tuesday they would end a nearly five-month strike, a day after the public broadcaster’s board of directors approved a motion to dismiss its president, accusing him of undermining the fairness of news reporting and overusing disciplinary measures.Over 2,200 unionized workers of KBS have been on a strike since Sept. 4 and demanding the resignation of Koh Dae-young, who they claim was controlled by former President Park Geun-hye. They announced they would return to wor

Prosecutors on Monday raided the residence and office of former President Lee Myung-bak’s elder brother as part of a probe into allegations that he accepted illicit funds from the state spy agency.Investigators from the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office searched Lee Sang-deuk’s home in Seongbuk-dong and office in Yeouido, seizing documents and computer hard drives.Prosecutors said they have obtained testimony from a high-ranking official of the National Intelligence Service that the sta

Leaders of political parties showed mixed reactions to President Moon Jae-in’s outrage over former President Lee Myung-bak’s denouncement of investigations into his aides as “political retaliation.” Moon said through his spokesman Thursday that he “cannot hold back outrage” as Lee accused the incumbent administration of taking revenge over the death of former President Roh Moo-hyun. Roh took his own life in 2009 amid a corruption probe into his family and aides during Lee’s presidency. Former Pr

Rank-and-file soldiers will receive increased monthly wages starting this month.The wage hike comes as part of President Moon Jae-in’s campaign pledge to raise the salaries of conscripts to half the minimum wage by 2022.According to revised rules on compensation for public servants, the monthly salary for sergeants has been raised to 405,700 won ($380) per month this year, up from 216,000 won last year.Corporals, privates first class and privates will be paid 366,200 won, 331,300 won and 306,100

Former President Lee Myung-bak is involved in several ongoing investigations by the prosecution, but it remains to be seen whether prosecutors will be able to hold Lee accountable as they get to the bottom of a bribery scandal and alleged political maneuvers by the state spy agency and the Defense Ministry during his presidency, as well as a slush fund case.The Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office has been scrutinizing the National Intelligence Service for allegedly running an online smear