Yonhap News Summary

The following is the first summary of major stories moved by Yonhap News Agency on Thursday.

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(LEAD) Chinese delegation to visit Pyongyang for celebrations of N. Korea's founding anniversary

SEOUL -- A Chinese delegation will visit North Korea to attend events to celebrate the 75th founding anniversary of the North Korean regime, Pyongyang's state media said Thursday.

A party and government Chinese delegation, headed by Liu Guozhong, vice premier of the State Council of China, will visit North Korea to participate in celebrations for the 75th founding anniversary, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

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N. Korea will face 'repercussions' if it provides weapons to Russia: Kirby

WASHINGTON -- North Korea will face repercussions from the United States and other countries should it provide weapons to Russia that can kill innocent people in Ukraine, a White House official said Wednesday.

John Kirby, National Security Council (NSC) coordinator for strategic communications, also called on North Korea to stop its negotiations with Russia for a potential arms deal.

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(LEAD) Discharged suspect behind development scandal denies fake media interview allegations

SEOUL -- Kim Man-bae, a key suspect behind a politically charged property development scandal, denied allegations Thursday that he had attempted to manipulate a media interview story to influence last year's presidential election.

Kim made the remarks as he was discharged from the Seoul Detention Center in Uiwang, south of Seoul, shortly after midnight, as his six-month detention period expired and a court rejected the prosecution's request for the extension of Kim's detention.

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DP leader to appear before prosecutors for questioning Saturday

SEOUL -- Opposition leader Lee Jae-myung will appear before prosecutors this weekend for questioning over his alleged involvement in a company's illegal money transfers to North Korea, his party said Thursday.

Lee, chairman of the main opposition Democratic Party (DP), will show up at the Suwon District Prosecutors Office on Saturday, DP spokesperson Park Sung-joon told reporters, after a tug-of-war between the two sides over the date of Lee's appearance.

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FSS chief paid visit to China last week: sources

SEOUL -- The head of South Korea's Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) visited China last week for the first time in six years and met with his Chinese counterpart, sources said Thursday.

Lee Bok-hyun met with Li Yunze, head of China's National Financial Regulatory Administration, on Aug. 31 and discussed improving financial cooperation between the two countries, according to the sources.

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S. Korea's exports decline easing amid lingering uncertainties: KDI

SEOUL -- South Korea's exports are showing signs of improvement, but uncertainties from China continue to weigh on the economy, a state-run think tank said Thursday.

The assessment came after the country reported a trade surplus for the third straight month in August, although exports fell for the 11th consecutive month amid sluggish chip sales.

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(LEAD) Ryu Hyun-jin hurt by long ball, lack of run support in loss to MLB-worst A's

SEOUL, Sept. 7 (Yonhap) -- The final pitching line for Toronto Blue Jays starter Ryu Hyun-jin against the Oakland Athletics looked quite solid: five innings pitched, five hits, two runs, five strikeouts and a walk. That should have been enough to give the South Korean left-hander a win over the team with the worst record in Major League Baseball (MLB) in Oakland on Wednesday (local time).

Instead, Ryu was saddled with his second loss of the season, as the Blue Jays lost the game 5-2 at Oakland Coliseum.
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