Japan maglev train breaks world speed record again

Japan's magnetic levitation train first set a 581km/h world record back in 2003.

A Japanese magnetic levitation train has broken its own world speed record, hitting 603km/h (374mph) in a test run near Mount Fuji.

The train beat the 590km/h speed it had set last week in another test.

Maglev trains use electrically charged magnets to lift and move carriages above the rail tracks.

Central Japan Railway (JR Central), which owns the trains, wants to introduce the service between Tokyo and the central city of Nagoya by 2027.

The 280km journey would take only about 40 minutes, less than half the current time.

However, passengers will not get to experience the maglev's record-breaking speeds because the company said its trains will operate at a maximum of 505km/h.

Construction is estimated at nearly $100bn (£67bn) just for the stretch to Nagoya, with more than 80% of the route expected to go through costly tunnels, reported AFP news agency.

The government is also hoping to sell the maglev train technology overseas.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is visiting the US on Sunday where he is expected to pitch for a role in building a new high-speed rail line between New York and Washington.

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South Korea PM Lee Wan-koo offers to resign over scandal

Mr Lee (centre) denies accepting 30 million won in illegal campaign funds

South Korea's Prime Minister Lee Wan-koo has offered to resign after facing accusations of accepting bribes, just two months into his post.

Mr Lee denies accepting 30 million won ($27,700; £18,600) in illegal campaign funds from businessman Sung Wan-jong.

A note left by Sung, who died in an apparent suicide earlier this month, listed eight figures he claimed to have bribed, including Mr Lee.

President Park Geun-hye has called for a "thorough investigation".

She is due to decide on his resignation after she returns from Peru where she is on a state visit.

Under South Korean law, politicians cannot accept more than 100,000 won in contributions.

Mr Lee had denied knowing Sung, the boss of a construction company, very well, but media reports have suggested otherwise. Sung, who was himself under investigation for corruption, was found earlier this month hanging from a tree by his tie.

Sung told a local newspaper before his death that he gave 30 million won to Mr Lee in 2013 when he was seeking re-election for parliament.

Sung was about to be questioned by authorities over allegations that he embezzled company money to bribe politicians.

An opposition party has called for Mr Lee's impeachment.

Decision next week

Referring to Mr Lee's resignation, Ms Park said in a written statement: "I find it regrettable. I also feel sympathy for the agony of the prime minister."

Yonhap reported that she would decide on whether to accept Mr Lee's resignation by next week.

Ms Park, seen here with Peru's President Ollanta Humala, is currently on a state visit in the South American country

Mr Lee filled the number two position of prime minister after a protracted hunt for a candidate to replace his predecessor, Chung Hong-won.

Mr Chung resigned shortly after the Sewol ferry disaster in April 2014 that killed more than 300 people.

He was kept on for several months as Ms Park looked for a successor. Two candidates withdrew their candidacies after being accused of wrongdoing, before the job went to Mr Lee.

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AC/DC drummer Phil Rudd pleads guilty to threat to kill

Phil Rudd, drummer of Australian rock band AC/DC, has changed his plea to guilty on a charge of a threat to kill, at a court in Tauranga, New Zealand.

The court heard he had asked for a former employee to be "taken out" because he was angry his solo album had not performed well.

Mr Rudd, who had denied the charges, also pleaded guilty to possession of cannabis and methamphetamine.

One second charge of a threat to kill has been dropped for lack of evidence.

Australian-born Mr Rudd was arrested at his home in the coastal town in November last year and has since been out on bail.

The court heard on Tuesday that he had fired a number of employees in August after his solo album, Head Job, flopped in the charts.

Mr Rudd could be jailed for up to seven years for the threat to kill charge

A month later, the court heard, he telephoned an associate saying he wanted one of the people he had fired "taken out".

He later offered the associate NZ$200,000 ($153,000; £100,000) as well as "a motorbike, one of his cars or a house", which the person assumed was payment "for carrying out his earlier request".

Mr Rudd is then alleged to have called the victim threatening to "come over and kill you".

"As a result of threats made by the defendant, the victim was genuinely very fearful for his safety", the court summary read.

Mr Rudd's lawyer, Craig Tuck, told reporters outside the court that the charge "essentially revolved around an angry phone call - that was it".

Mr Rudd, 60, faces up to seven years in jail for the threat charge. Possession of cannabis carries a sentence of three months and methamphetamine possession six months.

He has been released on bail until another hearing in June.

Profile: AC/DC

• One of Australia's biggest music exports and among the highest grossing music acts of all time.
• Known for top hits such as Highway to Hell, You Shook Me All Night Long, Back in Black, Hell's Bells and Dirty Deeds Done Cheap.
• The band was founded by brothers Malcolm and Angus Young in 1973, who named it after the abbreviation for "alternating current direct current" - hence the lightning bolt on their logo.
• Angus, the lead guitarist, is known for his schoolboy outfits which he still wears for performances.
• The Young brothers were the only original members in the band for decades until Malcolm's departure in 2014 after he was diagnosed with dementia.
• More than a dozen people have been part of the band over the years, including late singer Bon Scott who died of alcohol poisoning in 1980.
• The band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2003.

AC/DC: Rock's 'kick in the guts'

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