SEOUL: A heavy rain watch was issued across parts of northern Gyeonggi Province on Wednesday, with 100 millimeters of rain per hour pouring in the border city of Paju, the state weather agency said. As of 7 a.m., heavy downpours of 100.9 mm per hour had been pounding Munsan, a town in Paju, 37 kilometers north of Seoul, according to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA). ¦ Nat'l Assembly speaker proposes constitutional revision be put to direct vote in 2026 elections SEOUL -- National Assembly speaker Woo Won-shik on Wednesday proposed the parliament come up with a bill to revise the Constitution with the aim of holding a national referendum in 2026. Woo made the suggestion in an address marking the 76th anniversary of Constitution Day, officially proposing that President Yoon Suk Yeol hold talks with the Assembly to discuss the amendment. ¦ ADB raises S. Korea's 2024 growth forecast to 2.5 pct SEOUL -- The Asian Development Bank (ADB) revised up its outlook for South Korea's economic growth thi s year to 2.5 percent given strong exports, Seoul's finance ministry said Wednesday. It marked a 0.3 percentage-point increase from its April forecast. ¦ (LEAD) Korean American expert on N. Korea accused of acting as agent for S. Korea: NYT WASHINGTON -- A renowned Korean American expert on North Korea has been charged with having acted as an agent for the South Korean government in return for expensive dinners and handbags, a U.S. newspaper reported Tuesday, citing federal prosecutors in New York. Sue Mi Terry, a senior fellow for Korea studies at the Council on Foreign Relations and a former analyst of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), has been indicted on the charges, according to The New York Times. Her lawyer called the charges "unfounded." ¦ (LEAD) Ex-Trump official voices hope for S. Korea to make 'big' contribution for defense WASHINGTON/MILWAUKEE -- A former U.S. national security advisor said Tuesday he is looking forward to a "big" contribution by South Korea in reference to ongoing nego tiations between Seoul and Washington over the cost sharing for stationing the 28,500-strong U.S. Forces Korea (USFK). Robert O'Brien, who served as national security advisor for then President Donald Trump from 2019-2021, made the remarks as the allies have been engaging in negotiations over a new cost-sharing deal, called the Special Measures Agreement. Source: Yonhap News Agency