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After two weeks detention North Korea frees Chinese boat and 16 fishermen

Tue, 21 May 2013 16:21:12 -0400

PYONGYANG - A Chinese boat and 16 fishermen held by armed North Koreans for more than two weeks have been released, easing the latest tension in relations between the neighbouring allies. Owner Yu Xuejun, who was not on board the boat when it was seized on 5 May, wrote on his microblog that his captain called him at 3.50am to say the crew and boat were set free and that they were on their way ...

Coke Ad Hawks Pop Peace to India Pakistan

Tue, 21 May 2013 18:15:04 -0400

Massive corporations like Coca-Cola have a primary goal: Sell their products to make money. Sometimes, if they're lucky, that goal aligns with another endeavor: Make peace. A new three-minute advertisement released by the beverage company this week aims to do both. Coca-Cola filmed the advertisement in two locations: Pakistan and India, South Asia's nuclear-armed neighbors mired in ...

Kerry Mideast Talks on Syria to Include Russian Call for Involving Iran

Tue, 21 May 2013 18:15:03 -0400

STATE DEPARTMENT U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is in the Middle East this week for talks to promote an international peace conference on Syria. Russia wants Iran to be part of the process. In this fight for control of Syria, Iran is one of the biggest backers of embattled President Bashar al-Assad. So Russia says Iran should be part of the peace process. "Iran has ...

Group to Take Nigeria Government to International Court

Tue, 21 May 2013 18:15:03 -0400

The Northern Elders Forum (NEF) will file a complaint with the International Court of Justice (ICJ) accusing Nigeria's government of human rights violations, according to spokesman Ango Abdullahi. "What we are doing now is to organize our evidence that would make it possible for us to make a very strong case against the government and its agencies, or up to individuals who may be ...

New iPhone App Speeds Care of Heart Attack Victims

Tue, 21 May 2013 18:15:02 -0400

Researchers have developed an experimental iPhone application, or app, designed to help emergency medical technicians diagnose a particularly deadly form of heart attack and send that information quickly to waiting hospital surgical teams. The inexpensive app can greatly improve a patient's odds of survival. The iPhone app is specially designed to identify patients suffering from a ...

Enhanced contract payments for Australian cricket eves

Tue, 21 May 2013 09:20:02 -0400

Cricket Australia (CA) Tuesday announced a restructuring of the contracting system for women players which will result in the Australian female cricketers becoming some of the best paid female athletes in the country. CA approved a restructure of the contract system with a move from a three-tier payment system to a squad-ranking system. The top player retainer increases substantially from ...

China to host maiden Royal Trophy golf meet

Tue, 21 May 2013 08:30:02 -0400

The Royal Trophy Golf Tournament will be held for the first time in China Dec 20-22 at Dragon Lake Golf Club in Guangzhou, Royal Trophy co-managing director Ivan Ballesteros said Tuesday. "We are very pleased to announce that the next edition of the Royal Trophy will be held at Dragon Lake Golf Club in China. The previous edition of the competition was an enormous success with the Asian team ...

Did witty Li score brownie points over India

Tue, 21 May 2013 08:00:02 -0400

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Hack attack led to theft of 22 million IDs at Yahoo Japan

Tue, 21 May 2013 07:30:04 -0400

Yahoo Japan faced a hack attack, which reportedly led to a theft of 22 million user ids that constitutes one tenth of its 200 million members. A file of ID details was stolen from the administration system at Yahoo Japan, which was spotted late on 16th May. In a report by BBC, the tech firm cut the net access as soon as it detected the attack. Although the firm was not sure if the data had been ...

Warner expected to plead guilty for Twitter rant during CA hearing

Tue, 21 May 2013 06:40:02 -0400

Australian Test batsman David Warner is expected to plead guilty during Cricket Australia hearing over his recent Twitter rant with two prominent journalists. Senior Code of Behaviour Commissioner, Justice Gordon Lewis, will hear the case via teleconference. According to news.com.au, Warner faces sanction ranging from a fine, suspension, reprimand or counseling after being reported under CA's ...

Japan has many attractions for foreign tourists

Tue, 21 May 2013 06:30:03 -0400

"The Land of the Rising Sun" - Japan - attracts a large number of tourists from all over the world. The country, which will host the 2020 Olympic Games, has a lot to offer to its visitors. These tourists are being ferried from Takamatsu Airport to Setouchi Triennale 2013, a unique festival of contemporary art spread out and interlaced with the numerous islands dotting Japan's picturesque Seto ...

National Federation Party ready for 2014 Fiji elections

Tue, 21 May 2013 06:10:01 -0400

Fiji's National Federation Party (NFP), comprising mostly of Indian-origin members, says it is ready for the elections scheduled for 2014 in that south pacific island nation. Party president Raman Pratap said that there was no need for a change in the party's executive line-up and a meeting will be held in June to discuss the party's election strategy. "All we have to do now is start with our ...

US charges three NYU researchers for taking bribes from Chinese company

Tue, 21 May 2013 05:50:03 -0400

Three New York University researchers from China divulged results from a federally funded study to Chinese competitors in exchange for tuition, rent and other expenses. Federal prosecutors said that Yudong Zhu, a U.S.-educated NYU professor, and Xing Yang, a lab engineer, were released on bail after appearing in federal court in Manhattan to face commercial bribery and other charges. According ...

Blind Chinese dissident Guangcheng asks US to protect relatives in China

Tue, 21 May 2013 04:40:04 -0400

Chinese activist Chen Guangcheng, who fled to the US last year, has said he thinks Washington should do more to protect the relatives he left behind in China. Guangcheng caused a diplomatic row between the US and China after he escaped house arrest and sought refuge in the American embassy in Beijing. Guangcheng, who exposed forced abortions and sterilisations in his home province of Shandong, ...

Li Keqiang declares 2014 as year of exchanges between India China to boost friendship

Tue, 21 May 2013 03:40:01 -0400

Stressing on the need for increased people-to-people interaction between India and China, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang on Tuesday declared 2014 as the year of exchanges between the two nations to boost understanding and friendship. Addressing captains of Indian industry at a function organised by FICCI here, Keqiang said: " The year of 2014 will be to boost understanding and friendship between ...

India China trade imbalance to grow Chinese experts

Tue, 21 May 2013 02:20:02 -0400

The trade imbalance between India and China may keep growing, experts here said with one of them noting that "India needs more Chinese manufactured products". As Premier Li Keqiang visits India, his first overseas trip, China Daily spoke to experts who said the trade imbalance is likely to keep growing and the situation is hard to change. "India's trade deficit with China is expanding. In the ...

Weaker yen fuels economic optimism in Japan

Tue, 21 May 2013 02:20:02 -0400

The Japanese government Monday revised upward its evaluation of the economy given the weakness of the yen, which is helping to push exports and encouraging companies to increase production. In its economic report for May, the cabinet raised its evaluation of three of the 14 categories it analyzes: exports, industrial production and profits. In addition, it said that the economy "is moving ...

Situation on Korean Peninsula still serious

Mon, 20 May 2013 23:40:01 -0400

The security situation on the Korean Peninsula is still serious after North Korea's recent missile launch and its defiant pursuit of nuclear weapons, South Korea has said. "We continue to face a grave situation due to a series of provocations and nuclear threats by North Korea," said South Korean Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se at an annual conference of chiefs of overseas diplomatic missions in ...

On the Scene in Tornado Hit Town Even Trees are Stripped of Everything

Tue, 21 May 2013 19:37:04 -0400

VOA correspondent Greg Flakus is at the site of the tornado damage in Moore, Oklahoma. He spoke with English broadcaster David Byrd Tuesday afternoon about what he is ...

Kerry Presses US-Russian Plan for Syrian Peace Talks

Tue, 21 May 2013 19:37:03 -0400

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry meets Wednesday in the Jordanian capital with senior diplomats from 11 nations, as part of a U.S.-Russian push to end Syria's civil ...

Australia waits on US-Afghan decision

Tue, 21 May 2013 19:33:04 -0400

Australia is still waiting on the US to decide its post-2014 troop commitment to Afghanistan before announcing how many Australian troops will remain, Defence Minister Stephen Smith says.Speaking after meeting US Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel in Washington, Mr Smith said Australia remained willing to assist with training of Afghan officers.Australia was also ready to contribute special forces to ...

China looks to grow NT trade

Tue, 21 May 2013 19:30:19 -0400

THE Chinese Government wants to expand trade to the Territory and is seeking energy and minerals, high-ranking diplomats has told a mining summit held in ...

Japan Hotel trading and investment market likely to exhibit further improvements.

Tue, 21 May 2013 19:19:37 -0400

Jones Lang LaSalle releases Hotel Intelligence Japan 2013 research report.Jones Lang LaSalle's Hotels & Hospitality Group is pleased to announce that Hotel Intelligence Japan 2013 has been released today. ...

Air China makes baggage through check-in available to 14 cities

Tue, 21 May 2013 19:05:25 -0400

BEIJING, China - Air China will make its baggage through check-in service from international cities to domestic cities (I-D) via Beijing more accessible. Starting May 21 (Beijing time), Air China passengers who travel from London, Paris, Dusseldorf, Munich, Frankfurt, Rome, Milan, Stockholm, Vancouver, Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, and Geneva transferring to other Chinese cities via ...

PM Li faces litmus test in Pakistan Chinas iron brother

Tue, 21 May 2013 18:53:28 -0400

Chinese premier Li Keqiang faces the challenge of meeting conflicting demands for his attention and Beijing's purse when he lands in Pakistan on Wednesday at the end of his India visit, his first foreign tour after assuming ...

Woman flees to UK refusing to be Swa...

Tue, 21 May 2013 18:51:28 -0400

Swaziland king (Photo;Agencies) A young woman is seeking asylum in Britain after she spurned the advances of the polyamorous King Mswati III of Swaziland and refused to join his harem of 13 wives. Tintswalo Ngobeni, 22, fled to England from the southern African nation as a teenager after she caught the attention of the millionaire monarch. As part of Swazi custom, King Mswati III, 45, is ...

Owner smashes his Maserati to protest...

Tue, 21 May 2013 18:51:27 -0400

Four men smashed a black Maserati Quattroporte with hammers outside an exhibition center in Qingdao, where an international auto show is being held Tuesday, May 14th, 2013. A friend of the luxury car's owner said they did this to protest the car dealer's bad service. The dealer reportedly repaired the sedan, worth 2.6 million yuan, with some used components. The dealer has admitted to ...

Man detained for organizing gay parad...

Tue, 21 May 2013 18:51:27 -0400

By Yu Runze, Sina English A man was given 12 days of administrative detention for organizing a large scale gay rights parade in Changsha, central China's Hunan Province, local police announced on May 19. "Xiang was given 12 days of detention for organizing a parade without seeking police's permission first," the police said on its official microblog. The 19-year-old Xiang ...

College student hijacks doctor for fa...

Tue, 21 May 2013 18:51:27 -0400

A university student surnamed Chen, 18, holds a female doctor hostage at Wuhan No. 9 Hospital, Hubei Province Saturday. Chen had hit an elderly woman with his bike, and could not afford to pay the medical fees her family ...

Oklahoma tornado Condolences from delegates at USNZ Pacific Partnership Forum

Tue, 21 May 2013 18:36:38 -0400

Delegates at the USNZ Pacific Partnership Forum meeting in Washington DC have expressed sorrow at the loss of life in the Oklahoma tornado. NZUS executive director Stephen Jacobi said delegates made note of the Canterbury earthquake, which had disrupted the last forum meeting. "Now the people of Oklahoma are facing devastation and loss of extraordinary proportions. "Our hearts go out to the ...

Bank of Japan may seek to ease bond market jitters policy seen on hold

Tue, 21 May 2013 18:23:13 -0400

Reuters © Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda arrives at the G7 Finance Ministers meeting in Aylesbury, southern England May 10, 2013. REUTERS/Alastair ...

Japan Rate Decision On Tap For Wednesday

Tue, 21 May 2013 18:19:56 -0400

The Bank of Japan is on Wednesday scheduled to conclude its monetary policy meeting and then announce its decision on interest rates, highlighting a modest day for Asia-Pacific economic activity. The BoJ is widely expected to hold rates at 0.10 percent, although some additional stimulus may be introduced.Japan also will see April figures for imports, exports and trade balance. Imports are ...

River cruise line adds a second vessel to sail Pacific Northwest

Tue, 21 May 2013 18:16:50 -0400

The former Empress of the North has been acquired by the American Queen Steamboat Co. and will sail rivers in the Pacific Northwest. (The photo was retouched with the boat's new name, American ...

Cardiffs Bradley Davies picked to captain Wales on tour to Japan

Tue, 21 May 2013 18:13:42 -0400

Bradley Davies, of Cardiff Blues, has been named as Wales captain for the tour of Japan after a period in the wilderness. Photograph: Alex Livesey/Getty ...

China Declares Global State of Emergency An Urgent Telegram from Taihu

Tue, 21 May 2013 18:13:09 -0400

most powerful politician, Yu Zhengsheng, Chairman of the National Committee of the CPPCC (Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference) opened the Second Conference of the (carbon-neutralized) ...

China coal imports to continue affecting global prices Platts

Tue, 21 May 2013 18:11:16 -0400

/enpproperty--> China's coal imports will continue from a more diversified number of sources over the long-term, exerting a major influence on international coal prices, according to Platts, a leading source of benchmark price assessments in the energy, petrochemicals and metals sectors. James O'Connell, the editor-in-chief of Platts' Coal Trader International, which ...

Netanyahu Arrives in China

Tue, 21 May 2013 18:10:24 -0400

JERUSALEM, Israel -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu began an official visit to China Monday despite tensions back home following the alleged Israeli airstrikes on Syrian weapons storage facilities. Israeli commentators said it was important for Netanyahu to maintain his plans to signal that Israel is continuing its business as usual. Netanyahu did delay his departure slightly Sunday ...

With wary eye on the U.S. China courts India

Tue, 21 May 2013 17:53:37 -0400

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, smiling and effusive, was out to smooth ruffled feathers in India this week, promising to ease tensions and increase trade between Asia's fastest growing economies in his first trip overseas since taking ...

Chinas bird flu outbreak cost $6.5 billion

Tue, 21 May 2013 17:53:36 -0400

GENEVA (Reuters) - The H7N9 virus appears to have been brought under control in China largely due to restrictions at bird markets, but caused some $6.5 billion in losses to the economy, U.N. experts said on ...

Extensive gold reserves discovered in northwest China

Tue, 21 May 2013 17:43:28 -0400

Geologists in China say they've found gold reserves in a northwestern province that could be worth $32 billion to the country's economy. The discovery was made in China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, the country's state-run Xinhua News Agency reported Tuesday. The gold deposit in Xinyuan County in the Ili Valley is estimated to contain at least 53 tons, Zeng Xiaogang, ...

Greek PM invites China to join Greeces success story

Tue, 21 May 2013 17:41:08 -0400

China's Premier Li Keqiang (r.) and Greece's Prime Minister Antonis Samaras talk during a signing ceremony at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing last week. Mr. Samaras is hoping to convince the Chinese to invest in Greece, which could help ease the country's debt ...

Former President Rafsanjani Ahmadinejad ally barred from Iran election

Tue, 21 May 2013 17:39:54 -0400

Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani , a relative moderate, from running in the June 14 election, along with a protege of the current president, leaving mainly hardliners left to contest the vote. Rafsanjani and Esfandiar Rahim Mashaie, a close aide to current ...

China demands DPRK free crew of Chine...

Tue, 21 May 2013 17:37:40 -0400

China is urging Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) to release a Chinese fishing boat and its crew reported to have been held since May 5. Counsellor Jiang Yaxian of the Chinese Embassy in the DPRK told Xinhua news agency yesterday that Yu Xuejun, the boat's owner, called the embassy for help on May 10 and it had immediately contacted the North Korean side. The Chinese ...

China Builds Museums But Filling Them Is Another Story

Tue, 21 May 2013 17:06:47 -0400

One of the highlights of the new China Art Palace in Shanghai is a giant digital rendering of a famous ancient scroll, "Along the River During Qingming Festival," which includes figures that walk and talk. The work was first presented at the 2010 World Expo in ...

Polar Air Cargo to Upgrade Intra-Asia Trans-Pacific Services

Tue, 21 May 2013 17:03:23 -0400

Boeing 767-300 freighter will operate between Tokyo; Sydney; and Incheon, South Korea, while a second 767-300 will operate between Taipei, Taiwan; Nagoya, Japan; and Incheon. With other previously announced routes, this will allow connections to and from the U.S.Polar will also add two weekly flights between Hong Kong and Cincinnati."We are continuing to enhance our network to ensure that we ...

Li China India have vast room for further co-op

Tue, 21 May 2013 16:57:57 -0400

Li Keqiang said Tuesday. "China and India are two largest developing countries and emerging markets in the world," Li said in a speech at the Indian Council of World Affairs. "China-India relations are one of the world's most important bilateral relations in the 21st century," Li said. "Their cooperation has vast room of further development." Li urged both ...

US Congress grills former IRS chief over tax scandal

Tue, 21 May 2013 16:54:24 -0400

WASHINGTON: The political appointee who headed the IRS during the US tax agency's abusive treatment of conservative groups insisted on Tuesday that he was not involved in the scandal. US senators grilled retired IRS ...

Fossil fuel divestment campaigns victory in Australia will be a moral one | Alexander White

Tue, 21 May 2013 16:42:41 -0400

gigatons of carbon dioxide. Unfortunately, fossil fuel companies have reserves of carbon from oil, coal and gas of almost 3000 gigatons --far exceeding the climate's safe limit if it were to all be burned.This "math" has been known for some years before McKibben's ...

Why China Can Handle Social Unrest

Tue, 21 May 2013 16:42:08 -0400

received significant international attention because they combined two major, hot-button issues in China: environmental pollution and government corruption. But the Kunming protests were hardly unusual in China; in fact, a ...

Scotiabank says China reevaluating Guangzhou deal

Tue, 21 May 2013 16:34:26 -0400

By Cameron French TORONTO | Tue May 21, 2013 4:34pm EDT TORONTO (Reuters) - Bank of Nova Scotia (BNS.TO) Chief Executive Rick Waugh said on Tuesday that Chinese authorities are reevaluating whether they want to go ahead with a deal to sell 20 percent of Bank of Guangzhou to the Canadian bank. Scotiabank, Canada's No. 3 lender, announced the C$719 million ($698.09 million) purchase ...

Obama against prosecuting reporters for doing their jobs White House

Tue, 21 May 2013 16:28:21 -0400

President Obama believes in the need for balance between national security concerns and the ability of reporters to work freely, White House has ...

Deal on Osama bin Laden evidence made in WikiLeaks case

Tue, 21 May 2013 16:28:20 -0400

Bradley Manning . It involves evidence that the slain al-Qaida leader saw some of the classified information that Manning has admitted he caused to be published on the WikiLeaks website. If the judge approves the deal and allows the evidence at Manning's trial starting on June 3, a member of ...

Search for US tornado survivors nearing end death toll lowered to 24

Tue, 21 May 2013 16:28:20 -0400

Oklahoma City suburb where massive tornado flattened homes and demolished an elementary school. Authorities lowered the death toll to 24, down from 51. Fire Chief Gary Bird said that he's "98 percent sure" there are no more survivors or bodies to recover under the rubble in Moore. He said every damaged home had been searched at least once and that he's hopeful the work could ...

U.S. slams Japanese mayors sex-slave comments as offensive

Tue, 21 May 2013 16:25:21 -0400

The United States condemned as "outrageous and offensive" comments by the mayor of the Japanese city of Osaka who said this week that Japan's military brothels during World War Two were "necessary" to provide respite for soldiers. The remarks by Osaka Mayor Toru Hashimoto drew strong criticism from China and South Korea, two nations sensitive to what they see as any ...

New Hope for Better Internet Access in Africa

Tue, 21 May 2013 16:02:11 -0400

WASHINGTON -- A non-profit technology company based in Kenya has created a wireless internet router that it says will help people living in places where electricity is spotty and internet service is unreliable. Founded in early 2008, Ushahidi is known primarily for its open-source software applications, but is now launching its first piece of hardware, called the BRCK. One of the BRCK's ...

In Japan Citizen Radiation-Tracking Project Goes Big Time

Tue, 21 May 2013 16:00:30 -0400

A post-Fukushima effort to crowdsource radiation data in Japan has since become the largest source of radiation data in the country. And it’s now set to expand to other parts of the world. Catherine Winter reports from ...

First AIBA Pro Boxing bout set for South Korea in July

Tue, 21 May 2013 15:50:27 -0400

May 21 - The International Boxing Association (AIBA) has announced the first ever AIBA Pro Boxing (APB) bout will take place on July 19 at Jeju Island in South Korea prior to the official launch of the competition next year. AIBA's most ambitious project to date, APB is looking to roll back decades of tradition by offering contracts that allow fighters to box professionally in the ...

Is China Pushing away from Diet of U.S. Treasuries Meet the New Old-Boy Network Banks Finally Draw a Line

Tue, 21 May 2013 15:49:51 -0400

YahooFinance ) In February, China held $1.251 trillion in U.S. Treasuries. In March, the figure dipped to $1.250 trillion. That's a billion dollar change in a month. Is that a big deal? On the surface, it may not seem like it. But if China begins to unwind from U.S. debt at the same time the Federal Reserve scales back its quantitative easing, that combination could pose trouble for ...

Family joins search for Ontario man missing in Australia

Tue, 21 May 2013 15:46:23 -0400

OTTAWA -- Family members joined a frantic search Tuesday for a Canadian man with survival training missing for more than a week in Australia's Gold Coast region. Prabhdeep Srawn of Brampton, Ont., hasn't been heard from since parking his rental car on May 13 in the village of Charlotte Pass in Kosciuszko National Park. For the last two years, the 25-year-old has been a law student ...

China to promote cleaner growth

Tue, 21 May 2013 15:45:46 -0400

/enpproperty--> China aims to promote cooperation among Asian political parties for sustainable development as Asia has become an engine of global economy but faces environmental challenges, an official of the Communist Party of China said on Tuesday. Shen Beili, director of Bureau I under the International Department of the CPC Central Committee, made the remarks ahead of the opening of the ...

Chinas Xi to meet Obama months earlier than expected

Tue, 21 May 2013 15:45:44 -0400

BEIJING--China's new leader Xi Jinping will confer with U.S. President Barack Obama next month in California, months earlier than their expected first meeting, as both sides seek to stem a drift in relations, troubled by issues from cyberspying to North ...

China India in talks on trade strategy Li

Tue, 21 May 2013 15:45:43 -0400

Li Keqiang said on Tuesday in Mumbai. "There are solutions to helping the two countries maintain rapid growth in bilateral trade and investment," Li said during an evening banquet at the China-India Commercial ...

China-Japan trade will pick up report

Tue, 21 May 2013 15:45:38 -0400

/enpproperty--> Economic and trade cooperation between China and Japan will get back on track if there is no further deterioration of the countries' already strained ties, leading Chinese think tanks said in an annual report released on Tuesday. The row over ...

China rallies poultry industry as bird flu fears wane

Tue, 21 May 2013 15:45:22 -0400

/enpproperty--> WUHAN - Agricultural officials ate poultry products at an ongoing national animal husbandry expo in order to boost public confidence in the poultry industry, as bird flu concerns are starting to disappear. Several officials, including Li Xirong, head of the China Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Station and Wang Zongli, deputy head of the animal husbandry department of the ...

Massive sinkhole kills five in China

Tue, 21 May 2013 15:30:56 -0400

FIVE people have died after a 10-metre wide sinkhole opened up at the gates of an industrial estate in Shenzhen, the southern Chinese boom town neighbouring Hong ...

Hashimoto brings South Korea into fray

Tue, 21 May 2013 15:28:08 -0400

South Korean soldiers were guilty of abusing women in wartime, Nippon Ishin no Kai (Japan Restoration Party) coleader and Osaka Mayor Toru Hashimoto said in comments reported Tuesday, days after provoking a storm by labeling sex slaves a military necessity. In a remark likely to fuel outrage and further stoke tensions in an already uneasy relationship, Hashimoto said the South Korean military ...

China gains observer status on the Arctic Council

Tue, 21 May 2013 15:19:45 -0400

, the eyes of many nations are turning north. This week, the eight member states of the Arctic Council decided at their meeting in Kiruna, Sweden, to admit six non-Arctic nations as observers, most notably China. New Scientist examines the ...

Australia advises on avoiding resource curse

Tue, 21 May 2013 15:19:00 -0400

If resource-rich developing countries can avoid the "resource curse," they could reduce their dependency on aid, said an Australian government ...

Families endure desperate searches for Chinas missing children

Tue, 21 May 2013 15:17:11 -0400

XUZHOU, China - In front of a van plastered with pictures of about 100 children's faces, Xiao Zhaohua and Wu Xinghu pleaded with passersby for help. "Please don't think this is someone else's problem, and never take your eyes off your children!" they shouted. "We don't want more people to feel the same sadness we do." Xiao, 37, and Wu, 33, are on a ...

Iran Bars Election Candidacies of Rafsanjani Ahmadinejad Aide

Tue, 21 May 2013 14:48:17 -0400

Iran says a conservative body has barred two prominent figures from competing in next month's presidential election - moderate former president Hashemi Rafsanjani and a leading conservative allied to current president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. The Iranian interior ministry said Tuesday the Guardian Council of clerics and jurists excluded the two politicians from a final list of eight ...

Iconic Clubs Team Up to Grow US Soccer League

Tue, 21 May 2013 14:48:17 -0400

Major League Baseball's New York Yankees and English Premier League football club Manchester City are joining together to enter an expansion team in U.S. Major League Soccer (MLS). The new team will be named New York City Football Club and expects to begin play in 2015 as MLS's 20th franchise. MLS Commissioner Don Garber said "this is a transformational development that will ...

Kerry Visits Oman Seeking Syria Peace Consensus

Tue, 21 May 2013 14:48:17 -0400

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has held talks in Oman on his latest stop in a campaign to help arrange an internationally-sponsored Syrian peace ...

UN Works to Contain Disease Epidemics in Two African Countries

Tue, 21 May 2013 14:48:16 -0400

A child from the Central African Republic receives a measles vaccine in a refugee camp set up by the UNHCR in Nangungue, eastern Cameroon, April 12, ...

Liberace Film Spotlights Gay Rights at Cannes

Tue, 21 May 2013 14:48:16 -0400

CANNES -- The relationship between the flamboyant pianist Liberace and his young lover dazzled at the Cannes film festival on Tuesday and threw the spotlight on gay rights at the movie industry's largest annual gathering. Director Steven Soderbergh said he struggled five years ago to secure funding for "Behind the Candelabra" because some financiers thought the film would only ...

Oklahoma Tornado Victims Share Stories of Survival

Tue, 21 May 2013 14:48:15 -0400

The deadly tornado that ripped through the midwestern state of Oklahoma on Monday left entire neighborhoods flattened, homes, businesses and schools destroyed. As emergency workers sift through the wreckage Tuesday, survivors are sharing their experiences. Among the countless buildings struck by the three-kilometer-wide tornado were two elementary schools - hit just as students were about to ...

Dish Sprint-SoftBank deal is a step toward China away from national security

Tue, 21 May 2013 14:44:57 -0400

Dish Network Corp. played up a Sprint Nextel Corp. suitors ties to China as new plot points unfolded Tuesday in the Sprint-Dish-SoftBank Corp.-Clearwire Corp. drama. A Tuesday filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission showed text from an anti-SoftBank-Sprint merger website paid for by Dish (Nasdaq: DISH), NationalSecurityMatters.com. On the site, Dish provides its take on SoftBanks ...

Microsoft unveils next Xbox games console

Tue, 21 May 2013 14:43:12 -0400

Microsoft Corp has given a first look at its new game console, hoping the newly named Xbox One will build on a solid core of gamer fans and become a hub for living room entertainment. The third-generation console, coming eight years after the Xbox 360, was unveiled by games unit chief Don Mattrick at an event at the software company's campus near ...

Dolphins Find 19th Century Navy Torpedo In Pacific Ocean

Tue, 21 May 2013 14:41:07 -0400

A rare piece of America's military history was located this spring, when dolphins from the Navy's Marine Mammal Program located an unusual artifact: a torpedo from the 19th century. Discovered during a training exercise in the ocean near San Diego, the torpedo will eventually make its way to a museum. The bottlenose dolphins were honing their ability to find underwater mines when the ...

Death Toll from E. China Plant Blast Hits 13

Tue, 21 May 2013 14:39:20 -0400

(MENAFN - Qatar News Agency) The death toll from a blast that ripped through an explosives manufacturing plant in east China's Shandong Province has climbed to 13, according to China's News Agency (Xinhua). The explosion, which occurred inside a workshop of a plant owned by Poly Explosives (Jinan) Co., Zhangqiu City, also injured 19 people. Thirty-four workers were in the workshop at ...

China-trained medical doctors doing fine in Nepal

Tue, 21 May 2013 14:37:09 -0400

Bhavuk Sharma Bajagain, 30, a medical doctor by profession, is often busy with his patients in the emergency ward of Kathmandu Model Hospital, one of the more reputable hospitals .In the morning, Bajagain also teaches and shares his medical experience with students in two different local medical institutions."I am very happy and satisfied when I see my patients relieved of pain after ...

Feathers fly as H7N9 hits Chinas down industry

Tue, 21 May 2013 14:36:31 -0400

The H7N9 bird flu epidemic, which has inflicted huge losses on China's poultry industry, is also hitting the country's down products manufacturers.The virus, which has so far killed 36 of the 130 people infected nationwide, prompted the culling of birds and the closure of poultry farms and thus cut the output of raw down feathers, sending their prices spiralling upward.As a result, many ...

China agrees to impose carbon targets by 2016

Tue, 21 May 2013 14:35:38 -0400

The battle against global warming has received a transformational boost after China, the world's biggest producer of carbon dioxide, proposed to set a cap on its greenhouse gas emissions for the first ...

Japan edges Denmark 3-2 at Sudirman Cup

Tue, 21 May 2013 14:34:16 -0400

Japan edged past Denmark 3-2 in Group D at the 13th Sudirman Cup team badminton championships here on Tuesday in a thrilling encounter which lasted more than five hours.Matsutomo Misaki/Takahashi Ayaka defeated last year's Malaysia Open champions Christinna Pedersen/Kamilla Rytter Juhl 22-20, 21-16 in the women's doubles to deliver Japan's winning point.Denmark took the lead first ...

How far can China be pushed

Tue, 21 May 2013 14:33:52 -0400

"People are worried about the current Korean tensions and don't want to visit North Korea," said Xiao Zhuang, the distressed marketing manager of Yijiang International Travel Service in Dandong, Liaoning Province, along the North Korean border. Usually busy season of visiting the hermit neighboring country starts from May, but this year it may not be as usual, Xiao said.The Yonhap ...

Japan Basks In Its New Position As An Affordable Travel Destination

Tue, 21 May 2013 14:33:35 -0400

The difference a year can make: When I spoke with Yuki Tanaka, the Executive Director of the Japan National Tourism Organization in the U.S., last May, travel to Japan was just recovering from the a drastic decline following the March 11, 2011 Sendai earthquake and a close call with disaster at the Fukushima nuclear power plant. What's more, tourism to Japan was also facing a structural ...

Chinas trade surplus figures over-inflated

Tue, 21 May 2013 14:31:15 -0400

China's trade surplus figures in the first four months of the year were over-inflated by hot money smuggled into the country to profit from interest rate differentials and investments in the real estate and financial sectors amid the yuan's appreciation, according to economists. If the fake transactions, which were disguised as trade payments, are not taken into account, the real ...

UK government plans to boost British fund industry

Tue, 21 May 2013 14:27:36 -0400

LONDON: Britain has launched a campaign to attract more investment fund money to the country, with plans for tax breaks, cutting red tape and marketing campaigns in Asia and the Americas. In speeches to fund management executives on Tuesday afternoon, Treasury ministers Sajid Javid and Greg Clark said they aim to reverse a weakening of the UK's dominance as a centre for the funds industry. ...

China proposes emissions cap for first time

Tue, 21 May 2013 14:24:47 -0400

Early summit date set for US and China

Tue, 21 May 2013 14:24:45 -0400

The meeting, set for 7-8 June at a retreat south-east of Los Angeles, underlines the importance of the relationship between the countries as they work out ways to make room for an increasingly powerful China in a US-led world order.President Xi has said that China wants its rise to be peaceful, but that it will not compromise on issues of sovereignty - a stance that has aggravated disputes over ...

Chinese hostages released as North Korea backs down

Tue, 21 May 2013 14:24:45 -0400

Pyongyang has backed down from a potentially damaging confrontation with its closest ally by releasing the crew of a Chinese fishing boat held hostage for over two ...

House Panel Shoves Pentagon-China Satellite Deal Out of the Airlock

Tue, 21 May 2013 14:18:30 -0400

A Long March 3B carrier rocket carrying the APSTAR-7 communications satellite lifts off at the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in Sichuan province in March 2012. Photo: AP The Pentagon insists that its deal with a Chinese satellite firm to carry U.S. troops’ communications isn’t a security risk. But Congressmen with the ultra-influential House Armed Services Committee don’t ...

China vice-premier in Zimbabwe for start of trade and development trip before Africa summit

Tue, 21 May 2013 14:12:37 -0400

HARARE, Zimbabwe - Chinese vice-premier Wang Yang has arrived in Zimbabwe at the start of an official trip to view his nation's burgeoning trade and development ties in Africa. Officials at the Harare airport said Tuesday that the third ranking of China's four vice-premiers in President Xi Jinping's communist party is scheduled to meet with Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe on ...

Experts urge Japan watchdog to delay decision on closure of nuclear plant over seismic fault

Tue, 21 May 2013 14:12:16 -0400

TOKYO - Experts commissioned by the operator of a Japanese nuclear plant that faces possible closure because of a suspected active seismic fault say a decision should wait, citing insufficient data. Tuesday's request came a day before Japan's nuclear watchdog is to rule on the future of the Tsuruga No. 2 reactor in western Japan. The watchdog's own panel said last week that the ...

Learn from Japan the dangers of half measures

Tue, 21 May 2013 14:09:07 -0400

economy is being held back by fiscal austerity, low confidence and tight credit conditions. "Deep challenges persist in its financial system. Without sustained and significant reforms, a decade of stagnation threatens," Carney said in the prepared text of a speech he was delivering in Montreal. "Europe can draw lessons from Japan on the dangers of half measures," he said, ...

Oklahoma tornado Many children among 91 feared dead

Tue, 21 May 2013 14:00:15 -0400

Todd Lamb told CNN. There was an outpouring of grief on the school's Facebook page, with messages from around the country including one pleading simply: "Please find those little children." Another elementary school, homes and a hospital were among the buildings leveled, leaving residents of the town of about 50,000 people stunned at the devastation and loss of life. The Oklahoma ...

WRAPUP 1-EU and U.S. not coordinating on China solar dispute

Tue, 21 May 2013 13:37:16 -0400

By Daniel Bases and Doug Palmer Tue May 21, 2013 1:37pm EDT May 21 (Reuters)- NEW YORK/WASHINGTON - Europe and the United States both said on Tuesday they were not holding coordinated talks to negotiate an end to a trade dispute with China over the dumping of solar panels onto their respective markets. The European Union has until June 5 to decide whether to impose duties averaging 47 percent on ...

China to face Indonesia again in badminton quarters

Tue, 21 May 2013 13:28:52 -0400

KUALA LUMPUR (AFP) - Luck was not on Indonesia's side on Tuesday as hours after suffering a crushing 5-0 defeat to China, they were drawn to meet the eight-time Sudirman Cup champions again, this time in the quarter-finals.Germany, who stunned hosts Malaysia 3-2, were matched against South Korea, while Taiwan will meet Denmark, and Thailand will face Japan in the other quarter-finals on ...

Video UN chief worried by North Koreas missile launches

Tue, 21 May 2013 13:28:04 -0400

In response to North Korea's recent missile launches, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urges Pyongyang to return to talks and avoid further ...

China vice-premier arrives in Zimbabwe

Tue, 21 May 2013 13:26:02 -0400

HARARE, Zimbabwe -; Chinese vice-premier Wang Yang has arrived in Zimbabwe at the start of an official trip to view his nation's burgeoning trade and development ties in ...

China Fishery mulls bid

Tue, 21 May 2013 13:22:40 -0400

China Fishery Group plans to raise its bid for Peruvian fish feed maker Copeinca if an agreed deal with Cermaq fails to get shareholder approval on Tuesday, it said in a statement.Shareholders in Cermaq will vote on Tuesday whether to approve buying Copeinca and China Fishery Group said it was prepared to raise its offer price if the deal ran ...

China Galaxy gets market jump

Tue, 21 May 2013 13:22:26 -0400

Shares of China Galaxy Securities Co soared as much as 8.3 percent in gray market trading Tuesday, signaling expectations the State-owned brokerage will climb in its debut on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange Wednesday.China Galaxy shares changed hands at HK$5.70 ($0.73) in late afternoon and rose as high as HK$5.74, up from the IPO price of HK$5.30. The stock traded at HK$5.64, up 6.4 percent, at the ...

Essar inks landmark China deal

Tue, 21 May 2013 13:22:17 -0400

Essar Oil Ltd, India's second largest private refiner, was set to sign on Tuesday a $1 billion loan deal with China that sources said would be backed by a supply of refined products to PetroChina.Essar Oil was set to finalize a preliminary agreement with the China Development Bank (CDB) on Tuesday to borrow the amount during Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang's visit to Mumbai.The Indian ...

Philippines says to finish probe on shooting Taiwan fishermen soon

Tue, 21 May 2013 13:20:54 -0400

The Philippine National Bureau of Investigations (NBI) is close to finishing its investigations on a Taiwan fisherman shot dead by Philippine coast guards, Philippine President Benigno Aquino III said Tuesday.Except for the physical examination of the fishing vessel, the NBI has already completed its probe on the case, said Aquino in a chance interview after the 115th anniversary celebration of ...

China wants cyber security communication with U.S.

Tue, 21 May 2013 13:20:27 -0400

China on Tuesday appealed for communication with the United States on cyber security."China proposes stronger cooperation with the United States on cyber security," Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said at a daily press briefing in response to a question claiming US governmental organizations and businesses have been victims of cyber attacks by the Chinese military.Hong stressed ...

Coaches collide in NE China casualties unknown

Tue, 21 May 2013 13:18:12 -0400

Two coaches collided in northeast China's Liaoning Province on Tuesday, injuring at least a dozen passengers while the death toll remains unknown, local authorities said.The accident happened at around 3:30 p.m. on a national expressway near the city of Anshan, said an official from the city's publicity bureau.Both vehicles had a designed capacity of more than 30 ...

Vatican denies video footage shows pope exorcism

Tue, 21 May 2013 13:18:06 -0400

In this image made from video provided by APTN, Pope Francis lays his hands on the head of a young man on Sunday, May 19, 2013, after celebrating Mass in St. Peter's Square. The young man heaved deeply a half-dozen times, convulsed and shook, and then slumped in his wheelchair as Francis prayed over him. The television station of the Italian bishops' conference said it had surveyed ...

China may probe EU wine report

Tue, 21 May 2013 13:18:06 -0400

China is likely to make substantive moves this year toward initiating an anti-dumping investigation into wine imported from the eurozone, the China Security Journal reported on Tuesday.The government may take a further step in pushing the probe in response to a strong call from the domestic wine industry and a string of anti-dumping cases brought by the European Union (EU) against Chinese ...

What an idiot thoughts of a skydiver who survived 13000ft fall

Tue, 21 May 2013 13:17:57 -0400

Rosa Silverman - 21 May 2013 A SKYDIVER who survived a 13,000ft fall after his parachute failed to open has spoken of what he feared were his final thoughts as he plunged towards the ...

South Korea officially appoints new ambassadors to China US Japan

Tue, 21 May 2013 13:16:31 -0400

South Korea has officially appointed its new ambassadors to China, the US and Japan after receiving the consent of the three countries on their nomination, South Korean foreign ministry said Tuesday. According to Yonhap news agency, former lawmaker Kwon Young-se will become the next ambassador to Beijing, while former vice foreign minister Ahn Ho-young will be appointed the new US ambassador. ...

SK troops guilty of sex abuse Japan Mayor

Tue, 21 May 2013 13:15:33 -0400

South Korean soldiers were guilty of abusing women in wartime, a Japanese mayor said in comments reported Tuesday, days after he provoked a storm by labeling WWII sex slaves a military necessity.In a remark that provoked a sharp response from Seoul, further stoking tensions, Osaka mayor Toru Hashimoto said the South Korean military used women for sex during the Vietnam War.Hashimoto said last ...

Hawaiian flight to Australia returns to Honolulu because of system problem

Tue, 21 May 2013 13:13:34 -0400

A Hawaiian Airlines flight bound for Sydney, Australia, returned to Honolulu International Airport Monday afternoon because of a system problem. KHON reports the flight returned to Honolulu after a light in the cockpit came on about an hour into the flight indicating a problem with the system. KHON reports the 246 passengers on the flight were taken to dinner in Waikiki before leaving late Monday ...

Spokesman highlights China-US summit

Tue, 21 May 2013 13:12:54 -0400

/enpproperty--> BEIJING - A Foreign Ministry spokesman said Tuesday that an impending meeting between President Xi Jinping and his US counterpart Barack Obama will aid in the construction of a new type of relationship between the two countries. The summit, the first of its kind to be held since Xi took office in March, would be conducive to strengthening strategic communication, increasing ...

BlackRock acquires MGPA boosts Asia-Pacific and European operations

Tue, 21 May 2013 13:12:50 -0400

/enpproperty--> BlackRock Inc announced on Tuesday that it had entered into a definitive agreement to acquire MGPA, a private equity real estate investment advisory company in Asia-Pacific and Europe, significantly extending its real estate investment capabilities in these regions. MGPA owns a retail mall in Chengdu and a grade A office building in Shanghai, while in Hong Kong it has a ...

Peace debate exposes deep rifts in Israeli government

Tue, 21 May 2013 12:54:35 -0400

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (L) shakes hands with former Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, head of the centrist Hatenuah party, during their joint statement at the Knesset, the Israeli parliament, in Jerusalem February 19, ...

Why China’s developmental state says no to liberalism

Tue, 21 May 2013 12:54:20 -0400

NEW YORK - Modern history is the story of how liberal democracy, originating in Britain and America, spread around the world. This may sound like an absurd fantasy. In actuality, this Whiggish narrative of progress underpins most newspaper editorials, political commentary and speeches in the West, and frames larger views of political developments in the non-West. It accounts for the gloomy ...

China probes rice tainted with cancer-causing cadmium

Tue, 21 May 2013 12:52:46 -0400

BEIJING Authorities are investigating rice mills in southern China following tests that found almost half of the staple grain in one of the country's largest cities was contaminated with a toxic metal. The mills in Hunan province's Youxian county were ordered to suspend business and recall their products after samples showed excessive levels of cadmium, according to an official notice ...

Cadmium-tainted rice closes three mills in central China

Tue, 21 May 2013 12:45:44 -0400

Three mills in central China have been closed and the rice they produced recalled after officials said Tuesday the grain was found to be tainted with cadmium. The mills, located in Youxian County in Hunan province, have been told to suspend operations while samples of rice stored at the mills is tested by the provincial quality inspection agency, Xinhua reported. A May 16 statement by the ...

UPDATE 1-Armani sees no slowdown even in China

Tue, 21 May 2013 12:36:54 -0400

Tue May 21, 2013 12:36pm EDT * Revenue up 16 pct to 2.091 bln euros in 2012 * Net cash at 565 mln euros * Says planned succession but won't give details By Astrid Wendlandt and Isla Binnie PARIS/MILAN May 21 (Reuters) - Italian fashion house Giorgio Armani on Tuesday said it had not seen a slowdown, even in China, the industry's main engine of growth, where rivals noted more muted demand ...

Diplomats Iran Acts to Expand Sensitive Nuclear Capacity

Tue, 21 May 2013 12:19:55 -0400

VIENNA, AUSTRIA -- A U.N. nuclear agency report due this week is expected to show Iran further increasing its capacity to produce material that its adversaries fear could eventually be used to develop atomic bombs, Western diplomats said on Tuesday. But they said it also is likely to indicate that growth in Iran's most sensitive nuclear stockpile has been held back because some of it has ...

Former US Tax Chief Dismayed at Conservative Targeting

Tue, 21 May 2013 12:19:55 -0400

The former head of the U.S. tax agency says he was "dismayed and saddened" to learn that conservative groups were targeted for special scrutiny under his watch, but told a congressional panel Tuesday he did not know about it as it was ...

Russia Says Senior Islamist Insurgent Killed

Tue, 21 May 2013 12:19:53 -0400

MOSCOW -- The right-hand man of Russia's most wanted insurgent was killed by security forces on Tuesday, officials said, as Moscow tries to contain militancy in its Caucasus region before it hosts the Winter Olympics near there next February. Dzhamaleil Mutaliyev, a senior figure in a group fighting to establish an Islamist state, was killed along with another militant in a shootout in ...

Rescuers Dig for Survivors After Deadly US Tornado

Tue, 21 May 2013 12:19:53 -0400

U.S. search and rescue crews are digging for survivors in miles of wreckage, after a massive tornado leveled neighborhoods Monday in the central U.S. state of Oklahoma, killing at least 24 ...

Seven Feared Trapped in Cambodian Gold Mine Collapse

Tue, 21 May 2013 12:19:53 -0400

PHNOM PENH -- A gold mine shaft has collapsed in the Preah Vihear province of Cambodia, trapping at least seven miners, officials said Monday. Police said late Monday they are trying to rescue the trapped miners, near Romtum village, Rovieng district, but the shaft is very deep and old, making rescue efforts difficult. "We don’t have the identities or the exact number of people, ...

Afghanistan Sees Sharp Rise in Women Imprisoned for Moral Crimes

Tue, 21 May 2013 12:19:52 -0400

Human Rights Watch (HRW) said on Tuesday, the highest number since the Taliban were toppled almost 12 years ago. Running away from home, usually from abuse and forced marriage, and alleged adultery, which often involves rape, have landed most of the 600 women in prison. That figure is an increase of 50 percent over the last 18 months. "That increase reflects a shameful lack and failure ...

Emergency Response Grows in Chad

Tue, 21 May 2013 12:19:52 -0400

Emergency water supplies are being rushed to southeastern Chad where about 50-thousand people have fled fighting in Sudan’s Darfur region. Several Arab tribes have been battling for control of mining operations there. to De Capua report on Darfur displaced The refugees and migrants have been gathering around the village of Tissi since January. Felix Leger is the country director ...

Senators agree to expansion of high-tech visas

Tue, 21 May 2013 12:13:25 -0400

WASHINGTON -; Officials say leading senators trying to resolve a key issue on immigration legislation have agreed to a compromise covering expansion of a high-tech visa ...

Colombia Opening Gates to Asia Pacific Summit

Tue, 21 May 2013 12:11:33 -0400

Bogota, May 21 (Prensa Latina) The Summit of the member countries of the Asia Pacific Alliance, whose opening will be on Thursday, have an anteroom today in the southern city of Cali, with the meeting of the High Level Group comprising ministers Trade and Foreign Affairs. The ministers, who have been working for several months in the agreements to be sealed on the 23rd, developed technical ...

Hundreds seek compensation in Japan nuclear crisis

Tue, 21 May 2013 12:07:51 -0400

Koji Otani, a lawyer representing hundreds of residents and evacuees from just outside Fukushima, points at the Hippo district of Miyagi prefecture as he speaks during a press conference in Tokyo, Tuesday, May 21, 2013. The residents said Tuesday they have been unfairly denied full compensation despite high radiation levels in their area caused by Japans 2011 nuclear disaster. Nearly 700 ...

Royal Trophy set for China debut in December

Tue, 21 May 2013 11:57:59 -0400

China will host the Royal Trophy team event for the first time this year, organizers said Tuesday, adding to a list of big golf tournaments in the country.The seventh edition of the tournament between Asia and Europe will be held at Dragon Lake Golf Club in Guangzhou, the capital city of South China's Guangdong Province, from December 20 to 22, they said in a press release."The previous ...

China India pledge closer cooperation in joint statement

Tue, 21 May 2013 11:57:01 -0400

China and India issued a joint statement Monday highlighting their commitment to expanding common ground in bilateral cooperation and coordination in various fields.The statement, released during Chinese Premier Li Keqiang's ongoing visit here, said the two Asian giants have a historic opportunity for economic and social development and the realization of this goal will advance peace and ...

UPDATE 1-No active U.S.-EU-China solar talks under way - USTR

Tue, 21 May 2013 11:43:56 -0400

Tue May 21, 2013 11:43am EDT (Adds details on stock price moves, background on dispute) WASHINGTON May 21 (Reuters) - WASHINGTON, May 21 (Reuters) - The United States is not actively negotiating a solar trade deal with the European Union and China, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Trade Representative's office said on Tuesday without ruling out the idea. "Our goal is to support a healthy ...

Burberry upbeat on China prospects as it reveals strong menswear sales

Tue, 21 May 2013 10:56:52 -0400

Burberry today struck an upbeat note on its prospects in China, as an emerging army of luxury shoppers in the Asian country helped to drive a sharp uplift in annual ...

One mans escape from Camp 14 and North Korea

Tue, 21 May 2013 10:32:29 -0400

Only one prisoner born in North Korea's gulag is known to have escaped to tell his story. A Q&A with Blaine Harden, the journalist who wrote about Shin ...

North Koreas hidden labor camps exposed

Tue, 21 May 2013 10:32:26 -0400

A new UN panel is vowing to hold North Korea's Kim regime to 'full accountability' for decades of mass crime and murder. Will Pyongyang face ICC ...

Saudi debates access to stadiums for women

Tue, 21 May 2013 10:31:00 -0400

Football Federation chief Ahmed Eid. Eid raised the possibility of allocating 15 per cent of the capacity of a stadium being built in a sports complex in the western city of Jeddah to family booths where women could attend football matches. The stadium is due to be completed in 2014. His remarks have triggered a wide debate, mostly opposing the idea, in Saudi media forcing Eid to clarify that ...

China warns EU against trade probe into mobile telecom equipment

Tue, 21 May 2013 09:56:23 -0400

The interests of both sides would be hurt if the European Union (EU) goes ahead with an anti-dumping and anti-subsidy investigation into mobile telecommunications equipment from China, said a senior Chinese official on Tuesday.Telecom manufacturers of China and the EU have enormous interests in each other's markets and have broad cooperation, Chinese Commerce Minister Gao Hucheng told ...

Former Greece basketball coach appointed to lead China to Rio 2016

Tue, 21 May 2013 09:54:18 -0400

May 21 - Panagiotis Giannakis, the man who led his native Greece to European glory in 2005, has taken over at the helm of the Chinese national men's basketball team, who parted company with American coach Bob Donewald Jr after they lost all five of their ties at London 2012. "The former Greek national team boss will be the national team coach," confirmed the Chinese Basketball ...

China protects Mogao Grottoes with huge investment

Tue, 21 May 2013 09:48:33 -0400

/enpproperty--> LANZHOU - China is investing millions of dollars in a flood control project to prevent Mogao Grottoes, a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Northwest China's Gansu province, from seasonal flooding, the caves' administration said on Tuesday. Designed to combat a once-in-300-year flood, the banks of the Daquan River where the grottoes are located, will be strengthened with ...

Bayer wants to export technology made in China

Tue, 21 May 2013 09:48:29 -0400

/enpproperty--> Germany-based Bayer Group said that while China is continuously exporting products to the global market, it's also expected to export technology to the rest of the world. "We are aiming to reach a global innovation footprint for Bayer and its partners by exporting China-made technology to the rest of the world by 2020," said Patrick Thomas, CEO of Bayer ...

Smuggled snakes tortoises confiscated in S China

Tue, 21 May 2013 09:48:23 -0400

A large number of snakes and tortoises were confiscated in a cross-border smuggling case in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, local border police said ...

Man denies hiding in Australia to avoid PNG fraud charges

Tue, 21 May 2013 09:45:28 -0400

Papua New Guinea A controversial Papua New Guinean businessman denies he had been hiding in Australia to avoid charges of misappropriating millions of dollars.Eremas Wartoto had been living in Australia since 2011 after being charged with misappropriating $3 million earmarked for a high school.He returned to PNG this month after it was revealed he had been living in Cairns on a 457 visa, which ...

India China have wisdom to solve border row Li

Tue, 21 May 2013 09:44:28 -0400

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said both sides had agreed to push forward negotiations through their special representatives, who are to meet soon. (AFP ...

Saudi Arabia detains 10 more in Iran spying case

Tue, 21 May 2013 09:29:31 -0400

RIYADH (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia has detained 10 more people in a spying case it announced in March that it said was linked to Iran, state television reported on ...

The Female Factor Leading a Push for Clean Water

Tue, 21 May 2013 09:28:30 -0400

NEW DELHI ...

China boat captain says hijackers were in North Korea military uniforms in latest incident to stoke tensions

Tue, 21 May 2013 09:27:42 -0400

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, center, visits Breeding Station No. 621 of the Korean People's Army, under construction at an undisclosed location in North Korea, in an undated photo released by the Korean Central News Agency on May 21, ...

Boat hijack stokes tension between N. Korea China

Tue, 21 May 2013 09:27:39 -0400

Iranians face internet curbs before prez election

Tue, 21 May 2013 09:24:43 -0400

Internet speeds and limited access ahead of an unpredictable presidential election that has put hardline Islamist authorities on alert for possible unrest. Experts and web users say they believe the Internet obstacles are related to the June 14 presidential vote, the first since 2009 polls in which accusations of fraud - denied by the government - kindled months of protests organised in part via ...

Abdullah bin Zayed receives President of China News Agency

Tue, 21 May 2013 09:16:39 -0400

WAM ABU DHABI, May 21st, 2013 (WAM)-- H.H. Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Foreign Minister and Chairman of the National Media Council (NMC) received the President of the China News Agency (Xinhua), Li Congjun. During the meeting, Sheikh Abdullah and Congjun discussed media cooperation, mutual visits, and the exchange of news between Emirates News Agency (WAM) and Xinhua, especially in ...

Keyboardist Ray Manzarek of Doors dies at age 74Ray Manzarek a founding member and keyboardist of 1960s rock group The Doors died on Monday at a medical clinic in Germany at age 74 following a battle with cancer the groups manager Tom Vitorino sa

Tue, 21 May 2013 09:15:53 -0400

rock group The Doors, died on Monday at a medical clinic in Germany at age 74 following a battle with cancer, the group's manager Tom Vitorino said. Manzarek, who lived in Northern California's Napa Valley wine country for the past decade, had been seeking treatment in Germany for bile duct cancer, Vitorino said. He died in Rosenheim, Germany, surrounded by his wife and brothers. ...

London Mayor Boris Johnson fathered lovechild in 2009

Tue, 21 May 2013 09:15:49 -0400

Boris Johnson who is presently married to an Indian, is in the midst of a saucy scandal. It has now been revealed that Johnson fathered a lovechild in 2009. His identity as the father of the child had been kept secret from the public until now as per the wishes of the child's mother and art critic Helen Macintyre. But in a blow to Johnson, the appeal court on Tuesday ruled that the public ...

Maldives could allow increased U.S. military presence

Tue, 21 May 2013 09:13:35 -0400

A draft agreement between the U.S. and the Maldives would allow U.S. forces access to ship bunkering facilities, as well as sea ports and other facilities in the Indian Ocean island nation, local media reports said on Monday. The status of forces agreement (SOFA), which was said to have been leaked while negotiations are still underway, also authorizes the U.S. to "undertake new ...

Two US soldiers arrested in Japan

Tue, 21 May 2013 09:13:35 -0400

Two American soldiers stationed in Japan have been arrested by police for trespassing into peoples' homes. According to NHK news agency, one is a 20 years old US marine stationed at the base in Kanagawa Prefecture. A resident living in Yokosuka City called the police after the marine illegally entered his yard. Police say the suspect's breath test show he had been drinking. The soldier ...

Essar signs $1 bln financing deal with China

Tue, 21 May 2013 09:01:06 -0400

MUMBAI | Tue May 21, 2013 9:01am EDT MUMBAI May 21 (Reuters) - Essar Energy Plc on Tuesday signed a $1 billion financial cooperation agreement with the China Development Bank and PetroChina International Co. Ltd. , according to a document seen by Reuters. Detail of the deal - signed in Mumbai during a visit by the Chinese premier - were not immediately known. Sources on Monday told ...

President Karzai to Discuss Enhancing Defense Ties with India

Tue, 21 May 2013 08:52:35 -0400

Afghan President Hamid Karzai receives an honorary degree from his Indian counterpart Pranab Mukherjee, second right, at the Lovely Professional University in Jalandhar, India, May 20, ...

South Korea See Norths Threats at Unprecedented Levels

Tue, 21 May 2013 08:52:34 -0400

SEOUL -- South Korea says it will never accept rival North Korea as a nuclear-weapons state. But there appears to be no international consensus on how to prevent that. Speaking Tuesday in Seoul, South Korean Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se characterized Pyongyang's recent belligerent threats as more diverse, frequent and intense than previously seen. He told a forum organized by ...

Philippines protests to China over illegal sea presence

Tue, 21 May 2013 08:48:51 -0400

MANILA (AFP) - The Philippines said on Tuesday that it had filed a protest with China over the "illegal" presence of a Chinese warship and two other vessels at a Filipino-claimed shoal in the disputed South China Sea. The incident is the latest in an escalating dispute between the two countries over rival claims to parts of the sea, and comes after the Philippines said China occupied ...

New rice contamination reported in China

Tue, 21 May 2013 08:48:18 -0400

BEIJING -; Authorities are investigating rice mills in southern China following tests that found almost half of the staple grain in one of the country's largest cities was contaminated with a toxic ...

NZ snub Fiji centenary Test request

Tue, 21 May 2013 08:46:34 -0400

New Zealand have put a damper on Fiji's 100th anniversary celebrations, by claiming they are too busy to play the islanders in a commemorative Test. The Fijian Rugby Union wrote to the New Zealand Rugby Union last August requesting a June Test against the All Blacks in Suva, Fiji's capital, to mark the occasion.But the NZRU rejected their offer citing the World Cup winners' ...

Mainlands Taiwan enterprises association concludes key conference

Tue, 21 May 2013 08:45:18 -0400

The Association of Taiwan Investment Enterprises on the Mainland (ATIEM) on Tuesday concluded its members' congress, with Kuo Shan-hui reelected as chairman.At the meeting, Kuo said, "The association should serve Taiwanese entrepreneurs with a more active attitude, helping them transform and upgrade development modes while guiding them to participate deeper and more comprehensively in ...

U.S. must promote peaceful solutions in China vs. India feud

Tue, 21 May 2013 08:42:43 -0400

India and China together account for about 38 percent of the world's 7-billion-plus population. Because these Asian giants share a border, the whole planet holds its breath if they are at each other's throats, as they were again earlier this month. Chinese and Indian troops faced off in a border dispute in the remote Ladakh region of the rugged Himalayas, where the exact location of the ...

China Tajikistan vow deeper strategic partnership

Tue, 21 May 2013 08:39:03 -0400

China and Tajikistan are ready to add substantial content to their strategic partnership, top Chinese leaders said as they met with Tajik President Emomali Rakhmon on Monday.Zhang Dejiang, chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC), and Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli held separate meetings with Rakhmon in Beijing's Great Hall of the People on Monday ...

China India can be good neighbors partners

Tue, 21 May 2013 08:36:44 -0400

BEIJING - As major developing economies living next door to each other, China and India have ample reasons and common desire to be good neighbors and partners despite disputes. Leaders of both countries have long recognized the strategic importance of China-India ties and have shown firm will to carry on win-win cooperation. The ongoing visit by Chinese Premier Li Keqiang to India again ...

Durian pizzas a hit with China youths

Tue, 21 May 2013 08:36:12 -0400

SHANGHAI: Durians are becoming more popular in China, especially among the affluent middle-class with an appetite for the exotic.Regarded by many in Southeast Asia as the king of fruits, the durian is well known for its pungent ...

Pakistans China-made fighter jets to escort Chinese Premier Li Keqiangs plane

Tue, 21 May 2013 08:24:53 -0400

Islamabad: Six JF-17 Thunder jets of the Pakistan Air Force will escort Chinese Premier Li Keqiang's aircraft when it enters Pakistani airspace on Wednesday at the start of his two-day visit, symbolising the close links between the two sides in defence and strategic sectors.The JF-17s, developed and built jointly by China and Pakistan, will guide the special Air China Boeing 747 aircraft to ...

Chinese businessman pays record price for Belgian racing pigeon

Tue, 21 May 2013 08:23:49 -0400

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - A Chinese businessman has paid a world record 310,000 euros ($398,500) for a Belgian pigeon, highlighting Asia's huge and growing interest in racing ...

Chinas Strategy in Afghanistan

Tue, 21 May 2013 08:20:01 -0400

An Afghan man rides his bike past a China Merchandise Trade Center in Kabul, Afghanistan.(Musadeq Sadeq/AP) For a relatively small drilling operation, China National Petroleum Corporation's (CNPC) project in Afghanistan's Sar-e-Pul province has a large footprint. Several layers of fences and containers serving as blast walls surround the extraction site, which includes dormitories, an ...

KKR Exits Australias Seven West Media Tim Worner Promoted to Seven West CEO

Tue, 21 May 2013 08:20:00 -0400

SYDNEY - U.S. private equity firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co will sell its entire AUS$260 million (US$255 million) stake in Australia’s Seven West Media, ending a seven year partnership in the top rating Australian TV network, Seven West ...

China tapped Google server secrets

Tue, 21 May 2013 08:19:13 -0400

WASHINGTON - Chinese hackers who breached Google’s servers several years ago gained access to a sensitive database with years’ worth of information about U.S. surveillance targets, according to current and former government officials. The breach appears to have been aimed at unearthing the identities of Chinese intelligence operatives in the United States who may have been under ...

US should not be jealous of India-China ties

Tue, 21 May 2013 08:15:08 -0400

Mayer, CEO of the biggest US Web portal since July, is betting that Tumblr will help transform Yahoo into a hip destination in the era of social networking as she challenges Google and Facebook ...

China seen delaying second phase SPR construction

Tue, 21 May 2013 08:15:02 -0400

BEIJING: China is likely to complete the second phase of its strategic petroleum reserves (SPR) project in 2015, two years behind schedule, the country's top investment bank said on ...

Oil production starts offshore Australia

Tue, 21 May 2013 08:10:13 -0400

Australian energy company Santos said it expects to produce 15,000 barrels of oil per day from its Fletcher Finucane project offshore Western Australia. Santos said it started oil production from the facility ahead of schedule and on budget. The $490 million development was sanctioned in January 2012. "Fletcher Finucane is projected to have an average gross production rate of 15,000 ...

Pike County adding coal mines to service China

Tue, 21 May 2013 08:03:30 -0400

Longtime coal operator High Ridge Mining will open seven mines in Eastern Kentucky, creating more than 250 jobs in a hard-pressed region that has seen the loss of several thousand mining jobs in recent years. According to the Associated Press, High Ridges Bill Smith said most of the coal taken from his operation in Pike County will be shipped to China. Coal mining jobs in Kentucky were at 11,700 ...

Oasis childcare worker Jessica Bleaney named best young childcare worker in Australia

Tue, 21 May 2013 08:00:00 -0400

SEEING the smiles on childrens faces makes going to work easy for day care centre employee Jessica Bleaney. The Salisbury’s Oasis Community Children’s Centre worker has been named the best young child care centre employee in Australia. The 22 year old was awarded the National Rising Star award at the Australian Family Early Education and Care gala dinner in Sydney this month. Ms ...

Goldman exits China’s ICBC seven years and billions later

Tue, 21 May 2013 07:40:51 -0400

Euro notes are spread out at the Belgian branch of the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) in Brussels January 20, 2011. (FRANCOIS ...

Lebanese farmland firm to invest up to $800 million in Sudan

Tue, 21 May 2013 07:32:09 -0400

Tue May 21, 2013 7:32am EDT * Arab firms lease farmland in Sudan to secure food for Gulf * Lebanon's GLB to invest up to $800 million in Sudan By Ulf Laessing KHARTOUM, May 21 (Reuters) - Lebanese farmland investor GLB Invest plans to invest up to $800 million in Sudan to produce animal feed to be sold to Saudi Arabia, its president said on Tuesday. Arab investors have launched farmland and ...

China sweeps Indonesia to reach quarterfinals at Sudirman Cup

Tue, 21 May 2013 07:31:44 -0400

Defending champion China beat Indonesia 5-0 in their second and last group match on Tuesday at the 13th Sudirman Cup team badminton tournament.London Olympics champion Cai Yun/Fu Haifeng replaced their young fellows Liu Xiaolong/Qiu Zihan to play against Hendra Setiawan/Angga Pratama. The Indonesian pair took the first game 21- 16 but still failed to handle Cai and Fu. Though absent frommatches ...

Coalition Downplays Afghan Reports of Major Battle in Helmand

Tue, 21 May 2013 07:27:51 -0400

KABUL, Afghanistan ...

5 killed in S China road cave-in

Tue, 21 May 2013 07:27:49 -0400

GUANGZHOU - At least five people were killed in a road cave-in that occurred Monday night in South China's Guangdong province, local authorities said Tuesday. The accident occurred around 9:19 pm on a road in the Huamao Industrial Park in the city of Shenzhen, sources with the city's emergency relief office said. As of 4:30 pm Tuesday, five bodies had been retrieved from a pit ...

EU probe could could slow European vendors supplying tech for Chinas 4G deployment

Tue, 21 May 2013 07:27:44 -0400

IDG News Service - The European Union may be trying to protect its telecom equipment industry with its recent threat to investigate China over networking equipment imports. But the move could end up hurting the chances of Western vendors intent on supplying technology to China's upcoming 4G services launch, according to analysts. Last week, the EU set off fears of a trade war with China ...

China beat Indonesia to top group

Tue, 21 May 2013 07:16:54 -0400

(5 mins ago) Defending champions China trounced arch rivals Indonesia 5-0 to top Group A of the Sudirman Cup on Tuesday, declaring they are ready to face anyone in Thursday's quarter-finals. The Chinese have won the biennial tournament eight times and are chasing their fifth consecutive title, AFP reports. After Tuesday's matches, Chinese coach Li Yongbo said his team is ready to ...

India and China boost border peace efforts

Tue, 21 May 2013 07:02:17 -0400

Manmohan Singh agreed to step up discussions to end their long-running Himalayan region border disputes. Li, during his official three-day visit to India, said the two countries had "established principles for settling the question" of where the border should lie, The Hindustan Times reported. The goal is to avoid disagreements that in the past have threatened to spill over into armed ...

Indias Supreme Court gives nod to controversial nuclear power plant

Tue, 21 May 2013 06:54:49 -0400

India's Supreme Court Monday gave its nod to the commissioning of the controversial Kudankulam nuclear power plant in the southern state of Tamil Nadu, saying " it's safe." "Kudankulam plant is safe and secure and it is necessary for the larger public interest and economic growth of the country. Nuclear power plants are needed in the country for the present and future ...

ROKs power supply to Kaesong plunges on low demand

Tue, 21 May 2013 06:54:49 -0400

South Korea's supply of electricity to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) has fallen sharply after a jointly run industrial complex in DPRK was temporarily shut down, South Korea officials said Monday. South Korea has a maximum daily capacity of sending 100,000 kilowatts to the factory zone in DPRK's border city of Kaesong, but its supply has tumbled to around 3,000 ...

Wave of Violence Continues in Iraq

Tue, 21 May 2013 06:34:31 -0400

New attacks in three Iraqi cities have killed at least seven people and wounded more than 60 others. Officials say a suicide bombing followed by clashes between militants and Iraqi troops left three soldiers dead Tuesday in Tarmiyah, north of the capital, Baghdad. Farther north, two car bombs exploded in Tuz Khormato, killing three people, while car bombs in Kirkuk killed at least one ...

Video The Tumblr effect Chinas Internet giants on the prowl

Tue, 21 May 2013 06:32:05 -0400

Frothy tech valuations are not limited to Silicon Valley with Yahoo's $1.1-billion (U.S.) Tumblr buy. High-stakes deals are growing in China too, as big players court emerging platforms to lock in new ...