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    US negotiator Glyn Davies and his team leave the North Korean embassy in Beijing after bilateral talks

    A senior US diplomat said Thursday he had held "serious and substantive" talks with North Korea's nuclear envoy in Beijing, the first such contact between the two nations since leader Kim Jong-Il died. More »US, North Korea hold first talks since Kim's death

    NEW DELHI, Feb 23 (AlertNet) - Afghanistan's … More »Afghans flee war to face hunger, …

    U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Davies arrives at North Korean embassy to meet North Korea's First Vice Foreign Minister Kim in Beijing

    BEIJING (Reuters) - The U.S. envoy for the North Korean nuclear dispute said talks with … More »U.S. envoy calls North Korea talks " …

    • Philippines' Arroyo pleads not guilty in poll fraud trial Manuel Mogato - Reuters - 8 hours ago

      MANILA (Reuters) - Former Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo pleaded not guilty on Thursday to electoral fraud on the first day of a trial seen as a landmark … More »Philippines' Arroyo pleads not guilty in poll fraud trial

      MANILA (Reuters) - Former Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo pleaded not guilty on Thursday to electoral fraud on the first day of a trial seen as a landmark test of the government's ability to tackle entrenched corruption in the Southeast Asian nation. Arroyo, a 64-year-old who ruled the Philippines from 2001 …

    • Opposition SNC seeks humanitarian aid at Syria confab John Irish and Lin Noueihed - Reuters - 15 hours ago

      PARIS/TUNIS (Reuters) - The main opposition Syrian National Council (SNC) will use an international meeting on the Syrian crisis to push for urgent measures to ferry … More »Opposition SNC seeks humanitarian aid at Syria confab

      PARIS/TUNIS (Reuters) - The main opposition Syrian National Council (SNC) will use an international meeting on the Syrian crisis to push for urgent measures to ferry humanitarian aid to stranded civilians, a move it hopes will win Russian and Chinese support. Speaking in Paris two days before Arab and Western foreign ministers …

    • Foes of EU airline CO2 rules agree on tactics Jennifer Rankin - Reuters - 20 hours ago

      MOSCOW (Reuters) - Countries opposed to an EU law forcing the world's airlines to pay for greenhouse gas emissions agreed on a basket of retaliatory measures, adding … More »Foes of EU airline CO2 rules agree on tactics

      MOSCOW (Reuters) - Countries opposed to an EU law forcing the world's airlines to pay for greenhouse gas emissions agreed on a basket of retaliatory measures, adding to a series of threats that have raised the prospect of the globe's first carbon trade war. But the EU dismissed the threats as "hypothetical" and Russia's …

    • A monk talks on the phone as he crosses a bridge near a temple in Langmusixiang, Sichuan Province
      Tibetans mark new year under shadow of immolations Michael Martina - Reuters - Wed, Feb 22, 2012

      LANGMU, China (Reuters) - Tibetans in northwest China marked a tense traditional new year on Wednesday with prayer, the sounding of gongs and subdued defiance in the … More »Tibetans mark new year under shadow of immolations

      A monk talks on the phone as he crosses a bridge near a temple in Langmusixiang, Sichuan Province

      LANGMU, China (Reuters) - Tibetans in northwest China marked a tense traditional new year on Wednesday with prayer, the sounding of gongs and subdued defiance in the wake of a string of self-immolations and protests against Chinese control. The traditional new year, or "Losar," is a combination of Buddhist ceremony and …

    • Tokyo Electric Power Co.'s tsunami-crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant is seen in Fukushima prefecture
      Japan steel body urges restart of nuclear reactors Yuko Inoue - Reuters - Wed, Feb 22, 2012

      TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's steelmakers, the nation's biggest users of electricity, urged the early restart of nuclear power plants on Wednesday, fearing that potential … More »Japan steel body urges restart of nuclear reactors

      Tokyo Electric Power Co.'s tsunami-crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant is seen in Fukushima prefecture

      TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's steelmakers, the nation's biggest users of electricity, urged the early restart of nuclear power plants on Wednesday, fearing that potential power cuts and more costly electricity will further squeeze a sector reeling from the strong yen. Big businesses have reacted furiously to plans by Tokyo …

    • Supporter of Sea Shepherd, Dutch environmental activist Erwin Vermeulen (R)
      Japan court clears anti-dolphin-hunt activist AFP - AFP - Wed, Feb 22, 2012

      A Japanese court on Wednesday ruled that a Dutch supporter of militant environmentalist group Sea Shepherd was not guilty of assaulting a man in the dolphin-hunting town … More »Japan court clears anti-dolphin-hunt activist

      Supporter of Sea Shepherd, Dutch environmental activist Erwin Vermeulen (R)

      A Japanese court on Wednesday ruled that a Dutch supporter of militant environmentalist group Sea Shepherd was not guilty of assaulting a man in the dolphin-hunting town of Taiji.

    • Young North Korean defectors wearing masks hold placards denouncing Bejing's policy on refugees
      China should follow global norms on refugees: Lee AFP - AFP - Wed, Feb 22, 2012

      South Korea's President Lee Myung-Bak urged China Wednesday to handle fugitives from North Korea under international norms, adding to growing pressure on Beijing not … More »China should follow global norms on refugees: Lee

      Young North Korean defectors wearing masks hold placards denouncing Bejing's policy on refugees

      South Korea's President Lee Myung-Bak urged China Wednesday to handle fugitives from North Korea under international norms, adding to growing pressure on Beijing not to repatriate them.

    • Japan mayor's call for a "dictator" strikes chord with voters Linda Sieg - Reuters - Wed, Feb 22, 2012

      TOKYO (Reuters) - "What Japan needs most now is a dictator." Toru Hashimoto, a lawyer and TV celebrity-turned politician, was quick to add when he made that widely publicised … More »Japan mayor's call for a "dictator" strikes chord with voters

      TOKYO (Reuters) - "What Japan needs most now is a dictator." Toru Hashimoto, a lawyer and TV celebrity-turned politician, was quick to add when he made that widely publicised remark last year that a Hitler-style dictatorship was neither desirable nor possible given Japan's democratic checks and balances. But the call for …

    • To match Insight MYANMAR-INDIA/
      Insight - India's Wild East unprepared for new Myanmar Satarupa Bhattacharjya and Frank Jack Daniel - Reuters - Wed, Feb 22, 2012

      MOREH, India (Reuters) - As dusk falls on a lonely police station in the eastern tip of India, a young policeman nervously keeps an eye on the Arakan hills above him, … More »Insight - India's Wild East unprepared for new Myanmar

      To match Insight MYANMAR-INDIA/

      MOREH, India (Reuters) - As dusk falls on a lonely police station in the eastern tip of India, a young policeman nervously keeps an eye on the Arakan hills above him, dotted with poppy fields. Just 22 bumpy miles from the capital of India's restive Manipur state, he and his colleagues are outnumbered by gunmen from a faction …

    • Uighur protests as China's Xi visits Turkey Tulay Karadeniz - Reuters - Tue, Feb 21, 2012

      ANKARA (Reuters) - Activists from China's Muslim Uighur minority burnt Chinese flags in Ankara on Tuesday where China's leader-in-waiting Xi Jinping was holding talks … More »Uighur protests as China's Xi visits Turkey

      ANKARA (Reuters) - Activists from China's Muslim Uighur minority burnt Chinese flags in Ankara on Tuesday where China's leader-in-waiting Xi Jinping was holding talks with Turkish officials on regional issues. About 60 Turkic-speaking Uighurs from China's northwestern Xinjiang province protested outside the hotel where …

    • Afghan officials meeting Taliban in Pakistan Ismail Sameem - Reuters - Tue, Feb 21, 2012

      KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (Reuters) - Afghan officials are holding talks with the Taliban in Pakistan, the head of a provincial peace council in the insurgency's heartland … More »Afghan officials meeting Taliban in Pakistan

      KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (Reuters) - Afghan officials are holding talks with the Taliban in Pakistan, the head of a provincial peace council in the insurgency's heartland Kandahar said on Tuesday, in a possible signal that Islamabad is boosting its support for Afghan peace efforts. Kandahar peace council head Ata Mohammad …

    • South Sudan expels head of Chinese-Malaysian oil firm Reuters - Tue, Feb 21, 2012

      PALOUGE OIL FIELD, South Sudan (Reuters) - South Sudan has expelled the head of Chinese-Malaysian oil consortium Petrodar, the main oil firm operating in the new African … More »South Sudan expels head of Chinese-Malaysian oil firm

      PALOUGE OIL FIELD, South Sudan (Reuters) - South Sudan has expelled the head of Chinese-Malaysian oil consortium Petrodar, the main oil firm operating in the new African nation, top southern officials said on Tuesday, escalating a row between Juba and Chinese oil firms. South Sudan has attacked Chinese oil firms and launched …

    • Afghan President Hamid Karzai has urged Pakistan to help facilitate "direct negotiation efforts with the Taliban"
      Karzai invites Taliban leaders for direct talks AFP - AFP - Tue, Feb 21, 2012

      Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Tuesday invited the Taliban leadership to direct talks with his government, while urging Pakistan to facilitate negotiation efforts towards … More »Karzai invites Taliban leaders for direct talks

      Afghan President Hamid Karzai has urged Pakistan to help facilitate "direct negotiation efforts with the Taliban"

      Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Tuesday invited the Taliban leadership to direct talks with his government, while urging Pakistan to facilitate negotiation efforts towards ending 10 years of war.

    • Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe speaks during a visit to Mimosa Platinum mine about 400km south of the capital Harare
      "Resurrected" Mugabe turns 88, to stay in power Cris Chinaka - Reuters - Tue, Feb 21, 2012

      HARARE (Reuters) - Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe turned 88 on Tuesday, joking about reports circulating for years of his imminent demise and vowing to stay in power … More »"Resurrected" Mugabe turns 88, to stay in power

      Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe speaks during a visit to Mimosa Platinum mine about 400km south of the capital Harare

      HARARE (Reuters) - Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe turned 88 on Tuesday, joking about reports circulating for years of his imminent demise and vowing to stay in power despite international condemnation of his economic and human rights record. Mugabe said he was in tip-top shape in an interview with state radio, and made …

    • China says nearly 50,000 people have died in work-related accidents in the first nine months of 2011
      China factory blast kills 13, injures 17 AFP - AFP - Tue, Feb 21, 2012

      An explosion at a steel plant in northeastern China killed 13 people and injured another 17, a company official said Tuesday, in the latest industrial accident to hit … More »China factory blast kills 13, injures 17

      China says nearly 50,000 people have died in work-related accidents in the first nine months of 2011

      An explosion at a steel plant in northeastern China killed 13 people and injured another 17, a company official said Tuesday, in the latest industrial accident to hit the country.

    • Olympus Executive Found Dead In New Dehli
      Olympus Executive Found Dead In New Dehli Sky News - Tue, Feb 21, 2012

      A senior executive of the scandal-hit technology firm Olympus has been found dead in a children's park outside his flat near New Delhi after apparently taking his own … More »Olympus Executive Found Dead In New Dehli

      Olympus Executive Found Dead In New Dehli

      A senior executive of the scandal-hit technology firm Olympus has been found dead in a children's park outside his flat near New Delhi after apparently taking his own life.

    • China is to return about 30 North Koreans to the secretive state even though they face harsh punishment
      S.Korea to seek UN support for N.Koreans in China Jung Ha-Won - AFP - Tue, Feb 21, 2012

      South Korea will seek global support at a UN meeting next week for its efforts to rescue North Korean refugees recently arrested in China and facing repatriation, according … More »S.Korea to seek UN support for N.Koreans in China

      China is to return about 30 North Koreans to the secretive state even though they face harsh punishment

      South Korea will seek global support at a UN meeting next week for its efforts to rescue North Korean refugees recently arrested in China and facing repatriation, according to the foreign ministry.

    • Photos make slow way home in tsunami-hit Japan Chris Meyers - Reuters - Tue, Feb 21, 2012

      OFUNATO, Japan (Reuters) - In a large, bright room not far from the ocean that raged through this coastal Japanese city nearly a year ago, a handful of people with magnifying … More »Photos make slow way home in tsunami-hit Japan

      OFUNATO, Japan (Reuters) - In a large, bright room not far from the ocean that raged through this coastal Japanese city nearly a year ago, a handful of people with magnifying glasses pore over boxes of photographs of friends or loved ones. The massive March 11 tsunami that levelled buildings and flattened towns along a …

    • An attendant prepares to refuel a car at a petrol station in Rome
      Japan, U.S. near deal on Iran oil import cut, report say 11 pct Osamu Tsukimori and Yoko Kubota - Reuters - Tue, Feb 21, 2012

      TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan is close to agreement with Washington on the size of cuts refiners must make in imports of Iranian crude oil to win waivers from U.S. sanctions, … More »Japan, U.S. near deal on Iran oil import cut, report say 11 pct

      An attendant prepares to refuel a car at a petrol station in Rome

      TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan is close to agreement with Washington on the size of cuts refiners must make in imports of Iranian crude oil to win waivers from U.S. sanctions, two ministers said Tuesday after a media report the two sides would settle on an 11 percent cut. The Yomiuri newspaper, citing unidentified sources, said …

    • Pakistani women march during a rally on violence against women in Lahore in 2010
      Pakistan makes domestic violence criminal offence AFP - AFP - Mon, Feb 20, 2012

      Pakistan's Senate on Monday passed a bill that makes violence against women and children an offence carrying jail terms and fines, state media said. More »Pakistan makes domestic violence criminal offence

      Pakistani women march during a rally on violence against women in Lahore in 2010

      Pakistan's Senate on Monday passed a bill that makes violence against women and children an offence carrying jail terms and fines, state media said.

    • China, Russia may be shifting on Syria: Arab League Reuters - Mon, Feb 20, 2012

      CAIRO (Reuters) - The Arab League chief said on Monday there were signs that China and Russia could be shifting their stance on Syria after the two permanent members … More »China, Russia may be shifting on Syria: Arab League

      CAIRO (Reuters) - The Arab League chief said on Monday there were signs that China and Russia could be shifting their stance on Syria after the two permanent members of the U.N. Security Council vetoed a Western-backed Arab peace plan aimed at ending violence there. "There are indications coming from China and to some extent …

    • Factbox - Political risks to watch in Syria Reuters - Mon, Feb 20, 2012

      BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syria risks a slide into civil war as its 11-month revolt grows increasingly bloody, with the army pounding opposition areas and a growing rebel force … More »Factbox - Political risks to watch in Syria

      BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syria risks a slide into civil war as its 11-month revolt grows increasingly bloody, with the army pounding opposition areas and a growing rebel force calling for foreign intervention and arms. Western and Arab powers, increasingly critical of President Bashar al-Assad but wary of direct intervention, …

    • An Afghan soldier on patrol near Kandahar
      Afghans say 41 child suicide bombers rescued AFP - AFP - Mon, Feb 20, 2012

      The Afghan government said Monday that police had rescued 41 children from becoming suicide bombers as they were about to be smuggled across the mountains into Pakis … More »Afghans say 41 child suicide bombers rescued

      An Afghan soldier on patrol near Kandahar

      The Afghan government said Monday that police had rescued 41 children from becoming suicide bombers as they were about to be smuggled across the mountains into Pakistan.

    • Graffiti (written in blue) translated as "Down with Bashar" is seen below a sign for a school featuring a picture of Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in the Bab Sharqi district of Damascus F
      Iranian ships reach Syria, China warns of civil war Khaled Yacoub Oweis and Angus MacSwan - Reuters - Mon, Feb 20, 2012

      AMMAN/BEIRUT (Reuters) - China accused Western countries of stirring civil war in Syria and two Iranian warships docked at a Syrian naval base, underscoring rising international … More »Iranian ships reach Syria, China warns of civil war

      Graffiti (written in blue) translated as "Down with Bashar" is seen below a sign for a school featuring a picture of Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in the Bab Sharqi district of Damascus F

      AMMAN/BEIRUT (Reuters) - China accused Western countries of stirring civil war in Syria and two Iranian warships docked at a Syrian naval base, underscoring rising international tensions over the near year-long crisis. Despite pursuing a sustained military crackdown on the opposition in cities across the country, President …

    • An Italian diplomat (C) walks in front of two Italian guards (second row L and 2nd L)
      Italians face court over Indian fishermen shootings AFP - AFP - Mon, Feb 20, 2012

      Two Italian soldiers were due before a magistrate in India on Monday for allegedly shooting dead two Indian fishermen mistaken for pirates trying to attack an oil ta … More »Italians face court over Indian fishermen shootings

      An Italian diplomat (C) walks in front of two Italian guards (second row L and 2nd L)

      Two Italian soldiers were due before a magistrate in India on Monday for allegedly shooting dead two Indian fishermen mistaken for pirates trying to attack an oil tanker.

    • At least 22 people have set themselves on fire in Tibetan-inhabited areas of China over the past year, mostly in Sichuan
      'Hundreds gather' in China after self-immolation AFP - AFP - Mon, Feb 20, 2012

      Hundreds of Tibetans gathered in China's southwest to hold a vigil for a young Buddhist monk who set himself on fire, a rights group said, in the latest self-immolation … More »'Hundreds gather' in China after self-immolation

      At least 22 people have set themselves on fire in Tibetan-inhabited areas of China over the past year, mostly in Sichuan

      Hundreds of Tibetans gathered in China's southwest to hold a vigil for a young Buddhist monk who set himself on fire, a rights group said, in the latest self-immolation to hit the country.

    • China's urban migrants hold key to domestic demand Nick Edwards and Chris Buckley - Reuters - Mon, Feb 20, 2012

      SHANGQIU, China (Reuters) - Liu Tao knows he will never be rich enough to own one of the luxury apartments in Beijing that he has been paid to decorate for more than … More »China's urban migrants hold key to domestic demand

      SHANGQIU, China (Reuters) - Liu Tao knows he will never be rich enough to own one of the luxury apartments in Beijing that he has been paid to decorate for more than a decade, but he's saving hard so that in another 10 years he'll have enough for a home with indoor plumbing. Like many of the 158 million rural migrant workers …

    • Teenage Tibetan monk self-immolates, dies - rights group Reuters - Mon, Feb 20, 2012

      BEIJING (Reuters) - A teenage Tibetan Buddhist monk has set himself on fire and died in southwestern China, a rights group said, in the latest reported self-immolation … More »Teenage Tibetan monk self-immolates, dies - rights group

      BEIJING (Reuters) - A teenage Tibetan Buddhist monk has set himself on fire and died in southwestern China, a rights group said, in the latest reported self-immolation by a monk denouncing Chinese policies in Tibet and demanding the return of the Dalai Lama. Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said last week the self-immolations …

    • Opium's crazy cousin Reuters - Mon, Feb 20, 2012

      (Reuters) - Most people in Thailand's drug rehabilitation centres are there for using it. Most drug arrests in Japan are related to it. And Vietnam, the United Nations … More »Opium's crazy cousin

      (Reuters) - Most people in Thailand's drug rehabilitation centres are there for using it. Most drug arrests in Japan are related to it. And Vietnam, the United Nations says, is its "next big market." Methamphetamine is now the top drug in many Asian countries, its soaring popularity straddling social and economic divides. …

    • Graffiti (written in blue) translated as "Down with Bashar" is seen below a sign for a school featuring a picture of Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in the Bab Sharqi district of Damascus F
      China paper says West stirring up civil war in Syria Reuters - Mon, Feb 20, 2012

      BEIJING (Reuters) - Western countries are stirring up a civil war in Syria with their wholehearted support for the opposition, a top Chinese newspaper said Monday, slamming … More »China paper says West stirring up civil war in Syria

      Graffiti (written in blue) translated as "Down with Bashar" is seen below a sign for a school featuring a picture of Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in the Bab Sharqi district of Damascus F

      BEIJING (Reuters) - Western countries are stirring up a civil war in Syria with their wholehearted support for the opposition, a top Chinese newspaper said Monday, slamming calls for the country's leader to hand over power as an incitement to further violence. China and Russia angered Western and Arab states this month …

     
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