Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda said on Tuesday he is resolved to settle a longstanding territorial dispute with Russia at an annual rally calling for the return of all four Russian-held islands off Hokkaido in northern Japan, the Kyodo news agency reported. "We'll continue to make steady and determined efforts to move ahead with negotiations," Noda said, stressing the need to sign a peace treaty with Russia. The four islands - which Russia calls the Southern Kurils and Japan calls the Northern Territories - has been the subject of a territorial dispute between the two nations since the end of World War ...
Amanda Knox's Italian lawyer has filed an appeal of her slander conviction in Italy, a Knox family spokesman inSeattle said Monday. In October, an Italian appeals court overturned the young Seattle woman's murder conviction in the 2007 death of her British roommate in Perugia. But the same court upheld Knox's conviction for slander — for falsely accusing bar owner Diya "Patrick" Lumumba of involvement in the slaying. Lumumba was freed after two weeks in prison for lack of evidence. Knox later said she was "manipulated" during her lengthy police interrogation. An appeal of the slander conviction was filed Monday, Knox family spokesman Dave Marriott confirmed. He doesn't know when the Italian ...
The Dutch railway will remain 'vulnerable' during wintry weather but Dutch Rail (NS) and track operator ProRail did not help matters during the current cold snap by the late introduction of schedule adjustments to cope with the conditions, transport minister Melanie Schultz van Haegen told parliament in a briefing on Tuesday. The NS and ProRail assumed on Thursday of last week that there would be three to five centimetres of snow. When the forecast was increased on Friday morning to between 10 and 15 centimetres, it was too late to change the timetables automatically, Schultz van Haegen told parliament. Drivers and conductors ...
Greece can leave the eurozone without damaging monetary union, European digital affairs commissioner Neelie Kroes says in an interview with the Volkskrant on Tuesday. Kroes, a member of the Dutch ruling right-wing Liberal party VVD, is not a supporter of Greece exchanging the euro for the drachma, but says: 'It is absolutely not a case of man overboard if someone leaves the eurozone.' The commissioner is very critical of the new Greek government and says they are not fulfilling their promises. 'Too few spending cuts, too little restructuring,' she says. She says the Greeks should follow the example of Italy where the new ...
Mitt Romney hopes his presidential campaign hasn't ignored Rick Santorum's aggressive attacks for too long, as caucuses in Colorado and Minnesota on Tuesday could reshuffle the race for the Republican presidential nomination. Santorum largely bypassed Florida and Nevada to blanket the two caucus states with criticism of Romney and lay the groundwork among conservatives who have great sway in the process. RivalNewt Gingrich praised Santorum's strategy as shrewd even as he signaled he had no interest in exiting the four-way race, which also includes Ron Paul. "I think that Santorum's going to have a pretty good day," Gingrich told reporters on the eve of the caucuses. "He targeted differently than I ...
Glencore and Xstrata agreed an all-share merger worth $90 billion (56 billion pounds) on Tuesday in the industry's largest ever deal, creating a commodities powerhouse spanning mining, agriculture and trading. Glencore, the world's largest diversified commodities tradinghouse, will issue 2.8 new shares for each Xstrata share in a deal they said was a "merger of equals." The ratio is a 15.2 percent premium to Xstrata shareholders compared with its share price last Wednesday before word leaked out about the merger talks, a joint statement said. "A merger between Glencore and Xstrata offers a unique opportunity to create a new business model in our industry to respond to ...
US White House hopeful Mitt Romney aims for another big caucus win in Colorado on Tuesday, as his well-oiled campaign machine works to cement his position as the Republican front runner in the US presidential race. Polls suggest he should triumph easily in the western US state -- where he scored 60 percent in 2008 -- although there is a tighter race in Minnesota, where last-placed Rick Santorum is hoping to snatch a win. Romney's main rival, former House speaker Newt Gingrich, is battling to stay in the race after two heavy losses in a row to the former Massachusetts governor, who ...
As President Christian Wulff remains mired in allegations of impropriety, anti-corruption group Transparency International (TI) has called for politicians to use the case as a chance to open up German politics. “We are very concerned that people seem to be starting to think that all politicians behave like Wulff, and that would be fatal,” Christian Humborg, TI Germany’s managing director told The Local. “I think the Wulff affair is a wonderful opportunity for German politicians to react to the cynical attitude that this is normal, and improve things,” he said. He said the fact that the authorities were investigating whether Wulff and his ...
German Chancellor Angela Merkel threw her weight behind French President Nicolas Sarkozy in his tough re-election battle on Monday, saying the two right-wingers were from the same "political family". Despite accusations in both countries of interference, Merkel used a visit to Paris for a joint Franco-German cabinet session to make clear her support for Sarkozy, who has increasingly cited Germany as a model for France. "We belong to the same political family. He supported me and it is natural that I support him in his campaign," Merkel said during a joint television interview with Sarkozy to be broadcast later on French and ...
Swedish prime minister Fredrik Reinfeldt thinks that Swedes need to be prepared to work a lot longer than they do today in order to keep the same living standard as when they were working. “The pensions scheme isn’t based on magic. It is a welfare ambition based on large-scale re-distribution and citizens’ own work. If people think that we can live longer and shorten our work life, then pensions will get lower,” Reinfeldt said in interview with daily Dagens Nyheter (DN). According to Reinfeldt, the expectation to retire at 65 is a problem in Sweden today. He thinks that Swedes may have to ...
BAGHDAD – Iraq deployed security forces Saturday near a remote oil well seized by Iran, officials said, and its government pressed Tehran to withdraw its forces from the area along their disputed southern border. U.S. officials applauded Iraq for standing its ground against Iran — an uneasy ally that analysts said was aiming to remind its neighbor of its economic and political pull in its takeover of the oil well Thursday. The site... [more]
NEW YORK – A report says the oldest sibling of pop group the Jonas Brothers and a former hairdresser have married at a French-style chateau in suburban New York. People magazine reported a heavy snowstorm bore down on Saturday’s wedding between 22-year-old Kevin Jonas and 23-year-old Danielle Delesea at Oheka Castle, a 109,000-square-foot estate inCold Spring Harbor. The couple told People that the wedding went on as planned.... [more]
WASHINGTON – The Senate cleared its year-end plate of some must-do work Saturday as it passed a critical budget bill that blends money for the Pentagon with additional help for the jobless. The early morning 88-10 vote, taken as a blizzard buffeted the Capitol, permitted lawmakers to resume their acrimonious debate on health care, which Democrats now expect to finish by Christmas. The spending measure now goes to President Barack... [more]
A special Eurostar service from Paris which became stranded near Ebbsfleet in Kent on Saturday evening has finally arrived at London’s St Pancras station. Passengers said there was no heating and lighting, and food ran out. Earlier, five trains were stuck in the Channel Tunnel, trapping more than 2,000 people for up to 16 hours. Eurostar said special trains had been laid on on Saturday night to transport as many passengers as possible... [more]
A group of 20 Chinese Uighurs who fled to Cambodia after ethnic riots in July have been deported back to China. The United Nations refugee agency strongly condemned the deportation, saying Cambodia had committed a grave breach of international refugee law. The decision follows intense pressure by China, which has referred to the group as criminals. Human rights groups have warned that the group is likely to face persecution on return to... [more]
TAIPEI, Taiwan – A powerful earthquake off Taiwan injured 14 people and caused minor damage in the capital as well as near the epicenter, an official said Sunday. All 14 victims sustained minor injuries in the eastern city of Hualien, 85 miles (135 kilometers) southeast of the capital, the official from Taiwan’s National Fire Agency said. Thirteen became ill after inhaling chlorine gas that leaked from a hotel, and another was... [more]
KUALA LUMPUR (AFP) – Malaysian wildlife authorities said they have rescued 130 pangolins and arrested two men attempting to smuggle the protected species, destined to be sold to restaurants and medicine shops. Officials from the Department of Wildlife and National Parks said the two men were detained at a cemetery in central Pahang state, national news agency Bernama said late Saturday. “The cemetery is believed to be the transit... [more]
TEHRAN, Iran – After months of denials, Iran acknowledged Saturday that at least three people detained in the country’s postelection turmoil were beaten to death by their jailers. The surprise announcement by the hard-line judiciary confirmed one of the opposition’s most devastating and embarrassing claims against authorities and the elite Revolutionary Guard forces that led the crackdown after June’s disputed presidential... [more]
WASHINGTON – A winter storm socked the East Coast on Saturday and dumped more than a foot of snow in some areas, creating treacherous conditions and misery for motorists on the weekend beforeChristmas. Officials urged residents to stay indoors, and many heeded the warning. Stores and malls usually bustling with shoppers were nearly deserted in some areas. Airports canceled flights or were operating with excessive delays. Drivers abandoned... [more]
OSWIECIM, Poland – Thieves stole the notorious sign bearing the cynical Nazi slogan “Work Sets You Free” from the entrance to the former Auschwitz death camp on Friday, cutting through rows of barbed wire and metal bars before making their escape through the snow. The brazen seizure of one of the Holocaust’s most chilling symbols brought worldwide condemnation. “The theft of such a symbolic object is an attack... [more]
