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 ...
Parts of Germany on Tuesday experienced the coldest temperatures of the winter so far, with overnight lows dipping to -21 degrees Celsius. But meteorologists are predicting even chillier weather and heavy snowstorms for the coming days. At least 14 homeless people have died of exposure to the brutal cold this winter, according to an advocacy group. The BAG aid organisation said it had not seen such a catastrophic winter since 25 homeless... [more]
ELIN Nordegren visited Tiger Woods at a sex addiction clinic last week and hopes to save their marriage for the sake of their children, according to internet celebrity website reports. People magazine and RadarOnline reported Nordegren wants to avoid divorce, citing unnamed sources, after spending five days with the golf star as part of his rehabilitation treatment program in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. Nordegren’s parents divorced when... [more]
The French government is ready to pressure Total to prevent it from shutting down a refinery in northern France that would lead to hundreds of job losses, the industry minister said Tuesday. President Nicolas Sarkozy stepped in this month to tell carmaker Renault that it should not move production of its new Clio model to Turkey and he could do the same with Total, said Christian Estrosi. “When the president’s determination and... [more]
Few events can steal the thunder from an Apple Inc (AAPL.O) quarterly earnings day — an Apple product launch is one of them. The company released its quarterly results on Monday, but Wall Streetis waiting for Wednesday, when Apple is expected to unveil a new tablet computer that investors hope will be as huge a phenomenon as its iconic iPod and iPhone. Along with its strong earnings — Apple posted big gains in profit... [more]
Today is Tuesday, Jan. 26, the 26th day of 2010. There are 339 days left in the year. Today’s Highlight in History: On Jan. 26, 1950, India officially proclaimed itself a republic as Rajendra Prasad took the oath of office as president. On this date: In 1788, the first European settlers in Australia, led by Capt. Arthur Phillip, landed in present-day Sydney. In 1837, Michigan became the 26th state. In 1841, Britain formally... [more]
European regulators announced a probe on Monday into Anglo-Australian mining giants Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton, adding to pressure on the pair from the world’s biggest importer China. “The European Commission has opened a formal antitrust investigation… under European Union rules on restrictive business practices,” said a statement from Brussels on plans to jointly extract western Australian iron ore reserves. Iron... [more]
The leader of Yemen’s Shi’ite rebels on Monday offered a cease-fire to Saudi Arabia and said his fighters would withdraw from the kingdom’s territory to avoid more civilian casualties. The announcement by Abdul-Malik al-Houthi followed three months of border fighting between Shi’ite rebels and Saudi forces who also used their airforce to bomb rebel targets. “To avoid more bloodshed and to stop aggression on... [more]
Sweden’s Ericsson has announced 1,500 more layoffs as part of its restructuring plan which started last year, taking the number of jobs lost to 6,500. Swedish telecom giant Ericsson announced on Monday it would cut an additional 1,500 jobs under a restructuring plan that contributed to a 92 percent fall in net profit in the fourth quarter. Ericsson reported a net profit of 314 million kronors (30.7 million euro, 43.4 million dollars)... [more]
German justice authorities said Monday they have ordered an international arrest warrant for ex-Argentine military dictator Jorge Rafael Videla over the killing of a German citizen while he was in power. A spokesman for the prosecutor’s office in the southern city of Nuremberg toldAFP that the warrant pertained to the murder of German student Rolf Stawowiokin the 1970s. “The prosecutor’s office applied for an arrest... [more]
Finance minister Wouter Bos is fully behind American president Barak Obama’s plans to curb the activities of the biggest US banks, the NRC reports on Monday. In an interview with the paper, Bos says he is writing to his US counterpart Tim Geithner to give his support and that the letter includes a commitment to raise the issue within the Europe Commission. Together with Geithner, Bos siad he hopes to get the issue on the agenda of... [more]
