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 ...
A truck travelling on the wrong side of the road ploughed head-on into a bus that turned into a fireball on impact, killing 32 people in China. The collision happened along a section of road undergoing maintenance in Fuxin City, in the northeastern of province of Liaoning. The victims included 29 bus passengers and all three people aboard the truck. Twenty-four other bus passengers were injured, with three in a critical condition. The bus... [more]
Israel held a dress rehearsal for disaster Sunday, beginning a defense drill to test the response of soldiers, emergency crews and civilians to simulated missile barrages, terrorist attacks and chemical strikes. Israel embarked on its fourth annual home front drill at a time when Iranian-backed militants are rearming to Israel’s north and south, and Iran itself is suspected of developing nuclear arms, despite its denials. The five-day... [more]
South Korea will take the case of its sunken naval vessel to the U.N. Security Council, the presidential office said on Sunday, as pressure mounted on North Korea which is accused of torpedoing the ship. South Korea’s President Lee Myung-bak will deliver a speech about the incident on Monday, presidential spokesman Lee Dong-kwan said. “The president will present frameworks of measures, one about our own steps and the other about... [more]
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was to arrive in Beijing Sunday ahead of talks with Chinese leaders on bilateral trade issues and security threats including renewed tensions on the Korean peninsula. Clinton was scheduled to arrive in the capital at 2:50 pm (0650 GMT) and later attend a state dinner hosted by Dai Bingguo, a member of China’s State Council, or cabinet. On Monday, Clinton and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner... [more]
Thai authorities launched a massive clean-up operation in Bangkok’s charred commercial district on Sunday as the city prepared for the resumption of business after the worst riots in modern history. Thailand’s stock exchange and other financial markets will resume full-day trading on Monday, after being closed on Thursday and Friday following a wave of arson and street battles when the army dispersed thousands of anti-government protesters.... [more]
Saleswoman Li Li stood in a booth at the Canton trade fair, surrounded by luggage decorated with floral, leopard and news headline prints like “credit crunch” and “economic disaster looms.” She pointed to one that said “dollar exchange rate” with a chuckle. “We’re all worried about the exchange rate,” said Li, whose Globalway Luggage Co. is based in the eastern port city of Ningbo. “If... [more]
The United Nations Command (UNC) has launched an investigation into whether North Korea violated the Korean War armistice by sinking one of the South’s naval ships, the U.N. body said on Saturday. North Korea denounced the probe as a “bogus mechanism.” On Thursday, the South announced the results of an investigation which concluded a North Korean submarine had in March fired a torpedo that sank the Cheonan corvette, killing... [more]
Senior British officials, including new Foreign Secretary William Hague arrived in Afghanistan Saturday with a warning that Britain wants to withdraw its troops as soon as possible. Hague, Defence Secretary Liam Fox and International Development Secretary Andrew Mitchell are set to meet President Hamid Karzai in their first visit to to the country since a new coalition government took power in London this month. Hague described Afghanistan... [more]
The president of Chinese port firm Cosco addresses reporters after his talks with Prime Minister George Papandreou. Captain Wei Jiafu said he had received three proposals for new investments in Greece during his three-day visit. The president and chief executive officer of the China Ocean Shipping Company (Cosco), which took over the operation of the two main container terminals at Piraeus in January, said yesterday that he was “satisfied”... [more]
Thailand’s premier said on Friday that order has been restored after a deadly crackdown on anti-government protests triggered mayhem in the capital, but that the divided kingdom faces “huge challenges”. Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva declared victory in a campaign to secure Bangkok, clamping down on militants in the “Red Shirt” movement who went on a rampage of arson and looting after their leaders surrendered... [more]
