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 ...
Germany has outpaced the United States as the number two player in clean energy while China keeps racing ahead as the world’s green investment leader, a study said Tuesday. The survey by the Pew Charitable Trusts found strong growth on a global scale for solar, wind and other renewable energy, although one major exception was Britain, which saw a sharp decline after a new government took charge. “What we believe it all comes... [more]
Sam Attwater has been crowned champion of Dancing On Ice 2011. The 24-year-old former EastEnders actor raised a few eyebrows with his performance of Bolero, by ending with his hand on partner Brianne Delcourt’s breast. The three finalists – Sam and TV presenters Chloe Madeley and Laura Hamilton – each had to perform a showcase dance and a favourite routine from the series. Sam went first and scored an impressive 29.5 for... [more]
Crown Prince Willem-Alexander and Princess Máxima started an official four-day visit to Vietnam on Monday. They will spend the first two days in the capital, Hanoi, and the last two days in Ho Chi Minh City, formerly known as Saigon. The purpose of the official visit is to strengthen trade and diplomatic relations between the Netherlands and Vietnam. The southeast Asian country is an emerging market which offers ample opportunities for... [more]
Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservatives suffered a historic loss in Baden-Württemberg on Sunday, ending nearly six decades in power. The Greens will lead a German state for the first time. The environmentalist Greens and the centre-left Social Democrats (SPD) managed an unprecedented political upset in the wealthy southwestern state, which is normally a stronghold for Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union (CDU). Official results... [more]
For their wedding next month Britain’s Prince William and Kate Middleton announced Sunday that they aren’t just having their cake and eating it — they’re having two. The couple said they had decided on a “multi-tiered traditional fruit cake” with a floral design, followed by a chocolate biscuit cake that was one of William’s childhood favourites. The main cake, which will take centre stage at the... [more]
One of the biggest energy deals in Russia’s post-Soviet history is on the verge of collapse amid questions about both the British giant BP’s credibility and the risk of doing business in the country. The British firm’s $16 billion alliance to jointly explore the Arctic with state-held Rosneft was hailed on its announcement January 15 as the “deal of the century” that would help resurrect Russia’s dour... [more]
Håkan Juholt, the new leader of Sweden’s Social Democrat party, attacked the government’s record on youth unemployment, child poverty and ‘growing divides’ in society, in his inaugural speech on Saturday. “There is another way and a different choice,” Juholt said in delivering his first speech as leader to the party congress in Stockholm. While conceding that the economy was strong and that unemployment... [more]
Germany is expected to see its biggest-ever anti-nuclear demonstrations on Saturday, with major protests expected in Berlin, Hamburg, Munich and Cologne. The protests are being organized by an alliance of environmental groups, churches and trade unions, while opposition political parties are also calling on people to turn out. As many as 50,000 people have been registered in Berlin alone, where a procession will go past the headquarters... [more]
Ambassadors and senior diplomats in The Hague are guilty of exploiting and imprisoning their domestic staff. Embassy servants have told Radio Netherlands Worldwide and Dutch dailyTrouw their stories of abuse. An Indonesian domestic servant working for a South American diplomat had to hand in her passport and employment contract, was forbidden to leave the house and had to work seven days a week for a low wage. A Philippine servant of a former... [more]
The right wing Progress Party (Fremskrittspartiet – FrP) suffers a marked decline on the latest poll made for the newspaper VG, folllowing a sex scandal involving one of their high-profile politicians. (Photo: FrP leader Siv Jensen) FrP drops 4.7 percentage points on the March poll, and is now supported by 20.8 per cent of the electorate. The poll was made after the news broke that FrP’s candidate for Stavanger mayor and also ... [more]
