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 ...
TV star Katie Price has told of her terror after she narrowly escaped serious injury when her car crashed into two horses on Sunday. Price was riding in a 4×4 vehicle with her boyfriend Leandro Penna when a pair of stallions jumped a fence and galloped into their path on a remote country road in Argentina. The horses were killed while Price and Penna, who was behind the wheel, both suffered severe whiplash and cuts. The former glamour... [more]
Keira Knightley walked down the aisle on Sunday as a bridesmaid at her brother’s wedding. The Pirates of the Caribbean star got into the celebration spirit less than a week before the Royal Wedding on Friday to watch her older brother Caleb marry his designer fiancee Kerry Nixon. The actress donned a purple bridesmaid dress and held a pink and white bouquet for the ceremony at Pollokshields Burgh Hall in Glasgow, Scotland. The groomsmen... [more]
Campaigners will deliver an early wedding card to Prince William and Kate Middleton calling on them to back a change in the law allowing marriage for same-sex couples. The giant card, containing their request and a message of best wishes, will be presented outside the gates of Buckingham Palace by supporters of the Equal Love campaign. The wording of the card will read: “Congratulations William and Kate on your Wedding Day. We wish... [more]
Over one thousand protesters in Hong Kong took to the streets to demand the release of detained Chinese artist and human rights activist Ai Weiwei on Saturday, scuffling briefly with police. The rally — the largest in a string of protests across the city in recent weeks — has underscored Hong Kong’s growing role as a hotbed of support for Ai with local pro-democracy activists and artists ratcheting up pressure on Beijing... [more]
Lindsay Lohan has been released on bail just hours after being jailed for violating her probation on a drunk driving conviction dating back four years. The actress was sentenced to 120 days in prison and 480 hours community service at the end of a preliminary hearing on a jewellery theft charge. However, according to the sheriff department’s website she was freed from custody on $75,000 bail on Friday night. A judge in Los Angeles... [more]
Lindsay Lohan was back in jail on Friday after a rollercoaster day in which a judge downgraded her jewellery theft charge, but sentenced the actress to four months behind bars for violating her probation. Looking confused and distressed, Lohan — who was locked up for two weeks last summer — was taken immediately to jail from court after a day-long preliminary hearing on charges that she stole a $2,500 (1,500 pound) gold necklace... [more]
A couple who were caught in flagrante after leaving a nightclub in the Munich. district of Schwabing have been slapped with fines for €1,050 and €700 some six months later. The pair, aged 22 and 23, were arrested by police at 3.45 am on a Sunday last October after being discovered “engaging in sexual activites with one another” on the corner of the club-filled Leopoldstraße according to the report made at the time of the arrest. “They... [more]
Up to 20,000 people watched a live modern-day performance of The Passion in Gouda’s historic centre on Thursday evening to mark Easter. The turn out for the free outdoor musical was twice as high as expected. The musical told the story of the Crucifixion of Christ with Dutch pop songs performed by well-known Dutch artists. It was broadcast live on television. It was the first time such a large production was organised in the Netherlands.... [more]
Mel Gibson has opened up about his decision to plead no contest to allegations he attacked his ex-girlfriend Oksana Grigorieva, insisting he did it for the “sake of” his family. The Braveheart star is still locked in a bitter custody battle with Grigorieva over their baby daughter Lucia following their split early last year. The Russian singer accused Gibson of attacking her during a heated argument last January, claiming two... [more]
SPARE a thought for the seating planners on April 29, who must accommodate not only royals, diplomats and celebrities including David Beckham but also a butcher and a yoga teacher. Prince William and Catherine Middleton’s wedding guestlist reveals the breadth of the company they keep and hints at a relatively normal life where local tradesmen and colleagues are valued as much as Prince Albert of Monaco. The middle-class bride has... [more]
