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China promises to be ‘fair’ as UNSC president

Nation gets rotating presidency of key council next month
UNITED NATIONS: China will perform its duty in an objective and fair manner and work with other members to maintain international peace and security when it assumes the rotating presidency of the UN Security Council next month, the Chinese envoy to the UN said here on Tuesday.
Zhang [...]

Read More » No commentDecember 31, 2009

S Korea military to open up off-limit military area

SEOUL, Dec. 30 (Xinhua) — South Korean military will ease or lift restrictions on 9 million square meters of military reservation area, the Ministry of National Defense on Wednesday said in a statement.
A total of 8.96 million square meters of military reservation zones in Gangwon province, Gyeonggi province and South Gyeongsang province, formerly [...]

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No report of injuries or casualties on two kidnapped ships: IMB officer

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec. 30 (Xinhua) — There was no report about any injuries and casualties so far on the two ships kidnapped by Somali pirates on Monday, an officer of the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) said here on Wednesday.
It is learned that no crews on the two ships were killed or injured so [...]

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Japanese PM’s Indian tour seeks closer bilateral economic cooperation

NEW DELHI, Dec. 30 (Xinhua) — Japan and India on Tuesday pledged to speed up talks on concluding the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) and cooperation on maritime security, but Japan expressed reservations about bilateral cooperation on nuclear technology.
At a joint press conference after talks with his Indian counterpart Manmohan Singh at the [...]

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Thai court cancels cabinet resolution on Preah Vihear temple

BANGKOK, Dec. 30 (Xinhua) — Thailand’s Central Administrative Court Wednesday ordered revocation of a resolution passed by the Samak Sundaravej-led government, which approved the Thai-Cambodian joint communique supporting Cambodia’s bid to list Preah Vihear temple as a UNESCO World Heritage site, Thai News Agency reported.
The Thai-Cambodian joint communique was issued in May, 2008, [...]

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Pakistan, Thailand agree on prisoners exchange

ISLAMABAD, Dec. 30 (Xinhua) — Pakistan and Thailand Wednesday ratified a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on cooperation in the transfer of offenders and enforcement of penal sentences, the Foreign Office of Pakistan said.
The agreement was signed between the two governments in December 2007 at Bangkok and aims at strengthening co-operation and assistance [...]

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2 Sri Lankan politicians from ruling coalition join opposition

COLOMBO, Dec. 30 (Xinhua) — Sri Lanka’s Deputy Education Minister M.Satchithananthan and National Organizer of the Ceylon Workers Congress (CWC), a member party of the ruling coalition United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA), former parliamentarian R.Yogarajan joined the main opposition United National Party (UNP) on Wednesday.
This is the first time that ruling party politicians [...]

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Japan warms relations with India but future accord remains hazy

TOKYO, Dec. 30 (Xinhua) — Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama’s three-day visit to India, which saw him return to Tokyo Wednesday, is, to a certain degree, being heralded as a success, as official talks with his counterpart Manmohan Singh, as well as closed-door meetings with top Indian industrialists and bankers, have deepened diplomatic understanding and [...]

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U.S. to Impose Tariffs on Chinese Pipe After Ruling

Dec. 30 (Bloomberg) — The U.S. will impose duties on $2.8 billion in steel-pipe imports from China after saying subsidies on the products may harm American steelmakers, a move that threatens to escalate trade tensions between the two countries.
The U.S. International Trade Commission voted 6-0 today in Washington. The Commerce Department set duties in November [...]

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China, Nepal to advance bilateral ties

BEIJING, Dec. 30 (Xinhua) — China-Nepal ties entered a new phase with the two nations having decided to establish a comprehensive partnership of cooperation, said Chinese President Hu Jintao here on Wednesday.
“We will work with Nepal to make concerted efforts for the in-depth development of our relationship,” Hu said in a meeting with Nepalese Prime [...]

Read More » No commentDecember 30, 2009