UN peace envoy to meet Russian, US officials on Syria
UN-Arab League peace envoy Lakhdar Brahimi was set to meet top US and Russian officials Friday to discuss the Syrian conflict, a day after Damascus denounced his "bias" against President Bashar al-Assad.
12 January 2013
Venezuelans swear 'absolute loyalty' to Chavez
Thousands of Venezuelans fervently swore "absolute loyalty" to Hugo Chavez Thursday in a giant rally for the cancer-stricken president on what was to have been his inauguration.
12 January 2013
End to China media row dims reform hopes
Action by China's leaders to contain a row that saw rare protests against censorship shows there is no consensus for immediate change, analysts say, despite rising calls for press freedom and other reforms.
US will stand by Afghanistan, Panetta tells Karzai
The United States sought to assure Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Thursday that it would remain committed to his country even as US officials weigh a major withdrawal of American forces.
12 January 2013
Gun lobby takes aim at Biden's guns task force
The top US firearms lobby emerged from talks with Vice President Joe Biden on curbing violence Thursday saying he cared more about stamping out gun rights than protecting school kids.
Obama lines up Jack Lew for Treasury President Barack Obama was expected to name Washington veteran Jack Lew as his next Treasury chief as early as Thursday, stocking his team for the next tense budget showdown with Republicans.
Nazarbayev signed law on countering terrorismKazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev signed a Law On amendments to several legislative acts of Kazakhstan on countering terrorism.
Military vehicles up for sale in AlmatyOver 200 units of military vehicles, including trucks and several ARVs can be bought near Almaty via an advertisement on Kolesa.kz.
10 January 2013
China paper: regulation must 'keep pace with the times' A Chinese newspaper at the centre of a dispute over censorship said Thursday that Communist regulation of the media must "keep pace with the times", in its first edition since the row began.