• Central Asia

    Kazakh director Zhanabek Zhetiru: Recreating myth in cinema

    As Otilija Kerbelyte says, in cinema we find the myths and legends portrayed with fantastic genres, special effects, and mythological creatures such as elves and orcs in the The Lord of the Rings trilogy. Mythical creatures usually wear the clothes, which no human would wear (e.g. faun and fairies in…

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  • Central Asia

    Strong showing for Navalny in Moscow mayoral race

    Moscow’s incumbent mayor has been re-elected with 51 percent of the vote, just enough to avoid a run-off against opposition leader Alexei Navalny, election officials said Monday. The Moscow Election Commission said Monday morning that Sergei Sobyanin got just over half the vote while Navalny, who energized the race into…

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  • East Asia

    Chinese, Uzbek presidents hold talks on boosting ties

    Visiting Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Uzbek counterpart Islam Karimov held talks here Monday on further development of bilateral relations and cooperation. Xi is in Tashkent for a state visit as a guest of Karimov, who went to the airport to receive the Chinese president on Sunday evening. “I…

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  • West Asia

    White House tries to sway war-wear public on Syria

    President Barack Obama is going public to try to convince war-weary Americans that limited strikes against Syria are needed for the United States’ long-term safety, while his national security team is attempting to reassure skeptical lawmakers that the United States is not heading toward another Iraq or Afghanistan. Obama on…

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  • East Asia

    G20 leaders adopt St. Petersburg development strategy

    The Group of Twenty (G20) leaders on Thursday approved here a strategy outlining development priorities for the group members over the medium term. The St. Petersburg Development Strategy, prepared by the development working panel of G20, detailed such priorities as reinforcing G20’s commitment to shared growth and improving the group’s…

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  • South Asia

    Pakistani women take part in a rally for the World Hijab Day

    Pakistani women take part in a rally to mark the World Hijab Day in southern Pakistani port city of Karachi on Sept, 4, 2013. Nationwide rallies were organized to highlight the importance and value of hijab for Muslim women in Pakistan. <Xinhua/NEWSis>

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  • South Asia

    India passes $20 bln law to expand food welfare

    India plans to subsidize wheat, rice and cereals for some 800 million people under a $20 billion scheme to cut malnutrition and ease poverty. The Food Security Bill, sent this week by India’s parliament to the president for approval, guarantees citizens a legal right to food. India has some of…

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  • West Asia

    UN chief stresses need for cooperation on global issues

    UN Secretary-General Ban Ki- moon on Wednesday highlighted the importance of cooperation in addressing the challenges facing the world, as leaders from major economies are to attend a G20 summit in Russia. After arrived in the Russian city of St. Petersburg on Wednesday for the summit, Ban said the international…

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  • East Asia

    Former NBA star Dennis Rodman visits North Korea to meet Kim Jung Un

     Former NBA star Dennis Rodman is in North Korea with plans to hang out with authoritarian leader Kim Jong Un, have a good time and maybe bridge some cultural gaps – but not be a diplomat. Rodman was greeted at Pyongyang’s airport Tuesday by Son Kwang Ho, vice-chairman of North…

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  • East Asia

    Tornados hit eastern Japanese cities injuring people, damaging buildings

    Tornados hit cities in east part of Japan Monday afternoon, injuring dozens of people and damaging building, according to local media. In Koshigaya city in the Saitama prefecture, local police said that they confirmed six buildings were completely destroyed and about 80 were badly damaged, reported Japan’s Kyodo News.  Around…

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