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East Asia
N. Korea urges US to accept its offer for dialogue to ease tensions
North Korea’s top diplomat said Tuesday that the U.S. must accept its offer for dialogue without preconditions if it wants to ease tensions on the divided Korean Peninsula. He drew a quick rebuttal from his South Korean counterpart, who said the international community has made clear that Pyongyang must give…
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East Asia
US Secretary of State Kerry presses N. Korea to give up nuclear program
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry stepped up pressure Monday on North Korea to give up its atomic weapons program, saying key regional powers, including North Korean ally China, are all “absolutely united” in demanding nuclear disarmament. Kerry made the comments on the eve of Asia’s largest annual security conference,…
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East Asia
ASEAN nations push for building of ASEAN economic community by 2015
The foreign ministers of the member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) said on Sunday that they saw the need to maintain the positive momentum in the interaction between ASEAN countries and China over the disputes in the South China Sea. The statement of encouraging China-ASEAN engagement…
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East Asia
Kaesong with other 19 historic sites inscribed on UNESCO World Heritage
The 37th Session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee came to an end successfully on Thursday after 11 days in action. Addressing the closing ceremony held in the tourism city of Siem Reap province on Thursday night, Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister Sok An, chairman of the session, expressed the country’s…
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Politics
South Africans participate rally to pray for Nelson Mandela’s recovery
People hold a photo of South Africa’s anti-apartheid icon Nelson Mandela during a rally in Pretoria, South Africa, on June 27, 2013. Former South African President Nelson Mandela’s health has improved but he remains in a critical condition, the Presidency said on Thursday. <Xinhua/NEWSis/Li Qihua> Ruling party supporters, sing as…
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Culture
A seven-week-old Snow Leopard cub plays at Tulsa Zoo, USA
Nico, the seven week old Snow Leopard cub, plays in a room at the Tulsa Zoo on Wednesday, June 26, 2013. <AP Photo/NEWSis/Tulsa World, John Clanton> Nico, the seven week old Snow Leopard cub, looks up at news photographers in a room at the Tulsa Zoo on Wednesday, June 26,…
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Politics
Kevin Rudd re-elected as Australia’s PM after being ousted 3 years ago
Kevin Rudd was sworn in as Australian prime minister on Thursday three years and three days after he was ousted from the same job in an internal government showdown. His office could not immediately confirm whether Rudd would replace his predecessor Julia Gillard in a visit to Indonesia that had…
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East Asia
‘Super moon’ rises over Singapore’s Bay Garden clearing from haze
A full moon sets behind a building of the Forbidden City in Beijing, capital of China, June 23, 2013. The moon looks 14 percent larger and 30 percent brighter than usual on Sunday. The scientific term for the phenomenon is “perigee moon”, but it is also known as a “super…
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East Asia
Hong Kong allows whistle-blower Snowden to go for third country
Former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden – an admitted leaker of state secrets – was expected to fly from Moscow to Cuba and Venezuela en route to possible asylum in Ecuador. Snowden, also a former CIA technician, fled Hong Kong on Sunday to dodge U.S. efforts to extradite him…
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South Asia
US-Taliban to hold talks on ending Afghan war
The Taliban and the U.S. said Tuesday they will hold talks on finding a political solution to ending nearly 12 years of war in Afghanistan, as the international coalition formally handed over control of the country’s security to the Afghan army and police. The Taliban met a key U.S. demand…
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