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N Korea threatens rival South over UN sanctions
China may cut aid over atomic test
Pakistan govt has failed to deliver, says UK envoy
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US senators introduce legislation in Malala’s name
Greek cops storm metro workers’ sit-in; strike enters Day 9
Island row: Xi calls for joint efforts to reduce tension
China’s general secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party Xi Jinping with Natsuo Yamaguchi (L), leader of Japan's New Komeito party, in Beijing on Friday. — Reuters
Hindu religious leader jailed in US for visa fraud
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N Korea threatens rival South over UN sanctions Seoul, January 25 "If the South Korean puppet regime of traitors directly participates in the so-called UN 'sanctions', strong physical countermeasures will be taken," the North's Committee for Peaceful Reunification of Fatherland said. The warning, carried by the official Korean Central News Agency, came a day after North Korea's top military body threatened to conduct a third nuclear test and boost its ability to strike the United States. The latest warning re-focused Pyongyang's anger from Washington to Seoul. "Sanctions amount to a declaration of war against us," said the committee which is the prime state body responsible for inter-Korean dialogue and exchange. “As long as the South Korean puppet traitors' regime continues with its anti-DPRK (North Korea) hostile policy, we will never sit down with them," it said. The current upsurge in tensions has its roots in Pyonyang’s defiant decision to push ahead with a long-range rocket launch on December 12 - insisting it was a peaceful mission to place a satellite in orbit. The rest of the world saw it as a banned ballistic missile test and on Tuesday, the UN Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution that expanded sanctions imposed on North Korea after its nuclear tests in 2006 and 2009. The United States, supported by Japan and South Korea, spearheaded the UN resolution. Pyongyang reacted furiously, vowing to boost its nuclear arsenal and to conduct a third nuclear test and even longer-range rocket launches in an "all-out action" against its "sworn US enemy". The North's reaction poses an early challenge to both US President Barack Obama at the start of his second term, and to South Korean President-elect Park Geun-Hye, who takes office in one month's time. — AFP
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China may cut aid over atomic test Beijing, January 25 China is the North's leading energy supplier and trade partner and is seen as one of the few nations able to influence Pyongyang's behaviour, with the comments adding a distinctive edge to its typical official calls for stability and dialogue. "If North Korea engages in further nuclear tests, China will not hesitate to reduce its assistance to North Korea," the Global Times, which is close to the ruling Communist Party, said in an editorial. "China hopes for a stable peninsula, but it's not the end of the world if there's trouble there," it added. “We should have a pragmatic attitude to deal with the problems and pursue the optimal ratio between our investment of resources and strategic gains.” The editorial also expressed discontent at North Korean criticism of Beijing for backing a UN Security Council resolution this week that condemned Pyongyang's rocket launch last month and imposed expanded sanctions. The resolution was passed only after lengthy negotiations between the US and China, which wields a Security Council veto, and sought to shield Pyongyang from tougher measures, envoys said. "After putting a lot of effort into amendments for the draft resolution, China also voted for it. It seems that North Korea does not appreciate China's effort," the Global Times said. When Pyongyang announced today it would carry out a third nuclear test, without specifying when, Beijing called for restraint and dialogue. — AFP
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Pakistan govt has failed to deliver, says UK envoy Islamabad, January 25 The High Commissioner told a group of Pakistani journalists: "Pakistan needs radical change. Pakistan's economy is not growing fast enough, Pakistan's governments — federal and provincial — are not delivering enough to the people". He stressed the need for an impartial caretaker government and an effective Election Commission to ensure the credibility of elections expected to be held by May after the Pakistan Peoples Party-led government completes its five-year term. Thomson told the journalists during an interaction yesterday that change should be democratic and come through Constitutional means "not by storming parliament or prolonging a caretaker government beyond the constitutional provisions. It needs to be through the ballot box". He referred to the four-day sit-in protest led by cleric Tahir-ul-Qadri outside parliament and said demonstration was an "authentic expression" of discontentment among millions of ordinary Pakistanis. The public were concerned about lack of services and also whether political leaders were accountable. "Whether they are delivering for ordinary Pakistanis, and whether they are themselves meeting the high standards set for them in Pakistan's Constitution." — PTI
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US senators introduce legislation in Malala’s name
Washington, January 25 Introduced by Senators Barbara Boxer and Mary Landrieu, the Malala Yousafzai Scholarship Act is designed to expand scholarship opportunities for disadvantaged young women in Pakistan. The Boxer-Landrieu Bill will require a 30 per cent increase in the number of scholarships awarded under the programme for the next four years, and that these additional scholarships be awarded solely to women. — PTI
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Greek cops storm metro workers’ sit-in; strike enters Day 9 Athens, January 25 The capital's subway lines remained shut for the ninth day as most subway workers continued a strike against wage cuts. But some were back on the job after being served the orders to return to work or face arrest. The showdown has turned into the latest test for Greece's fragile three-party ruling coalition as it tries to implement austerity measures demanded by foreign lenders as the price for bailout funds. Scuffles broke out when police forced their way through a metal gate around 4 am at the depot, where 90 workers had gathered overnight in protest. At least 10 workers were detained and then released, an official said on condition of anonymity. Prime Minister Antonis Samaras' government has taken a hard line on the strike despite criticism from the smallest party in his three-party government. "When labour action is judged illegal and abusive, the law has to be implemented. Everyone has made sacrifices and no one can ask to be made an exception," government spokesman Simos Kedikoglou told state television. Other transport unions held strikes in solidarity with subway workers on Friday, leaving Athens without bus, tram, trolleybus or rail services, and causing traffic jams across the city. Public anger has grown against the strike, which is affecting more than a million commuters in a city of 5 million people. — Reuters
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Island row: Xi calls for joint efforts to reduce tension Beijing, January 25 Describing the dispute as a sensitive issue due to polarised public opinion in both countries, Xi during his meeting with top Japanese leader Natsuo Yamaguchi said China and Japan should make "joint efforts" to bring down tensions. China calls the islands in the resource-rich East China Sea as Diaoyu, while Japan, which has administrative control over them, describes the islets as Senkakus. "China's stance on the Diaoyu Islands is consistent and clear," Xi said, urging the Japanese side to respect history as well as reality and make joint efforts with China to "seek effective methods for appropriately controlling and resolving problems through dialogue and consultation," state run Xinhua news agency reported. Yamaguchi, head of the New Komeito party, an influential partner in the new Japanese government met Xi today and handed over a letter from Japanese PM Shinzo Abe reportedly expressing keen interest in repairing the relations. — PTI
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Hindu religious leader jailed in US for visa fraud
Chicago, January 25 A Milwaukee court gave its sentencing order after it found Sagarsen Haldar, aka Gopal Hari Das, who is the founder, president, CEO and spiritual leader of Gaudiya Vaisnava Society (GVS), guilty of fraudulently obtaining religious worker visas - known as 'R-1' visas - for Indian nationals in exchange for substantial cash payments. Thirty-two-year-old Haldar would be deported to India after serving his sentence. — PTI
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IAEA to Israel: Iran nuclear row must be resolved peacefully 22 killed in central Nigerian clash Attack on NATO convoy kills 5 civilians Malian troops recapture Islamist town 50 militants killed in Khyber region
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North Korea today threatened "physical counter-measures" against rival South Korea — the latest in a series of bellicose warnings sparked by a tightening of UN sanctions against Pyongyang.
Greek riot police stormed a train depot in Athens on Friday to disperse subway staff defying government orders to end their strike, intensifying a confrontation that has paralysed public transport in the city.
Seeking to bring down Sino-Japanese tensions over the disputed islands, China's new leader Xi Jinping today called for joint efforts to "control and resolve" the sensitive issue, which has seriously damaged bilateral ties, including the flourishing trade.
