Putin Defends Deals With Syria, Iran

By Molly Moore

JERUSALEM, April 28 -- Russian President Vladimir Putin, making the first visit of a Kremlin leader to Israel, defended on Thursday his arms sales to Syria and nuclear fuel agreements with Iran as no threat to Israel.

During a day of tough talk between Putin and his hosts, Israeli officials also rebuffed as premature his proposal for a Middle East peace summit in Moscow and urged him to abort a proposed sale of armored personnel carriers to the Palestinian Authority.

In official statements, Israeli and Russian leaders retreated to the common ground of mutual agreement on the need to combat terrorism. Despite many serious differences, they described the visit as a milestone in relations between Israel and Russia, once enemies on opposite sides of the Cold War.

"Not long ago, it would have been impossible to imagine a visit by the Russian head of state to Israel," Putin said in a news conference with Israeli President Moshe Katsav, the official host of the visit. "It is a good sign."

Although business and trade relations between Moscow and Jerusalem have warmed significantly, Israeli officials say they are alarmed by recent agreements between Putin and two of Israel's hostile neighbors, Syria and Iran.

Russia plans to sell air-defense missiles to Syria that would be mounted on trucks and have a range of less than three miles. Israeli leaders said they are concerned that the weapons could fall into the hands of terrorists and be used against Israel.

"There are disagreements between the Russian president and myself, despite the steps that the president has taken to minimize the dangers," Katsav said at a news conference after the two leaders met. "In recent days Syria has given Hezbollah additional rockets," he noted, referring to the Shiite Muslim organization and militia in Lebanon.

"I am aware of Israel's concerns regarding the possibility that the missiles will reach the hands of terror organizations in Lebanon," Putin said. "However, these concerns are groundless. The missiles we sold to Syria are short-range, antiaircraft missiles. They do not threaten Israeli territory. For these missiles to hit you, you will need to enter Syrian territory. Do you want that?"

In October 2003, Israeli jets bombed a target they described as a militant training camp about 10 miles from the Syrian capital of Damascus. During that operation, an Israeli jet also buzzed one of Syrian President Bashar Assad's palaces, Israeli Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz later said. The military action against Syria followed a suicide bombing at the northern Israeli seaport town of Haifa in which 19 people were killed. Israel conducted a similar aerial bombing raid against Syria in 1977.

Putin said Thursday he had vetoed a proposal to sell long-range air-defense missiles to Syria.

"We are taking the opinions and concerns of our partners into consideration, and we are not changing the balance of power in the region," Putin said.

Researcher Hillary Claussen contributed to this report.


http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/e...er=emailarticle

Brigadier shocks and awes: there is no war on terrorism

The so-called global war on terrorism does not exist, a high-ranking army officer has declared in a speech that challenges the conventional political wisdom.

By Cynthia Banham

In a frank speech, Brigadier Justin Kelly dismissed several of the central tenets of the Iraq war and the war on terrorism, saying the "war" part is all about politics and terrorism is merely a tactic.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article8690.htm

http://snipurl.com/ejjw

Belgian Doctors Bill U.S. for Treating Iraqi Girl :

Belgian doctors sent an Iraqi girl home on Thursday after treating her for leg wounds caused by a bomb during the U.S. invasion -- and sent the 51,570 euro ($66,650) bill to the U.S. embassy.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20050428/ts_nm/...um_dc&printer=1

http://snipurl.com/ejki

Planned bomb sale to Israel raises fears of strike on Iran:

The Pentagon has notified Congress of a proposed US sale to Israel of 100 guided bunker-busting bombs, a move raising concerns about a unilateral Israel strike against Iran.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article8693.htm

http://snipurl.com/ejkl

Russia plans nuclear fuel shipments to Iran mid-2005:

The Russian nuclear fuel trader TVEL should start fuel shipments for a Moscow-built nuclear reactor in Iran six months before the unit becomes operational in early 2006, a senior company official said on Thursday.
http://www.swissinfo.org/sen/swissinfo.htm...y=1114705223000

http://snipurl.com/ejkm

Scandal Stymies Israeli Effort to Pressure Tehran:

Aipac Shakeup Hurts Advocates of Tough U.S. Stance on Iran Nukes
http://www.forward.com/articles/3096

http://snipurl.com/ejkn

Iranian newspaper warns against Israeli nuclear arsenal:

Iranian newspaper of 'Kayhan al-Arabi' has stressed that the "Zionist nuclear arsenal constitutes a threat to the whole world, because it is not subjected to the international supervision and the west in general and the US in particular ignore it
http://www.arabicnews.com/ansub/Daily/Day/...2005042824.html

http://snipurl.com/ejko

US State Department identifies nations purportedly sponsoring terrorism :

Cuba, North Korea, Syria, and, in particular, Iran are named in the department's "Country Reports on Terrorism" released on Wednesday
http://www.zeenews.com/links/articles.asp?aid=214182&sid=WOR

http://snipurl.com/ejkp

The Facts About "Pattern Of Global Terrorism:

The number of significant incidents of terrorism in 2004 (a significant incidents means someone was killed, wounded, or kidnapped or there was property damage greater than $10,000) was the highest ever recorded. In addition, the number of fatalities is the second highest total recorded in 37 years.
http://counterterror.typepad.com/the_count...acts_about.html

http://snipurl.com/ejkr

Video: Mosaic: World News Reports from Middle East TV For 04/27/05:

The nation's only uncensored compilation of daily television news reports from more than 15 countries in the Middle East. QuickTime Video.
http://snipurl.com/ejkt

Saudis, Oil, Israel, & America :

The possible overthrow of the Saudi monarchy. Israeli and American national security professionals are conversing about the likely consequences of present US policy: the need to use military force to secure 'our' supply of cheap oil.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article8695.htm

http://snipurl.com/ejku

Congresswoman Waters Demands That The Senate Investigate Arms Shipment To Haiti :

Rep. Maxine Waters (CA-35) released a statement denouncing last year's shipment of thousands of weapons to Haiti by the U.S. Government, in violation of a 13-year-old arms embargo on Haiti, and demanding that the United States investigate why John Bolton allowed these weapons sales to occur while serving as Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Affairs.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article8688.htm

http://snipurl.com/ejkz

Haiti: Former Prime Minister To Continue Hunger Strike:

"I am continuing my hunger strike, so that I can regain my freedom and my security and so that the de facto Government will stop threatening my life, while it continues to trample on my dignity."
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article8689.htm

http://snipurl.com/ejl0

Rice Lauds Colombia, Slams Venezuela:

Colombia is the world's No. 1 supplier of cocaine and a major producer of heroin. The United States has committed $3.3 billion to Plan Colombia
http://snipurl.com/ejl2

USA Grants USD 600 Million to Columbia for Fight against Terrorism and Drug Trafficking
http://snipurl.com/ejl3

Politics, drugs and the gun: Colombia's right-wing paramilitaries :

The AUC is deeply involved in drug-trafficking and kills more civilians than its foes, the left-wing guerrillas of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).
http://www.economist.com/world/la/displayS...tory_id=3915056

http://snipurl.com/ejl4

US Wants Venezuelan Arms Monitored for Rebel Fears:

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said on Wednesday that Washington wants arms sales to Venezuela to be monitored due to concerns they could be transferred to Marxist rebels in neighboring Colombia.
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?t...storyID=8322246

http://snipurl.com/ejl5

Venezuela's Chavez increases minimum wage :

Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez on Wednesday announced a 26 percent increase in the country's minimum wage, but he acknowledged that it would still be insufficient for many poor families.
http://snipurl.com/ejl6

Hard Times in Central America: Nicaragua on a Dollar a Day...Forever?:

Visiting areas of Nicaragua hard hit by Hurricane Mitch in 1998, one steps unmistakeably into the vicious colonial class war being waged by corporate plutocrats and their political and institutional fronts against the world's poor.
http://www.counterpunch.org/solo04282005.html

http://snipurl.com/ejl7

People power rattling politics of Latin America
An unprecedented number of protesters from Mexico City to Quito,
Ecuador have found civic activism to be a highly-effective tool for
change. By Danna Harman
http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0429/p01s04-woam.html?s=hns

China rolls out red carpet as it hosts a Taiwan politician
Friday's cross-straits handshake is the highest level meet-and-greet
since 1945. By Robert Marquand
http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0429/p05s01-woap.html?s=hns

Vietnam's long journey from war
A rising nation celebrates the end of the war with the US and its
allies on April 30, 1975. By Donald Kirk
http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0429/p06s01-woap.html?s=hns

After 10 years at the helm, a controversial new UNICEF
The holistic, 'rights-based' approach to children's health that Carol
Bellamy brought to the agency earned her many critics. By Michael J.
Jordan
http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0429/p07s01-wogi.html?s=hns

Taiwan's Zhan: Current Status Quo Should be Preserved Zaman Online

Australia Settles Oil, Gas Dispute with East Timor

http://enews.voanews.com/t?ctl=D2EE8C:2F72C9D

Foreign Minister Alexander Downer says under agreement, East Timor
would be eligible for payments of up to $4 billion from future oil,
gas exploration Australia has settled a long-running dispute with East
Timor over oil and gas revenue worth billions of dollars. The
agreement guarantees the East Timorese a multi-billion dollar cut of
proceeds from exploration in the Timor Sea. In return, the East
Timorese government has agreed to suspend talks on finalizing the
maritime boundary between the two countries.

Indonesian Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Aburizal Bakrie,
center, looks on as Indonesian Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajuda, left,
shakes hands with Australian Foreign Affairs Minister, Alexander
Downer Australia's Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said that under
Friday's agreement, East Timor would be eligible for payments of up to
$4 billion from future oil and gas exploration.

On top of that, it would also receive 90 percent of the revenues it
currently receives from an existing joint oil and gas development area
in the Timor Sea.

Mr. Downer insisted it was a good result for the East Timorese.
Earlier this week, he denied his government was trying to cheat
Australia's poor northern neighbor out of desperately needed cash.

Speaking after three days of negotiations in the Timorese capital of
Dili, Mr. Downer said he expected a final agreement to be drawn up
within weeks.

"There has been substantial agreement on all major issues, and
officials will work towards finalizing the details in the lead-up to a
further round of talks, which is scheduled very soon, for the 11th of
May in Brisbane," he announced.

As part of the deal, the Timorese have agreed to postpone sensitive
negotiations with Australia on a shared maritime boundary.

East Timor was adamant the line had to be drawn in the middle of the
600 kilometers of sea that separate the two countries. Australian
officials wanted to stick with the same frontier they had negotiated
in 1972 with Indonesia, then East Timor's ruler.

Friday's agreement allows the two parties to side-step that stalemate,
which was holding up the development of a potentially lucrative new
field.

East Timor's independence in 2002 was accompanied by widespread
violence as Jakarta-backed militias went on the rampage.

The country is still unstable. The U.N. Security Council voted
Thursday to keep a small presence in the country for another year,
after Secretary-General Kofi Annan warned a quicker pullout could
undermine stability.

That general sense of unease has also influenced Australia's decision
to allow more than 1400 East Timorese refugees to remain in the
country on humanitarian grounds.

Many have been living in Australia since fleeing East Timor before it
gained independence from Indonesia. However, the authorities in
Canberra are planning to deport another 50 East Timorese. Officials
have insisted they have "no compelling case to remain" in Australia.

Chavez Establishes Oil Office in Havana

(http://enews.voanews.com/t?ctl=D2EE8D:2F72C9D

Move drew fire from Chavez opponents in Venezuela who oppose closer
relations with communist government of Cuba In Havana Thursday,
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez officially established an office of
Petroleos de Venezuela, the state-owned oil company, to serve the
Caribbean region. The move drew fire from Chavez opponents in
Venezuela who oppose closer relations with the communist government of
Cuba.

Hugo Chavez, left, and President Fidel Castro greet people at
inauguration of offices of PDVSA in HavanaVenezuela's government-run
television station on Thursday provided a live broadcast from Havana
where President Chavez, wearing a bright red shirt, chatted and joked
with his host, Cuban President Fidel Castro. Mr. Chavez said the
establishment of a Venezuelan oil company office in Havana will
benefit not only Cuba, but the entire region.

He said this was one more step towards regional integration free of
what he described as the colonial control of Washington. Mr Chavez
calls this new integration The Bolivarian Alternative for the
Americas, a trade pact that would rival that being proposed by the
United States and known as the Free Trade Area of the Americas.

The office of the Venezuelan oil company in Cuba would serve as a base
for development of possible petroleum deposits in Cuba's Gulf of
Mexico territorial waters, where a Spanish company has already been
working. If a significant oil field were to be found and developed
there, it could provide a much-needed boost to the Cuban economy,
which has never fully recovered from the ending of subsidies from the
Soviet Union at the end of the 1980's.

More immediately, the Venezuelan oil office in Havana would be the
place regional nations would visit to conduct business related to
their purchases of Venezuelan petroleum. But Chavez critics here in
Caracas were quick to question the arrangement, noting that Venezuela
has a Caribbean coast and is just as close to the island markets as is
Cuba.

Opposition Congressman Julio Montoya said this was just another case
in which Cuba has taken advantage of Venezuela's government. He says
there is no justification for opening an office for Venezuela's oil
company in Cuba, which he noted does not even have diplomatic
relations with half the countries in the Caribbean. Mr. Montoya said
Cuba has few automobiles and does not represent anywhere near as a
good market for Venezuela as the United States, with which Mr Chavez
has had rocky relations.

Under the government of Hugo Chavez, Venezuela has provided badly
needed oil to Cuba with preferential prices. Venezuela's energy
minister says the flow of oil to Cuba has now reached 80,000
barrels-of-oil-a-day. Cuba has sent more than 14,000 doctors to
Venezuela to improve public health and has also provided assistance in
education and other social programs, but has paid little in cash for
Venezuelan oil.

Foreigners Targeted in Togo's Post-Election Violence

http://enews.voanews.com/t?ctl=D2EE8E:2F72C9D

Disputed election results unleashed anti-foreigner sentiments, mainly
among opposition, against nationals from former colonial power, France

A Togolese riot policeman sprints towards an alleyway in Lome, where
an opposition supporter is hidingThe disputed election results in Togo
have unleashed anti-foreigner sentiments, mainly among the opposition,
against nationals from the former colonial power France. But the
government and its supporters are also turning against foreign
targets, including most recently the German cultural center.

As opposition militants clean up debris from their riot-torn
neighborhoods, approaching foreign journalists elicit renewed anger.

Asked to explain, one of them says France has been behind Togo's
problems since the late ruler Gnassingbe Eyadema took power in 1967 in
a coup.

Another protester says "shame to France" and "shame to ECOWAS." He was
referring to the West African grouping that helped organize Sunday's
elections from which Mr. Eyadema's son, Faure Gnassingbe, emerged as
the winner. The announcement of the results Tuesday sparked deadly
protests along the southern beachfront coast.

The Interior Ministry says among those killed were nine nationals from
Niger, which currently holds the ECOWAS rotating presidency. But
Niger's foreign ministry has denied any witch hunt against its
nationals, and says just one Nigerien was killed.

The results, deemed unfair by the opposition, also led to the burning
and looting of French, Lebanese and Chinese businesses and homes.

This woman, who fled similar violence in nearby Ivory Coast recently,
says her guard and neighbors rescued her and she was then taken by the
military to a safe hotel.

A rescued Frenchman at the same hotel says he understands the anger,
but he says it's misplaced. He says he is a simple schoolteacher
working in his words "with everyone for everyone."

Nicolas Lawson, an opposition candidate who pulled out of Sunday's
election because he says he foresaw massive fraud, says France's tacit
support of undemocratic leaders in its former colonies will lead to
social unrest and civil wars throughout the region, much as it already
did in divided Ivory Coast.

"The whole countries are going to turn into violence because of the
attitude of France, taking position each time wrongly and being on the
wrong side and not helping with democracy," said Nicolas Lawson. "We
are fed up with this and it's why you see the youth, they are angry
against France and there's going to be a revolution one day against
the position of France in Africa."

France's Foreign Minister Michel Barnier initially said the French
government was "satisfied" with the conduct of Sunday's election, but
that caused anger among opposition leaders who believe the elections
were rigged.

Speaking later in the week, Mr. Barnier said he never commented on the
results of the balloting. He said France has not and will not
interfere in Togolese affairs.

Another former colonial power, Germany, had its cultural center,
Lome's Goethe Institute, burned down by masked men early Friday, after
comments from Togolese officials that the German government was
backing the opposition. The former interior minister, Francois Boko,
who warned of post-election violence before being replaced just one
day before voting, has been sheltered at the German embassy since his
comments.

Germany has demanded an investigation.

Meanwhile, Togo's communications ministry criticized foreign
journalists on state news Thursday, saying they were irresponsible and
caused violence.

That comment followed the airing of dramatic television footage on
French and African television showing Togolese soldiers stealing
ballot boxes at a polling center in a Lome opposition stronghold just
as vote counting began.

The tape was aired only after the cameraman had arrived safely back in
France.

Vietnam Enjoying Economic Recovery 30 Years After War

http://enews.voanews.com/t?ctl=D2EE8F:2F72C9D

Despite failure of country's "doi moi" or renewal reforms, in past
five years, Vietnam's cautious policy has quietly yielded results

It has been 30 years since the end of the Vietnam War, and the country
once known for strife and crushing poverty has emerged as one of the
fastest-growing economies in the world.

Foreign investors flooded into Vietnam in the early 1990's, betting
that the communist nation's "doi moi" economic reforms could make it
the next Asian tiger economy. But by the late 1990's, the investors
were pulling out almost as fast as they had come in. Doi moi, which
means "renewal", was seen as too slow moving, and investors turned
their attention to neighboring China.

Yet, in the past five years, Vietnam's cautious policy on reforms has
quietly yielded results. Annual GDP growth has averaged nearly 7
percent a year. Poverty, which once plagued two-thirds of the
population, has been cut in half. Average income for Vietnamese has
doubled in the last 10 years.

Klaus Rohland, country representative for the World Bank, says those
numbers are impressive by any standard.

"Vietnam is a major success story. As of 1992 until now, they have
grown on average, by more than 6 percent," he said. "Last year they
grew by like 7.5, 7.8 percent. And that is way above average growth.
And it's probably, with the exception of China, the best performing
economy in the world.

For all its success, Vietnam remains a poor country. Average income
may have doubled, but it is still only about $600 a year - far behind
wealthier neighbors like Thailand and Malaysia. Still, the mood is
optimistic.

In Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, the sound of construction has become
almost constant. Property prices have jumped by more than half in the
past three years, as just about everyone seems to be renovating houses
and building new office buildings. Real estate experts say office
space in Ho Chi Minh City now costs the same as in suburban Tokyo or
Paris.

Much of Vietnam's newfound prosperity comes from commodities exports
like oil and agricultural products. The International Monetary Fund
says Vietnam is the world's largest pepper exporter, and the
second-largest exporter of rice, coffee and cocoa. Tourist arrivals
reached three million visitors last year. That is only about a quarter
of the tourists that Thailand welcomes, but is still up 50 percent
from just three years previously. Nguyen Thanh Huong runs a souvenir
shop in Hanoi's busy Hang Gai Street.

"Around late winter and early spring, there are many tourists Vietnam.
Business is very good and I have a lot of customers," he said.

Economists say Vietnam still has a long way to go before its economy
can match its more developed neighbors. Its expected entry into the
World Trade Organization later this year could help. But first the
government must further reform its banking and investment sectors -
which now lend most of their funds to money-losing state-owned
companies instead of private entrepreneurs.

Still, even foreign investors are beginning to regain confidence in
Vietnam. This year's foreign direct investment is up by 30 percent. As
the Communist Party touts its 30-year-old victory in the Vietnam War
this week, Vietnam's economy gives the country something else to
celebrate.

http://www.wpherald.com/storyview.php?Stor...28-100527-1346r

Politics & Policies: Euro-Islamist threats
Claude Salhani

--------------------
Official Pariah Sudan Valuable to America's War on Terrorism
--------------------

Despite once harboring Bin Laden, Khartoum regime has supplied key intelligence, officials say.

By Ken Silverstein
Times Staff Writer

April 29 2005

KHARTOUM, Sudan; The Bush administration has forged a close intelligence partnership with the Islamic regime that once welcomed Osama bin Laden here, even though Sudan continues to come under harsh U.S. and international criticism for human rights violations.

The complete article can be viewed at:
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/wo...0,6605677.story

--------------------
Iraqi Cabinet Approved, Though Divisions Linger
--------------------

By Patrick J. McDonnell
Times Staff Writer

April 29 2005

BAGHDAD; Iraqi lawmakers overwhelmingly approved an ethnically and religiously diverse Cabinet on Thursday, but gaping holes in the new administration and continued sectarian wrangling marred the historic day.

The complete article can be viewed at:
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/wo...0,6396391.story

--------------------
Iraqi Milestone but With Perils
--------------------

The new government in Baghdad represents a success for the White House in the region, but its fragility poses long-term challenges.

By Tyler Marshall
Times Staff Writer

April 29 2005

WASHINGTON; The new government formed Thursday in Iraq is both an important achievement and a serious cause for concern as President Bush pushes his goal of promoting democratic reform in the Middle East.

The complete article can be viewed at:
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/wo...headlines-world

--------------------
China Tries New Tactic With Taiwan
--------------------

Beijing is seeking to gain an advantage in cross-strait matters by inviting the island's opposition leader for a visit, analysts say.

By Mark Magnier and Tsai Ting-I
Special to The Times

April 29 2005

BEIJING; Today's historic meeting between Chinese President Hu Jintao and Lien Chan, head of Taiwan's opposition Nationalist Party, highlights Beijing's more nuanced policy toward Taipei even as, some analysts say, its fundamental approach remains the same.

The complete article can be viewed at:
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/wo...headlines-world

--------------------
Blair, Foes Tussle Over Pre-Iraq War Legal Opinion
--------------------

With voting days away, he releases document to back up his decision but rivals raise trust issue.

By John Daniszewski
Times Staff Writer

April 29 2005

LONDON; Trying to extinguish a controversy in the home stretch of his campaign for reelection, Prime Minister Tony Blair on Thursday made public the secret legal advice he received less than two weeks before ordering British troops into Iraq.

The complete article can be viewed at:
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/wo...headlines-world

--------------------
Putin Pledges Assistance to Palestinians
--------------------

By MOHAMMED DARAGHMEH
Associated Press Writer

April 29 2005, 7:52 AM PDT

RAMALLAH, West Bank -- Russian President Vladimir Putin promised on Friday to give equipment and training to Palestinian security forces and offered to help rebuild the Palestinians' crumbling infrastructure in the Gaza Strip, from which Israel is withdrawing this summer.

The complete article can be viewed at:
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/wo...opinternational

--------------------
On Visit, Putin Criticizes Iran's Nuclear Program
--------------------

From Times Wire Reports

April 29 2005

On the first visit by a Kremlin leader to Israel, Russian President Vladimir V. Putin aimed sharp words at Iran because of its nuclear program.

The complete article can be viewed at:
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/wo...headlines-world

--------------------
Insurgent Attacks Kill at Least 27 in Iraq
--------------------

By THOMAS WAGNER
Associated Press Writer

April 29 2005, 8:41 AM PDT

BAGHDAD, Iraq -- Insurgents staged a series of car bombings and other attacks on Friday, killing at least 27 Iraqis and one U.S. soldier, wounding dozens a day after the country's first democratically elected government was approved. Iraq's most-wanted terrorist purportedly threatened more violence and warned Iraqis against collaborating with the Americans.

The complete article can be viewed at:
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/wo...opinternational

--------------------
Taiwan: Historic China Meeting Won't Help
--------------------

By JOE McDONALD
Associated Press Writer

April 29 2005, 8:19 AM PDT

BEIJING -- Taiwan's opposition leader and Chinese President Hu Jintao promised on Friday to work together to end hostilities between Taipei and Beijing, during the highest-level meeting between the two sides since they fought a civil war six decades ago. But the Taiwanese government criticized the talks, saying they would do nothing to improve frosty relations.

The complete article can be viewed at:
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/wo...opinternational

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N. Korea Can Arm Missile, U.S. Aide Says
--------------------

Top U.S. official surprises a hearing by saying Pyongyang can arm a missile with a nuclear device, but others contradict him.

By Greg Miller and Mark Mazzetti
Times Staff Writers

April 29 2005

WASHINGTON; The head of the Defense Intelligence Agency testified Thursday that North Korea now has the ability to arm a missile with a nuclear device, marking the first time a U.S. intelligence official has publicly said Pyongyang has crossed that critical technological threshold.

The complete article can be viewed at:
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/f...lines-frontpage

--------------------
Rice Calls for Acceleration of Democracy
--------------------

By GEORGE GEDDA
Associated Press Writer

April 29 2005, 12:23 AM PDT

SANTIAGO, Chile -- Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice says the world's democracies must use the power of shared ideals "to accelerate democracy's movement to ever more places across the globe."

The complete article can be viewed at:
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/wo...opinternational

King Gyanendra lifts emergency in Nepal (LEAD):- Webindia123

--------------------
U.S., Italy Fail to Agree on Slaying
--------------------

From Reuters

April 30 2005

WASHINGTON; The United States and Italy disagreed Friday in the conclusions of a joint investigation into the slaying of an Italian agent by U.S. troops in Iraq, further straining ties between the two allies.

The complete article can be viewed at:
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/wo...headlines-world

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Likely Presidential Candidate Wounded
--------------------

From Times Wire Reports

April 30 2005

Attackers shot and wounded Kyrgyz lawmaker Bayaman Erkinbayev, a key figure in protests that led to the overthrow of the former regime, police said.

The complete article can be viewed at:
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/wo...headlines-world

--------------------
EU-Iran Talks End; More Are Planned
--------------------

From Times Wire Reports

April 30 2005

European Union and Iranian negotiators failed to reach agreement during talks in London on Tehran's nuclear program, but they decided to meet again.

The complete article can be viewed at:
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/wo...headlines-world

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Mexico Envisions a Seaport to Rival L.A.'s
--------------------

Officials say the Baja plan comes in response to queries from major shipping companies amid fast-growing trade from Asia.

By Chris Kraul and Deborah Schoch
Times Staff Writers

April 30 2005

MEXICO CITY; Desert scrub, rows of broccoli and a few scattered Airstream trailers are about all that dot the seaside landscape at Punta Colonet. But Mexican officials hope an ambitious development plan will transform the Baja California cove into a seaport as busy as that in Los Angeles.

The complete article can be viewed at:
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/wo...headlines-world

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Taiwan Party Chief Meets With Hu
--------------------

Opposition leader Lien Chan and the Chinese president agree to work toward a shared future.

By Ching-Ching Ni
Times Staff Writer

April 30 2005

BEIJING; Taiwan's opposition leader shook hands with Chinese President Hu Jintao in a landmark meeting in the Great Hall of the People on Friday, symbolically ending a standoff between their political parties that had existed for nearly six decades.

The complete article can be viewed at:
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/wo...0,1431807.story

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Putin Promises Aid for Abbas
--------------------

By Ken Ellingwood
Times Staff Writer

April 30 2005

RAMALLAH, West Bank; Russian President Vladimir V. Putin pledged Friday to provide equipment and training for Palestinian security forces to help them rein in militant groups.

The complete article can be viewed at:
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/wo...0,7911801.story

--------------------
War Is History for Vibrant Vietnam
--------------------

Thirty years after the fall of Saigon, the firmly communist nation has a flourishing economy, social freedom and deep ties with the U.S.

By David Lamb
Special to The Times

April 30 2005

HO CHI MINH CITY, Vietnam; In the final days of the Vietnam War 30 years ago, a U.S.-trained South Vietnamese pilot named Nguyen Thanh Trung defected to the North mid-mission. Faking engine problems, he peeled off from his squadron and headed back to Saigon to bomb the presidential palace and the international airport.

The complete article can be viewed at:
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/wo...,0,326875.story

Lesotho Elects Local Authorities for First Time Voice of America

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Iraq Shaken by Barrage of Bombings
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A day after a new government is approved, car bombs kill at least 27 in and around Baghdad. Three U.S. soldiers are among the dead.

By Ashraf Khalil
Times Staff Writer

April 30 2005

BAGHDAD; Insurgents staged a bloody show of strength across Iraq on Friday, detonating at least 14 car bombs that killed at least 27 people, including three U.S. soldiers, and wounded dozens of Iraqis.

The complete article can be viewed at:
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/wo...0,2857431.story