Indian and Chinese officials began fresh talks on sensitive border issues after discussions last year were cancelled over a speech in India by Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama. Shiv Shankar Menon, India’s national security adviser, and Chinese State Councilor Dai Bingguo led the two delegations at the meeting in New Delhi, the Indian foreign ministry said in a statement. The 15th round of the cross-border talks will last two days, and cover the range of long-standing territorial disputes and other issues, officials said. “While working hard to develop itself, China is fully committed to developing long-term friendship and cooperation with India,” Dai » Read More

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The eldest son of late North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il has been spotted in Beijing almost a month after his father’s death, South Korean media reports. Kim Jong-Nam was seen by South Koreans waiting at Terminal 3 of Beijing Capital International Airport for an Air China flight to Macau, Chosun Ilbo newspaper and Yonhap news agency reported. Kim reportedly confirmed his identity to Park Seung-Jun, a professor at Incheon University west of Seoul, and said he usually travels alone. Asked if he had been surprised by his father’s sudden death, he reportedly replied: “It’s only natural”. His response to a question about whether » Read More

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Britain and Germany are among the top five countries with the capability to withstand cyberattacks and protect their economies, a study indicates. The ranking among 19 of the Group of 20 members countries studied is the result of the Cyber Power Index, a study sponsored by Booz Allen Hamilton of the United States and conducted by the Economist Intelligence Unit. The Cyber Power Index gauges digital adoption, cybersecurity and a country’s economic and regulatory environment to cyber-power. The United States is also on the top five list, as are Australia and Canada. But the report indicated Argentina, Indonesia, Russia and Saudi Arabia are without » Read More

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Huan Huan and Yuan Zi spent their last day at the panda breeding center in southwestern China ahead of a ten year trip to France, with a farewell ceremony held in their honor. The two pandas at the center in the city of Chengdu will be flown to the French zoo they will call home for the next decade under an agreement reached between Paris and Beijing after years of top-level negotiations. A deal on the endangered animals, who are famous for their reluctance to breed, was to have been announced at the G20 summit in the French resort of Cannes last » Read More

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Britain and Germany are among the top five countries with the capability to withstand cyberattacks and protect their economies, a study indicates. The ranking among 19 of the Group of 20 members countries studied is the result of the Cyber Power Index, a study sponsored by Booz Allen Hamilton of the United States and conducted by the Economist Intelligence Unit. The Cyber Power Index gauges digital adoption, cybersecurity and a country’s economic and regulatory environment to cyber-power. The United States is also on the top five list, as are Australia and Canada. But the report indicated Argentina, Indonesia, Russia and Saudi Arabia are without » Read More

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Israel and the United States are to hold a joint missile defense exercise. Although the exercise, codenamed “Austere Challenge 12″ comes at a time of spiraling regional tensions over Iran’s suspected nuclear arms program, the army said the maneuvers were planned in advance. “The exercise scenario involves notional, simulated events as well as some field training and is not in response to any real-world event,” the military said in a written response to an AFP query It did not say when the exercise would take place. Local media said that it would get underway in the spring and would be the biggest ever » Read More

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India officially rejoined the nuclear submarine operators’ club when the Russian manufacturers handed over to an Indian crew the Nerpa, in Russia’s Far East. The crew will set sail for India toward the end of January in the 8,000-ton submarine that will be renamed Chakra, The Times of India said. Nuclear submarines are operated also by the United States, Russia, Britain, France and China. India briefly operated a nuclear submarine form 1988-91 when it leased a Charlie class vessel from Russia. It, too, was called the Chakra while in service with the Indian navy. The Akula II class Nerpa submarine will be with » Read More

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There have been widespread allegations that Israel’s generals, and indeed Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, are scare-mongering to ensure the defense budget is not only left intact, with future increases, but that the Defense Ministry’s long-held financial autonomy isn’t undermined. The Israeli military has warned that up to 15,000 missiles and rockets could hit Israeli cities and towns if a new war erupts and for the first time declared that Jerusalem, long considered safe from attack because of its Muslim shrines and Arab population, could be targeted. The dire predictions came amid a bitter political battle between the Defense Ministry and the Finance » Read More

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The last US Marine charged over a notorious incident in which civilians were gunned down in Iraq pleaded not guilty, as his military trial got under way in California. Staff Sergeant Frank Wuterich, 31, faces nine counts of voluntary manslaughter and other charges for his role in 24 deaths, many of them women and children, in the Iraqi town of Haditha on November 19, 2005. Wuterich formally entered “not guilty” pleas to all charges, including counts of dereliction of duty and assault. If convicted of all the offenses, Wuterich could be sentenced to more than 150 years in prison. “We’re confident that the » Read More

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China’s satellite broadcasters have dramatically cut the number of prime time entertainment shows they air, state media said, after President Hu Jintao warned of the dangers of Western cultural imports. Dating shows and talent contests, many of them based on Western television formulas, have taken off in China in recent years, sparking concern among authorities. The official Xinhua news agency said the number of entertainment shows airing during prime time every week had plunged to 38 from 126, in line with an order the state broadcasting watchdog issued in October. The State Administration of Radio, Film and Television (SARFT) ordered broadcasters to stop » Read More

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