Exclusive: Beijing auditions foreign public relations firms to polish China brand
SHANGHAI/BEIJING (Reuters) – Five global public relations firms have made pitches to the Chinese government for a potential new campaign, four sources said, as Beijing tries to communicate more effectively with the West.
Red Cross workers who went missing in Mali are safe: Red Cross
DAKAR (Reuters) – Three Red Cross workers who went missing in northern Mali last week are free and in good condition, the president of the Geneva-based organization said on Friday.
U.N. rights chief urges Thailand to roll back military’s powers
BANGKOK (Reuters) – The top U.N. human rights official called on Thailand on Friday to suspend “dangerously sweeping” powers handed to the military and he encouraged dialogue on a draft constitution the military hopes will win approval in an August ref…
Russian forces in Syria fired on Israeli aircraft: Israeli newspaper
JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Russian forces in Syria have fired at least twice on Israeli military aircraft, prompting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to seek improved operational coordination with Moscow, Israel’s top-selling newspaper said on Friday.
Greece says Turkish demands obstructing NATO mission in Aegean
ATHENS (Reuters) – Turkish demands are posing obstacles to a NATO mission in the Aegean Sea aimed at countering the smuggling of migrants and refugees into Europe, Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said on Friday.
Slovak Prime Minister Fico undergoes heart surgery, in stable condition
BRATISLAVA (Reuters) – Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico underwent heart surgery on Friday and is in stable condition, officials from the National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases said.
At least 10 killed in government air strikes in Syria’s Aleppo: monitor
BEIRUT (Reuters) – At least 10 people were killed in Syrian government air strikes on several areas in the northern city of Aleppo on Friday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group said.
China denies reports of massing troops at North Korea border
BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s Defense Ministry on Friday denied reports that Chinese troops were massing on the North Korean border, ahead of a possible fifth North Korean nuclear test, saying its deployments there were normal.
China could build nuclear plants for South China Sea, paper says
BEIJING (Reuters) – China is getting closer to building maritime nuclear power platforms that could one day be used to support projects in the disputed South China Sea, a state-run newspaper said on Friday, but the foreign ministry said it had not hear…
U.S. to propose Obama visit Hiroshima in late May: Nikkei
TOKYO (Reuters) – The United States will propose that President Barack Obama visits Hiroshima, Japan’s Nikkei newspaper said on Friday, in what would be the first visit by an incumbent U.S. president to the city devastated by a U.S. nuclear attack 71 y…
