Japan PM Abe meets China’s Xi, says to work for better ties
TOKYO/JAKARTA (Reuters) – Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe held talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of a summit in Indonesia on Wednesday, the latest sign of a thaw between the Asian rivals that came despite an awkward diplomatic…
Egypt’s top businessman Sawiris testifies at Al Jazeera retrial
CAIRO (Reuters) – One of Egypt’s wealthiest businessmen, Naguib Sawiris, testified for the defense on Wednesday at the retrial of two Al-Jazeera television journalists, possibly boosting their standing in a case criticized from abroad.
Mexico’s Congress passes anti-corruption law
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – Mexico’s Congress has approved an anti-corruption law that could help relieve pressure on President Enrique Pena Nieto’s scandal-plagued government.
Wire-tap scandal threatens stability, democracy in Macedonia
SKOPJE (Reuters) – Macedonian magazine editor Mladen Cadikovski received his “file” in a binder — page after page of transcribed telephone calls with colleagues and friends, leaked to him by the country’s opposition leader who is publishing scores of …
Sisi’s crackdown on Islamists yet to win over Egyptian village
KERDASA, Egypt (Reuters) – Egyptian police often raid homes in this rundown village just outside Cairo, residents say — part of a broad crackdown on Islamists that has included the imprisonment of ousted president Mohamed Mursi.
Burundi ruling party to decide if president to seek third term
NAIROBI (Reuters) – Burundi’s ruling CNDD-FDD will hold a party congress this weekend to decide whether President Pierre Nkurunziza will seek a third five-year term, a move that the opposition and diplomats worry could spark fresh unrest.
Spain recalls Venezuelan ambassador over Maduro conspiracy comments
MADRID (Reuters) – Spain called its ambassador to Venezuela back to Madrid for consultation, Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Garcia-Margallo said on Wednesday, after Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro accused the Spanish government of conspiracy against …
Pakistani politicians decry ‘unfair’ change to China corridor
QUETTA, Pakistan (Reuters) – Politicians in Pakistan complained on Wednesday that a plan for projects worth $46 billion to be built with Chinese funding has been unfairly changed to the disadvantage of two provinces.
How the ‘Godfather’ of Lagos could shape Nigeria’s government
LAGOS (Reuters) – “I am a talent hunter. I put talents in office, I help them,” says former Lagos state governor and opposition alliance leader Bola Tinubu, being quite open about his role as one of Nigeria’s most powerful political godfathers.
Hong Kong toes China line with reform package, vows no compromise
HONG KONG (Reuters) – The Hong Kong government published a long-awaited electoral blueprint for selecting the city’s next leader on Wednesday, a plan enshrining China’s desire for a tightly controlled poll that has angered activists and stoked talk of …
