UK calls for G8 financial aid for 'Arab Spring'

The UK is giving £110m over four years for political and economic development in North Africa and the Middle East.

At the two-day G8 summit in France, the UK and US are pushing for other pledges of financial support.

Mr Cameron said the summit should send a message to the countries of the Arab Spring that "we are on your side".

The £110m from the UK will come out of the existing Department for International Development budget.

The money constitutes the UK's contribution to calls for the G8 group of leading industrialised nations to do all they can to encourage the so-called Arab Spring.

China firmly opposes remarks against one-China principle: FM spokeswoman

Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu said late Tuesday that China firmly opposes remarks and actions against one-China principle.

There is only one China rift goldin the world and Taiwan is part of China's territory. "This is China's consistent and clear stance on the Taiwan issue, and is also a fact recognized by the international community including the United States," Jiang said in a statement.

"We firmly oppose remarks and actions of some Americans who ignore the fact while violating the one-China principle," Jiang added.

Jiang made the statement in response to a recent comment by Richard Bush, former chairman and managing director of the "American Institute in Taiwan."

Bush reportedly said at a seminar that the fact that the People's Republic of China governs the mainland could notera goldt defy the existence of "the Republic of China" since 1912.

According to media reports, Bush said if Beijing accepted it, the "two-China concept" raised by the United States decades ago could be applied to the relations across the Taiwan Strait.

Weather, earth and people

The major cold has already arrived in Beijing, and that means the New Year is coming. Traditional Chinese medical science pays attention to treatment focusing three factors—the weather, earth and people. People’s activities and body conditions are closely related with the weather and need to be adjurift goldsted according to the changes in weather. The twenty four solar terms are the treasure of Chinese culture. Major cold is the last solar term of one year, but it is the beginning of a new year’s circulation. Therefore, it is very important for people to pay attention to their health during the coldest time of the year.

The vitality—be in a happy mood

It is said that people can resist the frostiness of the severe winter only when they are in good moods and have healthy blood, pulse and energy. Therefore, people should keep good moods and avoid excessrift platinumive delight or sadness. Especially for the elderly, keeping smooth and mild moods can reduce the risk of heart and brain disease.

Mr. Zhu writes poetry to raise the generous birds

The roar of the spring thunder comes on the day of the Awakening of Insects, giving baby swallows quite a scare! These baby sparrows’ parents are flying out. In the sky I saw two adult sparrows with a worm in their beaks, darting through the air. They are looking for a perfect place to build a nest. I’m so sad that these two sparrows are not those baby sparrows’ parents In the evening the sparrow parents still have not returned, leaving their baby sparrows waiting alone for food. A weak chirping sound comes from the nest. The next morning I found that these two big sparrows didn’t return to their nest; instead they come here to find food for the abandoned baby sparrows. They fly about in the air to bring enough food. As time goes by, baby swallows grow up, flying out of the nest one after another, twittering happily in the sky. They must express thanks to the big sparrows. I feel touched by this scene; sparrows are tiny animals but have the same feelings as humans. Animals can’t speak out their feelings, but I can. I take out my pen and record this story.

About the poet: Jia Dao, a poet of the Tang Dynasty, known by his pen name, Liangxian, was born in Fanyan (now around Beijing city) in 779 and died in 843. In his early years, Jia Dao became a monk with the pen name Wuben. In the winter of the 5th year of Zhenguan period (810) in the Tang Dynasty, he went to Changan (capital of Tang Dynasty) and met Zhangji. In the next spring he went to Luoyang and in there he met Hanyu (a famous poet in Tang Dynasty). Jia Dao’s poetry was highly appreciated by Hanyu. After that, he resumed his secular life and took imperial examinations several times but never succeeded.

Putin to visit China, oil pipeline on agenda

Russian President Vladimir Putin will discuss the possibility of building an oil pipeline from eastern Siberia to China, Russian Ambassador Sergei Razov said in Beijing Thursday morning.

Razov told a press conference that discussions on the feasibility of the construction of an oil pipeline extending from Russia's Skovorodino to the Russia-China border are underway between Transneft of Russia and China National Petroleum Corporation, which are to take charge of the pipeline construction.

The proposed pipeline will be a branch of a planned oil pipeline that runs from eastern Siberia to Russia's Pacific coast.

Lazov said Russia-China cooperation in the field of energy is "very important." He expressed the rift goldhope that during President Putin's visit to China from March 21 to 22, the heads of state of the two countries will reach new agreement on energy development.

Energy cooperation between Russia and China has a broad prospect and bright future, Lazov said.

Lazov andrift platinum Chinese Assistant Foreign Minister Li Hui held a joint press conference on the Year of Russia to be held in China. Russian President Putin and Chinese President Hu Jintao will jointly inaugurate the event in Beijing next week.

Lazov said Russia plans to supply 15 million tons of crude oil to China by railways in 2006. In addition, the two countries are discussing exports of natural gas to China.

Japan Promises to Shut Down Fukushima Reactors By Year's End

Japan says it will shut down reactors at the Fukushima-1 power plant by the end of the year. The announcement comes despite revelations that a natural disaster in March damaged the nuclear facility worse than earlier believed.

Serious troubles continue to beleaguer the operators of the Japanese nuclear power plant in Fukushima prefecture that was crippled by an earthquake and tsunami. But Prime Minister Naoto Kan told parliament Monday the damaged reactors will be shut down sometime this year.

Kan says the timeline for bringing the four damaged reactors into a state of cold shutdown will not be changed. He insists that will happen in six to nine months.

That timetable is consistent with a plan Tokyo Electric Power Company announced one month ago. But since then it has become apparent that the reactors suffered worse damage than earlier thought. The number one reactor, it is now acknowledged, suffered a meltdown soon after the March 11 earthquake and tsunami devastated northeastern Japan.

African Agency Helps Provide Support Necessary for Economic Growth

Africtera golda has been making increasing strides in economic growth over the past two decades. Part of the credit goes to donors and agencies that work to strengthen the governmental and economic structures needed to build modern economies.

Among them is the African Capacity Building Foundation (ACBF), a 20-year-old agency whose board of governors includes representatives of African governments, the World Bank and IMF, the UN Develorift platinumpment Program and the African Development Bank.

The executive secretary of the foundation, Frannie Leautier, says the ACBF works with universities to help train specialists in the public and private sector.