PAKISTAN: Pakistan's defense secretary says government troops will complete their
operations against Taliban fighters in the Swat Valley and neighboring
areas in the northwest within the next two or three days.
Secretary of Defense Syed Athar Ali told an annual meeting of defense
officials in Singapore on Sunday that only five or 10 percent of the
operation in Swat, Buner and adjoining areas remains incomplete. But Ali expressed concern about the failure of coalition forces to create stability across the border in Afghanistan.
AFGHANISTAN: The Afghan military says at least 30 Taliban militants and nine Afghan
soldiers have died in two days of fighting in northwestern Afghanistan. The Afghan Defense Ministry said the deaths occurred on Friday and
Saturday as Afghan troops backed by international forces try to secure
an area of Badghis province. Military officials said four other Afghan soldiers went missing during
fierce fighting that began Friday in the province's Bala Murghab
district.
BURMA-SUU KYI: Burma says it had no choice but to prosecute detained opposition leader
Aung San Suu Kyi for sheltering an American man who made an uninvited
visit to her lakeside home.
Burma's Deputy Defense Minister, Major General Aye Myint, said Sunday
that Aung San Suu Kyi, in his words, "committed a cover-up of the truth
by her failure to report an illegal immigrant to the authorities."
The general told regional security officials gathered at an annual
summit in Singapore that the trial is an internal affair of Burma and
he warned other countries not to interfere.
Earlier Sunday, British Minister for International Defense and Security
Ann Taylor told the summit that Aung San Suu Kyi has support from
people around the world and should be released.
SOKOR POL: South Korean anti-government protesters have clashed with police in
Seoul a day after huge crowds attended a public funeral for former
President Roh Moo-hyun.
Police in riot gear clashed Saturday with supporters of the late
president and members of labor unions and who rallied late into the
night. More than 70 demonstrators were arrested.
Many South Koreans blame the conservative government of current
President Lee Myung-bak for Mr. Roh's suicide last week because of what
they claim was a politically-motivated corruption probe into the
liberal former president.
More than 20,000 police were deployed on the streets of the capital to
prevent anger over Mr. Roh's death from building into mass
anti-government unrest
SOKOR_ASEAN: South Korea has prepared heavy security measures for a summit with
Southeast Asian leaders that opens amid strong tensions with the North.
About 5,000 police officers are guarding the summit venue on the resort island of Jeju off the country's southern coast.
Officials said a surface-to-air missile launcher and equipment to
detect a chemical weapon attack have been positioned near the site of
the two-day summit.
South Korea's Yonhap news agency said destroyers and patrol boats have
been stationed around the island ahead of the start of the summit
Monday.
Heads of state from the 10 members of the Association of Southeast
Asian Nations are gathering for a summit to commemorate 20 years of
relations between South Korea and ASEAN.
