CLINTON - APEC: U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says a high-ranking American
diplomat will travel to North Korea for talks with the isolated regime,
despite this week's naval clash between North and South Korea.
Clinton made the comment Wednesday on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Singapore.
The U.S. State Department announced Tuesday that it has agreed to send
special envoy Stephen Bosworth to Pyongyang in an effort to revive the
six-nation negotiations on the North's nuclear weapons program.
Pyongyang has boycotted the forum since April.
CAMBODIA - THAILAND: Cambodia has rejected a request for the extradition of former Thai
Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who is now visiting the Southeast
Asian nation.
On Wednesday, Thai diplomats presented Cambodian officials with a
request to detain and extradite Mr. Thaksin. He arrived in Cambodia on
Tuesday, where he has been appointed economic adviser to Cambodian
Prime Minister Hun Sen.
Cambodia responded with a diplomatic note rejecting the request.
Mr. Thaksin fled Thailand more than a year ago to avoid a two-year jail sentence for corruption.
OBAMA - ASIA TRIP: U.S. President Barack Obama has a number of issues to discuss with
Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama when they meet in Tokyo later
this week.
The two leaders are expected to discuss the future of east Asia at
their meeting on Friday, including the continuing talks on North
Korea's nuclear program and China's booming economic growth. They are
also expected to discuss military cooperation between the two
countries. Japan announced Tuesday it is pledging $5 billion (over five
years) in new aid for rebuilding Afghanistan, as it ends (in January)
the work of two refueling ships in the Indian Ocean that were
supporting the Afghanistan military effort.
US - ARMY BASE SHOOTING: U.S. President Barack Obama paid tribute Tuesday to the 13 victims of a
shooting rampage last week at the Fort Hood, Texas, military base, and
vowed that the "killer will be met with justice."
Speaking at the memorial service, the president said it is hard to
comprehend the "twisted logic" of the attack, but that "no faith
justifies these murderous and craven acts."
The alleged shooter is a Muslim - Army psychiatrist Nidal Malik Hasan.
The president somberly described each of the 13 victims to the
thousands who gathered for the service at the sprawling military base.
US - SNIPER EXECUTED: The mastermind behind a string of deadly sniper shootings that terrorized the Washington area seven years ago has been executed.
A prison spokesman in (the eastern state of) Virginia says
John Allen Muhammad was put to death by lethal injection Tuesday night.
The spokesman said Muhammad was calm and showed no emotion. He did not
make a final statement.
Several family members of victims, as well as Muhammad's own family and lawyers, attended the execution.
Virginia Governor Timothy Kaine cleared the way for his execution after
denying clemency earlier in the day.
AFGHANISTAN: NATO says military drivers have found the body of one of two U.S.
soldiers who went missing in Afghanistan last week.
In a statement Wednesday NATO said that Afghan and international forces
are still searching for the other missing soldier. The two paratroopers
disappeared on November 4 in Badghis province, a
remote area bordering Turkmenistan. The province's deputy police chief
(Abdul Jabar) said the two soldiers were swept away while trying to
save air-dropped supply boxes that fell into the water.
Twenty-five international and Afghan forces were killed or wounded in
the area last week while searching for the soldiers.
CHINA - ECONOMY: China's trade surplus nearly doubled in October from the previous month as industrial production and retail sales also rose.
Economists say the positive trade figures are a sign the recovery of the world's third-largest economy is strengthening.
Official statistics released Wednesday show China's trade surplus rose
to about $24 billion dollars in October, from $12.93 billion in
September.
China says its exports fell 13.8 percent in October compared to the
same month last year. The decrease was the smallest drop in exports in
10 months.
Listen to our World News for details.
