Dalai Lama to visit White House 'later this month' Last Updated: Feb 5 2010 6:29AM WASHINGTON: The Dalai Lama will be welcomed at the White House later this month despite China's anger at the Tibetan spiritual leader's planned meeting with President Barack Obama, an official said on Thursday. The White House also on Friday tried to play down a fierce row on a number of fronts with China, and said it believed that Beijing would continue to help confront Iran's nuclear challenge despite its reluctance to embrace sanctions. (cont)   North Korea to free detained US missionary Last Updated: Feb 5 2010 6:27AM SEOUL: North Korea said Friday it would release a US missionary who crossed into the communist state last Christmas Day on a one-man human rights crusade. Robert Park had expressed "sincere repentance" for his actions, the communist state's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said, without specifying where and when he would be freed. Park, 28 was held by border guards on December 25 after crossing the frozen border river from China in an attempt to publicise rights abuses. (cont)   Thai PM downplays fears of Thaksin's 'People's Army' Last Updated: Feb 5 2010 6:23AM BANGKOK: Thailand's prime minister on Thursday played down threats by a retired general allied to ousted leader Thaksin Shinawatra to form a "People's Army" and topple the government. With Thaksin supporters gearing up for new street protests, General Panlop Pinmanee stoked political tensions by saying that the mooted militia would "bring back peace and democracy". But speaking to reporters, Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said there was no cause for panic. (cont)   Cyclone Oli crosses French Polynesia Last Updated: Feb 5 2010 6:21AM Tropical Cyclone Oli has claimed its first life as it batters French Polynesia. A man on the southern island of Tubuai was reportedly washed out to sea by a wave. The Cyclone is expected to hit the Austral Island group later tonight, and authorities say they will only be able to send help once the bad weather has passed. (cont)   Dalai Lama's meeting with Obama likely to inflame tensions between US, China Last Updated: Feb 4 2010 6:50AM WASHINGTON: The Dalai Lama's office has confirmed that he will be visiting Washington on February 17 and 18. The exiled Tibetan leader is expected to meet US President Barack Obama. However, Beijing has warned President Obama that meeting with the Dalai Lama will damage trust and cooperation. But when President Obama visited China last year, he had told Chinese President Hu Jintao that he would meet with the Dalai Lama. (cont)   US takes new step on India nuclear deal Last Updated: Feb 4 2010 6:48AM WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama on Wednesday certified that India has placed safeguards on its nuclear facilities, taking another step toward full implementation of a landmark cooperation deal. In a memorandum, Obama confirmed that India has formally agreed to provide access to the UN nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), of its civilian nuclear reactors. Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and former US president George W Bush signed the deal in 2008 which allows New Delhi to enter civilian nuclear energy markets for the first time in decades despite its nuclear weapons arsenal. (cont)   Suu Kyi party hopes for deputy's release next week Last Updated: Feb 4 2010 6:36AM YANGON: The detained deputy leader of Aung San Suu Kyi's opposition party in military-ruled Myanmar should be released next week and is set to resume political activities, a party spokesman said Thursday. Tin Oo, 83, vice chairman of the National League for Democracy (NLD), has been detained without trial since he was arrested with Suu Kyi after an attack on their motorcade during a political tour in 2003. "We are waiting and watching. They (the government) have to release him as the continued arrest order finishes next week," NLD spokesman Nyan Win told AFP. (cont)   Defying China, Obama to meet Dalai Lama Last Updated: Feb 3 2010 6:36AM WASHINGTON: The White House said on Tuesday that President Barack Obama will meet with the Dalai Lama, firmly rejecting Chinese pressure to snub him as rows escalate between the Pacific powers. Days after defying Beijing with a 6.4 billion-dollar weapons package for Taiwan, the White House also stood firm on US calls for China to address human rights concerns in Tibet. "The president told China leaders during his trip last year that he would meet with the Dalai Lama, and he intends to do so," White House spokesman Bill Burton told reporters. (cont)   Bomb in Pakistan kills 3 U.S. soldiers, 3 children Last Updated: Feb 3 2010 6:30AM TIMERGARA, Pakistan (Reuters) - Pakistan's Taliban claimed responsibility for a bomb on Wednesday that killed three U.S. soldiers outside a girls school in the northwest of the country and threatened more attacks on Americans. In scenes that have become familiar in the struggle between Taliban insurgents and the state, a young girl trapped below the stones of a collapsed wall cried out for help after the blast. (Cont)   Thailand braces for fresh political instability Last Updated: Feb 3 2010 6:25AM BANGKOK: Thailand is entering a new phase of political turbulence, bracing for a key court ruling on the frozen fortune of ousted premier Thaksin Shinawatra amid rumours of another coup. On February 26 the Supreme Court will decide whether the US$2.2 billion fortune of the telecoms tycoon - frozen in the months after he was deposed in 2006 - can be seized by authorities. And that deadline, concerning a man who still deeply divides Thai society, is stepping up the political pressure. (cont)   China takes swipe at US over Tibet, Taiwan Last Updated: Feb 2 2010 6:42AM BEIJING - China warned President Barack Obama Tuesday not to meet the Dalai Lama and threatened diplomatic reprisals over US arms sales to Taiwan, opening a new front in an escalating feud between the world's top powers. Beijing's tough rhetoric piled pressure on a crucial relationship already severely strained over Google's threat to halt operations in China, which sparked a row over Internet freedom, and a host of trade and currency disputes. (cont)   SKorea watching for possible NKorea missile tests Last Updated: Feb 2 2010 6:39AM SEOUL: South Korea's military was watching Tuesday for any North Korean missile tests after the communist state banned shipping from several more coastal zones in its territory. Pyongyang's move follows a three-day artillery barrage by the North last week that ratcheted up tensions on the Korean peninsula. (cont)   Obama to travel to Indonesia, Australia in March Last Updated: Feb 2 2010 6:30AM WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama will travel with his family to his childhood home of Indonesia and go on to Australia in the second half of March, the White House announced on Monday. "This trip is an important part of the president's continuing effort to broaden and strengthen the partnerships that are necessary to advance our security and prosperity," White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said. (cont)   Sri Lanka president gets extra year in power Last Updated: Feb 2 2010 12:00AM COLOMBO (Reuters) - Sri Lanka's supreme court on Tuesday ruled President Mahinda Rajapaksa can begin his new term in November, giving him an extra year in power after he called polls two years before his first term was to expire. Rajapaksa last week won a new six-year term in a landslide victory, correctly gambling that his popularity after leading Sri Lanka to victory in a 25-year war with the Tamil Tiger separatists in May would carry him. (cont)   China media decries US "arrogance" on Taiwan Last Updated: Feb 1 2010 6:50AM BEIJING: China's state media accused Washington Monday of "arrogance" and "double standards" in going ahead with arms sales to Taiwan, saying Beijing's threat to penalise US companies over the deal was very real. The Pentagon sparked the latest challenge to Sino-US ties under President Barack Obama when it approved the US$6.4-billion sale to Taiwan of Patriot missiles, Black Hawk helicopters, mine-hunting ships and other weaponry. China responded furiously, saying it would suspend military and security contacts with Washington and impose sanctions on US companies involved in the deal. (cont)   Thai general charged, linked to army HQ attack Last Updated: Feb 1 2010 6:47AM BANGKOK - Thai police on Monday charged a suspended senior army officer with illegal arms possession after he was suspected to be linked to an attack on the national army headquarters, an official said. Major General Khattiya Sawasdipol, an outspoken supporter of ousted former premier Thaksin Shinawatra, reported to police in Bangkok to hear the charge, which he denied, Police Colonel Naiyawat Padeumchit said. Officers issued a summons for Khattiya, better known as "Seh Daeng", after searching his house and car in the capital on January 21 and finding the weapons. Two of his aides have already faced the same charge. (cont)   Fiji again extends public emergency regulations Last Updated: Feb 1 2010 6:44AM Authoritites in Fiji have extended the Public Emergency Regulations for another 30 days effective from February 1. The Fiji Village website reports President Ratu Epeli Nailatikau has signed the extension of the regulations under the Public Safety Act. Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama has said previously the regulations will be lifted as soon as a new Media Decree comes into place. (cont)   North Korea fires artillery for third day Last Updated: Jan 29 2010 6:39AM SEOUL: North Korea on Friday fired artillery into the sea near its disputed border with South Korea for a third successive day, Seoul's military said. The communist state fired 20 shells between 7.50am (2250 GMT Thursday) and 11.50am, a spokesman for the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) told AFP. He said shells landed in North Korean waters off South Korea's Yeonpyeong island. They dropped further away from the borderline than on Wednesday and Thursday. Seoul's defence ministry said it is considering shipping more artillery and advanced radar to two border islands in response to the shelling, which began Wednesday near the tense frontier in the Yellow Sea. (cont)   Sri Lankan police raid opposition office as rigging charges mount Last Updated: Jan 29 2010 6:37AM COLOMBO - Police raided Friday the office of defeated presidential candidate Sarath Fonseka as monitors and rights groups criticised the Sri Lankan election that returned President Mahinda Rajapakse to power. The Cinnamon Gardens quarter of Colombo, where Fonseka's office is located, was cordoned off as dozens of commandos from the elite police Special Task Force searched the premises, a witness said. (cont)   Suu Kyi rejects Myanmar minister's comment on her release Last Updated: Jan 29 2010 6:34AM YANGON: Myanmar's detained pro-democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi on Thursday described as "unfair" a minister's comment that she would be released in November as it pre-empted a court decision, her lawyer said. Home Affairs Minister Maung Oo reportedly told a meeting of local officials in central Myanmar last week that the release of the 64-year-old, who has been in detention for 14 of the past 20 years, would come in November. Suu Kyi "said the home affairs minister's comment was totally unfair," her lawyer, Nyan Win, told AFP after meeting her on Thursday. (cont)