Virtual Information Center

Taiwan's Ex-Intelligence Chief Gets 10-Year Jail Term On Graft

VIC Author — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 18:34:34 GMT

A Taiwanese court on Thursday sentenced a former intelligence chief to 10 years in prison for his involvement in a corruption scandal implicating ex-president Chen Shui-bian. Former Bureau of Investigation director Yeh Sheng-mao was convicted of influence peddling, concealing documents and leaking secrets to Chen while he was president, said an official at the Taipei district court. Yeh was also found guilty of leaking secrets to a lawmaker in a separate case and received a combined 10-year imprisonment, the official said. The court refused Yeh bail while he decides whether or not to appeal against the ruling.

Russia May Lease India Nuclear Subs - Medvedev

VIC Author — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 18:32:51 GMT

MOSCOW (Reuters) - President Dmitry Medvedev said on Thursday Russia might lease out nuclear-powered submarines to India as part of deepening defence ties. Medvedev, talking to Indian Television before a visit to India, also said Moscow stood ready to help with the investigation of militant attacks in Mumbai that killed 171 people and with broader questions of fighting terrorism. India, which is nuclear armed, has blamed the attacks on groups based in neighboring Pakistan, which also has atomic weapons. The two countries have fought three wars since independence from Britain, but appear at pains to avoid any conflict over the Mumbai events. "We are prepared for cooperation on all fronts with the aim of preventing such terrorist attacks, in the investigation of the recent terrorist attack and the creation of a global defence system against terrorism in the world," Medvedev said, in a transcript of the interview published on the Kremlin Web site.

Zardari Pledges "Strong Action" On Terrorists After Mumbai Attacks

VIC Author — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 18:29:39 GMT

Pakistan on Thursday promised US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice that it would take "strong action" against anyone on its territory found to have been involved in the Mumbai attacks. President Asif Ali Zardari told the top US diplomat, on a lightning visit to Islamabad, he was determined that Pakistan would not be used to orchestrate attacks or shelter terrorists such as those who committed last week's outrage. With tensions rising between the two countries since India said that all the attackers in the brazen assault, which left 188 people dead, had come from Pakistan, Zardari reiterated an earlier pledge to help probe the Mumbai attacks.

Indian Opposition Demands Action Against Pakistan

VIC Author — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 18:27:31 GMT

The leader of India's main opposition party urged the government to "avenge the repeated terror attacks" and hit back at arch-rival Pakistan, the Press Trust of India said on Thursday. Speaking a week after coordinated Islamic militants in Mumbai -- which India has blamed on a Pakistan-based group -- Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief Rajnath Singh said patience had run out. "The government should consider taking some measures against Pakistan. Enough is enough. There is a need to avenge the repeated assault on our people and democracy," he was quoted as saying by PTI. He said the Hindu nationalist BJP would back government plans to increase security after the assaults, during which militants laid siege to hotels and other sites in the city for 60 hours. The attacks left 172 people dead, according to official figures.

Indian Airport Alert After Threat

VIC Author — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 18:24:28 GMT

Indian authorities have put three major airports on high alert after a threat of possible militant attacks. The alert was prompted by an email purportedly from the Deccan Mujahadeen, the previously unknown group which claimed the Mumbai attacks. The latest email threatened an attack on the air transport system - security has been tightened at airports in Delhi, Madras (Chennai) and Bangalore. At least 188 people were killed in attacks over several days in Mumbai. India says the attackers had links to Pakistan. It denies any role and has cast doubt on the allegations.

US, North Korea Envoys Head Into Singapore Talks

VIC Author — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 18:22:27 GMT

The top US nuclear negotiator began talks with his North Korean counterpart in Singapore Thursday hoping for clarification on how to verify disarmament of the North's weapons programmes. Christopher Hill was in consultations with North Korean envoy Kim Kye-Gwan, a US embassy spokesman said. "Yes, they are meeting at the US embassy," he said. The United States and North Korea differ on what was agreed when Hill made a trip to Pyongyang from October 1-3 to try to save a shaky February 2007 disarmament deal. After reaching an apparent agreement on verification procedures, the US announced it would drop the North from a terrorism blacklist, and the North reversed plans to restart its plutonium-producing nuclear plants. However, North Korea, which tested an atomic weapon in October 2006, insists it never agreed to samples of atomic material being taken away.

Thai King Mildly Ill, Says Crown Prince

VIC Author — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 18:14:52 GMT

Thailand's revered king failed on Thursday to make a traditional birthday-eve speech because he is ill, his children said, ending hopes that he might offer guidance amid a long-running political crisis. King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who turns 81 on Friday and is the world's longest reigning monarch, pulled out of the address to the nation at the last minute as millions of Thais tuned in their radios. The unprecedented step came a day after protesters ended an eight-day occupation of Bangkok's airports, following a court ruling that dissolved Thailand's ruling party and forced out the prime minister. "His Majesty the King is mildly sick," Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn said in brief comments as 20,000 people waited at Chitralada Villa, the king's official residence in Bangkok. Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn, the king's daughter, said in the same broadcast that his condition was "not serious", adding that he "has a blockage in his throat and has poor appetite".

Thai Police Say Protesters Left Bombs At PM's Office

VIC Author — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 18:13:06 GMT

Thai anti-government protesters left home-made bombs and molotov cocktails at the prime minister's office in Bangkok at the end of a three-month siege of the complex, police said on Thursday. Officials also said three cars and jewellery had disappeared from Government House during the occupation by the People's Alliance for Democracy, although one anonymous donor paid off a big water bill. PAD demonstrators took over the complex in late August and vacated it on Monday to reinforce a blockade of Bangkok's airports. They ended all protests after a court ousted Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat on Tuesday. "Police found a number of molotov cocktails, homemade bombs, clubs and machetes around Government House this morning," Major General Anan Srihiran, of Bangkok Metropolitan police, said.

Bangkok Airport To Resume Normal Operations On Friday

VIC Author — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 18:09:01 GMT

Bangkok's international airport will resume normal operations from Friday after anti-government protesters lifted a blockade, a spokeswoman said as more flights left the terminal. More than 40 flights were set to leave Suvarnabhumi Airport on Thursday morning although passengers must still check in at a downtown Bangkok conference centre for the rest of the day. The first flights for eight days took off from the airport on Wednesday after demonstrators abandoned their vigil in the wake of a court verdict that stripped the prime minister of his post and disbanded the ruling party. "We have set 11 am (0400 GMT) as the time we will return to normal operations at Suvarnabhumi," a spokeswoman for the country's airport agency told AFP. On Thursday morning Thai Airways will operate 24 international flights while private-run Bangkok Airways is sending 18 flight plans for both domestic and international routes.

Dozens Dead Or Missing In Philippines Floods

VIC Author — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 18:06:19 GMT

Twenty-nine people are dead or missing and around 50,000 have been left homeless as widespread flooding hit the eastern seaboard of the Philippines, rescuers said Thursday. Heavy monsoon rains this week flooded 48 towns and cities on the eastern coast of the main islands of Luzon and Mindanao, bringing misery to more than 400,000 people, the civil defence office here said. Thirteen people drowned in Cagayan, Isabela, and Aurora provinces while another person died from severe dehydration in Cagayan. Fifteen others are missing -- 12 in Camarines Norte province and three in Isabela, it said in a report. The rampaging waters wrecked nearly 10,000 houses and nearly 24,000 people remained at more than 100 temporary government shelters, it said. Nearly 113,000 other people needed other forms of emergency assistance, it added.

PM Rudd Says Australia Seeks Closer Security Ties With Asia

VIC Author — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 18:03:23 GMT

Australia is seeking stronger ties with regional states to counter security concerns raised by the dawn of the Asia-Pacific century, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd told parliament on Thursday. Canberra wants to expand its security cooperation with growing Asian giants China and India as well as with regional partners including Japan, South Korea, Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore, Rudd said. "While the likelihood of conflict between the major powers is currently low, their interactions still largely shape the international order in which Australia must operate," Rudd said. Presenting the first in a regular series of national security statements, Rudd announced the appointment of former Special Forces commander Duncan Lewis to the new post of national security adviser. Plans to create a department of homeland security had been ditched as too bureaucratic and Lewis would instead improve coordination among existing national security agencies.

Hundreds Quit Estate After North Korea Tightens Border Curbs

VIC Author — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 18:31:46 GMT

Hundreds of South Koreans working at a Seoul-funded industrial estate in North Korea pulled out on Tuesday after the communist state imposed tight border controls, officials said. The South's unification ministry said 431 southerners whose permission to stay in the estate was withdrawn had returned home as of Tuesday afternoon. Seventy more were due to return late Tuesday or Wednesday. South Korea, which says the restrictions will hit production at the showpiece Kaesong estate, appealed to the North for talks "at any time, any place and at any level" to settle differences. The border clampdown which began on Monday follows months of angry protests by Pyongyang against Seoul's new firmer policy on cross-border ties.

Hill: Oil Aid For N.Korea Without Japan Possible

VIC Author — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 18:30:06 GMT

The chief US negotiator to the 6-party talks says other nations will be able to shoulder Japan's quota of oil aid for North Korea while Japan stays out of that program because of the abduction issue. Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill made the remark in an interview with NHK in Tokyo, ahead of his visit to Beijing for a new round of talks. He said that the 4 relevant nations have provided much oil to North Korea in compliance with a previous agreement on aid in exchange for the North's declaration of its nuclear programs. Hill also referred to North Korea's refusal to allow samples to be collected from its nuclear facilities.

SKorean Defense Ministry Braces For Provocation By NKorea

VIC Author — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 18:27:50 GMT

South Korean troops are on guard against any military provocation by North Korea after the communist state ordered a border clampdown amid worsening ties, the defense ministry said Wednesday. The North on Monday imposed strict border controls and ordered the expulsion of hundreds of South Koreans working at the Kaesong joint industrial estate, in protest at what it calls the Seoul government's confrontational policy. It also halted a cross-border cargo rail service and a popular day tour. "In response to the North's December 1 measure, surveillance and control operations are being stepped up against (any) naval attacks and attempts to kidnap fishing boats," the ministry said. Special training programs are also being implemented to cope with "contingencies" along the heavily fortified land border, it said in a report to parliament.

Nations Sign Cluster-Bomb Ban,US And Russia Refuse

VIC Author — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 18:25:33 GMT

Scores of nations began signing a treaty banning cluster bombs Wednesday in a move that supporters hope will shame the U.S., Russia and China and other non-signers into abandoning weapons blamed for maiming and killing civilians. Norway, which began the drive to ban cluster bombs 18 months ago, was the first to sign, followed by Laos and Lebanon, both hard-hit by the weapons. Norwegian Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere said he expected about 100 of the world's 192 U.N. member nations to sign by the end of the conference on Thursday. He said 125 countries were represented, but not all would sign. Cluster bomblets are packed by the hundreds into artillery shells, bombs or missiles that scatter them over vast areas. Some fail to explode immediately. The unexploded bomblets can then lie dormant for years until they are disturbed, often by children attracted by their small size and bright colors.

Taiwan's Air Force Denies Transporting Cash For Ex-President

VIC Author — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 18:23:32 GMT

Taiwan's air force on Wednesday denied allegations that it assisted former president Chen Shui-bian by smuggling cash, as a money laundering probe into the detained Chen's activities continued. "The air force abided by the rules strictly to operate the presidential jet and didn't do anything outside the law," it said in a statement. The comment came after fresh accusations that Chen used the presidential jet to smuggle US$5.17 million in cash to the Pacific Ocean island of Palau during a state visit there in 2006. Kuomintang lawmaker Chiu Yi, one of the first politicians to allege Chen's role in taking bribes, money laundering and embezzlement, made the claim on Taiwanese television that the money was stashed aboard the jet when it departed for the state trip. Chen's office has flatly denied the allegations and has threatened to sue political commentator Sisy Chen for making similar claims last week in a column for the Apple Daily newspaper, for what it regards as a smear against the ex-leader.

Dalai Lama Not Likely To Visit Taiwan For Now: President Ma

VIC Author — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 18:21:08 GMT

Taiwan's President Ma Ying-jeou on Wednesday made it clear that Tibet's spiritual leader the Dalai Lama is not likely to visit the island for now, as Taipei's ties with Beijing improve. "Religious leaders are welcome to visit Taiwan... but I think at the current moment, the timing is not appropriate for that," Ma told members of the Taipei Foreign Correspondents Club, without going into details. His remarks came after the Dalai Lama voiced his desire to visit Taiwan in a recent interview with a local newspaper in Dharamsala, the town in northern India where his exiled government had been based since a failed uprising in 1959.

Russian Warship To Cross Panama Canal

VIC Author — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 18:18:00 GMT

The Russian navy said Wednesday one of its warships would sail this week through Panama Canal — a symbolic projection of Moscow's power to the U.S. zone of influence. It will be the first time since World War II that a Soviet or Russian military vessel crosses the canal, Russian navy spokesman Capt. Igor Dygalo said. The destroyer Admiral Chabanenko will arrive Friday at the Rodman naval base in Panama's port of Balboa for a six-day visit after carrying out joint maneuvers with the Venezuelan navy, Dygalo said in a telephone interview. The Panama Canal has long been a symbol of U.S. influence in Latin America.

US Presses Pakistan Over Mumbai

VIC Author — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 18:15:09 GMT

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has said that Pakistan must act "fully and transparently" in efforts to bring the Mumbai attackers to justice. "Pakistan has a special responsibility to do so," she told reporters in Delhi. India says the attackers, who killed at least 188 people, have links to Pakistan, which denies any role. Meanwhile thousands of people have held a rally in Mumbai in protest at the attacks, many angry at the Indian government for failing to prevent them. Separately, Mumbai's police said they had defused explosives left by militants in the main train station. Last week's attacks at multiple locations in Indian's financial capital stunned the country, with many describing it as India's 9/11.

US Military Chief In Pakistan Amid Tension With India : Embassy

VIC Author — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 18:12:37 GMT

The chief of the United States military arrive dhere for talks to address simmering tensions between Pakistan and India over the Mumbai terror attacks, a diplomat said on Wednesday. Admiral Michael Mullen, the chairman of the US joint chiefs of staff, will meet Pakistani government officials and his counterparts in the military on what is his second visit to the country since September, US embassy spokesman Lou Fintor told AFP. Mullen arrived in Islamabad on Wednesday as US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice flew into New Delhi to show solidarity and help reduce tensions between India and nuclear rival Pakistan. A State Department official said Rice would pressure the two US allies -- who have fought three wars since their 1947 independence from British rule -- to cooperate in combating terrorism.