Czech President Klaus signs Lisbon treaty

Chinese premier highlights role of sci-tech amid financial crisis

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao has underscored the role of science and technology in promoting the country's sustainable development and weathering the global economic downturn.

Addressing the science and technology community in Beijing, Wen Jiabao said China should be built into an innovation-oriented country and neo-strategic industries should become the leading force in promoting the social and economic development.

He called on scientists to boost research in such neo-strategic industries as the new energy industry, information networking industry, micro-electronics and nanotechnology, life science as well space and ocean exploration.

China's economic recovery helps fuel the region's resurgence: World Bank

The World Bank says China is leading the economic rebound in East Asia and the Pacific which has been surprisingly swift and very welcome.

In its latest regional update, the World Bank says developments in the East Asia and Pacific region remain strongly influenced by China, where the projected increase in GDP this year will offset three quarters of decline in the GDPs of the United States, the Eurozone and Japan.

Shanghai Disneyland Project gets approval

The Chinese government has given the greenlight to the Shanghai Disneyland Project.

The Shanghai municipal government made the announcement Wednesday morning, saying talks have started on details of the project, which has been planned in the Pudong New District of Shanghai.

Speculation about a Disney theme park in Shanghai has been circulating for years.

Local officials say several big state-owned firms in Shanghai would form a joint venture with the Walt Disney Co. to invest in the project.

Russian national dies from A/H1N1 flu in Beijing

A Russian national has died from A/H1N1 flu in Beijing.

Local health authorities confirm the 32-year-old man died Monday afternoon after medical treatment failed.

The Chinese mainland had reported nearly 49,000 cases of the influenza, of whom 118 were in critical conditions.

Beijing blood bank sees shortage due to A/H1N1 flu

Beijing's blood bank has seen dramatic decline in storage as fewer people visit the street blood donation buses due to the cold weather and the A/H1N1 flu epidemic.

The Beijing Red Cross Blood Center says the storage has dropped to 41 percent of the normal level.

Godmother" of underworld in SW China gets 18 years in jail

Organized crime boss Xie Caiping, labeled the "godmother of the underworld" in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality, has been sentenced 18 years in prison.

She was convicted of organizing and leading a criminal organization, running gambling dens, illegal imprisonment, harboring people taking illegal narcotics and giving bribes to officials.

Chinese president congratulates Karzai on reelection

Chinese President Hu Jintao has sent a message to Afghan President Hamid Karzai congratulating him on his reelection.

In his message, Hu Jintao expressed confidence that the Afghan government and people would make new achievements in efforts to peacefully reconstruct their nation and contribute to regional peace, stability and progress.

U.S. says DPRK's plutonium production violated UN resolutions

The United States has accused North Korea of violating UN Security Council resolutions by producing material useable in nuclear weapons.

State Department spokesman Ian Kelly also urged Pyongyang to return to the six- party process.

This came after North Korea said the work of reprocessing of all the 8,000 spent nuclear rods, a key step to increase its nuclear arsenal, had been completed by the end of August in Yongbyon.

Pyongyang said the reprocessing was part of the efforts to "restore the Yongbyon nuclear facilities to their original state" in response to the UN sanctions against it.

Czech President Klaus signs Lisbon treaty

Czech President Vaclav Klaus says he has signed the Lisbon Treaty, the European Union's reform pact.

The Czech Republic was the last EU country to ratify the treaty.

With Klaus's signature, European Commission President Jose Barroso said the Lisbon treaty might take effect in December or January,

US state department official meets Aung San Suu Kyi

US Assistant Secretary of State for East Asia Kurt Campbell has met with Myanmar's house- confined opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi in Yangon.

The meeting was arranged by the Myanmar government. No details are immediately available.

Campbell is another high-ranking US official to have met with Aung San Suu Kyi after Senator Jim Webb, who visited Myanmar in August.

Typhoon Mirinae kills at least 30 in Vietnam

Typhoon Mirinae, the 11th so far this year that hit Vietnam, has killed at least 30 people and left eight missing in country's central provinces.

In Phu Yen province, the typhoon left at least 21 people dead and damaged over 4,000 houses. Thousands of local people are made homeless.