IN BRIEF (Page 12)

China

Foreign Ministry lauds Syria talks

Talks between the Syrian government and the opposition are an important step toward a political settlement of the Syrian issue, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said on Tuesday. Representatives from the two sides were scheduled to continue talks on Tuesday, UN-Arab League Special Envoy to Syria Lakhdar Brahimi said on Monday.

India

Military signs deal with Japan

India is set to become the first country since World War II to buy a military aircraft from Japan, helping Prime Minister Shinzo Abe end a ban on weapons exports that has kept his country's defense contractors out of foreign markets. The two countries are in broad agreement on a deal for the ShinMaywa Industries amphibious aircraft, which could amount to as much as $1.65 billion, Indian officials said on Tuesday.

Kenya

Smuggler gets record sentence

A Kenyan court slapped a record sentence on a Chinese ivory smuggler on Tuesday, the first person to be convicted under tough new laws designed to stem a surge in poaching. Tang Yongjian, 40, was ordered to pay 20 million shillings ($233,000) or serve a seven-year prison sentence. Tang was arrested last week after a 3.4-kg ivory tusk was found in his suitcase as he travelled from Mozambique to China via Nairobi.

United States

Folk singer Pete Seeger dies

Pete Seeger, who helped create the modern US folk music movement, wrote and co-wrote enduring songs like If I Had a Hammer and in turn became a leading voice for social justice, died on Monday at the age of 94. He was variously hailed in social and traditional media as a "hero" and "America's conscience". He was well-known for his liberal politics, working as an environmentalist, and protesting against wars from Vietnam to Iraq.

Russia

Neo-Nazi leader held by police

A notorious Russian neo-Nazi activist who has targeted migrant workers and gay people has been detained in Moscow on a hate crime charge after being deported from Cuba. Maxim Martsinkevich, nicknamed "The Hatchet", faced questioning by investigators on Tuesday after flying back on Monday evening, said a spokeswoman for Moscow's Investigative Committee. The 29-year-old ultranationalist, who has been charged with inciting hatred, faces up to five years in prison.

Xinhua-Reuters-AP-AFP

(China Daily 01/29/2014 page12)