IN BRIEF (Page 9)

MALAYSIA

Saudi confirms donation to Najib

Saudi Arabia's foreign minister said $681 million banked into the Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak's bank accounts was a "genuine donation". Najib's office said on Friday that the confirmation by Adel Al-Jubeir vindicates Najib against allegations that the money was siphoned from heavily indebted state investment fund 1MDB. Najib has been battling allegations that the money was funneled from 1MDB into his accounts.

BRAZIL

Leader loses effort to avoid impeachment

Brazil's Supreme Court on Friday rejected a last-ditch attempt by President Dilma Rousseff to halt the impeachment process against her, clearing the way for a key vote in Congress. If the vote passes on Sunday, the Senate will have authority to open a trial against Rousseff. If the Senate finds her guilty with another two-thirds vote, she would be forced from office. The leader's grip on power is fast slipping, leaving Brazil in crisis at a time of major recession and less than four months before Rio de Janeiro hosts the Olympics.

UNITED STATES

Kerry: Navy ship could have fired

Under US military rules of engagement, the Navy ship that Russian military jets buzzed in the Baltic Sea this week could have opened fire, Secretary of State John Kerry said on Thursday. The guided-missile destroyer USS Donald Cook reported that pairs of Russian Su-24 attack planes made numerous close-range passes on Monday and Tuesday. The planes appeared to be unarmed. On at least one occasion, an Su-24 came within an estimated 9 meters of the ship.

BELGIUM

Minister resigns for lax airport security

Belgium's transport minister has resigned after a secret European Union report detailing lapses in airport security oversight was leaked in the wake of the March 22 bombings at Brussels Airport and subway.The confidential EU document from last year was made public by two Belgian opposition parties. It says the oversight of security measures at the nation's airports was flawed and cited serious deficiencies in the way safety checks are managed.

VENEZUELA

Govt changes clocks again to save power

Venezuela's government is changing the clocks again as part of its efforts to deal with an electricity crisis, although it's not giving any details of what is planned. The move comes nine years after Venezuela created its own, unique time zone. The late president Hugo Chavez turned back Venezuela's clocks by a half hour in 2007, to make afternoons a little longer. The move put Venezuela's time 4.5 hours behind Greenwich Mean Time.

(China Daily 04/16/2016 page9)