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Top News

Leaders pave way forward
TOKYO: Premier Wen Jiabao and his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe yesterday agreed on concrete steps to build mutually beneficial strategic ties.

ROK firms promised more access

Top earners are big givers, too

One satellite launched, and another repaired

For logging companies, price of a rainforest equals salt and sugar

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Wen's Visit Japan

Diplomacy, defense top future agenda
TOKYO: China and Japan yesterday pledged to intensify efforts to have more diplomatic dialogue and defensive cooperation apart from high-level economic talks and mutual support for peaceful development.

Chronology of China-Japan ties

Enlisted to nurture friendship

Peking Opera 'builds bridges' with Kabuki

Street talk

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Nation

'Reform' drafts tied to Chen
A mainland official yesterday accused Taiwan leader Chen Shui-bian and the ruling Democratic Progressive Party of being behind the "constitutional reform" drafts proposed by secessionists on the island.

Yangtze Delta architecture at risk, experts say

Movie industry counts cost of online piracy

Help needed to prepare for climate change

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Nation

Organizers planning for a cool expo
SHANGHAI: Visitors to the 2010 Shanghai World Expo are in for a cool experience, according to the event's organizer.

Global drive for China Pavilion design

Factory worker gives gift of life

English spoken here, the capital wants to see and hear

China struggling to get past its translation bottleneck

Across China: HUNAN

Across China: TIANJIN

Across China: BEIJING

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Nation

Bids invited for low-cost properties
Beijing's municipal government is to introduce a bidding system for the contracts to build affordable homes in the capital.

Zhuhai takes birds under its wing

Amateur pilot gets his wings clipped

Expat Corner: Nothing lost in translation

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China Scene

This Sino-Russian cyber love made it to the altar
A 24-year-old man from Central China's Henan Province never dreamt that one day he would marry a Russian girl an airhostess - he got to know from the Internet.

China Scene: North

China Scene: East

China Scene: West

China Scene: Central

China Scene: South

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International

Al-Qaida claims deadly Algiers blasts
Bombs killed 30 people in Algeria's capital yesterday, attacks claimed by Al-Qaida that raised fears the north African oil exporter was slipping back into the intense political violence of the 1990s.

IMF predicts energetic world economy for 2007-08

Around the world: Cuba

Around the world: Iran

Around the world: United States

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International

DPRK ready to move on nuke deadline
The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) says it will start moves to shut its nuclear reactor within a day of receiving millions of dollars blocked for 18 months in a Macao bank, New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson told reporters yesterday.

Science too narrow to explain Creation: Pope Benedict

Theories to explain life's origins

W. Europe set for hot summer: forecaster

Signs of water seen outside solar system

Sarkozy: No deal to protect Chirac from prosecution

Across asia: Thailand

Across asia: Indonesia

Across asia: Malaysia

Across asia: Israel/Palestine

Across asia: East Timor

Across asia: Singapore

Across asia: Bangladesh

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International

Blogging diplomat reveals more than he intended
A British diplomat in Thailand has learned that writing a blog can open the door to some very undiplomatic exchanges on delicate subjects such as his outings in Bangkok's famed red-light districts.

Aimless workers 'wilfing' the web

Photographer is father of Anna Nicole's baby

News Makers: Captive tormented with buffoon Bean

News Makers: Arrested astronaut had bondage photos

News Makers: Fans seek pardon for Doors' Morrison

World Scene: Germany

World Scene: India

World Scene: United States

World Scene: Netherlands

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Comment

'Nail house' episode a fight against plunder
With the demolition of the "nail house" in Southwest China's Chongqing Municipality last Monday, the three-year dispute between a local couple and a real estate developer over compensation came to an end.

Cartoon

Time for compliance

Encourage charity

Accelerate restructuring

Farmers need market data

Forget ranking universities

Freedom to blog is not license to slander

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Opinion

South Asia showing new cooperative spirit
As many South Asia nations still struggle to partake of the benefits of globalization, the recent summit of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) in New Delhi extended the association's potential with widened membership and powerful nations present as observers.

Letters and Blogs

Time to expose censors of climate change

From our archives

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Insight

Darfur crisis needs world's helping hand
The crisis in Darfur is humanitarian in nature, and ought to be treated as such. The root cause of the problem there is poverty, and the world should join hands to alleviate it. China is well aware of its responsibility in the international arena and has played a key role in persuading Sudan to be more flexible on former UN secretary-general Kofi Annan's peace plan. It will continue to do whatever it can to restore peace and stability in Darfur, and strive for its development.

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Business

China weighs US plea for dialogue
China is studying the US request for consultations over intellectual property rights at the World Trade Organization (WTO), said the Ministry of Commerce.

Opportunities ahead for Sino-Japanese cooperation

FTA talks begin in Beijing

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Business China

Danone threatens legal action against Wahaha
SHANGHAI: French food giant Group Danone SA has notified the founder of Chinese partner Wahaha that it intends to take legal action against the firm, a company executive said yesterday.

Tax rebate cut to slow steel sector

PetroChina unveils CSR report

Machine tool-maker to build two more centers

Realty continues sturdy growth

IN BRIEF (Page 14)

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Business Indepth

Local firms losing time to foreign watchmakers
About 40 years ago, most Chinese dreamed of owning a Shanghai-branded watch. Nowadays, made-in-China timepieces no longer feature on Chinese wish lists.

Country Garden IPO gets warm response

Search engines a better driver of online sales

Biz Scene: Market

Biz Scene: Biz Unusual

Biz Scene: Grapevine

Biz Scene: Local

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Business International

'Nerd' cashes in on junk
In the first purchase of his collection, Sellam Ismail loaded the trunk of his car with old computers he stumbled upon at a flea market for $5 apiece. Soon he had filled his three-car garage with what others would consider obsolete junk.

Russia gets ready for Martha makeover

IN BRIEF (Page 16)

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Life Travel

Once upon a time in Almeria
ALMERIA, Spain: "What was he thinking?" That's my first impression upon seeing the Desierto de Tabernas, in Spain's southeastern Almeria region. The only semi-desert in Europe, Tabernas averages only three days of rain annually, and with temperatures reaching 45C in summer, it can seem a stark, unwelcoming place. But for 15 years, beginning in the early 1960s, it served as a Mecca for filmmakers.

Big Man's burgers are turning Japanese

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Life Pulse

The Mighty Peking Ducks
Silence fell upon the China World Shopping Mall in Beijing's CBD area as it neared closing time one Saturday night. However, the LeCool Ice Rink on the underground floor, still bustled with twirling and jumping skaters. Some were seizing the last minutes of operating hours to practice dazzling movements for an upcoming amateur figure skating competition to be held at the rink.

Waxing lyrical about the apple of temptation

Reviews: DVD

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Sports China

Retired athletes struggle for survival
Renting a small room on the outskirts of Beijing and earning just 300 yuan ($37.5) per month from a stand in a farmer's market, runner Ai Dongmei has stirred up a debate about the lives of retired professional athletes after announcing her decision to make ends meet by selling her medals.

Singapore champion Liang chasing home win in Shanghai

Score board

IN BRIEF (Page 22)

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Sports

Ferguson hails greatest European night
MANCHESTER, England: Sir Alex Ferguson believes Manchester United's 7-1 Champions League demolition of Roma proves they have the strength to win the treble.

Top Shot

We'll need luck against Liverpool, says Mourinho

Hornets sting Clippers, stay in hunt

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Sports

S. Africa blow Windies apart
BRIDGETOWN, Barbados: West Indies captain Brian Lara apologized to fans after his team's World Cup hopes were shattered by South Africa in their Super Eights match at the Grenada National Stadium Tuesday, before announcing his impending retirement from the one-day game.

Detoxed Maradona ends hospital stay