Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has arrived in Beijing, starting his two-day visit to China.

Putin is set to hold meetings with his counterpart, Premier Wen Jiabao, as well as President Hu Jintao and top legislator Wu Bangguo.

Putin and Wen are expected to discuss bilateral trade, energy deals and certain projects in science and military technology.

During Putin's visit, the two sides are also expected to hold talks aimed at advancing energy deals.

 

 

Two Chinese sailors still missing: FM

China's Foreign Ministry says two Chinese sailors remain missing after their cargo ships were hijacked last week on the Mekong River in northern Thailand.

Xinhua News Agency earlier cited Thai authorities saying that all 13 Chinese crewmen were dead.

However, Thai investigators later said two of the 13 bodies they recovered did not belong to Chinese sailors.

Thai authorities have identified the killers as a local drug ring.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry and Southwest China's Yunnan province have started an emergency mechanism to deal with the follow-up work.

 

 

Egypt military council orders swift probe into Cairo violence

Egypt's ruling military council has ordered an inquiry into Sunday's clashes in Cairo that killed 25 people and injured over 300 others.

Sunday's demonstrations were sparked after Muslim radicals tried to destroy a Coptic Christian church last week.

At an emergency meeting in Cairo, the ruling military council ordered the formation of a fact-finding committee. 

Presidential candidate Amr Moussa says there must be procedures to deal with the current situation.

"This is a crisis of great proportions; it could end in civil clashes, and could lead to dire consequences. There must be procedures; we are talking about an immediate fact-finding committee with immediate results and it is imperative that this matter does not happen again."

Tensions between Coptic Christians and Muslims in Egypt have increased since the February uprising.

 

 

Gaddafi forces "cornered" in Sirte

Libya's interim government forces say they have pro-Gaddafi troops "cornered" in two small areas of Sirte.

One commander of the NTC says they have backed the Gaddafi loyalists into about 2 sq km of land near the sea.

Heavy fighting however is continuing in Sirte, the home town of fugitive former leader Muammar Gaddafi, as the loyalists put up fierce resistance.

 

 

NATO to stay in Libya as long as it takes: Rasmussen

Meanwhile, the head of NATO says the alliance is to remain deployed in Libya as long as there are threats to the local civil population.

However, NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen also says NATO's mission in Libya is close to its end.

He says the alliance is ready to conclude its operation as soon as the situation on the field requires it.

 

 

China to inspect offshore oil businesses after oil spill disaster

The Chinese government is planning to launch a nationwide campaign this weekend to inspect the country's offshore drilling and exploration.

The move is designed to try to prevent future oil spills. 

The joint inspection by 6 government departments comes after this summer's spill in Bohai Bay which polluted some 55-hundred square kilometers of the ocean.

The 3-week inspection will check virtually everything involved in offshore oil operations, including both Chinese and foreign operations in Bohai, the East China Sea and the South China Sea.

 

 

Crane collapse kills five, injures one in NW China

Five people are dead and one injured after a crane collapsed in northwest China's Gansu Province.

The accident occurred late last night in a wind power equipment company in Jiuquan.

The arm of the crane broke and fell down during operation, crushing five workers to death.

 

 

Rescuers search for 14 missing mountain climbers in SW China

Rescuers are searching for 14 mountain climbers who have been missing for 12 days since they began their trip in southwest China's Sichuan province.

The group include nine tourists from Shanghai and Zhejiang, one local guide and four porters. 

They lost contact with outsiders since Sept. 30 after they entered the Haizi Ravine, a famous tourist site in the mountainous Aba Prefecture.

 

 

WWI shipwreck found, with tons of silver

A U.S. salvage company has found the sunken wreckage of a second British ship full of silver, this one torpedoed by a German submarine in World War One. 

Odyssey Marine Exploration says it found the remains of the SS Mantola under 2,500 meters of water in the North Atlantic Ocean. 

It was located about 160 km from the site of the SS Gairsoppa shipwreck, which Odyssey discovered last month. 

The Mantola sank on Feb. 9, 1917, after being torpedoed by a German submarine. It was believed to be carrying about 600,000 ounces of silver, based on a claim paid that year by the British Ministry of War Transport. 

That amount would be worth more than $19 million at today's spot market price for silver.